“Not much. Doubters can’t accuse you of much, here with my eye on you, and keeping you apart from the rest means that nobody’s going to try and make trouble for you. What d’ye think of young Selenay?” An abrupt change of subject, but Alberich answered it quickly enough.

“Steady, thoughtful, careful, and untried.” He saw the questions in Dethor and Talamir’s eyes, and tried to answer them. “No opposition, has she met. No loss, no pain. No great joys either, no love. With the single eye, she sees now—clearly, in black and white, as young things do. Until she has more wisdom, well, who knows how she will see then? When great events come upon her—then will you see, of what she is made. Not until. But the makings of a king, she has. And she thinks, which, with more than most young things, is not the case.”

“Told you so,” Dethor said in an aside to Talamir. The King’s Own just shrugged. Dethor turned back to Alberich. “She came up with this bodyguard notion on her own, but I think it’s no bad idea, having you instead of one of the Guard, especially when she’s with Mirilin. Lad in a Guard uniform puts people on edge; fellow in Whites makes ’em wonder if the Heralds have some reason to haul in more than one for a simple Herald’s Court. But a fellow in Grays? Nah, that makes ’em relax. We want someone with her to keep her back covered, without making people nervous that he’s there. People don’t necessarily expect a fellow in Grays to be much of a fighter, and they don’t think of him as a fancier sort of constable. They take you, I’ll be bound, for another Trainee on Internship, maybe another highborn.”

Alberich smiled slowly, seeing what Dethor was getting at. Talamir only looked strained. “But once the Council finds out, there will be difficulties,” the King’s Own said reluctantly, then shook his head. “Yes, and I admit, it is my responsibility to smooth them out. Well, the easiest way will be by simply not saying anything for now, I suppose. I’ll have a word with Mirilin—”

:We already have, via Estan, and he won’t be mentioning Alberich’s presence as the Heir’s bodyguard to anyone, not even to other Heralds,: Kantor said promptly, and by the sudden, startled look on Talamir’s face, Taver must have said the same thing at the same moment. Dethor laughed aloud; the word must have reached him, as well.