HAWK & SABLE | TEN

THE FIRST BANQUET was a rowdy, large affair. Officials and nobles gathered around the palace gardens, laughing and chatting. Ciri and Laurence stood off to the side, observing. A few people approached them, exchanging polite words. They did their best to ward them off courteously.

They had targets, of course, as any good spies did. There was the Minister of Finance there with his wife and children, his secretary Miss Ai standing awkwardly nearby. Irina had subtly pointed out every official in the department earlier, and Ciri now balanced them around her head, matching name to face, face to name.

They would all gather here first, before the banquet properly began, when everyone would be seated and conversing with others would be more difficult. Debutantes flaunted their gowns and flirted with handsome young officials. Matrons gossiped behind raised hands, curious eyes darting around the room. Ambitious young men and women struck up conversations with ministers and officials.

"And there comes one of the well-performing accountants," Ciri mused behind a drink. They'd thin down the numbers of potential traitors, and were now seeking high-ranking department members and their most trusted employees. "Lau Kwokming. That name... from Xiang Zhou, yes? It's their dialect. I'll ask Danna about it, maybe."

Laurence eyed him. "Ambitious. Look at his clothing. He dresses above his means. Investigate his background. If his family isn't rich, he's getting money by another way." Like betraying his own country to the Meliqueans.

Ciri squinted. "The robe is a few sizes too big, and I can spot places that have been patched. He considers this an investment."

"Not him, then." It was startling, how alike they thought. Laurence's eyes trailed across the courtyard. "Lord Hua is talking to Miss Ai. Are they acquainted? We could try to ensure Miss Ai's loyalty that way."

Ciri frowned as she watched the two. William was being far too familiar, and Miss Ai wasn't meeting his eye, as if embarrassed. Blinking, she said, "They're lovers."

Laurence let out a curse. "My god," he muttered. "Is he not lovers with the Briar?"

Ciri shrugged. "I don't think she cares. You heard Io's astute observations regarding the two. Lord Hua isn't the sort of person who'd consort with traitors."

"A good traitor would remain hidden," Laurence pointed out.

"William has good instincts, but that is true. This traitor would be very skilled. Miss Ai hasn't worked for Gong daren for very long. Two years, I think. She is very young."

"The leaks only began around a year ago, did they not?" Something he had overheard them discussing. Ciri's face turned carefully blank.

"You should be careful, revealing what information you possess that you should not."

"We're working towards the same goal."

She pursed her lips, displeased. "Perhaps." She took another sip from her cup, perhaps too hastily. Was he just here to gather any information necessary? To see how strong Sai was, and how it would stand against Melique? To bargain for a stronger alliance? She could not discern his motives and it left her very confused. It was something she must discuss with the others soon. Cass would know, being so familiar with the Arecian Secret Services and Laurence himself. Ciri, who spent little time working with, against or for Arecia, had not a single clue. Lady Kuroki liked to joke that the Arecian court wasn't dangerous enough to send agents of her caliber in. Ciri was inclined to agree. When Epimur was fighting with Arecia and all those other countries twenty years ago, she might have belonged there.

It had been brimming with emigres running from the guillotines and chaos of Epimur back then. Cadieux of the Arecian Services was one of them. Laurence, actually, probably had Epimurean blood somewhere in his ancestry. His last name was Epimurean. That was something she'd ask about later, when they weren't getting headaches over stupid spies and treasonous accountants.

Truly, there could be no one who seemed more harmless than accountants. The words "treasonous accountants" felt like oxymorons put together.

"The Notus is here. That little gathering over there is all Iron Wolves, yes?" When Ciri didn't answer, he continued. "I don't see the Briar."

"She does not enjoy attending social events. Usually remains at the Wolf's headquarters." They could never quite figure out why, but none of them forced her. She got an invitation every time, an enigma the court wanted to solve. Dominic attended these all the time, and the two were usually bound by the hip. But Rhys and Ronan had always stayed away from major court gatherings like these.

"Wise woman." A few of the matrons were prodding their daughters in their direction. Ciri fought a smile.

"We have been spotted, my lord."

Laurence screwed his eyes shut, as if in pain. "Damn."

"Language, Lord Archsham."

He turned to her with a brilliant smile that made her heart skip a beat. "I don't suppose you're willing to save me, Miss Diao?"

"I do not see how I can, even if I wished to," she replied, looking away.

He reached out and took her hand, brushing a featherlight kiss across her knuckles. This wasn't Arecia, where all the women wore gloves. Ciri's hand was bare except for the pearl ring on it. Ciri sucked in a breath, quickly calming herself as she raised a brow, awaiting his explanation.

All he did was smile again. "If you won't save me, my dear Miss Diao, I suppose my only other option is running."

And like the damned coward he was, that was exactly what he did. Damn it.

