Lioness Rampant by Tamora Pierce

you are here.”Now she looked at the princess. “I am truly sorry, Thayet. I have no choice. Already I have disobeyed orders to report your arrival. It won’t be long before a spy sends word to the rebels.”

    Dismissed by the priestesses, they went back to the room Thayet was assigned. None of them were surprised to find packed saddlebags at the door. “They don’t waste time, do they?” Buri sneered when she saw them.
    Alanna combed mud and stickers out of Faithful’s coat, a process the cat loved (and made difficult by wriggling in joy). “I liked the Hag-Daughter,” she confessed, working on a clump. “She was honest.”
    â€œThe First Daughter left a bad taste in my mouth,” Coram remarked.
    â€œDon’t be hard on jian Cadao,” Thayet said quietly. “She’s a cousin on my father’s side. It wasn’t easy for her.”
    â€œYour own family throws you to the wolves?” Liam’s eyes turned an intense green—he was furious.
    â€œWe prefer ambition to loyalty,” Thayet replied. She fingered the arch of her nose. “And she’s in trouble herself. It’ll be easier for all my family if I’m gone. With my father dead …” She looked away fromthem, swallowing. “Any power I had was through him. Now I’m a pawn. Zhir Anduo can strengthen his claim to the throne by marrying me. The ones who don’t want him will use me to oppose him, because I’m jian Wilima—although a jian Wilima female.” She started to pace, her hazel eyes stormy. “Where can Buri and I go? Please—I need advice.”
    â€œThey can come along,” Coram whispered to Alanna. “They’re no hindrance—we saw that comin’ here. The Roof can’t be worse than what they face now.”
    Alanna looked Thayet over, fingering the ember-stone. Thayet was dependable. She was a good archer, a necessity when they hunted to feed themselves. If she was nervous, Alanna had yet to see it. She never complained, never cried, never fainted. She never shirked her watch. Thayet and Buri would be an asset to an expedition like theirs.
    Alanna looked at Buri and was surprised by a pleading expression in the girl’s eyes. She replaced it with her usual scowl, but this time Alanna wasn’t fooled. Buri must be worried sick, she thought. And she knows Thayet will be safe with us. Besides, I’d miss them.
    â€œThayet,” she said aloud, “you know where we’regoing. We’re on—a quest, I suppose. When I find what I’m after, I’ll return home. If Liam and Buri don’t object, why don’t you ride with us?”
    â€œMind? Gods, no! Thayet’s a better cook than you are,” said Liam.
    â€œThe Roof of the World,” Thayet whispered. Her face brightened.
    â€œLeave Sarain?” Buri grinned. “Just show me the way!”

    A Daughter shook her awake. Glancing at the window, Alanna saw it was just before dawn—time for Liam’s teaching. She directed a questioning look at the Dragon, but he only shrugged and tossed Alanna her clothes. They dressed and followed the priestess out into the corridor.
    The black-robed Daughter awaited them with Buri, Thayet, and Coram. “No time to waste,” she told them quietly. “ Zhir Rayong, who is sworn to zhir Anduo, knows Thayet’s here, and he’s on his way. My people can delay him for three hours, but you must go if you want to escape.”
    Alanna looked at her friends, thinking fast. “We can’t go as we are. When it gets out that we’re gone, everyone will look for a group of nobles, or theDragon and his friends. I can ride as a boy.” She grinned, looking at the shirt and breeches she already wore. “Goddess knows I’ve had practice.”
    â€œWe’ll pass as mercenaries,” Liam added. Coram nodded. They all gazed at Thayet, whose looks could not have