“Coil, and sit. Make yourselves comfortable,” the Jii’Hssen said with a faint hint of a smile. “Whatever we say here will not leave this room.”

Room? The place is half-outside. More than, in fact.

The errant thought caught me off guard, and I was the last to coil up. I glanced at where we’d come from—a simple, unadorned door. A closed door. No Kyen, no Lissti, and no Dyni.

Even if she was my aunt, the Jii’Hssen was still… intimidating.

“What is on your mind?” Jii’Hssen Ssyii’s question struck me right as I was trying to pay attention again. Her words were kind, but there was a force behind them. This wasn’t a question I could brush off.

Thankfully, I didn’t want to. “I’m worried about all the people plotting against me, of keeping my secret, and of how my and Kyrae’s reveal at Ssiina’s coming of age will go.” I made sure not to question the Jii’Hssen statement that we would not be overheard. This room had magic, I could see it, and I could feel it in the way the shadows tingled, almost repulsed.

The Jii’Hssen hummed. “Immediate problems then—at least in a sense. I take it you’ve met with success in wresting power from your curse? I doubt you’ve chosen to tame it.”

“Some,” I answered truthfully, with meaningful glances at my sisters. “They both help. Kyrae especially has taken really well to the healing aspects of sigilcraft.”

“So I have heard,” the Jii’Hssen’s faint smile grew warmer. A hand brushed the tome to one side, closing it so swiftly that I couldn’t see its contents, and she leaned forward almost conspiratorially, serpentine locks falling to one side. “Tyaniis speaks to me of you three—most assuredly more often than she needs to.”

For just an instant, I could have sworn she looked hardly more than a few decades older than me.

“May I ask a question?” Ssiina asked.

Jii’Hssen Ssyii gave a hissing chuckle, and brought a clawed finger up to wrap around her chin. “You already have, Niece mine.” Ssiina blushed at that, and earned another chuckle, this one bringing a darker color to the Jii’Hssen’s cheeks. “Perhaps I should have opened with more formality. I bid you all; speak without constraint, and without provocation. I am here right now as your Aunt Ssyii, receiving you three in lieu of your sire.”

My eyes drifted from Ssiina’s embarrassed, rapid nods to Kyrae. My elf sister took a deep breath and looked away, out over the confluence of rivers. I brought my eyes back down onto the table, then up to the Jii’Hssen’s hands—two of them, anyway, resting against the warm stone. Her gaze was hard to meet.

Next to me, Ssiina stuttered a moment before regaining her composure. “I-if that is the case Jii’Hs—Aunt Ssyii… My question is thus: What business is our Sire attending to?”

“A securing of alliances. Ussent Sunstrike will be no doubt interested in Kyrae.”

Hearing her name, Kyrae snapped her head back around. Her eyes were wet. “Jii’Hssen Ssyii,” she started, voice shaky like I hadn’t heard in over a year. “Will… are you intending to approve my adoption still, with all the opposition that is gathering?”

The Jii’Hssen sighed. “Oh, child.” She reached forward with one hand toward Kyrae’s that lay clasped together on the table. My sister flinched a little, and Aunt Ssyii frowned. “I apologize on the behalf of the Empire for the treatment you’ve suffered—and the treatment all elves suffer. Look at your sisters.”

Kyrae glanced over at us without turning her head, and her eyes widened.

“I’ve seen few bonds of blood stronger than what you three have. And for that matter, I am of the belief that the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb—though many, your sire amongst them would disagree. Alas…” Jii’Hssen Ssyii’s smile finally reached her eyes and they shone with sadness. “I have not answered your question, Niece mine. Yes, I will approve your adoption. In fact, on parchment, I already have.

“All that is left is proclamation and debut, even if you’re a year or so young yet. Possible or not, Tyaniis merely wants you to each have your own event. Perhaps to pluck at the scales of those who would oppose you, or perhaps because she wishes to attend to each individually as a parent.

“The fact remains the same.” Aunt Ssyii gestured to all of us with her lower arms in a sweeping motion, bringing my eyes up once again to her face, four-fanged smile on full display. “You are all Hssen—most people just don’t know it yet.”

Kyrae gulped, her eyes wide, but her shoulders slumped as tension I hadn’t even noticed drained from her.

Ssiina meanwhile hummed in thought. “So… you’ve already recorded my sisters—re-recorded Issa. Did you do so because you fear opposition during my debut and wish to ask forgiveness rather than permission.”

