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In spite of her outward attempts to evince good cheer, Wyn suffered from the cold, oppressive, and gloomy depression of this unusual winter as much, if not more, than anyone in River Keep. Being trapped indoors with her sulking mistress, whose mood was always sour and bordering on hostile, made the short days and the long nights more miserable to bear. The queen's isolated woe threatened to infect everyone within the castle-city by working its malevolence through the small pawmaiden.

Without the jollity and cheer that the mid-winter celebration of Foryisadortcha promised, Wyn might have been unable to counter her malaise. Clinging to its traditions as if they were a candle in the darkest corner of the deepest dungeon, Wyn made it her purpose to ensure all the decorations, activities, and feasts were more lavish, more exuberant, and more sumptuous than experienced anywhere before in all of Rikifur, rivaling even those given at the royal palace in Chortaghentos.

Wyn's self-appointed task was formidable considering that the Maker named holiday, that translated loosely to mean 'banish the night,' was a six-day festival involving lights, feasts, dancing, dramatizations, music, and acts of devotion to the Maker during which each day of the festival was intended to be grander than the previous, culminating on a final, exhausting evening of revelry. For centuries, uncountable predecessors with more resources at their disposal had attempted to surpass all who came before them with equal zeal.

It didn't help that Airy continued to seclude herself within her protective sanctum and had made no royal pronouncements to promote Foryisadortcha. In desperation, Wyn staged a coup of sorts by assuming the authority to direct the season's events. By bravely pretending to speak for the queen, the little doe exhorted every able-bodied cook, baker, and brewer in the castle to prepare their finest delicacies in abundance. She enlisted Dryphythus and all the other kits to lend their paws to decorating the common spaces with evergreen boughs, ribbons, candles, and whatever other materials they could find.

A surprising number of soldiers with little else to occupy their time but the tedium of training, drilling, and guard duty followed their lead, and soon every building was festooned with ornamentation of some kind. Even the few score Wolves that had remained in the keep overcame their perplexity at the meaning and purpose of the holiday and joined in freely as fortified wine and fine food appeared in limitless quantities. Each night, the revelers were treated to an aerial show in the night sky thanks to Frost's adaptation of Jorveth's black powder. By adding mixtures of salts and ground metals to the explosives and placing them in rockets and mortars, he created dazzling explosions blossoming overhead like orange, green, blue, and silver flowers.

Despite everyone's extraordinary efforts, the obvious absence of the queen diminished the spectacle like a clear night sky drained of its stars. Tradition demanded that the queen bless the final meal and give a toast before midnight on the sixth day, but on that last morning, Airy had still refused to break her self-imposed isolation. Wyn's fear that her mistress would refuse to partake was shared by everyone. Enthusiasm for her project began to wane just when it needed a boost most.

It was thus a huge relief to Wyn, when shortly after noon the queen acquiesced, promising to emerge and enter the grand hall before midnight. The good news spread rapidly revitalizing sagging morale. The hectic pace of partying increased, and everyone redoubled their efforts to make the final feast the most glorious of the waning year.

Though pleased with her success, leadership was an unfamiliar and uncomfortable experience for the humble doe, particularly when Airy's subjects looked to her for direction and jokingly referred to her as 'the little queen'. The responsibility was a heavy burden for one so young, but her anxiety was greatly eased by the help of the other kits, especially Dryphythus. The young lieutenant was unafraid to deliver Wyn's orders as if they came directly from Airy herself. Wyn's safest bastion, however, was found in the compassionate company of Dontamethes, a middle-aged priest who shared her affiliation with the Shornie sect.

Many Shornies had flocked to the north upon learning of the queen's tacit tolerance of their cult. Wyn was known to have played a large role in acquiring the queen's benign acceptance, which made her a hero among them, and earned her special thanks from the grateful priest, who had fled the Church's persecution in the south.

Huge in both height and girth, Dontamethes' imposing, brown-furred frame harbored a kind, nurturing, gregarious, and demonstrative spirit. He made friends readily and charmed nearly all who met him including the queen, who appointed him Duoma, or head priest, of the local province. Duoma Don, as many affectionately came to call the gentle buck, was careful to adhere as closely as his conscience would allow to traditional Church doctrine when preaching to Airy's subjects.

That did not stop him from unofficially spreading the word, as he believed it to those who would listen, including a small but growing number of Wolves. Those of Jak's people who attended Dontamethes' services as converts were said to have shaved themselves and taken the bizarre practice to a greater extreme by applying tattoos upon their naked hides. Wyn believed those rumors to be malicious, spread by anti-canine Rabbits, who still despised the Wolves. She reasoned that if true, their body symbols would be obvious for all to see since, when not dressed for battle, the canids generally wore little in the way of clothing.

Such serious thoughts, though, were far from Wyn's mind as she resolved to reward herself with a well-deserved working break from her leadership duties. In the central tower's kitchen awaited the task of preparing desserts for the revelers in the grand hall. With many hours still separating her from midnight, the familiar work promised to be relaxing. Anticipating the warmth from the blazing cook fires in the kitchen's half dozen fireplaces and the smell of food seasoned with exotic spices drove away all remaining thoughts of cold and melancholy, lifting Wyn's spirits high enough that she was emboldened to attempt playing matchmaker between Cat and her spurned Fox lover, Esseff.

Fortunately for Wyn, the feline was idle and uncharacteristically cooperative due to the lack of need for her constabulary services. Arguments, fights, and other malicious behavior were at their nadir. The sense of gaiety and comradery that Foryisadortcha begat temporarily made friends out of the most bitter enemies. With a particularly nasty blizzard raging outside, the restless tiger could not escape, and Wyn found her and Bandrosett pacing the more deserted halls of the central tower. Minimal effort was needed by Wyn to convince her one-time rescuer to help prepare desserts, especially after listing the ingredients.

"Cream? Vhat's that?"

"Oh, I keep forgetting your people don't keep dairy cattle. It's the fat skimmed off the top of a cow's milk."

Cat's tongue unconsciously played across her lips, and a soft, quiet purr, out of place on a creature so intimidating, rumbled briefly from deep in her chest.

"Milk very good. Cream sounds better still. Almost makes me vant to keep cow alive rather than eat it."

Reflexively, Wyn grimaced at Cat's vulgar discussion of her bloody diet. Certainly, there was no beef, pork, or any other red meat on the menu in River Keep while it remained under Rabbit rule. Cat, her Fox suitor, and the Wolves had to satisfy themselves with fish, fowl, and dairy.

"There is plenty of fresh cream in the kitchen, and I need your strong arm to help whip the cream into a froth."

Built for celebrations and special occasions, the central tower's main kitchen was huge, but tonight it seemed inadequate to the task of accommodating the small army of servants delivering a ceaseless abundance of food and drink to the hundreds of officers, prominent Wolf warriors, wealthy merchants, and nobles whose voracious appetites taxed the facilities to their limit.

All chaos, loud voices, and hustle, the congested space fell silent as the tall, lean carnivore and her snarling feral followed the little doe within. The wary stares of the Rabbit staff made Wyn self-conscious. Curious and hungry, Cat ignored the sea of gaping does and strode carelessly through their midst, parting them like stalks of grass. Cat was intent only on an unoccupied corner of the room where a table flanked by two wooden stools supported iced jugs of cream, crocks of sugar, heaping plates of hot, fresh scones, and jars full of berry preserves.

Cat hefted a pitcher of cream and sniffed its contents while Bandrosett lay down under the table. Recovering from their collective shock, the kitchen staff gradually resumed their previous bustle and clamor while Wyn explained their chore to Cat.

"Your job it to put the cream in a bowl, add a cup of sugar and whip it with this whisk as hard and fast as you can until it becomes fluffy like snow."

After turning the whisk over to Cat, Wyn prepared a treat for Bandrosett by placing under the table a heaping bowl of fish parts mixed with bits of game fowl. The wolf devoured it greedily then wrapped her body protectively around the tall stool upon which Wyn sat and fell asleep. Cat, meanwhile, followed Wyn's instructions and in under two minutes had achieved success.

