Ava rushed to the bars in front of her and gripped them, "O?!"

The girl on the other side of the bars set her forehead between them and gave a weary smile, "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?!" Ava reached through the bars and put her hands on Oceane's arms before she turned her head to yell out, "guards! Guards I need help!"

"I was captured," Oceane said, her voice hoarse from what Ava could only assume was a lack of water.

She looked weak, grimy, and exhausted. Her hair was unkempt and the care and energy Oceane usually put into it was absent; given the fact she was in a cold, inhospitable prison. Her shirt and pants were in tatters and the few parts where she had fabric covering her were dirty.

"I'm here now. I'm going to get you out of here."

"How?" Oceane asked and she looked like she was trying to keep herself awake. Like whatever energy she had been conserving had been depleted by coming to the bars and calling out for her.

"By lying my fucking ass off," Ava turned her head away and yelled, "Guards! Please!"

"No," Oceane managed a chuckle. Even in times of distress, she had a smile on her face, "how are you here?"

"Oh," Ava's shoulders relaxed for a second as she relived the moment she was kicked off, yet again, "Theo sent me back."

Oceane's brow furrowed but Ava squeezed her arm.

"Don't worry about that right now," Ava assured her as the clanking of armor came closer. She turned around and pointed at the cell, "this person is not a prisoner! She works in the kitchen and has been missing for cycles!"

The guard looked at a roster in his hands and flipped through it.

"It says here that she is a pirate."

Ava scoffed, "A pirate?! That is ridiculous. I cannot believe you have had her in here all this time!"

"Ma'am, she was a part of the lady pirates. She was on Captain Theo's crew," the other guard confirmed what was in the roster.

"You know who was on that ship for a length as a prisoner?" Ava asked, "I was. I know that crew like the back of my hand. Are you trying to tell me she was on it?"

"Yes, ma'am?" one of the guards looked between his cowoker and Ava.

"If you make me get my father to come down here, he will not be happy and neither will I," Ava crossed her arms, "not only will he be pissed that you didn't believe his daughter, he will also be upset that we have a loyal staff member to the family locked up. The blame will fall on you regardless of who is responsible."

"I- uh," one of them stumbled on his words, and the other recovered for them.

"What do you wish for us to do, Lady Vaith?"

"Get her out! Right now," Ava stepped away from the cell.

They rushed into action and Ava took a step back as they unlocked the door. She watched a tired smile come across Oceane's face.

"Rich girl privilege in action," she teased and Ava couldn't help but laugh despite all the pressure and weight that was on her chest.

Down the hall, Ava heard footsteps, and looking over, she could see Viv running over. She was slightly out of breath as she arrived at Oceane's cell. As she registered what was happening, her face twisted into one of shock.

"Oceane?" Viv furrowed her brow.

"Viv?" Oceane titled her head.

"Can you believe we found the missing kitchen worker?" Ava turned to Viv with a raised eyebrow, she could have been more subtle about it but neither of the guards were paying much attention to them.

Viv narrowed her eyes and nodded a bit, "Funny how things work themselves out."

Ava had held her breath hoping Viv would not blow their cover and she didn't. One wrong word and the illusion that Oceane was wrongfully imprisoned would shatter. She looked back over to the cell to see it open with one of the guards holding Oceane by the arm as she was pulled out.

Ava pushed past the guards and took one of their hands off Oceane, standing in front of her and taking it all in. She shook her head and closed the gap between them, pulling Oceane in a tight hug. She felt arms wrap around her too but the squeeze she was given was weak. She quickly pulled away, too joyous a reunion would blow a hole in her story.

Ava hooked an arm around Oceane's waist and began to walk down the hall with her, providing much-needed support to her feeble friend.

"Thank you. That will be all we need," Viv said behind them, dismissing the guards.

Oceane didn't say anything on their way out, all of her energy was too focused on making sure one foot went in front of the other. Ava didn't fill the space with a conversation either, she had no idea what to say. She half expected to wake up any moment, the rescue being only a dream.

Once they reached the stairs leading up to the exit of the prison, Oceane peeled herself away from Ava's side and attempted to climb them by herself. Ava was impressed with the progress Oceane had made; she trudged forward until they were three steps from the top. Then, Oceane stopped for a moment. Ava watched as she shook her head and shut her eyes tightly. Her hand was splayed out against the wall and she took a few deep breaths before her knees buckled under her and she was falling.

Oceane's limp body began to go backward but just two stairs behind them, Viv opened her arms and managed to catch her before she could hurt herself. With a grunt and some effort, Viv got them both to the top of the stairs before scooping up the passed-out woman. Ava rushed forward and led the way to the carriage, holding open doors and clearing people out of the way. Viv climbed in with Oceane and sat her up, making sure to gently rest her head against the side of the carriage.

Ava followed and sat next to Oceane. She immediately took her friend's hand into her own and squeezed it, hoping Oceane would show any signs of being alright. She was breathing but wasn't waking up. She couldn't stop looking at Oceane, trying to assess what was wrong and what she would need. Her bottom lip came between her teeth as she took out her worry on it.

