Days of Blood and Fire - Katharine Kerr [58]
Carra laughed softly, and Labanna smiled.
“Well, by all means,” Carra said. “But you’ll have to tell me what to do. I’m rather new at princessing, you know.”
“Very well, then,” Rhodry said. “I say: Your Highness, may I present to you Jahdo of the Rhiddaer? If you accept, you incline your head in a slight and regal manner. Don’t smile, now. Haughty’s the look you want.”
Carra tried to follow his instructions but ended up giggling. The older women smiled and shook their heads.
“It’ll do,” Rhodry went on. “Now, I say: Jahdo of the Rhiddaer, you have the honor of being in the presence of Princess Carramaena of the Westlands and her grace, the Lady Labanna, wife to Gwerbret Cadmar of Dun Cengarn. Then you bow from the waist—one hand behind your back, lad, and stay as straight as kneeling will allow—that’s right. Bow to the princess first, and then the lady.”
Carefully, solemnly, Jahdo followed his instructions.
“Very good,” Lady Labanna pronounced. “And very well taught, silver dagger, I must say.”
Rhodry noticed the serving women assessing him with shrewd eyes.
“My thanks, my lady,” he said hurriedly. “We’d best leave your presence and not impose ourselves upon you any longer.”
“Oh, Rhodry, don’t be so stiff!” Carra laughed. “It’s not like I’ve got much to do this afternoon. Dar—er, the prince my husband, I mean—is out hunting with his men again.”
“Your Highness?” Labanna leaned over and laid a firm hand on her arm. “The silver dagger is quite correct. There is a limit to the time he may tarry in your presence.”
Rhodry got up, motioning to Jahdo to join him, and bowed all round.
“I bid you ladies a good day,” he said, smiling. “Come along, lad. Time for you to get back to your master.”
As they hurried out of the great hall, Jahdo was babbling about how beautiful the princess was, but Rhodry barely listened. He was reminding himself that if he wanted his past to stay hidden, he’d best roughen his manners. All at once he heard the boy shriek in terror. Rhodry spun round, found he’d drawn his sword without even thinking, and saw nothing at all, except for a pair of men riding in the main gate.
“What is it?” Rhodry snapped.
“Gods.” Jahdo was shaking from head to foot as he held out a trembling hand, pointing to the gate. “Gods. Riding in there.”
“What?” Rhodry sheathed his sword again. “That’s only a pair of Prince Dar’s men.”
The two men of the Westfolk were dismounting, tossing their reins to a waiting stableboy. Tall and slender, with moonbeam-pale hair, they were both handsome fellows, except for their eyes, slit vertically like those of a cat, and their long ears, as delicately curled as seashells. Jahdo tried to speak but only made a choking noise deep in his throat. All at once Rhodry realized that the boy had most likely never seen an elf before.
“Here now,” he said. “They’re real flesh and blood, just like you and me. They look different, truly, but they’re much the same as us under the skin. Why, doesn’t a wolfhound look different than a gwertrae? But both breeds are still dogs, and you could even get healthy pups out of mating a pair, couldn’t you? Prince Daralanteriel is a man of the Westfolk, and Princess Carra’s a woman of Deverry, and here she is, growing bigger with his child every day. So you know that they must be much like us.”
Jahdo’s terror turned to puzzlement. The two elves waved at Rhodry and strolled on by, heading toward one of the side brochs, where they were quartered.
“But they do look like gods,” Jahdo said at last. “Two times now I did see a god, and they both looked just like that.”
“Uh, are you sure you didn’t just see two elves?”
“As sure as sure, because the gods did appear out of nowhere and then disappeared again. One of them did come to the cell, when we were locked up, I mean. She just walked right through the wall and said we were going to be safe, and then she were gone. And not long after that you did come and take us to Jill, and Jill did make things well for us, and we were safe, just like the