It took Siri a few more days to recover to the point where she felt comfortable being on her feet for any extended period of time. When she wasn’t recouping her strength, she was talking to Tea. Forging a relationship with her was crucial for the mission.

Tyrog was nowhere to be seen. Even when Siri was well enough to catch the sun, he was markedly absent. He couldn’t risk another bandit attack with the harvest moon on the horizon. It was a fool’s errand, of course. Dead or alive, they were gone. Had they remained, they would have been a liability. A single captive could ruin everything.

That being said, Siri appreciated having more time to prepare herself for their inevitable re-introduction. With the way their initial meeting concluded, she couldn’t risk being too hostile. A little hostility was okay, given the circumstances, but too much would increase the likelihood of Tyron getting in the way of Siri’s budding friendship with Tea. She needed the reverse. Tyrog had to be invested in Tea’s friendship with her. They were reaching for his heart.

*****

With the harvest moon being only a day away, Siri was declared well enough to be discharged from active care by Healer Hedwyn.

“Are you sure?” Siri asked.

Hedwyn nodded. “At this point in your recovery, there isn’t any real benefit to keeping you here and Lady Tea insisted on you being able to enjoy the festivities.”

Were she a different person, the atmosphere of Tyrog's encampment would have been awe-inspiring. There were visitors from all over Western Karik and a few from Southern Alaran like Siri. They were gathering for the harvest moon. As a lord of the hunt, Tyrog was charged with hosting the festivities within his hold, and he wasn’t one for holding back.

All of Siri’s senses were being stimulated at once. Roasted game and spiced wine tickled her nostrils. Rhythmic drumming delighted her core. Jovial conversation graced her ears. It was truly a sight to behold. And yet, she felt nothing. The wonderment she expressed was not her own. Were it not for the Masque, she would have been a fish out of water.

Fortunately for her, the smile she had on her face as Lady Tea greeted her was real enough. Kiriin would have liked her. That much was certain.

“Is there anything in particular that you wish to see?” Tea asked. She was smiling enthusiastically.

“I have absolutely no idea,” Siri admitted. “Seeing it all up close like this is a little overwhelming.”

“I get you. The medical pavilion has a set of Resonance Arrays to soften everything coming in from the rest of the encampment.”

“Do you have any recommendations?”

“Several, but Hedwyn would slap me if I suggested most of them while you're still recovering.”

“Hit me.”

Tea's expression fell.

“Excuse me?”

“Hedwyn has released me from her care. If she doesn't think I'm well enough to do anything you might suggest, then she is the one at fault. So hit me, what do you have?”

“I'm not sure I'm following. Why do you want me to hit you?”

“Huh? Is that not a thing in Karik? We say it all the time back home. It means ‘tell me straight’. You don't need to withhold anything.”

“If you say so. How about we start with getting something to eat. The sage-roasted venison is absolutely divine.”

*****

After some food and light gaming, Siri and Tea found their way to a knife-throwing event.

“Maybe we should come back to this some other time,” Tea suggested.

“Why's that?” Siri asked.

Before Tea could respond, a gaggle of lords who were gathering near the event called out to them. “I see you've finally decided to show yourself, Tea. You haven't forgotten our deal, have you? If we can beat you in a knife-throwing contest, you'll bring our proposal to your father.”

“I'm not interested, Frachen. In any of you.”

“Then prove you aren't with a blade.”

“What's going on, Tea?” Siri asked.

“They're trying to court me,” Tea replied, her eyes rolling sardonically.

Siri had to stop herself from suggesting they were more interested in Tea's father. From what she understood of how most people in Karik viewed alternative pairings, implying someone was in pursuit of such a relationship, regardless of context, was a foolish endeavour. Instead, she probed for some context.

“I'm not sure I'm familiar with this courting strategy. Are flowers, bad poetry, and oversized trophies not the norm in Karik?”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“They are when the suitor in question has already shown their worth. Lord Frachen here is barely a noble, and his friends aren't much better. They think they can impress me by defeating me in my chosen contest.”

“Enough stalling,” Frachen bellowed. “You may have won the last time, but we've improved significantly since then.”

“Why bother?”

“Because we have our pride!”

Siri scoffed. “Let me guess — you only have enough pride between you to challenge Lady Tea as a collective.”

“You've already failed to impress me, Frachen,” Tea added. “I'm not going to tell my father about your wish to court me, but I will leave your pride in tatters.”

They should have taken the hint. Tea was blessed with both accuracy and precision. Her suitors were less fortunate. Some of them were barely able to hit the target, let alone the danger zones. The best of them were able to land maybe two knives in the kill zone. Tea landed a knife in each of the target's eyes and one in the heart. She then repeated the feat against each suitor.

