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Tavi frowned

"You want to marry Kitai," Max said It wasn't a question

Tavi nodded

"Then you're going toto pry up every little piece of infor pressure to bear against her, any way that they can - and if you just carried on with her the way you have been, you'd ainst you"

"I really don't care what they think, Max," Tavi said

"Don't be an idiot," his friend replied, his voice tired "You're to be the First Lord of Alera You've got to lead a nation filled with powerful Citizens with h support to acco to suffer because of it You'll try to send relief to a Count's holding that's been devastated by a flood but find that it's been blocked by the Senate, or maybe choked off somewhere in the cos in disputes between Lords and High Lords which they bring to you and find out that both sides were setting you up to look bad, regardless of what you did - and eventually, because that would be the point of the whole thing, someone will try to take the croay fro Max His friend's words were not what he'd really expected of hi tactical and strategic situations, a gift that his training at the Acade was out of character for his old friend

Tavi inhaled deeply, understanding "Kitai cao," Max said

Tavi shook his head "Bloody crows"

"I don't know if it ork," Max said "Making your courtship a seht?"

Max shrugged "I think it will give the people who do support you a way to counter anyone who tries to start using Kitai to drum up some opposition If you've courted her with the sa Aleran lady highly placed in the Citizenry, it lends her a certain amount of status by association" He frowned "And besides"

Tavi sensed his friend's sudden reluctance to speak He shook his head, feeling a s wearily at the corners of his mouth "Max," he said quietly, "just say it"

"Bloody crows, Calderon" Maxiirls like disposable pleasures You've always been the smart one The capable one The one ent to every class and studied and did well You're the one co up ays to use furycraft that no one's ever dreaainst Canim and Marat and vord queens alike, and you're still in one piece" He met Tavi's eyes, and said, "I know that you don't think of Kitai the way I thought of my lovers She's not a playmate You see her as your equal Your ally"

Tavi nodded, and ed and dropped his eyes "Maybe she deserves soo out of your way to ht, or because she's practically a princepsa of her own people But just because you want to show her You want her to kno much you care"

Tavi stared at Max for a ht

He and Kitai had been together for a very long ti with one another Whenever she had been gone, it had left an enormous, restless hole somewhere inside his had happened to theether - but he hadn't ever really spoken to her about the depth of his feelings She'd known, of course, just as he had been able to sense her devotion to hih the odd link the two of thes needed to be said before they could be truly real