Noble Beginnings (2 page)

"I'm sure you have all heard by now of the
death of my father, the former Duke of Farlan," Thea said briskly.
"Word arrived this morning, with his name at the top of a list of
our brave men lost in battle. His loss is a serious one that
affects me personally, but I am aware that all of you have lost
many friends and family of your own over these many years of war.
As such, I would like to request that we limit our mourning to our
traditional moment of silence for all the men we have lost in the
service of the king."

Dorran bowed his head. He was surprised that
Grandfather would only be getting a few moments of silence instead
of a royal sending. Letting the thought slip away Dorran took a
deep breath and tried to recall his grandfather. No matter how he
tried nothing came to mind. His grandfather and father had both
died in the same way in a far-off battlefield, fighting to serve
interests only tangentially related to their own home and family.
Was he supposed to feel proud? Resentful? Frightened?

Finally, Thea raised her head, and the rest
of the people at the table, watching her out of the corner of their
eyes, followed suit. "Very well, then. Let us begin."

Dorran was able to follow what was going on
fairly easily at first, since Thea began the meeting by reading the
latest letter that had been received from the king alongside the
list of casualties. There was a short discussion of his military
position and the possible demand for future soldiers, but then the
talk turned to economic concerns mainly the state of farming and
other local industry, the small trickle of refugees that
occasionally came and went, and the prevalence of legal debate over
inheritance caused by the number of women inheriting family
businesses.

Dorran found himself tuning out, until,
during a lull in the conversation, Lady Aiken unexpectedly turned
to him. He had never known what to make of the older woman, when he
had come across her in the past; her hair was impeccably styled,
and she dressed in the latest fashions despite her age, but her
eyes were sharp and she had none of the flirtatious traits so
common among women of the nobility. He hadn't expected to be
singled out by her, however, and jumped when her eyes fell on him,
examining him from head to toe almost as though he were a prized
piece of livestock.

"Milady, if I may be so bold...have any plans
been put in place in regards to young Lord Dorran's marriage?"
Aiken asked. "I'm sorry, my lady, but the question needs to be
raised. He is the next in line for the seat of the duchy, and
Farlan can only benefit from returning a line of robust males to
leadership as soon as possible." She looked around the table with a
look that was very far from what he would consider apologetic. "I
am sure I am not the only one here who had hoped, upon entering
this chamber and seeing the young lord's presence, to hear a happy
announcement that could lead to an extension of the dwindling
Farlane bloodline."

Thea gave Lady Aiken a sardonic look, and
Dorran fought and lost against a blush that was strong enough to be
painful. He remembered acutely now why he'd never been comfortable
with politics. Nothing was every what it seemed. There was always a
reason for the reason.

Dorran had the urge to run but a quick look
around the room told him that no matter how fleet of foot he was it
would not avail him. There were too many women in the room, all
examining him minutely with expressions he didn't understand, and
while the few men in the room had the kindness not to stare, they
didn't offer him any support, either. "Believe me when I say that I
have kept not only my firstborn son's but Farlan’s interests firmly
in mind, Aiken," Thea said reassuringly. "Indeed, that is one of
the reasons I have summoned him today."

Then Thea’s tone changed, becoming
authoritative, almost sharp. "Lord Dorran, stand."

Dorran swallowed hard and rose to his feet,
his chair screeching awkwardly for a split second on the stone
floor. When his mother spoke again, her voice was only slightly
warmer the voice she used with him normally. "Dorran, it is time
that your voice was heard in the counsels that illuminate our path
forward. Are you prepared to offer your best in these talks, and
help the duchess and her advisers to guide Farlan down the best
paths?"

Was this some sort of ritual he wondered
wildly? Suspecting that it was, he followed his mother’s lead.
"Yes, Duchess," he answered, bowing at the waist. "I'll do the best
that I can in all things for both you and for Farlan."

A small smile tugged at the corner of her
mouth, but he couldn't tell whether or not she was truly pleased
with his response. "Very well. With that settled, shall we
continue?"

As the discussions around the table
continued, Dorran was surprised to be reminded of the weaving and
stitching get together’s he dimly remembered as a child. The women
here spoke with authority that seemed for the most part based on
seniority; Adhara and Nora sat quietly slightly behind their
mother, neither of them saying a word or even showing much in the
way of expressions. They didn't look at all like statues, however;
instead, they seemed engrossed in each and every topic that came
up. Dorran, who struggled even to notice when the subject changed,
envied them their engagement. He wished that the talk would turn to
affairs of war or battles of anything he might be of use, but so
far they had remained as far as he could tell, in the realm of
husbandry and economic concerns.

He noticed that there were only a handful of
other men at the table, and many of them looked almost as
uncomfortable as Dorran felt; only one or two of them, and those
were the oldest of the group seemed comfortable with jumping in and
adding their opinions to the fray.

Dorran, to his mortification, found himself
almost nodding off by the end of meeting, but eventually the final
discussions of fiscal economy whatever that was, he wasn't entirely
sure were closed, and the ladies, lords, and advisers began to file
out, while others broke away to talk quietly among themselves.

There was a long moment of silence, during
which Dorran tried not to stare expectantly at his mother after his
sisters had walked off to one side and begun to talk quietly among
themselves.

"Dorran," Thea said eventually.

He bowed his head by reflex. "Yes,
Mother?"

"How much did you understand of the talks
today?" she asked.

His mind raced as he contemplated what sort
of answer she wanted. "I understood the general issues discussed,"
he offered.

"Well enough to be able to form any of your
own opinions?"

He considered her question. He could lie but
he knew that if he did that she might just expect him to give one
and then now only would he be shown as incompetent but as an
incompetent liar.. "Not really, Mother."