"You are an exceptional cream whipper," observed Wyn. "I've never seen anyone do it so fast."

Unsmiling, Cat expressed no humility.

"I am best at most things."

Licking the whisk, Cat's serious brow rose in delighted astonishment.

"Mmmm. Better than milk or cheese."

Most of the bowl's contents vanished down Cat's throat before Wyn could stop her. Explaining generosity to Cat was pointless , but the treat was meant for others.

"I slice the scones and spread on some jam. You whip the cream and add a dollop to each scone after I put it on the tray. The finished treats go out to the banquet hall. Got it?"

"Vhatever you say, little qveen," replied Cat while contentedly licking her lips clean of white foam.

Ignoring the mocking moniker, Wyn began slicing and spreading jam on the scones. Cat took a childish pleasure in her task, working in competition with the small doe. Each completed tray of treats was promptly carried away by servers to fill the already overstuffed bellies of the revelers. A generous portion of the cream continued to find its way into Cat's belly softening her mood to a state of blissful contentment. Suspecting that there would be no better time to raise the subject of Cat's relationship with Esseff, but not wanting to approach the subject too directly, Wyn decided to begin the discussion with the only other significant romance in the castle.

"General Vaunorthoses loves the queen. Do you think she should marry him?"

Cat's familiar scowl returned.

"Qveen can do better than that pompous ufudd."

"Ufudd? You called him that before. What does it mean?"

Oblivious to her mistake, Wyn was unprepared for Cat's suspicious glare.

"I said that vord vunce...and only to him. It vas vhen he vanted to confront the qveen about need for king. I told him to hump his Maker."

Wyn's shock over the blasphemy was overruled by her alarm over being caught eavesdropping. Cat pointed an accusatory claw at the doe.

"You vere listening in, veren't you, sneaky bunyic? So, that is how qveen learned about ugly marriage proposal. I really should tell Fox about counterspy in his midst."

"Don't do that!"

Sincere fright tainted Wyn's voice. Cat laughed in dismissal of her distress.

"No need to be afraid, he vould more likely recruit you as vun of his minions than punish you. He don't vaste valuable assets."

"I don't think I would like that."

"Vhy not? You could be like young Fox twins. You're about their age and should get along."

It was deliberate teasing by Cat, who enjoyed watching the prudish doe attempt to ward off evil with superstitious gestures while squirming in embarrassment. Thinking about the Fox teens made Wyn shudder involuntarily. They were elusive creatures, who came and went unpredictably on mysterious errands. Glic had been in Feneval when Wyn became the queen's servant. It was later, but before Glic's return, that Wyn had her first encounter with the girl Fox.

Mislei approached Wyn one day while she was hanging laundry out to dry. Meeting another girl her own age seemed like a treat at first; there were so few others in the keep. The Fox and Wyn talked about normal young girl things, but soon strayed to subjects that made Wyn uncomfortable. The suggestion that Wyn meet Mislei's brother so they could play together seemed innocent enough until Mislei's concept of play became horrifyingly apparent.

Questions that Wyn would prefer to have forgotten concerning the graphic details of the attempted rape by the Wolves including their anatomy were likely a misguided attempt to titillate her since the vixen appeared to know much more about Wolf sex organs and mating practices than Wyn. When Mislei bluntly asked Wyn if she were still a virgin and then inquired as to whether or not she wanted help getting over that condition, Airy's pawmaiden nearly choked in surprise. The depravity of Mislei's conversation deepened to the point that Wyn lost all tolerance for the strange vixen's company. Using the pretense of having to wait upon the queen, the frightened doe departed as quickly as she could.

"I definitely would not like that. They...they scare me. I don't want to think about them. Tell me instead what 'ufudd' means."

"Alvays a thousand qvestions from you. No answer is capable of stopping flood."

"I'm curious. That's all."

Another quart of cream went into Cat's bowl followed by a cup of sugar and a minute of effortless whipping before she answered.

"It don't translate vell to common language of other races. It means something like he is rule follower, he is tame, and he vorries too much about vhat others think. Most Rabbits are ufudd. Bunyic qveen not so much, but even she is afraid to break some rules."

Wyn snatched the opportunity to steer the conversation back towards Esseff as indirectly as she could.

"I think she has broken the ones that matter. Building our own steel mill, for example. It was a terrible setback - the foundry being destroyed, that is."

Before passing the bowl to Wyn, the whisk went into Cat's mouth. She licked away globs of fluffy, white cream from her lips.

"Qveen can't vin her var vithout steel," agreed Cat.

"We're so fortunate that Esseff is on our side then."

Wyn's mention of the Fox earned her a mistrustful stare.

"Vhy?"

"Our armory is full again. Esseff convinced Feneval to send boatloads of weapons and armor. They stole the secret of steel, you know, and make their own swords and armor."

"I vonder vhat concessions greedy Foxes demanded in return? Qveen vouldn't have needed to pay if Fox had done job and stopped kidnappers."

Unable to counter Cat's disparaging observation, Wyn ploughed on.

"Feneval has a working mine, too. They promised to send iron and tin ore for our mill so we can make both steel and bronze. That is a huge accomplishment."

"There is no mill, so can't make things, and river is frozen so can't ship ore up from ocean."

"If Jorveth gets our foundry rebuilt by spring, they can move the ore up the river after the ice melts. We owe the Fox a lot. He is a hero. With the ore, master Jorveth can begin making cannons."

"Hmm. Fox doing poor job if little bunyic maid learns of new secret veapons."

Wyn covered her mouth with her paw in alarm.

"Oh my! I guess I do overhear things, being around the queen so much. I don't think anyone else heard."

"Tvice tonight vith the secrets. Maybe Fox decides it is better to cut out your tongue than to try to employ it."

Wyn was in the process of licking some jam off her paw as Cat spoke, and sucked her tongue back into her mouth protectively.

"He wouldn't do that," she replied with tenuous conviction.

Cat smiled at her distress.

"Maybe not, but vhat about his little helpers? Creepers live to do his dirty work."

Cat was not being dramatic when she called the pair of Fox teens "creepers." Wyn avoided them for fear of what might happen if she were caught alone with either or both. She admitted to herself that they scared her plenty, but in her innocence, she still felt Esseff was not evil and believed that Cat should return his love.

"They won't do anything because Esseff is not like that. He risked his life to help the queen. It is very dangerous to travel by boat when he did. Winter storms are violent and unpredictable springing up out of nowhere. Sea monsters sink every ship that strays far from shore."

"He risked his life for power. Nothing noble in greed. He vants to be big shot in his own country. Alliance vith qveen gives him that."

"You make him sound so mercenary."

"Only because he is, little fluffy tail."

"What will it take to convince you otherwise?"

"Answers never satisfy you, they just spawn more qvestions. Vhy do you need to know? Vhy do you care?"

"I just think it's sad, that's all."

"Vhat's sad?"

"That he loves you so much, but you don't love him."

"Who says I don't love him?"

"What? You did."

"Never."

"I'm confused. You just called him a mercenary, and earlier you said he was mean and nasty."

"You know nothing of love, little bunyic. It is possible to love somevun and mistrust and despise them at same time."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"Love is senseless and blind to many faults, but it is not complete unless trust lies at its core. Trust freely given seems noble to you but is stupid; trust that is earned...that kind lasts."

"How does he earn it?"

"Back to same qvestion again, are you? You are irritatingly persistent. Do you annoy Fox and qveen this much? I hope so."

In answer, Wyn crossed her small arms over her chest and glared at Cat.

"Ha! I thought so. As revard for being pest to them, I keep answering. Cats are different from Rabbits. Ve live alone or in small, family groups coming together in large numbers only for things like common defense, taking care of kits, and to decide matters that affect all Cats. Ve make few friends, but the few ve do must be true, constant, and unquestionably loyal."

