Third Watch Read Free

she starts searching through her clothes she’ll find me.” Ariin said. “Tell her since it’s the first time you’ve been in her house, you’ll get lost.”
    Khorii said, “I understand, except I have never been here in your rooms before, Akasa. Can you not take me back to my home yourself?”
    Akasa shrugged, then grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out the door and to the front of the house. The house reminded Khorii a little of the mansion where the cruel and untrustworthy Marl Fidd had tried to hold her captive.
    Looking over her shoulder, she was startled to see that the door through which she and Akasa had emerged was an eye that looked very like one of her hostess’s, set in a wall-size depiction of the upper half of the female’s face.
    Akasa’s grip loosened and her mouth softened when she saw that Khorii was staring seemingly awestricken at her countenance. “It is rather good, if I do say so myself. Self-portrait. I wanted to make my home look like me.”
    “You—certainly succeeded,” Khorii said, rather stunned at the vanity of it all.
    “Ask her about her other artwork in the house,” Ariin, monitoring Khorii’s thoughts, suggested. “That should keep her occupied until I can escape.”
    Khorii did as her sister suggested. Admiring Akasa’s decor did indeed turn out to be a good move. Akasa unhooked her hand from Khorii’s arm so she could use both hands to make grand, sweeping gestures as she indicated her various sculptures, frescoes, mosaics, and some more striking but rather gaudy self-portraits of herself in various outfits painted against a black velvet background and embellished with shiny beads and—what were those called?—oh, yes, sequins.
    “There are an awfully lot of rooms here that don’t seem to have any function except to be cleaned,” Ariin remarked, seeing the tour through Khorii’s eyes.
    “It’s a huge gallery!” Khorii said aloud.
    “Why, yes, it is, child. As you can see, the depth and breadth of my creativity are well represented here, although my home is far too small to include my public art works and various other contributions to this city.”
    “I had no idea,” Khorii said, quite truthfully.
    “Naturally. A mere child lacks the aesthetic experience to appreciate my work. But don’t despair. Your attitude clearly demonstrates that you are maturing into a young adult with excellent taste and a discerning eye. Many of the gowns and robes in my wardrobe are also my creations, you know.”
    “No! Really? I am truly impressed. It was so good of you to allow me to handle your precious things. I would be overjoyed if you would do so again someday.”
    “Another time, when there is not a ball for which I must prepare. Perhaps if your development continues to be so pleasing, I will help you gown and bejewel yourself in earnest next time, so you may attend.”
    “Oh, goody!” Khorii said, clapping her hands and borrowing an expression she’d heard Sesseli use. She said it loudly enough, she hoped, to mask her insincerity.
    “After all, it’s high time you learned to attract suitors,” Akasa continued.
    “Oh, yuck!” Ariin said. “There’s nobody here but more of her kind, and even though most of them can manage to be fairly good-looking—as humans go—they are very old, and none of them have ever really been nice to me.”
    “Obviously they aren’t familiar with our customs. Choosing a lifemate is serious—and it’s almost like my people don’t even choose. Lifemates just recognize each other.”
    “These people do a lot of mating, but never bear young,” Ariin said. “They don’t seem to stay with each other for any longer than it takes to mate. In fact, I don’t think any of them will ever find a lifemate the way you think of it, outside of a mirror. The only thing they seem to love is themselves.”
    “That is very sad. But now that you mention it, I have noticed quite a lot of mirrors in this dwelling,” Khorii said