 said, then she laughed.  "I was never meant to be a wife, Tarrin.  I was a born bachelor--well, bachelorette."
	"Then find a significant other for a while.  Personally, I think marriage is a bit overrated."
	"That's only because you'd kill your wife inside ten years," she teased with one of those cheeky grins that made her so unbearably cute.
	"True," he agreed.  "You just need to focus on men who share your interests."
	"Let's see, my interests are needlepoint, rumormongering, knitting, intrigue, crochet, spying, flirting, and assassinations," she said, ticking off her fingers with each new item on her list.  "I don't know to many men who can plot the downfall of a noble house while doing saddlestitches."
	"What about that one Kerri always talked about?  Jervis?"
	"Jervis?" she said, then she laughed loudly and for a very long moment.  "Me, take up with Jervis?  Give me some credit!"
	"What's wrong with him?"
	"He's too ridiculous looking for me to take him seriously!"
	"Yes, alot of people say the very thing about you," he said, giving her a slight look.
	"Yes, but I'm a girl," she said, fluttering her eyelashes at him.  "I'm not supposed to be taken seriously."
	Tarrin ignored that.  "Well, if not Jervis, then maybe you should find a nice rich nobleman, let him spend his entire fortune on you, then break his heart with malicious glee," he said in a serious tone that made Miranda laugh.
	"Who says I haven't done that already?" she teased, winking at him.
	"No comment," he drawled.  "What I'm saying, Miranda, is that there's an entire world out there waiting for you.  You don't have to feel like being on Kerri's right side is all there is to life.  I know it's where you want to be, but just take a little time to experiment a little.  Who knows, you might find something out there that you like.  Maybe not as much as serving Kerri, but something that would definitely be fun."
	"Are you telling me to leave?"
	"I'm telling you to remind Kerri what it's like when you're not there," he told her seriously.  "After a few months of having you not laying by the fire to step over and fetch her slippers, maybe she'll appreciate you the way she should."
	"But what if--"
	"There is no what if, Miranda," he told her curtly.  There's only is and is not.  Right now, Kerri won't fall to pieces if you're not there, and Wikuna won't self-destruct without you there to keep all the knots tied."  He looked down at her.  "Who knows, maybe you'll even find out a few things in the process."
	"What things?"
	"Try and you'll see," he told her.
	She was quiet a very long moment.  "I don't know, Tarrin."
	"Look at it this way, Miranda.  What do you have to lose?"
	She looked up at him, then laughed ruefully.  "Everything," she said.  "If I make Kerri mad, she may give me the heave-ho."
	"She'd never do that, and you know it," he chided her.  "No matter how mad she gets at you, you're still Miranda, her very best friend in all the world.  Even if she did have an irrational episode and did do it, she'd hate herself almost immediately afterward, and she'd come crawling to get you back."
	Miranda chuckled.  "That would be a sight to see," she said.  "The mighty Queen of Wikuna crawling across a room to beg her maid to come back to work for her."
	"Kerri's might is only in her own mind.  I think it's time to teach her just how far her authority reaches in some respects."
	"She's the queen, Tarrin.  We can't disobey her."
	"Bull.  You disobey her on a daily basis.  I know you do."
	Miranda's cheeks ruffled demurely, a Wikuni version of a blush.  "Well, I'm a special case."
	"That's right, Miranda.  You are special.  I think you need to educate my thoughtless sister about just how special you are."
	"You know something, Tarrin?  I think you're about the best friend a young girl could have," she said with a gloriously affectionate smile, taking his arm in both of her hands and leaning against his side as they walked.
	"Only certain young girls," he told her with a quirky kind of half-serious smile, putting his arm over her shoulders.
	Tarrin felt much better about the Miranda situation by the time he returned to his room.  He found it a little hard to believe that Keritanima ws ignoring her like that, but then again, love made people do strange things.  Jesmind had to be the ultimate example of that.  Where Tarrin was concerned, she was capable of acts that so went against her personality, and often her very nature and instincts as a Were-cat, that it seemed impossible.  She had tolerated the other females in the house, because Tarrin liked having his children around him, even though it was a direct challenge to her Were-cat nature.  That was just one example of many, examples that had begun almost since the day they'd first been properly introduced.  But, unfortunately, this was not one of those times.  She had that angry look about her when he came in, as Kimmie was trying to keep Tara from running out the door without her pants on, and Jasana and Rina were playing some kind of game with little loops of red yarn wrapped around their fingers.  Tarrin absently hooked Tara with his tail as she tried to scurry past, then pushed her to where Kimmie could get a grip on her shirt.  Tara's trousers were in Kimmie's other paw, a large tear in the seat of them, ripped from the hole for her tail down.
