Two Crows Watch from the Gallows Tree

Oh gods, what had she done? Ky scrubbed the tears out of her eyes quickly, but she wasn’t sure how apparent it might or might not have been that she’d cried in the first place. She tried not to imagine what Aleth was going to do to her when she told him.

What would she even tell him?

She hadn’t lied to him since the very very start. But, she’d managed to get away with Loquitur... but what if Lyra told... well, any of them. She’d be dead. She couldn’t deny having seen Lyra for fear of her ruining the whole thing. So she had to invent a story. But. What?

Lyra sat there rocking herself gently for a few more minutes, praying the panic would go away with time. It didn't. After a long enough time she got to her feet and left the book on the chair, hurrying out of the library. She needed to speak to her father.
Lyra was nearly at a dead run down the hall when she ran smack into someone. She stumbled back, an apology on her lips, when she looked up and saw who it was.
"Where the devil are you going in such a hurry?" Tarr growled, crossing his arms. "Not to see me, I bet."

Ky got herself pulled together then knocked on Aleth’s door and walked in. “Lyra was in the library.” She closed the door behind her and started towards the desk where Aleth was sitting. “She told me that this is the only relevant book about serpents keep and then asked me about the meeting. I told her I didn’t think I should say and she got angry and sent me away.”

Aleth looked at her for a long moment. Ky seemed a bit flustered. But she had since they first got here. Apparently the nobles from this realm got to her more than others. He’d fix that. “Anything interesting?”

Ky shook her head. “No, sir. That’s all.”

Aleth looked at her irritably. “You better get her talking soon.”

It hit Ky hard but she nodded again, forcing her face to stay impassive. “Yes, sir.”

“Good. Now go to your room and read that book. I want a summary by tonight.”

Lyra took a step back, and Tarr followed.
"I...I was on my way to see my father," she stammered. "I need to speak with him."
"Your father is busy," Tarr growled. "He's always busy and yet you're always pestering. What kind of daughter are you?" Lyra looked up at him, an angry retort on her tongue. Then she thought of the bruises later and nodded instead.
"I'm not as strong as you are," she murmured. "I'm not used to being away from my family. I'm sorry I've disappointed you, husband."

Ky gratefully retreated to her bedroom. It had already been such a long day and she wasn’t looking forward to how fast she would have to read to get Aleth the summary he wanted, but she’d do anything to get away from his gaze just then.

She wished she had something — anything — she could offer Loquitur to convince him to not send her with Aleth. There was nothing, of course. Aleth had become possessive of her. He’d invested too much time and energy to be willing to part with her. But she wished to the gods that there was something that could persuade him.

Ky shook her head. She had to stop thinking about that. The Loquiturs were getting in her head, and she couldn’t afford that. Of course she didn’t want to be anyone’s property, but she was. And no amount of compliments would ever change that.

"You ought to be." Tarr placed a hand on her back and began to steer her in the direction he had been going. "I was coming to look for you, actually. Good thing we ran into each other. I wanted to talk about our future." Lyra blinked. Future? Since when did Tarr think ahead, and just how far ahead was he thinking?
"Oh?" was all she said.
"You're young," Tarr went on. "Young enough to give me many, many sons by the time your bleeding stops. The problem with sons, though, is that they may eventually want to take my place before it is my time. You see?" Lyra didn't see, really, but she nodded anyway. What was this leading up to? "So I want to limit those chances as much as possible. I'm asking you not to have any children until I tell you to."
The idea was so absurd Lyra nearly laughed. Had no one taught him anything about the world? She'd been given the talk well before the wedding was even a thought. She understood the risks, the possibilities, and the impossibilities.
"I...that's not how it works," Lyra said after a long moment.

She missed Papa. Desperately. She wanted to go home and throw herself into his arms and never leave his side ever, ever again. To see his smile once more. Hear his laugh. Hear him say he loves her. But, that was never going to happen now.

Even that felt like her fault.

