Shawil paces nervously back and forth in one of the common rooms in the church apartments at the temple complex. Normally there would be several clerics reading or discussing or otherwise engaged in quiet leisure, but none are here today. The higher clerics have made sure of it, and even if they hadn't, the frown on the Inquisitor's face would have sent them scurrying.

In addition to the frown, he wears a turban and elegant yet simple robes. A close inspection would reveal them to be fairly new, having been purchased and tailored specifically for this occasion. Black, fringed with tasteful gold. Not ostentatious, but signaling a level of wealth beyond the reach of most of those in Sothis. Underneath the robes and hidden from view is the mithril breastplate. While strictly unnecessary, Shawil is a man who has been too close to death and had too many enemies in the shadows to feel comfortable without it.

Out of habit, fingers reach for the khopesh that is for once not at his side. The only weapon on his person is the glammered dagger, disguised as a tasteful silver broach. Beyond this, he wears only a ring and a belt. He tries not to be conscious of how naked he feels without his weapons and items that have kept him alive through so many adventures, all of which pale in comparison to the trial he is about to face.

One of the high clerics knocks once and enters. "She's here?" Shawil asks flatly, answered with a nod. He follows the cleric, a man he has known most of his life, to the private lecture hall.

Nebetah, shadowed by great-aunt Maysoon, smiles at Shawil when she spots him. "Good afternoon, Inquisitor," she says, having received the thirty-second version of how he's not a Cicerone technically.

Shawil's well-worn frown breaks into a smile when he sees the princess for the first time. "And to as well, your highness." He bows appropriately, having been instructed in the formalities. He's silently happy that she is so easy on the eyes. He is even happier that the initial meeting is choreographed as he takes his seat, waiting for the lecturer to arrive, stealing as many glances at her as he can within reason.

Her older sister married a guy who lived in the Dome, so she got some opportunities to see that play out! The glance-stealing is promising and should be returned in time with little smiles that Maysoon can't see, not because Maysoon is at all likely to be unclear on what's going on but because that makes it more flirtatious probably. "The lecture is about comparative advantage, isn't it? It's been a while since my tutor covered that one, does it come up often for you?"

He makes sure to do nothing inappropriate, but is encouraged by her little smiles. Because of everything about him, he his aware at all times who in the room is where and what they are looking at, and is sure the chaperone is able to observe them both, if not their faces.

"I believe so, yes. And it does, on occasion. We ha—I have found it useful when traveling to foreign places, especially Bachuan." He wonders for a moment if she knows any about what he's done over the last two years, and whether he should be bragging about it or not. If only this were something simple like infiltrating a government or stopping a war.

"Ooh, what's Bachuan like?"

He smiles at her question. If she's faking her interest, she's at least good at it. "The people are good. The leadership... has some very wrongheaded ideas about things like trade and ownership. But we've made some advances in introducing prosperity there." He's about to ask if she would be interested in visiting, but stops himself. "Have you... have you ever been outside of Osirion?" he asks.

"I haven't! I've barely left the Black Dome before today - just trips to the winter palace. The security get so nervous about people in the family with serious errands outside, let alone me."

For the very briefest of seconds, a look of concern crosses his face. Would he have to live in the Black Dome? But that would be nonsense, and Abadar surely would not have that. Would she not be allowed to leave? He would have to find out.

"That is not surprising. It's their job to be nervous about such things." He glances over at the chaperone before continuing. "I hope you have the chance to see some of it. There is nowhere in the world like home, but there are sights to see that are worth seeing." He smiles before adding quietly, "I hope my traveling companions never hear that I said that."

"Oh? Do you have a reputation among them as a jaded cynic who is never impressed with far-off lands?" Nebetah wonders. "Or is it the other way around and they'd make fun of you for loving Osirion, I've heard most of them are foreign."

He is good enough at whatever the Inner Sea equivalent of poker is to avoid frowning or scowling. "A jaded cynic? I don't think so. You'd have to ask them. But yes, most of them are foreign, though one is from a village in western Osirion." He strokes his beard for a moment. "They probably would give me a gentle ribbing for how much I love my country, but they understand. They love theirs, in their own strange ways."

"What's a strange way to love a country?"

