Lauki's Arc

Chapter 15 of 18

Lauki rode from the cyclops's cabin in black silk, the ring at his belt. He looked like a lord now. But he opened his mouth to greet a passing merchant, and the words came out wrong. Too blunt. Too rough. The merchant frowned and rode on. Lauki felt the cold truth settle in his chest. He wore a suitor's coat, but he spoke like a swamp thief. One wrong word before Conrad's court would shame Torra worse than any torn cloak. He needed manners, and he needed them fast. He knew where to go. He turned his horse toward a dark tower of black stone, its base ringed with carved skulls. Morrigan Nightshade lived there now, the dark fairy queen he had once freed from King Tiberius's chains. She owed him a debt. And she had ruled a court of her own. Morrigan met him at the tower door. Her black and red wings folded behind her. A crown of dark thorns sat on her brow. She looked him up and down and laughed. "You dress like a king and stand like a beggar," she said. "What do you want?" "I'm asking a noble's court for Torra's hand," Lauki said. "I don't know their manners. One wrong word and I shame her house." Morrigan's smile faded. She stepped aside. "Then you came to the right door. But you'll need a man who knows the noble games." She called into the tower. "Valdris." A pale warrior stepped from the shadows. Silver hair fell past his sharp ears. Black armor fit him like skin, a red gem on his chest. A skull-hilted sword hung at his hip. He studied Lauki with red eyes. "This one wants to court a lord's child," Morrigan said. "Teach him to bow." Valdris circled Lauki once. "Bow lower to the lord than to the lady. Never speak first. Never touch your blade in the hall." He pressed a hand between Lauki's shoulders. "Straighten your back. A suitor asks. He does not demand." Lauki practiced through the afternoon. He bowed wrong ten times. Valdris corrected each one, sharp and cold. Morrigan played the noble lord and threw insults to test him. "They will mock your horns," she said. "What do you say?" Lauki bit back his first answer. He remembered Valdris's words. "I say nothing," he said slowly. "I bow. I let my deeds answer." Morrigan nodded. "Good. Now you can walk into that hall." By dusk, Lauki bowed clean. He held his tongue. He knew when to speak and when to wait. Valdris stepped back and gave a small nod. "You'll pass," the warrior said. "Barely." Lauki mounted his horse. He wore the coat, the ring, and now the manners. Conrad's court could no longer laugh him out the door. But Morrigan caught his reins before he rode. "A queen's lesson is never free," she said. "I will call for mine."