“It was my pleasure,” I said.
“I don’t know how I can ever repay you—” She looked around frantically, then said, “Wait one moment. Please.” She walked quickly to one of the storerooms.
“You have not shown interest in the kitchens before,” the head cook said to me. “Although we appreciate your attentions.”
I knew that she was really asking why. “She did not deserve to suffer.”
The head cook studied me, hands on her hips, a twinkle in her eye. In the Binding Plane, a rose-hued thread unspooled between us. I knew from my time in Kekaya how useful it was to have the goodwill of the kitchen staff, and now with one act of kindness I seemed to have accomplished that here.
In helping another woman, I had in fact helped myself. The head cook’s favor would increase my own power in court.
At that moment, Riddhi emerged again with a smaller dish of the same saffron-hued sweets and offered the plate to me. “I think you will like these,” she said.
As I lifted one, I caught the faint scent of mango. I took a bite, and a delicious burst of flavor danced across my tongue, the rich sweetness of sugar, the tart vibrance of mango, and the creamy undertones of milk. I had eaten such boiled sweets before and enjoyed them, but here there was an extra hint of nuttiness that made them divine. With a noise of pleasure, I put the whole thing in my mouth.
“That was extraordinary, Riddhi, thank you.”
The young woman grinned again, and I quickly took two more before departing, delighted with my success.
I entirely forgot the festival of the full moon, until Asha approached me to show me what she had chosen for me to wear that evening.
The sari was a diaphanous white, for the full moon, heavily embroidered with exquisite silver branches that danced like shadows on water when I moved. The necklace she had laid out held three obsidian stones nestled among intricately woven webs of gold. Her taste was excellent—the delicate necklace and embroidery would suit me well.
Because all other happenings had been canceled for the day, I decided to take a stroll in the gardens and enjoy a moment of solitude. There would be a great feast tonight, to celebrate the end of the fasting period for the sages, all of whom would be in attendance. Their day would be occupied in ceremonies for Shiva, but women were not permitted to attend those, for fear it may anger him and lead to a poor monsoon season. It seemed absurd to me that such a great god would care about such a small thing. Still, we had all heard of Videha, the kingdom to our west, where an entire harvest had been lost when they failed to properly observe the same rites. They were much closer to the mountains, and catastrophic mudslides from the slopes had killed many. It was not worth the risk.
But for the moment, I was content to wander in the breeze and enjoy the beauty of my surroundings. Lost in thought, I rounded the corner of a hedge and promptly collided with what felt like a stone pillar and fell with a thump. Have they added a new statue? I blinked up at the object. After a moment, I realize that it was in fact a very tall man who was staring down at me in concern.
“I am so sorry, Devi. May I assist you?” I took the proffered hand, strangely delicate compared to his size, and he hoisted me to my feet.
“Thank you. I apologize for my clumsiness. I thought myself alone here.” I did not recognize him, but he was finely dressed. Most likely he was a noble visiting for the feast.
“There is no need for an apology—I thought the same. I don’t believe we’ve been introduced, Arya. I’m Kaikeyi.” I deliberately omitted my title. Knocking over royalty could be a criminal offense, and I did not want to scare him—though on second glance, he did not look like an easily intimidated man.
In fact… he looked like he might not be fully a man at all.
His deep brown skin seemed to have the faintest glow—or was that the light of the waning sun? His hair was curled so tightly it may have had muscles of its own, styled in a manner unfamiliar to me. And his eyes shone like gemstones, a brilliant deep orange flecked with red. Inhuman eyes. I had seen those eyes once before, deep in a forest near the banks of the Sarasvati River. My heart beat quicker, and I took a small step back without thinking.
But the recognition that flared in his expression was quite human, halting my panicked response. “Radnyi Kaikeyi!” he exclaimed. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Ravana, of Lanka.”
This surprised me. I had known Ravana would be our guest for the evening, but I had not expected to find him wandering the gardens. Immediately, I swept into a bow. “Raja. A pleasure to meet you.”