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In fact, I am quite sure that those same jewels are the reason she cannot think clearly.
Another factor could be the fact that you’re an eligible bachelor, and she wants to marry into an equally noble family.
Somehow, and later on I will marvel at my abilities, as I manage to continue a lively conversation with Astern. When I finally leave her, not forgetting to kiss her gently on the palm, she has practically melted into a puddle.
Right, enough of that. Time to find my brother.
Fohri is, and I think always has been, an absolute bastard.
Our parents were wed when he was conceived, so he is not a bastard in the traditional sense of the word– instead, he is simply one of the worst people I have ever met.
His ego is larger than his head. His personality is obnoxious, and his voice makes one shudder with disgust. I did not want to be here, but Vetrin was determined to have this damned party, and Fohri is determined to have a good time. I know what that means to Fohri. It means that he’ll get drunk and will cause a scandal somehow.
Just keep him away from the younger women. That should do it.
I find my brother in the middle of the garden. We have all eaten our main course already, and are snacking on finger foods while a small orchestra serenades us. Fohri is throwing his head back and laughing loudly when I nudge my way through the crowd around him.
A crowd of women, and envious men, surround him, and he lovingly runs a hand through his hair as they look on admiringly.
“Fohri,” I mutter under my breath. “We need to leave soon, brother.”
“Nonsense!” He cries, and I close my eyes briefly from pure exasperation, and the women around him titter as Fohri declares that he plans to spend the night.
There is no way that I am allowing this. But maybe any woman idiotic enough to spend the night with Fohri deserves what she gets. I mean, he isn’t exactly hiding his sheer stupidity.
Despite my boredom at the party, I do need to avoid a scandal at all costs, because I need to build alliances. That is what I have been trying to do all evening – have proper conversations with other, lesser nobles, but Fohri has been hogging all their attention.
Lately, trouble and rebellion have been brewing in some of the smaller villages. There is talk of bringing the Renziu family down. I always knew that a lot of other nobles hated us, but I didn’t think that they would go to the extreme of trying to collapse our rule.
I cannot let that happen,ever.
Today, and this evening, I was planning on collaborating with some of the lesser nobles, who are always trying to curry favor with my family. They’re good allies to have because they are more likely to have information that comes from the ground.
And that is what I need: information. Because if an attack is being planned, then I need to know in advance.
If only Fohri would actually do his job.
The irony of this entire situation is that Fohri is the one with all the power, and not me. He is the older of us and is supposed to be running our family. Instead, he has become everything that our people abhor. He is flighty, untrustworthy, and a general pain in the ass.
He cannot be trusted to make decisions with regard to money or power, and frankly, I’d hate to see him settle down and have children because I am fairly certain that any offspring of his would burn the world down.
But then I remember who Fohri is. He is never going to settle down. Ever.
That doesn’t mean he won’t ever have any offspring.
I want to groan aloud at the thought.
Get back to the task at hand. Information.
Earlier this morning, I tried, in a futile attempt, to get Fohri interested in the fact that we likely have a rebellion on our hands.
I do not know why you still try. You know that it, and he, are useless.
Right then, I find myself being dragged into a conversation by a nobleman, and the sound of Fohri’s voice filters away.
The conversation is interesting, and surprisingly, the nobleman has some useful information. He is also clearly a big fan of my family’s name, because he brings it up at least thrice throughout the short conversation.
Things are too quiet,I find myself thinking.