✢

LAURENCE LIKED TO consider himself an expert on danger. He'd been in various life-threatening situations and managed to make his way out alive almost every time.

Kissing Cirinique Diao was a new level he hadn't yet explored. And that had been on the knuckle. A perfectly chaste kiss, in front of everyone, on the fucking knuckle, and he could now hardly breath.

He ducked behind some bushes, collecting himself. This gave him a nice chance to inspect everyone without being seen. He'd used this—

"Lord Archsham!"

His gaze snapped up at the Saian words. Lord William Hua stood near the end of the small path, grinning. By his side were a couple other young men, probably around Laurence's age. Quickly, he plastered on a smile. "Lord Hua."

It seems the lord had finished his conversation with Miss Ai, then. Laurence glanced at the others' clothings. Fashionable dandies, all rich. A group of friends. Probably pleasure-seekers planning their next expedition.

"Come join us! Allow me to introduce to you Lord Guang, Lord Jing and Mr Kwan. Gentlemen, this is Lord Archsham, from Arecia." Guang, Jing and Kwan. Old names. Men used to doing whatever the hell they wanted. He'd probably met some of them in Arecia before. They certainly seemed familiar.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance."

One of the men cracked a smile. "I believe we've actually already been introduced in Caling once, Lord Archsham. Though it was very brief."

"Ah, I must have forgotten. My sincerest apologies. May I help you gentlemen?"

"No, no," Lord William chortled. "Simply wanted to talk with you, that's all. Unless you had more important matters to tend to?"

Laurence thought quickly. The lord was acquainted with Miss Ai. He might be able to wheedle out some information. "No, no. I'm quite bored, really. I'd be honoured to join you all."

Another smile. He was a jolly man, Laurence observed. Most people saw him that way too.

"We were planning to head out of the Palace tonight for some fun." No need to guess what fun entailed. "Wish to join us?" That was... Lord Jing.

Laurence let a wistful expression pass his face. "I wish. But I have to be on my best behaviour. If you ever head to Arecia, I'll take you up on the offer."

The smallest man snorted. Mr Kwan. "Official business, eh? You don't seem like that kind of man."

That's exactly why I was chosen. Instead, he shrugged. "It's family tradition. Least I could do. It's not too dreadful, it makes life much more interesting."

Lord Hua studied him for a moment, before tearing his gaze away and nodding. "It's true. I've been dabbling in some politics once in a while myself. Fun enough. The three of you could try it sometimes."

Lord Guang shrugged. "Never been good at politics. I'll stick with my poems, thank you very much." He was handsome, but not as handsome as Lord Hua, and seemed fairly intelligent. Actually, all four of these men didn't look like brainless twats. This was what Ciri had meant by Lord Hua having good instincts. He'd try to pry information about Miss Ai later, being subtle about it.

He was very good at being subtle.

"You're a poet?" He asked with genuine curiosity.

"Aye." A teasing bow. "I'm a poet."

"Fancies himself being famous," Lord Hua snorted.

"I already am, Hua Lin," Lord Guang laughed. "Well, more notorious, but still."

"Notoriety and fame are more or less the same thing," Laurence agreed. "Much like love and hate, with only a thin line separating the two."

Lord Guang's hand flew to his chest. "A man of my own heart! So rare!"

The others laughed. Laurence grinned with them, allowing himself to relax. He could use a couple friends who weren't hellbent on twisting his viewpoint to what they wanted him to see. Not that he blamed them, really, but it was starting to get profoundly irritating.

"What do you think of Sai so far?" Lord Jing seemed to be the quietest of them all, a man too thin and lanky to quite fit in with the others. If he hadn't known better, he'd have thought him the poet and scholar, not Lord Guang, who looked athletic and possessed a larger, stronger build.

"My stay has been very pleasant." A diplomatic answer that no one would question. It wasn't as if he could complain about it even if he wanted to. That would just be rude.

That earned a grunt. "As it should be," Mr Kwan laughed. "Anything in particular you like?"

"The food, certainly. My friends weren't exaggerating." Shouldn't have said that. His thoughts were back to Ciri and her soft, soft hands again. How were her hands so soft? She was a spy, he'd seen her work. Those hands should be callused and rough.

Lord Hua smiled. "You've been served by the royal family's chefs for the past few days. Of course the food would be excellent. The Empress and Huancheng gege are very picky with the food."

Wasn't it Prince Ruge? Laurence chose not to question that.

"You're friends with the gege." A statement from Lord Guang.

"I'm friends with Miss Diao, who's friends with Lady Asteria, who's in turn friends with the gege. Somehow, her generous hospitality extended to me."

Lord Guang blinked. "Damn you're good at this."

"Good at?"

"Appearing so... gracious. It wasn't as if Huancheng gege could just send you off. You're representing Arecia."

"Well, that too. But I like to think this was due to her kindness."

