“The mayor brought in the musicians all the way from Atleah this year,” Zita was saying excitedly, her eyes on the group of men playing music across the room.  Their music was interesting, like a cross between folk music and something Indian.  “I hope they play something livelier for the festival, though.” 

A noise at the door stole my attention from Zita as three more cloaked figures walked in—one of them Trenwyn. The two with him were also members of his circle that I recognized from the sign removal the night before.  Trenwyn had apparently left Lucian at the stead again.  They saw us at once and made their way over to us.

 “It’s good to see you up and around again, lady Ethereal,” Daryn greeted me.  “And good to see you too, my lady,” he turned to Zita.

I gave him a wry smile.  The last time he’d seen me the night before, I’d probably been passed out drunk.  “Good to see you as well, Daryn.  And you too, Das,” I greeted the big dark maj.  Das flashed me a grin with his white teeth and gave me a nod.

“Are you hungry yet?” Trenwyn asked.

“Yes, but Zita already ordered stew for us.” 

“We’ll have to get some of that too,” Das announced, raising hand to call over one of the serving girls.  “Can we get some supper, please?  With bread and ale?”  The girl nodded brusquely and Das settled down in a seat.  

“It seems you’re getting to know the people here,” Daryn commented. 

“Don’t worry, Master Daryn, I’ve been taking good care of her,” Zita winked at him. 

“Ah, yes, lady, but what ideas have you been putting in her head?”  Daryn seemed to be joking, but it was hard to tell. 

Zita just smiled back at him, face innocent as a dove.  “Only wonderful ideas, Master Daryn.  She is even coming to stay with us tomorrow night before the spring festival.”  Her dark eyes flashed as if daring him to argue with her, but Daryn merely smiled thinly.

Trenwyn, however, made a choking sound.  “My lady, Zita, tomorrow night lady Ethereal has…prior engagements.”

Zita turned to him, eyebrow raised, and Trenwyn stopped sputtering.  “There will be time enough for that after the festival if it is still necessary, Master Matthis.” 

Was that Trenwyn’s last name?  It must be.  I looked back to him to see what he would say, but it was Daryn who answered.

“I can’t imagine it being unnecessary, lady Zita, but we did promise three days, which means we will take no action until after the festival, Trenwyn.”

I hadn’t expected Daryn to side with Zita.

“Are you certain it will be safe?” Trenwyn lowered his voice, speaking directly to his leader.  “I told you what the crow said about the Seti.”

Daryn frowned, shrugging.  “It isn’t our decision, Trenwyn.  It’s her life in the balance and she could lose it either way.  Let her make the choice.”

I watched Trenwyn’s jaw clench for a moment, before he sat back, looking down at the floor in defeat.

“She will be safe with us tomorrow and at the festival,” Zita went on cheerfully, as if the hissed conversation about lives in the balance hadn’t even taken place, “No one would dare challenge Orik.”

The serving girl arrived with the food right then, distracting us all.  A large bowl with roast meat—it smelled like lamb—and vegetables was placed before me along with a tankard of ale.  This supper was absolutely delicious.  Fresh bread arrived too, and the conversation stopped for a time.  Zita was the only one who didn’t seem to be starving, eating her food at a slow, genteel pace. 

Finally, Das stuffed the last bit of meat into his mouth and pushed back from the table, sighing contentedly.  About the same time, the music changed tempos and Zita perked up. “With this music, I’d say there needs to be dancing here.”  She rose, grinning devilishly, and walked, hips swaying, over to one of the men at the bar, pulling him out onto the open space between the tables and the bar.  “Come on, ladies!” she yelled above the music.  “These men don’t seem tired enough to me.”  Her dancing drew the eyes of nearly every man in the place as she started to move.  I couldn’t blame them, but why hadn’t she gone to dance with Orik?  

Two of the other women in the tavern heeded her summons and stepped onto the floor with partners and the music quickened.  I turned my chair so as to be better able to observe the dancers and Daryn pulled out a long-stem pipe and pouch of tobacco, lighting up.

“I want a pipe,” I commented to Trenwyn absently, watching the steps of the dancers.  Every couple seemed to be doing the dance a little differently as two more dancers joined the fray.  

Trenwyn gave me a skeptical look.  “You want a pipe?”

Das overheard him and let out a deep-throated laugh.  “Well, I think if she wants one, you should get her one, Trenwyn.”  The big maj clapped the smaller man on the back so hard that it jarred him.  

Trenwyn rolled his eyes.  “That’s the last thing she needs.”

I frowned at him, then changed the subject.  “What’s Zita’s story?”  I wanted more details, but was afraid to ask her and seem too nosy.

Daryn chuckled.  “She has a wool shop, but mostly she makes trouble.”

