“The wards are still here, Khalad.”
The white-haired boy only grinned. “Just do it.”
I obeyed and was stunned to see the rune shimmer into life. Wisps of it settled around Prince Kance’s heartsglass like a cloak—and flared up again, images blooming at its center.
I spotted glimpses of memory: of Kance as a child, playing tag with Kalen and Khalad while Inessa toddled after them, begging to join; of him as a teenager, poring over heavy tomes and old parchments; of riding on horseback at his father’s side as they explored the limits of their kingdom’s territories.
I saw sadness and grief from his mother’s passing, carefully bottled away. I saw compassion and understanding as he calmed a weeping Kalen when word reached them of Holsrath’s imprisonment. I saw fear and worry as he watched Khalad’s heart flame silver, marking his brother’s path away from the throne and into the often-unappreciated life of a Heartforger. I saw resignation mixed with determination when he was made King Telemaine’s heir—no longer the second son but next in line to rule Odalia. I saw the comfort and strength he derived from having Kalen as a protector, Khalad for his support, and Princess Inessa as a trusted friend and confidante. But I saw no romantic love for her there.
And then I saw our first meeting, watched as I blushed and stumbled over my words with Fox grinning by my side. I saw the Falling Leaf cha-khana and how he kept his head, kept me safe from the horde of skeletal rats I resurrected. I saw his admiration and respect as he watched me take down the aeshma, his pleasure and happiness when I presented him with that ill-fated pendant for his birthday.
But though I scoured his heartsglass, I could find no love for me either.
I bowed my head. I had never expected it, surely never demanded it, whatever my feelings for him. But the blow wasn’t as bad as I had expected. A few months ago, this might have devastated me. Now I felt only a wistful sadness.
And, inexplicably, like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. That revelation stunned me.
Do you want to talk about it? I could hear Fox ask.
There’s nothing to talk about. I don’t chase after people who don’t feel the same way about me as I do about them—who I just realized I don’t have the feelings for that I thought I had. Didn’t you do the same thing with that Jezebel girl and her Maharven?
It’s Gisabelle. And why do you keep remembering that blasted man’s name but not—
I giggled aloud and stopped. Khalad and Inessa were goggling at me. “Sorry. I was…thinking of something else.”
“You’re not angry?” Inessa asked.
“Actually, I feel relieved. As odd as it sounds.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not. I don’t regret it.” And then I did a double take. “You knew?”
The princess laughed. “Not this, no. If anything, it confirmed something else I had already suspected. How did you do that, Khalad?”
“Heartsrune is a forging rune more than it is a regular rune or a Dark one, though we can all draw from it. Wards block both offensive and defensive magic, but forging is neither.”
“I didn’t know this,” I confessed, though that somehow made sense.
Khalad grinned. “We don’t give away our secrets. Weren’t you due at the courtyard for practice with Kalen?”
“I’m coming with you, Tea.” The princess tucked Kance’s heartsglass inside her shirt. “I’m supposed to be training with Fox.”
“Thank you.” It was easy to underestimate Khalad. He was quiet and unassuming, but there was a reason the old Heartforger had chosen him for his successor.
“Don’t mention it. Zoya and Shadi should be along soon.” His silver heartsglass gleamed. This too shall pass, it seemed to tell me.
“There’s something I want to talk to you about while we walk,” Princess Inessa said. “Something I’d like your opinion of. It’s about my engagement to Shifang.”
“What about it?” I asked.
She flashed me a grin. “I might know a way to wriggle myself out of it.”
? ? ?
Kalen and Fox were already in the courtyard, and so were an alarming number of guards and courtiers who had come to watch. To my astonishment, Emperor Shifang was present, and so were Tansoong and Baoyi. Likh was also beside the Daanorian ruler, his tall, slim figure wrapped in the exquisite peach-and-silver hua Rahim had made for him, with a cluster of shorter women in flowing silks nearby; obviously, they were some of the royal concubines. The emperor made no bones about paying court to the male asha, having taken the latter’s hand in his. Likh was looking around frantically, trying to find an excuse to step away without causing offense.
But all eyes soon turned to Princess Inessa. Aside from her casual shirt and breeches, her hair was pulled back and her face unadorned.
Tansoong was sputtering. “Princess, it is scandalous to wear such clothes in public!”
“This is what the women of my kingdom wear for sword practice, my lord,” Princess Inessa said gravely. “It is our custom.”
“But you have no need for a sword! You are the emperor’s betrothed!”
“For as long as I have a kingdom, then I will always have need of a sword. And I am prepared to fight for it as well as any man here.”
There were a few murmurs among the Daanorians. Emperor Shifang asked Tansoong a question, and the official stuttered out a response.
The emperor laughed and clapped his hands. Likh took the opportunity to move away to my side. “I was so sure he was going to find out about me,” he breathed.
“Likh, you’re more feminine than I am.”
“Oh, I wasn’t referring to that…although that had me worried too. I was snooping around the palace when he found me and asked me to accompany him here.”
“What were you looking for?”
“I was looking at the palace wards. Kalen was right—it’s more complicated than regular spells, but I think there’s a way to untangle them.”
“Are you definite about this, Likh?”
He grinned. “It’s similar to zivar making, really. Think of magic as a spool of yarn. You can make complex patterns with it, but sometimes, some of Chesh’s spells get a little too heavy for the accessories we use. I’m usually the one tasked with unraveling the thread back into the spool, so to speak. It just takes patience.”
“You do know I don’t understand half of what you’re saying, right?”
“I guess it’s something those with purple heartsglass understand more than those with silver,” the asha admitted. “Give me more time to figure it out.”
“His Majesty has had training with the sword as well,” Baoyi translated, looking like he’d taken a bite of lemon. “If the princess wishes to defend Daanoris together with him, he would enjoy an exhibition of her prowess.” It was clear Baoyi wanted to express more of his views about that, but his secretary tugged nervously at his sleeve, shaking his head.
“Would you like to spar with me, Your Majesty?” The princess sounded coy.
If anything, the emperor laughed even harder. Already, a servant was hurrying forward with a small, ornate sword, the hilt meticulously covered in jewels despite its wooden blade.
Are you sure you want to let this happen? I hissed at Fox.
I know enough about etiquette not to scold the princess in front of another kingdom’s emperor. Besides, she’s good enough to beat him. Look at how he carries his sword. The gems on it are too polished to be anything but ceremonial. The emperor might think himself competent, but I know he isn’t.
That’s exactly what I was afraid of!
Tansoong was frantically shaking his head, issuing admonitions in Daanorian. The emperor paused and made a counteroffer.
“No fighting,” the councilor said, this time to us. “Instead, the emperor and the princess shall display their skills for the public to judge.”
That sounded like the better choice to me. Our hosts’ hospitality would come to an abrupt end should Princess Inessa accidentally skewer the emperor with her blade.