Court of Fives

I settle on a pole rolled off to one side, glad for the rest.



Watching Kalliarkos and Dusty, I try to find rivalry or friendship, but all I see is polite nods that could mean anything. Kalliarkos is really good on the blind shaft. It’s a pleasure to watch his blend of tension and strength as he nimbly climbs up various widths. He easily beats Dusty.



The interaction between Lord Thynos and Inarsis interests me too. As they talk, discussing Kal’s technique or Dusty’s inefficient breathing, they touch each other on the arm or back without thought, in a way I have seen at Anise’s training stable where I observed that kind of casual contact between longtime friends or lovers. Once I saw my father talk to another man in a similar fashion, with an intimacy that had to do not with flesh but with trust; he told me later that he and the other captain had served in the Oyia campaign, where together they had faced death. Will I ever be able to truly trust Kalliarkos?



After he finishes a climb and waits for Dusty, Kalliarkos catches my eye and tilts his head, as if he can tell I am thinking of him. He is sweaty from training, his hair slicked against his neck, his face glistening, and his damp leggings sticking to muscled thighs. I try not to grin but then I do, and he winks at me. I cover my mouth to stifle a giggle.



Thynos thumps him hard on the back, gaze flicking between the two of us. “That’s enough, Kal. I think we can break for our meal now. You go back to the palace. Isn’t your poetry tutor waiting for you?”



“My tutor didn’t come today. They’re all busy preparing for the wedding feast on Sixthday night.”



Remembering how Father abandoned us hits like a kick in the belly. I clutch my arms across my body.



Kalliarkos’s brow wrinkles with concern as he takes a step toward me. “Jes, are you all right?”



“Kal, I told you to return to the palace.” Thynos stands with arms crossed. “Are you arguing with me?”



Kalliarkos holds his uncle’s stare for just long enough to save face, but both Thynos and I can tell the moment before the prince gives way. Without looking at me, he stalks off with Inarsis dogging his heels like a guard.



Thynos waits until they are out of sight before brushing his hands free of chalk and grit. “Dusty, take a break. Spider, at attention.”



I stand as Dusty hurries off. Thynos paces around me, forcing me to turn to keep facing the ominous thunder of his frown. When he stops moving he rests two fingers just above my breastbone and increases the pressure until I take a step back.



“With training and discipline you could go far, Spider. Don’t throw it away for something you can never have.”



“I’m not doing anything illegal!”



“I didn’t ask for your opinion. Go join your fellow adversaries.”



I fumingly retreat to the dining shelter, where the others have already started eating.



“How’d it go?” Gira asks, searching my face. “Dusty says you were run flat by Lord Thynos.”



“I suppose I was,” I say, thinking of his words. Abruptly I’m cheered by his warning because it means he wants me to concentrate on the Fives.



Tana pounds her cup on a table to get our attention. “Adversaries, tomorrow there will be no training. As members of Garon Palace we are required to attend the funeral procession for Lord Ottonor. Darios and I will be busy this afternoon to prepare, so you have the rest of the day off. Don’t get used to it.”



“Whoo!” cries Mis, pumping her arms skyward as Gira, Shorty, and I laugh. “Let’s go to the Lantern Market. I need to buy a charm for my sister’s new baby.”



I have never in my life been allowed to go to the Lantern Market but I’m too embarrassed to tell them that.



“Can we just walk out into the city when we’re not training?” I ask, and from the way the others look at me, I can see I’ve puzzled them. “I mean, we don’t have to ask permission? Or have an escort?”



“We’re not Patron girls to be shepherded around by an ill-wisher,” says Gira with a glance toward Talon, who sits at the far end of the table picking the pine nuts out of her stew and ignoring us. “We’re adversaries. As long as you keep your Garon badge on, no one will bother you. Anyway, Shorty and I are going to stay in for a change. You two have fun.”



Walking out the open gate with Mis is like being blown by the wind of freedom. No one stops us. No one questions us. Our honor is our own to guard. All my life I have been either a dutiful daughter bowing to propriety or a disobedient girl flouting my father’s strict rules. Mis and I can stroll down the street with not a care in the world. She’s not like my sisters at all: she is easygoing and relaxed. As an adversary she’s not yet as good as Gira or Dusty but she’s coming along.