"The queen is not a Cat, but you guard her. Why are you so loyal to the queen? How is she different than Esseff?"

"Simple. I saved bunyic qveen's life more than once, and she in turn saved mine. Qveen and I subsequently vowed to defend each other. Once pledged to somevun, qveen does not casually break bonds of devotion. That is her vay. I admire her for it.

"Fox, however, is complicated and wrapped in layer upon layer of intrigue. He plays many roles and hides true self from his enemies and his friends. I vant to see true Esseff. He must prove himself vorthy of his friends and care more about them than his ambitions. I cannot trust him othervise."

"How does he prove that?"

"Vith actions."

The last pitcher of cream was empty and only two dozen unfinished scones remained. Setting the bowl of whipped cream on the table, Cat stood.

"Thanks for treat. You have done vell to make everyvun so happy and getting along vith nice party, but there are lots of drunken dogs and bunnies carousing tonight. Happiness only lasts so long before somevun has too much drink and starts fight. Then I have job to do. Bandrosett, come."

Wyn watched the staff hop aside as the formidable feline and her snarling feral strode through their midst again. Pondering Cat's words, Wyn wondered what she could possibly say to the Fox to help him earn Cat's trust.

The crowning achievement of Wyn's weeks of labor expressed itself within the nearby great dining hall. Decorated with special care, it was a testimonial to creating extravagance from the mundane. Every sundry object capable of reflecting light, or made with bright colors, or possessing some other element of visual appeal had been incorporated into the display. Rumor professed that no table or fireplace mantle in the keep, not even within the queen's quarters, was left with a single candlestick or candelabrum. All had allegedly been confiscated by the little queen to house the many hundreds of candles and tapers guttering, sputtering, and casting their welcome light upon the gala.

Their illumination was reflected and magnified by the metal shields, swords, and poleaxes polished and hung from the walls and high rafters. Evergreen boughs intertwined with bare branches sprouting clusters of bright red berries softened the military functionality of the improvised adornments. Master Wolf weavers fashioned tablemats and tapestries made of reeds dyed in every color of the rainbow to create complex geometric designs to cover the bare, stone walls and rough wooden table tops.

A riot of color and light was the result, rivaled only in its excess by the din supplied by the room's occupants. Laughter, singing, talking, music, dancing, and shouting all contributed to a volume that equaled the roar of a thunderous waterfall. Starting small, the size of the crowd steadily increased throughout the day until it had reached nearly three hundred guests. Consisting of the invited and the uninvited, the eager revelers had managed to pack themselves into a space conceived for half that many. Diners sat shoulder touching shoulder at scores of tables, but nearly half the guests stood against the walls or in what little open space had been provided for the servants to deliver their consumables. Pushing, shoving, jostling, and fighting, the harried staff vied with their guests to deliver each round of the never-ending repast. Several clever does bearing pitchers of wine leapt upon the tables to avoid the fracas. Needing only to step gingerly through the randomly scattered tableware and avoiding candle flames that threatened to set their skirts afire, they were cheered for their ingenuity by parched mouths that had been thirsting desperately for a refill.

Despite the hall's extreme congestion, two oases of open space persisted. Both were stages of a sort. One was reserved for the queen. A high backed chair upon a raised dais sat empty and isolated on the opposite side of the hall from the entrance to the kitchen. Even White Paw and Vaunorthoses were relegated to a lower table in front of the queen's vacant perch. Similar to the rest of the hall, the queen's chair was rimmed with green, red, and silver. The sole difference was that General Olycksus' torn battle flag, stolen by Cat at Dome Hill, hung as a trophy behind her empty seat.

The second island of elbowroom was in the center of the hall, where another raised platform had been erected to house musicians, speakers, and performers. Jugglers, singers, small orchestras, choirs, dancers, actors, and even priests giving blessings had all occupied it during the week, but with less than one hour until midnight of the last day, exhaustion had set in. The entertainers and exhorters of piety had all retired except for a small band that had stayed on reluctantly. Composed of two drummers, a flautist, a doe plucking a stringed instrument akin to a mandolin, and a lop-eared buck squeezing and stretching the bellows of a paw held mini organ whose keys he was fingering fast and vigorously, they remained on stage at the behest of Sunorthoses, who was instructing them in the melody of an old folk tune from his home province.

Once he was satisfied that they had perfected the repetitive ditty, Sunorthoses began gyrating around the stage in his people's curiously athletic style of high kicks, spins, and stomping boots to cheers and applause. He stopped only for a generous gulp of his drink and then to drag two Wolfess warriors up onto the stage. Also drunk from the intoxicating effects of the wine infused with spirits from Jorveth's distillery, they were amenable to his entreaty to join in the dance.

Sunorthoses began by instructing them in the female steps of the dance, which were also energetic but relatively restrained compared to the buck's moves. The dance was meant to portray a coy doe being courted by an aggressive suitor. Dutifully, the two warriors executed the tight twirls, curtsies, and sidesteps meant for a doe, but the moment that Sunorthoses began the masculine portion of the dance, they mirrored the buck's part instead. Frustrated, Sunorthoses stopped to correct them, but they preferred the wilder male steps and refused his entreaties to cooperate.

The audience laughed at their recalcitrance, and some prankster tossed a skirt that landed on Sunorthoses' head. From where it originated, he could not be certain, but he suspected Tigan, who winked at him when he met the old Skunk's eye. The meaning of the ribald jape was clear enough that Sunorthoses laughed and pulled the doe's garment up over his trousers. Pretending to be coy, he let the two Wolves be his suitors competing for his attention.

To the Rabbits, the reversal of gender roles combined with the outrageous theme of inter-racial courtship, was comic absurdity that revived the flagging party and encouraged everyone into stomping and clapping to the tune. Bear, who sat to White Paw's right laughed uproariously and pounded his huge fist on the table like a smith's hammer at the anvil.

The sudden escalation of noise made Vaun wince and squint his eyes in an attempt to slow his already spinning vision. Either the drink was stronger than he had thought, or he had let himself be cajoled into consuming too much. It didn't matter. The result was the same. Cursing himself for a fool, he dumped the remaining contents of his goblet on the floor and turned the empty chalice upside down on the table in an effort to prevent it from being refilled again. He didn't need to look to his right to hear the slurring of White Paw's speech as he and Bear shouted encouragement to Sunorthoses. His ally was as drunk as he.

Intent still on confronting Airy, Vaun and Jak had arrived here early so that the queen could not make a stealth appearance and escape. She had evaded them once already, making them look like idiots in the process. How she learned the contents of the AR proposal before their meeting was a mystery even Esseff had not solved, but sending an innocent little maid in her stead to foil any attempt to reason with her was a particularly humiliating touch.

With less than an hour left before midnight, it appeared that the queen had made fools of them again. Obliged by courtesy and good manners, the great Wolf chief and the general had kept the celebration lively by sharing toasts and pretending to enjoy the fun. One toast led to another and inevitably to Vaun's current blurry state of mind. Being outwitted by the queen and denied any opportunity to debate the merits of an advantageous marriage turned his muddled thoughts angry.

"Maker damn it," growled Vaun. "Where is she? If she fails to deliver the new year's blessing, no one will believe that she is queen anymore. I swear if she sends that serving maid in her place again..."

"Patience, friend," urged Jak. "She will show shoon...soon."

"No. The time for patience is over. We are all here tonight, and the time to challenge her is now. We may never get another chance before our cause is irrevocably lost. If I have to force her to listen to us by the point of my sword, then so be it."

An extraordinary lethargy enveloped Jak, mellowing his mood like the well-aged wine he drank.

"This is not like you, Vaun. Why are you sho...so angry, my friend?"

"She has insulted all of us by avoiding our advice and you the most by denying you a seat beside her. To have you sit on the floor with me is an egregious breach of etiquette. You are a monarch in your own right and don't belong down here with a bunch of generals, chiefs, and dukes."

"I am not a king, but even if I were...was?...whatever, there ish no preshi...preshidence in Rikifur for hosting the leaders of other nations. Camorra told me that."

