"What have you got there?"

Steppo's blotchy face sported similar hues to Tahni's own before Ederra had applied the miraculous makeup, and he was bound to hide even more injuries underneath his baggy attire, which put Ederra in mind of a free-spirited dockworker between job assignments. Minister Sebek, who stood by his son, appeared to be equally unimpressed with this choice of garment, eyeing his heir with a decidedly disapproving frown.

Under different circumstances, Ederra would have relished the opportunity of taking her almost-father-in-law's measure, especially after Tahni had briefed her on his achievements, but Steppo's curt demand had startled her entirely. Could it be that they were going to search her bags, right here in the entrance hall? If they did, they were bound to find the stolen items in one, and Tahni's dress in the other.

A dreadful scenario quickly played out in Ederra's mind, in which she'd have to face charges for the murders of both Tahni and Meyo. It was all she could do to keep her knees from buckling, but then Steppo went on:

"Is it a suit, by any chance? I am inquiring because Father here seems to have taken it upon himself to clothe the poorest specimen of our noble stock, and he could hardly come upon a more willing donor than his own son."

It was only then that Ederra noticed the old man holding not one, but three separate suits draped across his thin forearms. One of his guards, a burly fellow with a menacing mien, carried at least five more over his shoulder.

"You flatter my presumed altruism, but I must disabuse you of the notion."

Ederra started upon hearing the man speak. Old he might have been, but his voice was clear and steady, without the smallest hint of the feebleness so evident in his physical features. She noticed his slight trembling, particularly prominent around the exposed portion of his neck, but once she met his eyes, she immediately gave up on any hope of ever telling a lie to his face. The master of the Sebek household could not have been more different than her own father, whose excessive infatuation with his own person was his biggest downfall. But Minister Sebek seemed as reasonable and calculated as could be. Not surprising, after all, for a military strategist.

"You seem to mistake disabuse with abuse, for there is certainly a fair dollop of the ladder in these goings-on."

The old man raised his wispy eyebrows and fixed Steppo with one of the best imitations of innocence Ederra had even witnessed.

"How could that be?" he pondered out loud.

Ederra looked back at the son, eagerly awaiting his reply. She had the distinct impression of intruding into a long-standing game between the two, but she didn't feel entirely unwelcome.

"You appear to have helped yourself to specific items of my personal wardrobe and had I not caught you in the act, you would have carried on as if nothing were amiss."

"I am convinced that your balanced approach and sharpened mind will indeed find nothing amiss, my son, for I have naturally seen to the formalities. If you return to your chamber, you will find that I have placed a receipt upon your sleeping pallet in regards to these suits." Minister Sebek paused for a second, pursing his lips and frowning slightly. "At least, I assumed that was your sleeping pallet. I am afraid I was at a loss for distinguishing the original purpose of the items in your room, given the enchantingly disarrayed state it was in."

Ederra bit back her laughter, and once again glanced covertly back at Steppo. If Tahni's own natural dispositions were anything to go by, the siblings had much more in common than they cared to admit.

"A receipt?" whispered Steppo incredulously. "You're not suggesting that you'll actually pay me back?"

"Of course not," said the old man gently, which only seemed to further flame the son's ire. "You have been given the reassurance of being mentioned at the next Celebration of the Bountifully Compassionate, by the Minister of Public Affairs himself. Such a distinguished gift to your fellow man must not go by without its due praise."

"Then pray tell me," grated Steppo, "who is this unfortunate soul who is now bereft of his clothes?"

"A dear old friend of ours," said Minister Sebek, then sighed wistfully. "Poor Tersi, he can't seem to... How would dear Tahni express it? I think, «catch a break these days». First, there was his carriage, and now, his only good suit." Shaking his head, he turned to glance at his bodyguard. "Wouldn't you concur, Captain?"

The man inclined his head, and spoke in a surprisingly soft voice, belying his rough features.