Aunt Ssyii shook her head. “Yes and no. My dear, I do not ask forgiveness from anyone other than Jaezotl—or perhaps the Jii’Ssyri as his agent. The fallout does not concern me; your wellbeing does. Even now, so much is in motion around you that your own sire was away at such a critical point. We should have foreseen that Tuo’Antzin could catalyze action.

“Whatever it was, and I do wish to know, Phaeliisthia flew you here, toeing the line of a millennium-old treaty. For once, the three of you need a major event to occur without exception, and without the unexpected. Moreover, you need time to enjoy your youth. I do not doubt Phaeliisthia has run you three ragged.”

At that, I shook my head. “We have a day for break each week, and sometimes more. Honestly, it’s… nice.”

The Jii’Hssen seemed taken aback by that. “Hmm, I’ll have to jibe your tutor about how she has gone soft.” Her voice radiated anything but disappointment. “My point still stands. You are my guests here, until this is officially your home. Rooms are already prepared in your Sire’s wing, and you may stay in my section of the palace if she does not return tonight. Unlike many others, I know the strength of your sire’s bodyguard, but she is one person.

“Right now, we may talk about whatever you wish, and you will relax and be pampered until Ssiina’s debut.”

“Can we visit the city?” I asked, almost reflexively.

Aunt Ssyii thought for a moment, looking at the three of us in turn, before she shook her head, hair snakes drooping. In that moment, she looked more like a tired girl than an empress. “No. Realistically, Ssiina could leave, but I feel it is too dangerous at the moment. I realize now that what I may think of as relaxation, you three might find stifling. If you need for anything, please, let me know.

“Now, what news bring you from Uzh? Who has made a move?”

“Geliss and Deziiya,” Ssiina answered.

“I see,” Jii’Hssen Ssyii said, leaning back into a more formal posture. “And what precisely did those two do?”

“Do you not have a guess?” Kyrae asked suddenly. “Pardon if I am overstepping despite your permission, but—”

Jii’Hssen Ssyii waved a hand, silencing my sister. “You are, but I will forgive you. As for what I know? I know much of those two and their goals—more than they think I do. That is no reason not to hear it from you, however. Perspective lets you find the poison before it’s used.”

Kyrae mulled her words over for a long moment, then nodded, seemingly satisfied.

The Jii’Hssen arched an eyebrow at Ssiina, the mark a line of scales rather than hair. “Ssiina?”

“Yes! Certainly. The pair of them approached us after a disaster during a performance at the main theater. They then visited Phaeliisthia’s estate and probed Issa and Kyrae, trying to goad information out of them.”

“I must know more of this disaster—but first: did those two succeed?”

“Partially. They seemed to already know of the adoption—or were reasonably certain—but Issa’s true condition was hidden from them. I don’t know if they know she is Sire’s blood and ra’zhii.”

The Jii’Hssen hummed. “I will continue to monitor them.”

“What are their goals?” I asked.

“They seek to remove me from power in favor of someone from their branch. To that end, they will seek support of anyone who opposes me, including the decentralists. Their sire is the most likely one to head a coalition against me should such a thing come to pass.”

“Will adopting us give them more allies?”

“Undoubtedly, but their union would be just as fractious as my support is now. I suspect the effect of your adoption and reintroduction will be a hastening of their plans. I can work with that. Haste makes it easier to make mistakes, and gives them less time to secure the necessary leverage to hold their coalition together.”

“What about working with whatever group is related to my powers?”

At that, the Jii’Hssen paused. Now, it was her turn to look over the rivers. Her gaze followed down the Hssyri, until it was lost in a haze of moist heat. “I… hope not. For all her flaws, I do respect their sire, Zaiia, and Geliss in particular has the potential to be a great leader should he learn compassion.”

“So they might?” Kyrae asked.

“They might.”

“Will you consider the possibility and investigate accordingly?” Ssiina added.

The Jii’Hssen turned back, her face a stoic, imperious mask. “I will consider doing so. The utmost care must be taken, lest the action come as a slight that loses me favor with the Jii’Ssyri. Now, enough about my maneuvers. What of this disaster?”

“Two assassins with powers just—” I emphasized the word, hoping to make my meaning extra clear “—like mine came to kill Ussen Ysta Ssyt during the final act of the play, as the sun was setting.” That last detail felt important to me—a time of long shadows when the waking world crosses into dreams.

