Chapter 37
37
I was just about ready. From the private room above the sanctuary, I could see courtiers from all over the realm streaming into the Council of the Courts, decked out in their finest silks and linens, the men in warrior masks and draped in malong scarves. Those who didn’t fit congregated outside the doors, spilling down the gently sloped hillside to the streets below. The sky was pale blue and nearly cloudless, the perfect backdrop for the rainbow of flower arrangements and plush green trees lining all the walkways and roads, where arches wrapped in orchids and waling-waling flowers had been set up for everyone to walk through. There were hanging pots on every street post, spilling over with white and yellow and shades of purple and pink.
I’d finally found my power—now I just hoped I’d be able to harness it again, and prove I was the rightful ruler of Biringan.
Children from all four courts played together on the steps below the building, their parents’ rivalries forgotten, and peeked into the windows downstairs, waving purple flags and trying to get a glimpse of the activity happening inside. There was a sense of jubilation I hadn’t experienced here yet—or, really, anywhere before.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. They were all there for me, to watch me be crowned, when I would vow to be a just and fair ruler, do my best to ensure the safety of the realm, the secrecy of the realm, and to maintain peace throughout all four courts. I intended to do everything in my power to uphold those promises.
Once I passed the test, of course.
“Are you ready for your gown, Your Highness?” Jinky stood in the open doorway with a heavy bundle draped over her outstretched arms. There were four more maids behind her, all carrying various pieces of the coronation ensemble.
I stepped into the skirt layers first. There were petticoats to keep the dress full, under a white silk skirt, and then a nearly black, dark-purple split skirt over that. The bodice was heavily beaded, with glittering crystals and a tall, wide, feathered collar, and there were voluminous slashed bell sleeves that matched the skirts, ending just below the elbow. There was a giant, fluffy train attached at the waist, in a shimmering iridescent purple, with silver trim.
Someone knocked on the door. “Come in,” I called.
Elias peeked his head inside and said, “The priestess has arrived. It’s time.”
I took one last look out the window. I had the feeling that everything and nothing was changing all at once. I’d always be me, but at the same time, I’d never be the same, and I was acutely aware of it. Nothing in my life had turned out as I expected so far. If I’d been able to see into the future a year ago, I wouldn’t have believed any of this would happen. Yet it all felt strangely right.
Jinky helped me walk down the spiral staircase. The other maids held the train of my gown. At the bottom, Nix and Lucas were waiting to escort me to the stage. I’d also asked Elias, Ayo, and Jinky to stand beside me as my chosen family. While I voiced some concern that Nix was being so visible, seeing as she was hiding from Jade Mountain, she dismissed my worries with a wave of her wraparound shades.
We all gathered in front of the door at the bottom of the steps, which led into the sanctuary. Inside, I heard musicians playing the ancient songs, and lots of excited chatter.
“Remember what we rehearsed. Once the procession music starts, you’ll count to five, then walk out,” Jinky said while she fussed over my dress. She seemed more nervous than I was.
“Don’t worry, I remember,” I assured her. I’d been so anxious for so long, and now that the moment was here, I felt a sense of peace wash over me.
So when a guard entered the room with a beautifully dressed woman, I wasn’t surprised.
“Mom!” I cried, and rushed to hug her. “You’re here.”
She was thin and pale, but she looked every inch a queen. “Elias fetched me last night,” she said. “I’m so glad I’m here to see this. Your father would have been so proud.”
I didn’t know I was crying until I felt her hand wipe the tears from my cheek.
“All right, it’s on. I’ll be standing by Elias,” my mother said. “Good luck, just try to stay calm,” she advised.
I released my mother, my heart full of love and hope. My father was dead, but I was his legacy. I would finish what he began.
The melancholy opening flute notes began. I counted to five as rehearsed, and then the doors opened up in front of me. I began to walk.
More instruments joined the first flute, until the only thing I was aware of was the intense music and each of my own steps as I neared the throne. None of the people around me registered; it was just me, the songs of my people, and the golden throne on the dais ahead of me.
The walk felt like both miles and feet; it was as if time had been suspended. All I could hear was my heart beating in my ears.
As soon as I reached the throne and turned to sit for the ceremony, I snapped back to reality again. I heard a baby crying softly somewhere in the crowd, the hushed murmurs of people commenting on the proceedings, the scrape of feet against the stone floor, and the echo of instruments as their notes faded and stopped.