"The Galtans... well. I don't know if you've studied much of their history, but they threw off their bonds to Cheliax much like we did from the Keleshite Empire. And then had some more... internal strife. They were not blessed with a Pharaoh who embodies a god such as Abadar. Those I travel with had strong feelings about how to chart the course of their new country and did their best, even if this did not work out well for them." There is a sense of respect in the way he tells this.

"I've had lessons about Galt, but hadn't singled it out for attention among all the others except to note that it seemed even more complicated than most. I don't know if I know who all your companions are - I've heard of Naima, and of her husband and also - Catherine, am I pronouncing that right? - but I think there are more, less talked-about?"

He laughs at the "more complicated than most" line before quickly checking to make sure this hasn't earned him the ire of the chaperone or lecturer. "Yes, Naima is probably the most famous, being an Osirion herself. She's a little peculiar, but she does such great work and I'm so proud of all she's done for her country and people everywhere. Her husband, Elie, is equally peculiar, but is a man of great honor and a dear friend. Catherine..." Shawil pauses, his eyes narrowing slightly. "She and I do not always see eye to eye. But there's no one I would rather have alongside me in a fight. And then there's also Ione. She isn't talked about as much, at least not in Osiron. But without her, we would not nearly be as successful as we have been blessed to be."

He suddenly looks embarrassed. "I'm not boring you with all this, am I?"

"No, not at all! Everyone loves hearing adventurer stories," she assures him.

"Most of of it isn't all that glamorous. Lots of long treks through the desert or days spent flying on a carpet." He wonders if that sounds insensitive given her lack of travel. "So what's life like in the Dome?" he asks, curiosity getting the best of him.

"It's much cooler in there! I don't have Endure Elements down - I only have three cantrips, sometimes I can hang a fourth on a good day - so I was surprised by how hot it is in the sun. The winter palace has sunshine but we go there in the winter, mostly, and it's right on the water. And everyone there is rich people and staff, so there's not much of a cross-section of the kinds of people who are around in general - some retired adventurers, but generally not active ones - we had one cleric who gave a few services about that being a disadvantage in understanding the universality of the faith, meeting only rich people and their servants, he liked to go on about how day laborers or shopkeepers or farmers were also touching on important aspects of how trade flows and he'd do lectures on that, but I don't know that it taught me more than that there was a lot I didn't know."

"I didn't know you could do magic! That's quite impressive. But yes, it's quite warm out here. I've been inside the Dome on rare occasion, and the coolness is nice." He nods contemplatively. "I find myself a little more at home with shopkeepers and farmers than the nobility." His voice lowers and his brow furrows. "I'm not... I'm not nobility, as you are no doubt aware." He wonders if that concerns her at all.

"I understand," she assures him. "They have us all sit down with magic tutors to see if we can get anywhere, but even if someone gets all the way to second circle that way they don't let any of us go adventuring, including the boys."

He relaxes slightly. At least she's been told. He wonders what she knows about him.

"That's not surprising. That they don't let you go adventuring, I mean. I can only imagine if someone in the royal family went around getting into the trouble adventurers do. It would be a bit ridiculous. Still... does it ever get... boring?"

"Hmm, I think some people don't like being cooped up but I mostly don't mind. Or, I don't get bored about it. There's books to read and lessons to attend and music to practice and all the social drama you can stand in there. But there are some specific things I haven't gotten to do that I'd like to try. Like shopping! I feel it's a major gap in my theological education that I can't go to the market and shop."

"That's good." He's slightly glad she enjoys reading and lessons—he finds it impressive, but wonders if she'll think less of him for not being as widely read. "Oh yes, I can imagine wanting to try that. I think maybe..." he glances over at the woman who is very obviously observing them without looking directly at them. "I think maybe we can do something about that at some point. Maybe you can go with Naima sometime." He laughs at the thought of it. "Maybe if there's ever a time she's not working."

"She does always sound very busy. Does she like shopping?"

"Hmmm. I think so? She at least likes trade and commerce. She's also probably the only person I know richer than–" He clears his throat, realizing he's probably on the verge of saying something impolitic. "She might enjoy shopping when spending time away from work with children, Rahim and Ines. They're such fun little ones."

"Do you... like children?" he asks in an almost worried, hopeful way.

"I do! Especially when they're about, oh, two or three, small enough to sit on my shoulders and still working on sentences. Do you?"

"Oh yes! Small children are wonderful. I love them at that age." He gets quiet, as though asking to share a secret. "Have you thought about... having children? A family?"

"I've always assumed I would one day like my older sisters. I think I'd like at least four."