"Nonsense. You are as much a king as she is a queen, and if she alienates you along with her own counselors, there will be no refuge for our lost cause."

"She cannot drive me away with mere disc...discourtesy. I am more than just a fair weather friend. Her...She?...No. Her and I have been..."

Jak's addled brain retained adequate decorum to cut short the thought that followed before he spoke it aloud. Fortunately, his hesitation was lost on Vaun, who was distracted by the abrupt silence that pervaded the hall. All eyes turned toward the dais. The door behind it that had remained frustratingly closed all day finally opened. The hush became a roar of applause. Airy stepped through followed by two of her personal guard, Wyn, Thayir, and the large Shornie priest, Duoma Don.

The polearms of Airy's solemn protectors were wrapped in vines with glossy, purple tipped green leaves. Clusters of bright golden berries of an evergreen tree that stubbornly bore its fruit at the darkest moment of the year dangled like ornaments at the end of lengths of black ribbon tied from the functional and deadly metal heads of the weapons. Slightly less ostentatious, Airy wore a simple gown of emerald green with white fur trim.

With barely a glance to White Paw or Vaun, Airy strode purposely to her chair and took her seat. Neither smiling nor frowning, she bore a neutral expression. Wyn appeared next to her offering a crystal goblet trimmed with silver bands upon which were mounted precious gems. Airy accepted it with a smile, and Wyn stepped backward and to Airy's right. Next, Dontamethes appeared on her left.

Convinced his queen had come late to perform her duty perfunctorily and leave, Vaun stood and shouted to quiet the room and seize the initiative.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for gracing us with your presence during this final hour of the year. No doubt, the first thing that you noticed is the ill manner in which we have treated our exalted guest and ally, White Paw. The floor is clearly no place for one of his rank. Let me accept all of the blame. A selfish motive of mine to enjoy celebrating the bulk of this final day of Foryisadortcha with my friend and comrade in arms forced him to suffer this indignity. Please let me immediately correct this egregious oversight."

Not normally given to artful and cunning speech, the liquor freed Vaun's tongue from its typical reticence to criticize and entrap, especially those of high rank like the queen. His speech not only alluded to her belated arrival but left Airy no choice except to acquiesce lest she deliver a brutal insult to the Wolves. With a nod and barely concealed hostility, she granted Vaun permission to proceed.

Struggling unsteadily to clamber onto the queen's platform, Vaun nearly fell back to the floor. Jak lent him a paw, but being equally inebriated was barely able to keep Vaun upright. It took Bear, who seemed immune to the debilitating effects of strong drink, to heft the general ingloriously into place at Airy's level. Swaying on his hindpaws, Vaun straightened his wrinkled tunic in a feeble attempt to recover some of his lost dignity. Airy glared at him with a mixture of disgust and wary suspicion.

Pointing to White Paw's chair, Vaun signaled Bear to place the seat on the dais. Vaun then helped the Wolf chief of all chiefs to join him. Plopping Jak's chair loudly to Airy's right with an absurd flourish, Vaun gestured for the Wolf to sit.

"White Paw, Chief of all Chiefs, here is your rightful seat."

Caught between the drunken general and the petulant queen, Jak hesitated before sitting. Vaun was determined to have his say, and White Paw had promised to support him. Slowed by drink, and not thinking clearly, Jak wished this moment to be postponed. Nagging doubts told him a confrontation here would not end well, but he felt adrift, detached from himself, and unable to resist or to concentrate. The indecision was only made worse by Airy's presence. Not since before the western campaign had he last been this close to her. The proximity triggered a rush of emotion. Her deliberate separation from him hurt more than he could bear. Whether her aloofness was due to embarrassment over her defeat, or resentment over his mating duties as chief did not matter. Jak wanted desperately to have her, hold her, and let her know he still loved her. With hundreds of pairs of eyes fixed upon them, he could not risk any of those actions. Instead, he tried to clear the cobwebs in his head and project a dignified and ceremonious façade.

Vaun deliberately placed himself on Airy's left effectively displacing the huge Shornie priest, who politely shuffled sideways. Wyn quickly produced a cup of wine for White Paw and Vaunorthoses, who accepted them knowing what was coming next.

Airy glanced sideways at Vaun, who gestured for her to rise and proceed. Refusing to let herself be controlled or directed by another, Airy remained seated and nodded to the Shornie priest, who stepped forward bringing forth a small, quilted pillow made of silk, upon which rested a red rose carefully preserved in wax as a symbol of summer past and summer future. His voice was as deep and vast as his frame and carried easily to every corner of the hall.

"This past year has been a time both of great trial and great triumph for Rikifur. Failed crops and war continue to ravage the land. During these long nights of winter, it is natural to see only the end of things and to forget their beginnings. Take heart knowing that the Maker has not deserted us or left us without hope even in these darkest of dark times. Though war divides us, reunion and peace await just over the horizon beyond the dolor of winter. As proof, by the Maker's blessing, our queen was delivered back unto us to lead not only Rikifur, but also the Wolves and Foxes, to a joyful moment of reconciliation and healing. May the blessings of the Maker be upon us all in the waning moments of this year and in the year to come."

He reverently removed the flower from its place of rest and held it upright directly in front of his snout.

"This rose, picked at the height of summer, represents the continuation of the Maker's promise that the glories of the past will be carried forward through the now and into the future. If something so delicate can endure, then so shall we."

Dontamethes passed the blessed flower to Airy, who rose from her seat holding it in her left paw and the wine filed goblet in her right. The slightly faded luster of the blossom transformed subtly as she held it until it shone with all the crimson vibrancy of its initial bloom. Many in the audience had witnessed similar miracles during Tigan's performances and had become inured to them, but in this moment of spiritual expectancy, a loud gasp accompanied the change. Correctly deducing that the old Skunk's ring was at work, Airy graced her seer with a wan smile.

Raising the chalice in the air, she delivered a simple blessing "To victory, to prosperity, and to peace."

The audience repeated the refrain, and everyone drank including Airy, who emptied her cup of the small quantity of non-infused wine that Wyn had poured. Vaun and White Paw pretended to drink before passing their undrained goblets back to Wyn.

All the bells in the keep began to ring at once signaling that midnight had arrived and ushered in the end of the festival. A sigh of tired relief accompanied the hugs, kisses, pawshakes, and other actions of affection shared within the crowd.

Having completed her obligation, Airy turned to leave, but Vaun rushed to intercept her. The queen's guards interposed themselves between the general and their queen.

"Wait!" Vaun shouted after Airy, who continued walking towards the door that Wyn held open for her. The generals' voice carried across the hall as easily as Dontamethes' but with far more authority and command. Its unexpected vehemence halted her incipient retreat. "I would have words with you before you leave."

White Paw joined Vaun to stand beside him, worried that his tipsy and bellicose friend might attempt something drastic. The guards eyed the formidable pair nervously. Wyn took shelter behind Duoma Don's voluminous robes. The entire hall fell silent mesmerized by the discordant tableau. Sensing danger, Ebusika moved from her place beneath the table where Bear still sat to move to Jak's side, but Esseff held on to the mane of coarse fur at the back of her neck to restrain her and thus prevent Bandrosett and Camorra's and Tigan's guardians, Diaat and Skadei, from following their mother into the brewing quarrel.

"And I know the intent of every word you wish to speak," answered Airy not bothering to disguise the impatience in her voice. "As queen I am empowered to regard or disregard whatever you have to say. I choose the latter."

Color rose in Vaun's cheeks bringing a deep crimson hue of anger to his chocolate brown fur.

"Maker damn it, your Majesty!" he blurted. "You shall listen to what I have to say. The West and all of Rikifur are lost to us if you won't do your duty and select a king. Those are the only words that matter and for which you must answer."

"You're drunk, and you exceed your privilege."

"Everyone here is drunk, and it changes nothing. A decision must be made as to whether or not there is a new year for our cause or if it dies with this winter."

