Snake, Scarab, & Sons: Purveyors of Fine T

"And the turtle goes, clap, clap, clap, clap, clap...!" With each word 'clap', Effie clapped her hands together enthusiastically. Beside her, the chubby toddler mirrored her actions, clapping his fleshy hands together and drooling as he repeated her words.

Across from them, Nanny Wu kept a smile on her face, but if one looked closely, they could see the lines of exhaustion around her eyes and mouth.

"Yay! Good job!" Prince Muran beamed and threw his arms up.

"Shall we sing again?" Effie asked. She and Prince Muran had been singing children's songs for what felt like ages, but Effie didn't lose any of her energy. If anything, each new song gave her more power.

At the prospect of another sing-along, Prince Muran's eyes went wide. "Yes!" He nodded his head as if his life depended on it.

"Okay!" Effie cheered, raising her fist into the air. "Let's go! Reptiles and frogs! Reptiles and frogs! Most are - what?" She looked to Prince Muran for the response.

"Smooth!"

"But the frogs are - what?"

"Slimy!"

"But the sound they make is riiib-"

"Stop the carriage!" The almost pained voice of Prince Tae shouted, breaking Effie's rhythm so that her 'ribit' trailed off, confused.

Outside, Henry smirked. "I told you he wouldn't last."

Beside him, riding a horse, Ash snorted. "We're outside, and none of us lasted." Henry drew his lips inward and bit them to keep from laughing out loud. The drivers of Prince Tae's carriage looked visibly drained after hearing the reptile and frog sound song. Their own carriage, Talam's horse cart, and guards that weren't on rotation had purposely sped up to get ahead in order to avoid the children's singing.

The carriage beside them slowed to a stop, but before it did, the handle of the door jiggled and Prince Tae almost stumbled out, as if he were fleeing a monster at his heels.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay in the carriage?" Effie asked, sounding genuinely confused. "It's almost snack time."

"Thank you, Effie, but I think I need to stretch my legs-"

"These cookies are shaped like snakes and frogs-"

"Good-bye!" The door almost slammed on the little girl holding a paper bag of cookies with images of coiled snakes and fat frogs on them. Prince Tae turned his back to the carriage, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Your horse, Your Highness." A guard reached him and gave him the reins to a horse.

Prince Tae released his low breath and took the reins before pulling himself on the saddle. As he adjusted himself on it, he looked to the side and saw two pairs of eyes looking at him knowingly.

He narrowed his gaze. "What?"

"How bad could it be?" Ash said, sounding flippant. "Who doesn't enjoy the innocent sound of children singing?" Prince Tae's cheeks filled with color and he lowered his eyes.

Henry chuckled. Those were the exact words roughly an hour ago when Prince Tae went into the carriage as a break from riding, insisting that he didn't mind that the children were singing songs.

"I didn't say it was terrible," he replied in a low voice.

Henry smirked. "You didn't say you enjoyed it either." He looked ahead of them and gave the carriage driver a nod as he gave his horse a gentle kick to get him to move forward. "Let's go!"

The carriage began moving forward and the children's voices came from within. "But the snake says hiiiiiiissssss!"

The corner of Prince Tae's eye twitched. "Ash. Can you use a slip to contain their...singing?"

"Nope," Ash said, shaking his head. "In case of an accident or incident inside, we need to be able to hear them."

Henry nodded in agreement. If it had been an option to contain the noise in the carriage, wouldn't they have done so already instead of surrendering themselves to the torture.

"Where did she even learn that song?" Prince Tae asked. He lowered his eyes and leaned towards the brothers so that the children wouldn't hear him. "Doesn't she know any others?"

"I only take requests from Ranran!" Effie's voice shouted in defense from within.

Henry looked at Prince Tae. "You have other nieces and nephews. Don't tell me you never went through that phase where they did something, said something, or sang something over and over until you wanted to bash your head against a wall."

Prince Tae looked at him aghast. "What phase? That's ridiculous!"

