Page 31 of The Sun King's Noon

“Well, that is only because I have done it for so terribly long, Lady Myrafrond.” Briony smudged a line with her thumb. “When I was small, I drew on the floors and the walls and Father’s shield.” She blew charcoal dust from the page. “Father was very cross about the shield, but when Mother wasn’t looking, he bade me go scribble on Dain’s shield instead—now, really, Lady Myrafrond, do stay still. Why, you are worse than my brother Corwin.”

Myrafrond obeyed with a hoarse chuckle, and the other dryads tittered in unison.

A rush of affection wrenched through Richard.

“Why must I be the ugly one?”

What utter nonsense. Hopefully, in time, Briony would see it too.

Pushing off the tree, Richard moved towards the castle. On his left, the pavilion came into view. A roaring fire crackled in the brazier, and around it, a dozen fauns feasted on platters of fruit, cheese, bread, and roasted mushrooms. Three of the elderberry casks had already been tapped, and the faun with the reed pipes stood on a bench, belting out a tune while others clapped.

The song involved a nymph, a faun, an oak hollow, and a series of impossible anatomical feats. Tavrus sat at the table’s head, clapping along and pausing every so often to peer into his goblet with an expression of delighted surprise.

Richard opened his mouth to call a greeting when a twig cracked behind him. He spun around to see a tall figure emerge from a copse of trees.

“Good—good evening, Master Orric.” Richard licked his suddenly dry lips and dragged his fingers through his hair.

“Sun King.” Orric inclined his head. “Please, join me on a stroll.”

“Of course.” Richard hurried to the man’s side. “I—I thought I might come and ensure you are comfortable.”

“I am. This is a most pleasant abode.” Orric followed a trail that skirted the pavilion’s clearing.

Richard clasped his hands behind his back, unclasped them, and settled for folding his arms. “This is nothing compared to your homeland, I am sure. The Sylari Realm—” He gestured at the canopy overhead. “I have read that some trees vanish into the clouds. That the forest floor is sometimes wreathed by mushrooms that glow blue. That river waves resemble horses, and the laughter of water nymphs can be heard for miles.”

Orric glanced at him. “You’ve read a great deal.”

“Far less than I should like.”

“Or too much.” Orric ducked beneath a low branch and held it for Richard to pass. “Books are a poor trade for experience. You should see my realm for yourself.”

Richard swallowed hard. “I—I had often dreamt of doing so. But the crown comes with responsibilities. You understand.”

“I do.” Orric hummed. “I am likely to be elected next once my Chief-Mother passes. Many a time, I ponder on the looming challenges.”

The fauns’ chortling and the reed-pipe melody faded as the trail deepened. Richard tried to maintain the companionable silence, but after another peek at Orric, could compose himself no longer.

“How does the shift feel?” he blurted. “When you change from man to wolf, is it painful? Is there a moment between forms where you are neither? Do you retain your thoughts as the wolf? And the olden ways you mentioned, what precisely?—”

He bit his tongue as Orric’s eyes danced with amusement. By the gods, he sounded like Briony.

“I am being impudent.” Richard knuckled his brow. “There is no need to answer?—”

“You are curious, Sun King,” Orric said calmly. “And curiosity is a delightful thing. The shift aches, to answer you. Not pain so much as pressure. The bones remember both shapes, but they protest the change each time. As for thought, the mind stays, but the wolf’s senses flood it. It takes years to learn not to drown in them.” He shrugged. “The olden way…well, it would take longer than one evening.”

“Then you must tell me over several.” Richard flushed. “That is if—if that is convenient for you. I do not wish to impose.”

“You do not impose, but it would be remiss of me to reveal all so readily.”

“Ah. Um, yes. Of course.”

They followed a small stream where it curved back towards the castle walls. When Orric suggested they rest, Richard sat on a flat boulder, its cold seeping through his trousers, while the druid settled on the bank opposite.

“There is much I would seek to learn,” Richard said. “But one question presses upon me more than any other. In all your years in the Sylari Realm, Master Orric, have you ever encountered a dwarf?”

“A dwarf?” Orric looked confused. “No, I have not, Sun King. To my knowledge, they have not been sighted since the making of the veil.”

“I see.” Richard tried to hide his disappointment with another question. “I wonder, are the wolf forms of other men in your pack as big as yours?”