Torgan Wine Ch. 19

"A wise course brother. I was going to suggest it."

Isonei chewed on her inner lip. To pass under the gate without speaking to the Daga would be beyond rude. To slip out with trickery couldn't be permitted. She opened her mouth to object only to have Draeseth close it with a finger under her chin and a look that told her not to argue.

"I'll send Taugh the moment we enter the city."

"We can wait at the bathhouse and be refreshed and in clean clothes when we cross into Torga." Burgath smiled. "The bathhouse is something to see Lady Isonei."

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Oyeth Lothlaeri was easily as loud as any Aran city Isonei had been in. Not that she had frequented many. Her father preferred the countryside as did the Dagas she was accustomed to visiting, but she had always been fascinated at the thought of great swarming cities of people.

Still, seeing so many Lerians in one place was somehow odd. All of them with varying shades of grey skin and hair that ranged from so pale a yellow as to be nearly white, to shades of golden honey. Green eyes, some tinged with brown like her Daga's followed the carriage with some curiosity.

In Ara there was more variation, very few Arans had green eyes but the rest ranged from shades of brown to blues, violets, and silvers, and to be in a crowd without seeing the blue of Aran skin at all or the whites and greys of Aran hair... It occurred to her suddenly that Torga would be the same. It made something twist unhappily in her belly.

The carriage came to a stop in front of a bustling stone building and Isonei was helped out, staying close to Draeseth and observing the people in the surrounding markets. Paying closer attention she could see that a large number of the grey and brown cloaked men seemed to be wearing the blood colored sashes of Lothlaerith and had weapons by their sides. One noticed her looking at them all so curiously and frowned at her. The way she leaned closer to Draeseth and peered at the man around the large Torgan's arm seemed to be amusing. The Lerian pointed it out to another man near him and they laughed.

"Come, wife." Draeseth pulled her close, turning her to face him. "We will have some refreshment before bathing. Krouth will have our clothes prepared for us and waiting when we are finished."

Inside the stone building were large open spaces filled with people standing and sitting, talking and lounging. Isonei allowed herself to be drawn along to a small alcove where a servant had begun laying a meal on a wooden table, with forks and knives next to the plates. The Torgan Princes spoke their indecipherable language between themselves as she picked at her meal. The meat that was served had the odd sour taste she knew from the meats at the Aran dinner and with her stomach already in knots it was unpalatable. She chose to eat the strange vegetables and bread served with it instead.

When he finally noticed, Draeseth frowned at her with concern, "The meat is not to your liking?"

"I'm sorry, no." She gave him an apologetic half smile. "The vegetables and bread were better."

"I will find something more filling for you in Torga." He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers.

"Thank you." Isonei's smile felt more solid at his assurance.

Finishing their meal, they walked together to the entrance to the baths. The Princes moved to go in the men's entrance and Isonei was meant to go into the women's. She hesitated, worrying her lip nervously.

Draeseth walked back to her with a faint smile. "Wife, if you cling so much in Torga they will wonder how you survived without me."

"You've been here before and I haven't. Where do I undress? Where will I find my fresh clothes? Are there rules I should know?"

"Go inside. You will see the chambers to undress in and Krouth will take this dress and leave you the fresh one. The rules are simple, do not stare and do not accost anyone."

She nodded tentatively and made her way inside, glancing back to see him watching her still with his faint smile. Once inside she tried to watch the other women and see where they went. The chambers to undress in weren't as obvious as Draeseth had seemed to think.

"Are you lost?" A soft voice came from behind her.

"I am unsure." Isonei turned to see a smiling woman the same age as her mothers.

"You wish to bathe?"

"Yes, please. Uhhmm..."

The woman gently took her arm and led her back toward some small hidden chambers without doors or curtains. "Undress here child and I will show you where to bathe. You are Aran?"

"Yes, but my Daga is Liadith."

That seemed to amuse the woman, who stood watching as Isonei undressed, pulling down her hair, and carefully laid her clothes on the bench. "You've bathed in his baths?"

"Yes. They are not as this."

"These are Daga Lothlaerith's baths. He has them kept for all."

"They are lovely, and very large." Isonei looked around and up at the arched ceilings.

