Two Kingdoms 16: Garden

[DoctorM]

TWO KINGDOMS 16: GARDEN

Author's Note: This is the fifteenth part of an AU construction about a very different post-1120 Gwynedd where the coronation challenge at Kelson's coronation went rather differently--- very differently. This segment falls maybe a week or so after "Gallery", but a bit prior to "Tower".  As always, input and comments are very much appreciated.


Clear and crisp on a morning in Kharthat, and there are still defiant bursts of colour in the southern autumn, reds and golds all through the carefully-tended flowers of the lord of St.-Stéphane's garden.  There's a young girl at a bench,bent over a long-necked Moorish lute, chestnut hair falling loose over her shoulders, her fingers drawing music out of the strings.

The Shadow Queen is down the close on St.-Stephane's arm. She's all in dark blue this morning. She tilts her head. "She plays beautifully, Thorne. Tell me what it's called."

Thorne Hagen looks back at the girl and smiles. "La Dama i l'Unicorn," he says. "It's her favourite, I think. Mine too, now."

Charissa holds on to his arm and grins. "Of course it is. I like it a lot. And you're in love again."

Hagen makes a face. "Always. But...you know, however not?"

Charissa looks back. "She's lovely, Thorne. Painfully young, but that's always you. I'm glad for you."

"Sometimes," Hagen says, "I see how alive she is at fifteen, and she makes me feel every day of my age. And some mornings I look at her when we wake up and I feel so very young again." He puts a hand over Charissa's. "And I have no idea why I tell you these things."

"Because we're old friends, Thorne. That's why."

"Old friends. And you're a queen, now. I should have been at your wedding, girl. But you know how it is. Barrett and Coram say we're not supposed to look like we're political. We can't look like we're supporting any faction. Even when we are and the whole world can see it."

The Shadow Queen pulls him after her. "Let's walk. We'll listen to your leman play." She half bends to brush a gloved hand along the flowers. "You weren't at the wedding, but you sent gifts. That meant something to me. Casks of wine for me, and you gave Christian a house."

Hagen grins. "That I did. Gave him a house in Dax on the Adour. It has land with it.  I told him that the two of you could always go there for a place in the sun. Someplace not overrun with courtiers and petitioners. And just how is being a queen?"

Charissa considers. "Tiring enough. I'm putting a kingdom together out of bits of things. There's a lot to learn that isn't just high politics and war. I know more now about the Gwynedd wool trade and the wine trade than I thought I ever would. When I was running Tolan and Marluk, I used to say that being a duchess was all about realizing how many people enjoy going to law with their neighbors. I learned more about fish weirs and riverine rights than anyone should ever have to know. And now I know all about how much revenue we raise on the wool trade and how to get wool to cloth towns. I'm a walking compendium of things to know about shipping costs."

Hagen laughs. "That's why I'm just a very ordinary southern baron down here in Autun. I don't have to fight wars, and my seneschals do all the accounting. I can sleep late and spend mornings drinking Moorish kahwa and listening to someone beautiful play sad songs."

Charissa looks over at him. "And you're on the Council. Stefan Coram and the others won't be letting you sleep late."

Hagen sighs. "They want something done about you. A couple of years ago, they were all talking about Alaric Morgan. He was what they worried about— the half-Deryni duke drawing so much attention to himself. And now it's all about you. They keep saying something has to be done. Or at least Coram and Vivienne do."

"I like 'do something'. They can't just say they want me dead. Or that they want me to throw away my crown and go hide in the Tolan 'til Wencit comes to kill me." She draws in a breath. "New song," she says.

Hagen nods and forces a smile. "From up in Fallon, I think: Tristan's Lament. Sad and pretty. The way she plays it makes my heart break."

They turn at the far end of the close. Charissa watches the clouds moving east overhead, moving in from the sea. "Thorne. I'm going to put a kingdom together at Valoret. I'm going to hold it. I'm going to pass it on to my heirs. And I think... I'm getting very tired of the Council."

"Kyri was here. Or did you know that?"

Charissa is still looking up at the clouds. "That girl loves a Portal," she says. "She never could stay in one place. She  saw me in Valoret. I'm sure she told you."

"She did. She says you're as infuriating as you always were, but that she doesn't want to see you dead. She'd never say it, but you're standing up to Wencit and the Haldanes both, and she admires that. She likes women who stand up to men."

"She worries that I mean to burn the world down."

"I remember seeing the two of you a long time ago," Thorne Hagen says. "Shadow and Flame, people said. That's what people called you. Kyri and I...we both care about you."

"I know you do.  That's why I'm here. Whatever the Council does, I don't want anything to happen to you and Kyri."  Her smile is suddenly dazzling. "Shadow and Flame— I hadn't heard that. Flame. I'll start calling her that."