Lord Hua's mouth twisted into a smile. "The gege is many things. Kindness isn't particularly anything up her arsenal. It couldn't be, of course, considering her position."

No one was quite sure how to respond to that without offending someone, so they stayed quiet, murmuring something meant to convey their opinion without actually expressing it.

"This banquet has been a bore so far," Mr Kwan muttered, glancing around to make sure he wasn't overheard. "Nothing interesting has happened."

Lord Guang stared at his friend. "Were you expecting something more? That is why we are planning to head out of the palace tonight, isn't it?"

"Oh!" Lord Hua blinked, turning to Laurence. "You're acquainted with Rhysa— I mean the Briar?"

"Of course. She seems to be a dear friend to my travelling companions. She was among the two sent to escort us to Hong Cheng."

"Has she, uh..."

Laurence kept his face carefully blanked, showing confusion. Lord Hua blushed and shook his head, "Never mind."

He bowed his hand and did not pursue the matter further. He had an idea where that conversation was supposed to be heading. It would just have made it more awkward than it already was. His friends glanced at the still-red-faced Lord Hua for a moment before turning away.

Io said there was no emotion on the Briar's part. But could the same be said about Lord Hua? As for Miss Ai... There were plenty of men and women who could love one but still lust for others. At least the Briar wouldn't be hurt, though he highly doubted that would ever happen, his mind wandering to the professional woman he had been met with. Ciri said she was frequently like that. She couldn't seem more a strange match for this loud, flamboyant and fancy Lord Hua Lin than at that very moment. She'd never have allowed herself to become this flustered. The words would never have even left her mouth.

"Lord Archsham?" That was Danna's voice as the girl walked down the pathway, eyes fixing on the group. Eyebrow raising, she said, "Huancheng gege wishes to speak to you."

The gentlemen quickly swept into bows. Danna curtsied. "Lord Hua, Lord Guang, Lord Jing, Mr Kwan. How wonderful to see you all. Do you mind if I borrow Lord Archsham for the gege? It won't take long, I think."

"We wouldn't dare refuse the gege." Lord Guang smiled pleasantly, and Danna returned it.

Laurence gave a quick bow. "If you'd excuse me, gentlemen." Danna turned, and he followed.

Once they were out of earshot, Danna muttered, "Before you ask, no. I don't know why."

Well, that was that.

✢

CIRI WATCHED, FROM the shadows, as Danna led Laurence away from the group of men and towards where Irina sat, waiting. Then, she forced her thoughts away from him and focused on Miss Ai. Her target.

As secretary, the woman would have the most exposure to both the higher-up officials and the newer ones. She'd know the most. A small investigation into her background hadn't shown much— her father had been a minor official, and she had followed in his path. Their family was comfortable but not wealthy, and she had a small apartment a twenty minute walk away from the outer walls of the Scarlet Palace. She lived within her means, not spending money on unnecessary things. All in all, innocent as a lamb.

But she might know something she didn't know was useful.

She had a reason to approach the woman. She couldn't be that much older than she was, and they'd met during the tour. Miss Ai would be perplexed but not suspicious.

Ciri chose her course. She could approach now, when the woman was talking to a few other people. It wouldn't seem out of place. But she waited for a moment longer, gaze lingering on the woman before finally stepping back into the light.

She kept her steps brisk. Light, without much of a purpose. She smiled at the people who passed by, but gave enough attention to Miss Ai that anyone who looked closely would understand her purpose. The only people who'd be looking that carefully were her friends anyways.

"Miss Ai!" She kept her voice sweet, demure. A pleasant grin touched her lips. The woman in question twirled around, blinking. She had dressed in a simple looking qipao, plain enough to fit her station. Instantly, the woman fell into a curtsy.

"Miss Diao. May I help you?"

"Oh, I just wanted to talk. Do you mind if I join you?" She raised her hand slightly, as if asking for permission. They both knew what answer she'd get.

"Of course." Miss Ai blinked. "Diao xiaojie, these are Nan Zhuying and Qiao Jiaqi. Friends, this is Diao xiaojie, the great-niece of the Duchess of Dai."

Eyes widening, her two friends dropped into curtsies. "Xiaojie!" The one called Zhuying exclaimed.

"Nan guniang, Qiao guniang, nihao." Ciri beamed, offering a nod of her head. "It's very nice to meet you all. What are you discussing?"

"Work," Miss Ai explained. "We all work at the Royal Treasury. Zhuying is a secretary, like me, and Jiaqi works as a junior accountant."

Ciri asked, "Were the two of you there when we visited yesterday? I didn't see either of you, though I wasn't paying too much attention to the faces."

"I wasn't," Jiaqi said. "Yesterday was my break day."

"I probably was in my office," Zhuying shrugged, "as I didn't see you either, Miss Diao."

