Someone approached him, a guard, and offered a hand.Aaralyn took it, not certain what else to do, and let the guard lift him to his feet."Thank you."
The guard nodded and returned to Prince Bakhtiar's side.
Staring at the floor, Aaralyn said, "How may I be of service, Your Highness?"
"We had a question about a book," Prince Bakhtiar replied."Taher."
Lord Taher had much darker skin than the others, with beautiful red undertones drawn out by the gold and rubies that adorned him.He was achingly lovely, like a flower, and not as tall or big as the other three concubines, more Aaralyn's size, maybe slightly taller.
He held out a book, large and heavy, bound in blue leather with the wordsCollected Tales of Fallaxembossed on the front and covered in gold leaf.In Havarin.Fallax was a southern colony along the gulf shared with Petch and Tritacia, known for their pearl and kelp farms.Their tales were of sea monsters, seductive mermaids, the dangers of wandering too far, a lesson Havarin approved of greatly.
Once he'd taken the book, Lord Taher smiled ever so briefly, soft and lovely, then returned to Prince Bakhtiar's side.Not gawking at the pair of them took more effort than Aaralyn would ever admit to.Keeping his eyes on the book he asked, "What is the question, Your Highness?"
"Some arrests were made recently in a smuggling matter.One of the smugglers attempted to hide this book, prevent it from being seen, and throw it into the harbor.A city guard noticed and confiscated the book, but we cannot determine what might have been so special about it.We thought some of the Havarin guests here in the palace would be able to figure it out, but they turned up nothing.Lady Hedieh suggested you, and we were nearby, so came to ask directly."
A small, amused smile slipped out, despite Aaralyn's efforts to remain properly neutral.Going to his worktable, he picked up his favorite paper knife and deftly cut away the pastedowns front and back.As expected, there were papers hidden in the front portion of the book, and banknotes in the back half."Here you are."
Prince Bakhtiar laughed and immediately crossed the room to the table, ignoring the admonishments from his guards and Taher."Never say!Here we were looking for coding in the words or some hidden meaning in the drawings, and it was far simpler the whole time.Clever!How did you know?"
Aaralyn rubbed the tip of his nose with one finger, cheeks flushing, and stared at the table as he said, "Havarin nobility do not like to have their pretty things destroyed, unless they are the ones doing the destroying, so it is common practice amongst…let us say the less obedient colonists and slaves…to hide important things where only destruction grants access.The cost of this book could have fed my family for months.Nobles would never think to damage it to find what they seek."
He tried not to think about them, his family, who likely had been punished for allowing him to escape, though he had not lived with them for some years.What did it say about him, that he'd been willing to risk them, hurt them, for his own freedom?
He pushed the papers and money closer to His Highness."I hope this helps, Your Highness."
Prince Bakhtiar picked up the papers and read them over.His mouth curved in a triumphant smirk that Aaralyn wanted desperately to taste.How lucky his concubines were, that they could do so whenever they wished."It helps immensely, Master Aaralyn, all thanks to you."He pushed the banknotes back down the table."Yours to keep, in gratitude.Taher, take these to Captain Bahiya.Lady Hedieh, thank you as well."
"Always an honor to be of service, Your Highness."
Then Prince Bakhtiar and his people were gone, leaving only a hint of some soft, sweet cologne behind.Aaralyn looked at Lady Hedieh, hoping he didn't look as disarrayed as he felt.He stared down at the money."I… this is a small fortune."
Lady Hedieh chuckled."To His Highness, it was a trifle.You can take them to the treasury downstairs and explain what happened.They will exchange the notes for coin.Well done, Aaralyn.That was quite impressive, how easily you knew where the secret lay.And do not worry…" She winked."He has that effect on everyone."
His face burned hot, making her laugh, and she pinched his cheek affectionately before departing.
Great, so hehadlooked completely stupid and besotted.Aaralyn groaned and let his head thunk against the worktable.Thank the gods he would probably never see Prince Bakhtiar up close again.It was a hopelessly depressing thought, but the last thing he needed was anyone thinking he was daring to look beyond his station.
Even if he was stupid enough to have such a wild ambition, he had no idea how to go about sayingplease invite me into your haremand probably wouldn't be able to do it correctly anyway.
All that aside, he was far too close to ugly to ever be considered for such a thing.Unruly orange hair.Freckles.Skin that spurned sunlight and gave away his every feeling.The missing leg.All the concubines were so lovely and elegant.There was no place there for an ugly Havarin runaway with one leg.He couldn't sit or stand gracefully, he often ended his days limping, he wasn't charming or seductive.His sexual history was a handful of drunken fumblings behind a tavern and being groped by handsy guards who thankfully had gotten called away before worse could happen.
Unfortunately, reciting those facts did nothing to ease the longing for something that would never be his.How ironic that he had fled everything he knew, everyone he loved, to avoid living in a harem only to arrive in Tavamara and wish for that very thing.
Sighing softly, he pulled out drawing paper and sketched out first Lord Taher and then Prince Bakhtiar.When those were done, and notes made for the more refined work he'd do later, he finally went back to stitching his latest book until dinner time.
*~*~*
Thankfully, and unfortunately, he did not see Prince Bakhtiar or his harem again for three weeks.
What hedidget, however, was citizenship.Once he was settled and had reliable work and the six-month minimum residency had passed, Aaralyn had applied for citizenship.It was a long, slow process, though, with interviews and testaments and more.Being hired by Lady Hedieh, having her testimonial, had helped significantly, and he'd finally been told that they had everything they needed for him, and the rest was simply waiting for the clerks to get to his paperwork in their never-ending piles.
He sat there crying, unable to help himself, as his friends and others in the dining hall congratulated him and someone even brought proper, undiluted wine.Between that and the money given to him by Prince Bakhtiar, life had never been better.He'd never had so much money at one time and wasn't at all certain what to do with it.
Well, no, he knew exactly what to do with it.He was going to get himself a better leg.Something beautiful as well as functional.Light but sturdy metal instead of cheap, stiff wood that warped and cracked and needed constant repair to stave off complete destruction.
So with guidance from Lady Hedieh on how to go about that, he covered his head and most of his face against the blazing sun that wanted to burn it and ventured into the city.
The morning started well enough.He stopped for breakfast at a cart he'd always liked while he still lived in the city, went to the market for a few odds and ends for his workshop and more sketching paper, and then finally started heading further into the city for the shop that Lady Hedieh had told him about.
