"Coriateria!" Mariania said as she threw open the door to Coria's sitting room. "Are you here? Oh, where are you?"

Coriateria roused herself from where she was dozing in a chair by the window in her bedroom. "I'm here," she called. "Marie, what's going on?"

Mariania hurried into the bedroom. "You'll never believe it. Joronis and I are going to have a baby!" Breathlessly, she threw herself onto the couch facing Coria's chair.

Coria could feel her tired face creasing as she smiled. She tried to sit up, coughed, and gave up again, settling back into her chair. "Marie, that's great news," she said through her handkerchief.

Marie grinned and bounced a bit in place. "I wanted you to know first, before I tell my parents," she said. "And, to ask you. Joronis and I want you and Ferey to be our co-spouses."

Coria's breath stopped briefly. Feeling a twinge of protest from her sorely abused lungs, she forced herself to breathe. "You can't!" she said. "Ferey is away on a trip and I'm so sick. What if I die? What sort of luck would that bring your child?"

"Jor swears you'll get better," Marie said. "He said it's not the kind of cough that kills. And he would know. Please say yes? Please? You have been my best friend since we were barely out of swaddling clothes. You know Joronis admires you, and you both would bring our baby luck."

"Marie, you know I can't have children," Coria said. "Wouldn't that bother you? And there's the court disgrace ..." she essayed a cough as an excuse to hide her face in her handkerchief.

"Hang the court!" Marie said. "I love you. Even if you were a traitor, even if you blew up the castle I'd still love you."

"Marie!" Coria hissed, looking around. "Don't say those things!"

Marie said nothing in response, only put on her best pleading look and bounced up and down again.

Coria sighed and laid back in the chair, resolutely staring at a spot on the lintel above Marie's head. "We can't do anything until Ferey comes back," she said, "and that won't be for a week. How soon until you have to declare co-spouses?"

"We have about three weeks," Marie said, and pretended to fend off Coria's dirty look. "Oh, come on, you know I couldn't tell you earlier," she protested. "It might not have lived!"

"Still, waiting until it's likely to kick is hardly responsible," Coria berated her friend. "Oh, let me talk to Ferey, and I'll see what I can do. It's not that I don't want to - it's just that we have to consider what's best for your child. And for you."

"It's just like this," he said. "Put the car into reverse ... yes, that's it ... now swing the wheel back. You got it."

She shivered under her sweater. "I just don't understand why we're doing this," she said, fidgeting with the gear selector. "Wouldn't it be better if we just, you know, shot him?"

The tires rolled over the 'speed bump' and she tried not to listen as a bone cracked.

"That would look like murder," he mentioned. "At least this sort of looks like an accident."

"That's not what the guys on CSI say," she muttered darkly as she put the car into drive and drove over the body again.

My kingdom for a door. I wanted to write for 5 minutes and in that time Michael came in here and interrupted me twice. No wonder I never get anything done.