	Tarrin knew his mate, and knew that something was on her mind, and past experience had taught him that it was best to get her to release that anger before she had a chance to stew on it.  Not that she wasn't one to make her feelings abundantly clear to everyone, but sometimes, in typical female fashion, she preferred to keep private her ire and the reasons for it, so as to be more worked up and more able to blame Tarrin for her mindset because of his obvious misdeeds.
	He stared at her.  "What?" he asked bluntly.
	"Do you intend to spend any time at all with your family while we're out here?" she asked tartly, putting her paws on her hips and glaring up at him.
	Tarrin glanced at Kimmie.  "Jealous again, isn't she?" he asked.
	"That's a given, Tarrin," she replied with a sly smile at Jesmind, then held Tara by the end of her tail as she chanted a spell of magic to repair the tear in her trousers.
	Jesmind flashed Kimmie a rather hot look, then returned to glaring at Tarrin.  "Don't change the subject!"
	"That is the subject," he told her with quiet reserve.  "You worry too much, my mate.  For the next few days, I'm going to be spending alot of time with other people, but that doesn't change things between us, does it?"
	It was typical Jesmind.  Her most aggravating trait was her jealousy, a hot, very un-Were-cat kind of possessiveness concerning him, a trait that was almost human.  Past experience between them made her not quite completely trusting in him, for she still stung somewhat over his mating with Kimmie.  She had let him go and allowed him to take Kimmie for mate, but he had fallen in love with her.  And though she had forgiven him for it and come to accept it, and was more than aware that his feelings for Kimmie did not in any way change or take away from his love for her, it made her wary and guarded concerning him, afraid his fickle heart would end up in some other woman's pocket.  Jesmind did not like to share, and she was especially defensive concerning her mates.  It was a trait that had been in her long before she met Tarrin, a trait that had caused her to have a century-long spat with the Were-cat Rahnee, when she had stolen one of Jesmind's mates away from her.
	But it wasn't something that Tarrin couldn't manage.  This particular thorn in her personality was the one that stabbed him more than any other, so he had a great deal of experience in digging it out of his hide.  Usually, all it took was a reminder of just where she stood with him, and a little extra attention when they were alone.  After that, she'd be rather kittenish for a while.  Tarrin endured these barbs in her personality quite willingly in order to get to the softness that lay beneath that dangerous exterior.  When she wasn't angry or pecky, she was a vibrant, affectionate, quite enjoyable and agreeable woman.  The problem was, Were-cat mentality made those peeks at her she-softness uncommon, usually only coming when they were alone and when she was happy and content.  Happiness wasn't difficult to give her, but in a house with other grown females in it, the alone part wasn't always easy to accomplish.
	Tarrin looked around.  "Where's Jula?" he asked curiously.  He realized he hadn't seen her since the greeting ceremony.
	"Jenna took her with her," Kimmie answered.  She always knew where Jula was, for Jula wouldn't leave the room without telling her.  "I think they're with that other Keeper.  Alexa?"
	"Alexis," he corrected.  He noticed a sudden hot look from Jesmind, for telling her that her standing in his eyes didn't change, then turning around and asking about another female, but in this case it was totally silly.  Jula was his daughter, and she knew what that meant to him and his still human-like outlook on life concerning certain things.  Tarrin had never thought of Jula in terms of a mate, and he was rather sure that he never would.  "Jenna should keep her out of trouble," he said absently, then he looked down at Jesmind.  "Maybe I should see if she'd keep you out of trouble while she's at it."
	"I only cause trouble when you bring it down on yourself," she flared, but he could see the slight smile on the corners of her slightly pouted lips.
	"Right," he drawled, swatting her playfully on the backside as he stepped past her.
	"It really is your fault, you know!" she called to him as he walked away.  Now that was more like the Jesmind he knew and loved.  It seemed her pique of jealousy had passed.
