Page 53 of The Kingdom of Flames

Tristien introduced her to everyone. She had been nervous about seeing him again, but when she was on his arm, it felt like every fear and anxiety she ever had simply could not exist in his presence. He steered her around the room.

“My lady,” a beautiful older noblewoman greeted her with her husband. “We are so pleased to have you. We hope Lord Solis comes with a bride every year, but none seems to last!”

“Thank you…,” Celestine looked at Tristien.

“Lady Lapis,” Tristien said. “and Lord Donal, my highest Bannerman.”

“A pleasure, Lady Celestine.” Lord Donal bowed. He reached out to take her hand.

“No,” Tristien’s voice landed like a hammer.

Does he think I will take offense?

Lord Donal did not miss a beat. He brought his hand to his chest, bowing. An apology would have cheapened him, and when Tristien spoke not to touch Celestine, it was as if the law itself had been written the moment it was uttered.

She wished to give Donal a reprieve. Celestine saw now that his wife’s yellow ribbon around her neck, which was like jeweled silk, looped down her neck, and the end ended in her husband’s hand.

“Your necklace, Lady Lapis, your husband holds it?”

“It’s actually his, Lady Celestine. A gift to me when I pledged myself to him. We have been together ever since. It is a custom in our land. Have you not seen a ribbon ceremony at a wedding or a pledging?”

“Her realm differs in many ways.” Tristien drank from his fluted cup, eying Celestine with a smile.

“Are your people able to visit the Painted Realm?” Celestine asked.

Lord Donal shook his head. “The only way is through Calendar, my lady. We do not visit other banners even. Long ago, the Lords of Season brought us here, or perhaps there. They will not tell us. We are not keen to know. Even if we could, we would never stray from Lord Solis’s realm. It is simply too lustrous.”

“I would agree,” Celestine spoke and looked at Tristien. It would be hard to leave such a man or his world here.

More servants and attendants came. Lady Dawncrest and she chatted, comparing customs and tales of the land of the Yellow Banner. She was fascinated to learn of her time with Encarmine and his people.

“I can’t imagine the hands of that brute. I have always wondered if he and Lord Solis are brothers, and my husband has traveled to the Red Banner once on a trade delegation. He said the people that walked there were killers.”

“Soldiers.” Celestine thought of Dritha and her friends in the barracks. Even among this propriety, I miss them. I would love to see the shocked look on these dandy faces.

Massive men carried heavy tables into the middle of the ballroom, clearing the space. These servants looked vastly different as if used for pure labor, like horses. Their necks did not hold yellow necklaces but rather scarves.

“Are those captives?” Celestine asked.

“Bonded men, you do not have these in your realm?”

“We do not.” Celestine watched the large men leave, heads down. “Are they criminals?”

“Shh, the toast comes.” Lady Lida nodded. Celestine turned and saw Solis raise his hands. Among the dozens and dozens of lords and ladies in the room, the faces of the attendants cast down and the servants hurrying to plate the food among the table and bring in chairs. His control and assertion were absolute.

“It has been many times to Calendar, my dear friends. Where the Seasons indulge themselves in wanton gluttony and lust. The brides of the Painted Realm are contenders for the hearts of beasts like me.”

Polite laughter littered the floor.

Tristien looked over at Celestine. “This evening is for Lady Celestine. To welcome her to our realm. To begin our courtship. For I seek to win her favor. I may not have the stink of horseflesh or the scars of a warrior to woo her.” More laughter came.

Tristien’s eyes locked onto hers. “But it is the majesty of devotion. Of love. Of service, labor, and the trappings of devotion that will surrender her heart to me. So let us give toast before this merriment to brave Celestine, the Final Bride of Calendar. May Summer reign!”

“May Summer reign!” the room echoed.

The feast began, and Celestine was seated at the head of the table next to Tristien. He ate sparingly and placed many dishes in front of her, bidding her to taste them.

The wine flowed with carbonation and sparkles, a yellow grape pressed into a tight brightness that glittered in the glass. Discussion, talk, and jokes rang across the table among the lords and their wives.

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