She agreed with that with all her heart.
“Is Bayn all right?”
I don’t know,she thought. But what she said was: “I’m sure he is.”
They held each other in the dark cave for hours. A few times, Erian tried to crawl toward what she thought was the mouth of the cave, but the two spirits blocked the way. Eventually, the children slept, curled around each other.
At dawn, the spirits pried them apart, lifted them in the air, and flew on. After the initial burst of fear, Erian began to feel numb. And hungry. And thirsty. And she had to pee.
She cried when she couldn’t hold it any longer, as the pee dripped down her leg. But by sunset, she didn’t care anymore, and all she could think about was how thirsty she was. She barely looked at the mountains as she hung from the spirit’s talons.
The two spirits cawed to each other, and at last she raised her head.
And saw the castle.
It was beautiful: all white stone, carved into the side of the mountain, with turrets and towers and bridges and fantastic waterfalls. It sparkled in the setting sun. Erian blinked at it, unsure if she was imagining it.I could be seeing things. That could be what happens before you die of thirst.
But the two spirits flew toward a balcony and then in through a broad, open window. They deposited Erian and Llor onto a soft white carpet, thicker than grass. Erian lay there for a moment, trying to remind her arms and legs how to move.
She heard a woman’s voice. “Welcome to Semo.”
“You’re her,” Llor said. “The mean queen.”
Erian lifted her head and saw jewels, glittering brighter than the night sky. The queen of Semo was covered in strands of diamonds that draped down her huge skirts. More diamonds were woven into her black hair so that they glittered like stars in the night sky. She had a white streak in her hair, like Alet had had.They were sisters, Erian remembered. Beside the queen, an old woman was dripping with just as many sapphires and rubies. Her wrinkled cheeks had been rouged red to match the rubies, as if she were trying to transform into a jewel. It was a sight that didn’t make any sense to her tired brain.
But she knew Llor shouldn’t have called the queen “mean.”
The old woman wrinkled her nose. “You should have them bathed.”
“Immediately,” Queen Merecot agreed. She bent her lips into a smile—it didn’t look normal on her. It looked as if someone was squishing her cheeks so her lips turned upward. “And how would you like some food and drink? Cake, perhaps? All children love cake.”
Erian picked herself up off the floor. She straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin, aware how filthy and smelly she was but deciding not to care. She didn’t like how the queen said “children,” where she didn’t look that all old herself. Certainly not as old as Mama. “We’d like to go home, Your Majesty. Please send us there.”
Queen Merecot turned to the wrinkled woman. “She did say ‘please.’”
The old, wrinkled woman pressed her lips together and fixed Merecot with a disapproving look that reminded Erian of Mama. “Don’t taunt them.”
Chastened, Queen Merecot gave Erian and Llor another overbright smile. “Please don’t be afraid, children. I mean you no harm, and your stay here will be temporary. I will ensure you’re comfortable and happy during your visit.”
Nodding at Queen Merecot, the old woman clapped her hands as if this were all very exciting. “You’ll have your very own room and play areas. Games, clothes, food, desserts, everything you want, you may have!”
I want to go home, Erian thought, but didn’t bother saying it again.
“You’re not victims,” Queen Merecot said, as if she wanted to reassure them. “You’re pawns.”
Erian did not feel reassured.
“You’re a bad person,” Llor informed her. Sliding closer to him, Erian elbowed him in the stomach.Don’t make her mad, she wanted to say.
But Queen Merecot merely smiled—a real smile this time. “Yes, I am,” she agreed, without any trace of anger in her voice. “But I am a very good queen.”
The difficulty with thinking about Merecot as her enemy was that Daleina still thought of her as her friend.
Even after the invasion.
Even after the poisoning.
In a way, she understood those things, and so she still saw Merecot as the girl in the room next to hers at the academy, who helped her with her summoning lessons and who flooded her bedroom when Daleina accidentally set it on fire.I can’t hate her. Maybe I can’t forgive her, but I can’t hate her either.
