cheer. Khysmet did the high step as if born to the circus march and soon everyone's joyous mood returned. He pushed on, smiling until his lips ached, until he came to the place where his family had set up camp.
All his sisters and their husbands were gathered about a big, rough plank table, eating and making merry while the children played games under the trees. In a little potter's shelter his mother and father were making small clay necklaces as gifts for the young ones-painted jesters, with skinny limbs and peaked hats riding jauntily over long beaked noses. Toys in the shape of the Jester God, Harle, were an ancient favorite of Kyranian children.
His mother, who was running leather thongs through holes bored into the caps, was chatting gaily with his father when Safar rode up and dismounted.
When she saw him her face lit up she dropped what she was doing. 'It's Safar, Khadji!' she cried.
'Come home just in time!'
She ran over and embraced him while his father looked fondly on. 'We're having a celebration, dear,'
she said. 'And I was so hoping you'd come.'
Myrna pulled back, eyes shining. 'Thanks to you,' she said, 'we're safe at last. And in such a beautiful place! Why, it's almost as beautiful as home!'
Safar didn't know what to say, so he embraced her and murmured the usual loving evasions sons and daughters use when they believe one of their parents has lost all touch with reality. Such as, 'I'm happy that you're happy, mother, dear.' Or 'Yes, I've missed you too.'
And so on until his mother rushed off to fetch him a plate of the tastiest morsels from the feast. When she was gone, he eyed his father, who was painting smiling faces on the toy jesters.
'You've made your mother very happy coming home today, son,' he said. 'She and your sisters worked hard on this feast.'
'What is she celebrating, father?' he asked, still smiling, still trying to hide his concern.
'Why, our deliverance, son,' his father said brightly. 'Didn't you hear what she said?'
Safar was finally tested too far and his smile dissolved. 'Of course I did,' he said. 'But that's ridiculous.'
To his surprise his father's eyes seemed to glaze over and like a child shutting out harsh words it didn't want to hear he started humming a bright little tune.
Safar kept going, trying to break through. 'For the gods sake, father!' he said. 'No one's been delivered.
No one's safe. You know that as well as I do. Why are you letting mother think differently?'
But the whole time he spoke his father kept up the humming. When Safar finally realized he wasn't getting through and gave up, Khadji broke off and resumed his side of the conversation.
'It's such a relief to all of us that you found this place, son,' Khadji said. 'To think we no longer have to go all the way to Syrapis to find our new home. The people here are so wonderful and generous. Why, I heard only yesterday that the Queen was selling you a good bit of land so that we can rebuild Kyrania right here.'
He blinked back tears of joy. 'You can't imagine how proud you've made your mother and me,' he said.
Safar gave up. It was clear his family and friends had been afflicted with the same insane but merry spell as the Caluzians. He would have to do something about that soon, but just now he didn't have the heart.
So he hugged his father and kissed him. Then his attention was drawn to the pile of completed jester necklaces. He picked one up to examine it and felt a faint buzz of mild magic.
'Where did you get the clay for these, father?' he asked. 'They're quite … uh … unusual.'
Khadji pointed up the river. 'There's a nice bed of it around the next bend,' he said.
He grabbed some up from a pail, skilled fingers forming another jester. 'Palimak discovered it,' he said.
'And I must say I've never seen clay as perfect as this. A nice neutral gray color, not too sticky, not too spongy, and it fires in no time at all. And not one shattering out of the scores I've already made.'
Khadji scratched his head, thinking. Then he smiled. 'In fact,' he said, 'it was Palimak's idea to make these jesters for the children.' He chuckled. 'Such a thoughtful boy.'
Safar narrowed his eyes when he heard that. He looked down at the large pile of completed jesters.
There were also several trays of others ready to go into the oven. Plus, Khadji was painting several dozen more.
'There's a lot more here,' he pointed out to his father, 'than there are Timura children.'
More chuckling from Khadji. 'Well, after we talked about it for awhile, it seemed like such a good idea that we decided to make enough for everybody.'
Safar goggled. '
Khadji nodded, firm. 'Before we're done every Kyranian, down to the newest infant, will have one. The best of luck from Harle, the king of luck, hanging about our necks.
'Now isn't that a grand gift for everyone?' his father asked.
Safar nodded absently, puzzling over all this. What was Palimak up to? 'Sure, father, sure,' he said.
'Well, it's nice talking to you son,' his father said. 'But I'd best get back to it. I've got more than a thousand of these to make.'
He started getting busy, pinching out more jesters and laying them on a firing tray. Becoming so absorbed in his work he seemed to forget his son's presence. Safar gently took his arm, stopping him. His father blinked at him, awareness coming back.
'Where is Palimak, father?' Safar asked.
Khadji again pointed up the river. 'At the claybed,' he said. 'He's with Leiria, so you don't have to worry. They're fetching more material for the jesters.'
Safar just smiled, gave his father another hug, and swung up on Khysmet. 'Tell mother,' he said, 'that I'm off to see Palimak. And to save us some of that delicious food.'
His father didn't hear him. He was humming merrily again, totally absorbed in his work. Safar shrugged and headed up the river.
He eventually found them standing on a hill, supervising a half dozen willing lads who were digging up buckets of clay from the river.
'Be sure and clean it real well,' Palimak admonished two young men who were washing the debris from the clay.
'You there,' Leiria called to another group. She pointed to several pails of finished clay. 'Grab a couple of those buckets and trot them down to Khadji. He should be getting pretty low by now.'
The lads took all this with such good nature that Safar was immediately suspicious.
When Palimak and Leiria spotted Safar they both jumped in startled guilt. Palimak ducked behind Leiria.
'I take full responsibility,' Leiria said. She said it boldly, but he detected a quivering note of embarrassment.
Safar sighed and pointed at the working youths. 'Let them go,' he said wearily.
'Yes, father,' Palimak squeaked. Then, his voice a little firmer, 'But you have to let me do it my way. If they wake up too quickly they're going to feel pretty bad.'
'Go ahead,' Safar said.
Palimak ventured out from behind Leiria enough to wave a hand at the boys. 'You're suddenly all feeling very tired,' he said, trying to sound commanding. The boys all stretched and yawned. 'That's good,'
Palimak praised. 'Really, real sleepy.' More stretching and yawning. 'So now that you're so sleepy,'
Palimak said, 'you all decide to go home and take a little nap. And when you wake up you'll feel just great and you won't remember anything.'
The young men all nodded, then put the buckets down and wandered back toward the encampment, yawning and mumbling sleepily as they went.
'Don't worry about them, father,' Palimak said. 'They'll be fine.' He gestured at the buckets of clay sitting by the shore. 'Besides, we were almost done anyway.'
This brought a hot glare from Safar. 'Ooops,' Palimak said, clapping a hand to his mouth.
Leiria groaned. 'I wish you hadn't said that.'
'We have a awfully good reason, father,' Palimak said. 'Honest.'
'He's right,' Leiria said. 'We do.'
'Go on,' Safar said, climbing off Khysmet. He patted the animal, drawing on its powers of patience. 'I'm listening. And it had better be as good as you claim.'
Palimak swallowed hard, but Leiria had a completely different reaction. She blew. 'Listen here, Safar Timura,' she said, standing tall and hooking her thumbs into her sword belt. 'In case you haven't noticed, everybody here has
