I turned my back on them and swung my legs over the edge of the bed. 'Where's Chart?' I asked.
'He is at the master's house.'
'But who's looking after him?' The carpet was so thick under my feet they sank into it. I wiggled my toes, pushing them through the soft pile. Twice as deep as my master's carpets.
'Irsa.' Rilla's voice was flat.
I looked around. 'Irsa? But can't Chart come here?'
'The Emperor will not allow it. He will not have the bad luck of deformity in the palace.'
I stopped making imprints in the carpet. 'But I'm here.'
Rilla placed a pot of water on top of the brazier. 'Yes, but rank and wealth takes the stink off such things.'
Rank and wealth. I stared down at the jewel colours of the carpet. I now had rank and wealth.
Something surged through me: the beginnings of a fierce power that had nothing to do with the Mirror Dragon. I was Lord Eon. A Dragoneye. I drank out of gold cups and slept on silk sheets. People served me and bowed to me and no one would ever sneer at my limp again or make the ward-evil.
'I could order him here,' I said.
Rilla turned and smiled. 'That's a generous thought, Lord Eon.'
I felt the heat rise to my face again. The thought had not come from generosity.
'But I'm afraid even the new Mirror Dragoneye would not be able to overrule the Emperor's fear.' She stared into the heating water. 'It will be all right. The master will not let any serious harm come to Chart.'
True, but it was the lesser harms that left a sour taste in my mouth.
Something knocked against the door. I spun around to face it.
'Lord Eon,' a voice called from the other side. 'The Emperor's physician requests entrance.'
'Get back in the bed,' Rilla whispered. 'Don't let him poke at you.' She took the pot off the brazier and hurried to the door. A moment, please,' she called.
I clambered onto the bed and pulled the sheet back over me. Rilla gave me a nod then opened the heavy door, bowing as a small man strutted into the room. His clothes overshadowed him: five short tunics of the thinnest silk were set one on top of the other, each a shade of purple —violet to lilac — that created a glorious layered edging at neck and thigh. Under these was a pair of wide-legged trousers in puce with gold embroidery. A maroon physician's cap completed the magnificence; close-fitting but extravagantly trimmed with pink feathers. Amongst all this rich colour, the man's grey face drooped in sour lines, a sparse beard coming to a short frayed point. He was followed by two fat eunuchs in long blue cotton tunics, one carrying a tray with a goblet, the other carrying a box.
'Lord Eon, I am the royal physician,' the sfnall man said, his bow a jerky dip from the waist.
'His Imperial Majesty sends you a precious tonic to assist in your recovery' He waved the eunuch with the tray forwards. 'It was presented as a gift to our Gracious Highness from those foreign devils he allows into our city'
The eunuch dropped to one knee and offered the goblet. His face was puffy with an unhealthy darkness under the eyes. I could smell a faint sourness about him.
I took the goblet and peered inside. The liquid looked like glossy mud.
'It is called coco/at,' the physician said. 'His Majesty takes it every morning.'
T just drink it? Like tea?'
'Yes, my lord. It will be most beneficial after your long fast. For the time being, you must be cautious in your food and drink. We do not want to startle your body I will have the kitchens prepare some dishes that will enhance your recovery' He looked closely at me, his dry lips set in a pucker of thought. A little bamboo and fish first, I think. Now, drink up.'
I raised the goblet. A smell, like the aftertaste of Ari's strange coffee, filled my nose just before the coco/at slicked my mouth with oily sweet velvet. I swallowed and tasted a strange bitterness at the back of my tongue. Then my jaw muscles locked in a mouth-twisting spasm.
I clenched my teeth, waiting for the ache to pass. The drink was sweeter than honey and strangely soothing. I took a larger sip. This time the bitterness was hardly noticeable in the creaminess that coated my mouth and throat. When I had drained the cup, it felt as though I had eaten a whole meal of sweetings. I belched. Even the return was delicious.
The physician took the empty goblet and nodded approvingly 'I have been informed that your skin is no longer dangerous to the touch. Therefore I shall examine you.' He grabbed the edge of the sheet.
