Aurora held Tove and me hostage for far too long, and Willa couldn’t lighten the mood. It would’ve been so much easier if Aurora and Willa were just marrying each other. By the time Aurora let us go, even Willa was relieved to be escaping.
Duncan was waiting for me, and we went down to the kitchen to eat supper together. Tove went to the War Room to work on things, and Willa said she had plans. I knew I should go back with Tove to help, but I was starving. I had to get something to eat first.
I talked to Duncan about what Tove and Finn were researching, and how some of the papers were written in Tryllic. Duncan said he thought he’d seen a book on Tryllic upstairs in Rhys’s living room, which made sense because a lot of mänks went through a phase where they tried to learn it.
I didn’t really need to learn it this second, but I wanted to get a feel for the language. As soon as we were done eating, I headed up to the living room. The door was shut, but most doors in the palace were kept closed, and I opened it without knocking.
I hadn’t been trying to be sneaky, but since Matt and Willa didn’t hear me, I must’ve been awfully quiet. Or maybe they were too caught up in themselves.
Willa was lying on her back on the couch, and Matt was on top of her. She had on a short dress, the way she always seemed to, and Matt had his hand on her thigh, pushing her hem up. Her other leg wrapped around his waist, and she buried her fingers in his sandy hair as they kissed.
“Oh my god!” I gasped. I didn’t mean to, but it just came out.
“Wendy!” Willa shrieked, and Matt jumped off her.
“What’s going on?” Duncan asked from behind me and tried to push past me, so he could protect me if he needed to.
“Quiet!” Willa hissed, fixing her dress so all her parts were a bit more covered.
“Shut the door!”
“Oh, right.” I pulled the door shut and averted my eyes from Willa and Matt.
They weren’t doing anything really graphic, but I’d never seen Matt in any compromising situations before. He hardly ever dated, and he almost never brought girls home. It was bizarre thinking of him getting sexy with someone.
When I glanced up at Matt, his cheeks were red, and he wouldn’t lift his head. His hair was messed up, and he kept smoothing out the wrinkles of his shirt. Some of Willa’s lipstick had rubbed off on his cheek and mouth, but I didn’t have the guts to tell him about it.
“Wow. You two?” Duncan grinned at them. “Bravo, Matt. I didn’t think Willa would ever date anyone out of her class.”
“Shut up, Duncan.” Willa glared at him and readjusted her ankle bracelet.
“Don’t be crude,” Matt growled, and Duncan took a step back, as if he expected Matt to hit him.
“And you can’t say anything to anybody about this,” Willa warned him. “You know what would happen if this got out.”
Willa was a Marksinna, and even though her abilities were nowhere near as strong as mine, she was still one of the most powerful ones left. Matt was a human from a host family, making him even lower class than trackers and mänks. If Matt was caught defiling Willa’s important bloodline, they’d both be exiled.
Considering they were two of my closest friends, I didn’t want that to happen. Not only would I miss them terribly, but the Vittra might go after them to get to me. They needed to stay in Förening, where they were safe.
“Of course, I won’t say anything.” Duncan crossed his heart to prove his sincerity. “I never told anyone about Finn and the Princess.”
“Duncan, shut up,” I snapped. I didn’t need Matt to be reminded of that right now.
“Please don’t be mad,” Willa said, incorrectly thinking my irritation was with her.
“We didn’t want you to find out this way. We’ve been waiting for the right time to tell you, but you’ve had so much going on lately.”
“And this doesn’t change the way we feel about you,” Matt rushed to explain. “We both care about you a lot.” He gestured to himself and Willa, but he didn’t look at her. “That’s one of the things that drew us together. We didn’t want to hurt you.”
“You guys, I’m not hurt.” I shook my head. “I’m not mad. I’m not even that surprised.”
“Really?” Willa tilted her head.
“No. You’ve been spending so much time together, and you’re always flirting,” I said. “I kinda knew something was going on. I just didn’t expect to walk in on you like that.”