Lucas, Nix, Ayo, Jinky, and the others lined up across the side of the stage. I looked over at Lucas. He looked back at me and smiled. My mother and Elias were on the other side, and I bowed my head to them as well.
Luzviminda stepped forward. She wore a simple, floor-length red dress, and her curly hair cascaded down her back. Her only adornment was a gold circlet engraved with symbols of the four courts: the mermaid’s tail of Sirena, the wings of Sigbin, the dragonfly of Lambana, and the steed of Tikbalang.
She looked back and forth across the crowd before addressing them. “Welcome to all the beings of Biringan, from every court, and every station. We are all here today, as one realm, to anoint our new queen. We do so in the tradition of many thousands of years of our land and people.” There was an outburst of applause, and then she said, “And thus, we begin.”
A haunting, low song played, and the ritual started.
Two guards stepped forward from the hall, holding a large, square wooden box between them. They walked up the aisle to the dais as the music echoed across the sanctuary. My heart began thumping in my ears again. This is where it can all go wrong.
They made their way up the steps one at a time. Step, step. Step, step. They stopped in front of me and switched their hands around on the handle in order to face the audience. The box was sealed on all sides. There were no locks, no hinges, no way to open it. Nothing sticking out of it. I didn’t even see how it was a box, instead of just a solid block of wood.
“This is the Puzzle of Truth,” Luzviminda announced. She made a point to examine it on all sides, like a magician, and had the guards turn in a full circle so everyone could see for themselves, too. Only, unlike a magic show, this wasn’t an illusion. I had to get the royal scepter out of that box, using only magic.
I swallowed, nervous. I’d discovered what my power was; the question was whether I could do it again.
Luzviminda spoke to the crowd once more. “The puzzle is an enchanted lock. There is no one way to solve the puzzle. But only the true heir to Biringan can do it.”
She looked to me now. That was my cue to approach the box.
Time seemed to stand still. I rose slowly and stepped forward deliberately. I wasn’t in a hurry—I was too busy concentrating. Praying, really. Please work. Please work.
I stood right next to the box. I wanted to reach for the amulet, but it was no longer there. I felt a pang at that.
I closed my eyes. The amulet might be gone, but my mother was in this room, and it wasn’t only her; I saw my father, too. Standing next to her. And beyond them, my grandparents Paolo and Erlinda, and more and more, all the encantos who had ruled Biringan. They were always with me, I knew then. My strength came from my blood, from the people who came before me. The powerful encantos with their magic, and my human ancestors, who were healers and made the world better with their kindness.
I reached my hands out toward the box, still with my eyes closed.
People in the room began to whisper.
I wasn’t sure if anything was happening, but I kept my eyes closed, and I felt the strength of my bloodline rise to meet the challenge.
A surge pulled through me, and I heard more whispers around the room, and for a split second, I disconnected from my body, then abruptly returned. My eyes snapped open, and in front of me, the box was dissolving.
It didn’t even open. It just... vanished. The crowd made some astonished noises. There, on a white silk cloth, was the Scepter of Aurora. Gold, with inlaid vines and florals, and on the end, an orb made of polished purple amethyst, veins and flecks of gold running through it.
I took it off the stand with both hands, feeling the weight of all those who had held it before me—all my ancestors. Most recently, my father. For the first time since I’d traveled over to this other world, I felt a true connection to him, not just my mom.
I looked up at the peaked ceiling and hoped he could hear my thanks.
“She has passed the Test of Viability,” Luzviminda announced.
The room erupted in cheers.
***
Most of the rest of the ceremony was a blur to me. I was so focused on getting my parts right and not dropping the scepter or tripping over my voluminous skirts. The priestess sang in the ancient diwata language I had yet to learn, but I somehow felt like I could understand the meaning. I thought about all those who had sat there before me, those who would after me, and how I’d already ensured I’d be remembered for many generations to come—quite a lot for a girl who until so recently felt invisible and forgotten.
After a lot of reciting, Luzviminda turned to me and asked me to stand. I did, and one of her attendants stepped forward holding the Talon Crown, the royal crown of Biringan. She took it and carried it to me. It was large and looked quite heavy. There were four enormous jewels circling it, each representing one of the courts: Sigbin blue, Tikbalang maroon, Lambana green, and Sirena yellow. In the center: purple. The other color of the Court of Sirena and the color of royalty.
