Session 2

A couple of weeks after taking the broken Pattern, Miranda approaches Jasra when she's in a good mood and asks if the broken Pattern imparts any other abilities. Jasra says it does and arranges to speak with her about it when she has more time. When that day arrives, she explains how the broken Pattern enables you to move through Shadow much like the Pattern did, by making small changes to your environment until it becomes the other place. It's more difficult than doing this with the Pattern, though, because of the flaw. It makes the effort harder, and the route more unpleasant. Plus, you must be careful to avoid the flaw, for it's always present nearby. So she should be careful never to do it when she's tired or distracted? Precisely. To be honest, she shouldn't need to use it very often, since taking a carriage down the Black Road is much more comfortable. On the other hand, she'll never have to fear getting lost off of the Road. She suggests that Miranda start by practicing moving one or two Shadows away from the Road, and then returning. Miranda follows her advice, practicing diligently. After winding up in a garbage heap on her third try, she learns to bring along a change of clothes.

Rinaldo is granted a boon from the Emperor for killing Caine. He chooses to take the Logrus and returns...changed. He is much more serious than he used to be, and more inclined to criticize Miranda when he thinks her behavior is inappropriate for someone of her standing. Miranda begins avoiding him and resolves never to take the Logrus herself. Part of her wonders if maybe Brand didn't have a hand in Caine's death, but let Rinaldo take the credit for it. That way, he could see what happened when Rinaldo took the Logrus, and decide if it was something he might want to do.

When Miranda turns 17, Brand throws a coming out ball for her. It is a grand affair, and she enjoys the evening, although there is one part where things get kind of dull for a bit. She spends some time talking to Lauren Succat, a former classmate about a year or two younger who's become a Palatine (or was one all along). She and Miranda discuss potential husbands among those attending, with Lauren pointing out which ones are good prospects, and which ones are gay, or poor, or otherwise unacceptable. Brand later does the same with her. Miranda finds it interesting to see where his choices differ from Lauren's. Brand seems to prefer the duller men.

Miranda encounters Sand in a bad mood a few days later, and learns it's due to her duties on the Noble Assembly. She finds the whole thing tedious and boring, and doesn't know why Brand picked her for the job. Miranda admits the Lesser Assembly sounds pretty boring, what with deciding taxes and such. But the Greater Assembly interests her, especially since she finds her current activities rather...stifling. Sand takes her to a couple of sessions, and when Miranda isn't dissuaded, she eagerly suggests that Brand let Miranda take her place. Brand tells Miranda that he thinks this is an excellent idea, although she is rather young for the job. He warns her that there are those who won't take her seriously due to her age, and also that she is there to represent the decisions of the House, not make them herself. Still, it's a good way for her to gain some visibility and to become more familiar with those of power. He tells her that, for the most part, Barimen tries to stay out of the squabbling, especially the ongoing feud between Jesby and Amblerash. Why? Because, despite its status as a greater house, Barimen is still very small. They need for their numbers to grow before they can afford to make their presence felt. Miranda wonders to herself how soon it will be before she'll be married off to do her part in making more Barimens. Brand, reading her mind, says there's still time yet before that happens. She figures that's because she will most likely have to marry outside of the house, a prospect that she's not all that happy about.

The first couple of Assembly sessions Miranda attends are uneventful. As expected, some do not take her seriously, but she figures this is to her advantage. She learns that people mingle for about half an hour before a session starts, and also after it ends. Brand's influence enables her recognize which groups she doesn't wish to be a part of, while Jasra's enables her to extricate herself from them without difficulty.

The fourth session of the Greater Assembly that Miranda attends is a bit unusual. During it, House Deskant tries to add a speaker onto the agenda for the next session. The speaker is a small man with a briefcase named Jonathan al'Tehran, and they want him to speak about the declining food supply. The proposal is shouted down by the merchant houses, especially Amblerash, who say this is a subject for the Lesser Assembly. Afterwards, during the mingling period, Miranda notices al'Tehran duck down a hallway that's supposed to be off-limits to visitors, followed by some guards. Curious, she heads in that direction, ostensibly seeking out the bathroom. When she sees no sign of the man or the guards, she goes into the women's powder room anyway, in keeping with her cover story. Once inside, she encounters al'Tehran, who urges her not to scream. He says the guards are after him on Amblerash's orders. They don't want to hear what he has to say, but it's important that someone does. He hides the briefcase in the room, asks her to spread the word, and leaves. She uses a Trump to transport the briefcase back to her quarters, then rejoins the mingling representatives. She sees no more sign of the scholar until, during her carriage ride home, she sees two guards pulling his body out of the icy river...guards who look an awful lot like the ones who were pursuing him earlier. Naturally, she checks out the briefcase as soon as she gets home. It contains page after page of figures, calculations and charts, but the gist of it seems to be that in about seven years the food supply will fall below that required to sustain the population. She decides to bring the information to her father's attention.

Miranda's Page | Miranda's Logs

Last modified on May 23, 2001 by Kris Fazzari.