“Claws,” he answered for me.
I tilted my head, looking over every possible detail. Metal spikes protruded from the tips of what must have been finger caps. I tapped my palm over the tips to see how sharp they were. A prickle of adrenaline spread beneath where they touched me. “I want them.”
“Really?” His eyebrows pinched in confusion, “Out of all of this, you want these?”
My look alone shut him up. He raised his arms, dropping the dagger carelessly back into the drawer. “They are yours. Here, let me help you try them on. They may not fit, you haven’t the biggest hands.”
To Hadrian’s displeasure and my delight, they slipped on easily, each one of my fingers filling the capped space inside the claws. The chains hugged my hands as Hadrian clipped the clasp around my wrists. They did not fall off, slip or move. I lifted both hands before me. The curves of metal reflected in the candlelight as I spun them, flexing my fingers and allowing the claws to move back and forth.
“Copy what I do,” Hadrian instructed. He held his hand out, fingers splayed and quickly flicked them into a fist.
I copied, clenching my fingers into a fist. A small pop-like sound followed. I lifted my hands again, this time looking closely at the tips of my fingers. The points had retracted.
“Are you sure you want them? I am not confident on how well they work in battle,” Hadrian said.
I could not pull my gaze from them. “Sounds like I’ll be the first to find out. You told me I could choose, so I have. I want these.”
I mimicked the movement again, flexing my fingers outwards until the pop sounded. The points were back, sharp and elegant as before. I ran my new hands over the cabinets’ surface, running my claws across the once perfect wood. I pulled my hand back and noticed the four marks that I had left and the rolls of peeled wood that sat in their wake.
“What did the cabinet ever do to you?” Hadrian asked, blowing the flecks of peeled wood and brushing his hand across them. My stomach answered for me, rumbling in hunger.
“Let’s get back, Petal. I think someone needs feeding,” he said, pushing the drawer closed.
“You’re really going to call me that?” I asked, but he only laughed in response.
I kept my hands behind my back and we made our way back to the throne room where the scent of steak and boiled potatoes greeted us. Hadrian dropped me off at the door, instructing me to remove my claws, although I attempted to protest his command.
“Trust me, if word gets back to the Commander about which weapon you picked they could use that against you in the duel. Keep it a surprise for the day.”
I unclasped the first buckle with my teeth and Hadrian helped pull it off my hand. The second was easier to remove without the constraints of metal. “I shall drop them off to your room myself. Go and eat.”
“Thank you.” Hadrian nodded. I watched him walk off but before he turned a corner I shouted for him. “Hadrian, sorry about your jewels, it was a dirty move.”
He didn’t turn to me, but his laugh did reach me. “I like dirty.”
His comment stayed with me and I walked into the throne room with a red face. Petrer waved from across the room, and I headed towards him.
I was thankful for the mindless chatter about his training as we ate. I asked question after question, it was my way of steering conversation away from me. It wasn’t until we left the throne room to return to our room that I realized it was the first time I had forgotten about my woes with Petrer. My mind was too busy racing about another.
***
WHEN WE RETURNED to our room I headed straight for the baths. I was excited about the idea of washing, it would be the first time since arriving. The first without my magick. I lowered myself into the warm embrace of the water, my entire body relaxing.
Losing track of time, I replayed the day’s events until I noticed the lack of light from the window and the sudden chill of the water. Wrapping a stiff towel around my body, I padded to the room, leaving wet footprints behind me. Everyone was already asleep when I entered.
As I lifted myself up I saw my claws placed on my pillow. Hadrian had been here. I lifted them up, ready to move them into my sack for safe keeping, when I noticed a single red Rose petal placed beneath them.
I smiled.
NYAH HADN’T STOPPED talking from the moment we left Masarion on our errand run. Despite the straw bags that were draped off both her arms and the pace she walked, she was unfazed. Where I was exhausted. Her freckled face was raised to the sky while she nattered about some boy she had met the previous night.
“He is seriously good looking. And his voice, honestly, his voice. It’s rich like cocoa, sweet as honey. I practically melted into a puddle right before him when we spoke.”
“I’m guessing he didn’t mind that you spilled food across his back?” I asked, attempting to wipe the sweat from my chin with my shoulder as I too carried two full straw bags.
“Well, it depends on how you define ‘we spoke.’”
“Right…”
“He kind of gasped and shouted, but that was because the soup was pretty hot,” she replied.
“You’ve got to be joking.” I chuckled, struggling to keep up. “Did you even have a conversation, or did he just shout at you?”
“Not really. By the time I coughed up an apology he was halfway out of the room.”
My chuckle had turned into a fit of laughter, so much so that I had to stop and drop the bags to the floor. “Honestly Nyah, you do make me laugh.”
“Well laugh all you want, if you saw him you’d have melted on the spot.”
“Oh, I’m sure I would’ve.”
We’d been sent to the market with a large list of goods to collect for breakfast. The head chef’s handwriting was rushed and hard to read, we only hoped we’d retrieved everything. The last thing I needed was for word to get back to the Commander that I was not following instructions again.
It was still early morning, and apart from the shouts of the market it was relatively peaceful in the city. That was until Nyah perked up again and listed off questions about my training with Hadrian.
“You’re limping, which suggests your training with the Prince was intense,” Nyah said, picking up one of my bags as I stopped to catch my breath. She was as strong as an ox, carrying over double the bags I did and showing not a single sign of struggle.
I shrugged, “Sure, it wasn’t that bad. I’m certain Hadrian—Prince Hadrian—forgets that I have no experience in hand to hand combat.”
Nyah looked over her shoulder, one eyebrow raised. “Word is he likes you. You know he hasn’t spent this much time with someone for years… at least that is what is being said.”
I huffed, “It’s been three days since we arrived. I’m certain he doesn’t like me any more than I like him. And why is it that this entire palace thrives off gossip? Sounds like everyone knows more about what’s going on than I do!”
“Lying again,” she teased.