So Hellebore had no qualms shooting out of her seat and hissing, “And you waited untilnowto tell me?”
Taiyo’s hand cut through the air as he gestured, voice sharpening, a slight laugh in his tone. “Who did you think I was? Who else would I be?”
“I don't know! I thought you were arresting me for stealing the iris. But now—” She switched back to Chymesian as her mindwas spinning faster than her Iubian Elvish could keep up. “Now I'm utterly lost. Whose room is this?” She grabbed the skirts of the dress she wore as she advanced on him. “Whose clothes are these? Why am I here? What do you want with me?”
King Taiyo took a long, deep breath, closed his eyes, and she couldn't quite tell whether his pained expression was anger at her, frustration, or something else.
He also switched to Chymesian when he opened his eyes. His voice came out from his gritted teeth. “You're not playing dumb. You don't know.”
If Hellebore hadn’t already almost killed him, she would have been severely tempted to strangle him right then. Her voice came out much harsher than his. “Whatam I supposed to know? Am I not being held as a hostage against my father?”
King Taiyo let out a laugh, but it was bitter and hollow. “This room is your room. Those clothes are yours. The preparations going on outside? They're for our wedding.”
He meant war. Surely, he meant they were preparing forwar.
“Our wedding?” Hellebore stepped forward, narrowing her eyes, but not even her years trying to divest herself of worthless emotions like hysteria could stop her voice from pitching up as her breathing shallowed. She kept moving, unable to stop now. “You can't—you must be using the wrong word. Wedding—thatword means a ceremony in which we would become husband and wife.”
He took another step closer, arm extended and palm facing her, but she was pacing too quickly for it to matter. His voice steadied, chasing her around the room. “I know what I said. We are betrothed. Your father approved of the match and claimed he sent word to you and you accepted.”
She pressed her palm against her stomach, but it did nothing to help her catch her breath. It was her turn to laugh,dangerously high and shallow. “And if that was true, what did you think I was doing digging up one of your irises? If you thought I'd agreed, why have you been treating me like a prisoner?”
“Let me explain.” Taiyo took a few steps, trying to follow her, but she just whipped around each time, putting more distance between them, her skirts whirling. “When I arrived at the academy and discovered you weren’t there, I thought it was simply a matter of cold feet, as you humans put it. I went after you in order to speak some reason into you and give you assurances about our match. Then, I caught you stealing an iris and you attacked me. Twice. It didn’t occur to me you didn’t know of our engagement when I’d been assured you did. I thought you'd feigned agreement, gone after the iris to lure me away, and were trying to kill me.”
Hellebore couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This couldn’t be possible. He was lying. He had to be. This was some elaborate scheme to cover up his treatment of her and his story didn’t even make sense.
She turned on her heel, coming to a stop, and he stumbled back to avoid crashing into her as she jabbed a finger at his chest, staring up at him. She said, “If I knew you were my supposed betrothed and the king of the Sun Elves, would I really try to kill you and send us to war?”
“Yes.” He crossed his arms. He wasn’t that tall for an elf, and thankfully she was on the taller side for a woman, but he managed to make every inch he had on her count as he glared at her. “First off, you're human. Second, you're an alchemist. Third, you’re a princess of Chymes. I absolutely believe you would try to kill me.”
“First off, if Iwastrying to kill you, why would I have sacrificed my escape to save you?” Her hand slapped her thigh asit dropped. “I gave you a sedative. Your reaction wasn't supposed to be that bad.”
“Maybe you're not as great an alchemist as your reputation states, then.”
Hellebore couldn’t stop her lips from parting in a sharp gasp as he cut her to the core. She took a step back, tilting her head to keep her eyes locked on his. Immediately, his eyes widened and he took another step toward her, shaking his head, hands out. “Princess, look, this was all a misunderstanding. Clearly, a letter was lost or—or—something. Something went wrong somewhere, and we both made assumptions, and there’s nothing to be done about it now. I can tell you what happened and what was supposed to happen. I asked your father for your hand in marriage. He agreed and led me to believe you had or would. I went to the academy to collect you and bring you here for our wedding where you would have been treated as my betrothed who was coming willingly, not a captive.”
Hellebore grabbed the back of the sofa, taking a few shaky steps until she could drop onto it, her silk skirts tangling in her legs as she clutched the arm.
Her father had promised her hand to the Sun Elf king without a word to her and expected her to go along with it.
Of course he hadn’t told her. She would have been out the window the second such a letter arrived with Palladia’s blessing and promise to protect her location. But that didn’t account for—
“Callahan—” She hated the way her brother's name cracked in her throat and came out as a breathy rasp. She hated the way King Taiyo stepped closer, eyes softening at the weakness. So she cleared her throat and hardened her voice. “My brother, Prince Callahan, he was present for this... agreement?”
King Taiyo came to a stop beside the chair closest to her. His voice was softer as he said, “He was. He was present for it all. He accepted my terms, including our marriage.”
This wasn't supposed to happen. She wasn't supposed to be some pawn to be married off to secure alliances. She was the second born. She was meant to be Callahan’s right hand. The King's Alchemist.
Her father had cared little for the tradition and more for politics, always wishing he’d had more daughters with hands he could trade away. She’d known that, but Callahan—
If he had agreed... it meant he didn't want her to be his alchemist. He didn’t believe she was worthy of the title.
Could everyone else see through her supposed greatness but her and her aunt? Did everyone know Hellebore was an average alchemist at best?
How long had her brother been lying to her face and hiding the fact that he was looking for the first opportunity to have someone take her off his hands?
“I see.” Hellebore took a deep breath. “And... the King’s Alchemist, I know she wasn't there, but was she consulted?”
King Taiyo immediately scowled at the mention of Palladia, but his tone was restrained as he said, “I can't say with any certainty, given your father lied to my face about having spoken to you on the matter, but my terms included the King’s Alchemist having no part of our discussion. Your father at least appeared eager to leave her out. When I arrived at the academy for you, I didn't stick around long enough to have any discourse with her, not that I would have even if you hadn't run off.”
