The Rolling Stone
"What's this about?"
"It seems Lord Enki knows that I came from outside Kienkingir."
Sunya recounted the sense of unease he had felt at the wedding banquet.
"…Well, if it's that old man, it wouldn't be strange for him to know."
"So he seems to be somewhat wary of me as an outsider. Lord Utu also appears to keep his distance for the same reason. Even in the underworld, he must have seen me from afar, yet he never approached — which surely means he finds me difficult to deal with."
He had no petty intention of snitching. Sunya simply judged that his wife needed to know these things. That way, they might prevent a certain amount of awkwardness down the road.
"Is coming from outside really that important? Isn't what matters the kind of person someone is?"
Inanna's values were remarkably progressive. Considering the age they lived in, it was a rare way of thinking — and precisely what had allowed Sunya to fit so well with her.
"Wary of outsiders is simply human instinct. People raise fences to survive. I don't think that's particularly wrong."
"So what are you planning to do about it?"
"Nothing special. I'll just keep living quietly, the same as always. I simply thought I should let you know how the others see me."
"Is there anything you want me to do?"
"Not at all."
Sunya gathered Inanna's hands in both of his and held them close.
"It feels a little late to say this, but… marrying me may bring you great hardship, Lady Inanna."
"I know. You've said it plenty of times already. And I still said I'd love you."
"No — that isn't quite what I mean. I'm asking you to be patient and wait a little. The others need time to accept an outsider like me."
"…So if they insult you, I'm just supposed to sit there and take it?"
"Of course not. I only hope you'll understand their wariness. I want to show them that a rolling stone can settle into place without driving out the stone already set there. Trust me. I won't bring trouble upon you."
"I don't care if you do. Do you think I married you without being prepared to bear that much?"
"Ah — is that so?"
Sunya offered a light joke, and Inanna kicked him in the shin.
"I'll say this properly, now that we've had a real wedding. I don't fully know your past. Who you were before, what kind of life you lived — honestly, I'd like to know. But even if I never do, it doesn't matter much."
Inanna fixed her gaze steadily on Sunya's eyes.
"I like the you who is here now. Separate from love — just having you beside me fills me with peace and happiness. Especially this time… the thought that you might never return from the underworld was agony."
"…"
"As long as you never betray me, I'll always be on your side."
"Betray…?"
"Don't cheat on me."
Inanna's eyes narrowed to axe-blade slits. Every time he saw that expression, Sunya thought how wonderfully rich her face was.
"I'm fiercely jealous. Concubines, slaves, casual flings — I don't understand any of that, and I don't want to. Put simply: if you sleep with any other bitch, you're dead."
"I'll keep that firmly in mind. Haha…"
"Other than that, I don't have much else to say."
At her words, Sunya opened his eyes and smiled gently.
"As expected… Lady Inanna is a good woman."
"…I'll allow the occasional shameless remark like that."
"Oh my — thank you kindly."
And then, as always, the two of them slipped into bed and wrapped themselves around each other.
It was miserable.
Lately, Ninshubur had been feeling deeply, wretchedly lonely. Watching the newlywed couple throw themselves into baby-making with such daily enthusiasm left the seat beside her so empty she felt she might cry. She had never cared so much as a fingernail's worth about romance — yet recently she found herself regretting that she hadn't secured at least one lover in advance. The classic remorse of the lifelong single.
"Come to think of it, those two get along remarkably well. Is it just because they're newlyweds?"
"…Even accounting for that, they're rather extreme."
Ninshubur, who had witnessed their behavior long before the wedding, shook her head slowly from side to side.
Kara, Inanna's personal beautician, tilted her head in puzzlement. The two of them were currently nursing drinks in a dining hall off to one side of Inanna's palace — a sort of after-party, if one were being generous.
"What do you think of this Sunya fellow, Lady Ninshubur?"
"My opinion is of no importance. And it wouldn't be proper to second-guess my mistress's decision."
"Oh, come on! Why are you always so stiff? Between us, you can share a personal impression. Keep this up and I'll get drunk again!!"
"…You go first, then I'll speak."
"So that's how you're going to play it?"
Kara took a deep swig of beer. Ninshubur flinched at the sight.
"Honestly, I'm a little disappointed. Looks-wise he's fine, but I heard he was a penniless freeloader? I've been trimming our lady's nails and fixing her hair since she was this small — how carefully I raised her!! He must have used that face of his to seduce our innocent girl and steal her virginity and her heart, right?"
"…Was our lady ever particularly innocent?"
"Lady Ninshubur, you're far too cold-hearted!"
Kara made to gulp more beer, and Ninshubur hurriedly caught her arm to stop her. Undeterred, Kara pressed on with her litany of grievances.
"Our lady was raised so precious — just thinking about the hardships she'll face later brings tears to my eyes."
"…On that point, I suspect she'll be fine. Her husband seems surprisingly diligent. When our lady was living at his house before, he apparently handled all the cleaning, laundry, and other chores himself."
"Well of course he did! Our lady has never so much as touched a broom in her life."
"…"
"And people who walk around with their eyes closed like that always end up betraying you. Or they're scheming something underhanded."
"I've never heard that before."
"What would you know, Ninshubur? Since ancient times, the eyes have been called the windows to the soul. So why would someone go around with them shut? Because he's got something to hide, that's why. And look at Lord Enki — strutting around on that handsome face of his, seducing women left and right, goddess or mortal, no distinction. Handsome men always cash in on their looks."
"…I'll let that insolence pass. And on that particular point, things seem all right for now."
"Why?"
"I didn't entirely neglect to investigate. Her husband appears to have a clean record when it comes to women."
"Hmm. That's a bit unexpected."
"And though he usually goes about with his eyes suspiciously closed, he opens them quite often in front of our lady."
"Oh, really? What does he look like with them open?"
"His features are still fine. But his eyes are sharp, so he gives off a rather cold impression — rather like Lord Enlil. Hard to approach, you might say. Our lady seems to adore them, though. She says his eyes are like jewels."
"I knew it! My instincts were right!"
"Pardon?"
"I can feel it! When he opens his eyes, doesn't he suddenly become incredibly powerful? The ordinary man concealing his strength. The mastermind hiding his true identity — that sort of thing."
"…That aspect isn't entirely absent."
Ninshubur was surprised. Kara had been spouting her usual nonsense, yet somehow she'd hit on something true.
"Still, a man who would descend all the way to the underworld for our lady — his love for her must be genuine."
"There you go again! You're too soft, Ninshubur!!"
"…"
She was simply exhausted now. Ninshubur let out a long sigh.
"Marriage is reality. It's different from romance! Do you know how hard it is for two people who've lived completely separate lives to share one house? The heat of passion fades, and what's left is affection for each other. Without that, all that grows is resentment…"
This and that. Blah blah blah.
Ninshubur felt as though her ears might start bleeding, but she let it wash over her. She knew it came from how deeply Kara cherished Inanna. Slight exaggeration aside, Kara practically regarded Inanna as a daughter — so of course she felt all manner of complicated disappointment now that the girl had married someone. Perhaps she saw Sunya as a rolling stone that had tumbled in from nowhere.
Ninshubur herself, if not quite to Kara's degree, harbored something of the same feeling.
"Well… a rolling stone isn't necessarily bound to drive out the stone already set in place."
"What?"
"Nothing. Never mind."
Ninshubur smiled faintly and raised her cup to her lips.
And that night, Kara eventually got thoroughly drunk, belted out songs at the top of her lungs, and sobbed her heart out.