“How did I let you talk me into this?” a deep voice rumbled as a carriage trundled slowly over a too-narrow dirt road.

  “How did I talk me into this?” a much higher-pitched voice replied, though there was an undertone of a growl to the otherwise youthful tones.

  The curtains shifted, and a pink-furred muzzle pressed against the gss. Ears swiveled as Ky took in their surroundings, which mainly consisted of trees and armored humans mounted on ridiculously rge horses.

  “I want to ride a horse,” Ky grumbled, sitting back and plucking at the ridiculous clothing she wore. She had at least managed to convince Reina that she wouldn’t wear a ‘dress’ ever again, but this garment was little more than a sack with sleeves. Both Jinn and Reina had been particurly adamant that Ky needed to cover her upper body, and they said that adult humans wouldn’t take her seriously if she wore anything shorter than her knees. Apparently only human children wore short clothing, and Ky’s size was already going to be a problem. Another problem? Her ck of a guard. Which was why Raff was with her, rather than back in the mountain.

  “Me, too,” Raff muttered, though he looked far more comfortable than Ky felt. He was lounging on one of the long, cushioned seats, with several small pillows behind his head, and one leg crossed over his other knee. “If I’d known Lianhua was gonna come back, I would’ve stayed with her. I’ve never been to the Empire.”

  Ky attempted to flop backwards as well, but the combination of her tail and the yers of fabric around her lower body - though some effort had been made to prevent them from tangling around her legs and tail - prevented her from doing more than leaning uncomfortably. “You said you were mad at Lianhua and she wasn’t your boss anymore.”

  Raff sighed, rubbing his hands over the thick, curly beard that once again engulfed the lower half of his face. “Well, I was, but mostly I just figured since she was about to go home, I’d need a new job, and you offered me a good one. One that pretty much required me to stay in the mountain.”

  She snorted. “You leave every ten days to go to that town, Wheldrake, and you don’t come back for three days.”

  “Those’re called days off, and they’re in my contract,” he said, grinning as he closed his eyes. Ky didn’t know what he did on these ‘days off’, but he always looked both a little sick and entirely too cheerful when he came back. He also seemed to be able to spend any amount of gold in just the time he was gone, so Ky had stopped giving him extra just to see how happy it made him.

  “Contract,” she mumbled, eyes nding on the stack of books beside her. These were called ‘wbooks’, and especially focused on ‘contracts’. Reina said she would provide a ‘wyer’ and also personally look over any agreements between humans and kobolds until Ky understood how tricky humans could be, but the whole thing was making Ky regret becoming liaison at all.

  A voice from outside called a short warning right before the carriage jumped, making Ky’s books fall onto the floor. Somehow, Raff held on, seeming completely unbothered by the movement. When Ky managed to set the books upright again, she noticed that the carriage was running much more smoothly, and the sound of the wheels had changed.

  “Are we almost there?” she asked, opening the curtain, only to have Raff brush it down again. When she turned to gre at him, she saw that he was sitting up straight for the first time since they climbed into the carriage that morning.

  “Yeah, kiddo, we’re almost there,” he said, eyes shifting as if he could see through the wood and fabric that made up the mobile den. “Sounds like we have a welcoming committee, too. Just hold on until we’re sure they’re friendly.”

  None too gently, he urged her toward the center of the carriage, but Ky didn’t argue. Males were meant to protect their females, and a wise female knew when to trust their instincts. Instead, she brought up her shield and touched the ring on her left hand, though she didn’t pull out her knife. Not yet.

  The carriage rumbled to a halt, and shortly thereafter, a quick knock sounded at the door to Ky’s right. “It’s Jinn,” came the familiar voice, and both Raff and Ky rexed. Raff opened the door, and his sister peered inside, smiling at Ky, though she didn’t enter. “Reina sent me out to meet you. Prince Lucas has been pushing to have your carts held at the gate until they can be thoroughly inspected, which is…not what should happen with a visiting delegation. I’m here to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

  ‘Delegation’ was another new word, and Ky tried to remember it. She would have to ask Raff what it meant when no one else was around. She was sure Jinn or Reina would expin it, but Raff was the only one Ky was willing to look stupid in front of, so it would have to wait.

