Chapter 19
Syrus
Something had changed.
When Syrus had parted ways with Eiri earlier, he’d been smiling, and there had been a sense of tentative peace between the two of them.
Now, it was as though the last two days hadn’t happened.
When he arrived to take Eiri to meet Xan and Ellis, that peace had vanished.
Eiri was tense and quiet, shadows lingering in his eyes that hadn’t been there just a few hours ago.
Even when Syrus told him he’d packed food so they could all eat somewhere besides the room, Eiri barely mustered a half smile.
He watched Eiri from behind now as the four of them made their way to the private room he’d found for them. Ellis took the lead, walking beside Eiri and trying to coax him into conversation, while Syrus and Xan walked behind.
“Is everything all right?” Xan murmured. “I thought you said the two of you were in agreement about this?”
“We are. Or at least, we were when I left earlier. I don’t know what happened, unless he started second-guessing me for some reason.” He’d thought they were past that, but perhaps that was too much to hope for so quickly.
“If he does, do you still want to do this?” He glared at Xan, who just shrugged it off and continued. “It’s just a question. I want to be sure before I throw myself into a plan to defy the queen. Being family won’t save me if this ends badly.”
“It’s going to be fine. We’re not planning anything treasonous, just trying to create peace for everyone.”
“You may want to remind your new husband of that, since he looks like he’s having second thoughts.” Xan tilted his head, studying Eiri. “You know, I’ve never actually seen him this close before. He’s rather pretty, isn’t he?”
Syrus bit back a scowl. There was no reason for the wild surge of jealousy he felt at Xan’s comment.
He and Eiri were only legally married. They didn’t have a relationship, physical or otherwise, so there was no call for him to be bothered by someone else noticing what he, himself, was struggling not to notice.
Namely, that Eiri was a very attractive man.
“I couldn’t say,” he said stiffly, which just made the situation worse, because no one could read him like Xan could, and the mischievous glint in his eyes said he knew what Syrus wasn’t saying.
“I didn’t realize how tall he was until I got this close to him. Pretty eyes, too,” he teased, but at least he was keeping his voice low. “A bit skinny for my personal preference, of course, but still…”
“Could you stop?” Syrus hissed, scowling when Xan winked at him. “Why did I think it was a good idea to include you in this, again?”
“Because I’m the most politically savvy person you know and one of perhaps three people in this entire palace you can trust,” he said promptly.
“That’s… fine, that’s true. Still, would you please stop commenting on my husband’s looks?” That came out sounding far more possessive than he’d intended.
“Alright, I’m done. Really,” Xan said when Syrus shot him a disbelieving look. “I was curious about something, but now I have an answer, so I don’t need to bother you about it anymore.”
“Is this it, Syrus?” Ellis asked, and Syrus grasped at the reprieve as they stopped in front of a door on the first floor.
“This is it,” he nodded, stepping forward and unlocking the door to reveal the room he’d chosen.
It was small, but the far wall consisted almost entirely of spelled glass, giving them an uninterrupted view of the storm and the ocean in the distance.
“It’s private and, more important, it’s small enough to ward. Xan, would you mind?”
“Simple enough. Don’t get into the food without me, though,” Xan warned.
He pulled out a bit of chalk and got to work, creating the silencing sigils in each corner and imbuing each with a touch of magic.
Syrus didn’t truly understand magic well, but he’d spent enough time around mages by now to have a general idea of how spells worked.
“Eiri, is this alright?” he finally addressed him for the first time since they’d left the room.
“Hmm? Oh, yes. Yes, it’s fine,” Eiri said.
He’d changed into his own clothes, but even the unusual Canjiri clothing seemed muted somehow.
Rather than the loose, flowing pants he’d been favoring, today he’d chosen fitted black trousers made of soft leather and paired them with a long-sleeved shirt that was tailored to his slender body.
It was creamy white, embroidered with threads of silver that only became visible under the light.
It was a lovely outfit on Eiri, but it was unusual to see him without the brighter colors Syrus was already coming to associate with him.
Ellis, proving he was far more perceptive than Syrus had been at that age, took the basket and busied himself with setting the food out, giving the two of them a semblance of privacy.
“Did something happen?” Syrus asked, keeping his voice down and angling his body in toward Eiri. “You seem upset about something.”