Viv reached forward and put a hand over Ava's thigh, rubbing her thumb soothingly over the dress.

"Red," Viv said gently.

Ava was shocked to hear the name come out of her mouth.

She looked over, shaking her head, "She's just been rotting away down there... Look how thin she is. She's been here the whole time and I just left her there."

"You didn't know," Viv frowned, "I will make sure she gets the care she needs. She'll be alright. You need to attend to cleaning up this mess though."

Ava blinked a few times, trying to sort out the rush of thoughts in her head, "Mess?"

"You yelled at a bunch of guards and blatantly lied about who she was before using authority you don't have to release her," Viv explained and removed her hand from Ava's thigh, "you have to go deal with your father."

"How can you think about something like this right now? Your need to have me preserve a working relationship with my father is more important to you than discussing the health of someone that you have spent extensive time with?" Ava shook her head and looked back at Oceane.

"If you break the rules and then don't address it, what's going to happen is worse than what will happen if you deal with it now," Viv said and reached over, pulling Ava's chin toward her, "Listen to me. You will go to your father. You will tell him what you told the guards. You will tell him that sending her back exposes you as a pirate sympathizer and if she dies in the gallows, news will arrive at her hometown in Safriti and they will have a potential rebellion on their hands. A spark is all it takes."

Ava nodded a bit.

"If you say nothing, they will come back and take her and you just look like a rebel looking to start trouble," Viv was firm, finally letting go of Ava's face, "get ahead of it and control the narrative."

"What are you going to do with her?" Ava's head snapped back over to her friend and squeezed her hand hoping it would wake her.

"Keep her in the servant's quarters, ask their healer to help with her," Viv crossed her arms and relaxed with a sigh against her seat. Ava looked back over to see Viv rubbing her face.

"What?"

"You couldn't have lied and said she was a prisoner with you on the ship? That would have made more sense seeing she's on their books as having come from the Scorned Woman. Or avoided making made a scene and so we could've figured it out after talking to your father," Viv scolded.

"Well, it's done now. So fuck off about it," Ava bit with a frown.

"Did you ever work closely with Xyra?" Viv asked.

"What's it to you?"

"The Xyra effect," Viv shook her head with a scoff, "If you've ever worked closely with her, in the aftermath you are more prone to make irrational decisions because you spent so long having her there as an avenue of sound logic that you forgot to think for yourself. It's a theory I have and you just continued to prove it right."

Ava could tell she was angry, angrier than she had ever seen her. It was a stark change from when they had first gotten in the carriage when she was being gentler.

"Why are being nasty about this?"

"Because now you got me involved in it," Viv snapped, "I was right there. My job is to keep you out of this type of trouble and I've just failed at it. This is my future you are fucking playing with, Avery."

"You let me go! We were going to remove another prisoner anyway," she shot back.

"One that actually was your chambermaid! One that wouldn't cause such a fucking fuss," Viv yelled and Oceane shifted a bit so she closed her mouth and looked out the window.

Ava was going to say something back but Viv wasn't wrong in any way. She hadn't thought anything through. Seeing Oceane there made her panic so much that she had tunnel vision, needing to get her friend out of the prison came before any logic. She could have had more tact, or used a different lie but she hadn't.

"Go," Viv said once the carriage came to a stop, "meet with your father, I will handle her."

Ava nodded and spared one last look at Oceane before stepping out of the carriage and into the estate.

—-

"Avery, you called for me. Is everything alright?" her father walked into his office.

"I went down to the prisons this evening," Ava said, standing up from her chair and looking over at him as he walked to his drink cart to pour himself something.

"What for?"

"To go look for Eliandris, my old chambermaid."

"She's dead," her father said without a hint of remorse or emotions behind it as he took his drink to his desk and sat down.

Ava's breath caught in her chest and she was frozen in shock for a moment. It was a lot to deal with and she didn't have the time or capacity to process it properly, "How? Why?"

"Some of the soldiers went too far when they were getting information out of her about what happened when you ran," he admitted with unnerving ease.

"She was my age. She had a family. She had a future."

"Things like this happen, Avery," he replied.

She could see the malice in times like these but it didn't manifest in the ways that others had. He wasn't like Hoffstater or her brother, he was calmer and that is where the danger lied. She wanted to yell at him to care or to show some form of acknowledgment for a life lost but it would be a futile effort. She needed to focus on what Viv said and do some damage control.

"There was a person in the prisons, her name was Oceane. She was on the pirate crew with me," Ava said and let it hang for a moment. Before her father answered she followed up, "I let her out. She's under my care now."

"Oceane. Hm. If I am not mistaken, a report submitted by Hoffstater not too long ago had her listed as an officer on your ship," he raised a concerned brow and set his drink down on the table, "and you have removed her from our custody."

"She was an officer, at one point, but it has been a long while since she was one. And officers on that ship get little to no information, it is a formality to give off the illusion that there is some form of powersharing," Ava fibbed, remembering the lies the Oceane had told Hoffstater when Oceane had debriefed her on her experience with the General, "which is why I can't be of more use with providing intelligence on their plans. I was never made privy."

