Alex pulled his harmonica from his pocket. “What are you doing?”
“I’m going to dance. It’smygift, remember? I can’t create magic like you can, but I can amplify it.” She gave him a wide, brilliant smile. “Between the two of us, we can have this whole marketplace feeling bright and cheery in no time!”
Her enthusiasm was infectious, and Alex grinned back at her and put his instrument to his lips. For the first time since the war ended, a sense of purpose andrightnesssettled over him. He began to play.
As he always did, Alex closed his eyes and focused on the music, on the push and pull, the rise and fall of the melody. The music swirled around him, capturing his mind and emotions in a swelling of hope and feeling of boldness. He played through every tune he knew, then followed where the music led him, improvising as he went.
The sounds of the marketplace around them grew louder with the laughter and good-natured competition between rival vendors, the hum of normal activity and conversation, and the excited yells and shrieks of children playing once more in the streets. But as Alex continued to play, he noticed that the sounds suddenly ceased. He opened his eyes, and the reason for the silence became clear.
A crowd had gathered around them, watching and listening with rapt attention, their business in the market for the moment forgotten. Alex could hardly blame them, as he caught sight of Celesta’s mesmerizing movements. He barely remembered to keep playing as he watched her. Her wings sparkled with a golden light that swirled around her, drawn in a wide, swooping path from the instrument in his hand. She leaped and twirled with grace, her body the perfect physical expression of the music. Her eyes were alight with joy, and she aimed her dazzling, sunny smile at every Fae she passed, spreading the golden light in her path and making eyes brighten and shoulders straighten in turn.
Alex wasn’t sure when or how the music had changed, but he found, as he watched her dance, that he suddenly was no longer playing just for the people of Fleurzon. He was playing forher, for his beautiful, brilliant, vibrant little ballerina who had a heart bigger than anyone he had ever met and a zest and excitement for life that he had never experienced before, and who had taken his wooden heart and slowly, steadily chipped away until splinters were all that was left of the walls he had built around it. That newly-liberated heart beat with warmth and affection, and the promise and possibility of somethingmore.
The notes drew to a close, and Celesta met his eyes during the magical moment of silence at the end of the music. Time seemed to slow down around them. Celesta’s face was flushed, and she breathed hard from exertion, but in her bright eyes Alex was sure that he saw a reflection of his own unspoken feelings.
The moment was broken by a thunderous applause as the audience expressed their approval and appreciation. Celesta gave a wide smile and curtsied, and Alex stood and gave a self-conscious wave. After a few minutes, the crowd began to disperse and the sounds of conversations and haggling began to pick up again.
Celesta ran lightly over to him and jumped up, wrapping her arms around his neck and catching him by surprise. He wrapped his good arm around her waist to hold her up, and she pressed an exuberant kiss to his cheek. “That was amazing, Alex! Do you see it?” She leaned back and gestured with one hand to the bustling marketplace around them. “They’re not afraid anymore. It’s beautiful.”
“It is,” he agreed, keeping his eyes on her face. Her hair had come loose during her dance and fell around her face, drawing his attention to her pink cheeks and lips. It felt so natural to have her arms around his neck, and she fit so perfectly against him. His cheek still burned from where she had kissed it. He wanted to freeze in the moment forever.
“Look!” Celesta pushed away from him and slid to the ground, leaving his arm feeling empty. She hopped over the back of the bench and knelt at the base of the oak tree, pushing aside the flowers that grew around the trunk to reveal another jagged piece of mirror. She picked it up almost reverently. “We found another one.”
The glittering reminder of reality was a cold knife through the warmth that had been spreading in his chest, and Alex swallowed thickly.Eyes on the goal, Monde. She’s a fairy; you’re a soldier who will soon be dead if you don’t keep your head on straight. He forced himself to smile. “Yes, we did.”
Somehow, the success left him feeling more sick to his stomach than a cup of Celesta’s overly sweetened tea.
Eleven
Therushofcoldair that hit Alex’s face nearly took his breath away, even though he had mentally prepared for it before stepping through the waypoint. The bright sunshine of Summer had changed to gray, overcast skies. Snowflakes drifted lazily through the air, white crystals that showed up stark against his red coat for a moment before melting. There was not enough to stick to the ground, though the wet, heavy feeling in the air suggested that the snow would pick up soon.
Celesta stepped through a moment after him, still humming the song for this particular part of Winter. She threw a short cloak over her shoulders and fastened it under her chin. Her legs were still bare, and Alex couldn’t help but think that her ballet slippers would do little to keep her toes warm.
“Shouldn’t we have gone back for a change of clothes?” he asked as they stepped forward along the path. A large lake stood to their left, with water frozen in varying shades of white, blue, and green, flat against the rocky shore. On the right was a scattering of bare trees and branches.
“Why? Are you cold?” Celesta asked saucily, holding up a hand and watching the snowflakes settle on her palm. She quirked an eyebrow at him. “I thought you soldier types were made of tougher stuff.”
“It’s not me I was worried about,” he drawled.
Celesta laughed. “You forget, my father was the king of Winter. It will take more than a little bit of snow and frosty air to chill me.” She gestured to the lake. “The fastest way to Iysen will be across the lake. We’ll travel along the shore for a bit to the narrowest point and then cross there.”
Alex nodded. “Is there a reason we came out all the way over here instead of closer to the city?”
“It will be easier to approach unnoticed this way. If my uncle was recently in Summer, they would have crossed the border near the southern gates. It’s likely his army is still camped out somewhere near there. This will give us a chance to enter from the opposite direction and look for the last piece of the mirror. When we do engage Stahlmaus, it will be better if we can catch him by surprise.”
Alex halted. “What do you mean, ‘engage’ him? I thought the plan was to use the mirror.”
Celesta stopped as well and turned to face him. Her cheeks and nose were turning pink in the cold air, and he could see her breath as she exhaled. She drew her brows together. “Well, yes. But do you really think he’s going to go willingly?”
A coldness that had nothing to do with the wind filled him. He had heard similar speeches before.
We’re just sending you to the border to supervise the Brisians’ retreat. Your presence should be enough to remind them that they are no longer in friendly territory.
If they won’t go willingly, we’ll have to force them out. Don’t be afraid to draw weapons against them.
It’s either you or them, men. Let them know that Cabriole is not to be trifled with.
“And who’s going to be doing theengaging?” he asked, a sick feeling churning in his stomach. Celesta had faced her uncle with an army before, but those Fae had been scattered after the midnight battle in the hospital, and they didn’t have the time to spare to gather together forces.