	Tarrin passed the time teaching Jesmind how to play chess, as Jasana watched with intense curiosity.  Jesmind had never really gotten around to learning, mainly because at home she was one of the primary hunters in the house.  Jula and Kimmie had always been busy with the children, leaving Tarrin, Jesmind, and Mist to do the hunting for the entire household.  But Tarrin was often busy, either holding lessons or speaking to various figures from around the world, or engaged in intense study, so he didn't hunt every day.  Mist and Jesmind tended to split the duty, but after Mist left, it left Jesmind with it more or less by herself.  She did have eithar Kimmie or Jula along with her about every other day, when one of them could find the time, but she didn't quite like that.  Jula actually turned out to be a rather good hunter, but Kimmie seemed hopeless at it; as far as Jesmind was concerned, anyway.  Tarrin had the idea that good old fashioned prejudice was creeping into her opinion, due to Kimmie's rather unusual habits.  Kimmie was very good at catching small prey, but she tended to either avoid or pass over larger game, like deer and antelope.  Jesmind had a bigger is better mentality that caused her to go right after those animals which Kimmie had never really bothered to hunt, and as such was not in practice for hunting.
	After Tarrin handed Jesmind her fifth defeat, trying to explain to her where she was going wrong, a herald arrived at the door and announced that the feast would commence in exactly half an hour, and would they kindly dress and prepare for the occasion, thank-you-very-much.  Jesmind sent the foppishly dressed young man running with a savage hiss at the suggestion that she wear a nice brocade gown; Alexis had obviously not warned her Tower's staff about the volatility of Were-cats.  For her, it was probably just a good joke to play on her staff.  The warning really meant nothing more than the fact that Tarrin had to work fast to beat Jesmind a sixth time before they came for them.  Were-cats didn't dress for any occasion, because they knew that nobody in the Tower could make them.
	Tarrin would have thrashed Jesmind in that last game had Jasana kept herself from intefering.  She kept pointing out the holes Jesmind had made in her defense, and his mate actually listened to their daughter's advice, shoring up her lines in only two clever moves and ruining Tarrin's quick death strategy.  Tarrin gave Jasana several ugly looks and then told her to go mind her own business, which caused Jesmind to put her daughter in her lap and announced, quite shamelessly, that if she could help her beat her father in the game, then Jesmind would find some favor in her eyes for her.  Jasana didn't seem to care about that, by the challenging look in her eyes when she settled herself on her mother's lap and stared steadily into her father's eyes over the chessboard.
	The game slowed down dramatically at that point.  Jasana knew how to play, as Tarrin had taught her months before, and the game reminded him just how intelligent and cunning his daughter was.  In the game she had the chance to unleash it all, playing a solid game that seemed offensively bold, but carried cunning defensive undertones that always would cause Tarrin more harm than her when it came time to sacrifice pieces.
	They only got about three moves into the game when the door opened, and Dolanna and Azakar entered with Sarraya buzzing in just behind them.  Azakar stood just behind and to Dolanna's left, the common position for a Knight, so he could throw his shield over his charge in case of attack.  It seemed that since they were reunited, he instinctively sought Dolanna out and took up his task of being her Knight, a position he had inherited from Faalken, and one he approached with utter seriousness.  "Dear one," she said in Sharadi with a smile as they came in.  "The feast is about to begin.  Are you going to get dressed?"
	"I am dressed, Dolanna," he answered absently, his eyes on the chessboard.
	"Triana's went around and implanted the Sharadi language in everyone," Sarraya announced.  "She taught me how to do it!  Can I do it for you, Tarrin?"
	"I speak Sharadi," he warned.
	"Oh.  How about you, Jesmind?"
	"Not in a million years," she said with blunt flintiness, glancing over her shoulder and giving the Faerie and icy stare.
	"Well, huf-fy!" she snapped.  "Kimmie?"
	"I already speak Sharadi, Sarraya," she said mildly.  "Tarrin taught it to me days ago.  He did for all of us, seeing as how we were coming here and all."
	"Toadwarts," Sarraya sulked, landing on Tarrin's shoulder and looking down at the board.  "She's got your tail in a knot," she said critically as she studied the board.
	"Well, if everyone is ready, then we should go down," Dolanna urged.
	"Let's get this overwith," Jesmind grunted as she stood up, pulling Jasana up with her.
