A Night in New Byzantium
Noon
The two girls - a redhead and a blonde - were sitting at a pavement cafe, sipping coffee. They were discussing what they should do with the rest of the day. The redhead made a suggestion. �We could go up the Statue of Victory. I keep meaning to go to the upper observation gallery in her sword-pommel.�
A good-looking if slightly greasy latin boy sidled up, �Ey, Brythonic ladies, I like worship Venus wid� you�. At least he didn�t pinch. I�ll get in trouble if I damage another one... �I�d rather worship Diana� the redhead replied, gesturing to the bow case at her side. �A moving target would make a nice change...�.
��Ow about tonight then ?�. The redhead smiled. Persistant. �I�m going to another worship ceremony. For the Great Mother. You can come if you like�. That did it. The boy stalked off, muttering something about sapphists.
The blonde laughed. �Etain, you�ll never get a boyfriend if you keep scaring them off�. The redhead waved a dismissal �Not my type, Ariane.� The blonde giggled �He could have been fun, though.� The redhead frowned �I�m studying to be a doctor...�. �So you should be getting drunk and chasing the nurses.�
Etain shook her head. �Alright, some of the nurses are cute�. Ariane�s expression feigned shock, although her giggles gave her away �So he was right about...�.
�The male nurses, Ariane. So instead of trying to meddle in my love-life, why don�t you tell me about yours ?�
�Ranulph finally asked Father for my hand ! They�re still negotiating the dowry and the other details, but I�ve told him this wedding is going to happen so he�d better make the deal.�
�Well done you! I don�t know how you put up with all these silly rules. Why should you have to get your father to tell you to marry the man you want and make it all dependent on sorting out some financial arrangement with his family ? Maybe that�s why Mother never married....�
�You know very well that all your family does whatever they like in that department. Most of them don�t seem to bother with marriage at all. Maybe you should have someone else tell you who to marry - it worked for the King. And rather better than any of your grandfather�s marriages, it seems.�
�And if you know the story, you know it was intended as a punishment...�
�And that just proves my point ! It doesn�t matter how you end up together, it�s what you do to make it work. �
A little uncomfortable with this line of conversation Etain changes the subject �We really ought to celebrate your good news.�
�I�d like that, but I can�t stay too long, I�m expected back this evening�
�That�s not a problem - I came here because it�s a fast time Shadow, at about six to one. That way, with the accelerated study program I can get my MD in less than a year Amber time. Six hours here is only one at home.�
�Accelerated study program...� Ariane sighed. �I should have known it. Now I have to stay on and see that you have a little fun. Can you find a couple of guys at short notice or should we just pick some up at a club ?�
Midnight
Etain sat, alone in the unlocked cell. There weren�t going to be any charges, but the vigiles wouldn�t let her go home alone. Perhaps they were afraid that she�d be attacked by muggers again. But they wouldn�t spare an officer to walk her home, so there she sat.
The evening had started well. Firstly she had got Marcus to come along. Marcus was another medical student in the same year as Etain, and devilishly handsome. He didn�t have a particular girlfriend, being more interested in chatting up every half-way attractive and possibly available female that came near. They�d met at a University function and he�d spent most of the time hinting that he�d like to get into Etain�s tunica. But he was charming and funny and never went too far - it was impossible to stay angry at him. He knew the places to go, too - he went out to one or another most nights, looking for girls. He was exactly the sort of boy Ariane was talking about. Fun, not serious. Naturally, Etain had him paired up with Ariane.
Then there was Aemilius from the fencing club. More rugged than handsome, quiet but dependable. He was a friend, he�d make up the numbers, stay at least mostly sober and not get out of line. And if Etain and Ariane ran a little wild, he wouldn�t mind. Just the sort of boy that Etain wanted along, useful to help fend off unwanted advances and no threat at all.
At the nightclub they�d got a little drunk, and decided it would be fun to run around pinching the boys. A little revenge for all the pinching that women had suffered in this city. That worked, but then Ariane started to feel ill. She had badly misjudged the strength of the cocktails she�d been knocking back. Etain spent half an hour in the toilets holding and comforting her friend as she heaved her guts up. When Ariane was well enough Etain saw that she was Trumped back to Amber to get cleaned up.
That had killed the mood, Etain decided to go home, and sleep off any remaining effects of the drink. As she walked home alone the muggers, seeing a lone woman, had decided to take the easy pickings they thought they had seen. And that inevitably lead to now, sitting here, in the cell, alone.
Or not quite alone, there was a man at the door, not a vigile. Aemilius. �I heard that a lone girl had hospitalized two muggers, and I knew it had to be you. I can still feel it where you pinched me.�
Etain blushed a little. �I�m sorry...it wasn�t about you, it was this city, men in general, the way women are treated here, a little payback...you didn�t deserve that. If I�d been thinking I�d have spared you....�
�It�s alright. I understand. They said you needed someone to walk you home...?�
�No, they need somebody to walk me home.�
�I�ll do it. I�ll walk you home and keep the muggers safe.�
Dawn
From the balcony, Etain looked out at the sunrise. She replayed the Trump communication with Ariane in her head. �Yes, I suppose I did have fun...No, you didn�t spoil the evening by getting sick...No Ariane! I did not end up in Marcus� bed! You can see I�m in my own apartment!...I suppose you encouraged him ?...You wasted your time, there, it isn�t going to happen.�
Etain�s thoughts moved back to what had happened earlier. Aemilius had certainly earned a goodnight kiss. And he�d been good enough at kissing to deserve another. Maybe she should have told Ariane about that. It's what she would have wanted to hear.
But what to do about it now ? Her actions last night had been quite out of character. But how to explain that to Aemilius, what to say ? Should she explain, say that she didn�t usually, ever, act like that ? And where to take things, which way to go ? Ariane's words came back to her. "It�s not how you got together, it�s what you do to make it work." They applied to a relationship as well as a marriage.
Etain left the balcony to return to bed. Letting her robe slide to the floor, she slipped back under the covers, still thinking about what she would say. Did she want to make it work ? Or say it was all a mistake ? Try to forget it, act as if it had never happened ? Then she felt his arms go around her and she knew what she wanted, what she had to say. Rolling over to face him, she breathed �Worship Venus with me. Again.� And he did.