Chapter 14 Lifetime After Lifetime
Seri
I was so excited to meet Zane’s mother that I couldn’t stop fidgeting with the hem of my dress.
Queen Doria Starling, actual royalty from the Sky Realm, was coming to meet me.
Me! The farm girl who used to devour books about magical creatures, dreaming of a world beyond corn fields and apple orchards.
Now those creatures were landing in our backyard, and I was married into their family!
If my childhood self could see me now, she’d probably faint.
“Thank the Goddess I let Koko buy me this dress,” I whispered to myself, smoothing the lavender fabric over my hips.
It was the one from our wedding, and the nicest I owned.
I’d taken extra time with my hair, too, taming my curls into a half-up, half-down style that made me look more put-together than usual.
The sky wyrms were magnificent, each about thirty feet long with bodies that seemed to be carved from living storm clouds, scales that caught the sunlight like polished metal.
One was midnight black with streaks of silver, as if stars had been captured in obsidian.
The other was the gray and white of thunderheads with veins of electricity crackling along its spine.
They moved like water in zero gravity, twisting and coiling through the air.
I couldn’t give them more than a quick look, however, because there, sliding gracefully from the back of the thundery wyrm, was Zane’s mum.
She moved like an athlete, full of confidence and vigor. Her hair, wild and luminous, looked like a living flame, and her crown seemed made of sapphire frost. Despite her ageless face, her eyes were ancient, like moonlight trapped in ice, and I shuffled my feet nervously.
The man, her consort, towered over her. He looked just as the boys had described. His skin shimmered like dark bronze, his molten silver eyes caught the sun and flung it right back, and his hair, black as deep space, was braided down his back in a thick rope studded with glittering beads.
“Zane!” Queen Doria called, her voice musical and commanding at once. “Don’t just stand there gawking! Come greet your mother properly!”
“Hey, Mum,” Zane called back like this was just a normal Friday as he met her halfway.
I thought she’d go for a hug, but she grabbed his face with both hands, pulled him down, and planted a loud mwah! kiss on his cheek. Zane went pink. I tried not to stare.
“There. Now everyone knows I’m your mother and you’re embarrassed.”
“Mortified, thank you.” He wiped his cheek with exaggerated disgust. “Still dramatic, I see.”
“Still allergic to hair products, I see.” Queen Doria’s eyes flicked to me, then back to Zane. “You might have warned me she’s beautiful. I so hate being underdressed.”
Underdressed? I stared at her in disbelief. She looked like she’d stepped out of the most glamorous fantasy novel ever written, and I was in a nice, but simple, cotton dress!
Her riding outfit was all white, but not plain.
It shimmered in the afternoon sun, layers of linen and lace that fluttered behind her like wings.
Her coat was long and trailed ruffles to her ankles, and her sleeves belled at the wrists, each one dusted with lace that danced in the breeze.
She wore little puffy shorts over tights and tall boots, the kind of outfit I’d only ever seen in old paintings of princes and adventurers.
And she made it look elegant. Fearsome, even. Delicate and deadly all at once.
She turned to Casimir and Koa and gave them each a nod, gracious, approving, and somehow still a little scary.
“Casimir. Koa.” She said their names like she was appraising rare artifacts. “You look sturdy and well. Good.”
Then she stepped in front of me and stopped.
The air got very, very quiet. Even the sky wyrms, who had been doing that thing cats do when they pretend not to watch, focused in. Before my brain could short-circuit, I sank into a deep curtsy, thanking the Goddess Koa had spent all afternoon helping me practice.
“Queen Doria,” I murmured, hoping my voice didn’t crack. “It’s an honor to meet you. Welcome to Evermere.”
For a moment, she took in everything about me, then smiled.
“You wear magic like silk, girl. Just don’t let it wear you back.”
My mouth was suddenly full of cotton. I had no idea what to say to that.
“I’ll try not to?” I ventured.
“Don’t try. Do.” She arched an insanely perfect eyebrow. “The world will always be too eager to reshape you into something easier to swallow.”
It was possibly the most cryptic, terrifying, and empowering thing anyone had ever said to me.
I nodded, feeling my cheeks go red-hot, and was never more grateful for anything than when Koa’s hands went around my waist and lifted me to stand again.
Rising from a full curtsy would not have happened otherwise, not with the way my knees had jellied.
“Call me Doria,” she invited and waved a hand at her consort. “And this is Caelyr.”
He stepped forward, a small wooden box cradled in his huge hands, and held it out to Casimir.
“We brought stardust wine.”
“As one does,” Casimir replied dryly, accepting the gift with a formal nod. “Thank you.”