"Regardless of her role on the ship, she is a pirate-"

"That I owe my life to. The only one that cared for me in the short time the captain did have me locked away. The one that saved me from certain death many times. I owe her," Ava tried to convince him.

"Your pirate debts are of none of my concern, Avery. I have given in to your requests because you have been reasonable and appropriate with them. But this is too much to let slide, she must go back," he insisted.

"She is from Drokian. The outskirts of it. Drokian is at the point of full-out rebellion. I knew as much cycles ago and I am sure it hasn't gotten any better now. If you kill her, they riot," Ava fought back, "sparing her makes you look compassionate."

"Which is something I am not keen on being seen as."

"Please,'' Ava took a step forward and leaned against the desk, "please, I have not caused a fuss since I've come back. I agreed to look for suitors. I have cooperated with you and what you've asked of me. Spare her. The guards I took her from think they had the wrong person. It costs you nothing to confirm that fact and let her be my chambermaid."

"Why would you think I would trust you two together? Or just you for that matter?"

"You don't have to trust me! You have a thousand people trailing me. Including Viv that is a nightmare and won't let me even breathe."

"Yet she allowed this to happen."

"I misled her. She let me leave her sight for one moment and that is when I found Oceane. Trust me, she was pissed that I did this," Ava shook her head then puffed out her chest, "I will instigate that rebellion in Drokian myself if you don't let her stay with me. I will write a letter telling them what has happened to one of their own."

"Oh yeah?" he chuckled and narrowed his eyes, his air of nonchalance never slipping, "that would be a problem except you do in fact have a thousand eyes on you. The thought and the effort is admirable though."

"Please. I will owe you a favor. Anything," Ava sat down in the chair and clasped her hands together, making her final plea, "I am miserable here. I know you know that. I can't speak to anyone about life on the outside and it's isolating. She will keep me calm. Keep me from wanting to break the rules. I am stuck here for the rest of life, at least give me a companion that will drive away the insanity."

He sighed a bit and shook his head, "I suppose it would be too hard to have to explain to everyone why you advocated for a pirate to be released from prison. I will sell your story. Vivexa will have her eye on you two."

Ava shot up out of her chair and ran around to his side of the desk, bending down and hugging her father, "Thank you! Thank you! I will make sure to keep her care and recovery to myself. No one has to be involved.

"Very well," he responded, not moving his arms from where they were pinned, "go deal with that now."

"Thank you," Ava repeated and pulled away, "I will be good. I promise. I swear it."

"I know you understand there are consequences if you are not," he put simply, "this use of your status as my daughter and as a Vaith will not be something I overlook next time, no matter if the price is higher to walk back on your transgression than cover it up."

Ava nodded, a pit falling in her stomach. It was the first time her father had made any sort of threat since her arrival and she could see a glimpse of the patriach that used to make her feel small in the rare instances that he did decide to discipline her instead of handing off the responsibility to someone else.

Ava returned his statement with a tight nod, "I understand."

—-

A hand was pressed against her chest as she was pushed back.

"Let me in to see her," Ava frowned and tried moving forward again but Viv blocked her with an arm.

"She's resting. She woke up when we first brought her to the room and she was tended to. She is fine. Not hurt at all, just malnourished and dehydrated. She needs rest," Viv explained and put her hands on Ava's shoulders, pushing her back.

"What did she say when she woke up?"

"She asked where you were. I assured her you were fine. She asked why you were here but I said I would leave that conversation up to you," Viv dropped her arms then nodded towards Ava, "how did it go with your father?"

"Fine. She can stay as my chambermaid. I told him I only managed to get this done because I tricked you into it."

"That doesn't make me look any better," Viv frowned, "I'm going to go handle it. I'm taking you to your room."

"I want Oceane up there with me," Ava insisted and stood her ground, not allowing Viv to pull her away, "She will recover in my room, with me. Get it arranged."

"Fine. I will make it happen."

"And I have another request."

"No," Viv shook her head, "it's been almost two cycles since our conversation on our way back to Aubermasse. No more requests until you agree to a business relationship."

"Eliandris is dead. Which I figured out on my own and the information you've given me about Theo is minimal and far between. You have done nothing to prove yourself," Ava frowned, "call me a brat, a princess, I don't care. I have one final request before I agree to anything."

"What is it?"

"Oceane's father... Last we knew, his house was set on fire. She's from the outskirts of Drokian. I need to know if he's alive or if he's dead. If he's alive, he'll most likely be in the Drokian prison, maybe even in The Center," Ava requested.

"Fine. Go up to your room, I'll make sure she is taken up there."

"Fine," Ava huffed, "and if we are going to work together you have to be nicer to me."

"Deals off then," Viv said. It was a joke but her usual cocky smirk wasn't accompanying the comment. She was actually mad at Ava.

Not that Ava cared whether she was upset. It was merely an observation.

—--

"I was imprisoned for a bunch of cycles and this is how I'm greeted when I finally get out," a voice said as Ava's eyes blinked awake, "boredom. Pure boredom."

She opened them fully to see Ocane lying next to her on the bed and a smile overtook her face. Ava had fallen asleep next to her when Viv brought her in from the servant's quarters. She wasn't sure how long they had both been asleep but she was elated that Oceane was awake and looked alright.

