A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor

Asabel saved her from her plight when it looked like no one else would be willing to. "You have to have the most perfect hair I've ever seen," she said, cooing like a mother over her cub. "And that butterfly pin too – it's such a lovely compliment. Your retainers must all be very clever."

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"…Thank you, Your Highness," Lasha finally managed to spit out.

The Princess smiled at her, doing her very best to put her at ease. "I heard what you did for Oliver at his trial. That was very brave of you."

"Uhm… I heard what you did too," Lasha said, "I think that was far braver."

"Or foolish, as many are calling it," Lancelot said, introducing himself with a bow. "Though we will soon turn even that sort of misfortune on its head, I have no doubt. I am Lancelot Swiftrider, my Lady. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."@@novelbin@@

Lasha nodded blankly back.

"Well, do be seated, if you would," Verdant said, finally deeming it appropriate to inject. "We've had some black tea prepared for those that wish to indulge, and some fruit tea for the Princess, though if you have any other requests, we do have far more varieties on hand."

"Thank you very much, Verdant," Asabel said, settling back into her seat, with her retainers standing guard behind her. "Will you be joining us? I have no doubt that you're doing a wonderful job of overseeing everything, but your presence is always a welcome moderation in our discussions."

She cast a glance towards Lancelot, as though to suggest that he was the one Verdant was moderating. The knight noticed the look and stiffened.

"Of course, Princess," Verdant said, "that was the plan. Given the current lack of retainers, and my lack of skill, it took me far too long to fulfil the tasks expected of me than it should have."

"Then, we're all here," she said, putting her hands together and smiling, as though delighted by that fact. Even with the smile, though, she didn't do a very good job at hiding the exhaustion behind her expression. No doubt her long journey had taken a toll on her, though it did little to diminish the beauty of the woman.

"Indeed," Verdant said, settling into a chair, and fetching himself a drink before an attendant could reach to help him. He glanced towards Oliver, his question unspoken. Oliver shrugged in reply – he didn't have a pressing desire to get to his own request, and was happy to have Verdant take the lead. "I would hear more of your journey to the Capital, if you would indulge me.

Was that anything particularly noteworthy about the affair, Princess?"

At the question, she put a finger to her chin in thought. "When you ask me that, Verdant, I know I must be careful not to mention anything trivial, despite how your question seems to invite it… Noteworthy, hm… Aside from the High King's expected suggestions that I dissociate from Ser Patrick, there was not much more that I can say. My time with him was short, after all. A mere ten minutes."

"Such a journey for such a short chat," Verdant noted. "The High King is awfully fond of his formalities."

"It is to be expected, I suppose," Asabel said. "I got the feeling that he was evaluating me. Trying to see if I was a threat. By the end of it, I didn't think that he thought so, given how pleasant he was, but it is hard to tell with that man."

"It seems he's taken a new mistress," Lancelot noted, surprising Verdant with the offer of something useful. "Or at least, there was an unfamiliar woman tending to him – one that he's clearly sharing relations with."

"You didn't tell me that," Asabel said, raising an eyebrow.

"It would have been inappropriate to mention until we had company," Lancelot replied.

"So uptight," Asabel sighed. "So, Oliver, now that we've established my weekend was as boring as could be expected, how about you? You look… Goodness, I'm surprised I've only just noticed. Are you well?"

He couldn't help but frown at the severity of her reaction. Verdant had been worried, but he hadn't physically recoiled. Now nearly everyone in the room was looking at him, trying to evaluate him. He could see Blackthorn doing the same, wearing a puzzled expression, as though she couldn't understand which part of him the Princess was referring to.

Behind her, Pauline nodded quietly to herself, whilst Amelia wore a similar expression to her mistress.

"I look that bad?" Oliver said, glancing around the room for confirmation.

"By my eye, not quite that bad," Lancelot mused, "though tired, I suppose. If my Lady is saying so – you must be in quite a bind indeed."

The tea suddenly didn't taste quite as good. It was an unpleasant thing to be put on the spot. Asabel covered her mouth with her hand, guilty of her outburst. "Forgive me, Oliver. That was improper. Are you quite sure you're well?

Verdant did mention that you didn't look your usual self, but I didn't realize it was quite so…"

"It relieves me that you see it too, Princess," Verdant said. "Will you look over him properly, once we conclude?"

"I would have done so even if you hadn't asked," Asabel said. "It wouldn't do for him to go dropping dead, after we've established our cooperative relationship."

"Dropping dead?" Oliver repeated. "That's an exaggeration, surely. It's just from travelling, same as you. I can't be so fragile that you'd imagine I'd drop dead over mere travel."

Asabel gave him a pointed look, one that mentioned that night that she'd found him half-dead, without saying it aloud. Oliver held his tongue, realizing that he didn't have a leg to stand on. He sighed and resigned himself to his fate.

"I will ensure myself of your health, Oliver," she said. "But – that misses the original question. How did your first mission go?"

As before, it was a question that more than a few of them were interested in. Lasha was sitting quietly, her hands folded all lady-like in her lap, but on her face was the same tomboyish expression that she wore when they were sparring. She expected tales of battlefield glory in the same way that Karesh and Kaya likely did.