"Two years ago, Effie watched a summer musical and couldn't stop singing about random Federation historical figures," Ash said with a roll of his eyes. "She watched that musical every weekend, and when it was gone for the season, she would force us to sit and watch her act out parts of it."

"And when she made a mistake, she would insist on starting the scene or song over," Henry added. His eyes crinkled up as he stared ahead of him. "It was a very long autumn."

Ash groaned. "If I hear her sing about founding merchant Iona Tavania again-"

"Did someone mention Iona Tavania?" Effie flung over the gauzy curtains to look outside.

"No!" Both her brothers screamed, but they were too slow. The mistake had happened.

She began to sing and Ash tilted his head back and let out an even louder groan. "Effie, no! I'm tired of listening to it!"

"It won an award!"

"I don't care! I don't want to hear you singing it over and over, from morning until night, for days again!" Ash retorted as he glared back at the carriage. "I don't want to relive your torture."

Effie gasped, looking affronted at once. "Are you saying my singing is bad?"

"No-" Henry was cut off by his brother.

"If it will stop you from singing over and over again, then yes!"

"I didn't sing it over and over!"

"You absolutely did! And it wasn't the first time, either!" Ash lifted his chin and looked at Prince Tae. "When she was Prince Muran's age, she would sing this Lunapsar children's song over and over."

"I did not!"

"You did, and everyone at the tea house is a witness!"

Effie glared at her second brother. She was quiet for a moment before a vindictive glint caught in her eyes. "Ranran," she said, without taking her glare off her second brother. "Want to learn a new song?"

A toddler's excited voice shouted from within. "Yes!"

Ash's eyes went wide. "You wouldn't."

Effie nodded in silence. She mouthed 'watch me' before she took a deep breath. "The sun goes down; the moon goes up-"

"No!" Ash seemed to instinctively shout back in Lunapsar as Effie looked at Prince Muran beside her and encouraged him to repeat after her.

"...sun goes down...the moon goes up....."

Prince Muran didn't know Lunapsar yet. All he was familiar with was Effie's lullabies, but that didn't stop him from trying to sound out the foreign words, and then badly mangling them.

"The cool light wraps you its glow-"

"Oh, I know this song!" Another voice spoke up and the three men on horseback looked up. They'd caught up with Talam's horse cart, which had been at the back of the portion of their caravan ahead of them. Talam was sitting on the side of the cart, his feet hanging off.

Prince Tae raised a brow. "You know this song? You know Lunapsar?" He then turned to look at Henry and Ash, as if they would verify it.

Talam shook his head. "No, I only know a few words and some lullabies. My uncle's former fiancée sang to me a lot, so all my Lunapsar comes from her."

"I'm sorry you have to listen to this," Ash said.

Talam laughed and shook his head. "No, it's nostalgic. Hearing it feels...comforting." He took a deep breath and then repeated the words Effie had sung. Unlike Prince Muran, Talam's pronunciation and cadence was very good.

Henry took a deep breath. He did not think Talam would join the children.

Each time they sang it.

By the third time, Henry stepped in before Prince Tae let his intrusive thoughts win and gallop away.

"Effie, perhaps save the lullabies for when it's time for bed?" he asked, looking over at the carriage. "Didn't you say you were going to have snacks?"

"Oh, right!" Distracted, Effie turned her attention to rummaging through her bag. "Shall we have....?"

"Pancakes!" Prince Muran shouted.

"No!" Prince Tae was stern. "Those are only for breakfast. Have a small snack and then a real, nutritious dinner." He leaned towards the carriage and gave a firm look through the window.

Despite being a dotting uncle, Prince Tae was strict when it mattered. After all, his nephew was an imperial son. Prince Muran had several siblings above him, including an eldest sister who was even more talented and hardworking than their mother, so it was likely that he would never get anywhere near the throne.

However, the Suna Imperial Family would not raise a useless person who only knew how to be lazy and spend money. That was dangerous to the dynasty and to an imperial branch.

Prince Tae knew that his sister used some of their half-siblings' idleness against them to become Empress, and had always been very vocal to him that they needed to be not only well-educated, but worldly and well-versed in interpersonal relationships.

