Page 3 of When the Moon Met the Sun

“Are you sure he was talking aboutme?Do you know why?” I questioned, my thoughts beginning to run rampant.

The only time I routinely saw Father was once a day, around midmorning. He and Hugo, our royal trokav, visited my chambers every day to bring me my daily elixir. The one I’d been taking for as long as I could recall. Ever since the accident when I was a small girl, I’d willingly taken it. Father said I was born with a slight defect, which was why the accident happened in the first place, and the elixir helped correct it. Considering he found it important enough to personally see to the task every day without fail, I never pushed formore answers aside from the bits and pieces I remembered myself. After all, one should be able to trust their own father.

Dimitri slowly rose from the ground, offering me his hand. “No, he wouldn’t tell me, but I can’t shake the feeling he’s planning something for tonight. Something big.” He sounded worried, the opposite of his usual bravado and confidence. The tone of his voice made my stomach drop.

“Please be careful tonight. Stay with Aurora if she’s permitted inside the room,” he said as I took his hand and rose to my feet.

“You know I will. But please, if you discover anything before then, find me,” I said, watching him as he picked up our discarded swords and placed them back on the racks that covered the stone wall behind us.

Just as Dimitri opened his mouth to speak, another voice called out, “Viva!”

A smile erupted across my face at the sound of her voice. I spun on my heels and caught sight of Aurora descending from the sky, her smokey-gray wings elegantly pumping at just the right pace for a perfect landing. A moment later, I found myself wrapped up in her, squeezing her tight and letting her cinnamon scent wash over me.

“I’ve missed you!” I said, pulling back after a moment. Dimitri and I met Aurora the night of The Thousand Stars Festival after some older kids had broken the frame of her lantern, so it couldn’t fly. We offered to have her light ours and help us send it off, and she’d happily accepted. Together, the three of us watched our lantern soar high above our heads and join the other nine hundred ninety-eight. Since that night, she’d been my best friend. And although I didn’t get to see her often growing up, in recent years she had begun studying under Hugo to be the next royal trokav, so she resides in the castle now. I was grateful that she lives so close now, as I used to go months withoutseeing her.

“I’ve missed you, too. When Dimitri mentioned the dinner tonight, I figured it would be a good excuse to tell Hugo in order to see you and help you get ready,” Aurora said with her usual small, mischievous smile playing on her full lips.

“Can Aurora and I go for a really quick fly before we go get ready? Please Dimi?” I asked, turning back to face my brother. He crossed his arms over his chest, looking ready to say no, before he saw the pleading look on my face. Emotion flashed across his features, then he sighed and shook his head, knowing I had won without saying another word. It seems I would always hold a soft spot in my brother’s heart.

I grinned, unfurled my wings, and launched myself into the sky in one quick motion.

My bone white hair whipped across my face as I soared upward in a spiral, then leveled out. I looked down to see Aurora hot on my heels. My smile broadened, and I pumped my wings even harder than before, prepared to out-fly her. Despite being stuck inside the castle the majority of the time, I’d always been able to beat her and Dimitri in a race in the sky.

I took off in a counterclockwise circle around the castle, feeling the chilly wind reach between every silver tipped feather of my white wings like an icy caress. I took the opportunity to look out across the kingdom I called home. Gatlyn Castle was nestled between the western portion of the Salic Mountains, providing natural protection on almost every side. To the south lay Hollis, the largest establishment of citizens in our territory. The city sat at the base of the mountains just below the castle, nestled nicely into the largest valley in the entire mountain range. We often called it the Tower City, as many of the buildings here practically touched the sky and had ledges that us winged fae could fly straight into, with bridges connecting them all. As I glided through the sky, I came to the edge of the mountain range where it suddenly dropped off into Cynth Bay.

I paused, holding myself suspended in the sky with a gentle pumping of my wings. I opened my arms wide and tilted my chin towards the clouds above my head, taking in every second of this moment that I could. I loved being a child of the sky, and the freedom that came with it. I would live up here with the clouds as my neighbors, if it were possible.

The sound of frantic wing beats snapped me out of my thoughts, and I turned around to find Aurora coming to a halt in front of me.

“How do you always manage to leave me behind in the clouds like that?” Aurora exclaimed, slightly out of breath.

“By actuallytrying,” I teased.

“When Dimi is here, I can usually use him as an excuse for being left behind like that. But alas, today I have no such excuse. I really need to step up my game. Maybe I’ll even beat you home this time,” Aurora replied, grinning.

Dimitri’s own white, silvery-gray tipped wings—the spitting image of my own—didn’t get as much use nowadays with all of the meetings Father has had him attending lately. Six months ago, Father appointed him to be a part of his War Council. Dimitri had been ecstatic, delighted at the opportunity to be of greater help to our people. Unfortunately, he wasn’t allowed to share much of what went on in the meetings, but he always assured me most of it was a bore, anyways.

“Speaking of home, we have to get going. Dinner with the Southern ambassador starts at dusk,” Aurora said, blowing out a breath.

I sighed. I knew she was right, but I hated it all the same.

Just as I opened my mouth to try to convince her of helping me sneak out of dinner, the snow began. Small snowflakes clung to my eyelashes, hair, and clothing. Aurora squealed and quickly flew to my side. “Zirilium please, Viva! We can’t look too horrid for dinner!”

A part of me wanted to relish in the moment and let the snow soak into my bones, but I knew my friend—my sister—was right. Father would be furious if I showed up to dinner soaked and frostbitten from the snow.

Aurora moved closer as I took a second to focus. I focused on the feeling of joy and freedom I had felt in the sky just moments before. Since I wasn’t allowed to openly practice my wielding, it doesn’t come as easily to me as other Northerners. Tapping into my emotions gave me something to focus on when my surroundings weren’t calm like my mind needed to be in order to wield.

Enveloped by that fleeting memory of peace, I waved a hand over our heads, letting a constantly moving air current escape me. The snow, not being able to get through the rapidly spinning disk of air, continued its descent to the ground around us, without another snowflake touching the two of us.

“Let’s get back to the castle. Then we can get you all fixed up and ready for what I’m sure will be a great dinner.” Aurora spoke loudly so I could hear her over the wind and snow, remaining positive as always. I nodded my head in response, and together we made our way back to the castle under the protection of my air zirilium.

***

The next half hour was a fury of dress picking and hair braiding. Aurora had selected for me a beautiful, lilac-colored, silk gown that grazed the floor with a white, lace accented corset, complete with a floral pattern at the end of the sleeves and on the small train that trailed behind me. She braided my hair into a waterfall type style and wove in small lilac flowers. For the final touch, I clipped my necklace on, resting the five small, pale stones at the end of the chain between my breasts underneath my dress,so they couldn’t be seen. Five moon stones, one for each Northern zirilium I was able to wield. I didn’t expect to need them tonight, but I always found it comforting to have them on.

I caught a glimpse at myself in the mirror and paused, even though Aurora had just told me to hurry out the door. I looked… pretty—for once. Usually, my royal stylist made me look much older than I am, but this outfit looked as though it had been made for me alone. Aurora knew exactly what I liked, and what I needed tonight. I’d likely never feel completely comfortable in all these priceless dresses Father deemed necessary for me to wear, but tonight was the closest I’d likely ever get.

I turned to my best friend and closed the distance between us, pulling her into a hug.

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