  Raff and Jinn exchanged a few more words, and then Jinn closed the door. Raff and Ky shared a look as the tch clicked, but didn’t speak. They didn’t know who else was out there, or what they would be able to hear, so it was best to remain silent.

  After another period of time that stretched so long that Ky actually picked up one of the books and tried to read it, they paused again, and loud voices surrounded them. Raff listened, then nodded and said, “Gate. Jinn’s got it.” Then they were moving once more, but this time Ky could smell the distinct aromas of the human city, Cliffcross. She could also hear many carriages and horses pressing close to them, though someone was howling for all of them to move out of the way.

  Raff wouldn’t let Ky look out of the curtains as they traveled through the city, either, and Ky felt her patience growing shorter and shorter. Yes, he was supposed to protect her, and yes, she trusted him, but she wanted to see! This was going to be a truly terrible experience if she was never even allowed to look at anything.

  At st, they stopped again, and this time when Jinn knocked, it was with a firm rap, and a, “Lady Ky, we’ve arrived.”

  Lady Ky. That was another thing that felt very strange. She had been exchanging messages with Reina for months, and the human princess insisted that having a title would help her. Apparently, ‘Lady’ could be applied to almost anyone, and since chiefs, even great ones, weren’t something the humans understood, this was the safest title to use, and technically accurate, since Ky’s sister was a chief.

  Raff opened the door and climbed out first, before lowering the small step and holding out his hand for Ky. Ky sighed, but set her hand on his before lifting her skirt and stepping down. He’d been quite clear that jumping was unacceptable, as was just tearing off the bottom part of the dress so it would be out of her way.

  She didn’t dare look up until her paws were firmly on the ground and her skirt disentangled, but when she did, she could barely keep her jaw from dropping. She’d seen Raff’s family den, and it was big enough for a whole kobold tribe, but this pce had to be as rge as the chaoxue and the Luzhijia together. There was no reason to make such a huge building. Did humans just like to build things as rge as possible?

  Reina stood at the top of the steps leading up to doors wide enough for Ky’s carriage to drive through. She was smiling broadly, but she remained where she was, forcing Ky to come to her. This was something Ky understood, at least. This territory was Reina’s, and the deeper Ky entered into it, the more she was in Reina’s power. Not that Ky could be any more vulnerable than she already was, wearing strange clothes, in a strange pce, surrounded by strange people. In fact, she felt significantly less safe than she had when surrounded by samander and stone lizards, slogging her way through the stinking sewers that y beneath Cliffcross.

  “Come,” Reina said as Ky managed to haul her clothing up the steps. “Mother and Father are just finishing morning court. They’re very excited to greet you.”

  ‘Morning court’ went on Ky’s mental list, but she bowed slightly in response. Reina led her through echoing tunnels with paintings on the walls and thick fabric on the floor that cushioned Ky’s paws as she walked. They passed door after door, and humans scurried out of the way, bowing as Reina passed, though curious eyes lingered on Ky, making her back itch. Only the knowledge that Raff was right behind her kept her from raising a shield. Would anyone notice if she did? Would they know it meant she was frightened?

  Guards opened doors that were once again ridiculously oversized, and Reina entered a room that could have served as a den all by itself. Many humans stood around, all wearing some version of the complicated clothing Reina and Ky both had on, though the men had ‘pants’ rather than skirts, at least for the most part. There were a few wearing something that looked like Lianhua’s robes, and they had their hands tucked into their sleeves in much the same way Yingtao often stood.

  A male and a female human sat in chairs that seemed ready to engulf them at the top of yet more stairs. The female stood, smiling and extending her hands, though the male remained seated as Ky and Reina approached. Raff remained at the bottom of the five short stairs while Reina drew Ky up after her.

  At first, Ky barely recognized them, but then Reina said, “Of course you remember my father and mother, King Maleim and Queen Natalia, since you helped rescue them and many members of this court.” The st words were spoken a little too loudly, and a soft wave of whispers rose up from the watchers.

