It was a rather cloudy day. Ariane pulled up the hood of her cloak. She was glad for the carriage that would protect her against the rain that would undoubtedly fall. Time had gone by so fast. Soon she would be in Tireze again.

Her eyes moved over the people that had gathered in front of the palace. Vara was standing next to the king with lady Eurydice and lord Caius.

Vara's friend Ophelia was saying goodbye to Iolaus.

"Are you ready?"

Ariane looked up at Torcan who smiled at her encouraging. She nodded. "Yes, I am ready."

He held out his arm for her to take. "Time to say goodbye then." He guided her towards the king.

"Lady Ariane." King Marcos smiled at her. "I wish you a safe journey and a pleasant stay in Tireze. Please give my regards to your father and brother."

Ariane curtsied deeply. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

It seemed as if he was going to say more, but in the end he only smiled and nodded at Torcan. "Make sure your prince receives the documents I put up. I will expect his answer soon."

Torcan bowed deeply. "Yes, Your Majesty. I thank you for your hospitality. I assure you Tireze will repay your generosity."

Cyrus walked up to Vara and held her close. "I wish you would come or that I could stay here," he whispered in her ear.

Vara sighed. "You will be back soon enough. Behave while you're there, will you? Don't give them a reason to pull back their men." His breath was against her ear and she felt his lips brush her cheek when he let her go. She suppressed a shiver. She still remembered the feel of his mouth on hers.

Their gazes locked for a moment, but then Iolaus slapped Cyrus' shoulder. "We need to go," he said playfully, but his eyes held a warning. He offered Vara a grin. "Behave while we're gone, Vee, and keep my fiancée out of trouble."

"Oh!" Ophelia gasped, "I take offense to that!"

Iolaus only chuckled and climbed his horse.

Torcan bowed to Vara. "Thank you, my lady, for all you have done. I do hope we will meet again someday."

"As do I," Vara answered, "have a safe journey."

He nodded at her and Vara looked at Ariane. "I hope your stay here so far has been pleasant."

"Yes," Ariane nodded, "thank you. I will look forward to my return and my duties to my husband. I am honored to be part of your family."

"Come, my lady," Cyrus called, "we should go."

Ariane curtsied and stepped into the carriage. In a matter of minutes they were gone, a large entourage following them.

Vara sighed. She wished she could have gone with them. She looked up when the king cleared his throat. He looked at her with a mixture of amusement and annoyance. "It has come to my attention that you have made a promise to young Cicero."

Vara smiled wryly. "I assure you, my king, it is quite innocent."

"Be as it may," the king spoke, "rumors are already spreading. This needs to be handled with care." He gave her a stern look. "I stand by what I said before. With both Cyrus and Iolaus gone, I will assign a guard to you who will go with you wherever you go. Until then, I want you to stay within the palace grounds. You are free to visit Ophelia, but no meeting with the Horas heir until I found you a suitable guard. Or any of the other young men for that matter."

Vara sighed. "Yes, Your Majesty." She watched him retreat inside and was left alone with Ophelia.

Ophelia hooked arms with her friend and offered a sympathizing smile. "It will not be so bad. You can still go as you please. You'll only have someone with you. It is for your safety."

"I know," Vara sighed, "things were so much easier when we were still children."

"Do you really want to spend time with Cicero?" Ophelia asked curiously.

"No," Vara answered, "but what choice do I have? He is not bad company. He just thinks too highly of himself. Ophi, how will I ever know if someone is interested in me and not merely my connection to the throne?"

"I don't know," Ophelia answered honestly, "perhaps you have to be patient. The king gave you a year, did he not? And even if your future husband wants closer ties to the house Aurelios, that doesn't mean you can't be happy with him."

Vara bit her lip. She knew she had told the king she wanted to marry, but in reality she just wanted to be away from Cyrus and Ariane. "I hope you are right," she said.

"Of course I am right," Ophelia teased, "I'm always right. But I am not here to talk about that. I am here to distract you. So, you are coming with me. Let's see how much mischief we can cause."

***

King Marcos waited impatiently for the captain of the guard to arrive. Appointing a personal guard for Vara was easier said than done. Up until now, Iolaus had taken up most of that roll, but now that Cyrus had married, Iolaus' duties would be with Ariane.

He'd need to find someone else to guard Vara. And he needed every soldier at the front.

The door opened and Octavius entered the room. He kneeled on the floor and lowered his head. "You sent for me, my king?"

"Yes," king Marcos nodded, "I am looking for a guard for Vara. Now that Iolaus has left with my son, there is no one I can entrust her safety to. Is there someone you can recommend? Most men will be sent out to fight at the border."

Octavius nodded. "I will select a few of my men, Your Majesty. I will sent them to you before the end of the day."

"Thank you," kind Marcos dismissed him.

Octavius bowed and left the room. As he walked out, a messenger walked in and kneeled. "My lord king, News from the front."

"Speak," king Marcos ordered.

"Thanks to the soldiers from Tireze, we managed to take back the village of Gradua. We found a passage in the mountains the leads around the Balor camp. A handful of men are now trying to attack their flank. We're gaining ground, your Majesty."

"This is good news," king Marcos said, "I didn't expect results this soon."

"The pass is known in Tireze, my king. Merchants use it to safely cross into our lands so they can avoid the mountain tribes."

The king frowned at that information. If merchants knew secret roads into Zeir, then how many spies had found those roads as well? He needed to investigate after the matter, but this was not the time. If the news had come sooner, he could have informed Cyrus before his departure. Perhaps the Tirzé king could shed some light on things.