"Sometimes, it isn't what you know, but who you know," Empress Yayae had told him years ago. Henry had heard her say it multiple times to ensure her children understood. "Do you think we'd get here without people like Sister Nera and Sister Soraya? Sarae went to the same school as I did, had access to the same education and people, and Father favored her more! Do you see her on this throne?"

As such, Prince Tae understood why relationships were so important to his sister. Henry understood this the first time they met. As a prince, though he didn't carry that title and was thought to be dead, Henry also understood the importance of good relationships. Companionship, loyalty, support.

He had watched his mother and Nera gripping hands as Nera struggled to give birth to her fat baby. He had seen the other aunts taking care of Nera and Ash as Nera recovered from childbirth. It was small, but it was a village.

It was so natural to him, he didn't think about it when he was interacting with people. Those who treated him like family, he treated like family in return.

For example, the Crown Princess of Suna was thirteen years old, but she'd only been about one and a half when they met. Crown Princess Anhya was Nera's goddaughter, and she was close to the family. The way Effie treated Prince Muran was the way Crown Princess Anhya treated Effie whenever they visited, full of affection.

Their family's wide network of friends and non-blood related family was the very resource they had that allowed Nera to build a merchant empire.

Knowing that Henry was the rightful crown prince of Ashtar, he knew they also had their support, but it was an internal matter. In order not to muddy relationships, Nera forbade their allies from crossing borders and getting involved directly.

Henry needed to be at the forefront of his reclamation of the throne, and his support needed to come from within Ashtar.

Henry's eyes subtly moved to Talam, who was being handed some snake-shaped cookies by one of the guards who had been sent by Effie to share her snacks with everyone. Talam's eyes were all smiles, touched by the child's thoughtfulness.

Though somewhat naive, Henry knew that Talam would wind up being their supporter. It wasn't just because he needed Nera's help, or that the exiled elders pushed him to connect with them, but because Talam's wife was Henry's sister.

Varellian was his first sibling, and despite her swearing at his 'corpse' during the viewing, cursing him for leaving them and allowing their father to win, he knew that she would always be on his side. At the very least, on the side opposing the Old Bastard. That evening, Henry tried to get more information on the country of his birth, and Prince Tae had questions, as well.

"What is the process that we're looking at to do business in Ashtar?" Prince Tae asked as they sat around on wooden benches around a fire. "Suna's merchants were practically kicked out all those years ago. We haven't heard from any of our former associates."

There were parts of the route that didn't have a town with an inn for over a day and a half, so occasionally, they would be forced to spend the night outside. Luckily, everyone seemed used to it, even Prince Muran, who was sitting between Effie's legs as she sat behind him and watched their camp fireside dessert roasting over the metal grate.

"The same for the Merchant Cities," Henry said as Ash crouched by the fire, occasionally flipping over the desserts on a pan on the metal grate so they wouldn't burn. "Many of our business partners and fellow citizens lost communication. It isn't as if they hadn't tried."

"Is communication blocked?" Prince Tae frowned. Granted, Ashtari citizens were not allowed to leave and very few people were allowed to enter, but messages could easily be sent over borders with the right resources.

Talam wore an uncharacteristic solemn expression as he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, staring at the mesmerizing fire.

"It might as well be. Communication with anyone outside the country has been heavily restricted and monitored," Talam replied in a low voice. "You may not know this, but the messenger birds that could once be owned by anyone, had been confiscated by the government. If you want to send a message, it must go through a government authorized message center, where officials will review your message first before sending it. Not only that, but the cost of sending even a small message isn't something normal citizens can afford."

Henry clenched his jaw. He was well aware of how the merchant class in Ashtar had been reduced to near poverty levels . Sending a message by bird could've long been financially out of reach.

Prince Tae let out a low, heavy breath. "To be honest, I'm wondering if they're still alive."

The group around their central camp fire was quiet. Talam lowered his eyes.