“Princess Mahalina Jazreel of the Court of Sirena, only daughter of King Vivencio Basilio Rodriguez II, once this crown is placed upon your head, you are hereby proclaimed the rightful sovereign of Biringan, with all the rights and responsibilities thereof. Do you accept?”
“I do,” I said solemnly.
She lowered the crown onto my head. It was as heavy as I expected, but it fit perfectly. The room—and even the crowd outside—was completely silent.
“Then I now officially decree you Queen Mahalina Jazreel, the first of the Court of Sirena, the one true ruler of Biringan, protector of the Magical Realm.”
Raucous cheering and clapping exploded all around me.
***
After the ceremony, an endless line of aristocrats waited to congratulate me and genuflect to the new ruler. Including at least one of my former rivals.
Amador gave me her best half curtsy and polite, if somewhat reluctant, congratulations.
“Thank you, Amador,” I said, responding with my widest smile.
Hers faded some. “I know this is your day, Your Majesty, but I wanted to be sure to be the one to tell you so you don’t hear from anyone else first.”
“What’s that, Duchess?”
She acted like she was hesitant, or too shy to tell me. “Well, you’ll see. I don’t want to ruin it. Let’s put it this way: Keep your eye on your mail.” With that, she moved along, and the next well-wisher stepped up, and then another, and another, until I forgot about Amador and her pathetic attempt to ruin my day—with what? Her birthday party invite? She really was competitive about everything.
Once the line finally ended, I stepped outside to the roaring cheers of the crowd gathered in front of the Council of the Courts. I stopped to wave. They were all waving purple flags now, not just the children, many of whom were perched on their parents’ shoulders. I couldn’t believe they were there for me. An older woman at the front of the crowd reached out her hand. She held a huge white flower. “Your Majesty!” she called out.
I took a few steps toward her and accepted the flower. The woman looked surprised and happy; she bowed and then said, “You will be the best queen that Biringan has seen in centuries!”
“Thank you,” I told her. At that moment, I felt a hand at my elbow.
Lucas.
“Afraid I have to steal the queen away from you,” he told the woman.
She replied, “You treat her well, now!” as we climbed into the waiting carriage. He shut the door.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey, yourself,” I said back.
It was the first time we’d been alone together in days. “You’re too far away,” he said. “Why is that?”
“Come over, then,” I said, patting the seat next to me.
He came over and sat down.
“Thanks,” I said.
“What for?”
I thought about how he’d slain all the insurgents on his own. How he’d been the one pushing to investigate the truth. How he’d helped me to believe in myself. But I just smiled. I was so happy.
He leaned closer and pulled me so that my legs were draped over his, and soon I was sitting on his lap, and there was no time to talk because we were too busy kissing.
***
When we arrived back at the palace, Ayo and Jinky were already there, both dressed in brand-new white ensembles for the reception. “A lovely ceremony,” Ayo told me.
Jinky nodded emphatically. “It was perfect. Best ever.”
“Have you witnessed any other coronations?” Ayo teased. “You weren’t born when King Vivencio was crowned.”
“I don’t have to to know this is the best one. The most eventful, for sure.”
“They want you out on the balcony,” Nix said, as the crowd roared outside. “Come on.”
We went out to the balcony, all of us, including the Queen Mother. Nix was the most enthusiastic waver.
“I was pretty worried there for a minute,” I admitted to them all.
“I’m sure you were,” Elias said. “But we never doubted.”
***
Before the coronation reception, as I passed through the sitting room that would now be where I read official documents and received councilors, I told Jinky there was something I needed to do first. It couldn’t wait.
Now that I was officially queen, I wrote my first proclamation.
I, Mahalina Jazreel of the Court of Sirena, Queen of Biringan, hereby assert by royal decree: that henceforth, no human creature shall be retained in the realm, by means magical or otherwise, against their will, on fullest penalty of the law.
HRH Queen Mahalina Jazreel
I poured some wax from the candle and stamped my seal beneath my signature. While I waited for it to dry, I looked out the window, to the gardens, the rolling hills, the roads of my new home. Home. I was finally there. After eighteen years of running. This was where I would put down roots, continue one legacy, and begin a new one. I may have given up my human life, but I was ready to lead forever, as an encanto’s daughter.