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My mind goes to my unstable magic, and I swallow hard. Even if I can find the source of the magic, I still have to be able to cure it. But what if I can’t?
ELEVEN
Tara
We’re gathered for dinner. Every spot is occupied save for the head of the table, which has been left empty in respect for King Talon. I sit at Prince Arlys’s side, with Lady Scarlet on my other side and Prince Rinan and Prince Drogo across from me. A beautiful meal has been served, and like all meals when it comes to the shifters, it’s heavy on the meat.
“Is this what meals were like where you’re from?” Lady Scarlet asks, lifting her voice over the loud sounds of the shifters that fill the rest of the table.
I spear a piece of ham in a honeyed sauce. “We eat diets heavier on the fruits and vegetables and lighter on the meat.”
“Interesting,” she says. “Isn’t that interesting, Prince Arlys?”
At my side, he tenses. “Yes, it is.”
Lady Scarlet makes a face, before her expression smooths. “And did you eat meals in a big group like we do?”
I shrug. “Mostly, I ate alone in my room. But during big celebrations, or when my mother returned, we’d often have big meals in the great hall. The meals would be magicked to make everyone happier, so the hall would be filled with laughter.”
But not from me. Magic wasn’t strong enough to make it fun being ignored at a table full of people who wished you weren’t there. I don’t like to think of those times. They were almost worse than eating alone.
“And do you have any siblings?” she asks.
I feel like they already know this. Why is Lady Scarlet asking me so many questions? “No, I’m an only child.”
“So is Prince Arlys!” she says excitedly, although I don’t know why she’s excited. “Prince Rinan has three sisters, and Prince Drogo…well, he had two brothers.”
Right. Their names were on the valknut in the Deadly Passage.
Things become awkward and sad. Losing loved ones is always sad, but it’s made awkward by the fact that my people killed them. The last thing I want is for this nice meal to be ruined by one of Prince Drogo’s tantrums.
So, I pick my words with care. “I’m sorry for your loss,” I tell Prince Drogo.
He shoots me a deathly angry look, but doesn’t respond.
Lady Scarlet clears her throat. “So, who was your closest friend?”
I smile, the answer coming easily. “Wisp and Baldemar.”
“Wisp?” Prince Rinan repeats, shooting me a curious glance.
“Wisp,” I repeat. “Wisp is a… well, a wisp.”
They stare at me blankly.
Oh, do they not have them here? “Wisps are tiny creatures that look like a dot of light. They live mostly in forests. They delight in pretending to be lights to lost travelers and leading them further away from help, so that they end up even more lost.”
They’re still staring, and I realize I made Wisp sound bad.
“Once, when I was a little girl, I got lost in the woods. It was a joke some of the other kids played. They led me out into the woods, said we were playing a game, blindfolded me, and took me really far into the wilderness, then left me there. I was wandering around for hours and ended up lost in the dark. Wisp took pity on me and used her little light to lead me home, instead of making me more lost. She’s got a good heart deep down.” When they keep looking at me like I’ve lost my mind, I continue. “She even followed me here. She talks to me sometimes when I’m feeling lost.”
Which, for the first time, I realize is ironic. Wisp is just always there when I’m lost, helping me find my way.
“I thought you were talking to yourself,” Prince Arlys says, and he sounds like he might be doubting me.
Oh, has he heard me? I try to think back to when. Oh, right, in the carriage.
“Can other people see this ‘Wisp’?” Prince Rinan asks. He’s trying to sound light, but there’s a little doubt in his voice.
