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3--Terreille

Dae his hair, ready for another day of Winsol activity, when Jaenelle tapped lightly on his door and bounced into the room He wasn’t sure when his room had become mutual territory, but he was much less casual about the way he dressed--and undressed--than he had been

Jaenelle bounced up beside him, her eyes fixed on his face Daemon smiled "Do I meet with your approval?"

She reached up, brushed her fingers against his cheek, and frowned "Your face is s, Daemon turned back to the mirror to check his collar "Hayllian men don’t have facial hair" He paused "Neither do Dhemlans or Eyriens, for that matter"

Jaenelle still frowned "I don’t understand"

Daeed "Differences in race is all"

"No" Jaenelle shook her head "If you don’t have to take the hair off the way Philip does, why did Graff say you ht serve better if you were shaved? Philip does it hims--"

Dae the wood froht for control The bitch The bitch, toelse, doesn’t it?" Jaenelle said in her rowled through clenched teeth

"What does it mean, Daemon?"

"Leave it alone, Jaenelle"

"Prince"

Daeain "If you’re so curious, ask your daain control After a , "Jaenelle, I’one

4--Hell

Saetan and Andulvar sat around the blackwood desk, drinking yarbarah while waiting for Jaenelle Saetan had returned to the private study beneath the Hall in order to have some private, concentrated ti that all of the Kaeleer staff seemed to make their way into his public study on some pretense or other just to say hello to her

"What’s the lesson to be today?" Andulvar asked

"How should I know?" Saetan replied dryly

"You’re the one in charge"

"I’hted that solass and warmed the blood wine "You’re still annoyed about Tersa?"

Saetan studied his silver goblet "Annoyed? No" He rested his head against the back of his chair "But Hell’s fire, Andulvar, trying to keep up with these leaps she th it s I want her to have a childhood I want her to do all the silly things young girls do, whatever they are I want her to be young and carefree"

"She’ll never have a normal childhood, SaDiablo She knows us, the cildru dyathe, Geoffrey and Draca--and Lorn, whatever and wherever he may be She’s seen more of Kaeleer than anyone else in thousands of years How can you hope for a nors are norrunt of denial "Do you wish you’d never met her? Don’t scowl athis folded hands on the desk "The point is, a child plays with the unicorns in Sceval A child visits friends in Scelt and Philan and Glacia and Dharo and Narkhava and Dea al Mon--and in Hell--and who kno many other places I’ve listened to her stories, the innocent, albeit nerve-racking, adventures of young, strong witches growing up and learning their Craft No s, she’s a child"

"Then what’s the problem?"

"The only place she never ure into these adventures of hers, is Beldon Mor She says nothing about her faht about this "SaDiablo, you’re jealous enough as it is Would you really want to know that the people who have more claim to her adore her as much as you? Would a child as sensitive to others’to tell you?"

"Jealous?" Saetan hissed "You think it’s jealousy that makes me want to tear the cautiously, "Yes, I do"

Saetan snapped away from his desk, rose halfway out of his chair, then reconsidered "Not jealousy," he said, closing his eyes "Fear I keep wondering what happens when she leaves here I keep wondering about so why a child wants to know about so why I so anger" He looked at Andulvar "We survived brutal childhoods and stayed true to the Blood because that’s e are Blood But sheOh, Andulvar, in a few short years she’ll , and when she does, she’ll be beyond reach If she feels isolated from usDo you really want to see Jaenelle in her full, dark glory ruling frodom?"

"No," Andulvar said quietly, a faint tremor in his voice "No, I don’t want to see our waif in the Twisted Kingdom"

"Then--" There was a quiet knock on the door Saetan and Andulvar exchanged a look Andulvar’s face settled into a frown Saetan’s became neutral "Come"