“And they failed?”

I nodded. “I killed one—but we fell off the viewing box together and my curse tried to take me. Kyrae saved me. The other, I think Ssiina killed them with her venom.”

Jii’Hssen Ssyii, looking more like Aunt Ssyii in the moment, glanced at Ssiina. In the motion, I saw a little bit of my sister. “You killed someone with your bite?”

Ssiina nodded. “I… He was on me and—”

“Stop. I do not wish to see you relive such an event as Issa has described. I am glad you are all well, and disappointed in Phaeliisthia for not intervening.”

“She came at the end!” I protested.

“She is… distant, Niece mine. She does not care for mortals like I or your sire do.”

“You’re wrong!” I hissed, springing up higher in my coils. “Phaeliisthia cares about us! She even apologized to me!”

“Issa, please. You must understand that—”

“No. You’re wrong. Phaeliisthia cares. I know she does. She didn’t at first, but something changed.”

Aunt Ssyii sighed. “What could change a millennia-old being?”

“I don’t know. I just know she cares!”

“Issa…” Ssiina chided softly, placing a hand against my forearm.

I almost yanked my arm away, but I stopped myself. “Ssiina, please. Don’t you feel the same? Don’t you know Phaeliisthia cares about us?”

“I…”

“I do,” Kyrae said. “At first, it was just you. I think you reminded her of someone she lost a long time ago.” At her words, I faintly remembered Phaeliisthia hinting at that much. Could it be the same person whose moonflowers populate her most beloved place? “And then she did change—slowly. I think she cares about all of us now. And I’ve even seen her more affable around her servants.”

“Zinniz does seem happier…” Ssiina conceded.

“And hasn’t she allowed us to be less formal around her—even as our teachings should push us toward the opposite direction?”

“I…” Ssiina closed her eyes. “You’re right. I just hadn’t seen it. We’d grown closer, and I assumed my perception had simply shifted, but…” She looked up at the Jii’Hssen who was waiting for us with a stern look on her frankly terrifying face—terrifying when she wasn’t acting as our aunt, anyway. “Jii’Hssen Ssyii, I believe Phaeliisthia has changed—perhaps toward how she used to be. I believe she may wish to be involved more in ways that strain her treaty.”

“Absolutely not.” The Jii’Hssen hissed, although her expression softened. “But… I cannot control her actions. However, I also see no reason to antagonize her at the moment. As such, this will be a matter for a later time. Do you know why the assassins were targeting Ussen Ysta?”

I lowered myself again, suddenly feeling hungry. The shadows that had begun to twist toward my anger retreated once again, banished by the terrace’s light. “I do—at least as much as she has told us. Her family—the main branch that controls Ess’Siijiil and Kii’Hssiil Province—at least—is involved with the entity that cursed me. They’re seeking power, and they have some allies.”

“That matches Tyaniis’s reports. But that there is dissent is good—at least for us at the moment. Where is she staying right now?”

“With Phaeliisthia.”

“Did Phaeliisthia offer?”

“She did.”

The Jii’Hssen hummed. “Perhaps there might be some truth in your descriptions of Phaeliisthia’s behavior. This will not color my decision regarding your former tutor.”

The word “former” hit me harder than it ought to have, and I found myself blinking rapidly.

The Jii’Hssen continued, “However, I may at least trust then that Ussen Ysta is safe. What she knows, and can testify to, may be of import in containing this threat. Is there anything else from that day you wish to discuss?”

My sisters and I shared a glance.

“The Temple was interested in us, but I think Ussyri Noksi is handling that,” Kyrae said.

Jii’Hssen Ssyii waved one hand. “The Temple is not something I am involved in beyond my role as a follower. Not even perfunctorily. I wish to move in to lighter topics, but I have given you the right to speak as you see fit, so please, ask or say what you will.”

Kyrae nodded, and it looked like she was finally allowing herself to relax, shoulders drooping and legs stilling.

Ssiina and I shared a glance, and the conversation died back into topical things. For a while, the four of us sat quietly, listening to the burble of the fountain, and the twittering of birds in the terrace’s planters—and only in the planters. Wait. I can’t hear sounds from outside—that must be at least part of the magic here.