"Control over commerce had shifted severely in the last decade, according to my uncle," Talam said. "My family also once had a few shops, but regardless of how they were doing, whether well or barely scarping by, there were taxes and fees. In order to be exempt from those taxes and fees, you needed to be labeled an imperial merchant." Talam let out a small, cold laugh that didn't sound like him. "Guess who was able to become an imperial merchant."

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Supporters of the Emperor and his son," Henry said without question. Talam nodded.

"They get all the benefits. The meager lines of trade that is circulating within the country is monopolized by the dozen or so families that are devoted to the Emperor and his son," Talam told them. He frowned and sat up. "Before I left, my uncle went to court and spent a month confirming regulations, laws, and processes that must be followed for any merchants that want access to Ashtar who are brought in by those exiled Elders. Previously, it had all been very vague on purpose. Uncle had it all written down, agreed upon, and approved by the Emperor. It is heavily restricted, and a certain amount must be paid to the government, but it's surprisingly much better than expected for foreign merchants."

Prince Tae raised a brow. "Your uncle is a smart man."

Talam chuckled sadly. "My uncle just doesn't want me to die or my hard work to be in vain."

"Then, what do we have to do?" Ash asked. "Let's say Momma agrees to do business in Ashtar."

"Our tea house is our flagship store, but if we're entering a market with a lack of imports, then ideally, it would be a specialty store," Henry said. "Let's say, we'd need a storefront. Not too big, but just average-sized for a city store."

"And not necessarily on a high street, but just a regular merchant area,' Ash added.

Talam took a deep breath. "First, we need to get you into the country." Foreigners were, of course, restricted. "Uncle said that no merchant in the right mind would do more than sell goods to merchants in Ashtar considering the current situation. In that situation, aren't our people just buying things to bring back? Wouldn't that mean that the wealthy nobles would earn even more? As such, there should be an allowance for merchants to enter and set up shop. This was agreed upon in the import papers."

Ash let out a hum. "To be honest, I'm surprised that the Old B-the Emperor and his court agreed to that."

The corners of Talam's lips curled up. "Uncle met with the Emperor privately and shared some concerns he had about the court becoming...too influential."

At that, Henry understood. The wealthier the court nobles became, the more powerful their families were. They could then put pressure on other nobles and the Emperor, restricting funds or gifts. The effect wouldn't be felt at first, but it would be apparent with the treasury ran out of money.

Ashtar's imperial family owned plenty of land, but did not engage in commerce. This was traditionally done because of fears that the wealth of a nation would disappear with one wrong investment. The imperial family was also supposed to focus on matters of state, not their personal business.

Side branches could own businesses, but unless someone married into a merchant family or a noble family with business ties, it was often difficult without the right connections. Not that there were side branches of the imperial family that were considered as such.

There were plenty of people in good families that had blood going back to an imperial family member, but Henry and Ash only had one paternal uncle, no paternal aunts, grandparents, or cousins. Fights of succession had reduced what should've been a robust family into the Old Bastard's line and their sickly uncle who had no heirs.

Within the Court of Imperial Wives, the women had come from well-to-do families, some with merchant backgrounds, but they were prohibited from having anything to do with their families' sources of income as a way to control them and keep them from becoming too influential with the palace.

Nera's mother had left her a substantial inheritance, but the Council of Elders took care of it for her for the most part. From what Henry knew, her father's side's wealth had been eaten up by Nera's uncle's family, so she didn't have much there. In fact, Nera came to the imperial palace with only the clothes on her back and debilitating substances in her blood.

The entire imperial family was supported by the imperial treasury, which got its money from the people, so if some of those very powerful people wanted, they could financially cripple the imperial family.

Of course, this was something the Old Bastard was terrified of. It was something anyone in power would be worried about, and Talam's uncle had used it well to get the deal he wanted.

As for whether the Old Bastard would follow the agreement, that was uncertain, but at least guidelines were placed.

"In order to enter Ashtar, you will need to fill out paperwork. The points of entry into Ashtar, such as the gates and passes, won't have the paperwork. I'll need to return to Ridua to get them, then meet you at a point of entry to finalize them," Talam said. "Then, I, as the sponsor, will need to go with you to Ridua. I bear the responsibility of registering you, your business, your rental property, and everything with the government."