"I order you to be silent, General."

"I will be silent only if you give me...give everyone here your answer. You owe it to those who have been loyal to you."

Silence reigned for moment as a storm brewed on Airy's forehead.

"You call this loyalty? You pledged unquestioning obedience to me. Is this what I am to expect from House Perseine? More broken promises and treachery?"

Throwing his honor and the honor of his house in doubt was akin to thrusting a crooked knife into Vaun's guts and twisting it without mercy. Shocked by the accusation, Vaun's response was an incoherent sputter of rage.

"That...that was...you would link my loyalty to the deeds of my brother? My father...his honor is...your father would never have doubted..."

"I am not my father!" roared Airy. Smashing her crystal goblet down on the dais for emphasis, the fragile vessel shattered into fragments that exploded like sparkling shrapnel. "I am Airiphryone. I am queen. It is my Maker given right to make decisions when I decide the time is right to make them. I will hear no more of this tonight. I have heard enough, General."

Airy turned to leave, but Jak darted past the guards and held her arm. Both sentries turned to stop him, but Vaunorthoses drew a sword from the nearest guard's scabbard and held the blade unsteadily across the startled soldier's throat. Slowed by the effect of intoxication, Vaun's clumsy assault succeeded by virtue of surprise. Reacting to protect his queen, the second guard began to lower his gaily-draped poleaxe toward Jak, but Airy held up her free paw to forestall him. Thayir growled in confusion over friends acting like enemies, but kept to heel by Airy's sharp command.

The boisterous assembly was no les stunned. A gasp erupted from the hall. Chairs scraped loudly across the floor as knights and warriors leapt to their hindpaws in alarm. Fiercely loyal to both parties, they waivered, uncertain how to respond to the bizarre spectacle. Esseff quickly gathered Cat, Bear, Camorra, and Tigan together and began a hushed conversation. White Paw broke the alarmed silence.

"I am not one of your subjects," began Jak in as calm and clear a voice as he could muster, "and you cannot order my silence. I stand with Vaunorthoses on this issue. Though this decision ish...is yours to make, the time and place for it is no longer within your power to dictate."

"Jak, you too?"

The palpable sense of hurt Airy expressed through her anger affected Jak, lessening the intensity of his grip on her arm allowing her to wrench it free.

"Have I no loyal allies left?"

"We are all loyal to you, Airy, eshpesh...especially Vaunorthoses."

It felt to Jak as if the world was trying to spin out from under his hindpaws.

"You must listen to him...to us," he added weakly as his stomach began a rebellion of its own.

"No. I will not listen to two drunken rogues, who have let liquor spirit away their good judgment and carry them to the brink of treason. Stand down now, and all of this can be forgiven as mere foolishness brought on by excessive drink. Continue to threaten and intimidate me, and..."

Airy paused. All of her anger and rage drained away. An emotion that rarely found favor with her, fear, was unmasked for Jak and Vaun to behold.

"Don't make me consider the alternative, please," she whispered.

Mortified over having forced her into this corner, Jak stepped away and placed a paw upon Vaun's shoulder to encourage him to likewise retreat. The gesture was unnecessary. Vaun was already lowering his sword towards the floor. Gingerly, the relieved guard pulled away from the unsteady general, who Jak had to assist to stay upright.

"Good night, everyone," Airy said to the gaping crowd. "And happy new year," she added with what little cheer she could muster as she departed a room stunned to silence. Thayir, Wyn, and her greatly relieved guards followed.

"What have I done?" agonized Vaun reproaching himself, but Esseff now stood at his side with the answer.

"Used a sword to do a needle's work and tore a hole when you should have been mending."

"I am such a fool."

"On that one point, you demonstrate remarkable clarity of thought. Everything else you did tonight was stupidity personified and contravened every warning I gave you."

"But what do we do now?" pleaded Jak. "We can't just let her retreat again. I need to talk to her..."

"No! You both need to sober up and let me handle the queen. I sent the others to waylay her in a more private setting. I must join them and try to undo this disaster if possible."

Snapping his fingers to draw the attention of Mislei and several knights, Esseff motioned for them to come and help escort the inebriates outside. Dontamethes lent his support to the sagging Vaun.

"I have some herbs and a physic that will ameliorate the effects of the drink, my lord," said the priest to Esseff as he placed Vaun's arm over his huge shoulders. "One of my acolytes will fetch some, but I think some time spent on the battlements bracing against the weather will clear their minds faster."

Satisfied that Vaun and white Paw would get competent care, Esseff excused himself to pursue the queen.

At the portal to her private chambers, Airy hesitated before lifting the latch. Her chaperones shuffled nervously, unnerved by recent events. None dared posit aloud why their queen lingered in the hallway instead of immediately seeking the safety of her rooms.

Contrition made Airy challenge her own motives and actions. Jak's assertion was accurate that the time for choosing a husband was no longer hers to control. A long postponed resolution to the crisis she had precipitated with her ill-fated campaign was as inescapable now as the sorrow and heartache that was inextricably bound to this hateful onus. Thus, an atypical timidity and lack of certainty prevented her from retreating to her refuge or returning to face her well-meaning friends and advisors to apologize and deliver her decision.

Cat's swift emergence, seemingly from out of nowhere, and her attack upon the same luckless knight upon whom Vaun had earlier drawn his sword was the catalyst needed to banish Airy's indecisiveness. The desperation implicit in her friend's revolt was a portent forewarning her of the perils of further delay. Resigned to commit forever to a single course, Airy was grateful that the setting for this momentous decision was more private than the grand hall, though she wished her honor guard was spared further humiliation.

With nimble efficiency and lack of compassion, Cat pinned her hapless opponent's face against the cold, stone wall. The long haft of his weapon and his arms were squeezed uselessly between his body and the gritty masonry.

"Not again," he groaned.

"This not your lucky day, bunny boy," hissed Cat.

Moving to intervene, the unrestrained knight allowed the distraction to achieve its goal. He failed to perceive Bear ambling up from behind until the immense Wolf's arms wrapped around his chest. Immobilized like a python's dinner, the buck could scarcely breathe or squirm. Observing the assault without interfering, Airy clasped Wyn's small paw as a gesture to comfort her pawmaiden and to let her know that they were in no danger.

Tigan and Camorra kept themselves behind Bear until the struggle was over, then approached Airy intent upon convincing her of the soundness of the argument that Vaun and White Paw had so badly bungled.

"Your Majesty, you must listen..." they began.

Holding up her paw palm outward, Airy effectively silenced the Skunk and Cow.

"I know what both of you are going to say, so don't bother. Camorra, you want to lecture me about our allies deserting one by one because they don't have a king to satisfy their misogynous sensibilities. Tigan, you intend to provide the irrefutable proof of prophesy by proclaiming that doom will engulf me if I remain unwed.

"In essence, those are our goals," admitted Camorra cautiously. "Will you allow us to expound upon them?"

"No, because it is unnecessary. I understand and accept everything you wish to say as true."

"Then why do you refuse to choose, My Queen?" asked Camorra.

"That is harder for me to explain. Knowing that I must marry has been too difficult for me to accept for deeply personal reasons."

A snort of mockery from Cat earned a reproachful scowl from Airy. The Cow and Skunk were confused by the silent exchange between Cat and Rabbit.

"Ya ain't in love wit' does instead of bucks now are ya?" probed Tigan.

For the first time in weeks, Airy laughed.

"A supremely impertinent, but characteristic question from you. If only it was that simple, but the truth is that my reasons matter not one whit more than your concerns any longer."

Esseff made his appearance just as Airy was about to end their collective unease, sparing her the need to repeat herself unnecessarily.

"I have made my decision and am prepared to make an announcement," she declared to forestall any petition the Fox intended to make.

Briefly speechless, Esseff regarded first Cat and Bear and their respective captives and then Camorra and Tigan.

"Well, that was fast. What did our diplomat and our sibyl say to convince you?" he wondered.

