“What happened that’s got you two so nervous?” Thana asked as shetook a big mouthful of food.
Sylph wanted to kick her so badly this time that her legtwitched.
Thana looked to Countess Carisse with a wry smile. “Sorry,Countess, but where I’m from, um, north of my cousin here”—she nodded awkwardlyat Sylph—“we talk out our worries, especially when we encounter a strangertraveling through who might be bothered by them. If there’s a rampaging bearnearby, we don’t keep mum just because bears are…gauche this season orsomething.”
The countess stared. Sylph fought the urge to do the same.Timmony’s lips were mashed together, but his eyes were merry, as if he wastrying not to laugh.
“How long have you been at court, Miss Theroue?” the countessasked, a smile creeping out.
Thana’s cheeks colored slightly. “A few, um, weeks,” shemuttered. “My first trip.”
“Ah.” Countess Carisse nodded and gave Sylph a sympathetic look,but she surely couldn’t believe Thana was both a noble and a pyradisté, even ifshe was at the bottom of the hierarchy. Maybe she’d decided to let the nobledeception go and just pitied Sylph a chatty traveling companion. Sylphdisplayed her best put-upon look.
* * *
Thana rubbed her temples. She’d started the evening being amusedby all the doublespeak and nonconfrontation, but in the end, she had to saysomething. Timmony had clearly detected her pyramids at some point, but hecouldn’t know about Sylph. Thana supposed her lesser noble persona might becrushed, but Timmony and Carisse seemed more relaxed.
“We have heard some rumors about rogue pyradistés,” Carisse said,“from some travelers our groom spoke to. Murder. Explosions. Is it true?”
Thana fought the urge to bite her lip. She waited for Sylph toanswer. She wasn’t any good at lying, and Sylph seemed a natural. That was abit worrying for other reasons, but she didn’t let herself think of them at themoment.
“We’ve heard the rumors, too,” Sylph said. “But it’s hard to knowwhat’s true.”
“Did you ride out today because you feared staying in Marienne?”Timmony asked.
Carisse gave him a tiny frown, but Sylph shrugged as elegantly asshe did everything else. “I don’t need to worry about such things.”
Thana frowned. Was that an acknowledgement of Thana’s ability? Ifso, why didn’t she just say so, for spirits’ sake? But that was just Thana’snervous aggravation talking.
And the ribbons around her sleeves were cutting off hercirculation.
Revealing that she was a pyradisté would probably lead to herreal name and position. A noble like Sylph could waste time riding around, butwhy would she have the monarch’s pyradisté with her? Especially when there wasa pyradisté crisis going on. And it seemed as if they hadn’t had any magicaltroubles out here. Because the new crystal hadn’t come near here? Or was theresomething else at work? Nothing strange had happened at the academy when thecrystal was there, apart from Sylph’s trouble. Maybe the other problems were morethan accidents.
As a servant handed around bowls of custard, Carisse and Timmonyadded another piece to her puzzle: a story they’d heard from a servant who’dbeen traveling back to Marienne after visiting family in the country. She’dtold the servants that a pyradisté in the local lord’s holding had set thehouse on fire, but afterward, the pyradisté couldn’t be found. The householdhad assumed he’d perished in the fire, but what if he’d been conductingexperiments with the new crystal? Or even just using it? Maybe it only reactedbadly to some people, like Sylph. Thana sighed. She didn’t have enoughinformation, but she added this new town to her mental map.
She also wondered where Carisse’s daughter was. Maybe the childnever ate with strangers, or maybe she always ate with her nanny while Carisseate alone or with Timmony, who seemed to care about her more than a paidservant might. By the warm atmosphere, Thana could imagine Carisse, Timmony,and the child together. Maybe if she married him, she wouldn’t have to worryabout other nobles trying to steal her land.
Or maybe she feared he’d become a target of those same nobles.
Or she didn’t want to marry a peasant.
Thana fought the urge to sigh. She’d spent too much time inSylph’s world, like another planet, especially where family was concerned.She’d grown up in a lively foster home manned by a variety of monks. Theybelieved in hands-on learning and frequently took the children into the cityfor outings. When Thana had met Gunnar on one such trip, she’d thought him justanother child and had treated him as such, including him in games, teasing him,and protecting him from the jibes of others. When she’d found out he was aprince, she hadn’t cared. He was already her friend, and he’d needed one.
Like Sylph. She was lonelier than Gunnar had ever been.
When dinner ended, and Thana trailed Sylph upstairs, sherethought their status. They wouldn’t be friends much longer. Once they lay inthat monstrous bed together, Thana wouldn’t be able to think of them as friendsanymore.
“Since you were caught out at night,” Carisse called after them,“is there anything you need?”
For Sylph, no, but Thana hadn’t had the chance to pack and said,“Anything you can spare would be appreciated.”
Sylph didn’t respond, not speaking even once they were behindclosed doors. Thana shifted from foot to foot as Sylph kept her back turned anddug through her pack. The rustling sound seemed loud in the cavernous room.Thana thought of a hundred words but discarded all of them. Maybe they’d end upgoing to bed in silence and stare at the ceiling all night. Then they’d just beawkward friends.
When someone knocked on the door, Thana jumped, barely holding ina screech. A maid brought in two long nightshirts, soap, a comb, and a basin ofhot water. Sylph still didn’t turn, not even when Thana splashed in the basin,washing her face.
Maybe Sylph didn’t want her but couldn’t think of a way to sayit, so she was going to paw through her luggage all night. Thana’s stomachsoured. Had she imagined every glance, every lip bite, every