"Come with me, child. If you've used Lerian baths before I will allow you to bathe with us and not use those reserved for the ignorant." The woman's green eyes seemed to twinkle.

"I thank you. I would not like to bathe with uhhmm the unwashed."

The woman laughed and nodded. She was led to a room with bathing stools and bottles of soaps allowing the woman to choose two for them both, sitting to wash herself well, including her hair. The baths themselves were much more Aran than Lerian in Isonei's opinion. There were large sunken pools of steaming water except these were replete with lounging bathers. The walls were covered in painted tiles like the sides of the tubs in her Daga's house.

Following the older woman into the water Isonei got strange looks from some of the other bathers. Two of them frowned at her as they approached.

"Mother, why have you brought... that into the baths? The ignorant are meant to bathe with each other."

"Her Daga is Liadith; she isn't ignorant, just Aran." The older woman smiled at her and motioned her closer and Isonei gratefully came to lounge next to her on a smooth seat, promptly sinking to her neck and rubbing her shoulders.

"Liadith? Perhaps you can tell us what he's like?" The other girl smirked. "I was thinking of visiting. An unmatched Daga is a rarity."

"My Daga has been matched. Lady Arissa, a daughter of Gildith. They are well-suited."

"When did this happen?" The older woman looked surprised.

"Uhhmm, two days? We have travelled and it is-"

"A match isn't announced to travelers." The girl who had referred to her as 'that', snapped.

"Those who are there know." Isonei frowned at her.

"You were staying at his house at the time of the ceremony?" A listener scoffed incredulously. "What did Lothlaerith send?"

Counting off on her fingers Isonei answered nonchalantly, "Daga Gildith gave linens, I gave uhhmm a personal thing. Prince Draeseth gave a pretty decanter and Phaethian Vresin; Prince Burgath gave Torgan cloth from the King of Torga. House Ernelis gave golden cups. If Daga Lothlaerith sent a gift yet it was not arrived."

"Who are you to give a personal gift to a Daga and speak as though you attended the festivities?" The smirking girl had stopped smirking and was glaring at her.

"I am Isonei of House Ernelis, daughter of Liadith." Isonei shrugged with a frown half expecting them to react the way that Hesh-Caeridith had. The bathers around her went quiet.

"Wh-why are you not bathing in the Daga's private baths?" The motherly older woman stared at her in disbelief.

"I travel with two Torgan Princes. They ask to see the Daga, we wait and bathe. They think he will not see us. It pleases to be clean yes or no." She shrugged again, sitting up with a frown, "If no I go to Torga today. I think he will say yes." Pausing she tried to think of how to phrase her thoughts. "Arissa is lovely but sometimes not so nice." Isonei gestured to the two young women, "Like you. She says here they are cold. But she is uhhmmm," she mimed pinching near the older woman.

"She annoys." The older woman said with surprise.

"She can, yes. She is as a sister. I love her also when she is not so nice but I know uhhmm she does this. The Daga cannot be so cold."

"Does the Daga know who you're travelling with?" Another woman asked with concern.

Isonei sighed and held up her hands. "I think yes. But Hesh-Caeridith and Onsh-Caeridith did not know."

"The Daga will know when he sees you but if he hasn't been told to expect you..." The woman nearly leapt from the pool rushing back to the changing chambers.

Sinking back into the water up to her neck she closed her eyes and tried to relax. Someone would tell the Daga now and the Torgans would be greeted. She would get to do her duty and speak to Daga Lothlaerith before she left but being sneaky about arranging it this way made her feel uncomfortable.

The feeling of someone picking up her feet made her open her eyes. The motherly woman had moved to her feet. "You look very tense my dear Lady. I used to do this for my match." She began to rub one of Isonei's feet.

"I have some fear but I made promises. Prince Draeseth says I will return as I please. But there is still..." She made fluttering and twisting motions over her belly.

"Daughters are not meant to leave Leria." Another woman came and knelt behind her outside of the water, rubbing her shoulders and neck. Before long Isonei had been turned so that several women could rub her back, legs, and feet, relaxing her entirely and sending her into a blissful half doze.