Eiri didn’t look up at him, his focus locked on his hands. That in itself told him that something was wrong. It also said that Eiri was about to lie to him.
“If you’re not going to tell me the truth, I’d prefer you didn’t tell me anything at all,” Syrus interrupted before Eiri could do more than open his mouth.
“I’m not judging you or trying to be an ass, but I want this to work between us, and that can’t happen if we’re not honest with each other.
We can just not talk about it, if you’d prefer. ”
Eiri plucked at the hem of his sleeve, tugging at a loose thread until it began to unravel. Only then did he finally look up at Syrus. “Can we not talk about it right now, then?”
Even though it’d been his suggestion, Syrus wanted to push the issue, to find out what could have happened in just a few hours to change things so drastically. For now, though, he forced himself to have patience.
“That’s fine. Let’s sit and eat with Xan and Ellis before we get started on anything else.”
Eiri nodded his agreement, and Syrus shifted, stepping to the side so he was no longer blocking the younger man in.
“What is this room usually used for? It’s pretty,” Eiri said, looking around at the tall windows gracing the wall. It wasn’t much, as far as distractions went, but it was better than nothing.
“I’m not sure what its original purpose was, but it’s mostly forgotten about now, since it’s out of the way.
A few courtiers have used it in the past, for reasons I prefer not to think of.
The only people I know of who still use it regularly are mages, I believe.
Something about the view helping them focus?
” he shrugged. “I don’t understand magic, so it could be true. ”
“It’s not,” Xan chimed in over his shoulder from where he was finishing the last sigil. “They probably like it because it’s far enough away that no one would know if they accidentally set something on fire.”
Eiri laughed, so Syrus chose to forgive Xan for his comments out in the hallway. “It seems like mages and their tendency to accidentally cause fires isn’t exclusive to Canjir, then.”
“Is magic very common there?” Ellis asked, tilting his head. He always reminded Syrus of a curious puppy when he did that, not that he’d ever tell his brother that. “I’ve never heard much about Canjiri mages.”
Come to think of it, neither had he. Mages would have made his life much more of a hassle when dealing with the raiders. Why wouldn’t they use them if they had them?
“Not overly so,” Eiri said. “There are mages on the island, just like there are everywhere, but there are so few of them that they tend to stick close to home.”
“I don’t blame them. I have no desire to be in a fight,” Xan agreed.
“I have basic combat experience because somebody pressured me into it.” He cast a significant glance at Syrus, who just shrugged.
He wasn’t ashamed that he’d made sure his cousin could protect himself.
“But I prefer a more academic path with my magic.”
“That’s a lie,” Syrus snorted. “Academic. Please. You did enough studying to get you through basic magical training, then went on with your life. I don’t think I’ve seen you open a book since then.”
“I’ve opened plenty of books since then. They’re just far more interesting than dull textbooks on ancient magic history.”
“I like ancient magic history,” Ellis murmured, his face going red when Xan reached out and patted his arm.
“I know. Without knowing Eiri very well, I’d still say you’re the smartest one in the room, darling.”
Syrus knew he needed to get them focused and back on track before his brother completely melted down. Xan likely wasn’t doing it on purpose, since he seemed to be the only person in the entire city who didn’t know how Ellis felt about him, but that didn’t help matters.
“Alright, let’s eat, then we can focus on the problem at hand before we all get distracted again,” he cut in. He slid into the seat next to Eiri, leaving the two chairs across for Ellis and Xan.
He’d packed a simple meal, nothing that required the plethora of dining utensils always set up at every meal. There were two things in particular, though, he’d asked the head cook to make specifically with Eiri in mind. Eiri, of course, noticed immediately.
“You didn’t have to do that,” he murmured, taking one of the freshly baked pork pies from the basket.
“You didn’t get to enjoy one yesterday. It seemed fair you tried one from Hilda. I guarantee hers are far better than anything that vendor could have made.”
“That doesn’t explain the fish cakes, though.”
Those had been a sudden whim, one that had garnered a few curious looks from the kitchen staff.
“I don’t know much about what food you have back home, but you said you like fish, so I hope these are alright.
I know Canjiri food is said to be heavy on spices, so I hope this isn’t completely bland by comparison. ”