“Sorry.” Matt’s blush deepened. “I really didn’t mean for you to see us that way.”
“No, it’s okay.” I shrugged it off. “It’s not a big deal.”
I looked between the two of them. Willa’s dark eyes were worried, and her light brown waves of hair cascaded down her side. She was very beautiful, and she’d been showing how kind and loyal she could be.
“You guys make sense,” I said finally. “And I want you both to be happy.”
“We’re happy,” Willa smiled, and she and Matt exchanged a look. It was one of those sweet loving ones, and it even made Matt smile.
“Yeah, we’re happy,” Matt nodded and pulled his gaze away from her to look at me.
“Good. But you two have got to be careful. I don’t want you getting caught and banished away from me. I need you both.”
“Yeah, I know you need me,” Willa said. “Aurora would eat you alive without me.”
“Don’t remind me,” I grimaced and flopped on one of Rhys’s old beanbag chairs.
“And I’ve only been engaged for like forty-eight hours. Everyone’s all afraid of the Vittra, but I swear, this wedding is going to be the death of me.”
“If you don’t want to marry him, don’t marry him,” Matt said. He sat down on the couch next to Willa, but he’d turned on his disapproving big brother voice. “You don’t need to do anything you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s not Tove.” I shook my head. “I’m fine with marrying Tove.”
“You’re ‘fine’ with marrying him?” Willa laughed and looped her arm through Matt’s. “How romantic.”
“You should’ve seen the proposal,” I said.
“Where is the ring, by the way?” Willa asked, looking at my hands. “Is it out getting sized?”
“I don’t know.” I held my hands out to look at them, as if I expected a ring to magically appear. “He didn’t give me one.”
“That’s horrible!” Willa rested her head on Matt’s shoulder. “We have to correct that right away. Maybe I’ll say something when we’re with Aurora tomorrow.”
“No!” I said fiercely. “Please don’t say anything to her. She’d force me to pick out something hideous.”
“How can she force you to do anything?” Duncan asked. He sat cross-legged next to me on the floor. “You’re the Princess. She’s your subordinate.”
“You know Aurora,” I sighed. “She has ways.”
“That’s weird.” Duncan’s looked at me in a new light. “I thought life would be so much different for royals. That you had total freedom.”
“Nobody’s really free.” I shook my head. “You spend like twenty hours a day with me. You know how much of my time is free.”
“That’s really depressing.” Duncan’s shoulders sagged as he thought about this.
“I thought your life was like this because you were new and a Princess, but it’s always gonna be like this, isn’t it? You’ll always have to answer to people.”
“So it would seem,” I agreed. “Life isn’t a fairy tale, Duncan.”
“And you know what they say,” Willa chimed in. “Mo’ money, mo’ problems.”
“Well, that was embarrassing to hear you say that, so I’m good.” I stood up. “I’ve got lots of studying to do tonight. I’m going to squeeze in some training before I meet with Aurora tomorrow. Do you think you can keep her busy until I get there?”
“If I must,” Willa groaned.
“Don’t overwork yourself,” Matt said as I was leaving the room. “You’ve got to make time to be a kid. You’re
still young.”
“I think my days of being a kid are over,” I said honestly.
26. Overture
Willa bailed early on the planning. She said she had to have supper with her father, but I suspected that she couldn’t take Aurora anymore.
We were in the ballroom. The skylights were finally fixed, but a layer of snow covered the top of them, making the ballroom dark and cave-like. Aurora assured me that the snow would be removed in time for my engagement party, as if I were worried about that.
She went about the room, mapping out where the tables and decorations would be. I helped as often as she let me, which wasn’t very often. Her poor assistant was running around like mad to do everything Aurora asked.
When she finally let her assistant go for the night, I was sitting at the grand piano, playing the opening to “Fur Elise” repeatedly, since it was the only bit I knew.
