And with that, he stormed out, leaving Vanyel limp with pain and anger and utter dejection, his eyes clamped tight against the tears he could feel behind them.

Oh, gods, what does heexpect of me? Why can’t I ever please him ? What do I have to do to convince him that I can’t be whathe wants me to be ? Die ?

And now- now my hand, oh, gods, ithurts - how much damage did they do to it ? Am I ever going to be able to play anything right again ?

“Heyla, Van - “

He opened his eyes, startled by the sound of a voice.

His door was cracked partway open; Radevel peered around the edge of it, and Vanyel could hear scuffling and whispers behind him.

“You all right?”

“No,” Vanyel replied, suspiciously.

What the hell doeshe want?

Radevel’s bushy eyebrows jumped like a pair of excited caterpillars. “Guess not. Bet it hurts.”

“It hurts,” Vanyel said, feeling a sick and sullen anger burning in the pit of his stomach.

You watched it happen. And you didn’t do anything to stop it, cousin. And you didn’t bother to defend me to Father, either. None of you did.

Radevel, instead of being put off, inched a little farther into the room. “Hey,” he said, brightening, “you should have seen it! I mean, whack,an’ that whole shield just split - an’ you fell down an’ that arm - “

‘ ‘Will you go to hell?”Vanyel snarled, just about ready to kill him. “And you can take all those ghouls lurking out there with you!”

Radevel jumped, looked shocked, then looked faintly offended.

Vanyel didn’t care. All that mattered was that Radevel - and whoever else was out there - took themselves away.

Left finally alone, Vanyel drifted into an uneasy slumber, filled with fragmented bits of unhappy dreams. When he woke again, his mother was supervising the removal of his younger brother Mekeal and all Mekeal’s belongings from the room.

Well, that was a change. Lady Treesa usually didn’t interest herself in any of her offspring unless she had something to gain from it. On the other hand, Vanyel had been a part of her little court since the day he’d evidenced real talent at music about five years ago. She wouldn’t want to lose her own private minstrel - which meant she’d best make certain he healed up all right.

“I won’t have you racketing about,” she was whispering to Mekeal with unconcealed annoyance on her plump, pretty face. “I won’t have you keeping him awake when he should be sleeping, and I won’t have you getting in the Healer’s way.”

Thirteen-year-old Mekeal, a slightly shrunken copy of his father, shrugged indifferently. “ ‘Bout time we went to bachelor’s hall anyway, milady,” he replied, as Lady Treesa turned to keep an eye on him. “Can’t say as I’ IImiss the caterwauling an’ the plunking.”

Although Vanyel could only see his mother’s back, he couldn’t miss the frown in her voice. “It wouldn’t hurt you to acquire a bit of Vanyel’s polish, Mekeal,” Lady Treesa replied.

Mekeal shrugged again, quite cheerfully. “Can’t make silk out ‘o wool, Lady Mother.” He peered through dancing candlelight at Vanyel’s side of the room.

“Seems m’brother’s awake. Heyla, peacock, they’re movin’ me down t’ quarters; seems you get up here to yourself.”

“Out!” Treesa ordered; and Mekeal took himself off with a heartless chuckle.

Vanyel spent the next candlemark with Treesa fussing and weeping over him; indulging herself in the histrionics she seemed to adore. In a way it was as hard to deal with as Withen’s rage. He’d never been on the receiving end of her vapors before.

Oh, gods,he kept thinking confusedly, please make her go away. Anywhere, I don’t care.

He had to keep assuring her that he was going to be all right when he was not at all certain of that himself, and Treesa’s shrill, borderline hysteria set his nerves completely on edge. It was a decided relief when the Healer arrived again and gently chased her out to give him some peace.

The next few weeks were nothing but a blur of pain and potions - a blur endured with one or another of his mother’s ladies constantly at his side. And they all flustered at him until he was ready to scream, including his mother’s maid, Melenna, who should have known better. It was like being nursemaided by a covey of agitated doves. When they weren’t worrying at him, they were preening at him. EspeciallyMelenna.

“Would you like me to get you a pillow?” Melenna cooed.

“No,” Vanyel replied, counting to ten. Twice.

“Can I get you something to drink?” She edged a little closer, and leaned forward, batting her eyelashes at him.

“No,” he said, closing hiseyes. “Thank you.”

“Shall I - “

“No!”he growled, not sure which was worse at this moment, the pounding of his head, or Melenna’s questions. At least the pounding didn’t have to be accompanied by Melenna’s questions.

Sniff.

He cracked an eyelid open, just enough to see her. She sniffed again, and a fat tear rolled down one cheek.

She was a rather pretty little thing, and the only one of his mother’s ladies ormaidservants who had managed to pick up Treesa’s knack of crying without going red and blotchy. Vanyel knew that both Mekeal and Radevel had tried to get into her bed more than once. He also knew that she had her heart set on him.

And the thought of bedding her left him completely cold.

She sniffed a little harder. A week ago he would have sighed, and apologized to her, and allowed her to do something for him. Anything, just to keep her happy.

That was a week ago. Now - It’s just a game for her, a game she learned from Mother. I’m tired of playing it. I’m sick to death of all their games.

He ignored her, shutting his eyes and praying for the potions to work. And finally they did, which at least gave him a rest from her company for a little while.

“Van?”

Thatvoice would bring him out of a sound sleep, let alone the restless drug-daze he was in now. He struggled up out of the grip of fever-dreams to force his eyes open.

Lissa was sitting on the edge of his bed, dressed in riding leathers.

“Liss - ?” he began, then realized what riding leathersmeant. “ - oh, gods - “

“Van, I’m sorry, I didn’t want to leave you, but Father said it was now ot never.”

She was crying, not prettily like Lady Treesa, but with blotched cheeks and bloodshot eyes. “Van, please say you don’t mind too much!”

“It’s ... all right, Liss,” he managed, fighting the words out around the cold lump in his throat and the colder one in his gut. “I ... know. You’ve got to do this. Gods, Liss, oneof us has to get away!”

“Van - I - I’ll find some way to help you, I promise. I’m almost eighteen; I’m almost free. Father knowsthe Guard is the only place for me; he hasn’t had a marriage offer for me for two years. He doesn’t dare ruin my chances for a post, or he’ll be stuck with me. The gods know you’re safe enough now- if anybody dared do anything before the Healer says you’re fit, he’d make a protest to Haven. Maybe by the time you get the splints off, I’ll be able to find a way to have you with me. ...”

She looked so hopeful that Vanyel didn’t have the heart to say anything to contradict her. “Do that, Liss. I - I’ll be all right.”

She hugged him, and kissed him, and then left him.

And thenhe turned to the wall and cried. Lissa was the only support he had had. The only person who loved him without reservations. And now she was gone.

After that, he stopped even pretending to care about anything. They didn’t care enough about him to let Liss stay until he was well - so why should he care about anything or anyone, even enough to be polite?