	The main dining hall here was just as large as the one back in Suld, but they had really gone over the edge with dressing it up for the occasion--what occasion, Tarrin really couldn't fathom, but they certainly seemed to think that it was important.  They had colorful buntings hanging from the walls, and streamers that looked to be made of crystal lace that glittered in the light of the many glowglobes, hanging from the top of the buntings and draping across to a huge chandelier in the exact center of the room.  The chandelier had a thousand little crystals hanging from elegant, sweeping brass protrustions, each of them glowing with a soft, gentle light.  The tables were all rather small, seating about six or seven, all of them round and positioned at exact distances from one another with an almost military precision.  The tables were all made of a dark reddish stone, but were rather thin and delicate, and looked to be reinforced with magical assistance to keep them from collapsing under their own weight.  Each chair was made of red cherry wood, complete with a cushioned back and a thickly padded seat.  At the far end of the chamber was the main table, which was a long rectangular affair made of glittering quartz standing on a slightly raised dais.  The chairs around it, twenty of them, were made of quartz as well, shimmering and scillinting in the magical light, and the table was set with the finest bone china, delicate crystal goblets, and gold silverware.  The chamber was already full of robed men and women, as well as a few wearing doublets and hose and fancy gowns that marked them as nobles or high-ranking members of Sharadar's government.  It only made sense that they would be here, since Alexis was the Queen of Sharadar in addition to being the Keeper of the Tower.  Alexis herself was seated at the middle of that main table, and all of Tarrin's friends and companions were seated there, patiently waiting for the rest of them to arrive.  Jenna sat immediately to Alexis' left, but the chair to her right was empty, as were the two chairs beside it further down the line.
	All the conversation in the hall stopped when Dolanna led them into the dining hall, and much to his surprise, they all stood up.  Every eye was on them as they hesitated for a short second at the entrance to the dining hall.  It made Tarrin more than a little wary and nervous.  Though he had come a very long way, the elemental feral nature that made him so dangerous not more than a year ago still lurked within him.  He still didn't like strangers, and still didn't like crowds, and this was a crowd of strangers.  His trepidation did not ease as she led them across the dining hall, towards Alexis, who stood and waited for them to arrive.  The others at the table stood as well, a gesture that made Tarrin think that they were all being very silly.  What was even more silly was that every single person who had stood up when he arrived at the door bowed or curtsied as he passed by, and remained so even after he went by.  His eyes darted back and forth, trying to puzzle out this strange action, until Jesmind had to push him from behind to keep him moving when he nearly turned and stopped to regard them.  Why were they making such an incredible fuss?  After all, he was nobody special.  He held no official rank, he wasn't a noble or a politician.  He was just Tarrin.  He did happen to be a sui'kun, but that made no difference to him, as his sister and daughter were as well.  He didn't consider himself special because others in his inner circle shared his unique power, which really wasn't all that unique.
	By the time they reached the main table, Tarrin was certifiably unnerved, and unnerved Were-cats were very unpredictable and volatile.  Dolanna, who always seemed to be able to sense the subtle shift in his moods, put a comforting hand over his furred wrist, over his fetlock, and her very touch calmed him a surprising amount.  Tarrin had forgotten the powerful effect the small woman had over him, a power that had not diminished with the distance between them and the time they had spent apart.  She looked up at him with steady eyes, and he seemed to understand what they were saying to her.  To calm down, that though it was unusual behavior, there was no reason to fear it.  And there was fear there.  Tarrin had little fear of normal humans, but Sorcerers wielded magical powers, and that gave them the capability to hurt him.  That knowledge caused him to respect the danger they posed.
	Alexis graced him with a sweeping curtsy, which caused Jenna to giggle a little under her breath, putting her hands over her mouth to cover it.  The redheaded queen glared hotly at Jenna for a moment, as if to berate her for ruining her moment, then that hostility evaporated as she graced Tarrin with a dazzling smile.  "Please be seated, honored one," she said in a strong voice that carried across the dining hall.
	"Don't call me that, Alexis," Tarrin growled under his breath as he took the chair she indicated, to her right.  The others sat where there were available chairs, with Jesmind sitting at Tarrin's side, and Jesmind glaring Dar out from in front of the chair beside hers to give Jasana somewhere to sit so she was within her mother's reach.  Dar moved to the other side of Tiella, who looked a little uncomfortable sitting beside Jasana.  There was a little rearranging so Kimmie could sit with one of her children on each side of her, between Jenna and Phandebrass.  After the issue of seats was decided, Alexis gave them an amused grin and then sat down herself.  When she did so, the assembled diners also took their seats, and the low buzz of talk rose up from the dining hall.
	"Do you mind telling me what all that bowing was about?" Tarrin demanded immediately.