He silently wishes he'd studied up on the royal family, including the other sisters. "Oh, how many sisters do you have? Do they all live in the Dome as well?"

"I have three full sisters and eleven half-sisters, though some of the half-sisters are older than me by enough that I don't know them too well. And I have two full brothers, fourteen half-brothers. The brothers all live in the Dome but six of the sisters have married out. They do come by regularly, though, to attend weddings and meet new babies and catch up and so on."

He nods, making a mental note to try and figure this out sometime when he's in a less stressful situation. "That's... quite a lot."

"People closely related to the Pharaoh need to give Abadar many choices for who can best bear his mantle when the succession comes around."

"Of course." He nods. "Though I hope you won't find it offputting if I say I'll be more than happy to stay clear of that whole deal."

"I don't know how to guess how likely it is that my children will be chosen. It's hard to wish they wouldn't be much like my brother, but we don't have enough generations to be really sure what weighs on the decision."

"Indeed. Abadar's will is... truly difficult to divine. I don't imagine anyone can know for sure how he makes his decisions," he says with a wry smile.

"Well, the pharaoh my brother has an idea, and he seems to have said what he had to say about it," she replies, smiling back.

"I suppose your brother is much more practiced than I at communicating with Abadar. While I am his loyal servant, I would not say he is always the most clear in his direction."

"One of my nephews says that when he's rich enough he will buy Abadar a pen so he can write us letters, but I doubt that's the problem."

Shawil laughs. "A pen. I'll have to remember that. But no, I doubt that's it either."

"In that particular nephew's defense, he's four."

"A splendid age. Small children are such a joy. I had never hoped to have my own, but now it doesn't seem impossible."

"Why hadn't you expected to? Even adventurers eventually settle down, most of the time."

"Well I... I don't really think of myself as an adventurer. I'm an Inquisitor, and I have a job, and that job seems to pretty similar to what adventurers do. But I didn't know it would end up this way."

"Besides," he says quietly after a pause. "It's a pretty dangerous career. I wasn't sure I would make it this long." He silently wonders if she's thought about the danger of his line of work, and whether the possibility of him not making it back alive makes her reconsider this whole thing.

"That's true," she says soberly. "You don't think you'd want to come back if you moved on to Axis?"

"Assuming I make it to Axis... Not everyone makes it to the afterlife, much less the one they hope for. But I want to be here as long as there is need of me, whether that's the job, or... something else."

She nods. "- oh, that's probably our lecturer."

The lecture is on the Law of comparative advantage; it's a popular lecture topic for those lectures aimed at courting or married couples. The Law of comparative advantage is the reason that no one willing to work will go without work, and the reason that none are threatened by the strength of another, in a Lawful society, and the reason that households are more than the sum of their parts, and the reason that Abadar alone among the gods relates to His followers as trade partners, despite the fact that we are humble and weak and small, and He is great beyond our imagining; and the regard Abadar holds for every person is rooted in this, the knowledge that there are things best done by them.

It's a good law, and a good lecture, and Nebetah attends very seriously to the contents.

Shawil pays attention as much as he can, though he has heard lectures on the subject before. But he can't help stealing a glance at the young woman next to him."

She smiles back when she catches him glancing.

He smiles too and feels slightly guilty for how much he is enjoying this and how it's distracting from the lecture.

Half an hour later the lecturer bids them goodbye and wishes them well, and Maysoon says, "I believe the gardens are next on the itinerary if you're still up to it, Nebetah?"

This is an opportunity for Nebetah to complain of a headache or something if she needs to bail but instead she says, "Oh, yes, I'm so excited to see them."

He is relieved at her enthusiasm to continue their time together, and despite his calm demeanor, is likewise enthusiastic. He bids the lecturer a good day before offering his arm to Nebetah.

"I've always enjoyed the gardens of the temple, ever since I was a small boy. They're a simple, yet very pleasant place to avoid the heat, as much as one can outside the Dome." 

Nebetah peers curiously at the gesture and doesn't touch him. "There are some plants under the Dome, but they all require magical support, and practically nothing grows by the beach."

He realizes his offer of an arm is at minimum impolite and is barely able to keep from blushing before continuing on if nothing had happened. "That makes sense. Sothis has some lovely gardens, but you should really see the farms in the country if you like plants." He winces internally, fearing he has again insulted her lack of travel.