'No!' I tightened my hold on the cover. 'I don't want to be examined.' I ducked away from his hands, but he caught my wrist in a bony grip.
'But you must,' he said. 'I have to make my report to His Majesty'
'Lord Eon is well,' my master said from the doorway 'That is your report, Physician.'
'Master!' I wanted to run to him, but the physician was still holding my wrist. I pulled it out of his grasp. '"You're here.' I couldn't stop the tremble of relief in my voice.
'Of course I am here, Lord Eon,' my master said, emphasising the title with a brief smile. His face was flushed with an inner excitement that was barely controlled. He walked over to the bed, crowding the physician until the smaller man took a reluctant step back.
'Who are you?' the physician demanded.
My master stared at him for a moment then turned to me. 'I came as soon as I could, my lord,'
he said. 'How do you feel?'
'I feel...' I faltered. My master was bowing to me. I pulled the sheet up higher. 'I feel well, Heuris Brannon,' I finally said, stumbling over his name.
'There you are, Physician,' my master said. 'Lord Eon is well. He gives you his permission to leave. Don't you, Lord Eon?'
'Yes,' I said hurriedly 'Go. Thank you.'
The physician glared at my master. 'I shall make my report to the Emperor.' He stalked out of the room, the eunuchs breaking into a shuffling trot behind him.
Rilla started to shut the door, but my master stopped her with a raised hand.
'Make sure all our guests have left the apartment, Rilla. Then go and organise Lord Eon's bath and clothing. There is much to do before we attend the banquet.'
She bowed and pulled the door closed behind her.
We were alone.
'How do you really feel?' my master asked softly, sitting on the edge of the bed. 'This has not been an easy road for you.' He leaned over and examined the lump on my temple, his cool fingers gently pressing my skin. The smell of rice wine was on his breath.
'I am well, Master,' I said earnestly. 'Truly, I am well.'
'Good. I am glad to hear it.' He drew back, his eyes bright with triumph. 'The return of the Mirror Dragon! By the gods I knew you were special, but I never imagined such glory.' His face seemed younger, as though the fierce joy had stripped away years. 'Ido is furious, of course,' he continued. 'Not only did his dragon choose Dillon over Baret, but now he must share his Ascendancy with my candidate. I thought he would explode with rage.'
'There was a court lady here — Lady Dela — she said I was Co-Ascendant, but how can there be two Ascendant dragons?' I asked. 'I don't understand.'
My master shook his head. 'There are so many questions. The Council is in uproar. They don't know why the Mirror Dragon has suddenly returned, nor why he has returned out of his own year. The Emperor's augurs are casting for the answers, but it cannot be denied that all the other beasts bowed to your dragon during the ceremony Such unusual behaviour must mean he is Ascendant too, and that makes you co-leader of the Council. Ido does not like it, but even he cannot gainsay the Emperor and the Council majority.'
'Do you know why the Mirror Dragon has returned, Master?' I asked. 'Why he chose me?'
'No one knows, Eon,' he said. 'I think it must be your dragon sight. Your raw power brought him back. To be able to see all of the dragons is as rare as a dragon egg, itself. And for the time being, it is how the Council is explaining your ascension.'
Hesitantly, I touched his arm, needing his reassurance. 'Will it be all right, Master?'
H
e looked down at my hand then finally covered it with his own. 'It will be better than all right. You have done so well. We will be more powerful than even I had hoped. And if things go to plan, I will be back on the Council and finally able to hobble Ido's ambitions.' He smiled. 'No more hard times for us, Eon.'
I answered his smile, feeling my own exultation finally breaking through my fear. 'We can have sweet buns everyday' I said, delighted to see him smiling.
'Sweet buns? We can have shark fin everyday if we want it.' He grabbed my hands and stood up, swinging me off the bed. 'I am very proud of you, Eon.'
After Ranne hit me, I thought I had failed you, Master.' I returned the squeeze of his fingers. 'I thought we had lost.'
'Yes, I thought so too. But like I said, no one knows how a dragon chooses. That's why I sent you out again for the final bow. It was hard, I know, but I had to send you.'
'I didn't think I could do it. But I did.'
