Page 34 of King of Storms and Feathers

“Doing what?”

She sighed. “Shall I tell him that you’re asking after him?”

“No. Please don’t do that.”

For the thousandth time, I wondered why the king wasn’t in a hurry to punish me for attacking the Sun Realm envoy. I opened my mouth to ask Ari’s opinion, then shut it, deciding to just be thankful instead.

Wiping my hands on a cloth, I took a moment to enjoy the blissful sensation of a full belly, fragments of my dream filtering through my mind as I watched an eagle soar above the distant mountains.

Three iridescent, gold-tipped black feathers fluttered on the edge of the pavilion, catching my attention. They were quite similar to the auron kanaras’ feathers, but much larger.

I tipped my chin toward them. “Did one of the bird’s escape this morning?”

“Not that I know of,” Ari replied, rising to collect the feathers and tuck them into the pouch slung across her body on a woven strap.

“What kind of bird left them behind?”

She squinted at the mountains and ignored me, then canted her head in that peculiar elven way she had, studying me. “You were dreaming again.”

“Yes, of my home.”

“Will you tell me about it?”

My heart pounded as I considered her request. To gain her help, first I needed her friendship. Sharing part of my dream would build trust, the foundation of all good relationships. And another benefit—perhaps Ari knew of my people.

I took a big breath and nodded. “In my dreams, I’m usually in a forest with a green-eyed boy. Today, I learned he was my brother. My parents were there, too. Ari, these are people I must return to, people who’ll be worried about me.”

“What made you believe they were your family?” she asked.

“The boy called me sister.”

She leaned closer. “If anyone spoke your name in this dream, I urge you to tell me. It will help me find out who you are.”

“The boy sometimes calls me Sapling—to tease me.”

“And his name?” she asked.

I shook my head. “I called him Ash,” I said, not sharing that it felt more like a nickname than his real one.

“I’ll make inquiries into Sapling and Ash from the Earth Realm. Is there anything else you can recall from your life before the Storm Court? Anything at all that might help me?”

“Only the forest—playing and training there.”

“You trained in weapons?” Ari asked.

“Yes, with swords.” Silently, I cursed my foolish mouth. I didn’t want the Sayeeda to think of me as dangerous, someone who needed to be watched every moment of the day.

I needed her to think I was weak, so she’d leave me unchained and unattended, hopefully in the river room.

“Did you only have one brother in these dreams?”

“Yes.” I didn’t tell her how much the face I saw reflected back at me in her shiny food trays resembled Ash’s and that I thought he might be my twin. I would keep that information to myself for now.

Without warning, her fingers seized my jaw, gripping it tightly as she brought my face close, inspecting my eyes. I softened my focus, kicking myself for forgetting to affect the daze of a serum-addicted servant yet again.

The auron kanaras screeched in their cages as the Sayeeda’s eyes bored into mine. She released me, then slid three thin strips of gold leaf from her pouch.

“Eat these,” she said, rolling the strips into a perfect mouthful.

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