The Cards bowed before the throne and parted to the sides, their role in the ceremony complete. The chorus of voices rose again, in a holy song about kings and queens of old. The crowd fell to their knees as Vittiore began her walk up the aisle, humbled and stripped of her royalty, wearing a very plain dress for such a high ceremony. She carried the crown upon a deep-fuchsia pillow, only it was not the crown that Dinah was expecting.
It was her crown. The base was a brushed silver, inlaid with thousands of tiny heart gemstones. She remembered the flowered vines that twisted out from the hearts to meet at the top of the crown. The vines were carved with tiny faces, their mouths open in a scream. Flickering stars hung from thin strips of silver among the vines. The strips of silver were the same tree trunks that greeted her inside the Twisted Wood. Four Card symbols connected the vines from the sides of the crown to the top, where a diamond in the shape of a heart sparkled in the light, framed by the outline of a crane.
Dinah closed her eyes and saw Charles before her, his blue and green eyes peering up at her with curiosity. His small hands, his tiny body cradled against her own. She remembered the smell of his dirty blond hair, streaked with grease and paint. He was here with her, she could feel it. This was Charles’s crown for Dinah, something she assumed the king had destroyed. The entire room went silent and still, and it seemed only Vittiore was moving, bringing the crown closer. The crown itself was so beautiful that people reached out to touch it, breaking protocol. Charles’s crown, his last gift to Dinah. She felt her heart shredding and forced her face to remain frozen as she watched the last remnant of her brother come up the aisle.
Dinah blinked rapidly, trying to remain in control. Vittiore stood before her now, the crown held aloft in her trembling hands, a show to the people that their once queen was truly submitting to Dinah, the new Queen of Hearts. Vittiore circled around behind Dinah, handing the crown to Cheshire, who slowly lowered the heavy crown onto Dinah’s head. Silent tears spilled from Dinah’s eyes as the crown settled across her brow, the presence of her brother so close now. She stood in front of her people and placed her hand over her heart.
Cheshire stood, proclaiming, “Wonderland, behold your queen, the Queen of Hearts!”
The crowd repeated the phrase back to him, and then took up the chant, again and again. The choir sang and birds fluttered in the afternoon breeze. Her brother’s crown sat firmly against her head, exquisitely measured so that it lay snug and tight across her brow. A perfect fit to rule.
Twelve
Though she was exhausted beyond measure and dreaming of her bed, Dinah hosted Mundoo in her chambers immediately following the coronation, hoping to finalize the remaining details of the peace treaty. Mundoo arrived with his personal guard in tow, and Dinah watched them with utter fascination. They were completely out of place inside the palace walls, uncomfortable and twitchy, suffocated by the stone walls and the red-tinted light. She saw two of the Yurkei quietly making faces at themselves in one of her ornate gilded mirrors, and several of them had planted themselves at her long table, helping themselves to a delicious array of new flavors. It was obvious to her that the Yurkei thought that Wonderlanders were excessive and ridiculous, just as fluttery and shallow as the birds that roamed the palace hallways. She smiled as she watched them. They weren’t exactly wrong.
Mundoo leaned toward her, a cup of tea in his hand. “Shall we go to the balcony, Dinah?”
It was jarring to hear her name, now that everyone called her “Your Majesty” or some other lofty title. Mundoo was making a point; she wasn’t his queen. She nodded and opened the doors to the balcony, light swallowing them as they stepped outside. The day was clear, and the Yurkei Mountains could be seen through the heavy summer air. Mundoo sipped his tea as Dinah watched him enviously; he wore his responsibilities with such an intense grace.
From here, Dinah could see the tents of Mundoo’s remaining army lingering in the fields just outside of Wonderland proper, ready to depart at a moment’s notice. They wanted to go home. As a show of kindness to the people of Wonderland, the tireless Yurkei had cleared out the wreckage of battle that lay smoldering around the castle, including the corpses. The bodies of Wonderlanders and Cards were burned, their ashes buried in the cemetery west of the palace, while the bodies of Yurkei warriors were set aside for the Caterpillar. After he had blessed the bodies, a small bone from their arms was removed and wrapped in white linen. These men’s bones would be buried with the rest of their tribe in the mushroom fields outside Hu-Yuhar, their souls bonded forever with the land. Dinah understood there was no greater honor. What remained of their bodies was then taken to the Twisted Wood for burial.
The chief of the Yurkei leaned over the balcony, his bright blue eyes on the field below, the white and blue feathers in his hair blowing softly.
“Morte hasn’t been found yet, I assume.”
Dinah rested her arms on the stone terrace. “No. Only Keres was found, but you know that already.”
Mundoo breathed in the steam of the tea. “This means you won’t be able to uphold your end of the deal you made to save his life—the promise to give me six of his offspring—so we will have to make other arrangements. Another sacrifice.”
Dinah turned to him with skepticism in her eyes. “I will not budge on the treaty, so don’t ask.”
Mundoo smiled at her before turning back to his cup.
“Actually, I was going to ask to have regular shipments of tea to Hu-Yuhar. My warriors can’t get enough of it.”
Dinah felt a jolt of satisfaction. Every morning she had sent jittery servants out with heaping trays of tea to placate the waiting tribe. It was a tiny gesture, but she had learned that even the most subtle gift of service could influence the people.
“Be careful, Chief. Once you have a drink of it, it becomes something you need more and more of just to sustain yourself through the day.”
The chief looked to the mountains. “It’s the same with power.”
Silence encompassed the balcony as Dinah weighed his words.
Mundoo cleared his throat.
“From here, our mountains seem so insignificant, just small hills that mark . . . what is your Wonderland word for it . . . the end of the sky? The beyond? It’s a good one, but I can’t remember it.”
Dinah clasped her hands behind her back. “The horizon?”
“Yes, yes, that’s it. The horizon. It is a lovely thing, is it not? And yet, it is not so far from here to there. Not so far for many men who can ride without ceasing.”