“Oh,gods, would you please just shut up?” Delmare complained. In one fluid motion, she tossed her ale onto him. It splashed Stefan in the face and soaked his clothes.
He gasped and jumped backward. Delmare tossed the wooden tankard down at his feet before stomping off. The thinnest of smiles shone on her face.
Stefan was shocked for a moment. The ale dripped onto the cobblestone. He was completely soaked.
Then a delighted smile lit up his expression, and he used his hand to wipe the dripping ale from his eyes. “Aye. She’s a feisty one. I love the chase. She only gets more and more exciting.”
Stefan hurried after Delmare. I held in a laugh. Emma watched them go with a confused expression. Stefan caught up to Delmare. He tried to put his arm around her, but she pushed him into a nearby fountain. Water went everywhere. She laughed along with the rest of the crowd as he floundered to pull himself out of it. Despite being made a fool of, Stefan was grinning.
“I don’t get it,” Emma said. “Why doesn’t Stefan leave her alone? It’s obvious Delmare’s not interested.”
“I wouldn’t say that. He’d back off if she told him to go away. He understands no means no,” I pointed out. “But she hasn’t yet refused him, has she?”
Emma thought about it for a moment. “No. I suppose she hasn’t.”
“People romance in different ways,onawilke,” I told her, and we began our walk away from the square. “It is not up to us to decide what makes sense, especially in the realm of love.”
She rolled her eyes. “You talk so fancy.”
“I am a prince. I suppose it’s strange, for an American,” I said.
“Americans can be fancy!” Emma protested.
I snorted. “If you say so.”
She shook her head. “You Europeans think Americans are all southern accents, big guns, and cowboys.”
“Aren’t you?”
“You’d better stop while you’re ahead.” She scowled. “Sometimes I feel like I have a big sign on my forehead that screams I’m from the U.S.”
“Well, you show some pretty tell tale signs,” I said.
“And what are those?” she asked.
I glanced skyward. “Let’s see. You’re loud, outspoken, and insanely curious. You walk with a confidence and optimism only Americans have. But Malovians are opinionated and arrogant, anyhow, so that doesn’t matter much.” I shrugged, before I smiled. “People say they can tell when someone’s an American because they’re too nice and polite, or they smile too much, but no one ever mistook that with you, Emma.”
“Yep. I’m a real asshole,” she said, and I laughed.
We came to a stop near a river that ran through the middle of town. A large stone bridge led to an island in the middle of the river, where an enormous cathedral rose. It was made of stone, built with gothic architecture, four tall towers and elaborate statues adorning the outside. Each of the statues surrounding the walls depicted one of the seven gods and goddesses, and underneath them were sculptures of prominent Arcanean historical figures— mostly kings, queens, and warriors. A cobblestone court surrounded the cathedral, and people milled around it respectively.
“Whoa,” Emma said, peering up at it. “It has to be, like, two hundred feet tall.”
“And twice as long. It’s one of our most sacred ceremony sites,” I said. I took out a red headscarf and handed it to her. “Here. It’s considered disrespectful if you don’t cover your hair.”
Emma wrapped the red head scarf over her hair and flower headband, and we went inside.
As we entered, the sound of an organ and bells chimed throughout the hollow space. Emma turned in place, her mouth dropping open. The vaulted ceilings towered next to circular stained glass windows with millions of colors. They cast rainbows onto the floor as we passed different sections and vestibules, one for each god and several for different Arcanean saints. Candles and incense were in front of the section statues, so people could bring offerings or pray. This time of year during the festival, it was heavily crowded.
I dropped my voice to a whisper— we were supposed to be quiet inside. “This cathedral was built in honor of the goddess Milonna. People often come here to pray for healing, or ask to find love. It is not unusual for unbonded Marked to venture here to ask for Milonna’s help in finding a Companion.”
We walked up the long hallway between the pews. A statue of the goddess Milonna stood at the head of the altar. Many young sorceresses were on their knees before it, giving offerings of flowers, fruits and vegetables, praying for a mate.
Emma stared at the statue as if she was called to it. A multicolored light from one of the stained glass windows shone down on her, creating a halo effect as she observed the statue of the goddess with wonder.
One old woman struggled to get up the aisles. She was having trouble walking. Emma noticed and hurried to help her. She grabbed the woman’s arm and aided her up the aisle.
“You look like you could use a hand,” Emma said as she guided the woman into a nearby pew in front of the Milonna statue.
