The Kept

The Council

Thin, green sunlight washed across Nerys's closed eyelids. Her body was stiff and her head ached dully. Even in her half-sleeping state she recalled exactly where she was, and why. There was a quick rap at the door that she was given no time to answer before Dadien rushed in with an armful of clothing.

"Good morning. There is a washbasin for you on the table. I hate to rush you, but my advisers are waiting to discuss important matters, and you need to be present. Tanek will show you the way when you are dressed."

Dadien set the clothing on the chaise and turned to leave.

"Wait..." Nerys called after him.

"What?"

Dadien ran his hand through his hair impatiently. Nerys lifted her bound hands.

"Oh! It will probably be easier to dress without those... " He stopped just short of the rope at her ankles. "You're not going to hit me again, are you?" he asked with a roguish half-smile.

"Not as long as you keep your fingers off of anything that isn't tied up," Nerys replied.

"Fair enough."

He made quick work of the bindings and hurried to leave.

"I will see you shortly, unless you'd like me to stay and help remove anything else," he said from the doorway with one eyebrow arched. Without thinking, Nerys hurtled the nearest object at his head. He ducked out of the door and the pillow thumped harmlessly against the wall. "See you shortly, then," he called from the other room.

She took a few moments to massage her rigid joints. Despite it being the height of summer, the little room had a refreshing glow of spring. Fresh, young blossoms floated in the basin, perfuming the water, and the bed frame was carved to resemble live saplings with budding leaves that appeared to sprout right out of the floor.

She washed herself and looked over the bundle of clothing Dadien had left for her. The soft, eggshell colored tunic embroidered with intricate green leaves along the bottom of the sleeves and her and ebony trousers were more form fitting than she cared for, but she felt more like herself than she had in the palace. Probably because it was the first time in months that she had been free to bathe and dress without the hands of half a dozen women attempting to prod and polish her into a respectable princess.

When she bent over to slip on the supple leather boots that had been provided, she felt something heavy shift on her head. She reached up and felt the hairstyle still held up by opulent pins. Even the golden feather had remained in place; though, being broken several times over, it now hung limply by her ear. After her attempts to dismantle the hairstyle left her hair more tangled than before, she gave up. Perhaps someone would be kind enough to just shave the entire mess off of her head.

Tanek had stuffed himself in the largest of the sitting room chairs. Nerys could have comfortably curled her entire body up in the seat, but it seemed like a child's toy beneath the unbelievably large man. His thick, red eyebrows disappeared up into the curls that sprang from his head in every direction when he saw Nerys's frizzy, feathered coif.

"I can't take it down," Nerys admitted.

He waved her over. "I have five daughters who have come home with stranger things caught in their hair."

Nerys did not expect the man who had knocked her senseless and tossed her about like a sack of grain to be so kind. She was further surprised by her own lack of hesitation to accept his offer. Quicker, and more painlessly, than she thought possible, the feathers and pearls were removed and her hair tidily braided. Her own mother had never once managed to comb through her hair without violently yanking tangles free.