Jale had given him very good directions. Tanden stood on the street and looked up at the high-class brothel. Jale had called it the Violet House. It stood out easily on the street, decorated as it was with purple banners and flags. Even the door was painted purple. The large front windows looked into a warm, comfortable looking main room, which was full of people. Patrons and courtesans, Tanden assumed. By the door, a few women stood, calling out to people who walked past and urging them to come inside. They alternated between Morcean and Tallenese.

Tanden smiled at the women as he slipped between them to walk through the door. A purple carpet led up to a desk. "I'm looking for something specific." Tanden casually leaned on the desk, and let his eyes roam over the room as he spoke.

"I'm sure we can cater to your needs, sir." The young man behind the desk was finely dressed in a purple tunic and dark leather vest. He probably didn't own the brothel, but he might have been related to the owners. He certainly wasn't one of the courtesans. "We cater to almost anything."

Tanden turned to him. "I would like to pay for someone tonight, and also reserve him for tomorrow," he explained. "He has to be willing to entertain myself and a friend at the same time. Speaking Teltish would be good but isn't necessary."

The young man's eyes flickered between the list in front of him, and the room. While there were plenty of patrons already mingling, quite a few of the courtesans were relaxing on the couches around the room. The man looked at his list again. "Sir, this friend you mentioned. A woman or a man?"

Tanden smiled. "A man. Does that make a difference?"

"No, sir. I think I have a good companion for you. But he can't speak Teltish... and he is one of our most expensive. Then to also reserve him tomorrow-"

"How much?" Tanden asked.

He consulted the list. "Twenty-thousand weis. For two nights."

"Oh." Twenty-thousand weis was less than Tanden had been expecting. He still wasn't completely comfortable with the currency, but talking to the merchants the day before and all morning meant he had a general idea of how it converted into siyas. "That's not a problem. Can I see him, first? He's a surprise for my friend, I would like to make sure he's the right match."

"Yes, of course, sir. He's just there, near the fireplace. You may go talk to him, if you'd like. His name is Arastarow. You'll just have to pay before taking him upstairs."

Tanden nodded. "Thank you." He made his way across the room, avoiding the other customers and smiling briefly at other courtesans who tried to talk to him. Finally, he reached Arastarow.

He was young, maybe eighteen or nineteen, and he sprawled across the sofa near the fireplace, somehow managing to look both comfortable and elegant. His dark hair was loose around his shoulders, with a few braids here and there. Black makeup lined his brown eyes. Dangling from his left ear was a gold earring.

The rest of him was just as pretty. He was wearing a gauzy silk shirt and snug pants. Multiple bracelets looped around both wrists, and his left hand was covered in a swirling flower design dark enough to stand out on his brown skin. It was a tattoo, but not the kind made of ink. It was the temporary kind made when a special paste dyed the skin. Tanden had seen it a lot in Morcea. The idea of a tattoo that could be redrawn and redesigned fascinated him almost as much as Crelan permanent tattoos did.

Just like most people, the boy seemed a little surprised when Tanden spoke to him in Morcean. "Your overseer suggested I come talk to you, to see if you'll suit my needs. But I think I already have my answer."

Arastarow smiled. "I suit most people's needs."

"That doesn't surprise me." Tanden gestured, and Arastarow obligingly shifted to make room for him on the sofa. The moment Tanden sat down, Arastarow moved closer. Tanden chuckled. "Slow down. I haven't paid for you yet."

Arastarow lightly ran his fingers along the buttons of Tanden's jacket and purred, "I don't think that'll be a problem, sir. You look very wealthy."

Tanden didn't stop him. "I am. Do you know any Teltish?"

His hand paused for a second. "No, sir. But you speak Morcean beautifully."

"I know. But I'm not asking for myself." Tanden took Arastarow's hand in his own and ran his thumb over the swirling lines. "Tomorrow, my partner and I are celebrating an anniversary. I'd like you to be his gift. He doesn't speak Morcean."

"Oh." He drew back just a little.

"Which is why I'm considering paying for you for two nights," Tanden explained. "So tonight, I can teach you some useful words, and tell you what Soren likes. And tomorrow, we'll have some fun."

"We?"

"I asked for someone willing to entertain myself and my partner at the same time, and your overseer mentioned you. Is that something you're not willing to do?"

