daunting as her father. “Ebon and I are friends, yes,” she said carefully. “And I can speak to him as I could speak to your daughter. ” She realised that this might sound too similar to what she had said to the senate, and cast around for something she could add that would sound genuine, that would not sound as if she were hiding some important truth. “We can laugh together. He—he teases me. He tells terrible jokes. ”
The smile crept back into his eyes again. “The pegasi tell jokes? I am glad to know that. They are always so grand and solemn at court—and we rarely see any but those who are human bound. We never see the little ones, the children—I understand that it is too long a flight for them. Do they play, like human children? Do they scamper and jump and fall over? It is not only that we cannot speak to them clearly—how can you know anything about a people if you have never seen its children? But I am sure, if they tell jokes, that their children also play.
“And I will ask you one more question, and then excuse you from the burden of my company any further. My lady, forgive me, but I wish to recast the question I began with. Do you want to visit your friend at his home? Aside from any other question of who you are or who your friend is, or what your parents’—er—colleagues think of the matter, or whether anyone else with a friendship such as yours has done such a thing. Do you want to go—not just over the Starclouds to somewhere no human has been, but to visit your friend, because you can laugh with him, and exchange terrible jokes? ”
She thought, how odd that no one has asked me this but my mother and father, and Danacor, and Lucretia and Diamon—Ahathin didn’t have to ask, and Glarfin would think it was none of his business. But it was easy to answer immediately:“Yes, my sir, I do wish to go. For just those reasons. Because he visits me at my home. I want to visit him at his.”
He nodded, staring at her. “ Thank you, my lady. I believe you. ”
The next day her father said to her, “I don’t know what you said to old Orflung last night—I saw you talking to him—but Barnum tried to begin a last-minute rebellion this morning about your journey and Orflung essentially shouted him down. Said you were no longer a child but a young woman and you knew your own mind and wanted to go, and we should let you. Finally. Barnum wouldn’t have won, if it had come to that—I’d’ve invoked king’s fiat. But I have hoped I wouldn’t have to—and everyone listens to Orflung. But why it never occurred to anyone before to ask you—I’ve even suggested it two or three times, to Orflung among others. ”
“It’s because I’m so little, ” said Sylvi. “I’m just big enough to be a parcel to be wrapped up and sent somewhere. Or not. ”
The king snorted. “Helpless wrapped-up parcels don’t knock their experienced sparring partners over—with tricks the sparring partners have taught them. ” Lucretia had been so delighted by her protégé’s progress she’d brought the story to the king herself.
“You should have let me challenge Barnum to single combat. I’d’ve shown him what a parcel can do. ”
“I should have, ” said the king half ruefully.
Sometimes even being the king isn’t the answer, she had thought then, and thought again now, sitting on the llyri grass, talking to the king of the pegasi. Sometimes one of your oldest councillors does the job better. Sometimes your daughter is the only one who can do it at all.
What do I do now? she said.
Lrrianay wrinkled his nose and did a very unkingly ear-whirl. Eat dinner. Sleep. Wake and rise tomorrow morning and come with us to the Caves. That is all.
And talk to you.
Lrrianay bowed his head solemnly, arching his neck so that his forehead nearly touched the ground, and his long mane fell over his face, so she could see only the stiff alertness of his ears. When he raised his head again all the mischief was gone and he looked every inch a king, even lying on the ground with his legs folded under him and his wings negligently crossed over his back. Yes. If it is not too great a strain for you. I would