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Fyia could hear the smile on Sensis' lips, and was sure Edu would be fighting one of his own. There was no line of succession—as her critics kept reminding her—but that was a problem for another day.

'Are you two done?' said Fyia.

'For now,' said Sensis.

'What concerns you, Edu?'

'The big one over there,' said Edu.

Fyia found the very large, very attractive man gesticulating in their general direction.

'Who is he?' said Fyia.

Sensis laughed. 'He's King Perdes' distant cousin. The rest of his family fled when they realized they'd lost.'

'He's taking a … different approach,' said Edu.

'Which is?' asked Fyia.

'You'll see,' said Sensis, doing a poor job of hiding her amusement.

'Oh, Mother …' said Fyia. She fought to keep her expression neutral as the man began moving towards the dais.

'Don't pray to her,' said Sensis. 'She can't help you.'

'Then who would you suggest?'

'The Warrior,' said Edu, 'to help you fight him off.'

'The Whore,' said Sensis. 'Might give you some tips.'

'Helpful,' said Fyia.

'The Friend,' said Rouel, who had perched his slight frame on the edge of the dais, 'to tell you nothing about that man looks problematic at all.'

'Or … oh, my …' said Sensis. 'Maybe you should seek help from a jealous almost-former-lover …'

Adigos had just slipped in through the door.

'Wait, they never did it?' said Edu, looking to Sensis for confirmation.

'I don't think they ever did … wait, did you?' said Sensis.

'Could we deal with one problem at a time?' said Fyia. She eyed Perdes' cousin, who was getting dangerously close, and seemed a little unsteady on his feet.

'Is Adigos still a problem?' said Sensis. 'Have you been holding out on me?'

'I feel a song coming on …' said Rouel.

One of Fyia's wolves growled, and they all fell silent. The growling, they had learned the hard way, wasn't just for show.

'My Queen,' said Perdes' cousin, bowing low.

'Yes?' she said, fixing her face into a bored mask.

He looked up from his bow, unsure of what to do. 'May I … approach?'

'No,' said Fyia.