Page 206 of Lady for Embers

Tonight, she just wanted to shut out the rest of the world and breathe in what they were.

He interlaced his fingers with hers as they made their way down the halls and stairs. There was a small lounge off the great hall that was reserved for the king and queen. A door on the opposite side would lead out to a balcony that overlooked the hall with a set of stairs leading down into the room. Even with the heavy wood doors closed, Scarlett could hear the commotion of the hall when they stepped into the lounge.

“I was starting to get worried, Seastar,” Cassius said, appearing at her side.

“In that dress? Fuck, we’re lucky they’re here at all,” Cyrus quipped. He bent down, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “You look gorgeous, Darling.”

“Thank you,” she said, feeling her face heat.

She looked around the room, seeing all of them gathered here in such ?nery. The Fae Princes. The Mortal Kings. The Avonleyans. The Fire Court, other than the recovering Eliza.

“Where are Cethin and Kailia?” she asked, trying not to ?dget.

“Already out there,” Cassius answered, passing her a glass of water.

“We have been waiting for you. He will start introducing everyone soon.”

“I do not understand why there needed to be this grand affair,”she said, sipping at the water. Cassius gave her a droll look. “Okay, ?ne. I understand, but I do not like it.”

Tybalt slipped through the door on the opposite side of the room. Scarlett just caught Cethin’s voice speaking about alliances across the sea when the door clicked shut again. Tybalt’s eyes landed on her, and he smiled warmly. “You look beautiful, Scarlett,” he said with a bow of his head. “He is addressing his people. The kings and Princess Tava ?rst,” he said, nodding at the mortals. It was still jarring to think of Tava as the Rydeon Princess. “Fire Court next, then the Princes. Then Cassius before you two. If you will.”

He motioned to the mortals to follow him out, and little by little, the room cleared until it was only Scarlett and Sorin. Their own little bubble in their own little world, and she wanted to stay here in this space forever.

“You are ?dgeting,” Sorin teased gently, reaching over and pushing a curl back that had fallen forward.

“I do not like this.”

“Do not like what, exactly?”

“All of this. The attention.” He arched a brow at her. “You know what I mean. Royal attention is different from chaos attention.”

“Chaos attention?”

She shoved his shoulder at the smile he was ?ghting to keep from forming. “Stop teasing me. I do not know how to do this, Sorin. I do not know what I am doing. They are going to expect things from me, place all their hope in me.”

“Calm down, Love.” He spun her, pulling her into him, hands settling on her hips.

“I can’t do this,” she rasped, her breaths starting to come faster and faster.

He took her hand, placing it over his heart. “Breathe in and out. Feel me and match my breaths. In and out, Scarlett.”

She nodded, focusing on her breathing. He brought his brow to hers, holding her hand in place against his chest. “You have faced loss and pain. You have battled the shadows and won. You have created stars when there were none. You are Death’s Maiden, Princess of Avonleya, Queen of the Western Courts, and a Lady of Darkness. You can face a hall full of people who will rejoice at your return surrounded by your family, both old and new. We do this together. Always together.”

The door opened behind them, Tybalt sticking his head through. “It’s time.”

Sorin nodded at him over her shoulder, and he brushed a quick kiss to her lips as he whispered, “All the way through the darkness.”

She nodded, looping her arm through his, and let him lead her through the door. The black marble ?oor was gleaming beneath her feet. Banners of black with silver moons and stars hung from the ceiling. Cethin and Kailia were off to the right of the balcony overlooking the hall, and her brother looked over as they approached, smiling broadly. He extended an arm in their direction as they reached the top of the stairs.

“Welcome home your princess,” he said, his voice ?lling the entire hall. “Scarlett Sutara Aditya, Queen of the Western Courts, and her twin ?ame, Prince of the Fire Court, Sorin Aditya.”

As one, the entirety of the room dropped to a knee. There had to be at least a thousand people in the vast space, if not more. Her family was at the bottom, off to the side, on a knee with the rest of the room. Sorin reached over, squeezing her ?ngers with his other hand, and she swallowed back her nerves as he nudged her forward.

The moment they stepped onto the ?rst stair, the entire room rose, excited murmurs breaking out as every eye in the room watched them.

“I swear to Arius,” she muttered under her breath, “if you let me fall down these stairs... ”

There had to be thirty of them.

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