How long she lingered in the warm water being massaged she wasn't sure, but when she heard the startled gasps and outraged tones of women in the baths she knew she had stayed too long. Opening her eyes and looking in that direction she saw Draeseth fully clothed and scowling as he stalked through looking for her.

"Thank you for your kindness. It is time to leave." Isonei spoke softly to the women.

"You should stay longer." One of the women squeezed her shoulders.

"She should not." Draeseth came to stand over her looking both annoyed and amused. "I have been waiting for you until I could bear the thoughts of you being stolen away no longer, woman. Only to find you being rubbed into submission by Lerian women. I cannot even allow you to bathe without me." He squatted at the water's edge where her arms were folded and lifted her out with a grunt, teasing, "Get dressed and come meet us or I will put you in the carriage like this."

"You are wicked." She tried to hold a mock pout as he pointed back the way he had come from with an indecent smirk. "I know where I left my clothes; I will dress and meet you." He grunted again and started back toward the entrance. "I may even do it promptly." That earned her a look that made her grin.

The women were looking at her in surprise as she turned back to them for a moment. "He is more a kitten than a beast. Very playful. I feel much better now. Lighter. I thank you."

Dressed in a clean Torgan gown and with her hair brushed and braided by one of the women who had followed her back to fetch her clothes, Isonei met the two Princes and Krouth with a warm smile.

"Were you truly being massaged by a half dozen Lerian women?" Burgath looked at her with a mixture of annoyance and lewd interest on his face.

"I think there were only four or five of them, it was blissful though. I hadn't realized how tense I was until it was all rubbed out of me." She took Draeseth's hand and kissed his fingers.

"I will rub you as much as you desire at home in the Torga Kroscur, woman." He looked as relaxed as she felt. "The Daga has declined to meet with us. We leave now for the Great Gate."

That he had declined stung, leaving without speaking to the Daga was too rude to allow. "Did you tell the Daga I'm with you?"

Draeseth laid her hand on his arm and led her toward the carriage, "He was told we travel with my Aran wife and that we are coming from visiting with Liadith. I know it concerns you. You do not wish to be rude, but he is the one who has made the choice to be. You hold no blame, wife."

She worried her lip with her teeth and looked up in surprise as the man who'd frowned and laughed at her earlier approached purposefully with a small group of men. "That's her, Commander, the woman my sister spoke of."

The man he called Commander was impressively stocky for a Lerian, with hair the golden brown color of forest honey. The man's face was set in a scowl that could rival any of Draeseth's and his blue-green sash was worn diagonally across his chest instead of his hips.

"You claim to be a daughter of Liadith?" He spoke sharply as if he expected her to deny it.

"I am Isonei of House Ernelis, daughter of Liadith."

"And my wife, the Duchess of Kroscur." Draeseth growled glaring at the man.

"You were given a ceremony?" The Commander snapped again.

"No. But my Daga recognizes the match as a temporary one that may be made permanent." Isonei switched back to Lerian to explain as the man looked at her dubiously. "No, but my Daga uhhmm..."

"Fetch one of the Arans who can speak properly." At his words Isonei stiffened and one of the men split away from the group at speed.

"I can translate for my wife." Draeseth stroked her hand as if to soothe her.

"Perhaps you can tell me why a woman claiming to be a daughter of Liadith can barely speak our tongue." His green eyes looked as though a fire was lit behind them, the shades seeming to dance and flicker.

"She was absent from her home for a long time. Liadith waited too long to claim her and she was kept in Ara."

"Why would he bother to claim her only to allow her to leave with a Torgan?"

"You will find Torga warmer than this place, Lady Isonei." Burgath spoke quietly into the silence as she stared at the Commander in shock.

"If not I will be returning to my Daga before my things are unpacked."

Before she could say more the Commander interrupted, "You will speak Lerian, not converse among yourselves in that tongue."

"I found one in the market, Commander." The soldier was nearly dragging an Aran man dressed in Lerian garb by his elbow.

"I am Yorath of House Iarmaris what..." He stopped speaking on seeing Isonei for a brief moment. "You're Lady Isonei? The one who caused such a fuss at the last Festival of Maeralya? Yornaith said you were beautiful enough to catch Prince Andnaeuth's eye but..." He trailed off as she gave him an amused smile, speaking to him of her eldest brother would have to wait.