Arastarow blinked. His eyes were beautiful. Everything about him was beautiful. His flirty smile slipped back into place. "Is your partner as handsome as you are?"

Tanden grinned. "Definitely. He's incredible."

"Then teach me some Teltish."

That was the type of answer Tanden was looking for. They stood up, and Arastarow looped his arm through Tanden's to lead him back to the front desk.

The young man there smiled. "Do you like him, sir?"

"I do." Tanden slipped his arm from Arastarow's grip, so he could take out his money pouch. As he looked through it, the other two spoke in Tallenese. Tanden listened curiously, wishing once again that he could speak it. He hated not knowing what other people were saying. "Here-" he interrupted in Morcean, and placed the correct amount of coins on the desk. "That's for tonight, and reserving him for tomorrow?"

"Yes, sir. Please enjoy your stay at the Violet House. Ara-" he switched to Tallenese.

Arastarow nodded solemnly, then turned his pretty smile back on Tanden and slipped his hand into Tanden's. "Let's go to my room, sir."

Tanden followed him two flights of stairs. The hallways were as decorated as the outside had been, with purple carpets and tapestries on the walls. When they stepped into Arastarow's room, the boy let go of his hand to light some candles. The room was nicer than most taverns Tanden had stayed in. The bed was large and looked comfortable. There was a couch and a few armchairs in one corner, and instead of a sill, the window had a wide cushioned area to sit. Tanden wandered over to the window. It was getting dark outside, but he could see lights from the port. In the day, he guessed the Wanderlust would be visible.

After a moment, Arastarow joined him at the window. "Would you like to sit on the bed, sir? Or..."

"Here is fine." Tanden slid into the window seat, and continued looking out at the port. "Do you use the name Ara?"

"You can call me whatever you'd like, sir." Another moment passed, before Ara sat down on the opposite side of the window seat and crossed his legs. "You'll have to forgive me, sir. I'm not really sure what to do. Normally, I'd..." his gaze flickered over to the bed.

"What did the overseer tell you?" Tanden dragged his gaze away from the window. He stretched out his legs and crossed them at the ankles. The window seat was long enough to stretch comfortably, with his feet tucked beside Ara.

"Oh, nothing. He just told me to be good."

That surprised Tanden. "Why? He told me you're one of the most expensive courtesans here. You must be good."

"I am good. But you're a visitor. It's very important to impress visitors."

"Oh, I see." Tanden nodded. "So, clearly you've entertained men before. But have you ever entertained two at once?"

"Sort of."

"What does that mean?"

Ara dropped his gaze. "Well... I've been with men before. I've been with groups a few times, but they take turns. It's never been at once."

His shyness intrigued Tanden. Downstairs, Ara had been anything but shy. He probably wasn't used to patrons actually talking to him. "This will be new for me and Soren, as well. We like to get creative and try new things. My plan, as of right now, is to leave you with him at first, and then join you later. That's why I would like to teach you some Teltish, so you two can get by before I join you."

"I think we'll be able to manage without talking to each other."

"You'll be able to manage," Tanden agreed. "But won't it be more enjoyable for both of you if you can at least say a few things?"

"I guess so."

Tanden leaned forward. "Is this making you nervous? If you don't want to do it, I don't mind finding someone else."

"No." Ara's eyes darted up. "That's not it, sir. I'm sorry. I do want to do this."

"You just don't like talking to your customers?" Tanden guessed.

He shook his head. "Talking is fine. But usually it's like it was downstairs, sir. I say some charming things, then we come up here and-" he gestured at the bed. "I'm really good at my job. But longer conversations... I guess I'm out of practice. And it feels odd to not be giving you anything after you paid so much for me."

"Would you be more comfortable if we got more physical?"

"Maybe."

Tanden didn't want to get distracted, and he definitely didn't want to engage in anything remotely sexual without Soren's permission. "Why don't you take off my boots and rub my feet? I've been walking around all day. And we can still talk while you're doing it."

Ara looked at him for a second, like he was trying to gauge whether that was something Tanden actually wanted. He seemed to make up his mind and began to unlace Tanden's boots. When he was done, he tossed the boots onto the floor and pulled Tanden's feet onto his lap.

