First Draft Excerpt from Bubbles Of Creation

Petra was entertaining unexpected guests.

Thane Jarfredir was an ambitious merchant, raised to the nobility because King Edvard thought he could do a better job running a fief than some younger son of the nobility who'd never learned anything more than sword-craft and putting on airs. He'd and his family and eight of his guards arrived at our front gate without notice, and Petra had been polite enough to let him in, without inquiring of his errand. That might have been dangerous were Petra and our children not already the three most accomplished wizards (after myself) in the kingdom of Treemount, if not all of Migurd. We kept barely a dozen guards of our own resident in the tower barracks, plus a few more dwelling in the city of Treemount. The other jarls of the kingdom kept at least twice as many; even some of the thanes kept more. But Ygg was not an extensive fief, only valuable. We had Kiltig's old tower and Ygg itself, and a few acres more, all within the walls of Treemount the city.
Servants were not something we kept in huge numbers, either. Four women in the kitchen, ten more, mostly women, for domestic duties, and a steward to organize both them and the guards. The imposition of over a dozen unexpected guests was not an insignificant strain upon them, and Ioen the steward was getting older. We had the room, but the cooks had planned on thirty-three, not forty-eight, and the domestics hadn't had lead time to prepare rooms that were rarely used. The guards could be housed in a spare barracks on the second level, but Thane Jarfredir, his wife, and their seven children needed to be housed suitably for noble visitors, which meant the rooms needed to be swept, aired out, and freshened up in short order.

Fortunately, one of the perks of auros was telepathy. What is their business? I inquired of Petra.

They haven't said yet.

They didn't warn us of their coming. Nor are they our vassals. We would be within our rights to refuse them.

Nonsense, husband! I receive far too few opportunities for visitors!

She had a point. King Edvard and Queen Veronia were ensconced in their own residence barely a league distant, and the Jarl of Treemount was even closer. While she could move as easily as I could to visit her friend the Queen, their majesties were painfully aware of the limited hospitality we had to offer, and playing hostess was a rare treat for her. Had I wanted the requirements of being king, I wouldn't have supported Edvard for the job. I hadn't even wanted to be a jarl, but Petra enjoyed the perks of being wife to the kingdom's most important noble. It gave her precedence over every woman except the queen, and she enjoyed frosting the sort of jealous, petty-minded noblewomen who made lives hell for anyone they could. Ten thousand years in in her previous role of seductress taught her the tricks of drawing male attention to herself, and the body she wore didn't hurt anything. She appeared just the age of full physical maturity. Her dusky, light brown skin glowed with health, soft medium brown hair with just a touch of wave, stopping above her shoulders, a fit body that she clothed modestly, as proper for a mother with two children, never mind she looked more like their older sister by the standards of Migurd. She never wore anything complex or outrageous, and kept her hair clean and simple. No remarkable features, but it all fit together well. Put her in commoner clothes, and she'd be the Woman From The Next Farm Over. Men's eyes followed her constantly. Most importantly, she was happy, which not only magnified the attraction but was supremely important to me. She was a gem.

"Thane Jarfredir," I began, formally addressing him, "My lady wife has welcomed you happily, as she gets far too few opportunities to act as hostess. But she has been unable to inform me of the nature of your visit? Is it simple friendliness or is there a business reason for your visit?" I could have ripped it out of his mind, but absent a compelling reason that would make me a mind-rapist.

"Jarl Alexan, I am but newly raised to my station. One thing that has been made clear to me is that the other nobles of the kingdom have family ties to fall back upon for mutual support. We are two of the few exceptions, and I thought my second daughter Gridda was of an age with your son, near enough. Why not betroth the two of them to make us family?"

What would I do? Keep her as a pet? Ansharos sent to me, and also his mother and sister. The ultsi gift bred true - as far as anyone in my homeland knew, forever. Both he and Catharin had been wizards in Petra's womb.

I think you deserve her! Catharin transmitted an exaggerated image of the daughter in question - about thirteen years of age, red-haired, bony, and buck-toothed, with a noticeable overbite. Probably four years older than Ansharos, and still physically a child. With poor nutrition, puberty might not arrive here until as late as eighteen.