I felt the smock slip from my shoulder as he pulled me against his body. 'Yes, you did,' he murmured against my hair. I pressed into him, my body blindly moulding itself into his approval. His breath against my ear was like the soft press of lips. 'You've done well.'
I rested my head on his shoulder as his hands stroked my hair, my neck, the dip of my collarbone. A sharp spark of energy snapped between us, breast to hand, leaving a sickening smell like singed flesh.
And then I was standing alone, my arms still holding the moment before.
He stood a few paces back. Cradling his hand. His eyes fixed on my bared skin.
'The dragon is still in you,' he said. He lifted his fingers to his mouth, sucking away the pain.
I hugged my arms across my chest, the sting of our contact already fading. 'I'm sorry, Master.'
He shook his head. 'You will have no control over your power yet.'
'I can't really feel his presence in my mind. Is that normal?'
'It will take time to know his energy'
I nodded.
'I'll get wine,' he said, turning away 'We can make an offering to the gods.'
'I think there's wine on the bureau.' I drew up the smock. 'I'll pour some.'
'I will,' he said, striding across the room.
He was eager to move away from me. I felt for the bed and sat down, my back to the sound of him pouring wine.
'Of course, your union with the Mirror Dragon is just the beginning,' he said. 'We have much to plan. I have already laid the foundation in the Council, but you must confirm the arrangements.'
His muffled footsteps crossed the carpet towards me. I quickly stood up, moving away from the bed. He handed me a goblet, his gaze not quite meeting mine.
Arrangements? What do you mean, Master?'
'I have urged the opinion that you are too inexperienced to be Co-Ascendant without an advisor. The Council has decided that you must nominate your proxy as soon as possible.'
'You,' I said.
He nodded once. 'Me.' He lifted his cup. 'With thanks to the gods.'
'With thanks,' I echoed.
We drank. I felt my gut churn uneasily as the sour rice wine met the coco/at.
'What will happen now, Master?'
'Now we play our game to its end. You will study and learn to control your power. I will secure our position in the Council.
We will be very wealthy and very powerful by the time your tenure as Mirror Dragoneye ends.'
'Yes, Master.'
'You must stop calling me Master,' he said roughly. 'You are Lord Eon, and when you confirm me, I will be Lord Brannon. That is how it must be.' He looked into his wine, the muscles in his jaw tightening. 'That is how it must be.'
CHAPTER 7
The bathing room in the Peony guest apartment was larger than my master's library. I shifted on the carved stool in the scrubbing corner, the wooden seat hard under my bare rump. The walls were tiled in mosaics of the city's three river gods, and at the far end of the room a precious mirror stretched from floor to ceiling. Faint weaves of steam rose from the large twelve-sided soaking pool sunk into the middle of the mosaic floor, constantly renewed and warmed from pipes below. The room smelled of ginger and heat. I smoothed the thin loincloth over my hips, wishing I had one to cover my chest as well.
'Close your eyes,' Rilla said.
A warm weight of water broke over my head, streaming down my unbound hair. I coughed and opened my eyes as she held my arm out and rubbed its length with a rough cotton cloth.
'Did you finish the tea?' she asked.
I nodded, still tasting the residue of dirt. The brew was not sitting well with the mix of cocolat, wine and the braised fish that the physician had sent to ease my fast.
Rilla worked the cloth vigorously down my other arm, hissing as the movement chafed her blistered skin.
'You're hurting your hands,' I said, pulling away from her grip. '1 don't need to be washed. I had a bath for the ceremony'
Rilla grunted, taking hold of my arm again.
'You're a lord now. Lords bathe every week.'
I laughed.
'No, truly,' Rilla said with a final wipe. 'When I was getting your clothes, Lady Dela's maid told me that her mistress bathes every day' She picked up the second bucket, wincing as the edge caught her palm. 'That girl has a tongue that flaps like washing hung in a high wind.
Close your eyes.'
'Why would Lady Dela bathe so much?' I managed to say before the water broke over me again.
Rilla squatted at my feet. 'I suppose it's because she's a Contraire.' She scrubbed my right leg.
'They probably have to purify themselves or something.'
A Contraire?'
Rilla gently touched my bad leg. 'May I?'