The food arrived, glorious meats and what were probably also glorious fruits. I ignored those, eating only what Ssiina or Kyrae snuck onto my plate. The meal was… not what I expected my first meal at the Emerald Palace to be. The plates were stone—but finely glazed—and I recognized every food except one kind of fruit. I tried my best to eat with manners, taking so many bites that I felt like a bird pecking at a seedpod.

Seeing the Jii’Hssen eating daintily was one of the many moments where I took a mental slide back and realized just how privileged I was right now. At the same time, eating a meal with Aunt Ssyii felt… not quite like with Phaeliisthia, nor Tyaniis, but… pleasant. A little more formal, and a little more distant. But it was nice, and for a short while my mind slipped away from my curse and the people arrayed against us.

Now with food, and an atmosphere that had largely recovered. Ssiina was the first to break the silence. “When will my debut happen?”

“Your Sire will have the ultimate say, but I estimate no later than one month. Tyaniis is still planning the guest list, and there are a fair few that will need time to travel.”

Ssiina deftly ate a single berry with an amount of restraint I would find impossible. “How will my sisters be introduced?”

“After you. Your sire will make an announcement, and then later in the event I shall approve the pair’s titles. It is my hope that your debut might have some time before the announcement, as I believe making it will pull the focus entirely away from you, Ssiina.”

My hssen-raised sister shook her head, smiling at me and Kyrae both. “No, that’s fine. If anything, I’d hate for my sisters to wait while I mingle. I don’t really have many friends.”

“But you should,” Aunt Ssyii chided. “At least in terms of contacts for information and favors owed. Rather than risk our scheme being uncovered during your stay at Hesuzhaa Jii’ssiisseniir, we are letting the whole Empire know now. You will need allies, as without them your reliance on myself and your sire will be seen as a great weakness.”

“But, I don’t know that anyone would want me as an ally.”

I almost spat out my fish. What? “Why not?” I said the second part out loud, and I quickly covered my mouth with a hand. Ssiina looked like she was ready to answer, so I swallowed and kept going. “You’re a scary-good sigilist, you’re really pretty, you’re kind and know etiquette, and you’re hssen. What’s the issue?”

“Well…”

“What?”

“Issa!”

“Sorry, but I just don’t get it!”

Kyrae leaned over the table to look up at Ssiina. “What my sister’s trying to say is that you’re a strong, nice person.”

“Oh, but…”

“No buts!” I added. “If you’re having trouble meeting people, how did you manage to work up to meeting me… again?”

“Well, that was different. I had Dyni and—”

“You’ll have us this time!”

“Issa…”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.” Ssiina leaned over and hugged me with surprising speed.

I reached my arms around her in turn, putting my head into the crook of her neck. “I love you, Sister.”

“You too.”

We stayed like that for a few moments, and then Ssiina and Kyrae shared a hug. From there, the conversation was brighter—what to wear for the event, what to do around the palace, things like that.

Eventually, with the food winding down, and the sun hanging a little low in the sky, I asked one last question. “What were you reading, Aunt Ssyii?”

“Hmm?” she set her goblet down and looked from the sunset back down to her tome, then at me. “This is a record of historical findings I requested be compiled recently. There are accounts from many different people around the Empire. Myths, legends, a few rumors, and a fair few ancient sites described in detail.

“I wish to know more about the history that predates our Empire, so I can best make decisions for the future. If I wish for change in the future, I must learn from the past.”

“Would it be possible for Dyni to borrow that tome after you’re finished?” Ssiina asked.

Aunt Ssyii chuckled, serpentine locks waving. “She’s already asked.”

“Oh.”

Ancient sites… I thought suddenly about my curse. Specifically, I thought about a journal written in Human Imperial by an enigmatic merfolk with a penchant for exploration on dry land. “Were any of the contributors named Uru Farlight?”

“Farlight… Yes, actually. Serendipitously, I was just about to read their contribution when you three arrived.”

My eyes widened. Maybe this was something not present in their journal. “May I read it right now—if there’s time?” I glanced around for a sundial, finding a small one that showed the hour to be late.

“We do have time. I might have to stay awake late, but I do not mind spending more time with my nieces. Are you two interested as well?”

“Yes!”

“I am!”

“Then it’s settled.” Aunt Ssyii shaped a quick sigil I recognized, and a small ball of pale, white-green light lit up over one claw. It floated to the center of the table where it hung in perfect stillness. “You three coil up closer to me and we’ll read together.”