"Wouldn't the farms be all one thing? To be easier to pick?"

"Yes, but there's a lot of them. There's something about a place where things grow, especially food. When you can see miles of fields of wheat or grapes, and know that the people will eat and drink and trade... There is a simple beauty to it, even if it isn't the same as the gardens of temples and palaces."

"Is it like an ocean of grain? Poems sometimes talk about oceans of grain."

"Sometimes, yes. Along the major rivers, just before harvest, it does look like an ocean."

He glances over his shoulder at the chaperone walking not far behind them. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course you can."

"What are you..." he thinks for a moment, silently cursing his lack of subtlety and charisma. "Hoping for? In a husband, I mean."

He's quiet, hoping no one else will overhear him and later mock him for his ignorance in these sorts of things. It's much easier to extract information from prisoners, even with Catherine's bizarre and arbitrary rules about what is and isn't allowed, than to figure these things out.

"Hm. Well, everyone, me included, hopes that a husband will be responsible about keeping the finances in good order so there's no need to fret about being squeezed together in too small a house or hiring enough help or feeding the children, but past that I suppose there are women who want mostly to be let alone and women who don't, though sometimes I think the difference is mostly who matched well and who didn't. I would like - the sort of husband who doesn't make me the sort of wife who'd rather be let alone. Which I suppose means being an involved father and an affectionate partner and temperate and calm."

He nods contemplatively. "Well I am lucky enough that finances are not a problem, though I am obviously not able to keep a household such as your brother, nor would I really want to. I would hope I am not the sort of man who would make his wife prefer to be alone, though perhaps I am not the one to ask." How brow furrows, wondering what his traveling companions would tell her if they were here.

"As for the rest... I quite desperately wish to be an involved father. I have had the joy of watching the children of two of my companions grow, and that has been one of my favorite things of the last few years. I think I am temperate and calm as any man can reasonably be. I am... inexperienced at affection, but,"–he glances at her to try and read her face–"I think I could learn how to be."

He takes in a breath, as though he had not let himself breathe for the last moment or so. "Excuse my bluntness, your highness. My gifts do not include some of the finer points of subtlety, and I tend to be a bit direct."

"That's all right," she says. "It simplifies things, in a way."

"It does. Though some tend to find it a bit off-putting."

"What tends to require such delicacy? Are you doing a lot of diplomacy while you bop all over the globe?"

"I meant more in terms of personal relationships. But to your question, yes. We've been involved in diplomatic relations and negotiations in Thuvia, with the King and separately the Queen of Korvosa, made complicated trade arrangements in Bachuan, and are now working on building a coalition for a crusade to the Worldwound."

"Ooh. Which of those was the most exciting?" she says, quite sparkling with fascination.

He notes her fascination and hopes to impressed her. "Well they're all exciting in different ways. The missions to Thuvia was the most directly impactful on Osirion. We started trying to find why river traffic was being attacked, and we recently managed to effectively seal the House of Oblivion. That was quite a battle, and I was in the front lines for that." This is possibly the closest he has ever come to bragging about himself. "Bachuan probably saved the most lives. But Korvosa the most exciting. We stopped a plague and a palace coup and defeated an evil queen."

"Wow," she sighs. "The house of Oblivion has been around for so long... I knew you'd closed it but I didn't know you were right in front, that's amazing."

"Yes. It was quite an experience. We spent a fortune preparing all the equipment and materials to do it, and called in a lot of favors. But we did it—all of us. And yes, right there, watching the Divs and demons come out of the entrance to attack us."

"- I hope you got all that money and then some back in bounties!"

He thinks for a moment. "I think we did alright. I don't know if Naima or Catherine got a return on their investments, but they're more than able to handle that sort of thing themselves. As for myself, I'd have to check with the church accountants, but it was absolutely worth the money in the long run."

After a moment, he adds, "Besides, not all rewards are financial. Some are personal. And some are... social, I'd guess you'd say," he says, looking at her with the faintest of smiles as he does.

She beams at him. "Korvosa had a coup you needed to stop and an evil queen? Was she trying to usurp a relative?"

"She married the King, and so was not the rightfully sovereign. But she murdered her husband and framed us for it. Which we definitely did not do! But tried to seize control of the country using foreign troops and deny the rightful heir and stop resurrection attempts. So we ended up having to stop the coup and then ended up with us fighting her. It turns out she was quite the powerful magic-wielder."