"O," she said and then threw herself onto Oceane, wrapping her up into a hug, "I can't believe I found you."

"You weren't looking for me though," Oceane said, "Pelas was with me yet again."

Ava shook her head and let her go, putting a hand on her cheek, "You're right. I didn't know you weren't with Theo. Last time I saw the crew, I couldn't quite tell who was there and who wasn't."

"How are you here right now? You said Theo or did I dream that?"

"We were captured after the fight. She was tortured and I think my brother put shit in her head. When we were rescued, she sent me back here..." Ava sat up and faced her, watching the confusion over Theo's actions cross her face. Her stomach turned at the thought of Theo turning away from her on the lightbringer and changed the subject, "What happened to you?"

"The ship sank, I was in the water and a soldier took me into his rowboat against my will. Next thing I knew, I was put on a route to Aubermasse so I could be tried here."

"Are you okay?"

Oceane shrugged then chuckled a bit, "Lucky you found me before my trial, whenever they planned on doing that. As I said, Pelas is always with me."

"Are you hungry? Thirsty? I can run down to the kitchens and grab you anything you want," Ava began to climb out of the bed.

Oceane shook her head and stayed laying down, "I just need seventeen more lengths of sleep."

"Then get some rest," Ava laughed and climbed back into the bed, "After your endless suns of sleeping, I have a lot to catch you up on."

"No. Do that before sleep, I want to hear all about it," Oceane turned her head to look at Ava.

"Sleep first, we have plenty of time to talk," Ava assured her, "you are my chambermaid now."

Oceane raised an eyebrow, "Oh? Little ol' me? The chambermaid to a rich, rich noble."

Ava rolled her eyes and reached over to hit her in the arm, "It's but a temporary solution. Until we figure out how to leave."

"We're getting out of here?"

"Aye, of course," Ava smiled, "did you think I would willingly stay here a second more than I have to?"

"Hadn't had time to really think about it," Oceane smiled back and Ava felt relief for the first time in a long while, "still want to be a pirate?"

Ava nodded, "And if Theo won't have me, I'll figure that out when I get there."

"Do you know anything about Theo? The crew?"

"Only that they are all in Niveal and sounds like they've taken up residence there for a while."

"Damn. I am locked in a noble estate and I'm missing Niveal?" Oceane shook her head with a small laugh, "maybe Pelas isn't always with me. Viv's here. Is she helping us?"

"No. She's working for my father. She wants to be my ally and help me climb my family's ladder to the top. So even if she would work with me, we can't trust her with helping us leave."

"So just us against an estate of people," Oceane said with a sigh, "well, we know I'm set with help from my god. You better find one and start praying. We need all the help we can get."

Ava thought back to Janei. Where had she gone? Had she decided Ava wasn't worth it. Had she seen something Ava couldn't see? A future where she became something she didn't want to be? She ignored it. Gods hadn't helped her once her whole life, she didn't need them.

"We have my sister."

"Your sister?"

"Mhm. Mallory," Ava said, "she wants to run away too."

"I thought you hated your sisters," Oceane recalled.

"Mallory is alright. We've gotten along really well. She wants to leave, says she hates it here too."

"Oh! Is that the one that had a childhood thing with Cook?"

"Didn't know you knew about that," Ava laughed, "that's the one."

"Guess being a nox runs in the family," Oceane teased then paused for a bit, "Red?"

"Hm?"

"Why did you never tell me you were a Vaih?"

Ava smiled a bit, "You are a good friend, you know that?"

"A compliment to avoid answering," Oceane pointed out, "smart. You know I love flattery."

"No. It was a compliment that was leading into a response to your question," Ava chuckled, "You visited me every sun for almost two cycles when I was in jail after Theo put me there and you didn't ask once."

"Wasn't the time or the place. Didn't want you to think I was upset with you," Oceane shrugged a bit then returned Ava's slight smile, "but now, curiosity has won out and I must know."

"I wanted to tell you. Besides Theo, I wanted to tell you the most. At first, I kept it from you because I didn't want you to hate me for being a noble. Then, when I realized how bad I fucked up and that what it meant to be a Vaith was worse than I ever thought it could mean it was because I didn't want the burden of the secret to be on you. Or anyone," she admitted.

"Fair enough," Oceane yawned, "I think I've exhausted my list of questions."

"Time for sleep. Running away plans and my time here so far can wait until you wake up."

"Can you bring me some fruit for when I wake up," Oceane bat her eyelids, "I'm being such a good patient for having been in prison for so long. And if fruit is all I ask for, how can you deny me it?"

"You are wasting your energy with pleading. The answer is yes," Ava laughed and got out of bed, "I'll wake you in a few hours for fruit."

—------

"I now call our first, official, running away meeting to order," Mallory said as she said down on the couch, crossing her legs so they disappeared under her dress.

"We should be calling it something more inconspicuous," Oceane laughed from the bed, which she hadn't moved from in four suns.