"Please, call me Ciri or Fengmei. We're all friends here. I'm only the great-niece of a duchess." Ciri waved her hand, still grinning. "I wouldn't want to bother you, if you're discussing anything important."

"No, no." Then Zhuying blushed. "We're kind of... gossiping. And you must use our given names too, then."

Ciri scrunched up her nose. "Workplace gossip? I'll admit, I've never heard those before. I'm not familiar with workplaces, as expected. Carry on, I'd love to listen."

The two glanced in Miss Ai's direction, who shrugged. Zhuying smiled. "We were discussing Wang Tongyun's not very secret crush on Jiaqi."

"Zhuying!" Jiaqi exclaimed, hand flying to his mouth. "You promised you wouldn't."

"Oh please," Miss Ai— Jinyao, she remembered, scoffed. "A blindman could see it. He's very bad at hiding his feelings."

Jiaqi scowled, as Ciri watched on with amusement. "Well, I have no interest in encouraging him anyways. I'm not you."

Jinyao's mouth fell wide. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Ciri hid a smile. "Lord Hua, maybe?"

The woman turned to her, eyes widened. "How did you—"

Ciri shrugged. "I'm very perceptive. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone, and I don't think anyone else really noticed. I was just bored and looking at the right place at the right time."

Jinyao rubbed her forehead. "It's a mistake. I know it is."

Ciri shrugged. "Men are allowed to take lovers before marriage. I hardly think why women could not. If someone loves you, they should hardly care whether you're a virgin or not, especially when they themselves most likely aren't."

Jiaqi grinned. "Very progressive of you, Fengmei."

Ciri replied with a matching expression. "I try, I try."

Jinyao rubbed her arms. "In a dream world, that would be true. But this is reality." She picked at her sleeves. "It won't last long anyways."

"Jinyao..." Jiaqiao frowned, reaching forward. The other woman shook her head.

Ciri said, "Don't let one single man bring you down. You're better than that."

A forced smile. "I know. I'm being glum. Let's move on."

"Did you find the name of the artist for Lady Asteria?" Ciri asked, tilting her head.

"I did. It was Renart Paquet."

"Do any of you like art?"

Zhuying shrugged. "It's pretty to look at, but I'm no connoisseur."

Jiaqi said, "My family— we are decently wealthy— owns quite a few nice paintings. But that's my sister's territory, not mine. I prefer numbers."

Ciri turned to Jinyao, who tilted her head and said, "Not particularly, no."

"Not me either, to be honest. But I was taught to appreciate it anyway."

Jiaqi gave a small smile. "The education of a lady, of course." Ah, if only they knew the truth. Lady Kuroki's School for Girls did not train ladies. Perhaps in name, and perhaps to the rest of the world, that was her girls, her worldly, educated, mature young women. They trained people who would lie and kill and scam for their country.

She tilted her head, as if agreeing. Her gaze travelled, however, landing on Irina and Laurence, deep in conversation. She wondered what they were discussing. Laurence's eyes met hers. She offered a slight nod of the head in acknowledgement. He turned away, as did she. None of the three girls seemed to have noticed. A mole might have. She considered that a point in their favour.

"Miss Pang seems to be headed our way," Jinyao noted. "Fetching you, I think. She came from the gege's side." It was always disconcerting, remembering that Irina was gege and not gongzhu. They both translated to princess, and Ciri had always associated gongzhu with the Arecian word. Why hadn't Irina been adopted formally by the Emperor yet? That would give her the proper title.

But at this point, Irina would end up married to some foreign prince or king soon enough. There weren't too many of those lying around, and fewer still that required a marriage alliance with Sai quickly. Irina would be princess, and then queen. She was one of those whose path was laid out in front of her. Funny, how despite all they did and how extraordinary each and every one of them were, they all seemed to be unable to escape the path of matrimony. Even Cass, who had fought tooth and nail against her relatives bargaining her off to some lord, had fallen into its trap.

Ciri turned and levelled Danna with an inquirical glance. The other girl nodded, nudging her chin towards Irina and Laurence's direction. Whatever conversation was there, they wished for her to join it. Turning back to the three women, she said apologetically, "I'm afraid I'll have to excuse myself."

They murmured their farewell and Ciri turned, crossing to Danna's side within seconds. "What is it?"

"I am supposed to know? All I know is that Irina was glancing in direction, all empathic-like. Since Myrina isn't to be found right now, I was the next person to do our dear gege's bidding."

Ciri frowned. "Where is Myrina?" The countess was notoriously reclusive, but as Irina's lady-in-waiting, she should be here.

Danna gave a dramatic shrug. "God knows. Or, well, Hongyun knows." She gave a little snort at her own joke. "Come on. Don't keep Irina waiting."

"I wouldn't dare do so."

"Don't be sarcastic. Now hurry the hell up."