Ky rubbed her face. Of course, it wasn't. It's not like she'd chosen to be taken by the slavers. She'd done everything she could have done. She fought as hard as she could. She tried to escape. Took beating, after beating, after beating. But what could an eleven-year-old do against so many grown, rough men? Nothing.

But she still wondered if maybe she should have tried to escape more times. She'd given up after Aleth had cracked one of her ribs when he caught her again. But maybe, if she'd made it back home, Papa wouldn't have been sad enough to take his own life.

Ky forced herself to take a deep breath. Stop it. Just read the fucking book.

"Of course it is," Tarr snapped. "I won't hear any arguments."
Lyra knew better than to counter that. She'd let him believe what he believed and pray to the gods she didn't already have a child growing in her.
"I'll do my best to meet your expectations, husband," she said softly.
"That's what I like to hear." He patted her back none too gently. "And there's something else I want to talk about. You've been inside your uncle's Keep. Are there any weak spots?"
Lyra was immediately on her guard. Why wouldn't he bring this up with her father instead of her?
"Every Keep has weak spots," she replied warily.
"Where is Serpent Keep weak?" Lyra looked up at her husband, trying to figure out what was going on in his head. He was definitely thinking hard; his brow was deeply furrowed and he was chewing on the hairs of his mustache. This was probably a terrible idea; she had to tell her father about this first and strategize.
"I...I don't remember yet," she said quickly, pulling away. "I need to think."
As she broke away Tarr caught her long hair and yanked her backward. Lyra shrieked, struggling as he pulled her close to him.
"I'm not an idiot," he growled in her ear. "I know you and that bastard father of yours plan things together. Thick as thieves, the two of you. Listen to me, now. You're going to tell me exactly where a man can get into Serpent Keep or I'll beat you until you can't lie down." Lyra choked back a sob as tears of pain and terror began to stream down her cheeks. She knew he'd keep his word, but if he was planning to make a move in the war her father had to know.
Even so, she knew that whatever pain she'd experienced before now would be nothing compared to this.
"There's a wall on the east side that's crumbling," she gasped. "It's guarded but during the changing of the guard someone can climb up. They'd---they'd have five minutes at most!"
"Good," Tarr muttered. "Good. If you breathe a word of this conversation to anyone you know what will happen." He let go, and Lyra sank to the floor, covering her mouth as she began to sob uncontrollably. "Go clean yourself up," he said in disgust, and stalked off.

Aleth sat with his head propped up on his left hand, right hand drumming on the desk in front of him. Something wasn't right here. But he wasn't sure what it was. Tarr was a brash idiot -- and Aleth knew how to deal with those. But Loquitur was far, far cleverer.

It felt like he had to strategize on two sides. Had to keep Loquitur from wringing information out of Ky. Had to figure out how to he would be able to get information from Ash and then get it to Loquitur once he was at Serpent's Keep. But most of all, he wanted to figure out what Loquitur's game was. Most of his clients didn't notice Ky at all -- or would give her the briefest acknowledgment before going back to ignoring her entirely. They certainly didn't try to get her alone. Twice.

Lyra was thankful there was no one in the hall; she was able to curl up and have a small cry before she pulled herself together and hurried back to the library, where she buried herself back in the armchair and hugged her book to her, chest heaving with muted moans. She had to tell her father. This could mean the difference between winning and losing. But she was so frightened...the bruising from minor disobediences was bad enough. Something like this could land her in the infirmary, she was positive. She couldn't tell anyone about this.

Ky flipped the book open on her desk. She liked to read in bed — especially when she was as completely and utterly exhausted as she was now. But the binder would dig into her hips. And she couldn’t prop herself up since her shoulder was still so sore. So instead she leaned against the wall and read as quickly as she could manage, desperately trying to get all the thoughts and emotions out of her head.

(This seems like a good place to skip)

(Fully agree!)

(Shall we jump over to Gaius and Pratik or skip to departure from Wolf Keep?)

(I feel like an Ash/Pratik skip could be nice? It's been a while. But I'm down for whatever you'd prefer c: )