Tanden waited for him to get into a rhythm before continuing with their discussion. "Soren is..." He paused, trying to figure out how to properly put their relationship, and their dynamic, into words. "Soren lets me lead, because he likes that. But sometimes, he'll be in the mood for something different and he'll take charge, if I let him. With you he'll definitely want to take charge."

Ara did seem more relaxed, just from having something to do with his hands. He shrugged. "I don't mind, one way or the other."

"That's not to say he's rough or cruel," Tanden continued. "He's a bit taller than me, and he's certainly stronger, but he's very kind. Your enjoyment is going to mean a lot to him. So don't play up being meek or timid. I know some people like that, but he won't. I recognize that you're as much an actor as anyone who takes to a stage. The character you were playing downstairs is the type of person Soren will like."

Ara smiled slightly. "I've never been called an actor before."

"But you are one. Some people might be fooled, but I'm not an idiot. I know you're not attracted to every man or- woman?"

"Sometimes."

"-who pay for you. But you have to act like they're the most wonderful person you've ever met. I'm not faulting you for it, its part of the job. That said, I don't think you're acting right now."

"No. Not really," Ara agreed. "And I wasn't really downstairs, either. I guess maybe I play it up a bit, but..." he glanced up, and his hands stilled. "I get approached every day. I'm expensive because I'm pretty and I'm good, so only the richest people can afford me. Unfortunately, the richest people aren't usually young and handsome. So yes, usually I'm acting like the man who paid for me is as stunning as Tiya himself. With you, it's actually true."

Tanden was too distracted by this new tidbit of information to properly appreciate the compliment. "Who?"

"Tiya?" Ara repeated. "He's the ruler of the gods. He's summer. Golden, warm, handsome. Like you."

"Wait. Your lead god is the god of summer?" Tanden asked. "Not the sun?"

Ara furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"

Tanden pulled his feet away from Ara to sit up straighter and cross his legs. "My people don't know anything about this country. In Teltish we call it Sunland, because our first king, four hundred years ago, was told that the people here worship the sun. But you're saying that your lead god personifies summer. And your country is named after him?"

Ara seemed very startled, and confused, by the sudden switch in conversation. "Sort of. Tallen Tiya is the biggest province, so when we talk about the empire as a whole, we use that name."

"Am I right in assuming Till is another god?" Tanden guessed.

"Yes. Well, not a god. She's the goddess of spring."

"Who else is there?" Tanden asked.

"Tier, the goddess of winter, and Tigo, the god of autumn," Ara replied. "Sir, I know you paid for this evening and can spend it however you want, but shouldn't we still be talking about tomorrow?"

"Right." Tanden shook his head ruefully. "You're right, of course. I'm just fascinated by your culture."

"I'm Morcean."

"Oh." Of course he was. The braids in his hair, his skin, the temporary tattoo on his hand. But Tanden was again distracted. "Your name isn't Morcean."

"No. I was given a Tallenese name when I was sold. I don't remember my Morcean name," Ara explained. "Your friend-"

"Right." Tanden silently berated himself. He would have plenty of time to learn about Tallen Tiya on their trip. "I was telling you that Soren won't like acting. He'll want you to genuinely enjoy your night. So let's go over some words that'll be helpful."

Finding a cartographer in the evening was a challenge, particularly without Tanden around to translate. Jerios had asked the barkeeper for suggestions, and between the four of them they had picked up enough Morcean to make themselves somewhat understood as they walked through the port. They ended up at a tiny shop in the port proper, where an older man had been about to blow out a candle when they knocked on the door.

Through the window, they watched the man put the candle down and slowly walk to the door. He opened it and silently looked at them.

Soren stood in front of his friends. "Good evening. Sorry to disturb you... Teltish?" he gestured at Jerios. "Deoran?"

Much to his relief, the man spoke in Deoran. Jerios translated.

"He knows a bit of Deoran. He's closing up for the night."

"Ask him if he has any maps of Sunland we can buy."

Jerios translated. The cartographer watched Soren as he listened, then stepped back and gestured for them to follow him into the shop. He lay a few maps across his desk. He said something to Jerios.

"He says they're all seven hundred weis. But I don't know how much that is in-"

"Its about five siyas," Soren replied easily, as he looked over the maps. There were all about the same size, detailed drawings of Till and Sunland, with labels written in neat handwriting Soren couldn't understand. But as Ivern had said earlier, Tanden would figure out the language. He tended to pick languages up verbally before he learned to read them, but that skill was never far behind. After about a minute of thoughtful inspection, Soren picked up one of the maps. "This one," he decided. They were all expertly done, and his choice had simply come down to the colour of the parchment it was drawn on. From memory, it best matched the map on Tanden's wall.

