There had been times growing up that tempers had flared and the siblings had witnessed a tantrum by their royal cousin. Yet as Kazim began yelling and shoved Théadan, the pair of them were stunned into silence that their king would act so brashly before the entire royal court. Yet Navia knew Théadan was level-headed enough to not let being shoved affect his temper, even if he could likely take out both guards holding onto his arms, then Kazim if he so wanted. Mes’Mo’Tanians were simply trained better; their prowess for battle was what had won them the war. It was likely partially that training that kept Théadan from reacting negatively to Kazim’s provocations, his calm voice instead ringing out into the room as he questioned the king of all of Khlurios. It was also because Théadan was often calm and collected, but Navia could tell there was a layer of sarcasm to his words that probably would have had her smirking if she wasn’t so upset with her family’s behavior.<br/><br/>The call to Yousef surprised all of them, but Yousef gave Théadan his attention while he continued to protectively and strategically keep Navia from joining the unwelcome Mes’Mo’Tanian’s side. He did not understand why Navia was siding with this man, or why she would think it smart to even bring him to the palace in the first place, but Théadan’s words tugged at his guilt and made it flourish anyway. He was also right, somehow pinpointing his sister exactly and as Yousef looked back to see what she had to say of it, Navia was staring at him with steely determination, silently letting him know he would be the recipient of her fury if she did not have the chance to speak her mind. There was also the added fact that he had only just gotten his sister back in his life; they should be celebrating her instead of angering her. Sighing, Yousef was prepared to release Navia and hear her out when an older voice spoke behind them.<br/><br/>“He is<i>not </i>a savage, Marek!” Navia protested loudly, using Yousef’s focus on the conversation against him and twisting free of his hold. Her feet landed back on the marbled floor and she wasted no time in hurrying to try to protect Théadan from her cousin’s wrath. She knew she could not take on the guards holding Théadan in place, but she was small enough to wedge herself between Théadan and her cousin, his expression murderous as she dared to stand before him. “Your advisor is trying to convince you to make him suffer for the sins of an entire country, Kazim,” Navia pointed out, trying to provide reason to the heightened emotions that had been stirred up by Théadan’s presence, “Yes, he has done horrendous things in the past, but you just heard why he is here. Théadan is making strides to right his wrongs and started with returning me home. Does that mean nothing in the eyes of the crown its own cousin has been returned by him?”<br/><br/>The audacity of not only bringing a Mes’Mo’Tanian into his throne room, but also defending the man caused Kazim to sneer down at Navia for a beat as she stood defiantly in front of him. “You were a lost cause the instant Vanam fell to his army. No one was going to try to bring you back and we had already come to terms with you not returning,” he glared down at her as he said it, knowing it would probably sting but his anger with Théadan’s presence making him blunt and truthful, “This man is the very reason your house has fallen and yet you continue to defend him! Marek is right! Your savior or not, he is a barbarian! He probably used you to reach the palace and now he will sooner slit your throat in your sleep than protect you.”<br/><br/>“Funny how I’ve been sleeping beside him for months now and my throat is perfectly in tact,” Navia answered drolly.<br/><br/>“<i>Madartham!</i>” Kazim growled the Khluri words for the gods’ sakes in frustration, shaking his head as he stepped back and swept an arm out at Navia standing protectively in front of Théadan. He looked imploringly first to Marek, then to Yousef, clearly at a loss of how to handle his cousin’s behavior.<br/><br/>“Navia, please,” Yousef started to say, only for her own anger to flare up and she snapped at him, “You don’t speak to me right now, Yousef. You tricked me.” And it had hurt. Enough so that Navia was tempted to turn around and seek out comfort from Théadan, but first she had to convince her family to let him be free.<br/><br/>“Enough of this!” The bark in Kazim’s voice silenced the siblings and he turned to address the whole of the room so the nobles would hear his decision, “My<i>mantrana </i>is right! The<i>Avezana </i>is a savage who deserves the same fate as the one he has bestowed upon our people if we cannot use him to our advantage against the Mes'Mo'Tanians! Besides we do not want anyone as vicious as he in our midst. Let us not forget we have heard word that this is the man who also murdered his own brother.” Murmurs of agreement ran through the crowd of nobles watching the spectacle, pleasing Kazim that they were in agreement with him.<br/><br/>It took Navia only a beat to realize her actions in Nygaard had somehow reached Mandira before they had, but she was quick to shake her head and step forward to take the blame for her own actions, “He did not kill the crown prince, I did!”<br/><br/>The murmurs silenced. The entirety of the room hushed and Kazim looked back at Navia with a look of disbelief. Laughter ensued, not only from him, but some of the nobility, that the little duchess with no formal training could take down the most fearsome warrior the Khluri had ever battled. The truth was unwavering on Navia’s features however, and it caused Kazim to gather his wits and look at Marek first, then Yousef, who was eying his sister with intense scrutiny. His own gaze then jumped to Kazim and he nodded once. Navia was telling the truth. The humor swept from Kazim’s face and he stiffened, turning back to tell Navia gravely, “If he is as innocent as you say, and you have done what you claim, you bring the threat of war to our doorstep.” Instead of perhaps having leverage against Mes'Mo'Tan, they were harboring the Khluri who had robbed Mes'Mo'Tan of a future king.<br/><br/>“Take him to the dungeons!” Kazim announced and no longer gave Théadan any attention, instead turning to seek council with Marek, “What can we do about this? The Mes'Mo'Tanians don't have to know Navia was involved. Can we use him to get leverage with the Mes’Mo’Tanians or do we use his death as a sign of strength against them?”<br/><br/>Everything that happened next occurred in such a quick succession that Navia could do nothing to stop it. The instant she heard where they were to take Théadan, she called out an earnest<i>no! </i>to protest it and spun to try to reach for Théadan. Yousef was there again though, this time grabbing her arms and pulling her back against her chest to keep her from escaping. “Not now, Navia,” he told her sternly, watching as the guards did what they were told and roughly jerked Théadan toward the door to be led away. Again they were to be separated, again there were others who hated their relationship; only this time the people who hated it where those who meant the most to her. “Let me go with him too,” Navia suddenly demanded, desperate not to be parted from Théadan again and thusly trying to use an old Khluri rule, “I’m allowed to go too, he is my<i>sama—“ </i>Yousef’s hand hastily clamped down over her mouth, keeping her from finishing her sentence.<br/><br/>“What did she say?” Kazim asked curiously, his attention being drawn from Marek to look over at the siblings.<br/><br/>“Nothing important,” Yousef answered casually, trying to keep the shock off his face.