“Did you change him into nightclothes?”
“Helen did,” Annarion replied. He lowered his head. Sedarias and Terrano swiveled toward Annarion; Mandoran didn’t. “If it will help my brother at all, I would be grateful if you attended at the Consort’s pleasure.”
Ynpharion was unimpressed.
“I don’t know that she’ll have much to say about the method of attack—at least not the one used against Terrano. But I can share that with her, as well. Her sources of information in the High Court are going to be way better thananyof ours.”
“Teela’s are pretty good when she leverages them,” Terrano said.
Kaylin nodded. Fair enough.
“You know Teela intends to go with you, right?”
“I know she meant to, yes. But I also know Sedarias could be at risk if Teela steps in like this. The Consort believes it unwise.”
“The Consort is younger than Teela, and, from all accounts, less political.Youmight be able to talk Teela out of it.”
Kaylin snorted.
“But none of us can. And to be fair, a third of us think Teela should be there.”
“Fine. Before you all start playing dress-up with me, the Consort said that it would be best if I appeared as a Hawk. So I’m not changing.”
“We’ll see what Teela has to say about that,” Mandoran said, his voice far too cheerful.
Teela didn’t have much to say, and it all boiled down tono.
Kaylin wasn’t all that surprised when Teela showed up at the house in full court dress. She wasn’t surprised when Teela came with a box that contained appropriate, Kaylin-sized clothing. She was slightly surprised when the Barrani Hawk glanced once in Severn’s direction and nodded. Apparently, Severn was the compromise. He could dress as a Hawk. Kaylin couldn’t.
She tried not to resent it and failed. On the other hand, it annoyed Ynpharion, so there was an upside to what would otherwise be a double standard.
The dress itself was a shade of green that matched and blended with Teela’s dress, which annoyed Ynpharion even more. Kaylin doubted it would annoy the Consort.
“I’ve chosen shoes that are more practical for this outing,” Teela said, opening a box. To Kaylin,practicalmeant the Hawks’ kit: something you could really run in in a pinch.
Barrani skirts, while voluminous, never seemed to impede movement. She couldn’t argue against them on a practical level.But they’d always made her feel self-conscious, as if wearing the clothing itself made her a liar.
The boots shoved into Kaylin’s hands weren’t anything like her normal boots—but they didn’t have the heels that Teela’s boots did. Kaylin found shoes like Teela’s painful to walk in; they always made her feel slightly off-balance. If she had to run while wearing them, she’d probably trip and break a leg—which meant she’d have to throw them away if running became a necessity.
These, not so much. They were slender, and the uppers were soft, but the soles, while also narrow in appearance, were flat against the ground.
“You think we might have to run and fight?” she asked as she slid her feet into them.
“You don’t?” Teela countered. She glanced at Severn. “Would you be more comfortable in court clothing?”
Severn shook his head.
“Very well. You might have noticed the cohort is currently enmeshed in multiple disagreements. Attempts on Nightshade’s life are not uncommon, although it’s been a century or two since a concerted, credible effort has been made. What I don’t understand is both the timing and the method.
“Serralyn has continued to speak with Starrante; the Arbiter may ask you to visit the library in person, depending on the outcome of our meeting with the Consort.”
Kaylin nodded.
“Are you ready? We’re running slightly late.”
“What this means,” Terrano said, his voice not accompanied by his physical body, “is that Teela will be driving.”
08