Henry took a deep breath and released it slowly. "So, you're saying it's going to take time."

"I'm afraid so," Talam said apologetically. "But I know my uncle can help. Also, I can speak to my wife. Her mother had arranged for her to receive some property. It's not in the very center of Ridua or near any popular merchant street, but I can guarantee the rent will be cheap."

Henry glanced at Ash, who stared at Talam with some ridicule. Henry could almost hear his younger brother's thoughts admonishing Talam for making promises using their sister's dowry property. Henry wouldn't put it past Ash to one day tell Varellian. Perhaps they should put up more money. It wasn't as if they were lacking. Ash had just won a significant pot he shared with Hana for winning the platinum ring at the Exhibition. Then again, that money was probably already put towards Moonflower.

"At least that's one advantage you'll have." Prince Tae said. "What about partner type and type of goods? Is it only merchants from the Federation? Since Suna and Dareisol are restricting Ashtari, it would make sense that Ashtar would deny Suna and Dareisol citizens entry."

Talam released a low breath. "Actually, we, the exiled elders and I, were told to only go to the Federation of Merchant Cities for the most flexibility. Federation Merchants are also known for being more willing to take risks, so we'd have a better chance of success."

He almost sneered when he said this. He'd spoken to many exiled elders he'd crossed paths with, and none of them had formed a merchant agreement. At most, they knew some people who export things here and there, but considering the situation of Ashtar, not to mention the unknown conditions they'd have to face to even do business in the country, who would be interested?

Henry and Ash only agreed to arrange a meeting. They'd need to wait until Nera arrived to confirm.

"What are you considering selling in Ashtar?" Prince Tae looked over at the brothers.

"It depends," Henry said. "What does Ashtar need?" Sometimes the words that came from his mouth made it feel as if he were born to be a merchant rather than a leader of an empire.

Talam chuckled and shrugged, helpless. "It needs to rebuild its agriculture, its infrastructure...its economy."

Henry pursed his lips and nodded. "I may not be able to help with the other two yet, but agriculture...."

"Are you forgetting you're a merchant and not a farmer?" Prince Tae raised a brow.

"Yes, but we know farmers," Ash replied. "From different regions, so the resources we have are varied."

"Tropical plants? We know some people in West Iveria. Temperate rainforest? We know some people near our cattle farm up north. Name the climate, we can find people who can sell goods," Henry told him.

Prince Tae didn't appear to believe him. "What kind of goods?"

"Seeds, saplings, and farm animals," Effie said. She looked at Ash. "Second Brother, take them off the grill so they cool down."

"I know, I know," Ash said as he adjusted some long tongs in his hand "Don't rush me."

"You can get seeds and farm animals?" Talam stared at Henry with a wondrous expression.

Henry shrugged. "Do you think it's hard?" Nearly anything was possible if you had enough money and connections.

Prince Tae sneered. "You've never worked on a farm a day in your life."

"Well, we don't all have an older sister who forced you to work in a rice paddy for one season for life experience," Henry retorted.

"I had been studying irrigation on behalf of Suna!" Prince Tae replied. "I asked for time to test some methods in order to increase yield and lower labor."

Henry reached over and patted his shoulder with comfort. "And you learned a lot."

Prince Tae shrugged off his arm and glared at him.

"Do you know anyone familiar with a fertile, but typically dry climate?" Talam asked. "Our northeast hasn't recovered from a drought and famine that occurred years ago."

Henry looked at Ash, who had removed the pan of desserts from the fire and put it on a large rock to cool. "We'd need to have people look at the area first. Every place has unique features that should be considered, but I think we'll find someone who can do the job."

"Of course, we're also not setting up shop in the northeast, but in Ridua, the capital," Henry pointed out. "We need to consider what we need there."

"Target the wealthy with high end, difficult to procure products that become status symbols amongst the elite," Effie said as she fanned the dessert in an effort to get it to cool faster. "Things that sell for moderate amounts outside will sell for a lot in places where it is new or lacking."