"Nothing, stupid Fox" said Cat with a laugh. "Qveen already made up her little mind. You made Bear and I rough up these bunnies for nothing."

Having no more reason to restrain the helpless buck, Cat released the pressure forcing his snout against the wall. Bear likewise freed his captive allowing him to breath normally again. Both guards fussed with their tunics before standing at attention in an attempt to regain some of their lost dignity. Ignoring the behavior of the guards and Cat's rebuke, Esseff pressed Airy to continue.

"What is your decision, Your Highness?"

"Something I must disclose to White Paw first. Have him meet me in the audience chamber in half an hour."

Certain he knew the reason Airy was giving the Wolf chief precedence, Esseff astutely directed the attention of the others away from the forbidden subject of her affair.

"What about the rest of us? When do we learn?"

"After another thirty minutes, send Vaun. I can say nothing until after I have spoken to both of them. Once I have their responses, well...we shall see what news I have to divulge."

Having emptied their stomachs over the ramparts, Jak and Vaun were subsequently wracked by weakness and intense shivering leaving them unable to stand on their own. Instead, they huddled together for warmth against the base of the crenellated river wall to escape the howling northern wind.

"Maker's balls, Dontamethes!" exclaimed Vaun while wiping away saliva and vomit from his mouth. "What was in that vile brew?"

"Now, now, General. Do not add blasphemy to your list of transgressions tonight. That was an herb intended to have the precise effect you found so unpleasant. The more wine we can purge from your guts, the faster will be your recovery."

"Does recovery involve freezing to death?" moaned White Paw through chattering teeth.

"The cold forces your blood to quicken and increase the efficacy of the second part of this remedy."

The physician priest produced a clear bottle full of a dark liquid.

"Gah!. I shall drink no more of your noxious elixirs," protested Vaun.

"You shall if you wish to get back inside sooner."

"In that case, give it to me," demanded Jak.

Dontamethes passed the vial to the Wolf, who drank half as instructed before handing the remainder to Vaun. Only after observing White Paw for several minutes with no repeat of the previous cure's effects did Vaun submit to quaffing the remedy.

The priest made them endure the brisk winter air a while longer before leading them back into the dining hall, which was mostly empty. A few revelers had fallen asleep at their tables. Less than a dozen remained awake determined to make the night last a little longer, but the servants ignored their requests for more wine as they cleared away the mess. Glic appeared with instructions from Esseff shortly after Jak and Vaun's return.

"Her Majesty wishes to speak with you, White Paw," said the young Fox, who began guiding the still unsteady Wolf chief away.

"What about me?" groaned Vaun from where he lay atop a table. "Does she wish to see me or not?"

"Yes. You, too..."

Vaun began to rise wearily.

"...but not until after she has spoken to White Paw. I will return for you when it is your turn."

Too wretched to fuss over being relegated to second place, Vaun lay down, closed his eyes, and prayed for the Maker to silence the hammering in his head.

Jak knew the audience chamber, or the throne room, as nearly everyone but Airy called the expansive, formal space where the queen met with nobles, dignitaries, and peasants whose affairs required her judgment or blessing. Designed to impress with its statuary, carved stone façades, and marble tile floor, its solemnity was softened during the day by sunlight through windows positioned high atop its walls just below the arched ceiling. With daylight many hours away and the midnight blackness only slightly muted by a scattering of sconces lit with insufficient candles, it had become a dark and tomb like place.

Two knights were positioned at the door as Jak approached. Neither was part of the pair that had accompanied Airy earlier, and no festive garlands softened the outline of their weapons or armor. One remained at attention, while the other saluted and opened the door for Jak. Another pair waited inside positioned about half way down the hall on either side with swords drawn but their points resting against the floor. Having recovered his wits by the virtue of Dontamethes' ministrations, Jak wondered at Airy's choice of place to meet for this discussion and the message she was intending to convey.

At the far end, in the gloom, sat Airy upon her throne. The aura of command and invincibility that normally magnified her small stature was dimmed by the weight of the burden and sense of resignation she now bore. Her appearance was that of a distraught child tired of playing dress up as the queen. Propelled by pity for her suffering and by his guilt over his perceived role in her manifest sorrow, Jak hurried towards her.

Never comfortable with the formality of Rikifur's rules of behavior, the Wolf bypassed the elaborate tile design of her family crest at the base of her low stone platform where petitioners to the queen were required to wait. Six steps draped by a golden rug meant only for the queen to tread upon lay beyond her sigil. After mounting them two at a time, Jak halted and sat down upon the top step at her hindpaws so that he was level with her downcast eyes.

"I am sorry that Vaun and I ruined the celebration," he said contritely, "and I'm sorry for conspiring..."

"Don't be sorry," Airy interrupted, but she did not look up. Her voice was hoarse from crying and barely above a whisper. Perhaps she did not want the guards to overhear. "Nothing is your fault; the fault is mine alone. I should be apologizing to you. I was unfair to you when I censured you for mating with other Wolves. You were only doing your duty to your people as I must now do my duty to mine.

"You and Vaun were forced by my behavior to rebel. I drove you away from me when I needed you most because I am a coward, Jak. I don't have the strength to resist fate and save our love. What a fool I was to try to make you into something you were not and should never be."

"Airy, forget about blame. It is irrelevant."

"Perhaps nothing is your fault and nothing is mine," admitted Airy, "but that changes nothing. We could accuse Olivia, who helped drive us to this end, but it is a hollow victory to blame the insistent paw of the Maker. We are not puppets on her strings, never allowed take the stage when we desire. Many other paths during our journey presented themselves. Some offered a road to love, but I ignored them, always choosing the way that led us to this awful moment. At every fork in our road, I chose power and being queen over love."

"That is not true, and you must never think that of yourself. You sought only to return home. When you discovered your nation split by war and your family in peril, you accepted the responsibility to do what was right, what is best for your people and mine. Desiring power may be evil, but wielding it for a noble purpose is not. Your nobility is beyond reproach, but now it is time to use the power you have to benefit yourself for once."

"You think that I can issue a command and find acceptance for our love? Oh, Jak, I have learned many hard lessons in my time with you, but the hardest to bear is that power is an illusion. Though I am queen, I am chained to the will of my people and helpless without their approval. I have fought my way to this point thinking that triumph with arms will bring me everything I desire, but now I see it brings only death and disappointment. I can order people to fight and die for me, but I cannot so easily alter their innate prejudices...or my own. To be queen, to save my family, to make Rikifur whole, to achieve peace; to do any of these things, I must betray you. I must marry."

"I understand that. It is heartbreaking to me that we can no longer be intimate, but..."

"You are wise, Jak, but there are forces at work here beyond your experience that are so foreign to your nature that they are hard for you to comprehend let alone understand."

"I am not ignorant Rikifur's mores. I know what it is that you must do and why it grieves you to do it."

"You understand the rules, Jak, but not their deeper meaning. It is innate for you to have multiple lovers. That blinds you to my inability to emulate. That is not who I am. I cannot be like you, Jak, and pledge my heart and body to more than one other. I'm sorry, Jak. When I first realized that I loved you, when you healed me of my injuries, I believed that we might find a way to show Rikifur how pointless the hate and hostility between our people was, and to a degree, we accomplished that. To expect more than peace was naïve,but I was not so naïve that I did not consider the possibility that I might have to surrender my claim to the throne to have you. I was willing to do that when the consequences didn't threaten to destroy my country, your people, and my family. Now...now I can't bear to say what I must."

Jak's ears drooped and his tail curled around his waist betraying his understanding and acceptance of that bitter truth. A mournful silence infused the chamber as Jak swallowed hard to choke back his despair. With ears lying flat against his head and his tail quivering, Jak became a study in misery.

