whatever you do; Posted on July 22, 2023 at 03:45:09 AM by rafe
make certain your hands are clean ; When it looks like this interaction will turn into the fight Rafe came seeking fades, as this strange stallion realizes why he is here, Rafe can’t help the mild frisson of disappointment. Given Jyestha’s high-level education on what he might find here, Rafe rather assumed they would start with the violence and end with the negotiation.
Apparently, though, the words that Jyestha gave him to pass along acted as some sort of key. Antares’ ears relax and he goes from posed for aggression to mere observation. He’s even remarkably understandable when Rafe accuses him of not matching Jyestha up.
When he is corrected, Rafe shrugs one shoulder, flicking an ear back in disinterest. Perhaps it is more complicated when factoring in politics, but at the root of it Rafe understands - for his own defense, Antares did not do the duty of a father to a daughter in their culture. Whatever the reasoning, it isn’t something that sets him in positive light in Rafe’s opinion.
Even as he listens carefully to the story, taking the time to glean any information that he may get. And hearing that wherever Antares came from is so barbaric has Rafe seriously reconsidering his willingness to send a daughter as bride-price. There are none of his children he would expose to such things, even if he could imagine Eloisa enjoying a change of scenery.
“She didn’t tell me much,” Rafe agrees in a murmur. Such tricky people, to attach so much meaning to so tiny a phrase. He can already feel a headache building between his ears, but he ignores it with a shake of his head. “She didn’t seem…pleased, when I told her her life in the Badlands was hers to design. She demanded my intentions and sent me here instead.” He shrugs, amused at her. Certainly it seems Jyestha has lived up to her fathers hopes in her headstrong ways.
Antares continues on, educating Rafe about their culture and then finally, finally coming to the crux of the matter; the bride-price. He makes a thoughtful noise when Antares asks after an alliance and says, “Nyimara and I have stood aligned since I took the Badlands six years ago. Any alliance you and I forge would be with her blessing; she’s more valuable an asset than you are.” There is no insult in his voice, but no apology either, just a bald statement of fact. “You are given leave to live in the Dunes, well-protected and undisturbed by the witch queen. What is it that would benefit you, Antares?”
rafe | 15.2 hh bay overo brindle mutt | king in the badlands