  Queen Natalia stepped forward, pced her hands on Ky’s shoulders, and moved her lips to each side of Ky’s face, though she didn’t quite touch the fur. Reina had warned her this would happen, so Ky managed not to draw back or growl, but she definitely didn’t like it. For the first time, she was gd her clothing covered her tail, so no one could see that it was tucked tight as she greeted the king and queen.

  Giving the best bow she could manage, Ky said, “Your Majesties. It makes my heart gd to see you both looking so well.”

  Reina had told her exactly what to say, but she could hear muffled gasps from behind her. Someone said, “It talks!” so loudly that even the Queen’s gaze wavered for a moment before returning to Ky.

  Ky felt her ears grow hot, though she wasn’t sure whether it was from anger or embarrassment, but she ignored it as she exchanged a few more words with the king and queen, making sure to keep her voice even and as smooth as possible. Then she stepped back and waved, gd to see that the yumi-reed boxes she’d brought with her had been brought along, just as Reina had assured her they would be.

  “I bring gifts from my people,” she said. “Samples of our food, art, and crafted goods, as well as metals and gemstones. Our chiefs hope we will be able to establish sting trade between our peoples.”

  She deliberately didn’t mention the fact that the portal was now open permanently, because they were trying to keep that from becoming common knowledge for as long as possible. At first, many humans tried to move in right next to the portal, but Kaz and the chiefs had put a stop to that, with the cooperation of the human king. Raff had also hired many more humans to work as guards both in and out of the mountain, which was why he could be with her now, but it was still best not to encourage rge numbers of visitors until they could find a way to close or block the portal if they were attacked.

  Humans in simpler clothing came forward and lifted the items from the boxes. Of course the humans liked the gold and a ruby the size of Ky’s fist the best, but Ky was most proud of the beautifully beaded niu-fur cloth, the knives made by the Mithrilbdes’ best smiths, and the bag of sweet-smelling weiba powder. It was particurly amusing to see the queen press dabs of the powder to her throat and wrists, making her smell like she was seeking a mate, while her actual mate was sitting right next to her, though it did make Ky wonder if perhaps this wasn’t the best choice to trade.

  Eventually, the gifts were all examined, held up, and properly appreciated, with the king, queen, and Reina all calling up people they thought might be interested in specific items. By the end, the gazes on Ky were far more specutive, and less like they were looking at a jiyun pretending to be a glow-worm. Ky was then dismissed, though she was invited to a welcome ball that night. She wasn’t sure why they wanted her to come back just so they could give her a puppy’s toy to welcome her, but humans were strange.

  As she and Raff exited the enormous room, Reina approached from a side tunnel. She must have left via a different exit, because when Ky descended the stairs, she was still standing by her parents, smiling serenely. Now, however, her lips were pinched and white, and her eyes bzed with anger. Behind her, Jinn hurried along, though she looked more concerned than angry.

  Reina forced a smile as she reached Ky’s side, and said, “Please, my friend, let me show you to your rooms. I’m afraid the building I selected for your embassy is…not ready yet, but I’ve arranged for you to have a suite in the wing reserved for our most honored guests.”

  Ky blinked. One of her favorite parts of being a liaison - or at least she thought it would be one of her favorite parts - was having her own building. Not just a hut, but a house, with multiple rooms for specific things, including her own human-style bedroom and bathroom. She and Reina had been exchanging messages via the linked books Lianhua gave them, and she could tell Reina had had great fun choosing and decorating a house where Ky would be comfortable.

  She gnced at Raff, who gave a tiny shake of the head. Rather than asking questions, Ky bowed to Reina, ignoring the eyes of the guards and other people waiting in the intersection outside the doors. “Of course. I’ve never seen a human, ah, sweet before.” Why was she being offered food? Though she was hungry. The st thing she’d had to eat was a skewer of niu meat she’d stored in her ring and eaten in the carriage.

  Reina’s expression rexed slightly, and she motioned to Jinn, who started walking ahead of them, her steps sure and her chin high. Reina and Ky walked a few paces behind her, with Raff a bit behind them. Reina pointed out some paintings of her ancestors, and pots made of ‘porcein’ that had been ‘imported’ from the Empire. All the new words were starting to make Ky’s head hurt, and she hoped they would get their sweet soon.

