The little girl’s eyes watered, and she rubbed her face. “Everyone picks on me. I was wondering if you have… a friend?”
My gut felt like it’d been punched. “No friends at school, huh?”
“The other kids are scared of me.” Her little lip wobbled. “I’m always picked last for games. They never let me play.”
I could relate. The kids in my class had been scared of me, too. I’d been a weird kid obsessed with dark stuff who was the daughter of a powerful chieftain. Nobody wanted to play with me unless they were my siblings or cousins… until Monica.
I realized there was one thing left that I hadn’t given away. My fingers had subconsciously wandered over the string bracelet Monica had made me over a decade ago, the one I never took off.
And this bracelet was the last thing I had left of her.
I swallowed. Everything meant… everything.
My fingers fumbled to untie the bracelet around my wrist. I moved to take it off before I gave myself the chance to reconsider.
“Ava,” Mama whispered, telling me I didn’t have to give up this.
I shook my head quickly, and she said nothing more. I unwound the bracelet from my wrist, gritting my teeth as I pulled the string band. Cutting off my arm would be less painful, but I did it anyway.
Monica had died years ago. It was time to let her go and be at peace. She didn’t need me holding on to her so tightly anymore. We both needed to be free. This was my way of telling her, and myself, it was okay to move on.
“Here. This is a friendship bracelet.” I stuffed my tears down, speaking thickly through my tightened throat as I tied the bracelet around the little girl’s wrist. “When you show it to the other kids in your class, you can say the princess gave it to you, and that we’re the best of friends. Just remember that friendship isn’t something you force. It’s something you find when you least expect it.”
“You mean it?” The girl started bouncing up and down. I found a laugh somewhere through my choked voice as I struggled to tie the bracelet on. I thought of all my friends, my Institute family. I wouldn’t have chosen any of them from the start, but I marveled as I looked back at everything we’d made together.
“Of course.” I finished tying the bracelet. “Keep it safe. It’s the most magical bracelet in the world.”
“I’ll treasure it forever and ever,” she said sincerely. She hadn’t been taught not to touch Elvish monarchs, either, because she gave me a hug. I hugged her back, then smiled as I watched her skip off, yelling at the top of her lungs that the princess was her first-ever friend.
Mama put a hand on my shoulder. “That was the bravest thing you’ve ever done. I’m so proud of you.”
The lump in my throat dissolved as I whispered, “It was time.”
We returned to the palace. I didn’t feel sad any of my stuff was gone. If anything, I felt lighter, like a heavy burden had been lifted off my shoulders. I couldn’t do anything to retrieve any of my things, or buy anything new to replace them. According to ancestral tradition, Charlie had to restore it all.
Please let this man have good taste in fashion. He didn’t. I’d be wearing potato sacks for the rest of my life.
But think of how beautiful all the women of the realm would look in my gowns. We’d be the most gorgeous empire in existence. Even me in my potato sack. I could make anything look good.
A small basket sat on my lap as I headed back to Charlie’s quarters. The only things that were inside were things that were originally ours— my journal, anything we’d shared, and a songbook of ours that was still packed with all our old songs. I’d kept my daily wheelchair, and my all-terrain one I’d gotten at Christmas, because those were accommodation tools I needed for my disability, along with Hemlock’s anthropology book and my mother’s compass, but nothing else. The only clothes that I still had were the ones that were on my back.
Guess I was sleeping naked. Didn’t know if that would help much in the fixing my marriage department, but it couldn’t hurt… or backfire… I hoped.
I entered Charlie’s quarters alone, then took in a deep breath and looked around. Something about the moment almost felt right. Like starting over.
I could use a new beginning. I gave a resolute nod. “All right, Charlie. Your move.”
Charlie hadn’t returned that night. I think he’d slept over in the NICU to be with Casey. I figured that was fine. I didn’t want him rushing back here right away. I needed a little bit of adjustment time to be back here.
The hours had passed in our old bed, and I’d found myself more comfortable than I had been in months, falling asleep easily to Charlie’s scent that was written into the pillows. Everything— the old bed, the soft sheets— felt so comforting. It felt good to be back here, though I was still wary of this being the place I was meant to be.
In the morning, I checked on the progress of the Firebirds before I decided to do some training myself. I headed down to the arena, picking up my bow to fire off some shots. I’d kept that too because it wasn’t technically mine. It was my grandpa’s, and belonged to my dad. I was just using it for now.
The arrow hit the bullseye. It was the only perfect shot I’d managed to make all day, but at least I was making progress. I laid the bow on a nearby table, moving to wrench the arrows out of the target so I could try again.
Daddy had promised to teach me archery as often as he could, but I still wanted the extra practice. The door to the training room creaked open, and I heard Oberi bark as he ran across the area, wagging his tail as he came to me.
“Hey, boy.” I scratched his ears. “What are you doing here?”