Hagen turns to her. "The Council... They never care what I hear or what I know. All the clerks and agents talk like I'm not there. Everybody talks in front of me; they don't even see me. I'm not important enough for them to care. I know that. I sit at the Council table because I was someone who didn't matter enough for anyone to dislike. I have a vote, but I don't have any supporters and I don't have any plans. I'm just there as a place filler. But I hear everything. They're talking themselves into something.  Lots of whispers in ears from clerks and aides. It feels like some Forcinn town just before the knives come out and the government gets changed."

"I won't ask you to spy for me." She points at the trees by the wall. "I like the autumn here. It's an early winter in Valoret. I like it that there's still colour here. Christian has lands in south Bremagne, at Veira. He always talks about Autun, about the coasts and the wine country.  When everything's done and over, I'll have to come see it all.  Thorne— I don't want you to spy for me. Just...tell me if there's a vote. Let me know if they outlaw me. And then...you and Kyri need to be away from it all."

"Rhydon was here, too," Hagen says. "Wencit sent him down to bully me. Rhydon's good at that."

"Bully or blackmail?"

Hagen draws in a breath. "No. No. He doesn't know about her, about Moira.  I'm sure of that."

Charissa tightens her hand around his. "She'd be safe at Valoret if it comes to it-- if they threaten that, Wencit and Rhydon. You'd both be safe with me. That's an open offer."

"Charissa, I'm...ridiculous. I know that."  He's looking at the trees, looking away from her. "I'm over fifty and I'm fat and losing my hair. I dye what's left and put rouge on my cheeks and tell myself I look thirty. I'm not much of a Deryni adept. I'm a joke on the Council. People laugh at me— for being old and thinking young girls can love me.  I'm ridiculous, but I won't let anything happen to her, to Moira. One day, somehow, I have to stand up to someone, to Coram or Rhydon. I have to."

"No." Her voice is quiet and crisp. "Thorne, you're not ridiculous. How long have I known you?  I never thought that. Pensa-ho per tu mateix. You've always cared about people. You care about the girls you have in your life. You're kind and you're loyal to friends. I remember seeing you at Beldour when I was young and they wanted my lands and wanted me married off to Aldred. You told me that I could fight that. You told me that one day I'd get to sit on a riverbank and watch all their corpses float by. You even told me that I'd get to marry Christian some day. Look— being vain's not the worst thing in the world. And being able to be in love, that's isomething that matters. You're a good man. You're not a joke. Come to Valoret if you need to— both of you."

"Rhydon wanted to make sure I'd vote to outlaw you. He knows Kyri won't, and that scares me, too. Wencit wants a unanimous vote. He wants you repudiated as a Deryni. He wants you hiding from Council agents. He wants to see you destroyed in a duel-arcane. Or maybe just poisoned or stabbed. He wants the Council to not care if Rhydon comes after you all on his own." Hagen is twisting his hands together. "He wants Coram and Vivienne and Claron drinking toasts when you're dead and his own hands are clean. That's what Wencit wants. It's what he sent Rhydon to say— he wants me to be part of it."

Charissa nods. "That's about what I thought." She looks down the close at the girl. Her voice changes. "I like this song, too."

Hagen shrugs. "It's an old one." He's almost whispering."My Johnny Was a Shoemaker.  Kyri likes to dance to it. When she does, you see why people call her Flame."

Charissa leans her head on his shoulder. "I have my own thoughts on that.. My own reasons."

"Well, of course you do: Shadow and Flame. I know. We won't be part of it— not Kyri, not me. I won't vote against you. Kyri won't, either. Rhydon wants me to carry tales to the others,  to the Council and the staff, about what you're like. About how you rule. I won't do that, either."

The Shadow Queen nods. "Come to Valoret. Or go to the emirates. I can send you to  where I get my Moors. Rhydon can't touch you there, not now or ever. I'd rather have both of you at Valoret, mind. But I'll see you both safe. Remember that."

Thorne Hagen smiles his self-deprecating smile. "I'll miss this house if I have to leave. I wanted Moira to see the gardens in spring. Is it very cold at Valoret?"

"Not to a Tolan glrl.  But maybe I'll stop the Council. There is that."

"You can't fight the whole world. Three fronts, that's a lot in any war."

Charissa runs a finger along the scar on her nose.  "I just have to be lucky. Pick the right allies, pick the right enemies. And I have to be lucky. But I am going to have a kingdom, and when I'm done,  it'll last and there'll be a Festillic heir on the throne.. And I love these colours. I'll bring Christian to see them next time." She looks at Hagen and nods back at the house. "Come to Valoret if it gets dangerous here. You and Moira both. Knock on my door any day, any hour. Always. Right now, let's go have kahwa. Bring your young lady, Thorne. I'm sure she and I can talk about you all morning."