That will be enough of that, I reprimanded them privately, just because she wasn't given everything you were does not make her less worthy of respect. You and I will discuss this later.

Jarfredir's desires were plain enough - he wanted a grandchild who would be Jarl of Ygg. "I understand your desire, but there are several things you should be aware of. To begin with, it is likely Petra and I will outlive not only your children, but their grandchildren as well, as our origins are wizardly. The same applies to our children. Barring an accident, Ansharos will still be young and hale long after both you and Gridda are dust..."

Jarfredir interrupted, "...So it will cost him little to marry my daughter!" The mores here needed work as much as the technology. The man wanted to sell his daughter as chattel in exchange for an ally and what he thought would be power.

"That's not the custom of my people. We do not choose spouses for our children - there is no rush, and they have every expectation of having plenty of time to choose and still being able to have and raise children. Another misapprehension you may have: you may believe Ansharos is my heir. In fact, the law of my people is such that he cannot be made my heir until he achieves manhood. A third is that our heirs are not necessarily our oldest son. Catharin may be a better choice - it is up to each of them to apply themselves to be more worthy of it. Even if he is designated heir apparent upon attaining adulthood, that is subject to change if another of our children - or their descendants - becomes a better choice while I live. Finally, to repeat myself, we do not choose matches for our children. Catharin and Ansharos will choose for themselves when they are of age and encounter someone they believe will remain suitable for a very long lifetime."

"That's ... reckless! The young don't have the ability to choose wisely!"

"On the contrary. We have discovered that our wizardly gifts enable us to see the souls of potential matches, and know whether they are suitable. Both Catharin and Ansharos know there's no rush to choose a spouse; in fact I would be surprised if either of them chose before their fiftieth year. How old are you, Jarfredir?" He was thirty-eight.

"That's not the point!"

"That is the easiest part of my point for the non-wizardly to comprehend. You just claimed the young don't have the ability to choose wisely, but want to choose for them at an age significantly less than my children will likely be when they choose. If anything, that would argue for the delay. Understand, neither the lady Petra nor I are opposed to your daughter, if our son decides to pursue that course when he is of age. But the contract will not be made today, and no marriage contract for will be made for Ansharos or Catharin until they are of age and decide to make it. Next subject, would you like to stay a few days to become better acquainted, or are you planning to depart in the morning?" In other words, was he willing to see if we could find common ground on other subjects, or was he going to depart in a huff because his offer couldn't be accepted? Who knows, maybe one of his kids and one of ours might like each other.

"That isn't the way things are done here, Jarl Alexan!"

"If it please milord thane," Petra interjected, "My husband is Jarl of Ygg, and therefore that is how it is done in the Jarldom of Ygg. While I would be most pleased to make a good match for one or both of my children, the time is not now. Milord husband has taught me how our wizardly gifts choose for us, more wisely than we know. Neither Catharin nor Ansharos is ready for such a match. If it means I must wait longer for grandchildren, they and my children will be happier and better for it."

"I meant what I said, Thane Jarfredir," I continued, "Should such a match develop naturally, over the fullness of time, I would not object. But that time is not now. I would rather be your friend, or at least have goodwill between us. But if your price for that is putting one of my children into a match they're not ready for, it is too steep. If you would develop a possible friendship, you're welcome to stay. Frue Petra does enjoy company, and being hostess. But the subject of my children's marriage is closed until they decide otherwise."

He was on the verge of storming off, but his wife stopped him, spoke to him in low tones about patience and accepting what I was willing to offer rather than starting a feud. Smart woman. "I shall be pleased to accept your offer and Frue Petra's company, milord Jarl. Perhaps our children shall become friends"

"You are most welcome," I told her, "Now, if you will excuse me, the disturbance earlier did some damage. I must discuss the hiring of some workmen with my steward." Ioen was perfectly capable of handling the contract for repairs, therefore he was the best one to do it, leaving me free to do what only I could.

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