I nodded, carefully lifting my foot off the ground. Some of the pain in my hip had returned, but not all of it.
Rilla wiped the cloth down my shin. A Contraire is a man who lives as a woman.'
I pushed my wet hair out of my eyes. 'Lady Dela is a man?'
'In body she is. Her maid says she even has a prick.' Rilla leaned back on her heels. 'But she has a woman's spirit. According to the Eastern Tribes, a Contraire has two souls: male and female. She has both Sun and Moon energy A Contraire in the tribe brings luck.'
'So it is accepted.'
Rilla snorted. 'It is in the Eastern Tribes. Here, she is tolerated by the court because it is the Emperor's pleasure. But there are some who whisper she is a demon with the sight. She was even attacked a while back. That's why she has a guard.'
'Did they find out who did it?'
'No, they are still searching. Lady Dela was sent by the Eastern lords as a gesture of goodwill to His Majesty He is embarrassed that their gift has been harmed.'
'Does it work the other way around? Can a woman have a man's spirit?'
Rilla sloshed water against my back. Are you thinking of yourself?' she asked, lowering her voice. 'But you don't have a male spirit. This is all play-acting, isn't it?'
I shrugged, hunching over as she sluiced the water off me. How could I explain that it was not all play-acting? That I felt more of the male spirit within me than the female. A fierceness that whittled me down to a sharpened spear of ambition. And as a boy, I was applauded, not punished, for such raw energy. It was not beaten out of me for my own good, or worn away by women's chores.
'I'm not sure what I am,' I said slowly 'Perhaps I just can't remember how to act like a girl.'
'Well, that's probably for the best,' Rilla said. 'Safer for us all.' She handed me the cloth. 'I expect you'll want to wash your front yourself
I rubbed the cloth over my breasts and belly, quickly dipping it lower when she turned to drain a bucket.
'Go and soak now,' she said. 'I'll lay out your clothes and be back to dry you.'
She patted my shoulder and hurried out of the room, shutting the door with a sharp click.
I draped the loincloth over the stool and walked over to the pool. A mosaic of the Nine Fish Wealth Circle wavered at the bottom. I bent
and dipped my fingers into the water. Very warm bordering on hot: a good heat to ease the small gnawing pain in my hip. I straightened and started for the shallow steps that led into the water but my attention was caught by movement in the mirror. Myself. Naked.
So bony and pale. I ran the flat of my hands over my chest and sides, feeling the small softness of breast and corrugation of rib. There was no exaggerated flare of hip like Irsa — I turned side on — or round behind, but the curves of womanhood were still there. Luckily the heavy tunics and trousers of court-wear would hide them. I traced the scar that puckered my thigh. I was hit by a cart and dragged behind it. That's what my master said but I couldn't remember any part of the accident. Only the dim shape of a man leaning over me with a tattoo across his face: the driver, perhaps, or a bystander. Just thinking about it sharpened the pain in my hip. I faced the glass again. The scar was not as big as I'd thought. And the strange twisted set to my leg was not as severe.
I moved closer. My reflection frowned. Something was different about my face since I had seen it in the Rat Dragon mirror. Less softness, more bone. I touched my cheeks, feeling the sharper shape of adulthood. My eyes looked larger, lips fuller. It was a face that was tipped more to the female. I pulled back my wet hair, holding it up on top of my head in a straggly imitation of a Dragoneye loop. A boy wearing a man's clothing and hairstyle. May the gods let that be what they all saw.
But it was not just appearance. It was movement and attitude and something else that was hard to name. Four years ago, when my master bought me, we had spent the long journey back to the city turning me into Eon. I had studied the boys on the roads and at the inns. How they moved decisively, and took up space, and made competitions of hauling water and chopping wood. I began to act like them, feeling years and years of subdued female movement expanding into glorious freedom. My master drilled me in the men's world of letters and numbers, and I practised how to sit with my legs apart, my chin up and my eyes bold.
But most of all I learned how not to be watched.
It was Dolana, at the salt farm, who first told me about the gaze of men: that look of temporary possession that some men pressed against female flesh. About its dangers and possibilities. I) can be
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