"Let us hope the mountain tribes haven't discovered the passage as well," king Marcos said, "or we might face an army in our back. Return to your post and instruct the commander to have the passage guarded. We can't afford a surprise attack."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the messenger bowed and left the room.

King Marcos sighed. There was so much that needed to be arranged. Food and medicine had to be send to the army. Taxes needed to be determined again for the upcoming year. Disputes needed to be settled. His lords demanded his attention about trade agreements, new roads and compensation for the men they sent to war.

In times like these, times of unrest and war, he wished he was not the king, that he didn't have to make certain decisions only in the best interest of the land. He wished he could simply retreat and leave the kingdom in the hands of his son.

But Cyrus wasn't ready.

He looked up at the sound of laughter and walked towards the window. Vara crossed the courtyard with Ophelia, their arms linked. When he had first taken her in, he had not foreseen things would turn this way. Should he have known?

Yes, he sighed to himself, he should have realized that growing up together would have consequences. Perhaps that was why he had arranged for Iolaus to be raised at court. Perhaps he had known it would be better for Cyrus to be accompanied by young men his age. Perhaps he should have arranged for that when Cyrus was still a child, but by then Aelia had passed away and Vara had already been adopted into the household. By then it had been far too late, even if the parties involved had not yet realized.

The king shook his head and his eyes followed Vara until she had disappeared around the corner. The girl had made his life richer as well. Her reckless curiosity and disregard for rules had caused many disruptions within the palace. She had a talent for getting in trouble. But she was also intelligent and compassionate. And she could rein in his son whenever he forgot his duties.
He would very much like to see her as his son's advisor, even if she could not openly perform that role. His men would not accept a woman in the council.

King Marcos let his mind go over the many requests he had received regarding Vara. He had promised the choice to her, but he hoped she would choose wisely, a man that would strengthen the throne. Of course he hoped she would become happy, but he had to put the kingdom first. That would always be his priority.

No matter what the costs.

***

Cyrus looked out of the window when the soldier arrived at the palace. In front of him on the horse was a little girl.

When he took a closer look, he recognized her. They had met before. Twice here at the palace and once at the village not long after his mother had died.

What was she doing here? And with his father's soldiers?

An amused smile appeared on his lips when the soldier dismounted. The man turned back to the horse to help the girl down, but she had already swung herself off the horse and had landed in a heap at the soldier's feet.

The man sighed and lifted the girl back on her feet. He said something, but Cyrus couldn't hear the words. He was too far away.

The soldier made his way into the palace with the girl following close behind.

Cyrus tilted his head in wonder and hurried down the corridors to find out where they were going.

He ended up in front of his father's throne room. The doors were closed and he could not hear what was being said.

Cyrus frowned. He wasn't allowed in the throne room when the doors were closed, but he wanted to know why the girl was here.

His curiosity won out and he pressed against the door.

The guard positioned in the hallway barely paid him any attention. Sometimes it was an advantage to be the prince.

The throne room was empty except for three people. The soldier, the girl, and his father the king.

The last one looked up when Cyrus entered the room. Expecting a scolding, Cyrus bit his lip. But the king called for him.

"Come, son. I was wondering how long it would take you to get here."

The girl now turned to him too and Cyrus expected that mischievous smile he had come to know, but instead of smiling, the girl's expression was blank. She looked like he had felt when his mother had died.

Only... her other was already dead. So why...

"I believe you two already know each other," the king spoke. He smiled at the two children, but Cyrus could tell the smile was strained. His father seemed troubled. "Vara will be living with us from now on," the king said, "be kind to her, my son. She will be your companion."

"You should concentrate on the road, my friend," Iolaus interrupted his thoughts, "Vara can take care of herself. You have nothing to worry about."

Cyrus glanced over his shoulder at Torcan, but either the man had not heard, or he was more discrete than Cyrus had given him credit for. He sighed. "What makes you think I was thinking about her?"

Iolaus shook his head and pursed his lips. "You get this look in your eyes, Cyrus. You forget how well I know you."

"Then you should also know I won't get distracted. I know what is at stake."

"Alright," Iolaus ignored Cyrus' annoyance, "I won't bring it up again. Have we reached our resting point yet?"

Cyrus smirked. "Are you tired already? Perhaps I should have given you more chores, work on your condition some more. You are out of shape."

"When we're stopping, I'll show you exactly how out of shape I am," Iolaus told him.

Cyrus smirked. "This is still a delegation, Iolaus. I have to look presentable. I can't arrive at our destination with shredded clothes and dirt on my face."

Iolaus raised an eyebrow and cast his friend an amused smile. "You seem oddly convinced that you will lose. And that against someone that is 'out of shape'. What does that make you then?"

Cyrus narrowed his eyes in annoyance. He had walked into the trap with eyes wide open.

Iolaus chuckled and spurred on his horse. It fell into a light canter. The rest of the group followed. In two days' time they would reach the capitol of Tireze. They would spend tonight in his father's home. Valais was close to the border. He was looking forward to seeing his family again. It had been a long time since he had been home.

Torcan allowed his horse to fall back until he was next to the carriage. This would be his last time escorting Ariane, but he trusted Iolaus' ability to take care of the task in his stead.

It would be strange not having her around. From now on he would be solely responsible for Darius.

He had missed his friend, but it had been a relief too, not having to deal with the man's temper and stubbornness for a while.

Torcan sighed and wondered how much had changed in his absence. It would take some time to readjust. In Zeir, he had been accepted as one of the men. In Tireze, the soldiers looked down on him. It was only Darius' position as crown prince that had kept people at home from openly displaying their disdain. And it was because of Darius he took it all in stride.

He was a man worth following.

Yes, it would be good to be home again.