[Jerusha]

A nice little interlude as the plotting of the Council comes further into light.  The Shadow Queen has a lot on her plate; three fronts are a lot to face. 

[DoctorM]

A nice little interlude as the plotting of the Council comes further into light.  The Shadow Queen has a lot on her plate; three fronts are a lot to face.

Indeed so. We'll have to see how it all spins itself out!

[DerynifanK]

Very interesting interlude. Charissa is loyal to her friends and will protect them, a definite plus for her. That is not really what I would have expected. I can understand why Kyri is afraid she is going to burn everything down. After all she had something of a scorched earth policy in Rhemuth. She said she did not order the burning but I'm not sure I believe her, If she didn't order it directly, I'm sure she made her wishes known by some means. What i have trouble getting a handle on is the function of the Camberian Council which seems inconsistent. It doesn't  always make sense. What exactly are they trying to achieve? Who knows, it doesn't seem that even they are sure. And I never got the impression that Wencit was looked on with any favor by the Council. And I thought Thorn Hagen had been forced off the Council. However, your dialog is great and it certainly provides a different view of Charissa. I fear she may be biting off more than she can chew. We'll just have to see what happens next.

[DoctorM]

Very interesting interlude. Charissa is loyal to her friends and will protect them, a definite plus for her. That is not really what I would have expected. I can understand why Kyri is afraid she is going to burn everything down. After all she had something of a scorched earth policy in Rhemuth. She said she did not order the burning but I'm not sure I believe her, If she didn't order it directly, I'm sure she made her wishes known by some means. What i have trouble getting a handle on is the function of the Camberian Council which seems inconsistent. It doesn't  always make sense. What exactly are they trying to achieve? Who knows, it doesn't seem that even they are sure. And I never got the impression that Wencit was looked on with any favor by the Council. And I thought Thorn Hagen had been forced off the Council. However, your dialog is great and it certainly provides a different view of Charissa. I fear she may be biting off more than she can chew. We'll just have to see what happens next.

It bothered me, too. The Council in "High Deryni" talked a lot, quarreled, and seemed to not know what they wanted. They half-act like they have some kind of supervisory authority and half-act like they're just one more political  faction. And there are the inner group of councilors and then agents as well-- some group of agents was sent to dispose of the fake Council observers Wencit tried to have at the duel he proposed.

Hagen tells Rhydon at one point in the novel that Wencit could've been on the Council if he'd been "more obedient", whatever that means (and which makes Rhydon laugh).

In KK's novels, there's a turnover at the council after Wencit and Coram die, and Hagen is forced to resign. But here, Hagen is still a member c. 1122/23. And Rhydon may-- may --still be alive.

The idea in "Arrows and Glass" and "Smoke and Sunlight" is that Aurelian and Christian planned the fires at Rhemuth behind Charissa's back, at the same time Christian planned Ian Howell's death and the coup at the coronation. He does spend time in "Smoke and Sunlight" offering her his apologies.

[DerynifanK]

Thanks for that info. Reading and rereading the books, I never could get a good handle on the purpose of the Council. Were they protecting or policing Deryni or maybe a bit of both? As you said, much of the time, they seemed unsure of what their purpose really was and they seemed to spend more time arguing than really accomplishing anything. And their influence seemed to wane in the later books. Kelson turned down a seat on the Council and didn't seem too impressed with them.
Shame on Christian for the burning. He certainly didn't help Charissa's reputation or make it any easier for her to win over the nobles or the people where she was trying to build a kingdom if that was part of her plan.
It will be interesting to see where this goes.

[Laurna]

Good Conversation, I pictured Thorn a little more self indulgent than how Charissa sees him, but a good scene.   It did leave me wondering if Rhydon was "Rhydon" at this point. I had long imagined that Coram became Rhydon several years before ( Codex states March 3 1116 is when Rhydon Died and Coram took his place) but of course this is an AU and being such it just might be that Rhydon NOT DYEING is the catalyst that brought about this whole change of events. If it is the real Rhydon second to Wencit, than I imagine that Charissa really does have a serious second threat in that pair that she has to overcome alongside the Haldanes.

I am curious about the Council if they ever learned of Alaric's and Duncan's healing abilities. They might have had too many other troubles to talk about that  it might never have come u.  Perhaps,  the Haldane faction has been  on the run since the coronation and it is very possible that Alaric and Duncan never told Denis about the healing they did at the Coronation. Though I am now thinking that they should know about the Healing. Did Alaric have to Heal Kelson to get him alive out of Rhemuth?

I am curious to see what the CC intend to do and how Charissa handles them.

