Page 10 of Stranger's Choice
Shifting a little in an attempt to get comfortable without conceding defeat over the rock, Sebin told Tjalik to wait near the door and settled in for a little eavesdropping. He sipped at the mixture of orange and mango juice in his cup and hoped for someone to say something of interest nearby.
Without Tjalik at his shoulder, people guarded their tongues less around Sebin, but Auraelie’s presence kept them from being completely reckless. Sebin heard mostly general pleasantries and gossip about himself. He watched Auraelie from the corner of his eye as two men discussed him at the next table over.
“Do we know his purpose in Kalitalo?” asked a man a handful of years older than Sebin, named Marsone.
“I was there when he was presented to the Emperor, and they talked about establishing trade deals,” answered a younger man Sebin hadn’t met yet.
“But he’s a prince, not a diplomat, correct?”
“Yes. A prince of one of the kingdoms across the Mladin Ocean. Did you hear that there are multiple kingdoms dividing up their continent?”
“I heard that only one kingdom has anything of value to trade, and it isn’t the one this foreign prince comes from. I wonder that the Emperor even bothers to humor him.”
“His Imperial Majesty assigned one of his Will to wait on the prince. He must think he is worth cultivating.”
Marsone shook his head. “He assigned the oracle. Her presence is a threat, not an honor.”
“I don’t know. She is prettier than most of the Emperor’s Will, and she’s already scanned the prince’s future, so what is the threat now?”
Auraelie closed her eyes as the conversation veered from Sebin to her. He could imagine her mentally counting to ten before she opened them again, her expression schooled to the total blankness of someone trying hard not to react.
Marsone rolled his eyes. “She’s still wearing the dark veil, idiot. If the Emperor wanted to reward the foreigner, she’d don the sheer veil. I admit, if she were wearing the light veil, I’d consider the threat of her magic minor enough to enjoy her presence myself.”
At this, Auraelie blanched. For a second, Sebin feared she might faint. It made him wonder anew what nuances he didn’t understand about the veils.
It didn’t matter what he didn’t understand, though. What he knew and Auraelie’s obvious discomfort were enough to get him moving. He stood and walked away from Marsone and his companion. He couldn’t confront the men, but he didn’t have to subject Auraelie to hearing them talk about her that way.
Feeling guilty, perhaps such speculation was the reason Auraelie was working so hard to make him dismiss her, Sebin decided to give her a free morning. He couldn’t—wouldn’t—dismiss the oracle. Not until he knew for certain why the Emperor assigned her to serve him in the first place. But she stayed by his side from breakfast through supper, without even taking a break for a meal in the middle of the day. He could at least offer her a respite.
“I’m heading to my rooms for the rest of the morning to write a few letters.” Sebin informed Tjalik when the other man fell into step with him. “You are free until luncheon.”
Tjalik bowed and walked away.
Auraelie watched him go with her head tilted to the side.
“Five hells.” Sebin muttered. He had expected the translator to tell Auraelie she was free, too. He should have been more specific. He knew how much Tjalik hated interacting with the oracle.
With Tjalik gone, and Auraelie not knowing why, Sebin was hesitant to return to his suite. After Marsone and the other courtier’s comments, it seemed imprudent to lead the oracle back to his rooms. He walked through the halls without a destination in mind, mulling over his options.
Tjalik’s absence meant he could spend his morning eavesdropping to more effect, but doing anything without his translator nearby sounded unwise.
“Unless you plan to head to the baths, you are going the wrong way,” Auraelie muttered behind him. “And I am not following you to the baths.”
Sebin stopped and inspected the shoulder-high line of decorative tiles—the only thing that differentiated one hall from another in the imperial palace. Sure enough, he had turned down a hall that led only to the baths. That was not any better than heading to his rooms.
“You understand me!”
Five hells. Sebin managed not to react to this newest comment from Auraelie and continued to look around. He could pretend the words had simply brought him out of his reverie and made him notice his surroundings. He did his best impression of an empty-headed buffoon. “This isn’t right, is it?”
It didn’t really matter what he said, but he didn’t plan to make the same mistake so many had in his presence and assume no one could understand him. Besides, it was easier to get the right tone if he actually said the words of the buffoon he was playing.
“Which way back to the main hall?” He pointed the direction he had just been walking. Then he pointed back in the other direction. “This way? Or that?”
Auraelie stood looking up at him, her demure posture momentarily forgotten. “You aren’t fooling me that easily. You understood me.”
Sebin continued to speak in Continental. “This way or that, Auraelie?”
She crossed her arms.