Her victory was made all the sweeter by her Gift. With her being a year or so older than Siri, she most likely possessed the Gift of the Nurturer. It was an ideal Gift for raising children and fostering growth, but it did absolutely nothing to augment her abilities in combat. The skills she displayed were entirely her own. They also presented Siri with an opportunity.

While everyone was distracted by Tea, Siri gathered her own set of weighted throwing knives. They were far from her preferred style, but the scales on the handle were ideal for what she was planning.

It was time to impress the young huntress while salting the wounds of the fallen. Seven suitors. Two for five plus eleven knives. One single breath.

Before any of the knives were returned, Siri surpassed Tea's feat by landing a point in the wooden scales of each and every one of Tea's twenty-one knives. As skilled as the lady might have been, Siri was a Stoic with years upon years of training. Furthermore, with everyone being distracted, she was able to relax her hold on the Masque, thus mitigating the emotional interference it created.

When Siri reestablished her hold on the Masque, she felt a tickling of pride. The suitors were devastated, and Tea was visibly amazed.

“How did you manage that?” Tea exclaimed.

“Beginner's luck?” Siri suggested. Her tone was far from convincing, and the smile she wore conveyed intent.

“I'd believe you if you managed to land a set in the heart or the head, but the precision and force required to land twenty-one points in as many handles without missing requires at least a modicum of experience.”

Siri raised her hands in mock defeat. “You've got me. I've done this maybe twice before.”

The remark had the suitors fleeing with what little remained of their failing pride. What kind of chance did they have if a novice was able to completely dominate them?

“I think your display might have rendered them a little tone deaf,” Tea laughed.

“You say that like I wasn't being truthful with my admission,” Siri retorted.

“I don't know. Were you?”

“Of course I was. It's not my fault everyone missed the blatant subtext. Besides my joke about beginner's luck, when did I say anything about my overall experience with knife throwing?”

Tea’s expression fell into one of understanding. “I thought you were being intentionally hyperbolic,” she admitted.

“Who's to say either way,” Siri teased. “For all you know, it might have actually been beginner’s luck.”

“An interesting theory. We'll have to test it again when any potentially lingering luck has dissipated. As for right now, however, I was thinking we could try some pole racing.”

“Gladly.”

*****

By the end of it, Siri was certain that pole racing was one of those events that Tea described as being slap-worthy. It would have been simple enough to compete in a foot race and jumping from pole to pole was also relatively easy. Pole racing combined the two activities into a single event that was significantly more challenging than either one alone. Likewise, the potential risk factors for the event were similarly increased by the gestalt of the two activities.

It was likely one of only a few activities at hand with the potential to physically challenge Siri in her currently weakened state, especially with the emotional interference of the Masque. Alas, it wasn't the physicality of the event that concerned her, but the pain it evoked as she was reminded of a long-forgotten shade — a flash of red; her reason for existing.

Who was she?

Siri couldn’t remember her, but her mind and heart were searching for answers, even as she raced the lady heir of the hunt. The pain came to a head as she neared the end of the course. It was only for a moment, but it was enough to knock her off balance.

“Kiriin!”

She was on her back. Someone was calling her name. Someone familiar. They were crying.

“Please wake up, Siri!”

Locks of forest green filled her gaze as she opened her eyes. “I'm awake,” Siri wheezed.

“I'm so sorry,” Tea sobbed. “This is all my fault.”

“You have nothing to apologise for besides drowning my face in tears. I'm the one who tripped, and it wasn't much of a drop. I'm just a little winded.”

“Hedwyn was right—”

“This could have happened to anyone. If I didn't get distracted by a reminder from my past I would have beaten you.”

“I still think we should take it easy for the rest of the evening.”

“If you hold back because of this, I'll run off by myself in search of whatever activities you might be hiding from me.”

“We can go back to the more intense activities if you still feel the same way tomorrow. In the meantime, I'd much rather we play some games and find something to eat. The pole racing pushed my limits. You're too fast.”

“Sorry. I guess being made to rest these past few days has given me an abundance of vim.”

Tea laughed meekly.

“Well, colour me convinced. I'm sure we can find something that will satisfy you and me both.”

Siri glanced around to make sure they were alone. With all the poles around them, it was unlikely anyone would see them in any great detail without actively looking. The overseer for the event had been approaching them, but were already making their way back to their station.

Everyone else was otherwise occupied. The only person who might have seen anything or been there to read the potentially flirtatious subtext in Tea’s remark was far enough away to be in the dark.

What happened next was all Siri. It might have served the mission, but her body and soul were following their read of the situation. Tea was by her side, kneeling ever so slightly over her. She was close enough for Siri to reach up and kiss her. For a moment, their lips touched.

Siri lingered for a second or two. She could feel Tea’s breath caressing her lips.

“It's a promise,” Siri whispered.

“Yes.”