"Absolutely, sir. The evils have gone too far."

"And hopefully this is as far as they will go. I am becoming rather worried about our old friend."

"How can you be more worried about him than me?" spat out Steppo, his cheeks reddening visibly.

His father looked back at him, pointedly studying his current outfit, which Ederra could only charitably describe as "informal".

"You appear to be capable of providing for yourself, my son. I am putting my faith in you that you will convey the dignified image of your noble ancestry at the hunt. I have of course left you with your green ceremonial garb, and I am looking forward to formally introducing my heir to the new king."

Steppo started groaning before his father had even finished speaking, but he was fighting a losing battle. Minister Sebek smiled warmly at him, but Ederra couldn't miss the distinctly threatening undertones in the old man's level gaze.

And then he turned to look at her.

It was all Ederra could do not to gulp. She was well aware how she must have appeared, with her wrinkled dress, her mussed hair, and the conspicuous bags at her side. Tahni's in particular was very heavy, but she'd been too absorbed in the fascinating exchange between father and son to pay any mind to her arm's protests. Now the pain was making itself known and she struggled not to wince.

"I am excessively sorry to have postponed our introduction, my dear," said Minister Sebek. "For one who would soon be a daughter to me, I am ever obliged to provide."

Ederra's trained instincts took over at once and she bowed in the required way, ignoring the pain shooting up her shoulders.

"In the housemaster does Channa ever find a partner," she muttered obediently at the floor.

Minister Sebek gestured emphatically towards her and addressed the Captain.

"You see? I have mentioned to you before how imperative it was to come across suitable companions for dear Tahni, and in her soon-to-be sister, she may have found just that."

Ederra was struck by the warmth in his voice, and she realized this man must truly care for his children. In his own way, he appeared as devoted to them as any father worthy of calling himself that - even in Steppo's case. The realization gave rise to a slow pang of hurt in her chest as she considered her own father's dismissive manner, but she had resolved to be done with feeling sorry for herself.

"Thank you, my dear," continued Minister Sebek, turning back to her. "I can already tell your arrival has been a blessing upon this house. I look forward to knowing you better, but if you will excuse us now, we will be off to aid a friend in need."

Having said that, he set off for the gate, the Captain trailing after him. Ederra straightened and finally allowed herself to switch the black bag into her other hand. She glanced curiously at Steppo, whose vengeful eyes were fixed on his father's retreating figure.

Abruptly, he whirled around and started towards the back of the house.

"Wait!" cried Ederra, and hurried after him.

He was entirely uncommunicative now, grim determination fixed in every feature.

"Where are you going?" panted Ederra, struggling to keep up with him. After all the exertions of the evening, running after an ill-tempered man who'd just been made into a fool by his own father was a certainly unwelcome activity. Unfortunately, it was also necessary.

"Bed," snapped Steppo, suddenly turning towards a side corridor, while Ederra skidded and had to brace herself against the wall. She cast an angry look at her laden bags and began fearing that if she were to keep this on, she'd soon sprain her wrists the way Tahni had her ankles.

"Have you gone to market today?" she called after him. "To look for water containers, like you promised?"

That brought him up short. Allowing herself a small sigh of relief, she used the respite to approach him slowly, letting the bags down gently when she got close enough.

They were in a narrow connecting corridor, linking the main house to the residential wings. On either side, tall glass windows looked out onto Lady Belis' beautifully tended gardens. Although they were best admired in the daytime, the odd firefly traps and ornate braziers illuminated several flowerbeds and topiaries, enough for Ederra to wish she were outside and unburdened by worries, instead of where she actually stood, plagued by doubts. However, she could not let Steppo make out any cracks in her composure, lest he might find a good excuse not to help her.

"I have never made such a promise," he said coldly.

"I-"

"And the reason I know that," he went on, "is because I never take promises lightly. For me, they are equivalent to a vow before Attari's merciless altar. My word is my bond."

