"I do wish you had given me a hint of your mind," said Eovin, without looking at Matei. They were standing in the emperor's bedchamber. The lorekeeper was sorting through the contents of a wooden box, helping Matei to choose a pin to wear in his cravat for the wedding.

Finishing with the buttons on his shirt, Matei looked at Eovin. "Why? Was it of great interest to you which woman I'd marry?"

Eovin gave Matei a serious look. "Do you think it was not?" he asked. He held a jeweled brooch up to the light.

Tugging his cravat into place, Matei studied his reflection. He could not get a handle on these frivolous things. As a boy, he'd worn them only on the most important of occasions, otherwise favoring the high-collared jackets more appropriate to children. Now, he wished he could set all this finery aside in favor of plain tunics and trousers—the casual things only worn in private in the palace. He felt like a pretender in these sumptuous clothes.

He glanced again at Eovin's profile, reflected in the looking glass. The lorekeeper had carefully schooled his expression to calm, but Matei was getting the sense that the man was angry. "If you objected to my wedding to Mhera, why did you not raise a protest when the news was announced?"

"What protest could I give?" Eovin muttered. He had a brooch in either hand now, comparing them. "You had already declared your intentions to the world to marry within a turning of the moon. There was no likely chance that you'd renege."

"Why do you object to her, Eovin? I can tell you're angry." Matei turned from the mirror, fixing the lorekeeper with a curious look. "I thought you loved Mhera. You've always treated her as kindly as a daughter, and you supported her ascent to the throne."

"Whether I care for her or not is not the question, Matei." Eovin held out the brooch in his left hand. "This one, I think; simple enough, and if she's wearing her coronation gown as you said she would, it will echo the shade of blue."

With an amused twist of his lips, Matei accepted the pin and began to work it through the neck scarf. "A clever hand with clothes. I envy you."

"And I envy your ability to jest." Eovin folded his arms.

He really did look severe. As the smile slid off his face, Matei searched his father's expression. "Will you be straight with me? I haven't the time nor the energy to play guessing games."

"She's a Starborn woman, Matei."

Matei smoothed his cravat, glancing at his reflection in the mirror to ensure he had placed the brooch properly. "If you had thought to shock me with the revelation, I'm afraid I must confess I was already aware. I grew up with her, if you'll recall."

"A Starborn woman. And you are the last in the line unbroken, descended from the Blessed Sovereigns themselves."

Dropping his hand, Matei turned back to Eovin. "What?" he asked, stunned.

Eovin would not meet his gaze. "It's not the match I would have chosen for you."

"Then I'm glad you weren't tasked with the choosing. Please tell me I am misunderstanding your meaning."

"You have a sacred duty to preserve the power in your blood. That is all I meant. For generations, our forefathers have taken pilgrimages far afield and—and hidden the truth of their purpose from their very wives to ensure the continuation of our line, and—"

"And you hid the truth from my mother, that's for certain," said Matei.

Eovin fell silent.

"You would have had me wed an Arcborn woman so as not to dilute my holy blood, is that it? The gift of the Blessed Sovereigns?"

"I only wish you had considered..."

Matei held up his hand. He had not yet lost the callouses on his fingers, hard-won from heavy labor and close acquaintance with the handle of a sword. The back of his hand was still bronze from the sun. When he turned it over, he could see the blue veins through the paler skin of his wrist. "I am grateful to our forefathers for preserving the line of the Sovereigns," he said. "But I had not thought to hear such hypocrisy from you."

"I never denied my failures. I never claimed to be blameless."

"And I do not deny my own failures, nor claim to be blameless myself," Matei replied. He reached for the embroidered silver jacket he would wear for his wedding. "I have chosen my bride, Eovin, and I will not be ashamed of her. And if you did not know already, let me tell you now: I will make it my life's work to ensure that neither Mhera's blood, nor mine, will be seen as any holier than what runs in the veins of a pauper in the street. If you ask the High Council, their lordships are the holy ones; if you ask the leaders of the Arcborn rebellion, they are the ones with angels at their right hands. Do you know what I think?"

Eovin stood silent, his gaze searching Matei's face.

"I think we're all of us human—no more, and no less."

"Then we've discussed it, and we will let it lie," Eovin said quietly. He bent his head and focused on doing up the buttons of his jacket, a lock of hair falling over his brow. He smoothed it back as he straightened again. "Shall we go down, Your Grace?"

***

It was not a grand wedding, by the standards of the empire. Things in the city were not yet so good as to allow for a celebration as had been had when Korvan married his sweet young bride, or even when Koren had married Liara. Still, there was music, and though the peace of the city had been ruptured in the aftermath of the war, there were tentative smiles on the faces of the people as they waited in the Sovereign Square. Matei made his way through the path that had been left open for him with an honor guard of twenty soldiers, hoping he looked happier than he felt.

Not everyone who wished to would be able to witness the wedding from within the Imperial Temple; it could only hold so many people. Matei had commanded that one side of the Temple be left open for Arcborn guests. He knew that the marked and the unmarked would divide among themselves, like oil and water, but small things like this would reinforce his aims to raise the status and the lot of the Arcborn. There were places reserved at the front for honored guests, including Rhea, who had been able to speak of nothing but the wedding since the formal announcement of the engagement weeks before. When he took his place at the altar of the temple, he caught Rhea's eye. The pure joy on her face earned the first true smile Matei had given that morning.

At least most people whose opinions mattered to Matei had been happy. Even Uachi had offered congratulations, although Matei had the sense he didn't care overmuch who Matei took to wife. But Eovin's reaction still weighed on him, and there was more to it than his disappointment at his father's reaction.

Matei had defended his decision to Eovin, and he would defend it as adamantly to anyone who dared question his choice of a bride. He had felt justified in calling Eovin a hypocrite in the solitude of his own room but now, walking among the people he had undertaken to rule, Matei felt more a hypocrite himself than Eovin could ever be, because this wedding—this marriage—was a farce, a deception intended wholly to preserve Mhera's freedom and prevent the Starborn nobility from seizing upon any chance to undermine their rule.

In truth, Matei did not look forward to the wedding. To get through the ceremony would be no more difficult than it had been to make it through the coronation, but it was all that came after that would keep him from sleep. It would be a lifetime of pretending.

There would be no true marriage. There would be no issue. There would be no heirs.

Matei had thought about it in the lonely hours of the night, coming to terms with the knowledge that he would never have a true wife in every sense of the word, never sire a child of his own. Had things been different, Matei might have hoped for the blossoming of romantic love between them. He cared for Mhera, after all, and his feelings toward her were growing ever stronger now; her keen mind, her gentle heart, and her bold determination as empress had earned his respect and his admiration.

But Mhera had made it clear that she wanted no husband. Even had she wished to marry, she would never have chosen Matei—not the Rebel King, the man who had taken her freedom and her future, the man who had forced her onto a throne she'd never wanted. They had become something like friends, but Matei knew there could be no tender embraces between them when he had been the cause of so much of her pain.

He was at peace with the terms of their arrangement, and he knew that, although they might not share their hearts or their bodies, the blood-bond between Mhera and him was stronger than any marriage vow.

What do you think of Eovin's thoughts on Matei's choice of a bride?

Are they justified? Why or why not?

Do you think he's hypocritical? 

And what about Matei's feelings toward Mhera? We're seeing more and more of them as the story unfolds...Does this change your perspective on them and their relationship or not? 

Oh, yes: Happy Halloween to those who celebrate! I hope you get bag fulls of your favorite candy. See you back here on 11/2. Don't worry--I'm participating in NaNoWriMo this year, but it will not impact our posting schedule!