Lord Shik smiled again, bowed and put the box to his side. Without a word, Vergaihl came out of his hidden obscurity, knelt to collect the box, rose and walked over to his lady. At her side, he knelt again, his toes flat as his knees fell to the relatively soft flax woven mat. He placed the box in front of Lady Zaexyl and awaited her response in this uncomfortable position. It wasn't rare that his feet would go numb.
The moment she took it out of the box she knew with the surety of her entire being that these two were not here to offer their sons after all. What they hoped to accomplish, she was unsure, but she was in far more precarious a position than she had previously thought.
"A tad simple," she smiled most generously at Lord Shik, "but I understand the sentiments of your son nonetheless. I would be pleased to meet him." Vergaihl returned the box to its owner before disappearing beyond the thick paper walls of the Receiving Room once again.
If Lord Shik were surprised at her willingness to open her home to their family, he did not show it. Nor did he seem to take offense at her derision. It was the way of the intended to downplay their gifts, that a suitor might try harder. A noble wedding would not usually occur until five or six rejections. By that time, a lord or lady could expect to have their likeness cast in gold. More would be puzzle had she accepted his offer immediately. Whatever he was thinking, he merely smiled and bowed.
"I suspect my son Gaihgrem offers much the same." intoned Lady Tsitul. "Although he requested that I not peek into his offering. It is a son's embarrassment to let his mother know he thinks like a man." she chuckled. A servant girl waiting by the door quickly placed the unopened box at Lady Tsitul's side and within moments, Vergaihl had it at his own lady's side.
Lady Archne lifted the box and opened it slowly. What she saw perplexed her, which gave her cause to worry even more than the collar had. Lord Shik seemed unable to contain himself when she did not immediately respond. "What is it? Come now, what has the lad offered you?"
Lady Archne made quick note that even though she had remained silent, Lady Tsitul also bore a glimmer of curiosity in her eyes. She was not lying. She did not know its contents.
Carefully, with two fingers, she extracted an extremely common looking, single, long earring made of turquoise and jade, suspended from a hook by small silver chain. "Is this your son's idea of a joke?" Reiba asked incredulously. "Does he take me for a merchant?" she accused, referencing the trend for particularly wealthy business men and women to mimic noble ear tattoos by holding their own traditions with single earrings.
"Ah, my lady, my apologies, I do not know what he meant by this." Kreihl stammered, her age finally beginning to show as lines of worry. "I am sorry to cause offense, please let me return this and we formally retract our offer."
The two waited for Lady Archne's reply, expecting to be tersely dismissed as tales of the ungracious behavior of House Tsitul reverberated throughout the Dance of Roses for the next couple of months. It left them more astonished when she did finally speak.
"No. I accept. I shall wed your son on the night the Major Moon returns to the skies. I thank you for your visit this night. The morning fast approaches. I believe your families await you."
Lady Zaexyl did not move a muscle, as it was poor form for a host to leave before the guests, but her bewildered peers understood the message. They bowed slightly from their mats before getting up and exiting the room, each of their retainers close behind.
"Vergaihl!" she called and he appeared to her from the other side of the paper walls.
"My lady."
"Send two boys to follow those two home from a distance. They are not to return until the see them to their compounds. I want to know everything they witness before that happens." she ordered.
"Yes my lady."
"I will retire now, see that I am not disturbed until those boys return."
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