"I do understand what you must do, but I ask only that you retain a place for me in your heart. Have you learned nothing else during the tumultuous time we have spent together except to expect the unexpected? Even Tigan can't foresee all futures and certainly not the fates of two lovers. The future is neither the present nor the past. I thought I was at the end of my life path once - hopeless, bitter, alone, and ready to die. Then the mighty Earth Spine itself split asunder to place you in my path. That event opened up roads I never dreamed of traveling. We must bear this separation for a while with the hope for what the future might bring. Who can say what may happen after you have saved your family and mine, after Storfay is defeated, and the world is at peace? Rikifur will be a different place then. Maybe it will be able to accommodate our love."

"You think I am still the young girl that I was when we met, Jak, free to choose for a lover whomever and whenever she desired. It is sweet that you wish to believe that, and I am grateful for your words and the intense feelings behind them, but you still don't fully understand Rikifur. There can be no hope for us after this. There will be no more chances, ever. I have broken all the taboos that my people will bear. Acceptance of a queen who keeps a Wolf for a lover is impossible in my lifetime, and even if it isn't, the result is the same. Whomever I marry becomes my husband for life. We are inseparably bound to each other until death. I can never walk away from or betray that relationship in any way. My sense of honor and duty won't allow it. Whomever I marry becomes family. Family is more important than love."

Unable to gainsay her assertion, Jak dwelled briefly upon the fate of his distant family, but it only intensified his cafard. Remorse gripped Airy.

"I hope you can forgive me for that and for what I must do now. By imposing my conventions upon you and blindly believing that we could find acceptance in Rikifur for our love, I set us up to fail, and now I must pay for my arrogance and naiveté. I am sorry that you must also suffer."

"You imposed nothing on me without my cooperation and my agreement," he countered somberly.

"I took advantage of your isolation and your need for belonging. I was a selfish little..."

Jak's ears perked up at the absurdity of her admission.

"Nonsense, Airy. You saved my life and gave me a reason to live again. I am forever grateful for that."

"I know you are, Jak, but I should not have fallen in love with you or allowed you fall in love with me."

"What kind of talk is that? Death was the only alternative to avoid the bond that formed between us. Would you prefer to have died simply to avoid hardship today?"

Airy shrugged noncommittally, then responded with an almost imperceptible shake of her head.

"I regret nothing we did or that we promised to each other," continued Jak. "Neither should you. We followed our hearts. Who could have foreseen that it would lead to this moment of..."

Unable to speak aloud the horrible truth, Jak nevertheless accepted it. There was nothing more could he do or say to stop her. He was determined not to stop her. What she was doing was right, no matter how intense the agony. He made an awkward attempt to smile and ease the pain for her as well as himself.

"You are still the Airy I know and love: honorable, loyal, and true."

"I can say the same of you, Jak. Even if I tossed my crown aside and begged you to escape this trap with me, you would refuse. You know as I do, that neither of us could live or be happy knowing that we abandoned the tens of thousands, nay millions, who needed our help during this dark hour. You needn't confirm nor deny it. I know what is in your heart. Maker, how I know your generous heart and wish mine could be joined with it forever."

Jak could bear prolonging the sorrow no longer.

"How terrible that the virtues that once bound us together now pull us apart. I should go. There is nothing more to say. Let us remain allies in public. In the secret recess of my soul, you will always be something much more to me, Airy. Good bye."

Jak began to rise, but Airy leaned forward giving him pause to stay.

"You never asked who I intend to wed. Don't you care?"

"I already know, and I approve of your choice. If you had consulted me, I would have recommended the same. I wish you both happiness every moment you are together."

"By the Maker, Jak, you don't make this any easier. Every word you speak, everything you do, every breath you take makes me love you more intensely. I want to be happy, Jak. Winning battles makes me feel alive but it doesn't make me happy. Being queen is something I prepared for all my life, and I accept it as a moral obligation, but it doesn't make me happy either. You make me happy, Jak. Why did the same destiny that brought me here to save and rule Rikifur lead me to you? I would have been better off with one or the other but not both. It's not fair. What a cruel stab of fate's blade through my heart. I can't even hold you in my arms. Is this love's end? If so, it is worse than death."

Jak glanced at the guards, then back to Airy. With tender care and all the earnest love he could pack into the gesture, Jak lifted Airy's paws from where they clutched each other forlornly in her lap and covered them first with his off colored left and then with his right.

"No one will fault the Wolf king for offering a chaste gesture of compassion to his ally in these dismal times. Take heart Airiphryone, queen of Rikifur. This is not the end of our love. I do and shall always love you no matter who you marry or how far apart we may wander from each other. We are lovers forever in our hearts where no one else can judge us or interfere with the special bond we share."

Airy opened her mouth to protest, but Jak would not hear it.

"You wish to say that it is not possible for you do that, but I know you better than you know yourself, Airy. Repudiate me aloud if you will, but your heart is spacious enough to contain love for your king, the family you will build together, and for an old Wolf like me."

Airy's denial was slain by the companion sentiment that dwelled in her own heart. Clutching his paws tightly, she let herself become lost in his gaze remembering all that they had shared in their brief affair.

It was a moment that deserved to be graced by the arrival of a swift sunrise, the streaking of a falling star across the night sky, or any manner of celestial fanfare, but the room remained dark and silent except for the drumbeat of their broken hearts that was their tragic symphony.

Jak released Airy's paws and stood.

"Let's say no more on this subject. I must go now and prepare to return to the Packlands. My people need me to guide them through the rest of the winter. I will return with as many warriors as I can as soon as the snow and ice begin to melt. I presume you still wish to speak to Vaunorthoses."

"Yes. Please send him to me."

Tears streamed unfettered down Airy's cheeks as she watched her lover, Jak, depart her lonely sepulcher. Would only her ally, White Paw, return in the spring? The young doe inside of her begged to abandon the fetters of obligation and run after him, but she was queen, not a foolish princess anymore. A queen must rule not only her people, but also herself. The doe wept freely for what she was losing, even as the queen steeled herself for a proclamation that would doom the doe to despair forever.

"Forever," thought Airy. The word failed to encompass the magnitude of the gap she now saw yawning ever wider between her and Jak.

After Jak's departure, time enough elapsed for Airy to exhaust her tears in silence prior to Vaun's arrival. Despite Dontamethes' ministrations and assistance with cleaning up, the general's appearance matched how he felt. His hair was disheveled, his proud and fluid stride reduced to a half-stagger, and his head throbbed, but he halted at the proper spot above the family crest of Chortaghentos, stood straight, and saluted.

"I beg your forgiveness, your Majesty, for my earlier behavior. I drank too much, but that is no excuse. Worse, I am a traitor who has turned your friends and allies against you. It is unforgivable. Punish me please and not them. I could not bear to be the instrument that sunders those bonds. I will resign my commission and return to my family in disgrace if that is your wish."

Airy shook her head slowly at the irrelevance of Vaun's distress.

"As I already explained to White Paw, there is nothing to forgive. Charging towards Perseine unprepared was a mistake. My mistake, not yours. Isolating myself from my friends was another. Everything I have done since my disastrous solo campaign, I did for selfish reasons, and that includes postponing any discussion of my choice for king. Now, bring yourself closer to me so we can speak of this matter in private, as friends."

Vaun moved tentatively forward up the short flight of steps to stand before her.

"Sit." Airy directed. "On the floor if you must, but this oversized chair has room enough for both of us if you prefer not to get your trousers dusty."

"The floor is fine. My clothes are beyond abuse."

Slumping wearily upon the golden carpet at Airy's hindpaws, Vaun dutifully awaited an explanation of his summons.

"It is long past the time of my choosing."

Her admission gave Vaun new hope.

"Then you are willing to consider electing a king?"

"I am beyond mere consideration, Vaun. I am ready to announce my choice."

Her pronouncement went beyond anything he had been prepared to hear.

"But shouldn't we discuss the merits of various candidates first? This is such an important decision with far future repercussions."

"There will be no debate, on the choice of my husband, I will not compromise, discuss, or negotiate with anyone. I marry someone I can love or not at all."

"Surely we are in a position where we can no longer afford such luxuries. Love is...well, love is for lovers, not important matters of state. We all must make sacrifices."

