Breeza snorted. “It’s certainly better than your choice. It is beyond me how you think blessing the princess with the ‘voice of a nightingale’ will aid her in thefuture.”
Melody sputtered. “It is a perfectly reasonable gift—one that has often been granted to royalbabes!”
“Indeed,” Melody’s friend, the shapeshifter, said. “It is much more customary, unlike your gift ofcourage!”
“Hear, hear,” Melody sniffed. “Courage is not a proper characteristic for a princess tohave!”
“Ladies,” Lord Enchanter Evariste said. He hadn’t pushed back the hood of his black cape, so even Angelique couldn’t see the expression in his eyes, but the gentle downturned slope of his lips and the disappointed air to his silken voice expressed his opinion easily enough. “We have been gathered to celebrate the arrival of a future monarch, and each of us are to give her whatever gift we feel will help her the most. It is not our business to question one another’sblessings.”
“Yes, Lord Enchanter,” the other magic usersmurmured.
Angelique, proud of her master’s wisdom, removed her eyes from the gurgling princess long enough to sneak a peek athim.
Today Enchanter Evariste wore a black cloak—edged with blue—fastened at the shoulder with an elaborate wing-shaped pin. Underneath that, he wore black linen pants, a leather jerkin that buckled at the sides—dyed black and edged in blue to match his cloak—and white boots and gloves. As usual, he had provided a matching outfit for Angelique, though her colors were white andplum.
He glanced down at her and caught her staring. Embarrassed, Angelique shifted her gaze to theground.
“Are you enjoying the christening, Angel?” Evaristeasked.
She nodded. “It’s very beautiful.” She felt dwarfed by the immense hall in which they stood—a room encased with marble, fabulous tapestries, a red velvet carpet, and a vaulted ceiling painted with a sunmotif.
Evariste nodded. “The royal family of Sole loves any excuse for acelebration.”
Sybilla took her place on Evariste’s other side. “It’s your turn, Lord Enchanter. If I had your power, I would see if I could do something about her personality, or she’ll be an absolutebore.”
Evariste smiled—flashing his white teeth. “I’ve thought of somethingalready.”
“Have at it, then. I’m anxious to end this ceremony and get going. There is work to be done, and this celebration will drag on if we don’t do something to end it.” Sybilla winked atAngelique.
Angelique hesitated, then smiled at the fairygodmother.
“Don’t you agree with me, Finnr?” Sybillaasked.
Finnr—whom Evariste had spent most of his morning with—grunted.
“I’ll be only a moment, Angel.” With another smile, Evariste swept off, his cape unfurling behind him like a pair ofwings.
Evariste placed a hand on the princess’s cradle and exchanged a few muted words with the proud parents. He removed his gloves and lowered his right hand into thecradle.
Princess Rosalinda wrapped her fat baby hands around his pointer finger andgiggled.
“She will be clever,” Evariste said. His blue magic flickered around him like ripples in a pond, brushing Princess Rosalinda’sskin.
Princess Alessia and Prince Consort Filippo bowed in thanks, but beyond them King Giuseppe raised a thickeyebrow.
“Well done, Evariste. That was craftily worded,” Sybilla praised when he rejoinedthem.
Angelique furrowed her eyebrows.Craftily worded?She didn’t doubt it given it was Evariste making the gift, but what did the fairy godmothermean?
“Traditionally, Angel, beauty or intelligence is the last gift given to a princess—it depends on the country and family into which she has been born,” Evaristeexplained.
“But Enchanter Evariste out-foxed some of the more dopey gifts our comrades granted the princess by giving not intelligence, but cleverness,” Sybillasaid.
“How?” Angeliqueasked.
“Intelligence is, at its bones, the ability to learn well,” Evariste said. “But cleverness is the ability to apply intelligence. Understanding alone is no help if one does not applyit.”
Angelique nodded. “I see. Cleverness will be a great boon to the princess in the future,then.”
