Councillor Cadwill was there already, having arrived minutes in front of us.
"The talk is all of Prince Hallit being wrong footed. There are some that want to press forward, take him down a peg, but there are some that worry about reprisals; sabotage of their place men. It's turning into a kerfuffle large enough to attract the vultures of the café commentators. Their spies are everywhere; we're already feeding tit bits and innuendoes to them. Let's hope we outdo the prince's men."
He sounded quite excited about it, throwing a coat to the chair. He said, "We must circulate you, let the right people see you, sympathise with you. Hah, Millister will have to oppose, it will make him a cowardly fool in front of his peers. Oh I'm beginning to enjoy this."
He rang the bell, and the maid, who must have been waiting outside the door, appeared.
"Tell Robrik we will have dinner now."
"Yes master."
"Now what were you two up to this morning?"
I told him briefly of our trip to the museum, and he bade us walk through to the breakfast room, freshly laid for dinner.
Seated, we were treated to a roasted joint of Goatse, fresh from his own farm in the Sx district, with a pudding after of pron pie. My belt needed a few extra notches as I lay back in the chair.
"Could you be available to go to a dinner party this evening? There are a few people I'd like you to meet."
"Yes, we are at your disposal."
"Good."
He would have his housekeeper take Sisoft shopping for some dresses, and for me to go with Robrik and have clothes fitted.
He then busied himself writing more notes, while we were left to our own devices.
Soon enough a formidable looking woman claimed Sissy, and I was escorted by Robrik to some tailor to be decked out.
The evening came soon enough; Sissy being attended to by two maids was ready before time and was left to twiddle her thumbs, whilst I was groomed by a manservant.
As soon as I was ready we were whisked out into the carriage, and into the evening. Stopping before some grand house, we were greeted by our host for the evening.
I was dressed in a traditional wizards robe with a sash denoting my status around my waist. Sissy on the other hand looked radiant, every part the Princess. I don't know where they dug it up, but she also wore a coronet that sparkled in her hair. Sweet Mother, just looking at her made me proud.
We went in and Antic took Sissy in arm as he circulated, she was the attention of a large crowd of simpering old men, each trying to be more gratuitous in the hope of winning a smile. I was introduced to a younger man who told me who was who at the gathering and was himself plagued by pretty young things requesting a dance or some other small favour. He blamed me for much of this attention, the young girls wishing to be introduced to the dashing hero.
The tale had grown in the telling of it, events and actions were ascribed to me that would have made a super hero blush. Everyone wanted me to perform illusions, and I titillated a group of influential matrons to a Black Bruiners display in the garden, rearing the full eight feet of the beareocious and giving a load roar.
Just after ten, a servant found me and told me that the Councillor was ready to return home and would be pleased if I would accompany him
"Well that went very well," he said as we joined him in the coach. "Sisoft, you played your part well..., congratulations, you may have won a kingdom tonight."
You could see her face flushed and excited by the coach lights.
"And you, that little display with the beareocious was a masterful stroke, you reminded the people of the power of the wizards."
He retired soon after we arrived home, leaving us in the lounge with a good bottle of wine. We talked of who we met. She was a little jealous of the pretty young thing that had dogged me during the party. I teased her that there were some comely women there.
We slept separately. I was missing her warm and comforting body next to mine, and would have easily succumbed were she tomorrow to repeat her request to share some time at an inn.
But that was not to be. She was taken to a breakfast meeting with some dowagers, whilst I was introduced to one of the prince's men, and taken to an audience with the Prince himself.
"Commit yourself to nothing!" were the orders given.
The prince was probably more handsome in his youth, but had let himself get plump and didn't carry it well. He enquired of me the full tale, and asked some probing questions as to our relationship. I was ever cautious, insisting that she was as virginal now as she had been under her father's roof. He questioned me as to the Councilman's actions, to which I attributed no ulterior motive, merely that he was moved by her plight and wished to help right the situation.
All in all I gave nothing; all that he could use against me was a little fraud with the money side of things. Which could be spun back as justifiable give our survival depended on it at times, and that it was never excessive.
He did mention one interesting factoid. There was a long standing ban on royalty marrying wizards, enacted some generations ago to prevent a particular alliance from gaining strength. I wondered what his spies had discovered.
When I was delivered home again for dinner, nobody else was around. There were cold meats and a salad set up as a buffet.
I helped myself and then wandered into the library, losing myself in an old tome by some author named Machiavelli. I heard Sissy's tones as she came in the door, talking excitedly to some old biddy. I stepped out.
"Oh hi," she greeted me. "I've just come to pick up some things, I'm out to see some of Mrs. DeBurg's friends."
I was still alone, reading, when Antic, as he had us call him now, returned.
He came into the library.
"Ah there you are Rigbetif. I have news of some startling developments. It seems that S'snoyme was behind the plot. They wanted control of the gold mines. They put up the money to finance the little insurgency. The deeper we stir, the murkier the pool. However it makes dealing with it easier."
"How so Sir?" I asked.
"They are players on a larger stage. Now that they're found out, even though proof would be difficult, it will be easy to push them back. This now involves interstate politics, a familiar ground with known actors."
"So are you saying that this will now be over soon?"
"No, but negotiations can now begin in earnest.... Have you eaten yet.... Where is Sisoft?"
This as he walked me to the breakfast room, the answers were no and I don't know.
We partook of some well seasoned chops, and he left me to pursue his staff about some matter. I went back to reading my book in the library.
Sissy came back in the early evening, flopped down in one of the chairs, declaring herself exhausted.
"Have you eaten?"
"Yes, they laid on quite a lavish meal. They were for inviting me to take supper with them but they know that 'dear old Antic' likes to go to bed early."
"Well 'dear old Antic' is busying himself organising something with his butler. He was around earlier telling me that the takeover was state sponsored. S'snoyme had a hand in it, they wanted control over the gold."
"Why. We sold them most of the gold we mined, we only kept enough to mint our coins."