[DoctorM]

Good Conversation, I pictured Thorn a little more self indulgent than how Charissa sees him, but a good scene.   It did leave me wondering if Rhydon was "Rhydon" at this point. I had long imagined that Coram became Rhydon several years before ( Codex states March 3 1116 is when Rhydon Died and Coram took his place) but of course this is an AU and being such it just might be that Rhydon NOT DYING is the catalyst that brought about this whole change of events. If it is the real Rhydon second to Wencit, than I imagine that Charissa really does have a serious second threat in that pair that she has to overcome alongside the Haldanes.

I am curious about the Council if they ever learned of Alaric's and Duncan's healing abilities. They might have had too many other troubles to talk about that  it might never have come u.  Perhaps,  the Haldane faction has been  on the run since the coronation and it is very possible that Alaric and Duncan never told Denis about the healing they did at the Coronation. Though I am now thinking that they should know about the Healing. Did Alaric have to Heal Kelson to get him alive out of Rhemuth?

I am curious to see what the CC intend to do and how Charissa handles them.

Laurna-- some interesting thoughts. I've been wondering about Rhydon. Alive or dead? He's a shadowy figure in the books, with unclear motivations. (I once read a long-ago Deryni fan group post at Livejournal that insisted strongly that Wencit and Rhydon were a couple) I like the idea of Aurelian hunting for him and finding out that Rhydon is dead, but I also like him as Wencit's enforcer. If he is dead, I'm wondering if Coram had him killed...

I don't think Morgan and Duncan have had any chance to show Healing powers (is Healing lost altogether, or just in Gwynedd? I was never altogether clear on that) and draw attention from the Council. Alaric Morgan was carried off from the chaos at the coronation, shell-shocked and singed from the arcane strike Charissa leveled at him when he wounded Christian, and I do imagine Haldane guards and servants whisking Kelson away as the fighting began.

I like the idea of a secret war atop the two ordinary ones been waged, so we'll see...

[DoctorM]

Thanks for that info. Reading and rereading the books, I never could get a good handle on the purpose of the Council. Were they protecting or policing Deryni or maybe a bit of both? As you said, much of the time, they seemed unsure of what their purpose really was and they seemed to spend more time arguing than really accomplishing anything. And their influence seemed to wane in the later books. Kelson turned down a seat on the Council and didn't seem too impressed with them.
Shame on Christian for the burning. He certainly didn't help Charissa's reputation or make it any easier for her to win over the nobles or the people where she was trying to build a kingdom if that was part of her plan.
It will be interesting to see where this goes.

Do remember Christian's profession. He was brought up to be a hired cavalryman-- it's the family trade --out on the steppe. Burning a town or a city probably strikes him as part of life. He probably has to grow from light-horse captain into a courtier and diplomat. 

[Nezz]

These have been fascinating little vignettes, a glimpse of Charissa and who she really might have been, as opposed to The Shadowed One (oooh, scary!) who was evil and died without us knowing any more about her.

I really hope that you're using these shorts as a practice for an actual novel you plan to publish some day. Obviously you can't use KK's world or characters, but earth-type medieval setting would work: letting us get to know this young queen who is known to be so evil but perhaps she isn't really as evil as everyone wants to believe. In fact, (if I were the one calling the shots) it would be really cool if you were to write a story about this woman, and—like in the movie Sliding Doors—you could give us her life as a queen after she wins the crown, but also show us her alternative self when she doesn't win the crown.

Just my 2¢... I enjoy these.

Also: Maybe you can give us a list on how to read them in chronological order (so far)? And do have an actual ending in mind, or are these just fun scenes that you've enjoyed writing?

[DoctorM]

These have been fascinating little vignettes, a glimpse of Charissa and who she really might have been, as opposed to The Shadowed One (oooh, scary!) who was evil and died without us knowing any more about her.

I really hope that you're using these shorts as a practice for an actual novel you plan to publish some day. Obviously you can't use KK's world or characters, but earth-type medieval setting would work: letting us get to know this young queen who is known to be so evil but perhaps she isn't really as evil as everyone wants to believe. In fact, (if I were the one calling the shots) it would be really cool if you were to write a story about this woman, and—like in the movie Sliding Doors—you could give us her life as a queen after she wins the crown, but also show us her alternative self when she doesn't win the crown.

Just my 2¢... I enjoy these.

Also: Maybe you can give us a list on how to read them in chronological order (so far)? And do have an actual ending in mind, or are these just fun scenes that you've enjoyed writing?

Thank you! And I hope you will keep reading along and commenting! I do enjoy comments and input.

I'll get you a chronological list for the stories. "Faces and Hands" is probably the first one by timeline, then "Smoke and Sunlight". The current arc probably begins with "Departures" and "Entr'acte".

I do see ways to turn a lot of the story into a non-KK tale, and I'll have to explore that. I like Charissa's character rather a lot, and I like her personality.

Anyway-- many thanks!