  After several turns and passing through more unnecessarily rge doors, Jinn stopped in front of another door and opened it without knocking. Reina swept in, with Ky beside her, and Raff shut the door, but stayed on the other side of it, leaving the three females alone. This was unusually polite of him, so Ky would have to compliment him on it ter, in hopes of encouraging simir behavior in the future.

  The room in which they stood was even grander than the one Ky had stayed in at Raff’s family’s den. There were two doors leading away from it, as well, and if it was like that room, those would lead to the bathroom and the bedroom. Ky had fond memories of the extremely comfortable bed there, which was, for once, justifiably rge, though it was also a bit lonely.

  Ky didn’t have time to examine it properly, however, because Reina turned toward her, bowing deeply. “I’m so sorry, Ky,” the princess said. “I had everything set up at your embassy, and somehow Lucas gave it away. Valile sent a new ambassador just three days ago, and when I sent someone to make sure your embassy was ready to receive you, they found the Valile ambassador already there. Lucas meant for you to arrive and immediately create an international incident by arguing with another ambassador. The Valiles are particurly prideful, too, so they wouldn’t have let a conflict go easily.”

  “Oh,” Ky said, thinking rather longingly of the warm pool and the stone floors she’d asked for. Wood was interesting, especially given how precious it was in the mountain, but it wouldn’t hold up well under kobold cws. She also didn’t like the too-deep baths humans preferred. She’d much rather have a wide, shallow pool, preferably with moving water, since deep, still water was an invitation to things like tunyu and woshi.

  “Don’t worry,” Reina said, waving her hands. “I’ve already ordered the contractors to ready another building. It will take a week or so, and this building will be smaller, but you said you wanted to explore the city, and it’s actually closer to some of the markets.”

  Ky’s tail tried to wag, only to be held down by the fabric draped over it. Frustrated, she grabbed the back of her skirt and lifted it until her tail was free. “I really don’t like these clothes,” she growled, tugging at the material, which was sewn together, theoretically to prevent it from being too unwieldy.

  Reina bit her lip. “There are a bit…much,” she admitted. “I was hoping that they would make you look, well, more human.” Her cheeks grew pink, and she couldn’t meet Ky’s eyes. “But they just make you look like you got into someone else’s wardrobe.”

  Behind her, Jinn nodded. “Now that you’re here, though,” Raff’s sister said, “we can get a tailor in to take your measurements and-”

  Ky stared at them. “You wanted me to look human?” she asked. “I thought this was just what liaisons were supposed to wear.”

  The two females exchanged a gnce. “Not really,” Reina said. “I mean, yes, some ambassadors and, um, liaisons do wear the local styles, especially the women. But others wear their native garb. The Empire doesn’t maintain an ambassador here full time, but when they do send one, he always wears those beautiful robes, like Lianhua wore.” Her hands swept down her sides, pressing in against the full shape of her skirt.

  Ky’s lip lifted, and then her cws were in the pretty but stiff fabric she wore, tearing it away from her body. She really should have removed it carefully, since she could have traded for an excellent mate with so much human fabric, but she just didn’t care. She had spent so long wearing the terrible, uncomfortable, binding garment when she didn’t have to.

  At first, Reina and Jinn stared, startled, but by the time Ky got down to fur, they were both pink-cheeked and unable to meet her eyes. Ky ignored them, just taking out the beautiful loincloth she’d gotten from Lianhua and wrapping it around her waist. She didn’t even step out of the puddle of torn fabric until the loincloth was settled into pce and her tail was free again.

  “Oh,” Jinn said, bending to examine the birds Yingtao had embroidered onto the material. “This is glorious. Where did you get it?”

  “Yingtao made it, and Lianhua gave it to me,” Ky said, tracing her fingers over a wing made of gilt thread. “I have a vest, too.” Somewhat self consciously, she touched the scars on her shoulder. Males were expected to have scars, but females rarely did, and it was a reminder of the fact that her own strength hadn’t been enough to save herself and her allies.

  Reina was staring at the loincloth, and now she shook her head, giving a shamefaced ugh. She didn’t expin what she found so amusing, however, just said, “May I see the vest?”