Henry stared at his sister. Yes, if there was any child of Nera's who was a merchant, it was Effie.

"Effie, you are very smart!" Talam praised.

"Naturally," Effie replied with confidence. "I am my Momma's baby." She picked up a piece of dessert and appeared satisfied that it was nice and cool before giving some to Prince Muran. "Let's finish our dessert, walk around the carriages, and then go to sleep!"

The young prince smacked his lips as he smiled through crescent eyes, relishing the sweets. After that, Nanny Wu followed around the two children as they circled the caravan. Prince Muran only made it around twice before he got sleepy and Nanny Wu had to carry him back to their carriage.

Effie slept in the carriage with the toddler and Nanny Wu while Prince Tae would camp outside with the brothers and guards. Prince Tae's carriage, where the children would sleep, was close by.

As Henry and the others prepared their bedrolls to sleep, Effie's little voice singing a Lunapsar lullaby wafted out of the carriage. Ash began to subconsciously hum along, as it had also been his childhood lullaby.

Just as Henry was about to sit down, a gust of wind swept over them, making the trees around them rustle. He looked up and then down at the fire. "I'll put some more wood in to keep it going."

"The guards are on rotation, we can have them add more if the fire starts to go out," Prince Tae said with a yawn.

Henry still knelt down to put more firewood into the fire. A few paces away, Talam told one of his escorts to also add a few more pieces into their smaller came fire. Diyar tossed in some twigs and said he would keep watch the first half of the night.

The route was well traveled and relatively safe. Besides, with the amount of guards they had with them, any sane bandit would think twice about attacking. Wolves were also prevalent in the area, but the fires would keep them away unless they were absolutely starving. The forest was lush and there were plenty of sounds of life, so Henry doubted any animal would come near them.

"Did you hear that?" Effie's voice was a little louder than it had been earlier. She pushed aside the carriage curtains and leaned out, craning an ear towards the forest. Her brows were knit and she looked as if she were waiting for something. Her eyes narrowed. "That's strange...."

"What's wrong?" Henry asked. Ash, who had laid down, sat back up.

"The forest went quiet...."

Ash rose to his feet and tossed out his hand to prepare some slips. A quiet forest usually meant something was wrong. Seeing them on their guard signaled the other guards, all of whom were still awake, to become alert.

"Act normal," Henry said in a low voice.

Effie opened her mouth and began singing the lullaby once more. Ash continued to hum, and even Talam, who had come down from his horse carriage, began to quietly sing along.

Henry heard the unimpressed voice of Simir in his head. At once, he relaxed his stance. He motioned his hand and Ash saw it, nodding as he relaxed.

"I didn't know the lullaby was so popular," an amused voice chuckled. They didn't hear her footsteps coming, but she was already close. "Do you speak Lunapsar?"

A figure dressed in familiar adventure clothing with hardly a scuff on her was illuminated when Ash threw up a light slip.

"Momma!" Effie would've jumped out of the window if she could. Nanny Wu reacted fast enough to stop her, but the child squirmed so she could leave to get to her newly arrived mother.

"Momma, you got here earlier than expected," Ash said, sitting back down on his bedroll. "Great, I'm going sleep easy tonight."

"My son is so heartless...." Nera scolded, but her tone was playful.

"Auntie, are you hungry?" Henry asked. Nera shook her head. The carriage door clicked and Effie jumped out to leap into Nera's arms.

"I ate earlier." She picked up Effie and pressed her face, veil, and all, against the side of Effie's face. "My baby, you should go to bed."

"Momma, I missed you..." Acting shy, Effie rubbed her face against the crook of Nera's neck as her arms clung to her.

Nera chuckled and continued walking towards. She gave nods of the guards and paused as she passed Talam. The man stood tense at the side of his horse carriage. His eyes were wide as he stared at her, as if frozen in time.

"Your pronunciation of Lunapsar is very good," she praised gently.

Henry could see Talam's eyes glistening over as his lower lip began to tremble. He didn't seem to have even realized he spoke.

