I have a sneaking suspicion that my son has something to do with Straia's lovely dancing raven. His admiration of her was easily accesible when I spoke with him. Which is all well and good, one ought to be loyal to one's queen, but not at the expense of one's mother. And I know exactly how to punish him for it. I growl mentally, planning a surprise for darling Kush. He's forgetting how very testy his mother can get when she is messed with.
I toss my head slightly, my equivalent of a shrug. "Demian enjoys fun and has only been seeking a good opportunity for the Valley. He does what the majority want. If it ever came to an issue of him holding her back, well, he wouldn't be a ruler for much longer."
I say this calmly. It isn't news to anyone. Demian himself would hear those words from my lips if I felt he needed to hear them. The Valley is more important than any one of us. I wouldn't stand for an ineffective and incompetent king and nor would she. The Valley that is. For though the Chamber has a beating heart, the Valley is pulsing with life whether she has inhabitants or not.
"I'm old school, Straia. I believe there are kingdoms that will always tend more to the restrictions of morality while there are others who need to point out the flaws in a moralistic society, no matter what the new order of Beqanna is.”
I snort derisively. The kingdoms may not have the alliances of light and dark but little that I have observed has changed. There must always be places for those who want freedom and those who want their decisions made for them.
You can guess which I would choose.
“As you know, raven spies or not, we are small yet, but there is still strength in the Valley. And I believe we could find mutual pleasure in one another's company. And it would be useless of the Valley to seek alliance with any and every kingdom if our missions are not aligned. This practice of making peace with all to avoid skirmishes takes quite a bit of fun out of life, don't you think?”
After all, it's terribly boring just being pleasant all the time.
G A L L O W S
We must all hang together or, assuredly, we shall all hang separately.
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