“Good to know.”
“Hopefully all that strength means this place won’t come down on our heads,” Noelle muttered.
The procession finally reemerged into the sunlight of a walled garden on what Eira suspected was the other side of the arena to the north. The large tubes of glass and sand weredirectly above them, which meant the royals’ stands were just on the other side of the wall.
Carefully manicured hedges lined tall walls and wedged between rosebushes. There were shades suspended between the walls, adding relief from the steadily rising sun. A large group of people was situated at the far end. Waiting between them and the competitors were Lumeria, Vi, a woman who looked like Arwin’s sister, a draconi, and another human Eira didn’t recognize.
“Welcome, competitors,” Lumeria said, her voice no longer projected. “We appreciate you taking time out of your schedules to meet with us.”
“As if we had a choice,” Ducot mumbled from Eira’s right. She fought a grin.
Lumeria continued, oblivious. “The nobility has not had a chance to meet many yet from other lands and this will be a prime opportunity to share your culture and the strengths of your nation. We hope you will also enjoy yourselves, as this will be an opportunity for premium refreshments, such as sparkling wines from the Twilight Kingdom, accented by freshly squeezed juices of southern Meru, and saltwater candies from Qwint.”
The queen motioned toward the back half of the garden and then started in the opposite direction, knights at her side. Eira scanned for Deneya, but didn’t see her. Princess Vi left with the queen as well. Right before they entered the coliseum, it looked almost like Vi glanced back as she went to whisper something to Lumeria. But what might have been said remained unknown to Eira.
“Well, let’s get this over with.” Noelle rolled back her shoulders and turned her head from side to side, as if she were walking into battle. She donned a smile as strong as armor and strode forward with purpose. Eira had never seen her transitionso completely into her “noble lady” alter ego, but it was a startling change.
Noelle’s determination led the charge for the rest of the group, which splintered among the nobles, who all seemed eager to meet them. Eira broke away from the rest of them, starting for one of the staff who held a platter of flutes with sparkling wine bubbling up the sides, dyed a faintly orange-red color with a splash of the aforementioned juice.
“Thank you,” Eira murmured to the man, getting a good look at his face, but not too long to be suspicious. She began to survey the crowd, putting her back to one of the hedges. It didn’t feel as safe as a wall would, but it was the best she had. Doing so afforded her the ability to see her uncle coming from across the way.
She took a long sip of her drink, pleased by the fruity and almost peppery flavor.
“It’s good.” Fritz stood beside her, holding out his own flute.
She tapped hers against his. “It is.”
“A bit unlike what we have on Solaris. Definitely worth trying.”
“It is,” she repeated, not sure what else to say. Making small talk with her uncle was almost as awkward as her morning with Cullen. It’d been so long since they’d just spent time together without something life-changing happening, him being mad at her, or her being mad at him, that just him standing near, completely silent, had her squirming more than a Pillar would. At least she’d know what to expect from a Pillar. Her uncle? Complete unknown.
“Are you nervous about the next game?”
“I’m confident in my team.”
A warm smile crossed his lips. “I’m glad you’re getting along with them so well. I always worried you didn’t have enough friends.”
“It’s hard to make friends when everyone thinks you’re strange because of ‘the voices’ or are going to kill them.” Eira washed down the bitter taste of her years at the Tower with another sip. No matter what happened…she wasn’t going back there, she realized and simultaneously vowed.
Her uncle winced slightly. “Your ability to listen to echoes has now earned you praise and acclaim. As for the accident…it doesn’t need to follow you here.”
“But it has.” Eira looked past the people mingling around the flora. “It always will. It’s part of who I am.” Every choice she’d made, in good sense, bad, or error, would stick to her, like badges pinned directly to her flesh. Painful and inescapable.
“You have grown so much.”
“I have.” Eira met his eyes, as if with one look she could communicate all she had been through and all she had learned. “But that doesn’t make the incident less a part of me. If anything, it’smorea part of me. It’s because of those errors that I’ve tried to grow.” Even if she was still working on being successful in some ways.
“Your parents will be proud of you whenever they see you next.”
“Ifthey want to see me next,” Eira said curtly.
He hesitated, chewing over his discomfort and the words he wanted to say next. Eira braced herself. “Eira, your parents—”
“I don’t really want to talk about them.” She downed the remainder of her glass and set it on an empty table. “It was good to see you, but I should mingle with the rest of the nobility to not disappoint our royals.”
“Right, of course.” Fritz deflated a little and guilt swelled in Eira.
The girl who had grown up idolizing her powerful uncle rested her hand on his elbow. “I’ll see you again soon, I’m sure. We can talk more then.”