"Auntie?"

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Her little nephew had grown up.

Talam was tall and slender, more similar to his late mother if Nera remembered correctly from the portraits of the couple. The Heigorens tended to be bulkier. However, his burgundy eyes shone with the same light they had at his happiest times with her years ago. It was a bit of a surprise that made her heart tighten.

There were many things that Nera regretted when she found herself in the imperial palace, and one of them was leaving behind Talam.

She'd only been with him a few months and felt that she'd only scratched the surface of helping him heal after the death of his parents and the negligence he faced when his grandparents seemed to lose their minds and forgot that they weren't the only one grieving the deaths of the couple.

Talam was vulnerable and she had left him.

That wasn't the plan, of course.

She was only returning to prepare for her wedding. Tradition had it that she must be picked up from her family's home and brought to her husband's home. So, though she planned her wedding and made all the arrangements from the Heigoren estate, she still had to spend at least one night at the Heikavarian manor.

One night was all it took to be ruined. She was so busy that she didn't realize she had been plotted against until it was too late.

She'd lost her fiancée.

Lost the family she was joining.

And abandoned a little boy who had already lost both his parents.

For some time, Nera worried that Talam would come to hate her, but the birds she'd sent to watch over him revealed that he didn't, but he had been hurt and missed her deeply. Nera sent him a dog. It was a random stray, but it had been Talam's best friend and emotional support during his formative years.

According to the birds, her sister had tried to get rid of it multiple times, but Talam and his grandparents refused. When her sister tried to kill it, she was attacked and was bedridden for weeks. Oh, how Anaserana hated Talam's dog. Probably as much as everyone else hated her.

At the very least, Nera was comforted that Talam had some support. Although Enroshan was busy, he was a particularly good uncle to Talam, and Nera was sure he'd continue to do his best for the child.

She prayed that he'd grow up healthy and well, to be as intelligent as his uncle and as kind as his parents were known to be.

Across from her, as the carriage bounced along, Talam slid her a document that was professionally written, but a bit tattered around the edges from being carried.

"Madam Atractas, please look over this." She watched him from behind her veil. He hadn't brought himself to meet her eyes all day. She supposed he was still embarrassed after last night.

Talam likely didn't realize it himself, but he called her aunt. Nera knew who he was at first glance, but he wasn't sure. Part of Nera's face was covered, and most importantly, his aunt, Ananeraka Heikavarian, was dead.

Just as he called her aunt, he began to cry and wiped his eyes, apologizing to her, a stranger he just met.

"I'm sorry, I just...for a moment, you reminded me of my late aunt," he'd choked back. Nera kept her expression neutral, but her heart ached. "I thought I saw her again. It must be the dim lighting...excuse me." He quickly climbed back into the horse cart. The curtain swung closed, and they didn't see him again until morning.

He'd emerged from the cart with dark circles under his puffy eyes.

Henry and Ash didn't mention it, but Effie asked if he had been crying.

"Talam, let me introduce you to my aunt," Henry had said, to try to ease the awkwardness. The introductions were polite, but the entire time, Talam struggled to meet her gaze. It was as if looking at her would be a painful reminder that he'd already lost his aunt.

However, he had a job to do. Henry had stressed this, even going so far as to point out that Talam's wife had spent a lot of money for him.

Talam shook himself out of his stupor and once the caravan began to move, he joined Nera in her carriage to discuss business.

Nera read over the document. She knew the handwriting immediately and almost shook her head. After so many years, Enroshan's writing became even more careful, not allowing for the slightest error.

She took her time reading the document and Talam shifted across from her, appearing to both want to speak, but not break her concentration.

"We can be an importer for goods that are difficult to find in Ashtar, particularly in clothes and housewares. The items we'll sell will be considered luxury imports."

Talam smiled a bit. "That's what Effie said. Are you willing to do business in Ashtar, Madam?"

"It's an untapped market. However, how soon can you get our entry paperwork started?" Nera asked.

Talam perked up. "Two months!"

