-HIM-

"Khazar, you said you wanted to introduce me to some people," Theoron said, holding my gaze fiercely.

"Yes, here they are," Khazar said, nodding at us. "This is King Nanda of Khatapis, and this is King Alexandros of Cromaria," There was an awkward silence after Khazar introduced us. Theoron was still looking at me with that death stare. I didn't back away either. "Why don't we all sit together? I have something that would interest you two," Khazar added, nodding at Theoron and me.

I nodded, taking my place while Theoron sat across me. The dinner began shortly after Khazar's wife's arrival with her ladies. She sat at the women's table, where they had different arrangements exclusively for the ladies.

"What is it that you wished to talk about?" Theoron asked after the dinner began. I could sense impatience in his voice. He didn't look thrilled to be in my company.

"You sound like you're in a hurry," Khazar noted. Theoron smiled and politely shook his head. Meanwhile, his advisor leaned in and whispered something in his ear. Theoron glanced at me briefly before declaring, "I'm curious to know what could bring the two of us to the same table,"

"Me too," I spoke up. Khazar gave a dry laugh, noticing the tension building over our table. "It's not like we have many things in common," I added darkly.

"You two have much more in common than you could imagine," Nanda chimed in to help Khazar disperse the tension.

"Like what?" Theoron asked.

"Both of you are maidenliness," Nanda commented and burst out laughing with Khazar. Surprisingly, Theoron's advisor also chuckled. I saw a smile tugging the tip of Theoron's lips. I didn't know where this was going. I wish Lars were with me, but he was sitting at another table with other guests, specifically the ladies.

"Do I smell a matrimonial alliance?" Theoron suggested, tilting his head and looking at me. His comment caught Khazar and Nanda off guard. Instead of dissipating the tension, it grew further.

"I don't have a sister," I declared. "But I've heard you had one," I added.

"She's dead," Nanda added quickly.

"I'm sorry for that," I said to Theoron, raising my glass, "May she rest in peace. I've heard a great deal about her. I'm sure she was a wonderful sister to you. It must be hard grieving such a loss,"

I saw something flicker in Theoron's eyes. It was almost as if his facade had slipped from his face. For once, I saw sorrow in his eyes.

"Yeah, I miss her," He sighed deeply, taking a huge gulp from his glass. Meanwhile, his advisor maintained a stoic face.

"What was she like?" I asked out of curiosity. Nanda nudged me under the table, but I wasn't going to let go of this opportunity. Theoron looked a bit uncomfortable. I added to put him at ease, "I always wonder what it's like to have a sister. You see, I too had a sister, but she died in infancy,"

"I'm sorry to hear that," Theoron told me, raising his glass. "Having a sister is like having a blessing from god. She looked after me like a second mother. We fought and played together every day. Without her, my childhood would have been bleak...." He trailed off, staring at a distance as if deep in his thoughts. I thought his eyes looked a bit glossy. "She was always very kind to me," He added, his voice breaking slightly. "But... she was taken away too quickly,"

"I'm very sorry for your loss. I'm sure she's in a good place right now," I assured him. He gave me a long look and asked, "you think so?"

"She sounds like a nice person. I'm sure she must have been god's favourite for her to go so early," I told him. He nodded before drinking all the wine from his glass in a single gulp.

"God's favourite?" Herran muttered, "Maybe, she was,"

"I've heard she could read Voynish," I said. Theoron's head snapped towards me, and Nanda tensed even more. Khazar was sipping from his drink and listening to us quietly.

"Yeah... she was quite good at it," Theoron spoke in an unsure tone as he exchanged a look with Herran. "She was good at quite a lot of things. She was brilliant, but one day she caught this fever and...." He trailed off.

"My sister died the same way," I told him. He nodded at me understandingly before another awkward silence took over the table.

"Look, you two have a lot in common," Khazar broke the silence.

"I'm quite surprised to find that," I mentioned.

"Me too,"

"I think we are similar in many ways," I told him.

"Like what?" Nanda asked this time.

"Both of us were never meant to sit on the throne," I mentioned. Herran gave me a long hard look, but his puppet nodded.

"Both of us lost our parents at a young age," Theoron added.

"You two also share territorial boundaries with Zuncans," Khazar added.

"And you two have huge armies," Nanda added.

"Speaking of armies," I decided to bring it up, "I heard that in a remote western village, the dead bodies of your royal troops were found in a lake," My words instantly injected the air with tension. Herran looked at me grimly while I saw a hint of hostility in Theoron's eyes.

"They were guarding the villagers against the Zuncans. It was a bloody fight," Theoron lied, staring me down.

"Zuncas are everyone's problem," Nanda chimed in to cut the tension.

"You two are truly very much alike," Khazar concluded. "I hope to see you two get along more. I'm sure you'd soon be best of friends," Khazar laughed dryly, knowing well that what he had said was never possible.

"It was a pleasure talking to you, King Theoron," I said to break the tension again.

"Me too," He responded, surprisingly or usurpingly. Even though he spoke politely, his eyes told a different story. "I'd like to invite you to my Coronation anniversary celebration next month," He declared, shocking all of us.

"Are you sure?" I asked, giving a short laugh. Everyone else at the table was speechless.

"I'd like to have you as the main guest at my celebration," Theoron smiled slyly, raising his empty glass at me.

_