Kari had enjoyed the decorations of the immense bathroom more than the bath itself (which was saying something; Kari really enjoyed a nice long soak in the bath).  When she finished soaking, she had wrapped a towel around herself and, after peeking to make sure no one was around, happily skipped over to her dressing room.  There were so many choices that it took her at least thirty minutes to decide what to wear for the day.  But, she finally settled on form-fitting white pants and a very bright blue shirt that hung from her shoulders.  She had tried on a lot of different clothes and they all seemed to fit her perfectly.  How had they managed to get so many clothes that fit so well in such a short amount of time?  She shook her head.  Why worry about that when she had so many other things to worry about?  Like Yunho, for instance.  She hadn’t seen him yet that morning, and she had the feeling that he had left the room as soon as he had woken up just to get away from her.  They really needed to talk.  Last night had been far too awkward to talk about what had happened to them, but today should be fine.  Not where anyone else could hear, but in public.  It wouldn’t look weird or strange if the new king and queen were seen having a serious conversation, would it?

“Majesty, High Wizard Yazin would like to meet with you.  Would you like me to fix your hair and makeup before you see him?”

Mair had come into the dressing room and curtsied gracefully.  She didn’t look quite as scared or apprehensive as before.  That was a good sign, wasn’t it?  Kari nodded to her and sat on the stool in the middle of the room.  There were no mirrors that were visible to her from this angle, but she didn’t feel like moving so she would just have to be surprised. 

Not two seconds after Mair declared her dressed for the day, another maid came into the room and (after curtsying) announced that Yazin had come to meet Kari.  Great, now she was going to have her (mostly) pleasant morning ruined by the crushing reality of being queen.  As she stood, she froze, suddenly scared.  What if their magic could tell that she and Yunho hadn’t done anything on their wedding night?  Yazin had seemed pretty emphatic about the heir business.  What would happen to them if he found out there might not ever be an heir?  She shook her head.  There was no reason to worry about what ifs.  They would cross that bridge when they came to it, and she sure as heck wasn’t going to do it alone.  She would drag Yunho to her defense kicking and screaming if she had to. 

She swept out of the room and into the sitting room where Yazin stood, waiting for her.

“Good morning, Majesty.  I trust you had a pleasant night.”

Kari blushed furiously.  Why did he have to bring that up?  Apparently, a blush was an acceptable answer, because Yazin continued on without a pause.

“I have some things I must discuss with you, Majesty.  I have already spoken to the king, and he has already begun to work on his kingly duties.  Now, it is time for you to begin work on your duties.”

She heard the understated, “Not the least of which, is your duty to conceive an heir.”  Yazin didn’t say it out loud, but she could see it in his eyes and demeanor.  Joy, I always wanted to be pressured into having a kid before I was ready and with a man who didn’t even want to help make the kid.  Maybe she was just imagining things.  Maybe the heir issue wasn’t really a big deal and she was blowing things all out of proportion. 

“…so, I will begin teaching you the basics of our written language.  Hopefully, the binding issue will resolve itself.  But, until then, we need to be vigilant in our search for the solution to the problem.  Do you understand, Majesty?”

“Huh?”

Yazin sighed.

“You haven’t listened to a word I’ve said, have you Majesty?”

“Umm…I heard that you were going to be teaching me to read in your language and that there was some problem with the…binding?”

“The magic that binds you to the treaty and gives you the ability to speak in our language, as well as other things, is not complete.  Something is missing from the magic.  I and the other Tesa Huunim will work to discover why exactly that is.  Until then, you must complete the duties I have outlined for you.  If you were having a waking dream (as I assume you were) and did not hear them, I will have an aide explain them more fully.  I understand that this is all very new to you, but please make an effort to pay attention in the future, Majesty.  All the things I tell you are of vital importance to our kingdom.”

“I’m sorry.  I’ll try to do better next time.”

“An apology is not necessary, Majesty.  Now, your duties begin tomorrow.  But, one of the Tesa Huunim from the Acyian t’Lialn, or the healer’s academy will be here soon to make sure you are of good health.  Please wait here for her to arrive.  After she is done, you may have the rest of the day as free time.  I would suggest a visit to the library to have some of our history read to you.  Good day, Majesty.”  And with a tiny bow of his head, Yazin left the room.  Kari got the impression that she wasn’t doing a very good job of starting off on the right foot with the people here. 

“Majesty?”  Mair poked her head in the room.

“Yes.”

“One of the Tesa Huunim is here to see you.”

“Send her in.”

“Yes, Majesty.”  Mair’s head disappeared behind the door again.  A few moments later, it opened to let in a voluptuous woman with the same silver hair and gold eyes that everyone else seemed to have here.  But, this woman looked like she would have silver hair on any world, she was just that old.  And, to make matters worse, she looked really strict.  She stared at Kari with a look that said, “I have grandchildren with children as old as you and I’ll brook no nonsense from you.  You try one thing with me and I’ll turn you over my knee and spank you.  Don’t think I won’t.”  The woman curtsied slightly, but arrogantly as if to say that she was only following protocol because she wanted to, not because she had to. 

