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Xandra’s blond friend approached with Chrysanthos and presented him in Divine, then Vulgus, then another language that made Harkhuf share a conspiratorial glance with her.
“Eighth Princess,” Chrysanthos greeted her. He gazed into her hearth, and firelight gleamed in his eyes. “What a singular party.”
“Singular,” the princess enthused. “I consider that a great compliment indeed.”
“You are certainly broadening my view of Hesperines, Princess Alexandra.”
“Well, that’s what this Summit is all about, isn’t it? But also about finding common ground.” Xandra gestured to her blond friend. “Lady Cassia, meet my Trial sister, Eudokia Hypatia, who writes amazing treatises and serves as a Sophia, a teacher for young Hesperines.”
Lio’s Trial sister Kia was Hypatia’s daughter? Cassia gave up hope of finding an ally there. “Your reputation as a mathematician and scholar precedes you.”
“It is a real pleasure, Lady Cassia.” Eudokia tossed her turquoise silk wrap over her shoulder in a gesture Cassia had seen Zoe imitate with her own beloved mantle.
Chrysanthos smirked. “EudokiaHypatia. That explains a great deal, Sophia.”
She gave him a glittering, fanged smile worthy of her mother. “It is our calling as scholars to explain the world to mankind and cure his ignorance.”
“Come,” said the princess, “let us join my other Trial sister for some music.”
She drew them to a nearby semicircle of chairs and cushions. In the center, the black-haired Hesperine sat with silk panels behind her that formed a kind of stage. Her face was as lovely as a pale, golden harvest moon, and her robes shimmered with shades of deep blue and ocean teal. She was armed with a lute, and at the ready beside her was a stringed instrument Cassia had never seen before.
Eudias, sitting in the chair across from the Hesperine musician, leaned forward to study the unfamiliar instrument’s long neck, compact body, and three strings.
The musician gave Eudias a smile that appeared gentle and kind. “That is a shamisen, a tradition of my mortal ancestors, who hailed from west of the Empire.”
Eudias avoided her gaze. “Fascinating.”
“This is Menodora Kithara,” the princess introduced her, “from one of our founding bloodlines. Her family teaches all the Muses of Orthros—our musicians, poets, actors, and dancers. She is the most talented composer of our generation and a crafter of fine instruments.”
Menodora smiled. “Your opinion is hardly objective, my friend. There are many gifted young Muses in Orthros.”
“Myfavoritecomposer, then,” Xandra insisted, “and the only Hesperine expert on the music of the Archipelagos.”
“Those distinctions, I will not deny,” said Menodora.
Both of Lio’s Trial sisters were clearly in Xandra’s faction. The princess sat near Menodora with Harkhuf and Eudokia on either side of her.
Chrysanthos did not take a seat, only stood on the other side of the circle from Eudokia.
Lio hovered at Cassia’s side. “What will you play for us tonight, Nodora?”
“I am taking requests.” She turned her smile upon Cassia. “A Tenebran court dance, perhaps?”
Cassia considered the possible double meanings in the offer. Was the Hesperine trying to emphasize that Cassia was a foreigner? Did Menodora wish to indicate by her command of Tenebran court dances that her princess was wise to Cassia’s strategies?
“Thank you,” Cassia replied, “but I am most curious to hear Hesperine music and broaden my education.”
“I can’t wait for your visit to House Kitharos later in the Summit. It will be a banquet for the ears. I will play some of our favorites to give you a foretaste.” Menodora ran a finger over the strings of her lute, sounding a cascade of gentle notes. She commenced a pleasing tune that promised to lull the guests into ease.
Lio said under the notes of the song, “I regret a missed opportunity for dancing.”
“This is hardly the place for it,” Cassia muttered.
Lio tucked his hands behind his back with a deliberate air. Had he just transformed his once-nervous gesture into a silent apology?
Cassia winced inwardly. “But thank you for your kind invitation, Ambassador.”
The music, like the fire, seemed to dull the sharp edges of the embassy’s tension. Even Knight’s ears drooped. But Cassia felt like she was walking on embers. Her enemies were not letting their guard down, either. Chrysanthos, Tychon, and Skleros appeared to expect an ambush from behind the silks at any moment.