If she needed to eat or grab something, or use the bathing room she would climb right back inside after. After her first night, she had told Ava that it was the best bed she had ever laid on and she wouldn't be leaving it. She had made due on that promise.

"I think that needing a meeting and naming it isn't necessary at all. We are all here, we can just casually speak about it," Ava made her opinion known.

"Mal's never run away before. Give her a break. It's cause for excitement," Oceane defended.

"You've run away before?" Mallory looked at Oceane.

"I lied to my family about where I was going. Told them I was going to be a fisherman but ended up becoming a pirate. So," Oceane shrugged, "it was in that same realm but I count it as running away."

"Were they upset with you? Or did you never speak to them again?"

"My father was scared for me, not so much upset as panicked," Oceane said and her smile slipped a bit at the mention of her father.

"He's alive," Ava assured, "you said it yourself the other sun, you can feel it. Viv is on the case."

"That doesn't make me rest any easier," Oceane said, "Viv can't be trusted."

"It would be so much simpler if she could be," Ava sighed and hung her head off the back of her couch, "she could just arrange this whole thing for us but no, she has to be the spawn of monsters."

"I would even go a step further and say she's the spawn of Ter," Oceane joked and Ava laughed.

Mallory looked between the two, "Who?"

"The god of curses, evil, and general unpleasantness," Ava explained.

"Aw," Oceane chuckled a bit, "she's just like you were, Red."

"I know things!" Mallory defended.

"I'm not saying you don't. Just saying your sister also had quite a lot of questions when I first met her," Oceane replied.

"Let's get back to our task at hand," Ava brought their attention back, "we need a carriage to escape with. We need to learn how to drive a carriage. We need an arrangement for a ship to come pick us up from wherever we take the carriage. Or, we need to secure passage somewhere before we leave. That is just the very basics."

"How would we leave the estate?" Mallory asked.

"We would probably have to find a reason for them to let us use our carriage. And also go together on that carriage. And also, bring O along."

"So, a diplomatic trip? Perhaps attend court somewhere else in North Elox," Mallory said.

"They'd just allow the both of you to go elsewhere to court?" Oceane asked.

Ava shook her head, "No. They wouldn't just let us both go on a trip together because mum thinks I'm corrupting Mal. At least, it's not feasible right now."

"Plus, mum would never let us both leave court when we are in the middle of finding suitors."

"We either wait until the end of our court session and be patient, or we take a different approach and do it sooner," Ava said.

"There is more risk involved in doing it sooner, isn't there?" Oceane asked, "because we would be stealing our mode of transportation, we would be more easily caught, and we would need to rely on far more people to get it done."

"But I've been forming those connections. It is possible," Ava argued.

"Why risk it? A few more cycles here won't kill us. Hopefully."

"That is just your love for the bed speaking," Ava laughed.

"You might be right," Oceane nodded, "but still, I say we wait."

"Court finishes in four cycles," Mallory pointed out, "that is a long time."

"We plan for both," Ava shrugged, "whichever happens first is what we do."

"That could work," Oceane shrugged, "or both of you could find suitors so the trip can be taken sooner."

"I would rather die," Ava said.

"I would do it," Mallory chuckled, "all of the attention of a wedding, and then I run away. How dramatic. It's very appealing to me."

Ava's door opened without any warning and they all looked over to see Vivexa walk in.

"Alright princess, playtime is over," Viv walked into the room, "you've got your first full session of court this morning."

"Aren't you excited about that," Ava teased, "you've been itching for this moment since I arrived."

"Less talking, more getting ready," Viv snapped her fingers then looked over and acknowledge Oceane with a nod and then Mallory with a smile.

"No one wants you here," Mallory said, "spawn of Ter."

Viv laughed and raised an eyebrow, "How worldly of you, your highness."

"Did my insult work? Were you hurt?" Mallory asked with a smile.

"No. But I think that's more because of me than because of the quality of your insult," Viv said and reached over, picking Ava up by the collar and forcing her off the couch, "let's go, princess. To the bathing room you go."

Ava pouted but let herself be guided off, she turned around dramatically and held her hand out towards Oceane and Mallory, "Don't forget me. Remember my sacrifice."

"You three together are my worst nightmare," Viv mumbled as she finished pushing Ava out of the room.

—--

"You look rather nice," Viv said from behind her as the door to Ava's room opened.

Ava looked up from staring at her dress to look into the mirror. Viv had left her a while before to go get herself ready to escort Ava to court. She saw Viv approaching her with a slight smirk.

"Stop looking at me like that," Ava frowned, "I have made it known I have no interest in you."

"I am not looking at you like anything," Viv laughed.

"You're doing that thing with your lip," Ava turned around to face her, "acting all smug and sly."

"That is just my normal face," Viv shrugged, "although, I am a bit smug that I've finally gotten you to go to court for the entire sun."

"It wasn't your doing. It was my own choice."

"Sure it was," Viv stepped closer, "figured I'd drop by to give you a rundown on who is coming this morning and who you'll be introduced to."

"You said you would be there with me the whole time," Ava frowned.

"I will be. Don't you see I'm wearing a dress?" Viv pointed down to her outfit, an understated dark blue gown that was nothing compared to the extravagant fashion that was often the norm at court.