“You’ll have to take piano lessons,” Aurora said. She had a thick black binder filled with all her wedding information, and she dropped it on the piano, making it twang. “I can’t believe you didn’t already have them. What kind of host family did you live with?”
“You know what kind of host family I had.” I continued playing the same bars, louder now since it was getting on her nerves. “You’ve met my brother.”
“About that,” Aurora said. She pulled a few bobby pins from her hair, letting her loose curls fall free. “You need to stop referring to him as your brother. It’s in poor taste.”
“I’m aware,” I said. “But it’s a hard habit to break.”
“You have many habits you need to break.” She ran her fingers through her hair.
“If you weren’t the Princess, I wouldn’t bother to help you break them.”
“Well, thank you for your time and consideration,” I muttered.
“I know you’re being facetious, but you are welcome.” She opened her binder, leafing through it. “We don’t have time for Frederique Von Ellsin to make you a gown for the party, so he’s bringing over some of his best pieces tomorrow at noon so you can be fitted.”
“That sounds fun,” I said, and I wasn’t lying. Frederique had made my gown for my christening ceremony, and I enjoyed meeting him.
“Princess!” Aurora snapped. “Will you stop playing that song?”
“Of course.” I closed the piano cover. “All you had to do was ask.”
“Thank you,” Aurora smiled thinly at me. “You do need to work on your manners, Princess.”
“My manners are fine when they need to be,” I sighed. “But right now, I’m tired, and we’ve been at this all day. Can we regroup tomorrow?”
“You are so lucky I’m letting you marry my son.” She shook her head and slammed her binder shut. “You are rude and ungrateful and so unladylike. Your mother has almost gotten us killed repeatedly, and my son should be next in line for the crown, not you. If he didn’t have some unfounded fondness for you, he would overthrow you and take his rightful place.”
“Wow.” I stared at her with wide eyes, and I really had no idea what to say to that.
“It really is a disgrace that he’s marrying you.” She clicked her tongue. “If anybody found out the way that tracker Finn tainted you, he’d become the laughing stock of the kingdom.” She touched her temple and shook her head. “You are just so lucky.”
“You are absolutely right.” I stood up, clenching my hands at my side. “I am so lucky that your son is nothing like you. I’m going to be Queen, not you. Know your place, Marksinna.”
She looked up at me, her dark eyes startled, and she blinked, as if she couldn’t believe it. Her skin blanched. The planning had been as daunting on her as it had been on me, and for a moment, she’d forgotten her role.
“Princess, I am truly sorry,” she stammered. “I didn’t mean that. I’ve been under so much stress.”
“We all have,” I reminded her.
Aurora finished gathering her things and mumbled several more apologies. She hurried out of the ballroom, saying she was needed at home, and I don’t think she’d every left so quickly before. I didn’t know if I’d done the right thing standing up to her, but right then, I didn’t care.
What I did know was that I had a rare moment where I was completely alone. No guards around me. No Duncan or Tove or Aurora. And I could really use some fresh air.
I hurried before someone could find me. If I waited, I knew someone would come along and want something from me. Probably a conversation, but I didn’t want to talk. I wanted a moment to breathe.
I ran down the hall of the North Wing, and I burst through the side door onto a narrow, gravel trail lined with tall hedges. It curved around the house, leading down to the bluffs before it opened into a beautiful garden.
Snow covered everything, making it glitter like diamonds under the moonlight. The wintry weather should’ve killed off all the plants, but the blue, pink, and purple flowers were in full bloom. The frost on their petals only made them more beautiful.
The vines of ivy and wisteria that grew over the wall remained green and vibrant.
Even the small waterfall that ran through the orchard of blossoming trees still flowed, instead of freezing solid the way it should have.
The thin blanket of snow crunched cold under my bare feet, but I didn’t care. I ran down the side of the bluff, slipping in a few places, but I never fell. Two curved garden benches were next to a pond, and I sat down on the nearest one.
The garden was a little piece of magic, and I loved it for that. I leaned back, breathing in the cold night. My breath came out in a fog, and the moon sparkled off the ice crystals in the air. I’d been locked in the house for far too long.
