"How many mare are there?"

"Three."

"So the mare are female, but the leader of the Court is gender neutral?" My mind balked at accepting so many impossible ideas at once, but I was firm with it. My new attitude was going to be one of "go with the flow" that held off judgment until I had sufficient information to make an intelligent conclusion.

"That's right. Ah. That looked like a messenger. Stay here. I'll be right back." Theo dashed off down one of the narrow alleys that snaked off of the square. I forced a pleasant expression on my face, and tried to look as if I frequently found myself in pseudo-European, out-of-time town squares.

Two young men in a small horse cart drove past me, the horse's hooves clip-clopping pleasantly on the cobblestone. Behind them, a young woman in a short black skirt and long pink scarf, perched on a bright yellow motorbike, whipped around the horse cart with a wave at the driver.

This place was definitely going to take some getting used to.

"Well, hel-lo there, beautiful."

I turned to face the speaker. A man wearing a skimpy tank top and black and turquoise biker pants leaned against a light pole, giving me a salacious once-over. "You must be new. I haven't seen you around the Court. The name's Gabriel."

"Gabriel? I'm surprised to see you without your trumpet." I didn't protest when the man took my hand and gave it a rather sloppy kiss, although I badly wanted to wipe my hand afterward.

"Alas, I am not that Gabriel," the man said with a smile that bordered on a leer as he not-so-subtly eyed my breasts. I crossed my arms over my chest. "I am a cherub, not a vessel."

"A vessel?"

"Gabriel. He's a vessel. So, are you here alone?"

"You are not a cherub," I said, willing to be polite, but not made a fool of. I casually stepped to the side, to put a little space between us.

His leer got a bit brighter as he leaned closer. "Winged babies, right? In diapers, flitting around from cloud to cloud? Cupid and all that?"

"That is the standard image of cherubs," I agreed. "I'm sure I don't need to point out that you're far from that."

"It's a common misconception amongst the mortals." He suddenly touched my neck, mumbling something about a bit of lint on my collar when I backed out of his reach. "The truth about us is much more pleasant, I think you'll agree. You are new here, aren't you? You must have a tour."

"I'm actually waiting here for someone," I said as Gabriel the not-so-very-cherubic took my hand and tucked it into his arm.

"This won't take long. It's best to think of this incarnation of the Court as a giant wheel, with the main square here as the hub. There are three areas on the outer edges of the town, all reachable from this square," he said, ignoring my protest. He waved a hand toward the people at the well. "That's the equivalent of the office water cooler. Those are shops along the edges."

I had a bit of trouble coming to grips with the idea of a celestial shopping mall, but managed to get my mind to overlook the trouble spots and move on. "Shops. All right. Does the…er…does the sovereign change the appearance of the Court often?"

Gabriel shrugged, and escorted me down one of the four cobbled streets that led away from the square. "Whenever it gets the urge to, I guess. Over here is the petitioner's park, and through that archway is the library."

I caught a glimpse of a green open space as Gabriel whisked me by an arched doorway into another area. "You'll forgive my ignorance, but what exactly does a cherub do?"

"Communication, for the most part. I'm in charge of the Internet. See that building? That's the athonite. Don't go in there if you don't want to be bored to death. It's full of hermits who prose on about nothing for hours on end."

"You are in charge of the Internet? In charge how?" I asked, little warning signals going off in my mind. I stoked up my "go with the flow" intentions, and told myself I'd sort it all out later.

"Oh, this and that. It's mostly automated now, so it doesn't take too much effort to keep running. Leaves me time to spare for more pleasurable activities, like showing a lovely lady around the Court."

"You've clearly devoted much time to flattery. It's second to none," I said with a smile I didn't really feel, gently extracting my hand from his arm as we walked through a tunnel.

"Why, thank you, sweet lady." He kissed my hand, then gestured widely as we emerged through an arched doorway into the third area. "Behold, the sanctuary."

"Is the sanctuary a, for lack of a better word, holy place?" I had tried to keep an eye on where we were going, memorizing as best I could the twists and turns through the town so I could find my way back to the main square. I gave up doing that as soon as I realized there were frequent signposts like the one Theo had consulted.

Gabriel laughed, and gave my fingers a squeeze, replacing them in the crook of his arm. I gritted my teeth against the desire to remove my hand. "I can see you're going to need some help understanding how things work here. Holy has no meaning in the Court."

Portia? Where are you?

Shoot, I keep forgetting I can mind-talk to you. I'm in another section of the Court. I'll be right there.

I do not like to be kept waiting. Where are you?

Keep your girdle on, I'll be there in a couple of minutes. Someone is showing me around.

Who?

"And here we are. The sanctuary is the area containing the offices and living quarters. No tour is complete without a visit to the grand apartments." Gabriel gestured toward a bridge leading to a square-turreted castle that, for some bizarre reason, reminded me of Sleeping Beauty's castle in Disneyland.

"Hang on one minute, now," I said, coming to a stop. "I am not going back to your apartment with you, if that's what you're thinking. I told you that I'm with someone, and he's waiting for me, so if you don't mind, I'm going to return to the square. Thank you for the tour—it was edifying in a number of ways."

He grabbed my hand to keep me from leaving. "What's your rush? Your friend will wait. My apartment is very special. I think you will enjoy it…and me."

I gawked at him, unable to believe I was hearing what I was hearing, but the lascivious look on his face left me in no doubt as to the meaning behind his double entendre. "I have no intention of enjoying you."

Portia?

Coming!

"Why not?" Gabriel winked at me. "You could do a lot worse than a cherub, you know. We're known for our sexual skills."

"I wouldn't be surprised to find out that you're in charge of porn sites on the Internet," I said, snatching my hand back and turning on my heel to walk back the way we'd come. I'm on my way.

Overhead, thunder rumbled.

"You are making a mistake, Portia Harding," Gabriel called after me as I stormed into the stone tunnel. I stopped and looked back at him. He was leaning against a signpost, a knowing smile on his face. I wanted to slap it off.

"How do you know who I am? I didn't tell you my name."

He laughed, pushing himself off the post to saunter over to me in a blatantly carnal manner. The air grew thick with static electricity. "Word gets around. The latest rumor is about a mortal who had the cheek to get rid of a virtue in order to pardon her boyfriend. I have to admit, I like strong women, women who are not afraid to give in to temptation. I particularly like how they struggle before submitting." He brushed a strand of hair off my face, his fingers stroking my cheek, leaping backward with a startled look on his face when two thin snakes of lightning struck the ground immediately in front of me.

"You dare!" he snarled, his face turning red as he backed up another couple of steps.