At that moment, Brumous seized the stage. He bounded forward and skidded to a halt in front of Doria, his tail wagging with the force of a small earthquake. I didn’t call him back, mostly because I wanted to see how she’d respond to my baby.
Courtesy of Zane, we all heard Brummy’s excited mental shout: Lady Storm! Pet me, or know regret!
“That’s Zaddy’s special boy!” Zane crowed proudly. I wanted to sink into the ground. “Mum, Caelyr, this is Brumous.”
“Oh my Goddess, I’m so sorry,” I whispered. “He’s— He’s usually— Well, not better, exactly… He has trauma.”
“No apologies needed.” Doria seemed completely unbothered. “I rather like creatures who announce themselves.”
She offered her fist, and Brumous sniffed it with all the solemnity of a judge considering evidence. After a moment, he licked her knuckles once, decisively, as if knighting her.
Smell like thunder and cake. Approve.
“High praise.” Doria grinned. “Thank you, Lord Brumous.”
Am wise, he preened.
Brummy’s tail went full helicopter as he trotted over to Caelyr, who scooped him up without a word. Yes, this seven-foot-tall celestial knight just picked up a dire wolf as easily as a corgi and cradled him belly-up like a baby.
Alpha Stars. Brummy went blissfully limp. Smell like night wind and old bones. Make dark listen. Still storms. Kill hard. Protect soft.
Koa choked on a laugh. I started to apologize again, but Caelyr only nodded with a calm, “Yes.”
Keep? Brummy sighed, snuggling in deeper.
“Absolutely not.” Doria shook her head, fond exasperation in her eyes as she stared at Caelyr. “No more wolves in Skyspire, sweeting. We have far too many as it is.”
“No such thing,” he disagreed, and she rolled her eyes at him.
“Now, Lady Serafina—”
“Just Seri, please.”
“Seri, then,” Doria conceded with a gracious nod. “Let’s go inside. I want to hear everything about how you met, and how you’ve managed to keep all three in line.”
With a gesture from Caelyr, the sky wyrms settled into comfortable coils at the edge of the lawn, beginning to blend with the landscape as their scales shifted to match the surrounding colors.
As we walked, Doria slipped her arm through mine.
“I heard you escaped a Dark witch. That you were brave enough to run, smart enough to outwit her, and strong enough to build a new life. I admire that.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” I mumbled, my cheeks growing hot. “I just survived her.”
“That’s all anyone ever does, child.” Doria leaned in as if sharing a secret. “The ones who think otherwise usually end up dead.”
Behind us, I could hear Zane whispering to his brothers, something about “going better than expected” and “actually being nice.” Caelyr walked a few paces behind, Brummy still cradled in his arms, head lolling.
It was possibly the cutest thing I’d ever seen, and I wanted to draw it in my sketchbook as soon as possible.
As we walked, though, I noticed the way Zane kept stealing glances at his mother when he thought no one was looking and the protective stance Casimir and Koa adopted around him.
For all his jokes and irreverence, there was something raw in Zane’s eyes that made my heart hurt.
This wasn’t my carefree, devil-may-care Zoodle.
This was someone wearing his skin, but holding its breath.
“Thank you for coming,” I whispered to Doria. “He doesn’t say it, but he wants you here. Even if it’s just for dinner.”
“Then I’ll have dinner,” she replied, her voice equally quiet, “but I won’t pretend I know how to be what he needs.”
“You don’t have to.” I met her eyes without hesitation. “Just don’t leave him emptier than you found him.”
She stopped dead still and studied me with a focus that made my skin tingle. For a moment, I feared I’d overstepped, but, since it was for my Zoodle, I didn’t care if I had.
Then she inclined her head, just a little.
“You have steel under those curls.” After a pause, her mouth curved into an edged smile. “Good. You’ll need it.”
Before I could respond, Casimir cleared his throat.
“Perhaps we could show you the library? Seri has been working on some fascinating magical theory.”
“Has she now?” Doria’s eyebrows arched with interest. “Lead on, then.”
#
Doria wasted no time in claiming one of the leather couches, legs crossed at the ankle and perfectly posed. Caelyr stood behind her, still holding Brummy, who had begun a gentle, thunderous snore.
I fished out my phone, snapped a photo of Brummy and Caelyr, and showed it to Koa, who instantly texted it to himself and made it his lock screen. Zane prowled around the room while Casimir set up the tea service with his usual terrifying efficiency.
And Doria watched it all with the air of someone studying a new, fascinating animal in her menagerie.
“So, what is the magical theory you’ve been working on in here, Seri?”