"My Lerian is not what it should be, and we're in need of a translator. Would you be so kind, Yorath of House Iarmaris?" Her smile warmed as he inclined his head graciously.

"Of course Lady Isonei."

"I am Isonei of House Ernelis, daughter of Liadith, and until the next Festival I am Prince Draeseth's wife and the Duchess of Kroscur. My Daga recognizes the match as a temporary one that may be made permanent."

He translated promptly adding, "I know nothing of her claim to be a daughter of Liadith." The Commander's scowl deepened, something she hadn't thought possible.

"Daga Lothlaerith will know if she truly is a daughter of Liadith. I would know if she has his permission to be here with this... Torgan." His green eyes raked over her and seemed to dismiss her, "A match should not be temporary."

"She has King Tamnaeuth's grudging permission to go to Torga, the priests and courts compelled him to allow it. And for Arans exclusivity must be renewed; only arrangements are permanent." Yorath volunteered.

"Exclusivity is as close as Arans come to marriage or a match. That is why her Daga recognizes this match but only as a temporary one. For now." Burgath smoothly informed them. "She will be greeted as my brother's wife in Torga, a role she has already come to accept."

"Prove to me your Daga has allowed you to travel without him. Did he give you a letter or some sort of sign to show that this is permitted?" The Commander turned his scowl back on her.

"That I am travelling without my Daga should be proof that I am permitted. I would not sneak away from my Daga's house!" Isonei frowned at him. "I have no letter, but I do-"

"No. That is not something I am willing to allow you to show a stranger." Draeseth murmured firmly to her. "That was a gift for you, not for the eyes of others."

Yorath translated again in a quiet rush.

"What did your Daga give you, Lady Isonei?" The Commander's icy tone betrayed no curiosity, only what felt like a certainty that this charade was about to come to an end.

"He sent a piece of home with me. My Daga painted a picture of me on the sarg of his father, my second father. I sat with the elder Daga daily while I was home."

The Aran paused before translating that carefully.

"Show me." The Commander's eyes seemed to shimmer.

She looked to Krouth, opening her mouth to ask if it were on the carriage or the carts, but the man answered before she could ask. "It is on the carriage at Daga Caeridith's insistence Lady Isonei."

"Thank you. I may need to write him another thank you letter."

Draeseth and Burgath both looked incensed as the carriage was unloaded where it stood and the box was pried open. The soldiers stepped back on seeing the painting but the Commander stood rooted in place with his face softening and his hand rising immediately to rest over his heart.

"You are loved, and yet..." He glanced to the Torgans and her arm resting on Draeseth's, his face resuming its displeased expression. "Daga Lothlaerith will know what to do. Bring the daughter of Liadith."

"I had hoped to see him but we were refused." Isonei frowned. "I am travelling with Princes Draeseth and Burgath it would be rude to-"

"Lady Isonei," Yorath cut her off. "You'll find that the Daga here rarely sees anyone. If you are asked to see him alone you do it without arguing."

Keeping her voice coolly polite, Isonei fixed the glowering Commander with an icy gaze. "I seldom argue with Dagas, but I am not travelling alone. If they were less than Princes perhaps the slight could be understood. But I have no intention of seeing the Daga without them. If that means he will not see me, so be it. Please ask them to put our things back onto the carriage and we will continue our journey."

Yorath swallowed and licked his lips looking trapped before he timidly translated her words.

"Bring the carriage; they will wait in the... welcoming chamber, for Daga Lothlaerith's decision." For the briefest moment cold amusement crossed his face.

One of the soldiers opened the carriage door and gestured mockingly for them to enter it. Draeseth helped Isonei in first. Krouth and Taugh were also instructed to sit inside with them as one of the soldiers took the reins. The four spoke in quiet heated tones to one another in Torgan. Eventually something seemed to be decided and the speaking stopped entirely.

Isonei tried to stroke Draeseth's arm but the man simply scowled, not acknowledging her.

"Your wife refused to see the Daga alone and required us to be extended the hospitality he would show her, and you sit as if she offended you?" Burgath gave him a hard look.

Trying to keep her disappointment out of her voice she adjusted her position to lean against the window. "He goes cold when-"