„Of course, Sire. I know just the thing."

„Don't make it clothes. Kids hate getting clothes. One time, when we still had the place in Itaskia, Elana gave Ragnar a suit in cloth. Beautiful blue cloth. Expensive as hell. Specially tailored in the city. Know what he said?"

Dahl looked nostalgic. „Those were happy days, weren't they? Oh. Excuse me, Sire. No. What did he say?"

„ ‘But Mom, I already have a pair of pants!'" Ragnarson guffawed. „He already had a pair of pants! He was right, too, far as he went. He wouldn't have changed them before they fell off if his mother hadn't made him."

„You miss them, don't you, Sire?"

Ragnarson went cold. „Yeah, Dahl. I miss them awful. All of them. Your mom and dad as much as any of them."

„There's hardly any of us left."

„But this is a new life. That's what I tell myself. That we've been lucky enough to have two lives. What do you do, Dahl?"

„Try not to remember too much, Sire."

„Ever met my daughter-in-law, Dahl?"

„I know her, Sire. Just to speak to."

„Want to come along if I go out there tonight? Take a closer look?" It had struck him that, while Kavelin suffered a shortage of bachelors, he was surrounded by unattached males. Dahl. Gjerdrum. Aral Dantice. Michael. Even Derel. Of the lot only Gjerdrum had a regular girl, and that was a doomed relationship.

„I don't think so, Sire. That would be inappropriate."

„Inappropriate? She's female and alive... . Dahl, sometimes you beat hell out of me."

„I'm sorry to distress you, Sire."

„Shit. Distress me? Hell. Never mind. Go tell the Queen I'm on my way over. That I have a favor to ask."

Haas bowed slightly, stiffly, and backed out. Bragi mut­ tered, „Well, I got to him for a minute. There's somebody inside there."

Ten minutes later he was at Inger's door. „Hello, Toby. Want to tell them I'm here?"

„Yes, Sire." The guard knocked, spoke to a woman. „Just a minute, Sire."

„How's life treating you, Toby?"

„Good enough, Sire. Uh. ... Do we have to forfeit if we miss our next match?" He was an alternate on the Guards team.

„I still have to talk to the judges. Maybe they'll give us a postponement. We don't want to chance somebody getting killed just so we don't miss a match, do we?"

Toby looked dubious. Captures was important. The Guards had lost just the one match so far. They were in contention. „But if we did forfeit, we'd be one down. We'd never catch those Charygin Hall bravos."

„That's life, Toby. Sometimes you have to make the hard choices."

The door opened. Ragnarson stepped past the guard. In seconds he was crossing a room to take Inger's extended hands. She wore one of her more dazzling smiles.

„I must be doing something right. This's the second time this week. In broad daylight."

He kissed her cheeks, surprised her with a strong smack on the lips. „That green does things for you. Randiness didn't bring me here, but maybe I'll change my mind."

„Thelma, go away before you find out how human royalty is." Inger raised an eyebrow. „What, pray, did bring you?"

„Nepanthe's water broke. I thought it would be a nice gesture if you offered to help."

Inger frowned. She abhorred the birthing process. „What could I do?"

„Moral support. It would mean something to her."

„I see. Another installment on your debt."

He winced. „Maybe. And maybe because I wish you could be friends."

„All right. Maybe it'll do me some good too."

„You're okay, you know that?"

Her eyes recovered their twinkle. „It's rumored that I'm good in bed, too."

„Who could've told you that?"

„A man I went to bed with in a hospital in Itaskia."

„I remember him. Soldier fellow. Wounded. Maybe the fever clouded his judgment."

„I could always prove it."

Bragi latched the door. „You're talking yourself into trouble, woman."

„Oh, no." She rose. „You're the one who's got trouble, old man."

„Old man?" He lunged. She squealed as he threw her over his shoulder.

After supper Ragnarson joined Varthlokkur in his sitting room. „You have a classic gait to your pacing."

„Should I be in there?"

„Does she want you?"

„I don't know. Wachtel doesn't."

„I see his point. How's she doing?"

„All right, they say."

On cue, Wachtel and Inger came from the bedroom. „Well?" Varthlokkur demanded.

„She has a long way to go. It'll come around midnight, I'd guess."

Inger slipped her arms around Bragi. „It's not as bad as I expected. She's braver than I was."

„You did all right."

„I acted like a spoiled kid. I'm ashamed whenever I remember the things I said."

Bragi shrugged. „Women do that. They don't really mean it. If they did, the race would die out. No woman would have more than one baby."

„It's changed her. She's out of her shell. She's interest­ ing."

„All my friends are interesting. Maybe not very nice, or couth, but interesting. I've got to go. It's Ainjar's birthday. I promised I'd go to his party."

„Tell him happy birthday from me."

„Sure. Look at that."

Varthlokkur was furiously busy. „I forgot to cast horo­ scopes for the child." He flung books and charts, pens and inkwells onto a table. „Midnight. Damn."

Ragnarson grinned. „That'll keep him out of the way. Bye, Love."

She squeezed his hand. „Be good."

Ragnarson went to the stables wondering what was hap­ pening to them. A refreshing warmth had crept into their relationship.

He could not count the children at the house in Lieneke Lane. They would not hold still. When he arrived they seemed to be playing Captures with the ground floor serving as field. Gundar made a lordly referee. Ainjar and his sister yelled, „Hi, Dad," as they hurtled past.

From a seat on the stair Kristen looked at him in mute appeal. „The barbarians are here," she said.

„And they're our children, eh? Sounds like Prataxis. Don't you have any help?"

„Mist, of all people. She's showing the cook how to make some kind of punch. Julie was supposed to come, but her little boy took sick."

„That's all?"

She flashed a knowing smile. „You were expecting some­ one else?"

„No. Why?"

„I hear you took personal delivery of the message I sent the other day."

„Oh." More to himself than to Kristen, he mumbled, „Women are worse at kiss and tell than men."

„Kiss? Oh, my. I didn't hear about that. Tell me all about it."

„In a manner of speaking. Kristen, don't pull a stunt like that again. Next time it might be somebody nasty. And you might get caught."

„Fooey. I'm grown up."

„And we live in a world filled with bear-traps. Don't go sticking your fingers in them."

„I'll be careful."

„Promise?"

„Promise. What did you get Ainjar?"

The package rested on the stair beside him. „I don't know. I had Dahl get it. I was running all day. Nepanthe went into labor. That threw everything out of kilter."

„Then you'll both be surprised. I shouldn't tease you, but... . Well, Sherilee didn't come because she isn't ready."

„What?"

„She's thinking about what you said."

His heartbeat quickened. He had a sinking feeling. He was surprised at how disappointed he felt. He stared into nothing and asked, „Honestly, Kristen, what would you think if something did happen? I mean, I'm a married man. She's your friend. And half my age."

„I wouldn't think less of either of you. I think I'd be happy for her. The only thing is. ... Well, you are married. And she isn't. Both of you could get hurt. I wouldn't want that."

„That's why I said what I said the other day. Guess I'm mellowing. Fifteen years ago I would've said damn the consequences."

„And I think it's that caring that attracts her. She's been through it with the ‘damn-the-consequences' type. They're also the ‘the-hell-with-you' type when the consequences close in."