Nera raised a brow. "Two months?" That was faster than she thought. There seemed to be a lot of red tape, not to mention opposition from parties who didn't want the exiled to return successful, to go through.

Talam nodded his head, enthusiastically. "It will take me a few weeks to get back to Ridua, but once there, the paperwork can be expedited with the help of my uncle. As soon as it's ready, I will meet you at any point of entry that works best for you."

If he went by horse cart, he'd make it in time. They weren't too far from the Suna's border with Ashtar. If he left from where they were, he could get on a main road from the northwest passage and then go straight to Ridua. Though it would probably take longer than a day or two to get the paperwork ready, even with Enroshan there to try to expedite it, two months was a very liberal estimate.

"What about a store?" Nera explained the property she had in mind, including the amount of space they needed inside and around, what was needed for loading goods, and the type of location for which they were aiming. "In fact, it would be better to have a warehouse and a shopfront."

Talam nodded. "My wife will be able to assist while I am traveling."

Varellian's mother was from a merchant family, so Nera didn't doubt that she had shops in her dowry.

"What about lodging? And how long will we be able to stay?"

As a Federation citizen, she could stay in Dareisol for the rest of her life without leaving if she wanted to, but for other countries, there was a time limit on how long a foreign national could stay. Suna's was three months on average, with special papers like hers that allowed for half a year of continuous stay.

Yayae would've allowed her to stay forever if Nera didn't talk her out of it.

"In the past, it was a month, but in this case, the limit is half a year," Talam replied. "I will have papers prepared for you, Henry, Ash, and Effie."

"Any restrictions on animals?"

Talam opened his mouth, but quickly shut it and furrowed his brows. "No, I don't think so."

Nera nodded. "Very well. Nera lifted the flap of her bag and took out a series of leather folios. "These are our standard business agreements. Let's go over them first."

There were forms upon forms that needed to be properly scrutinized before signing. Talam, despite his naivety, was serious when it came to paperwork. He went over every line, every paragraph, and voiced his understanding of different sections. It was testament to how well he had studied.

It took the entire day. Even as he ate, he looked over some documents. At one point, he had a question, but Nera was speaking to her sons, so nearby Effie responded with a clear and concise answer. When Talam stared at her, slack jawed with surprise, Effie shrugged.

"Merchant children start learning early."

Just three days from Suna's capital, the caravan split. Or rather, Talam and his two escorts split from the group to head to the northwest passage. Two months was just enough time for Nera and her family to spend in Suna before taking a carriage south, to West Wind Abbey.

Talam would wait for them at the western passage.

"How come you didn't tell him?" Henry asked as he rode beside their carriage. Nera was reading with two children sleeping against her.

"It's not time yet. If I'm alive, then so is Ash. And if he realizes who Ash is, then it's likely he'll figure out who you are. Then we lose an element of surprise."

Henry nodded. "He'll cry."

Nera smiled a bit. "He already did."

The sound of galloping horses was heard from the distance. Nera lifted her head. Above her, one of the ravens squawked and she raised a quizzical brow.

"Imperial guards."

"Did they come to meet us?" Henry asked as he peered into the distance and saw the figures approaching on horseback. "We're half a day's travel away from the city."

"Go check what's going on." Prince Tae gave an order as he trotted past them with a frown. "They wouldn't be rushing out to meet us like this. Something might've happened."

As he finished his sentence, a flare was shot into the air. A stream of orange smoke rose and Prince Tae's eyes widened. His hands seemed to clench the reins.

"What does that mean?" Henry asked.

Prince Tae grit his teeth. "Speed up! Let's hurry it into the city!"

"Tae," Nera said as her carriage jerked forward. "What's going on? What does the flare mean?"

"I'll leave Ranran with you." Prince Tae kicked the sides of his horse. The panic on his face wasn't concealed. "I'll go up ahead. It's an emergency!"

"Tae!" Nera frowned. "What emergency is he talking about?"

"Madam," one of the Suna guards who remained to protect Prince Muran spoke up from his horse. "Orange means a member of the imperial family is missing."