Unimpressed and unintimidated, Ederra squared her shoulders and made a point of holding his gaze. If anything, this was far more difficult than carrying Tahni's heavy bag around, but she persevered.

"I am sure the Heavenly Guard would have been thoroughly impressed with your determination, had you actually sworn your sword in service of Attari. But since you have elected to remain part of the tiresome world of civilians, you are bound to come across more inconsequential agreements, the kind you do not swear a blood oath to. The kind that may concern, for instance, a certain missing brother..."

He raised both hands in supplication, and she stopped.

"I understand. But please, stop talking like my father."

Ederra took the opportunity to study him closer, her gaze lingering on the shadows beneath his puffy eyes, and the violently throbbing vein at his temple.

"You are bone-tired," she observed bluntly. "If your father hadn't annoyed the exhaustion out of you, you would have collapsed by now. No, don't deny it." She sighed, breaking eye contact to look out one of the windows, focusing on a swan-shaped lantern gently dangling from a gnarly bough.

"I may not be as tired as you, but I am not far behind," she confessed. "The same goes for your sister. Now, I do not want to detain you, but I couldn't bring this before your father, or your mother, or any other member or this household."

"So you've singled me out because I'm the heir and I should therefore shoulder more responsibility?"

Ederra didn't have to turn to acknowledge his sneer. She simply went on, allowing herself a rare moment of vulnerability.

"I'm talking to you because he's your brother  - yours and Tahni's. And even though I never really knew him, he is my fiancé, the man I came here to marry. This is such a strange situation that I find myself in, and do not mistake me, I am not asking for compassion. But my responsibilities, meager as they are, have still managed to tear at me. I resent feeling imbalanced."

She finally tore her gaze from the delicate figure of the bird, and turned to regard him instead, blinking away the light motes still dancing in her field of vision.

"I will try my very best to aid your sister with the royal trials," she promised. "I am doing it for her, because I have started to see her as a friend, and for me, because I wish to do good by the family who has taken me in, almost as one of their own. But now, if my fiancé is really gone, I have no purpose here - I serve no function."

His jaw twitched then, and Ederra silently congratulated herself.

"And what does all that have to do with me?"

He sounded hoarse and disinterested, finally letting his exhaustion through, but Ederra knew she almost had him where she wanted him.

"Nothing, if you don't want it to. I have merely informed you that my efforts are likely to be aimed in that direction. It is therefore very unlikely that I will have the time to conduct any field research, such as looking for similar objects in places where they are most likely to be found."

"Such as?"

"Such as that part of the bazaar where they sell this type of water containers, or that other area where they display decorative and unique items. Please forgive me if I have made undue assumptions, but seeing as you prefer spending your time out of the house, I dared to hope that you might look into this. I could not make the same request of your sister."

Steppo sighed and raked his hand through his already disheveled hair.

"Don't apologize. I don't think it's quite registered yet, what has happened. A part of me still refuses to believe it."

"I refused to believe it from the start, and that's why I know there must be an explanation."

"You know nothing," said Steppo, a bitter smile pulling at his chapped lips. "You just find comfort in your assumption."

"Will you look into it?"

Ederra put every scrap of hopeful pleading she could muster into her wide-eyed stare, and it seemed to be working. His shoulders slumped slightly.

"Does Tahni have him?"

She did her best to stifle the burgeoning feeling of triumph, and wait for confirmation, tentative as it might have been.

"No, I've put it in my room."

"You'd better give him to me, then. I'll need to examine and ask around. Even though I'm no botanist."

Tired as she was, she felt like breaking into a happy dance, to suit this little victory. But that could wait until she was alone in her room.

"Alright," she said. "Come over now."

She bent over to pick up the bags, trying hard to mask her wincing, then moved to take the lead. She was gratified when he followed obediently, slowing his steps to match her pace, and they headed together for the women's wing with its fortunately deserted corridors.