	"You're the honored one, Tarrin," she said with a slightly teasing smile.  "We're only affording you the respect you deserve."
	Tarrin snorted darkly and affixed Alexis with a hostile narrow-eyed stare.  "I get enough of that from the Sha'Kar," he grated.  "I don't need them infecting you with their bad habits."
	"We're only following ancient rules of etiquette," she winked in reply.  "Don't you like being fawned over?"
	"No," he said in a low, growling voice.
	"Oh, come on, them bowing is half the fun of being the leader," she said lightly.  "I think we should get this dinner going, don't you?"  She picked up a small crystal bell that was standing by her goblet of wine, and then rang it briefly.  No one could have possibly heard that little bell over the buzz of the many conversations, but Tarrin distinctly felt the surge of Sorcery that emanated from that little bell when it was rung.  Tarrin sniffed out the path of the spell, and found that it terminated in the kitchens.  Nobody really heard it in here, but it was as loud as a rampaging Ogre in the kitchens, the unmistakable signal to start bringing in the feast.
	In mere moments, a massive feast was laid out on all the tables by an army of servants wearing pristinely white robes or gowns, the color of the purest snow.  Tarrin's irritation with Alexis and his discomfort and nervousness about being in the dining hall with so many strangers was mometarily subdued by the wonderful smells coming from the trays that were being set before them.  There was every kind of food Tarrin had ever sampled laid out on the table, as well as many he had never seen before.   There was beef and fish and venison and pheasant and quail and lamb and pork, and there was crab and lobster, one of Jesmind's favorites, but there were also dishes made of small sea-dwelling things that looked like tapered pale pink segmented worms with little red tails, and salads made of more kinds of vegetables than he had ever seen, plants of every color, even purple, be them leaves or bulbs or stems or stalks or buds or roots.  Vegetable dishes were very important, as the Sha'Kar were more or less vegetarians by virtue that most Sha'Kar found most meat to taste bad, though there were some meat dishes that they would eat.  Obviously some kind of racial trait.  There were other kinds of fruits and vegetables as well, from grapes to little green lemon-like fruits with fuzzy rinds, carrots and rigid bowed stalks of green plants, what looked like a big green pine cone to little red balls with a kind of ringing garland of tiny green leaves about their midsections.  There were watered dishes to go with the solids, soups and stews of every kind one could imagine, simmering in large kettles hung from little tripod stands set on the tables so the hot kettles wouldn't scorch the tablecloths.
	Though Tarrin didn't notice it, nobody so much as touched a thing until he reached for a tray of roasted pork ribs, and then the feast began.  The talk at the tables was muted as people paused in their conversations to chew and swallow.  Tarrin sampled many of the dishes that he had never seen before, asking Alexis what they were.  The little tapered segmented things were called shrimp, and he found them to be strangely tasty, though they had a weird metallic taste that both seemed to detract from and enhance the base flavor of the meat.  There was a soup that was so spicy and hot that it made Tarrin's tongue burn, and a baked pot dish of spiced beef, carrots, potatos, and stringed beans that he rather favored.  The different mixtures of vegetables in the various salads gave each one a unique taste, and he was surprised that a bunch of green plants could have such varying ranges of taste.  Perhaps the Sha'Kar weren't as boring in culinary matters as he once believed.
	After a quite satisfying meal, trays and trays of cakes, pastries, and pies were brought out for dessert, of which Tarrin partook liberally, almost forgetting himself and the fact that strangers' eyes were constantly on him.  He tried several different desserts, sweet ones and tart ones and buttery ones and even one that was both sweet and spicy-hot at the same time, until he felt that if he ate one more bite, his stomach would burst.  He pushed away his plate and leaned back in his chair, feeling quite sedate and calm and content at that moment.
	But it didn't last long.
	As if his finishing his meal was some kind of signal, Sorcerer after Sorcerer nervously approached the main table and bowed or curtsied before Tarrin, Alexis, and Jenna, then introduced themselves to him with nervous voices, trembling hands, and fear rolling off of them like the tide.  But it was a fear borne of speaking to him, as if his grand stature were so awe-inspiring that it made them tongue-tied and unbalanced.
