The Twisted Way (Champions of the Crystal Book 3)

Chapter 6: The Citizens Council

The next day dawned bright and clear, and Sabrina's spirits lifted with the sun. She chose a bright, blue-purple silk dress in the simple lines she favored and bundled her hair into a silvery net set with diamond chips. Gazing at her reflection, she wished the purple shades of mourning on Praxatillus were more forgiving of her fair complexion. Izana looked over her shoulder critically and disappeared, returning with a fichu of silver lace. She draped it over the dress' high collar.

"Oh, that's much better!" Sabrina said. "Thank you. All these dark colors just swallow me whole. I should be wearing more subtle shades. Do we go into any kind of half-mourning later on?"

"After half a year you may wear other colors, as long as you retain the purple silk lining on your official sash," Izana told her. "Most of the court will wear some article of clothing in mourning colors for another half-year after the strict mourning ends. But of course, for royalty, white is always permissible."

"I'm not really royalty," Sabrina sighed. "Oh, well. I have more important things to think about than what I'm wearing."

Izana smiled. "You represent Praxatillus. It is important to think about what you wear."

"I know, I know. Otherwise I'll end up on the receiving end of a lecture from Lady Imari," Sabrina grimaced.

Izana said, "Well, her taste is faultless, and she has given you a great deal of help already. That was a very nice gesture about the dress."

"What?" Sabrina said.

"The dress for your speech." Izana was puzzled. "I...I simply thought it was a wonderful gesture."

"You mean that dress was Imari's?" Sabrina gasped.

"No," Izana said. "Didn't you know? Her niece, whom she raised as her own daughter, married Prince Beldaren, the King's first son and his first appointed Heir. She would have been our Queen, in due course, if they had both lived. At the time of their marriage, the court was in mourning for the King's father, who had died a few months before."

Sabrina frowned with concentration. She knew that Baldaran had inherited the throne from his mother, confusingly named Shariara just like his wife. Evidently the death of the former Queen's consort had not been considered serious enough to delay the Heir's marriage. "How sad," Sabrina said. "Did they both die in the war?"

"Yes. Princess Ruana and her newborn child were killed the day the Inheritor was kidnapped," Izana said. "Prince Beldaren died a little later, I think. You could ask Lady Selémahs."

Sabrina realized that Izana was speaking of a tragedy a century old. It was hard to remember that many of the Miahns at court had lived through it all. "But what does this have to do with the dress?"

"It was Princess Ruana's wedding gown," Izana said.

Sabrina's jaw dropped. "How do you know?"

"When the Queen came back, many of the ladies at court donated dresses and fabric for her new wardrobe. Lady Imari invited me to go through Princess Ruana's things, which she had kept. She told me I could have anything except that dress, and her maid told me why. You didn't know, my lady?"

"I had no idea. I...I can't understand it. I know she dislikes me. Why help me? Why make such a sacrifice for me?"

"Not for you, perhaps, but for Praxatillus and the Queen," Izana suggested.

Sabrina took a deep breath. "Yes, but I must still think of some way to thank her. What a gesture!"

Izana nodded. "It is said that Lady Imari is the last great Miahn lady."

I could learn some things from her, Sabrina thought, flushing with shame as she remembered her last conversation with Imari.

A knock on the door heralded Lady Aliza's arrival, with Justek in tow. They both carried data pads and wore identical grins.

"What?" Sabrina asked suspiciously.

"Congratulations, my lady!" Justek said. "Such a success. I've been flooded with messages for you since last night."

"Deal with most of them for me, won't you, please?" Sabrina asked. "Aliza, maybe you can help him."

"Oh, we've already started," Aliza said. "But since I'm to go with you to the Citizens Council, he's on his own now! My lady, I have a petition to present to you."

"Oh, dear," Sabrina sighed, holding out her hand as if expecting to be given a dead rodent. Aliza gave her the data pad with a little laugh.

The petition, annoyingly, was in High Praxatillian, the formal, legal version of the language that mystified Sabrina most of the time with its intricate phrasing and archaic vocabulary. Earth lawyers had nothing on Praxatillian ones, she thought, frowning. "I'm sorry," Sabrina said. "Somebody's going to have to translate this for me."

Justek leaned over her shoulder curiously. "Oh, it's from the Council of Trême—specifically, the Council of Zentos."

"That's genetics, right?" Sabrina asked.

"Yes. Ah, it's a petition of marriage between two Miahns."

"Why involve me?" Sabrina asked plaintively.

"Hm, let's see." Justek took the pad from her and scrolled through it. "One of the parties seems to be part of your—oh!" He looked at Aliza, startled, then grinned in response to her laugh.

"It's me, my lady," Aliza said. "I'm to marry a distant cousin of mine, to solve some inheritance quandaries and to rebuild the Nohghar line." Her grin peeked out again. "I'm also quite fond of him."

"Your cousin Jahgh?" Sabrina guessed. "Oh, Aliza, congratulations! Of course you have my blessing. Oh—does this mean I'm losing you?"

"No, Jahgh is still on active military duty, so I may as well keep working too. Anyway, my rotation's up at the end of the week, and you'll have Reauwina. I plan to be married before my next rotation comes up."

"Then we can all be happy," Sabrina smiled, getting up and hugging her friend. "I'm so pleased for you, Aliza!"

"I'm quite pleased myself," she replied. "But we are going to be late if we don't leave now."

"Yes." Sabrina took the pad back from Justek, applied her thumb to the electronic sensor pad in the corner, and handed it to Aliza. "There. Justek, I'll see you when this meeting's over and we can talk about what else you have in store for me, all right?"

"Certainly. Just be sure to dismiss the Council before noon, when you have a meeting with the Prime Minister," Justek warned.

"I will," Sabrina called as she and Aliza hurried out.