"We? You mean me, I suspect. I will not have an empty marriage of convenience, even if that means sacrificing some suitor's strategic value."

"Even so, have you vetted the entire range of suitable candidates?"

"All of the logical choices are familiar enough to me having been presented as suitors since I was thirteen. My choice is based on that knowledge."

What Airy claimed was true. Present in the late king's court for many years, Vaun had been a witness to the numerous nobles introduced to the young princess. He remembered resenting the time Airy was forced to spend in their company. After each courting session, Airy would confide to him her thoughts on the most recent candidate. He could not remember her ever expressing much that was positive about any of them. If she had discovered one that she thought she could love, Vaun was ignorant of whom it could be.

"Whom have you chosen? What alliance do we strengthen?"

"All of them. You know as well as I do the house we need on our side the most."

"Perseine," answered Vaun glumly.

Puzzled, initially, by Vaun's disappointment, Airy laughed inside when she realized he was misinterpreting her choice. She decided to tease him.

"Yes, but why so sad?"

"My brother and I are estranged. There is no love between us."

"What has that do with anything?"

Vaun shrugged, stood up, and fussed with his shirt and jacket pretending he did not care whom she married.

"Nothing. You have made a wise choice. We gain a strong army and a steel foundry. The West will be pacified. May you and Meerachaphos be happy together."

Vaun saluted and turned to leave. Airy's voice, steeped in barely contained mirth, stopped him.

"What in the Maker's blessed heaven are you talking about, Vaun?"

"Well...your marriage to my brother, of course."

Airy's mocking smile made Vaun reconsider his assumption.

"You don't mean my father, do you?" he asked incapable of imagining who else it could be.

Unable to contain herself, Airy laughed. Vaun was grateful to see her spirits high, but its source eluded him.

"Vaun, how can you be so dense? Have you not listened to anything I've said?"

"I have...but you aren't making sense."

"Loves doesn't make sense. I can't marry your brother. Notwithstanding his betrayal that led to the disaster at Dome Hill, he's a chauvinistic ass, who hates the Wolves, and is as backwards in his ideology as the Maker damned priests. We would fight so much, I'd probably kill him. As to your father, he is a dear old man, but he is...old. Too old. There have to be heirs, Vaun. The buck who sires my kits has to be vigorous enough to help raise them and assist me with ruling the country."

"Who then? For which of my elder brothers do you harbor this secret love? To my knowledge, none of them ever came before you as a suitor."

"Only one other of House Perseine haunted my steps enough for me to come to love him. My heart was captured many years ago, though I never realized it before, by a young noble in my father's court named Vaunortheses."

"Me!" Vaun exclaimed with incredulous violence. "But I'm not..."

Airy stood on her throne so she was of even height and placed her paw over his mouth.

"You are a hero, Vaun. The people love you, and they'll love you even more as king. Don't you see, it's a fairy tale romance? Our families have been close allies for a thousand years. We were childhood friends. What could be more natural than for us to marry?"

"But my father and his plans. I'm not the eldest son."

"The order of your birth is irrelevant. Meerachaphos can still be Duke after your father. He is no worse off. In fact, your family can only benefit."

"...and you really do love me?"

For a moment, Airy asked herself the same question. Her love for Jak was wild, free, forbidden, and represented everything she desired but couldn't have, while her affection for Vaun was caring, stable, supportive, and everything that she needed to be queen. The trepidation and uncertainty gripping Vaun's soul was exposed, laying his feelings bare for her inspection. Airy held no desire to harm him in any way. Though what she felt towards him was unequal to what she shared with Jak, Airy was grateful that love for her childhood friend resided sincerely in her heart.

"How could I not? You are honorable, loyal, brave, intelligent, open minded, and supportive. You alone held out hope for me when all seemed lost."

"You didn't answer the question."

"I do love you, Vaun. That's the truth. I can have a dozen Wolves brought in here to prove it, but you must sense the rightness of it yourself. We were meant for each other, always, ordained by the Maker to be joined as one. There is no other buck in Rikifur that I will have as my king. My question to you is do you love me in return?"

Vaun began to reply but Airy used both paws to hold his snout shut. Her expression turned anxious and serious. She leaned in close to whisper.

"Before you answer, there are things you must know. I will not let you commit to this without giving you the truth. You are a buck of honor, Vaun. I will not force you to live a lie unless you can accept it and live with it. I only ask that you promise to keep secret what I am about to tell you. You must never tell anyone upon pain of death. Do you understand?"

Vaun's eyes widened in confusion, but he nodded his head.

"I am not a virgin," she confessed with calm conviction.

Vaun's eyes grew wider still. Airy released his snout.

"Were you raped?" he asked quietly fully aware of the implications of her statement.

"Yes, but that is not when I lost my virginity."

Vaun's confusion expanded.

"But who? When? You have never been alone with a buck since your return to Rikifur."

"No buck, Vaun. It was White Paw, and we were very much alone for a long time."

Shock replaced confusion.

"White Paw? A...a Wolf? You're joking. Is this a test of my loyalty, because if it is..."

"Yes. I am testing you, but not in the manner you think. I loved Jak. I still do. Tell me that it is wrong if you can. You know him nearly as well as I do. You two are more like brothers than the offspring of your mother."

Vaun did feel a closer kinship to White Paw than to any of his family with the exception of his father. Whether that made this astonishing revelation harder or easier to accept threatened to topple him from his already fragile moral balancing act. Jealousy, disappointment, scandal, betrayal, and a host of other monsters prowled the seas of his storm-wracked mind. Could he bear to be the cuckold even if only he and Airy knew of it? Did he love her that much?

More than honor and pride troubled Vaun with this exposure to her revelation. Her admission gave him power over her. It also implied that she trusted him far beyond what a loyal subordinate deserved. More terrible still, she had said she would marry no other but him. Her love was a boon greater than any for which he dared hope, but if he refused her, would she really stay unmarried and lose her kingdom forever? If so, the future of Rikifur was resting in his paws. He could not avoid the feeling that he was unworthy of such responsibility.

Too much to comprehend, he struggled to reconcile what he could accept and what he could sacrifice without losing himself.

"I have been told that intimate relations with the other races is wrong," he said at last, "and I believe it is wrong in the same way that I believe you are the Maker's chosen one - an impossible dilemma. How do I abandon one belief for the other?"

"Only you can answer that. This is your choice to make, and I will hold no ill will against you whatever you decide."

Many anxious, uncertain seconds passed. Airy feared Vaun's rejection nearly as intensely as she had dreaded turning Jak away.

"I can't..." he began, "...I cannot reconcile what my moral conscience dictates with the urgings of my heart. Which do I follow? I spent my life fighting for what I had been told by others was right, and then you came back and turned it all upside down. Wolves were enemies. Now they are friends and maybe...more. You constantly defy tradition by blazing a radical new road, and you have brought me far along that path. Everything I was taught to hold sacred and in honor now conflicts with everything I want and desire, and I wonder how much farther can I go with you before I am sundered utterly from who I was?"

"I'm sorry that I created this quandary. You must hate me for it."

"Hate you?" he asked puzzled, uncomprehending the concept. "I could never hate you, Airy. I have loved and respected you ever since we first met. My love holds me here in defiance of tradition, and my respect gives me a weapon to challenge society's tenets."

All evidence of vacillation left him to be replaced by a growing resolve.

"You are strong. I will borrow that strength to fight for my needs instead of the dictates of others. I choose happiness over righteousness. I choose you."

Throwing her arms around Vaun's broad shoulders, Airy kissed him heedless of the presence of the guards and propriety. Unprepared and still impaired by his evolving hangover, Vaun nearly toppled backwards down the steps. He was forced to throw his arms around her for balance and ended up lifting her off her throne. His voice muffled by her mouth, he struggled to speak.

"What about the guards?"

"Let them talk," she answered. "It will be good for morale to spread rumors that the queen has finally chosen her king."

[End of chapter]