"If you're coming, I won't need a brief. Let's just go."

Viv grabbed her arm as she tried to slip past her, "I won't be able to just whisper in your ear who is who. You need a run down."

"I don't," Ava pulled her arm away.

"Which of the suitors your mother has picked out for you are coming tonight?" Viv asked.

Ava shrugged one shoulder.

"Lord Byer, Lord Aresteffa, and Lord Demure," she listed, "where is Lord Byer from?"

"The left Twin," Ava answered confidently.

"Incorrect," Viv tutted, "what is Lord Aresteffa's greatest export?"

"Barley."

"Granite," Viv answered with a slight laugh, "How many wives has Demure had?"

"Four!" Ava snapped her fingers together.

"Lucky guess."

"Nope. I did know that one," Ava laughed a bit then rolled her eyes, "fine. Tell me what you need to."

Viv did as she was asked. She was assured that none of the suitors that had arrived that sun were of much interest to her mother or father. They were of lower status, with less wealth, less time with a last name, and less trustworthy when it came to their connection to the family. Her mother had invited them more for the optics and to curry favor with those houses than a serious invite to court Ava. Which meant less useless information for Ava to have to remember and less of an effort on her end to have to do much.

"If you are going to make a connection with any of them, which is best?"

"Seems like Aresteffa would be the easiest to secure an alliance with if we ever needed one," Ava hypothesized and she could see Viv nod with a large smile.

"Refreshing that you actually grasp this kind of stuff,"

"Your only compliments are insults that are slightly twisted around," Ava pointed out, "can we go now? We've wasted enough time, I just want to get this over with."

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you," Viv stopped Ava from moving once again, "where are you in your process of deciding if we are working together? Because I've gotten you information, I've been on your ass as if I'm your advisor, and I'm going out of my way to prepare you to interact with these people for your own political gain. Are you stringing me along, princess?"

"Aw, that's cute. You're sweating a bit," Ava teased and reached up to check Viv's forehead for any perspiration.

Viv dodged the touch with a laugh, "I'm not. I'm asking for you to confirm we are partners before I completely abandon your mother's instructions."

"What are her instructions?"

"You can't know just yet."

"Manipulator," Ava narrowed her eyes, "there is no instruction. You are just trying to corner me into a deal with you."

Viv just shrugged.

"Where is the information on Theo? And O's dad?" Ava tilted her head, challenging Viv on her statement from earlier, "the only information you've gotten me is that Eli might have been in jail and that Theo was in fact in Niveal and had a fleet."

"There is no other information on Theo," Viv shrugged, "she's keeping quiet. If she has plans, she hasn't shared them with anyone outside her crew. Seems like they set up base there for quite some time. None of that merited an update. As for Oceane's father, the letter has been sent to my contacts in Drokian."

Ava raised an eyebrow and then shrugged, "Very well. I suppose we can work together."

"I swore that was going to be harder than it was," Viv stepped out of Ava's way.

"I can make it harder," Ava began to walk out of the room.

"No," Viv laughed, "you were so gracious, your highness, thank you for agreeing to work with a lowlife like me."

"You're very welcome," Ava shook her head with a smile.

—---------

"And if the quarry I just acquired has the precious metals that were alleged to be under a few layers of rock, we're looking at my third length in a row where my profits have doubled since the previous length," Lord Aresteffa said and Ava nodded with a polite smile as she took a sip of her tea.

The three men that had arrived at court to show themselves as potential suitors had been around her the entire morning and most of the aftermorning. It was downright dreadful to have to feign interest in their conversations, which were aimed more at the other men rather than Ava. She had made a joke to Mallory in passing, while they sat next to each other at lunch, that the Lords seemed to be courting each other.

"I hear that soon, precious metals will drop in price. Apparently, large deposits in the south of Dove Island were discovered and it's expected to flood the market," Lord Demure noted.

"That's all a ploy to get more people to move down there, to boost their economy," Aresteffa waved off the comment.

Lord Byer raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Ava could tell he was bothered, Dove Island being his home. That was something Viv had filled her in on. Ava's eyes trailed away from Byer and to the room at large. They were sitting in the tea room, having some aftermorning tea, and while she was trying to keep focused in case there was any useful information to be noted for the future, it was difficult. The conversations were boring and nothing she could use to gain Theo's trust if she ran away, nothing to use to push reforms to her father, and nothing to help with the rebellion if the time came to contribute.

She caught sight of Mallory across the room. She was just getting done speaking to a suitor. The moment her back turned away from him, she pretended to stick a finger in her mouth and gagged with a roll of her eyes. Ava had to bite her bottom lip to keep from smiling and she shook her head, picking her tea up from its saucer and bringing it to her lips. Ava saw Mallory's eyes light up with a bit of mischief. She pointed to the men sitting in front of Ava and brought the tips of her fingers together, miming two people kissing.

Ava snorted a bit and let some air escape her lips in a huff, which caused some of the tea to spill.

"You alright, m'lady?" Lord Aresteffa asked as he pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to her.

