Warmth. Warmth from every direction. Something soft to press his cheek against. No matter the circumstances, it was nice to sleep in a bed again. 

When Rae’s eyes opened, light was streaming through the study windows. The gentle sound of flowing water. A warm, hearty smell.

“Who’s there?” Rae was startled into a sitting position when he heard the sound of a boot hitting his floors. 

Across the room, having just filled a basin with warm water, and left a steaming bowl on the table, was the servant who had been accosted by Duke Bejuk the previous night. 

“Your majesty, I apologise,” she said.

The previous night! The last thing Rae remembered, was he had been lying on the bed, in nothing more than an undershirt, waiting for Sebi Bejuk to leave. He had hoped that once he was gone, he could take the nicest of the furs and go to sleep on the chaise lounge. That hadn’t gone to plan. But somehow he had still ended up buried under a dozen blankets. Rae started to feel a little feverish as a mortifying possibility dawned on him.

“Your majesty?” 

The servant was so little that she might have been a child, but upon closer inspection she was about the same age as Rae, with a ruddy, freckled complexion and thick dark hair.

Rae covered his discomfort with a cough.

“Is that for me?” he asked of the bowl on the table. 

“Yes! It’s good you woke up, it’s still nice and hot,” 

Before Rae could protest she had brought the food to him on a tray. Rae must have spent too long in the backwater Kaolin camp, here it seemed even the servants were taking the lead. Some Shak he was.

In the bowl was hot chicken soup, with a selection of herbs that could have only been requested by Duke Bejuk. The taste was so strong he needed to take breaks between each mouthful, he took that chance to get to know the servant.

She was called Laela and had lived in the Shak’s camp since birth. Unmarried and not promised to anyone, the second girl in her family. She had served in the palace for four years, Rae thought about asking her how his father’s health had declined but decided against it.

“Were you around last night? Do you know what time young master Bejuk left?” 

“Sebi? Yes, I waited outside for him to finish, I was hoping to get another look at him. But I waited long past midnight and there was still no sign of him, so I went home,” she said, and Rae started to doubt all the servants in the palace were quite so gutsy as this girl.

“A look at him? Why?” 

“Because he’s so handsome. Don’t you think? He’s number one for a reason,”

“Number one?”

“Oops, please don’t tell him I said that,” she asked, and Rae shot her a look that said, explain or I’ll expose your depraved ways to the handsome healer.

“Well, there are a lot of handsome young masters who visit the palace… and us serving girls… we almost all agree that Sebi is the best of the best,”

The best of the best, eh? So good looks trump conversation skills among the serving girls in this palace, Rae thought.  

“Almost?”

“Well there’s no accounting for taste is there? And in their defence, Sebi does have some stiff competition,”

“Alright, then who’s second place?” Rae had to gather as much info as he could, so he could have a good laugh watching Gaori attempt to climb the rankings.

“Your Majesty is embarrassing me! I’ve already said far too much,” Laela laughed, before taking the empty bowl and hurrying away. 

After washing and dressing, Rae stepped out into the tea garden to get some air. He had slept almost till noon. Someone, probably Bejuk, must have taken mercy on him and convinced Duke Ashem to let him rest. Taking a deep breath, he went to find where the Dukes would be meeting with him today.