By the time they reached Ederra's room, her arms were likely to elect to detach themselves from the rest of her. She'd gritted her teeth so tightly that her jaw hurt too, but she found it in her to smile at him and whisper:

"Wait here, I'll be right back."

She pressed down on the door handle with her elbow and scurried inside. The bags thudded to the floor, and she sprinted for the windowsill, grabbing the gourd and pausing only when she came to the door again. She glanced down at it, barely able to make out its shape in the gloom of her unlit chamber, wondering whether she should feel anything. But she quickly shook that worry off and returned to Steppo, who was eyeing her suspiciously.

"What?" she asked, holding out the gourd.

"You don't lock your room?"

"Why should I? Everything that doesn't belong to your family was given to me by my father."

"That's one way of looking at things," he muttered, and Ederra didn't miss the sly glance he threw towards his sister's door right next to hers.

"Thank you," she said earnestly, as he took hold of Meyo Junior.

He merely nodded, then turned and walked away.

The first thing Ederra wanted to do upon returning to her room was flop onto the bed and not stir until morning, but she knew there was still work to be done. Sighing, she turned to the bags she'd carelessly discarded earlier, praying that she hadn't broken anything.

Picking them up one final time, she went out into the silent corridor and knocked gently on Tahni's door.

"Delivery from the palace," she said, as loudly as she dared.

The door cracked open and determined hands relieved her of her burden.

"Accepted," replied Tahni, then shut the door in Ederra's face.

Far from feeling insulted, Ederra almost sprinted back, even allowing herself a little smile as she closed the door. Enveloped now in the comforting darkness of the room she'd grown familiar with, she closed her eyes and imagined how amazing everything would feel once she was out of the woods, having found her way and calling.

She allowed herself this brief moment of dream and hope, perhaps a little foolish, perhaps a tad too early, but if she didn't pause after every trying time to acknowledge the progress she'd made, she was in danger of forgetting why it was all worthwhile. Truth be told, she had already allowed her elusive targets to slip, but there was no big regret there, since they had been too vague to begin with; happiness was a nice aspiration, freedom was certainly desirable, money perhaps a bit more conventional, yet undeniably useful. The problem arose because these incredibly nebulous notions meant different things to different people, and it was up to everybody to either set the parameters that would help them achieve their version of the abstract they strived for, or wallow forever in the torturous in-between of dreamers who'd settled for wishing instead of doing.

Needless to say, Ederra was the practical sort, and for better or worse, her fate was now tied to this strange family. She'd already grown fond of Tahni, with her odd manner so unlike her own, and even Steppo intrigued her somewhat, with his frequent absences from the household, the conflict with his father, his apparent disinterest in matters that should directly concern him as heir, and his long-standing feud with his sister. Even without dissecting these instances, Ederra could detect the tiniest sliver of jealousy in her heart - a feeling which she rarely displayed. She wished she might have had the chance to have such interactions herself, but her own character as it had been in the past had made it impossible for her to adapt to her step-family's dynamic, despite being well aware that they were perfectly amiable people. It was only recently that Ederra began to suspect that she might prefer odd people instead.

A rhythmic tapping against her window took her back to the days when she pretended to be asleep in her room so that a weak-hearted tutor would let her skip the afternoon lessons. She could hear it all again: the joyous chirping of wild birds, the distant shouts of the workers from the quarry, and the gentle drumming of the birch tree that had grown too close to her room, almost pushing through when she let the windows open all the way. She'd always dreamed of leaving one night, when heavy clouds obscured the stars, and jump from the windowsill to embrace the roughened boughs, putting scrapes and bruises out of mind as she made her way down into the real world.

But she'd somehow arrived already, and it was this present reality that froze her tentative smile, bringing forth the knowledge that she wasn't in the north anymore, that this was not her room from back then, and that there were no trees directly next to her window.

Taking a deep breath, she pushed away from the door and went to unlock the shutters.