“I’ll drink to that.”  Das emptied his mug and then raised it in the air until he caught Meggie’s attention.  She refilled the mug from a large pitcher.

“And Orik doesn’t care about her flirting with other men?”  The songs had changed and Zita had switched partners, to another man who was not Orik. 

Das shrugged.  “Zita has always been like that.  It’s just who she is and Orik loves her for it.  He knows that she may flirt and bat her eyelashes at other men but, underneath, Orik holds her heart.”

“Orik is Omri,” Daryn put in, between puffs. 

I nodded.  

“He saved Zita, really,” Daryn continued slowly.  Another long draw on the pipe and a stream of smoke released to drift up to the ceiling.  “When she came to Rhir, she was running from a Seti maj who’d been hired to bring her back to Heshbon to stand trial for murder.  She was half-starved and coming down with the fever.  Orik found her huddled in a corner of his barn, trying to keep warm in the straw.  He took her in, nursed her back to health, and killed the maj pursuing her.  Ever since, she has been his woman.”

“Who did she murder?  And what happened with the Seti maj Orik killed?  I thought all the other majai were afraid of them.  Did they have Zita’s true name?”

“Whoa, there.  We’re not in a race, my lady,” Das joked.

“No one knows much about Zita’s former life,” Daryn confessed.  “She says her old master freed her on his death bed, but it wouldn’t have been difficult for someone like Zita to kill an old man and steal his money to escape slavery.  As for the Seti, Orik is formidable and strong.  Cunning too.  The Seti were furious after he incinerated the maj that was chasing Zita, of course, but that maj was not important enough to sanction action against Orik as a circle and that’s what it would take to kill him.  Even if the Seti had wished to act against Orik, it was believed that the maj tracking Zita had tried to extract her true name by force, so the Seti would have had a hard time gathering support for opposing Orik.”  Daryn chuckled darkly, “I would certainly be afraid to face Orik Shangar.”

“Wait.  It’s against the majai code to extort someone’s true name?”

“Not all majai follow the rules,” Trenwyn said flatly.  The hard expression on his face made me wonder exactly what he was thinking. 

Daryn nodded.  “It’s common knowledge that the Seti extort true names when it suits their purposes, but few who are strong enough are willing to stand against them.” 

The song ended and the musicians struck up a new tune.  Zita broke with her partner and approached us again.

            “You must dance, Ethereal!” she called.

            I looked at her doubtfully.  “I don’t know how to dance to this music.”

            Zita waved her hand dismissively.  “It’s easy.  It may be a little awkward with your arm,” she allowed, gesturing to the splint, “but it’s not as if your foot was broken.  Besides, it’s better to learn now so you can relax and have fun at the spring festival.”  She didn’t wait for my response but grabbed my good hand and pulled me out of my chair.  “Hamar, come and give this lovely lady a whirl!”  To me, “Hamar is a good dancer, though he usually smells of sheep.”

            A plain, middle-aged man stepped forth and I took his proffered hands.  He seemed a little hesitant at seeing the splint, but I tried to ignore it, taking his hand with my two free fingers and thumb.

            “Now you step left, right, spin, let go…”  Zita led me through the dance.  I smiled when I saw that the serving girls had been released from their tasks to join in the festivities.  Even Meggie was dancing, with the man who had formerly been tending the bar.  He must be the owner and her husband. 

            At one point, I was surprised to find myself dancing with Das.  

He grinned and winked at me.  “Did you think majai weren’t allowed to have any fun?”

I laughed.  “No.  I just didn’t think they had any rhythm,” I teased.

“I’ll just have to prove you wrong.”  He did.  Das was actually a very good dancer. 

As the musicians announced their last song, Zita was finally dancing with the big Omri maj.  Orik’s hood was back and waves of thick red hair fell down to his shoulders.  Zita danced with this man as she had no other.  There was no casual flirting with Orik.  Instead, she just gazed adoringly into the fiery man’s blue eyes.  Orik was the only partner Zita had had all night who did not seem a bit clumsy or incompetent next to her.  I smiled and stepped to the bar to sit out the last dance.  My mind returned to Navarre as the music rose and fell with melancholy tones and I wished that the medallion-ring connection was two-way.  If he was here right now, I would definitely dance with him, Seti agent or no.  

“Are you tired, my lady?”  

I’d not heard Daryn come up behind me and I glanced nervously up at him, hoping I’d not shown any outward signs of the turmoil within.  “A little.”

“I know it’s a lot to take in, changing worlds, learning what you would call magic is real, and running for your life.”

He was right, it was a lot to deal with, but I somehow felt more right than I’d been feeling on Earth for a long time.  Of course I couldn’t tell this to Daryn.  “I’m dealing with it,” I said.

He said nothing, but gave me a knowing smile, almost as if he sensed what I was thinking.