The Power and the Glory

Book 1 Chapter II: Beware of the Ghosts

"You still haven't told us why you're angry," he said as he handed Abihira her teacup.

She drank the tea all in one go, wrinkling her nose slightly at the taste. Not even more than five hundred years in Seroyawa could give her a fondness for green tea. "It's that dratted letter." She would have used a stronger word than 'dratted', but she caught Mirio's eye in time. "My parents want me to go home next month. No reason, no warning, not even an apology for the short notice!"

"I'm sure they have good reason for it," Mirio said.

Abihira grimaced. "That's what I'm afraid of."

~~~~

In the long lifespans of immortals a month passed by in an instant. Abihira was on her way to her parents' house before she knew it. Her arrival at Yaruael Palace was a confused blur. Time only slowed down again when her parents summoned her to her mother's study.

It was an open secret in the royal family that Princess Hartanna and her second husband were at best indifferent to each other. They avoided spending time together as much as possible to ensure their indifference did not turn to outright hostility. Years before marrying Abihira's father Hartanna had fallen in love with a commoner of no family or money. She had married him against her mother's orders. No one had ever told Abihira the full story of what happened next. All she knew was that her mother's first husband died, leaving her to raise their only child herself, until Grandmother arranged a marriage between Hartanna and one of her fifth cousins, Mihasrin Kiyalanilsilru. Abihira was the ninth of their children.

Seeing how coldly distant they were towards each other, she sometimes thought her very existence was a minor miracle.

Now she was faced with both her parents, apparently in agreement on some unknown subject. Abihira could have weaseled her way out of almost any situation if she was just dealing with her mother. She could have done the same, possibly with a bit more difficulty, if she was only in trouble with her father. But when confronted with both of them, with no idea what the problem was, she could only sit down and worry about why they were angry.

I know I kept my necromancy research well-hidden, she thought, unconsciously clenching part of her outer coat in her hands. Not even Kiriyuki knows about it.

"Rilluintiar," Hartanna said, using Abihira's kelros-name[3]. "We have something very serious to talk to you about."

Abihira's mind flew back to necromancy. Her grip on her coat tightened. She tried not to let her alarm show on her face. "What is it, Mother?"

"Your marriage."

Years of getting into trouble had taught Abihira to appear calm in almost any situation. She had a spiel of excuses ready for every sort of confrontation she could imagine. But nothing could have prepared her for that answer. She would have openly gaped if memories of Kiriyuki's etiquette lessons hadn't still lingered at the back of her mind.

Every Saoridhin noble had an arranged marriage. Not every marriage went ahead. Sometimes one future spouse died. Sometimes scandal led to a match being broken off. Sometimes the betrothed people didn't like each other and mutually agreed to call the marriage off. Still, the vast majority of betrothals ended in marriage, and the vast majority of marriages were fairly happy. Abihira knew this as well as she knew her own names. She also knew she was betrothed to a minor nobleman, and she knew her future husband fairly well.

Some families believed it was best not to let a betrothed couple meet until shortly before the wedding. The Sinistrahs, the royal family of Saoridhin, had always believed this was nonsense. Abihira and Irímé had played together as children, visited each other as adolescents, and exchanged letters as adults. They knew each other well enough. Perhaps they weren't each other's best friends, and they never fell head-over-heels in love, but Abihira could think of many worse men to marry.