“My name is Reina.  I am the Mistress of the Acyian t’Lialn, and I am here to make sure you are healthy, Majesty.”

She gave Kari no time to reply before sweeping over to her and putting a hand against her forehead.  Kari felt a tingle as something (could it be magic?) flowed into her from Reina’s hand.

“You have a healthy mind, child.  That’s a good sign, at least.  Now let’s see the rest of you.  Come sit in this chair.  I don’t like you towering over me with your excessive height.” 

Kari did as she was told without a comment.  She wasn’t that tall.  Well, okay.  So, she was 5’9”.  That was pretty tall for a girl.  But, she had seen girls who were taller.  Her height wasn’t excessive.  Reina had both her hands hovering scant centimeters above Kari’s heart.  Whenever she looked at them from the corner of her eye, Kari could see faint multicolored sparkles flowing out of Reina’s hands and into her, right where she felt the tingles.  This must be magic.  Kari found herself yearning to learn how it was that Reina used whatever energy source was fueling her magic.  She had to know.

Reina’s hands began to move all around Kari’s body, never touching her; but wherever her hands went, Kari could feel the magic flowing through her.

“Well, child.  You’re healthy.”  She stood and sat in the chair across from Kari and poured some tea for herself.  Kari hadn’t even seen who had brought it.  “How did you enjoy your wedding night?”

“Umm…”

“Don’t worry about lying to me, child.  I know you’ve never been with a man.  You do realize that you can’t have an heir without laying with your husband, right?”

Kari blushed and hurriedly poured herself a cup of tea without answering.  This was far too embarrassing.  It was not a conversation she wanted to have.

“That’s nothing to be embarrassed about.  I had six children before my husband died and I have 23 grandchildren.  Some of my grandchildren have children of their own.  I have helped birth many babies in my time and still help with some of the more difficult births.  So, child, you are in safe hands with me.”

Kari buried her face in her tea, hiding from the woman’s piercing gaze.

“Well, the Elanari sure picked a shy child to be queen, didn’t they?”  Reina took a long sip from her tea.  “You will have to get over this shyness quickly, child.  Our world needs a queen, not a simpering milk maid.”  She stood and set her empty cup on the table.  “I will return on the morrow and every day until I am satisfied that you are performing your duties as queen adequately.  Good day to you, Majesty.”  With that final threat, she walked out of the room.  Great, something to look forward to everyday. 

“Mair?”

The maid reentered the room.  “Yes, Majesty?”

“Where is Yun-the king?”

“I believe he is in the library, Majesty.”

“Take me there?”

“Of course, Majesty.”  Mair led the way through the beautiful, but mazelike palace to the library.  Staring at the waterfall, Kari almost forgot why she was in the library in the first place.  She gave a start and then began to scan the people for Yunho.  Her face heated when she saw the sheer robes that most of the people were wearing.  Seriously, they hid absolutely nothing!  What were those people thinking?  She tore her eyes away from them, wishing she could un-see what she had just seen.

Yunho was sitting at a table against the pool’s railing with an older woman.  He seemed to be concentrating pretty hard on the book and papers in front of them.  The woman, however, looked up and saw Kari walking towards them.  She said something to Yunho and he glanced up at her.  He gave her a half smile, then quickly went back to studying the book.  Kari walked over to him.

“Yunho.  I think we need to talk.”

He glanced up at her, then looked at the woman next to him.

“Thank you so much for your help, Nia, but I have an appointment in a few minutes and I still have to find the meeting room.”  The woman stood, curtsied and walked away.  Yunho still hadn’t really looked at Kari. 

“Yunho, is there someplace we can talk about this?”

He didn’t look up from gathering his papers and the book.  “I can’t right now.  I have a meeting with Yazin.  Maybe later.”  With that he walked quickly out of the library, keeping his eyes fixed on the doors as if his life depended looking towards his destination.

Kari wasn’t about to let this go.  She asked someone where his meeting was and found the place just after the meeting ended.  Yunho had already left.  Yazin told her that her husband was going to find some dinner and to check their dining room.  She didn’t find Yunho anywhere in their suite of rooms.  She followed his trail around the palace until late that night, and though she had caught several glimpses of him, was never able to speak with him.  She was beginning to think that he was avoiding her. 

Coming back to an empty room that night was really lonely.  Kari had always relished the thought of being alone, but was finding out that it really wasn’t everything it was cracked up to be.  She climbed into bed, hoping that Yunho would at least come in later, that he was caught up in some meeting with Yazin or some of his kingly duties that Yazin had alluded to.  But, when she awoke in the morning, there was no evidence that anyone had slept in the bed with her.