Page 101 of Midwinter Wiles & Valerian Dreams
Gathering my courage, I meet the Head Huntsman’s gaze again. “I’m not here for any sort of reward. I’m here for her. Because she deserves better.”
I follow his eyes as they track from me, to Taynia, and down to Talvie wrapped in my blanket. Slowly, he nods. “That she does.” He tilts his head toward the queen, who’s searching the spilled basket for any more apples to feed Tahto. “Taynia seems different. Go on. I hope this works.”
Queen Taynia doesn’t look up as I approach, her attention fixed on smoothing Tahto’s forelock over the crown of his head.
“If I may, Your Majesty,” I say, bowing my head, “he likes the tart ones best.”
“I ran out of apples,” she sighs.
I offer her the crabapple I brought, which she takes and feeds to Tahto with a half-smile. “You like these, my steed?”
The mule crunches, then bobs his head twice before curling his upper lip toward the sky in the most ridiculous equine grin. Taynia laughs, an echo of the bright laughter from before.
After a long pause, she looks at me. “I haven’t laughed like that in three years.”
“So I heard.”
Her fingers stroke the shaggy cheek, and she whispers, “I didn’t think I could anymore. Not without breaking.”
I haven’t let go of my anger, but her words affect me. I’m seeing a glimpse of the woman Talvie remembers. There’s a chance this wild scheme actually worked, chaos and all. The pond may not be the only ice we’ve melted today.
“And yet,” I say, my voice gentle, “you didn’t shatter.”
“I didn’t.”
She doesn’t move from Tahto’s side, but her shoulders lift, standing a little taller.
I’m on the cusp of reaching her; I just don’t know how to take the next step. It’s like balancing on an icicle. One wrong move, and I’ll break this fragile bridge between us.
Talvie would know what to say. My heart clenches, missing her with every strained beat. If only I had the right fancy words, the right connections, the right upbringing to feel like more than the wretch I am before royalty. But I’m just me, with nothing but my wits and illusions to serve me.
Squeak. Oh! I forgot…I’m not alone.
Hugo paws at the inside of my pocket. Reaching past him, my hand closes over the cool stone. When I withdraw it, Hugo clings to the necklace before scrambling to my shoulder where he can observe. “Good thinking, buddy,” I mutter. Then I call, “Lumi?”
The stone glows. Moonlight pools around my hands, shimmering as the weight shifts. It swirls and shines, then gathers until a familiar round shape emerges. The little moon rises above our heads.
Queen Taynia gives a soft sound of awe. “Is that my Talvie’s moon? Lumi, is that you?”
“It is I,” the moon answers.
I bristle. “How can you call heryourTalvie after how you’ve treated her?”
Taynia blinks. Instead of responding, she keeps her attention on Lumi. “Why weren’t you with her, Lumi? You’re supposed to watch over her. And I—I froze you in the pond. How did you escape?”
Lumi rolls once, her light blooming from crescent to a three-quarter moon’s glow, fighting the rising sunlight. “Lumi and Valkie have made good friends here. Folk who care, who help, who love. No longer are Valkie and Lumi alone together in the face of your cruelty.”
The queen blanches. “My cruelty? But I—Oh.”
Tahto nuzzles her shoulder, searching for more apples. She lifts a hand to stroke his neck, resting her face against his fur, inhaling in sharp bursts. “What have I done…?”
There are so many things I want to say. All the stories I’ve heard, all the injustices I’ve seen… But I bite my tongue while she has her epiphany.
When she lifts her face, she’s the composed queen once again. “What did you do to me? Why does my chest ache? Why is everything so much clearer? And why am I hugging this mule?”
“Ah, about that. All we did was help thaw a bit of the ice around your heart. It’s a silly love potion, likely wearing off now that the sun is rising. You, uh…you were supposed to fall for Beron though, not the mule.”
“Beron?” She frowns. “Where is Beron?”
