|
Mat drank the wine quickly before the nobles could arrive. He had taken an honored position next to Elayne, across from Birgitte, at a royal feast in Caemlyn. It was supposed to honor his presence, actually. Mat still laughed when he thought of that. A year ago, these nobles would have sniffed contemptuously at scented handkerchiefs when they saw him, and now they bowed and looked eagerly at him for approval. These men, Rand had said, played Daes Dae'mar much less than the Cairhienen, but the level of manipulation and deceit still overwhelmed Mat.
He gave a start when the doors slammed open. He sat down again quickly, hoping the new arrival had not noticed his anxiousness. Unfortunately, the person who came through the door knew him well enough that she noticed his small jump. Birgitte smiled at him softly, and sat down at her seat. She smoothed her dress and shifted in her chair.
He held his hand with palm up with his thumb folded in. It was an ancient salute, a sign of respect among the generals that opposed Artur Hawkwing. Birgitte looked puzzled; Mat was surprised and discomfited. Even she doesn't remember the salute. I must be the only one living who would respond to it.
He withdrew his hand. Instead, he kissed her softly on the cheek and grinned. To his surprise, she blushed slightly and smiled back. Her eyes danced with mischief and a small voice in the back of his mind told him he should probably be nervous. He sat back down and resumed his wait.
"So you're the Lady Birgitte Trahelion now?" Mat asked. He wondered if he would have to show some more respect, but the thought was almost laughed out of his head. This is still the same Birgitte I knew in Ebou Dar, he thought. She looked at him for a hint of mockery, and when she found none she nodded.
A glint of mischief returned when she said, "I suppose I could take pretties now." The barb about Mat's relationship was Tylin was light-hearted, but he jumped all the same when the word pretties was mouthed. He reddened very severely and began muttering about pink ribbons.
Birgitte didn't let that interesting tidbit pass. "Pink ribbons?" Her smile was wicked this time, as was the look in her eyes.
Mat actually calmly replied, "The woman made me wear..." He trailed off knowing that Birgitte would fill in the blanks. She laughed uproariously, and was still laughing when Elayne walked in.
"If you hadn't left me in Ebou Dar it never would have happened, you know," he growled. She paused from her laughing to look at Elayne, then at Mat again.
"We should buy you a pink outfit," Birgitte declared. A hint of recognition passed through Mat's face, and then Birgitte knew the awful truth. She gaped at Mat, and Mat realized what she was so surprised about. He glared at her, his mouth working but never truly saying anything.
Elayne looked at the two of them with a puzzled look and took her seat at the head of the table, on the lion throne. Rand's monstrosity of a throne had been removed when Elayne had arrived, and his banners had been torn of the wall. Elayne sat down gingerly, and that was when Mat noticed something he shouldn't have missed before. Elayne's stomach was noticeably bulging. There were two explanations Mat could think of: Rand and Elayne eating too much of the well-prepared food that the palace kitchens made.
She noticed where his attention was, and looked at him incredulously as she said, "You didn't notice before?" Mat shook his head, and finally managed to find his voice again. He still didn't speak for a while.
"Rand... does he know? Is it...?" Mat trailed off and floundered as he tried to think of more words. Elayne rubbed her stomach fondly, smiled, and nodded confirmation. Mat ran a hand through his hair absently, tousling it on his right side. He sat back in his chair, dazed, and then shook his head as if to clear his mind. How strange. Elayne is pregnant! Well, at least I know that Rand was here. He snickered as he thought about what Rand was doing.
Then the nobles began filing in and the feast started in earnest. Mat did take notice of the fact that Tuon was present at the feast and not a prisoner in the bowels of the palace. He drank his wine deeply when he thought of his fate and Tuon's. The true shock of the night, however, didn't come until the middle of the feast. Mat didn't notice it immediately, but the noble opposite him did and pointed toward the end of the hall.
A thing sliver of light creased the darkness, and revolved into a portal. Through it stepped a group of people who looked thoroughly exhausted. Mat's wine glass nearly dropped, and he set it down quickly on the table lest it actually fall. His attention was riveted on the unexpected guests. One stepped forward proudly but slowly, and his midnight black cloak quieted the hall even more than their arrival had.
"Saidin is cleansed!" he yelled, clearly exuberant. He looked to be a middle-aged man, with dark brown hair and intelligent eyes. Small tufts of white graced his temples, and his face was handsome and strong. The only flash of surprise that crossed his face was when he saw Birgitte; Birgitte's reaction was similar, only to a greater degree.
"I have the honor of introducing Lews Therin Telamon, Lord of the Morning, Prince of the Dawn, First of Servants, Bearer of the Ring, Summoner of the Rods, Commander of the Armies of the Light." Birgitte's overly long introduction served to dramatize the man who stood before them. He did look handsome, but there was a certain plainness even as there was dignity in the man.
"Thank you for not adding the Kinslayer part," the voice of Lews Therin said slowly. It was a deep voice, not unlike Rand's, but with a clearly different and unknown accent. Even Mat didn't recognize the accent, which of course was from the Age of Legends. He seemed to shimmer faintly, then ripples spread outward through his disguise as it dropped. The figure that now stood before them resembled Lews Therin only in his height; his hair was now a fiery yellow-red and his face was changed to one much more familiar to Mat, though at the same time totally different from the one Mat recalled. His face was stony and hard, looking like it would fit a scowl better than a smile.
"I need to speak with you, Mat." He motioned with his head to the door, and Mat stood up slowly and walked toward Rand. His friend clapped his on the shoulder as soon as he was close enough and softly told Mat that he had some interesting news. He let slip that the news was something that Elayne was involved in as the Queen of Andor, and that it also involved Perrin. Or rather, as Rand called him, Lord Perrin Goldeneyes. It was certainly interesting. Mat was interested as to how Perrin was no longer an Aybara, and all of sudden he was a lord.
Rand walked out with the promise that he would speak to Elayne after he talked with Mat. She smiled at him with love, and the stony contours of his face seemed to soften and melt as he smiled at her and warmth shone through his eyes.
Then he put his hand on Mat's shoulder and guided him out. The remainders of the party sat at the table and began to eat, with Nynaeve taking Mat's place. It was interesting that the young lord who used to sit next to Mat suddenly vacated his place when Lan asked him if he could have the seat. The young lord even ran off to his own chambers to eat.
Elayne sat at her place a moment later, and then raised her skirts and ran after the two men.
"Men!" Nynaeve growled, but she also stood and walked out. Lan followed her shortly, muttering about how he never got a decent meal with Nynaeve going here and there and moving faster than he could follow.
|