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“I have a big nose.”

Riure slapped  hand to her mouth, but a giggle still escaped. At least the princess wasn’t trying to impress her. All the same, Riure couldn’t tell if it was meant as a joke or if it was just the first thing that came to Princess Liorah’s mind.

“I really do,” the princess protested. “Umm, I’m tall enough that lots of boys stand on tiptoe when they meet me because it’s an overwhelming indignation that a girl’s taller than them.” Sarcasm coated her voice.

Riure smiled, pulling Sadiq’s head farther onto her lap so she could stroke the dog’s coarse ruff.

“My hair is so long and thick it gives me a headache when I have to pin it up for formal occasions.” I wish I had hair like that. “Or maybe it’s the events themselves, I don’t even know. It’s always fraying out of the braid and it’s kind of a dark reddish-brown, but I always forget to cover it, so the ends are bleached blond by the sun. Mother says it’s the color of father’s, but I don’t remember.” Princess Liorah’s voice grew soft. “I have his eyes too. Really light brown. Almost gold.”

Riure’s heart melted. It was clear the princess’s father was gone – dead or just gone, Riure didn’t know which. Whatever the case, Riure knew that pain, and it stung her sharply even now.

“My father died when I was eight,” the princess replied tersely to the question Riure was silently asking. “Eight years ago. Hunting accident.”

Sighing, Riure let her head fall back against the wall. She stared blindly at where she thought the ceiling of the cave, or room, or whatever they were in was supposed to be. Silence had engulfed the room, whereas Riure had been aware that at least two more people – Ehud and someone else – had been whispering frantically while she and the princess conversed. Their silence was tense, awkward. Princess Liorah was lost in thought.

Finally, Riure broke it. “I was nine,” she whispered. “I was nine when my father left.”

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