veneer that formed her alter ego Helge remaining to cover the yawning depths-took a ragged breath.
She felt stifled by layers of artifice, suffocated by the social expectations of having to live as a noble lady: and now she had to put up with threats, innuendo, and hints from the royal family? She felt hot and cold at once, and her stomach hurt.
The trait is recessive. The king was a carrier. That meant that each of his sons had a one in four chance of being a carrier. Have you thought about marriage? Obviously not from the right angle, because You’ve been too successful, too fast. Wasn’t Prince Egon-golden boy with a thousand-yard stare, watching her with something ugly in his eyes-already engaged to some foreign princess? Raised in secrecy. Might he be a carrier? I know your grandmother.
“Lady Helge!” It was Kara, two maids in tow, looking angry and relieved simultaneously. “Where have you been? We were so worried!”
“Hold this,” said Miriam, thrusting the empty glass at her. Then she darted outside as fast as she could, in search of a bush to throw up behind.
Translated Transcript Begins
“Has the old goose been drinking too much, do you suppose?”
“Hist, now! She’ll hear you!”
“Oh don’t worry. She only understands one word in ten. It can’t be helped, I suppose. She grew up in fairyland, wearing trousers and chopping up dead men to understand how they work. They didn’t have time to teach her how to speak as well.”
“What, you mean-” (shocked giggle) “-to the Crone?”
“No, I don’t suppose she’s that stupid. But she’s one of the kind such as have a thoughtful temper. You don’t want to get on the wrong side of her, you know.
Wait, here she comes-” (English) “-would you like another glass, ma’am?”
(Click.)
“Phew, there she goes again, bouncing after some stuffed-pants longhair. This one looks like he swallowed a ferret, look at the way he’s twitching.”
“Raw with lust for the old goose.”
“Hist! Is that your third glass?”
“Who’s counting, madam? Listen, you have that one. Oh, over there! Don’t look, don’t be so obvious. Himself with the brown hair and the, um, isn’t he something?”
“He-”
(Click.)
“Not as if my lady is stupid, but she is strange. Witchy-weird like any of the Six, but more so, if you follow me. Wears breeches and talks the Anglaische all the time except when she’s trying to learn. But she does it so badly! Look at the way she carries herself. Wagging tongues have it that she seduced Sieur Roland, but if something like that could seduce anything then I’m Queen of Summer Angels. What do you say, Nicky? Dried-up bluestocking or-”
“Don’t underestimate her, she’s not stupid, even if she doesn’t understand much. She may not look like a lizard but she’s descended from a long lineage of snakes. Sieur Roland is dead, isn’t he, so I’m led to believe? Do you think she had something to do with that? Suck the man dry and cast aside his bones like a spider.”
“Nicky! That’s disgusting!”
“Not as disgusting as what that spotty lad wanted with you in the bedchamber when she was away.”
“Don’t you go talking like that about me-”
“Then don’t you go calling me disgusting, miss.”
(Sigh.) “I’m not calling you disgusting.”
“Then it’s a good thing I didn’t call you a whore, isn’t it? People might misunderstand.”
“Here, have another-drink while she’s not looking. Who is that longshanks oddboy, anyway?”
“Him? He’s one of the hangers-on on at court. Some fancy-boy or other to the king’s bedchamber. Dresser-on-of-codpieces or some such.”
“You don’t know, do you? She doesn’t know!”
“Rubbish, he’s Sieur Villem du Praha and he’s married to Lady Jain of Cours, and he rides with the king’s hunt. And look, there’s our missy Kara going all gushy over him.”
“Kara? She’s-”
“You just look, whenever she gets within six feet of him she
She felt stifled by layers of artifice, suffocated by the social expectations of having to live as a noble lady: and now she had to put up with threats, innuendo, and hints from the royal family? She felt hot and cold at once, and her stomach hurt.
The trait is recessive. The king was a carrier. That meant that each of his sons had a one in four chance of being a carrier. Have you thought about marriage? Obviously not from the right angle, because You’ve been too successful, too fast. Wasn’t Prince Egon-golden boy with a thousand-yard stare, watching her with something ugly in his eyes-already engaged to some foreign princess? Raised in secrecy. Might he be a carrier? I know your grandmother.
“Lady Helge!” It was Kara, two maids in tow, looking angry and relieved simultaneously. “Where have you been? We were so worried!”
“Hold this,” said Miriam, thrusting the empty glass at her. Then she darted outside as fast as she could, in search of a bush to throw up behind.
Translated Transcript Begins
“Has the old goose been drinking too much, do you suppose?”
“Hist, now! She’ll hear you!”
“Oh don’t worry. She only understands one word in ten. It can’t be helped, I suppose. She grew up in fairyland, wearing trousers and chopping up dead men to understand how they work. They didn’t have time to teach her how to speak as well.”
“What, you mean-” (shocked giggle) “-to the Crone?”
“No, I don’t suppose she’s that stupid. But she’s one of the kind such as have a thoughtful temper. You don’t want to get on the wrong side of her, you know.
Wait, here she comes-” (English) “-would you like another glass, ma’am?”
(Click.)
“Phew, there she goes again, bouncing after some stuffed-pants longhair. This one looks like he swallowed a ferret, look at the way he’s twitching.”
“Raw with lust for the old goose.”
“Hist! Is that your third glass?”
“Who’s counting, madam? Listen, you have that one. Oh, over there! Don’t look, don’t be so obvious. Himself with the brown hair and the, um, isn’t he something?”
“He-”
(Click.)
“Not as if my lady is stupid, but she is strange. Witchy-weird like any of the Six, but more so, if you follow me. Wears breeches and talks the Anglaische all the time except when she’s trying to learn. But she does it so badly! Look at the way she carries herself. Wagging tongues have it that she seduced Sieur Roland, but if something like that could seduce anything then I’m Queen of Summer Angels. What do you say, Nicky? Dried-up bluestocking or-”
“Don’t underestimate her, she’s not stupid, even if she doesn’t understand much. She may not look like a lizard but she’s descended from a long lineage of snakes. Sieur Roland is dead, isn’t he, so I’m led to believe? Do you think she had something to do with that? Suck the man dry and cast aside his bones like a spider.”
“Nicky! That’s disgusting!”
“Not as disgusting as what that spotty lad wanted with you in the bedchamber when she was away.”
“Don’t you go talking like that about me-”
“Then don’t you go calling me disgusting, miss.”
(Sigh.) “I’m not calling you disgusting.”
“Then it’s a good thing I didn’t call you a whore, isn’t it? People might misunderstand.”
“Here, have another-drink while she’s not looking. Who is that longshanks oddboy, anyway?”
“Him? He’s one of the hangers-on on at court. Some fancy-boy or other to the king’s bedchamber. Dresser-on-of-codpieces or some such.”
“You don’t know, do you? She doesn’t know!”
“Rubbish, he’s Sieur Villem du Praha and he’s married to Lady Jain of Cours, and he rides with the king’s hunt. And look, there’s our missy Kara going all gushy over him.”
“Kara? She’s-”
“You just look, whenever she gets within six feet of him she
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