Naamah's Kiss - Jacqueline Carey [225]
The first time one passed, a wave of cries trailed in its wake. Beside me, the princess tensed. "What is it?"
I shook my head. "I've no idea, my lady."
"War!" Bao's face appeared in the window, exultant. "His Celestial Majesty's riders are flying the red banner of war!"
"He's done it," Snow Tiger breathed. A ripple of relief ran through her; for a moment, she buried her veiled face in her hands. "Ah, gods be thanked! Mayhap there is a greater purpose in this."
"It must have been a powerful letter you left for him," I said.
"Yes."
I thought she would say more, but she didn't, not then. Not until later, long after we had made camp for the night, long after the simple supper and sparring, when she and I had retired to our tent of oiled silk. I was nearly asleep when her voice floated in the darkness, hushed and disembodied.
"I said many things in the letter I wrote," the princess whispered. "I begged my father to put his faith in his bravery and wisdom, not his doubts. I assured him that he had not lost the Mandate of Heaven, that he could lose it only through inaction. I told him that this was the battle he was born to fight, the battle of a lifetime, ten lifetimes. And…"
"Aye?" I propped myself on one arm.
"I said that I would fight it if he did not," she murmured. "That once the dragon and I were freed from the curse Black Sleeve laid upon us, I would raise an army to confront Lord Jiang and his vile sorcerer. And that if my Noble Father had failed to stand by me, I would consider myself an orphan and the rightful heir to the Mandate of Heaven."
I caught my breath, aware of exactly how grave an offense this was for a dutiful Ch'in princess. "A dire threat, my lady."
"Yes." A rueful note crept into her voice. "But a necessary one. They tell me my mother was unafraid to cross him at times, and he loved her better for it. It seems there is a certain fondness for insolence in our lineage."
I reached out one hand in the darkness between our pallets. "I'm sorry. I cannot imagine how difficult it was for you to do such a thing."
She squeezed my hand in gratitude, then let go. "Thank you. If you would do me a kindness, I would ask you never to speak of it to anyone."
"Of course," I promised readily. "Your trust honors me."
"It is strange," Snow Tiger mused. "What you once shouted at me is true. There is great value in having a loyal listening ear into which to whisper one's troubles. Perhaps I begin to understand your D'Angeline customs better. Perhaps I am not so different from your Queen as I thought."
The dragon stirred, a hopeful thought beginning to form. If you are not so different—
"Nor so alike, either," the princess added hastily. "It is friendship of which I speak, nothing more."
I smiled in the darkness, knowing she couldn't see me. "I do not think people are so different, my lady. It is only that in Terre d'Ange, the expression of desire in all its forms is sacred, so long as it is offered freely. They worship aspects of pleasure some peoples deny or reckon unsuitable. But they are not the only nation to celebrate the act of love." I paused. "Do not the Ch'in have manuals on the arts of the bedchamber? Bao told me as much."
"Oh, yes." Her voice turned wistful. "If my mother had lived, she would have presented me with such a book before my wedding night. None of my father's other wives saw fit to do a mother's duty."
"A pity." Although it was on the tip of my tongue to offer her whatever instruction she might desire, I managed to swallow the words. I did not want to spoil the moment. "From what you told me before, it sounds as though you and Jiang Jian would have managed without it."
"Yes." She was silent a moment. "But I would find it difficult to trust myself in such a way again. At least of my own will."
The dragon didn't speak, but the tenor of its thoughts was chastened.
"One day you will find