There was a long silence, during which he
braved a look up at her. Her expression was stern and just shy of
disapproving. "It is always wiser to admit uncertainty than to form
opinions prematurely," she said finally. "Still, I must point out
that your education on matters outside of war has been sorely
lacking. From now on, you are to spend the majority of your time in
the castle. Attend as many of my councils as you are able, any free
time you have will be spent studying until you feel more
comfortable with affairs of state."

Dorran's mouth nearly dropped open with
alarm, but he controlled his reaction. "I understand, Mother."

She gave him a small smile. "Do you have any
questions?" she asked.

"Yes about my project at the barracks," he
rushed out. "Obviously my education is more important, but they
aren't being used anyway, and if I set Edith in charge of what I've
been doing and have her report to me on her progress..."

Out of sight of their mother, Adhara and Nora
were both giving Dorran disapproving looks. It was vaguely
humiliating, but Thea spoke again before he could try to defend his
interest.

"I see no reason for Edith not to continue
with your project, so long as her reports don't take up too much of
your time," she allowed. "You value your skills in combat very
much, do you not?"

He nodded, his mouth dry. I'm going to go off
to battle at some point, aren't I? He wanted to say, but he knew
that it was a bad topic to bring to his mother’s attention.. "I was
under the impression that knowledge of combat would help me to be
of use to Farlan," he answered carefully.

She nodded. "Your dedication to our land is
admirable, Dorran, but you are more than a common foot soldier, or
even a general you are a member of the house of Farlane, and your
knowledge must expand beyond the military. Do you understand?"

He bowed his head again. "Yes, Mother."

She leaned back in her chair. "Good. Now, I
can see that you've had just about as much politics as you can be
reasonably expected to handle for today. Go and move your things
into your old chambers. Enlist some of the servants to help you, if
you can find any that are free."

Not likely, Dorran thought and he didn't
enjoy bothering the servants anyway; they always seemed to know
what they were doing better than he did. "I'll look after it
myself, Mother," he said, bowing on one knee again before standing
and walking out of the chamber. He thought he heard hints of
feminine whispers follow him on the way out.

Chapter II

Dorran had only a few personal effects in the
old barracks, but there were still enough that he couldn't carry
all of it in one trip. Even given this, he'd hoped he'd be able to
make the move unnoticed, but Edith caught him on his second trip
with his battered leather-bound chest precariously balanced on one
hip.

She frowned. "What are you doing?"

He looked away. "I'm moving back into the
castle," he said. "Not that I ever really left, but..."

"Why?" she asked.

"Mother's orders," he said. The short words
echoed in the dim passageway, sounding tenser than he had intended
for them to.

Edith was still staring at him, her
greenish-brown eyes clouded with distant confusion. "Why?" she
repeated.

It was exactly the sort of response he should
have expected from her, he knew, but he still spent a moment at a
loss for an answer. "She said she wanted me to stay in the castle,"
he said finally. He knew it wasn't the sort of answer she wanted,
but it was all he could provide. "She wants me to become more
involved with the duchy's affairs."

Edith stared at him for another moment, and
then nodded. She smiled faintly, but he got the feeling that it was
more by reflex than an accurate expression of her feelings. "Do you
want me to take over the training, then?"

"Could you? I mean, I can't, and you already
do most of the training anyway." He swallowed, facing for the first
time the idea of stepping out of the daily practices at the
barracks head-on. "I don't think I'll be able to come down as much
anymore."

"I should be able to do it," she said with
straightforward confidence. "I'll just keep asking the older
members for help like we've already been doing. I expect Marcus and
the others will be disappointed, though." Without asking if he
needed help, Edith took the dangling strap of his chest and
commandeered half of his weight, walking in front of him down the
hallway.

He wondered whether she was disappointed,
too, but knew it was pointless to ask Edith things like that. She
would always look at him strangely when he did, and had never given
him a satisfactory answer.

They rounded several corners in silence, and
were in one of the covered walkways between the barracks and the
main castle when Edith raised her voice again, tossing him a
calculating glance over her shoulder. "What are you going to be
doing up at the castle?"

"I don't know," he admitted.

"Your mother didn't tell you?"

He shrugged, the weight of the chest making
the movement awkward. "I got the feeling it would've taken too long
to explain.” Dorran stopped and looked up at the sky and let out a
heavy sigh. “I'm not exactly cut out for court life."

"That's because you've never prepared for
it," she pointed out.

"That's true," he admitted. "Somehow I always
figured I'd grow up and go straight to the battlefield. Mother
never told me she wanted me more involved in political affairs,
anyway."

"You are her firstborn heir," she pointed out
dryly.

He shrugged. "Mother will tell me what I need
to know when I need to know it," he said.

She turned around so that she was walking
backwards, supporting her corner of her trunk with one arm. In her
years of training she had developed upper body strength to match
his, Dorran always enjoyed watching Edith, there was something
about her that made his heart beat fast. Momentarily distracted by
the smooth curves of her bicep showing through the fabric of her
tunic sleeves. "You always say something like that whenever anyone
asks," she mused. "Is there a reason for that?"

He was surprised she had noticed; it wasn't
something he spent much time thinking about himself. "Well..." He
turned his head, making a show of watching the walls and the
shuttered windows pass by. "It was one of the last things my father
told me before he left. I don't remember it very well, but...a few
years later, I asked Grandfather about it, and he told me the same
thing, so I guess I remembered it right."

She gave him a long look, and he suspected
that the mention of the man had made her wary. "You're the sole
male heir of the line, aren't you?" she said seriously.

"I am," he said uncomfortably. He remembered
the ladies of his mother's court all eyeing him carefully from head
to toe, and made a face. "That's been true ever since my father
died, though; Grandfather's passing doesn't change anything."