  Ky took it out, loving the way the heavy but soft fabric ran over her hands like water given solid form. She shrugged it on, then closed the carved csps in front. Not many kobolds wore clothing that covered their upper bodies, but Magmabdes sometimes did, thanks to Tegra’s memories of being human.

  A small smile curved Reina’s lips, and she shook her head. “Those are beautiful. Now…do you have any jewelry other than your neckce?”

  Ky had pierced her ears a few months earlier, and since then she had acquired several pairs of earrings. Large earrings were dangerous, since they could be torn from the ears during a battle, but Ky already wore the golden chain Ija used to create her neckce, so she’d decided that a few earrings wouldn’t make that much of a difference.

  Soon, she had golden hoops with rge, faceted diamonds dangling from each ear, along with short chains with rge rubies on them. She also had a golden chain around her waist, just above the top of her loincloth, and around each ankle. More rubies decorated these, along with some tiny golden bells that tinkled as she walked. Not good for when she was trying to hide, but she loved the sound of the small chimes.

  Reina nodded. “Exotic, yes, but not barbaric, especially with the embroidery on the skirt and vest.”

  Skirt? Ky looked down at her loincloth, but it hadn’t somehow become a massive, treacherous pile of fabric. It was a little longer and fuller than the ones most kobolds wore on a daily basis, but Lianhua had told her that was so she could grow into it.

  “Maybe a little polish on the cws?” Jinn suggested, and Reina grinned, hurrying to the door. She held it mostly closed while she spoke to someone outside, and then that someone left, only to return a few minutes ter. Ky heard Raff’s voice, but Reina didn’t allow him in, either.

  When Reina turned back to Jinn and Ky, she held up a small bottle triumphantly. “I got this gold polish more than a year ago, and have never had the courage to wear it. Actually, Jinn, it would look better on you than me. But tonight, I think it’s perfect for Ky.”

  The two females set to work, with Reina carefully painting Ky’s cws until they looked like they’d been dipped in liquid gold. Jinn brushed Ky’s fur, which was ft and tangled from being trapped in the dress, and tied more gems into it with gold string she produced from somewhere. They tried to dab weiba powder on her, but here Ky drew the line, and when she expined why, Jinn and Reina broke out into fits of giggles for no reason Ky could see.

  The process took so long that Reina’s servants came to take the two humans to change, since apparently the dresses they were wearing weren’t grand enough for a ball. A ball, as it turned out, was an opportunity for dancing, and Ky was actually looking forward to it after her experience with jumping the fire at her adult ceremony. At least this time she didn’t have to worry about anyone trying to push their brothers or sons into the spot across from her.

  Ky took the opportunity to call for Mei, who had theoretically remained behind in the mountain. The fuergar was gone a great deal these days, especially since her pups no longer needed her, but somehow she always knew when Ky needed her, and Ky chose not to think too hard about how the rodent reached her side. Unfortunately, Mei couldn’t stay for long, though she brought Ky a chunk of something that smelled suspiciously like the experimental cheese made by the Woodbdes. She also greatly admired Ky’s shiny cws, so Ky painted the fuergar’s cws to match, using the paint Reina had left behind.

  When Jinn and Reina returned for Ky, she was astonished by the change. Their hair was done up in eborate coils that rose high above their heads, and their new dresses were even rger and more highly decorated than the first ones, especially Jinn’s, which had actually been almost reasonable. Raff was still waiting outside the room, and after Ky’s fur was brushed and a pleasant-smelling cream applied until it shone, they all stepped out. Raff’s jaw dropped as he took in Ky’s new finery, and then he grinned.

  “That’s more like it,” he said. “If you can’t be yourself, there’s no point in pretendin’ to be someone else. You look great, Boss.”

  Ky’s tail wagged, making her bells chime softly. This was the first time he’d called her boss since Lianhua left, since he mostly seemed to do it to remind the other female that he didn’t work for her any longer, and why.

  She nodded to him, feeling her earrings sway, brushing the fur of her cheeks. “I’ve never wanted to be anyone else,” Ky said. “So let’s go show them who I really am.”