A snap of a twig behind me pulled me from my thoughts, and I whirled around. I couldn’t see anyone, but I saw shadows moving along a hedge near the brick wall.
“Who’s there?” I asked.
I assumed it was Duncan or another tracker sent to fetch me. When nobody answered, I began to worry that I’d made a rash decision coming out here alone. I could defend myself, but I didn’t want there to be a need for it.
“I know somebody’s here.” I stood up. I walked around the bench and weaved through the trees.
I saw a figure standing by the wall. He was too far away to get a good look at his face, but the moon shimmered on his light hair.
“Who’s there?” I repeated. I straightened up and tried to look as imposing as possible, which is probably hard for a Princess in a dress, alone in a garden at night.
“Princess?” He sounded surprised and stepped closer to me. When he ducked around a tree and walked towards me, I finally got a good look at him.
“Loki?” I asked. “What are you doing here?”
“I came for you.” He seemed just as confused as I was. “What are you doing out here?”
“I needed fresh air. But I don’t understand. How did you know I’d be out here?”
“I didn’t. This is how I come in.” He gestured to the wall behind him. “I scale the wall. You should really get security on that.”
“Why are you here?” I asked.
“Don’t pretend like you’re not happy to see me.” His cocky grin returned, lighting up his face. “I’m sure you’ve been miserable since I left.”
“Hardly,” I scoffed. “I’ve been planning my engagement party.”
“Yes, I’ve heard about that dreadful business.” He wrinkled his nose in disgust.
“That’s why I’ve come to save you.”
“Save me?” I echoed.
“Yes, like a knight in shining armor.” Loki spread his arms wide and bowed low.
“I’ll throw you over my shoulder and scale the wall with you like Rapunzel.”
“Rapunzel used her hair to climb down from a tower,” I told him.
“Forgive me. The Vittra don’t believe in nursery rhymes or fairy tales.”
“Neither do I,” I said. “And I don’t need to be rescued. I’m where I’m supposed to be.�
�
“Oh come now.” Loki shook his head. “Princess, you can’t believe that. You’re not supposed to be locked away in a horrible castle, engaged to a boring fool, forced to sneak out in the night for a chance to breathe.”
“I appreciate your concern, Loki, but I am happy.” Even as I said it, I wasn’t sure if that were true or not.
“I can promise you a life of adventure.” Loki grabbed onto a branch and swung over, so he landed on the bench with astonishing grace. “I’ll take to you to exotic places. Show you the world. Treat you the way a Princess really ought to be treated.”
“That all sounds well and good.” I smiled up at him. I was flattered by his invitation, even if I didn’t trust it. “But… why?”
“Why?” Loki laughed. “Why not?”
“I can’t help but feel like you’re only trying to get me to shirk my responsibilities as a Trylle Princess so I can aid your cause,” I said honestly.
“You think the King put me up to this?” Loki laughed again and jumped down from the bench, landing right in front of me. “The King loathes me. Despises me.
Threatens to behead me on a daily basis. The Queen had to go against his wishes to get me. He wanted you all to execute me.”
“Now I really wanna go back to that,” I smirked.
“Who said anything about going back? I’m asking you to run away from all of this, from all the Trylle and the Vittra, the silly royals and their silly rules.” He gestured widely around us.
“I can’t.” I shook my head, and I hated how tempting the idea was. To run away from all the pressure and stress of the palace. “I can’t let the kingdom down. I have a duty here, to these people.”
“You have a duty to yourself to be happy!” Loki insisted.
“No, I don’t,” I said. “I have too much here. And let’s not forget that I have a fiancé.”
“Don’t marry him,” he scoffed at the idea of it. “Marry me instead.”
“Marry you?” I laughed. “You told me that I should only marry for love.”
“That I did.” In a rare moment of honesty, Loki looked almost stunningly handsome. He stepped towards me, moving so close we were nearly touching.
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