Chapter 3
I had never been inside the royal palace for a festival before, and it was rather overwhelming. At the entrance of the opulent ballroom, I was immediately greeted by vermillion ribbons and the sweet aroma of the roses adorning every surface. The walls were draped in crimson velvet, and garlands of red rose and dark ivy were strung across the ceiling.
A large balefire burned brightly in the center of the room, casting dancing shadows across the audience that awaited our conduction. Above it, the skylight was open, letting in the starlight and letting out the smoke. The fire crackled and popped, and the air was heady with the scent of charred wood, fragrant blossoms, and wine.
Sitting on her golden throne, reigning over it all, was Queen Kriselle of House Marin. Her gown was a deep blood-red, and rubies and onyxes adorned the layered chains around her neck. Her black hair was piled high on her head, and her dark brown eyes were amused and calculating, like a satisfied snake that would most certainly strike when it was displeased or hungry.
On either side of her, her Courtiers stood with judgmental eyes and sharp smiles. The ones lined up closest to the Queen were the Princesses of Calida, her five daughters ranging in age from twenty-seven to fourteen, with each of them appearing like smaller versions of the last. In decreasing age and stature, the Princesses were Cosetta, Sylvetta, Flornetta, Danetta, and Anabetta.
Soren led us into the ballroom to begin our conduction. The muses walked two by two, which was a relief because I could cling to Briar's hand for a few moments longer.
Our performance began, and soon, the revelers were singing along with the familiar tune. Their voices joined in with Soren like an inebriated choir. From the corner of my eyes, I saw couples pair off to dance slowly and sensually together.
But I paid them no mind. I kept my thoughts on Soren’s voice and the memory of the heat of his hand on my stomach. The magik I conducted into the air shone brilliantly across the ballroom.
As the Balefire burned down to embers, the muses slowed our steps, our movements becoming more languid, until at last, the music faded away, and the ballroom erupted into applause.
Elated and dizzy, the only thing I could think about after we’d finished was quenching my thirst. There had been moments during the conduction I was afraid that I might pass out, but the air was still sparkling and crackling, even after we all stopped projecting our magik.
“You were incredible,” Soren said, his voice behind me, and I nearly choked on my punch.
I wiped the juice from my lips and turned to face him. For some reason, without the muses standing around us, he seemed more imposing.
“Thank you,” I murmured.
"I am sorry if I was hard on you earlier," he said, and to his credit, his eyes looked apologetic. "I knew you could be better, and I wanted you to be your best."
“I understand the method to your madness, even if it was flustering at the time,” I admitted. “But I was already so nervous. You knocked me off balance, and I refocused.”
“And when you give your all, you’re nothing short of amazing,” he said with a pleased smile.
I blushed and stared down at my punch glass. "I don't know about that. Perhaps it's just that you are so enchanting."
"Oh, certainly that was part of it," he agreed wryly. "It goes without saying that my enchantment brings out the best in everyone.”
“It goes without saying, and yet, you’ve said it,” I teased him.
“When I was born, the Matronae gave me a double helping of talent but none of humility. That is the bane of my existence,” he said with exaggerated sorrow.
"In truth, I should be thanking you," he said, and the sincerity caused me to arch my eyebrow at him. "Your conduction made me look more skillful than I am, and that was more than I could hope for with my first official audience before the Queen."
“Perhaps we bring out the best in each other, and there is no need for gratitude to extend either way?” I asked.
"Or it could go both ways if we're feeling generous," Soren said.
“Are you the generous sort? I hadn’t really pegged you as the type.”
“You’ve hardly seen me outside of rehearsals, and the pressure of the situation may have dampened my deeply charitable spirit.”
"I have been curious. How do enchanters occupy themselves in their free time?"
Since I was six years old, my life had been filled with a regimented training and practice schedule, which wasn't uncommon for muses. However, Briar and Wrenley had always pointed out that Adora had started me younger than most, and my path was far more intense than theirs had been.
Still, practice was a big part of life for all muses. My little free time usually involved reading or walking in the park.
"A little of this, a little of that," Soren replied vaguely, turning his attention toward pouring himself a punch from the nearby crystal bowl. "Imbibing when I have the chance." He took a sip of his drink, and his face immediately crumpled in disgust. "There isn't a drop of alcohol in this!"
“Muses are to be sober on the night of their conductions,” I reminded him of the rules of behavior for muses and enchanters, known as the Regula.
"But now it's over, and you should be free to do as you please." He abandoned his punch glass on an empty table, and his gaze had turned to survey the celebration, presumably for wine or other spirits. "And the sobriety section of the Regula definitely does not apply to enchanters."
A server walked by with a tray of honeyed wine in crystal goblets for guests, and Soren scooped two off as they went past.
“Finally, a proper drink to celebrate,” he said as he handed me a glass.