"Yes," Ava smiled at him, "just a bit too hot for my liking. Shocked me."

"Your tea was poured almost ten minutes ago," he tilted his head.

Ava's smile did not waver, "I like my tea cold, which is a quirk you are just going to have to put up with if you care to court me."

From behind Aresteffa's head, she could see Viv walking over to Mallory and taking her arm, escorting her out of sight. Ava frowned at the loss of entertainment. Viv has been watching intently the entire sun and Ava had begun to regret at one point pushing for her to be there. She had no choice but to pull herself back into the conversation; where Lord Demure had taken up his turn in bragging about the riches that were due to him soon and she kept the roll of her eyes hidden as she lifted the teacup for a sip.

"- and my estate has just been finished being built. Thanks to the generous yield my harvest brought me. I have never married for anything but love. And I sure did love the land first wife's father gifted me upon our engagement," Demure let out a hearty laugh and turned to the other two to gauge their reactions, pleased when they joined in on laughing at his joke.

Ava wiped the edges of her mouth with the handkerchief she had been given after clinking the cup onto the saucer while she placed it down, "This land, you said it was in Aeliz, yes?"

"Keen memory, m'lady," Demure complimented with a nod.

"You mentioned you grow vegetables, correct?" Ava tilted her head.

"Root vegetables, usually,"

"Those fetch a high price in certain areas of Baethos. Northern Elox loves some beets and parsnips with our winter meals," Ava commented.

"Some of my best customers are from around here," Demure confirmed.

"And say, how large is your land?"

"Hard to say," Demure shrugged and sat forward a bit, looking eager to speak more about himself while also holding her attention, "I've got three small islands and the water around it."

"That seems like a lot of work to harvest. You have help, obviously. Right?"

"Obviously," he repeated.

"The locals from surrounding islands?"

He nodded and narrowed his eyes, confused as to where the conversation was headed

"How many do you employ?"

"I don't understand how that is important," Demure chuckled, "I usually don't talk business logistics with women, Lady Vaith."

"I was just curious," Ava smiled politely, "If you employ many people and you pay them a decent wage for their hard labor and still have enough left over at the end of it to build an offshore estate– which must be expensive to get materials to– your land is indeed profitable and you are worth my time."

"Quite forward, which I do appreciate," he laughed a bit, "I employ upwards of 300 people during harvesting season. And the land is quite profitable but what is even more profitable is that I pay far below what anyone on the mainland pays for labor. Means I have extra gold in my pocket at the end of the length to spoil you with."

Ava had him right where she wanted. She had learned from her time on as a pirate that most men would walk into any trap laid for them if it gave them the promise of stroking their egos.

"You have land in Aeliz. Were you born in Aeliz?" Ava tilted her head.

He nodded, once again looking lost and almost defensive. As if the question made him uncomfortable, insecure.

"Would you consider yourself to be Aelizan?"

"No. My father and his father are from North Efriti. Just because he migrated to Aeliz for the opportunity of lordship does not mean we are Aelizan," he said quite sharply.

"Oh, I see," Ava nodded, "your father is one of the lesser names that were offered a greater house in Aeliz after the fall of Lamentations."

"He was. But the land, the money, and soon to be the title of head of my own household come the classification are all my doing and my hard work," he challenged, even though Ava had said nothing.

"You seem quite confident that you will be given charge of your own house."

"I have seen people become heads of their own houses for less," he raised an eyebrow.

"Perhaps you are right," Ava picked up her teacup and sighed a bit, "of course, it would be hard to run a house if you were dead."

"Come again?" he sat up straighter and Ava could see the other two were as bewildered by the comment as Demure was.

"As has been whispered around this court quite heavily over the past cycles, rebellion is nearing. Aeliz is the birthplace of revolution and you seem to be a prime target for it if things start to heat up. You are not Aelizan. You were given power in Aeliz solely because your father was given an offer to move there in order to control the population. You decided to make a name for yourself and acquired land there which I can bet money the people living on and around those islands consider theirs. That would be just fine, dangerous on its own but not anything you wouldn't be able to de-escalate. However, you don't pay them enough to hold their loyalty. You don't pay them enough to make the benefits of keeping you around outweigh the risk of seeing you gone."

"What is the point of a useless thought experiment?" he scoffed.

"To engage you on the potential benefits of increasing their wages and providing material resources to help them get by," Ava answered.

"I have to say, Lady Vaith, this is extremely inappropriate of a lady of your station."

"I am the daughter of one of the most powerful men in Baethos, it is exactly appropriate of my station," she argued, for the first time making her voice stern and dropping all sense of politeness, "I will not be marrying a man who would put me at risk just to have enough gold for an extra floor on his estate. Nor, for that matter, one that would so easily dismiss a valid concern and suggestion. And I certainly will not be marrying someone who is dull enough or audacious enough to brag about using one of his many marriages for personal gain."

"And I will not be marrying someone insolent enough to speak back to a Lord so casually," Demure retorted.

"Then good day sir," Ava nodded, "you may see yourself out of my presence."

