“It is valuable. I understand that.” Usually he could charm and cajole her out of any foul mood, but today she was all clouds and rain—tense, snappish, and downhearted.

Belatedly remembering the flowers, he produced them from under his coat and extended them toward her. Irises and Blood of Hanalea, tied with a ribbon.

“Here. You said you liked flowers.”

She stared at the flowers as if astonished, then looked up into his face as if he’d been swapped out for somebody else. “Another present?”

Well, admittedly, he wasn’t the present-giving, flower-buying kind. He’d never had need of that. Nor the money. “Making up for lost time,” he said. “And, to be honest, that last present was for me as much as you.”

She took the flowers grudgingly and sniffed them. “Thank you.”

“Is something wrong?” he asked, taking advantage of the lull in hostilities to shoulder open the door.

She allowed herself to be ushered back inside. “What’s wrong is that you’re late,” she said.

“I’ll buy you dinner after we’re done,” he suggested. “Anywhere you want.”

She dumped her carry bag on a chair, then sat down at their usual worktable. “We’ll see. First, I want to see evidence that you’ve read chapter twelve.”

Fortunately, he had read chapter twelve, which dealt with Fellsian court protocol, and was about as interesting as reading crop reports. But somehow, when Rebecca talked about it, it came alive. He was amazed at how much she knew about the history and inner workings of the court in Fellsmarch. She quizzed him on the role of the Council of Nobles, the Wizard Council, and the Office of the Royal Steward.

Some parts she had to fill in—parts that weren’t in Han’s books. Faulk tended to focus too much on the royal family.

“What’s the difference between the Wizard Assembly and the Wizard Council?” Han asked. “For instance, how do they choose the council members?”

Rebecca sat back, narrow-eyed, as if wondering what he meant to do with that information. “The assembly is made up of all gifted citizens in the registry on Gray Lady. The council really holds all the power. The major wizard houses have vested seats on the Wizard Council, dating back to before the Breaking,” she said. “The eldest gifted child of the council member replaces his or her parent, unless the child steps aside. Also, there’s one seat voted in by the assembly, and one member chosen by the queen. The council elects the High Wizard from among those on the council.”

“If the queen dies, does the High Wizard stay on?” Han asked.

“No,” Rebecca said. “Each High Wizard is bound to an individual queen, so when the princess heir is crowned queen, a new High Wizard is named.”

“But it isn’t an inherited post,” Han said. “Any wizard can serve, right?”

“Well, theoretically,” Rebecca said. “But most, if not all, of the High Wizards have come from the vested wizard houses.”