Even though I knew I should decline, the encouragement in his eyes was too much for me to deny. I smiled and took a long sip. I had tried wine before, but never after I had recently performed a conduction, and I was pleasantly surprised with the warm, tingling feeling it sent through me.
“Much better,” Soren said after he took a long drink, and he looked over at me with a strange smile playing on his lips. “You’ve got color to your cheeks again. How are you feeling?”
“Light,” I replied. “Like I could float away if I’m not careful.”
“I won’t let you float away too far. I wouldn’t want you to get lost in the clouds, not when you have such a promising vocation ahead of you.” He leaned back, his whole demeanor had relaxed, and the air between us felt different.
The celebration had created a charged atmosphere, a kind of prickly excitement that bounced between people. But the conduction had drained both Soren and I, and now the honeyed wine had a hazy aura around us.
We were still in a ballroom filled with hundreds of people from the kingdom, but we were tucked back in the corner beside the unpopular punch. Maybe it was residue from the magik, maybe it was the wine, but I felt languid, cozy, and utterly beguiled, hiding away in a quiet little bubble with Soren.
“How long have you been enchanting?” I asked.
“It’s been about ten years since I completed my training, but I was dabbling in it before that,” he explained. “I’ve hosted dozens of festivals since then, but tonight was my most prestigious one. What about you?”
“I’ve never been an enchanter,” I replied sardonically, and he smirked down at me. “I was born a muse, though, and I’ve been performing since I was maybe seven or eight.”
“That’s young, isn’t it? Don’t you all usually start when you’re teenagers?”
“Many do,” I said. “But not all.”
Now, his expression turned mystified. "All that experience, all that talent, and yet you're still uncertain of yourself."
“This was my most impressive conduction, too, so maybe I have cause to be uncertain," I reasoned between sips of my wine. "Otherwise, I would've had better placements."
“You would have better placements if you didn’t hold yourself back,” Soren corrected me. “I can see the light within you. It wants to break free, but you’re too afraid to let it go.”
“I wasn’t today,” I said, although that wasn’t entirely true.
I had still been afraid – terrified even – but I knew I had to give my all, or I would disappoint Soren, my mother, and my friends and even hurt the entire kingdom. So I had let go, even when it scared me.
“That’s right.” A proud smile spread slowly across Soren’s face. “And you were magnificent .”
"There you are!" My mother's sharp voice cut through the moment Soren and I had created. I blinked, and suddenly, I was aware of the loud noise of the crowded ballroom.
Adora was making a beeline right toward me, and I straightened up, doing my best to look proper even though I wasn't sure I'd been improper. But as soon as she reached me before she said hello to Soren, she took the goblet of wine from my hands.
“You shouldn’t be drinking this, Isadore, you know that,” Adora chastised me, and then she turned her attention to the enchanter. “I don’t believe we’ve met yet, but I am Lady Adora Dellamousa, Isadore’s mother. You were so wonderful tonight, Soren! Truly a breathtaking performance.”
"Thank you, but most of that was the muses doing their work," Soren said, giving me a small smile over my mother's head. "Isadore was especially enchanting."
"Only because you pulled it out of her," Adora said, and I had the strongest urge to shrink away. Like a flower wilting in the dark, I wanted to retreat into the shadows. "Which is why I think it would be wonderful if you worked together again. As talented as you are, you must have something lined up already. What is ahead for you?"
“I have some opportunities coming my way,” Soren allowed carefully.
“You don’t have anything on the books?” Adora persisted.
"Adora, he's very busy," I said, embarrassed by her pushy nature. “He likely can’t recall everything he has coming up.”
"Oh, no, of course," Adora said, but she was undeterred. Her gray eyes were locked on him, oblivious to the uncomfortable shift in his body. "But I had heard you were being considered for the Ashoralida?"
"Yes, I am an enchanter for that, actually," he said, and Adora's face lit up. "It's down in the Kingdom of Sudamon in a few months, so I don't have anything officially planned yet."
“Oh my, that sounds exciting though,” Adora enthused. “The Ashoralida is such an extravagant celebration, and I haven’t been to Sudamon in ages.”
“It is still some time off, Adora,” I interjected, futilely trying to temper her zealous attempts at getting me booked.
Soren’s gaze had been pulled away from us and stayed out on the crowd. He was looking for a means to escape this conversation. And then, as Adora started asking more intrusive questions about his thoughts on muses and performances, Soren found his break.
“Excuse me,” he said, cutting my mother off. “I see my sister Serena over there, and I must speak with her at once.” He offered us one final glance. “It was a pleasure talking with you both.”
When he disappeared into the crowd, Adora's smile instantly fell, and she let out an annoyed sigh. "Enchanters are always so rude and arrogant. They are the worst part about being a muse." She took a long drink of the honeyed wine she'd taken from me, and I just stared after Soren, wishing I could've followed him.