The cartographer took it from him and began to carefully roll it up, while speaking to Jerios. Soren reached into his pocket to pull out five siyas. They had used up their weis coins at the tavern, but port cities always took foreign currency. Soren also knew that five siyas was slightly more than seven hundred weis, so the cartographer would be pleased.

He was. The old man smiled as Soren handed over the money, and passed him the map in turn. Then he shooed them out of the store.

As they walked back towards the port and the Wanderlust, Jerios spoke up. "So he said the country is called Tallen Tiya. I did my best to translate Sunland and he didn't know what I was talking about."

"Oh." That was the kind of information Tanden would have loved to hear, although, Soren realized, he probably already had heard it. "Did he say anything else?"

"Not really."

"Well, thanks for helping me out, mate."

They continued to talk about nothing in particular as they made their way back to the ship. Soren listened more than participated in the conversation. He was thinking about Tanden, and what he might be up to, and how to give him the map. When they got back to the ship, the other three went below to wait until it was their turn to take over the watch.

Soren went to the captain's quarters. The map he had bought didn't match up perfectly with Tanden's map, but it was surprisingly close. Till was approximately the same size in each map. Sunland was enormous. It was no surprise that King Edarius the First hadn't made it very far into the country. It seemed to be divided into three pieces, each piece alone larger than Zianna. Soren was contemplating pinning the map up, just to see how it would look, when he noticed the way the sections on the map had been labelled. He held it closer to the candle. Soren couldn't read the script, but he could tell that part of each label was the same. Till had the same sort of label. Which seemed to mean that Till was part of Sunland - Tallen Tiya, he corrected himself. That was certainly new information.

He studied the map a little longer, as if any of it would make sense the more he looked. If the map was accurate, Tallen Tiya seemed to be a huge country with few cities. In each section, there were two or three large dots, and a scattering of smaller dots. The country was crisscrossed with small rivers leading to and from a large lake in the middle. Mountains created a natural border around the edge of the map. It looked big and wild, which made Soren once again nervous about exploring it. Tanden had no idea where they were going to go. He was just exited to go. Soren would have liked a little bit of a plan.

He flattened out the map and placed it under a stack of books, to get rid of the curl. It didn't seem like Tanden was going to be coming back, which made Soren more curious than worried. A year ago his absence would have worried Soren for multiple reasons. But now he not only trusted Tanden, but knew he was capable of protecting himself. Still, Soren looked over at the empty bed and didn't like the idea of settling down in it for the night.

Although he was tired, he picked up the candlestick and walked back out onto the deck. A few sailors were standing around, on watch. While in port they never bothered with a full watch like they did at sea, but Tanden liked having a couple people awake to keep an eye on things. Soren talked to a couple of them before excusing himself and heading below.

He had to cross the mess hall to reach his quarters. Once upon a time that would have been fine, now it was like his feelings had swapped. He used to be a little nervous about being seen constantly heading in and out of Tanden's quarters. Now that that felt normal, going to his quarters alone, passing the sailors who were still mingling around the table, bothered him. It simply gave them too much information. Like Tanden had sent him away, or they were fighting, or that he wasn't welcome staying in the captain's quarters when Tanden wasn't there.

Part of him knew that was stupid, and none of the sailors cared that much, but it didn't stop him from imagining what they might be thinking. He paused, before reminding himself that it was stupid, and walked through the mess hall. The only people who paid him any attention were his friends, who simply said goodnight.

His room was actually quite nice. It wasn't nearly as large as Tanden's, of course, but he had a decent bed, a small table, and a chest to store his belongings. All that was in there were a few tunics and pairs of pants. He really hadn't had the room for very long before he had moved into Tanden's quarters, and even then, he had only slept in the room. Simply being first mate meant spending a lot of time in Tanden's quarters, at his desk.

Soren kicked off his boots, and dug a more comfortable set of clothing out of the chest to sleep in. Once he had changed, he blew out the candle and lay on the bed with his hands laced together under his head. He fell asleep quickly, still imagining all the different things Tanden might have been doing.