"You... don't look like Mathis or Roden. Might I recommend an eye exam? They're all the rage now, I hear. I do hope you can find him soon enough; it can be hard out there in the world without a father figure."
Conner joined up with him and Vargan holds all the power. But he gets what he wants from Conner and in return he's giving him the promise of Carthya's throne. Very very classic. And in Patriot's Treason (I haven't read it in a while but) there's some fun undertones in the relationship between Conner and Vargan, a certain Charge to it. Their relationship is *clearly* coded in power imbalance and exchanges of service from Conner and monetary/status from Vargan. So. Sugar Daddy.
Say what you will about Conner, NO ONE was doing it like him. Man dressed in white like a saint to take over Carthya, he escaped prison and immediately joined his adversaries, he had personal beef with a 14 year old, he was a whore. What a MAN
Pairing: Jaron/Imogen, Amarinda of Bultain/Tobias
Words: 1047
Chapter:Â 1 [ Complete ]
Summary: Post-war peace after The Shadow Throne.
â The kids enjoy a relatively quiet moment and some indulgences as the dust settles.
The three boys sat around the hearth as the flames happily crackled over the firewood it was fed. It danced and played in their eyes while they held their hot cider unflinchingly, waving its hand in front of the vacant stares taking in its performance. Tough crowd, it thoughtâif fire could thinkâbut it would be remiss to turn away the attention, no matter how meaningless.
A shuffle of skirts brought life back into the still room as Amarinda dragged Imogen in. âHave you three not moved since we last left?â Amarinda asked, raising an eyebrow at those gathered. Her shoes clacked against the floor when she leaned her weight to the side.
Slowly but surely, three sets of eyes pulled themselves away from the captivating display in the fireplace. Tobias thought to save the group as he swallowed for the first time in what felt like months. âWellâtheââ
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âSo, you havenât,â Amarinda said with a quirked grin pulling at her lips. She went to haul Tobias up to his feet while he struggled to keep his drink from spilling, his knees creaking beneath him.Â
Tobias blinked to himself, shaking out his foot that had fallen asleep as he leaned against Amarinda. She stole a sip from his cup, puckering her lips suddenly. âItâs only ciderââ
âWas it supposed to be hot?â
âWell, itââ
Roden took a sip of his. He pursed his lips, nodding to himself slowly. âIâd say itâs still hot.â
âHot enough,â Tobias finished, tipping his hand from side to side.Â
Amarinda looked between the two of them and then at Jaron who didnât bother with the argument; he sat his cup on the table, pushing himself up to join Imogen. His eyes never left her. âIs this a new dress?â he asked.
Amarinda clapped her hands together, smiling at him and then at Imogen. âI told you heâd notice!â
Imogen ducked her head down, chuckling into her hand before she pulled her braid over her shoulder. She twirled with the end of it. âItâis. Amarinda said that maybe I should splurge given⊠who Iâm with now.â She smiled gently at Jaron who took her hand in his.Â
He looked her over appreciatively, grinning back at her. âGotta say, Drylliad looks good on you. You should do it more often,â Jaron said, nudging her side playfully. âIâll put it in as a necessary expense.â
And she could only laugh, hitting his arm lightly. âOh, donât do that, you already fight with the regents enoughâand after everythingâŠâ
Jaron put his hand to her cheek, tilting his head. âImogen, the kingdom will heal itself in time, a few fancy dresses here and there wonât hurt Carthya, no matter how silly it may seem. It gives the tailor something to do! Thatâs one person helped!â He grinned at her, running the fabric on her sleeve between his fingers. âBesides, the regents wouldnât be caught dead in last weekâs fashion, even if the dust is still settlingâand I think if they have a problem with it, we can enact a silk tax. I think theyâll love it. I have been getting bored.â Jaron caught Rodenâs eye as his general grimaced, pushing himself up from the floor.
âIf I find another assassin in the castle, Iâll kill you myself and they can take notes on how itâs properly done,â Roden grunted out at him.
Jaron laughed. âGreat! Professional on the job training! Weâll save the job market one assassin at a time, wonât we?â
Roden hit him with his shoulder as he passed. âIf thatâs what weâre calling it these days.â
Imogen grinned, stepping back with Amarinda as Jaron continued to poke at Roden. âThank you, really,â she said, looking up at her.
âWhat for?â Amarinda asked after blinking out of her thoughts.
âFor one, youâre not likeâŠâ Imogen trailed off, gesturing broadly as she watched the two boys rough house while Tobias tried in vain to pull them apart, claiming outrageous things like donât put pressure on a broken leg and if you donât rest, you canât heal. Right, like that meant anything. Imogen snorted, biting her smile back.
Amarinda cocked her hip, crossing her arms with a chuckle. âI mean, I can certainly make an effortâŠâÂ
Imogen laughed, leaning into her. âI think itâs nice to have someone reasonable around here thatâs our age.â
âYou donât want to gossip with Mott?â
Imogen raised an eyebrow. âAmarinda, you have not gossiped till youâve gossiped with Mottâoverhearing even a little bit of what he knows would have the saints in a tizzy.âÂ
âIs that so?â
âTrust me. At FarthenwoodâŠâ Imogen trailed off, shaking her headâletting nostalgia mask over the uglier parts of her time there. âLetâs just say you wanted to keep your name out of his mouth.â
Amarinda laughed. âHim? Iâd never guess!â
âHe had to know everything going on there, it only made sense.â Imogen chuckled, taking in a breath as Tobias finally got Roden and Jaron to sit down once more. âBut⊠it really isânice to have a friend hereâsomeone who likes theseâŠâ she paused, pulling at the dress with a snort, âgirly things. I canât exactly go to one of them.â
âI donât know⊠Tobias has taken pretty well to the finer things,â Amarinda said cheekily.
Imogen laughed. âOkay, let me rephrase, someone who already knows what theyâre talking about.â
Amarinda smiled at her, sighing. She nodded slowly. âThen I should thank you tooâbecause itâs been nice to talk about petticoats, blouses, and even shoes again rather than⊠war strategies and the memories of those weâve lost.â She took in a breath, her expression evening out as her thoughts drifted for a second time.
Imogen put her hand on her arm, smiling at her. âThen letâs indulge. Jaronâs right. We canât live in mourning forever or be scared to enjoy the life we fought for.â She chuckled. âYou live so long conserving and protecting what you have, too scared to ask for more, but it⊠it is necessary, isnât it?â
Amarinda took her hands, squeezing them. She grinned back. âThen letâs go make sure our sacrifices meant something.â She pulled her out of the room again, leaving the boys to their quips and lukewarm cider.
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