"Did you have to fight the foreign troops too?"

"Fortunately no. I was able to convincingly demonstrate to them the unlawfulness of the queen's takeover attempt, and they stood down."

"Oh, huh, I guess I didn't imagine that foreign troops brought in to back her would be invested in who was rightfully the heir."

"Well, we were very persuasive. And I think it helped we had the backing of most of the country, including the local wizards. But they from a group that views the importance of the law in ways that would not be entirely foreign to those who worship Abadar."

"And there was at the same time of all this also a plague?"

"Well, the beginnings of one, anyway. Luckily Naima is very well suited to helping out an end to them. I think that might be her goal in life." He laughs. "If someone told me she would go all the way to kill Urgathoa herself, I would not bet against it."

"That she'd try or that she'd succeed?"

"Both," he says with a thoughtful nod.

"Stranger things have happened," she allows. "Naima's very - I guess the word I want is cool except I'd like it to somehow also be a word that doesn't suggest she's very emulable? If one happens to find oneself being Naima one should go on ahead with that but I sort of worry that people who don't find themselves being Naima might try to imitate her in ways that wouldn't work out."

He nods. "She is a very unusual person. I'm glad she does what she does, especially for Osirion."

"Would you like to meet her sometime?" he asks, wondering how bad an idea this is.

"I would love to!"

"I think that can happen. She's a busy person, but even so doesn't spend all her time working" he says. "Maybe sometime I can introduce you if you're interested in seeing me again." There is the smallest hint of a hopeful question in his voice with that last bit.

"That sounds like a great idea."

"Yes it does," he says, immediately regretting ever suggesting it as he imagines Naima telling Nebetah of every failing he's had for the last three years.

"You'll have to let the palace know when she's going to be available so Aunt Maysoon and I can arrange to meet you before then. Probably she schedules her breaks very thoughtfully."

He nods. "Yes. We are all busy preparing for what's to come up north, her most of all." A cloud crosses his face. "Come summer, I could be gone for some time. My work, Abadar, they often call for me to be away for extended periods." He looks at her to see her reaction. "That's part of why I never made plans for... this sort of thing. I realize that could be difficult."

"I don't want to be the sort of wife who lives for the time when her husband isn't home but that doesn't mean I couldn't cope with it," Nebetah assures him.

He nods, reassured. "I think if I had something or someone to come home to, I would make a greater effort to be gone less."

"I wouldn't want to get in the way of anything like closing the House of Oblivion. Some things are more important than coming home every night."

"Some things are," he says slowly. "But not everything. And with the ability to teleport, sometimes even important things far away would not need to keep me from home."

"To be honest, I don't actually have a home, per se," he admits, slightly embarrassed. "There are some rooms I have here at the temple that are sufficient for an Inquisitor who travels often. But they're not suitable for a family. I suppose I would need to rectify that."

"You should definitely have a house," she says. "Have you given thought to whether you'd rather live in or out of the Dome?"

"I hadn't, really. Until recently, I was focused on other things." He shifts uneasily. "I think... not in the Dome. But I really don't know what the rules or options are here."

"The houses in the Dome are expensive, and it's laborious to get back in again after you go out, but it's safe and cool and - well, to me, it's familiar, but that's just me."

"Laborious to get back in again? How so?" She asks, someone surprised. "I could see it being difficult for some, but for the Pharaoh's sister? Really?"

"Until they check, I'm only probably the Pharaoh's sister! And only probably not enchanted, to boot."

"Fair enough. His Majesty's security is important." He pauses a moment. "I much prefer to be able to come and go freely. Having never had any myself, I would not want to keep you from your family. But I would hope whoever I marry, as well as my children, would want to travel to some of the safer parts of the world with me at times. Though again, I'm not sure if there are rules here, given who your brother is."

"Some of our relatives do marry out and live outside of the Dome. I have a cousin all the way in Alexandria. I don't think my brother the Pharaoh would have suggested we meet if he believed it was essential that my children be raised there in case they should succeed him. - were you raised by the church?"

"I was, like many other orphans in Sothis. I grew up hoping to be a Cleric, but never received the calling. Luckily for me, being an Inquisitor was still an option."

"I think would like to find a nice place in Sothis then. Somewhere where you can still visit your siblings and their children, but that doesn't constrain us to the Dome. What do you think of that?"

"I think that sounds a fine idea."