	Though they were nervous a little afraid to speak to him, their effect on Tarrin was quite different.  These were strangers, strangers with the power to harm him, and yet they were afraid of him.  Tarrin's feral instincts caused him to fear them as well, but their fear and subservient demeanor triggered his dominant nature, making him both wary of them and slightly tolerant of them, as they knew their place in the scheme of things and submitted to his rightful authority.  But that tolerance was very thin, and it was quickly worn away by the long procession of new faces replacing the prior ones.  Tarrin's tranquility was quickly boiled off by the seemingly endless line of strangers that mounted the dais and geneflucted and simpered or wheedled before him.
	Dolanna moved quickly to intervene when she noticed that Tarrin had reached the end of his tolerance, but not quite quickly enough.  One rather tall Sorcerer--at least tall for a Sharadi--boldly advanced to the edge of the table after bowing and introducing himself as Shazil Lothu, and his sudden advance triggered a defensive reaction in the Were-cat.  Tarrin laid his ears back, bared his fangs and hissed threateningly at the man, who stopped and tried to backpedal so suddenly that he actually lost his balance and dropped onto his backside.
	"I think Tarrin is ready to retire, my Keeper," Dolanna said in a reasonable and very calming, soothing tone, reaching them and putting a hand on Tarrin's shoulder.  "I think his endurance for pomp and circumstance has reached its limit this evening."
	"Yes, I think I agree with you, Dolanna," Alexis said critically, looking at a totally unapologetic Tarrin, who was looking flintily over the table at the frightened Sharadi male, who was still sitting on the floor fearfully.  "It's alright, Shazil," she told him.  "If you recall, our guest has a certain aversion to crowds, and his temperament has limits.  It's not personal.  It's just his way of declaring that he's ready to retire, that's all."
	"That's some announcement," Dar chuckled.
	"F--Forgive me, Honored One," the Sorcerer Shazil stammered.  "I meant no offense."
	Tarrin waved a paw before his face wearily.  "I--It's not your fault," he answered.  "I've just had enough for one evening."
	"Well then, why don't we declare an official end to the feast?" Alexis prompted, standing up.  "As you know, we're going to be starting out tomorrow, and I think we'll all want to get some rest.  It's going to be quite exciting," she said with a dangerous gleam in her eyes, a gleam Tarrin had seen in Phandebrass' eyes more than once, usually right before something exploded in his face.
	It was not a look that instilled any confidence.
	Tarrin fretted about whatever surprise the unpredictable Keeper of this strange Tower had up her sleeve for most of the rest of the night.  Dolanna had been invited to sit a while with Tarrin and his family, for she was one of the few humans around which both Jesmind and Kimmie would totally relax.  Kimmie because of her friendship with her, and Jesmind because of the total trust Tarrin had in his diminutive mentor and friend.  Sarraya managed to invite herself along, and for once she didn't make a nuisance of herself.  Probably because she was more than a little worried about what Jesmind may do to her if she caused any trouble.  Besides, Jasana liked Sarraya for some strange reason, and it was a chance to introduce Tara and Rina to both one of Tarrin's most trusted and loved friends and both another dear friend as well as another non-human member of Fae-da'Nar.  Exposing the twins to a Faerie would be a good learning experience for them.
	They all forwarded assumptions about Alexis' plan, but none of them really thought of anything that seemed to fit both the practicality of transporting all of them in the time frame allotted as well as being exotic enough to fulfill the Sharadi Queen's promises about her surprise.  Her collusion with Phandebrass was the wild card, and because of that, almost anything was possible.
	"Ugh, can we talk about something else now?" Sarraya complained.  "If you all keep worrying about it, your hair is going to fall out!"
	"It's just like a bug to not worry about anything," Jesmind told her.
	"At least I won't get worry wrinkles like you," she taunted in reply, then wisely flitted off Tarrin's shoulder and put herself out of reach of Tarrin's mate.  Tara and Rina were watching her with rapt attention, and the Faerie put her hands to either side of her head and made several rather strange faces at them, all of which made the two toddlers giggle uncontrollably.
	"I wonder what's going on with Haley," Tarrin mused.  "Something must have happened."
	"He told me about it before the feast," Dolanna told him.  "We took a walk through the city.  There were several landmarks he wanted to see before we leave."
	Tarrin leaned back on the couch, which was entirely too small for him, and absently accepted Jesmind as she nuzzled in against his side.  When Dolanna didn't immediately say anything, Sarraya zipped just over Tarrin's head and put her hands on her tiny hips.  "Well, spill it!" she shouted.  "What did that weird Were-wolf do that got his butt hauled up before