He got up and the conflict was clear on his face. He had let his ego get in the way of a lucrative union. As he stormed away, Ava turned to pay attention to the other two who had been stunned into silence. Or perhaps, scared into silence. She was going to make some conversation to avoid altering to Viv that something was wrong and that she had made things tense but it was too late.

"Excuse me, gentlemen," Viv interjected and tilted her head for Ava to stand up and follow, "Lady Vaith is being called by her mother to begin getting ready for dinner and the evening activities."

She had been caught.

Ava smiled and stood up, "Lord Byer and Lord Aresteffa, thank you for a pleasant morning. I will see you at dinner."

Viv led her out with a hand on her back and as soon as they were out of the room and out of earshot, Viv switched the position of her hand so it gripped Ava's arm to keep her from walking ahead.

"What did your father tell you barely five suns ago?" Viv asked clipped tone and furrowed eyebrows, "not to make a fucking mess. And what did you do?"

"Told someone who stole land to pay their laborers a fair wage," Ava shrugged.

Viv stopped them and spun Ava to face her, "You made a fucking mess."

Ava looked up at Viv was a slight chuckle, "You're really channeling Xyra, huh? Maybe your hatred for her stems from the fear you have over your similarities."

Viv's upper lip slightly twitched and she scoffed, momentarily looking away before fixing Ava with a glare, "Watch your mouth, Avery."

"No princess?" Ava inhaled through her teeth with a slight smile, "You can be called the spawn of Ter and not blink but I compare you to Xy, and all of a sudden you decide to take insult."

Viv put her hands on both of Ava's shoulders and pushed her back against the wall, looking around to make sure no one was watching before staring her straight in the eyes with a slight snarl on her lips, "Quit messing with my livelihood. Your actions have direct consequences for both of us."

"I am trying to achieve a goal, which is to pass progressive policies."

"How is this passing progressive policies? Save that shit for your father," Viv kept her pressed up against the wall.

Ava kept a slightly smug look on her face, "I like being the one riling you up for a change."

"This isn't funny," Viv snapped and let go of her shoulders with a huff, "you are supposed to lay low and get information you can bring to your father. Not try to convince close-minded men that being moral and fair is advisable."

"I will do it the way I see fit,"

"You rather burn a bridge that is perfectly sturdy just to see a man get angry than to bite your tongue for a few hours," Viv rolled her eyes, "You are just like them. No one wonder you got along with everyone swimmingly."

"There we go," Ava chuckled, "I don't do something your way and the jabs follow."

"You are fucking dense, you know that, Avery?" Viv shook her head, "all you are doing is making your goal harder."

"You don't care about my goals. You just want power and doing things my way puts that in jeopardy for you."

"My goal is power and the way I get it is by getting you a seat at your father's table. Our goals may not be the same but achieving yours achieves mine. But a seat at your father's table won't be afforded to you if you continue to piss off men of influence."

"I wouldn't say he is a man of influence."

"He is a man in a noble court, while he is here he holds some influence. Over perceptions of you, of your father, of the way you are being raised. In this world of nobles, perception is everything," Viv shook her head, then continued, "and if you think he holds no influence, then what is the point of trying to convince him to be progressive? You went after him knowing it would make him angry and he wouldn't do what you suggested. For what? To stroke your ego? To make you feel better than him? To ease your guilty conscience because of being complicit in this shit your whole life?"

"I can't just hold my tongue when I hear someone brag about making money off land that is not rightfully theirs!" Ava argued back.

"Then you are less prepared for this than I thought and I've made a mistake by assuming you were willing to actually work within the system and rules already in place. This partnership is no longer safe for me and I'm beginning to see that the risks outweigh the rewards, as you so eloquently put it for Lord Demure," Viv turned and walked away.

Ava hiked up her skirt and followed after her, "Don't you think you are being a little bit dramatic?"

Viv kept walking and ignored Ava.

"Instead of getting upset, can you tell me how to fix it if it's so bad?"

"Kill him."

"How would that help?"

"It would keep him from running his mouth to your father, your mother, or any suitors about your behavior at tea," Viv answered, stopping and facing Ava again, "that is if he hasn't gone squealing already. The daughter of a noble sticking her nose where it doesn't belong and having the nerve to speak to a Lord about money, business, or anything of the sort is bad enough as it is but insulting him in front of your other suitors takes it to a whole new level."

"Killing him wouldn't do much if the other two decided to start talking too," Ava answered and she could start to see that maybe Viv did have a point. Theo could get away with things like that but this was a new arena, she had to hold her tongue even if she didn't want to.

Viv rubbed her face and then sighed, "I will take care of it. Go back to your room and get ready for dinner."

"What are you going to do?"

"What I need to."

"Are you still going to work with me?" Ava asked, blinking her eyes slowly and making them wide, and somewhat innocent.

Viv's nostrils flared a little as she took a step forward and gripped Ava's chin, wrenching her face to her, "One misstep like that again, one wrong conversation and I will personally make sure your father hears of your behavior so at the very least you don't drag me down with you."

Ava pulled her head away and rolled her eyes as she stepped back, "It is so delightful to be your partner. I really feel heard and appreciated."

Viv let her typically smug look cross her face, "Good, princess, I'm glad."