Page 32 of Of Storm and Emerald
“Come in,” Piper shouted from the sitting room.
Auraelia could hear the door to her suite open. The sound was quickly followed by the grating sound of a chair being pushed back as someone stood in a haste, and a mumbled, “Your Majesty,”which meant that Piper had her mouth full when the queen walked into the suite. Chuckling to herself, she headed into the sitting area.
“Good morning, Mother.” Auraelia strolled across the space and placed a quick kiss on her mother’s cheek. “What brings you here this morning?”
“Can’t a mother come see her daughter?” Queen Adelina asked, hand held to her heart as if she had been fatally wounded by the question.
Auraelia rolled her eyes at her mother’s dramatics, “Of course you can, Mother. I was merely wondering if there was an actualreasonfor your visit this morning.”
“Yes, well. In that case, I have a gift for you. I was going to present it to you yesterday, but you seemed–” she took a moment, searching for the word she wanted to use, “distracted.” Her mother finally finished, giving her a look that said,“I may be older, but I’m not blind.”
Across the room Piper coughed as she choked back a laugh, effectively breaking the awkward silence between the queen and her daughter.
Queen Adelina turned and motioned to her lady who had been standing by the door to come forward. As she walked toward them, Auraelia noticed that she held a long, slender emerald-green box with gold leaf filigree along the edges in her hands.
She handed it to the queen, who reverently fingered the gold leaf.
“This is a tradition that has been a part of our family for generations. Presented to the Heir Apparent by the reigning monarch.” When she looked up from the box, her eyes were lined in silver. But it wasn’t sadness in her eyes, it was pride and love.
Handing the box to Auraelia, the queen grinned. “I hope you like it. I’ve been holding on to this since you were born.” A small, nervous chuckle filled the quiet room.
Auraelia lifted the lid, and inside–set on a cushion of velvet the color of fresh cream–was the most beautiful dagger she’d ever laid eyes on. The blade was long and slender, and made of a solid piece of emerald. The hilt was made of gold vines that twisted and wrapped around the base of the blade, flowing up to a singular round cut emerald that was set in the pommel and seemed to glow in the low light of the morning.
“It’s beautiful,” Auraelia said, more to herself than to anyone else in the room, as she traced the delicate veins running through the stone.
“Would you all excuse us a moment, please,” Queen Adelina said it as more of a statement rather than a question. “You too, Piper–'' she added when she noticed her hovering by the table of food. “I’m sure she will explain everything to you later, but this is a conversation that needs to happen between a queen and her heir, first.”
Auraelia furrowed her brow in confusion. “What’s going on, Mother?”
When the door to her suite was finally closed, leaving the two women alone at last, her mother summoned a wall of water to blockade the door. Auraelia’s eyes widened, and the queen chuckled as she shrugged her shoulders, “A bunch of gossips, the lot of them.”
When Auraelia’s expression didn’t change, she added, “It’s a sound block, to keep them from eavesdropping, little bug. Here, come sit.”
Her mother walked over to the dining set that Auraelia kept by the balcony doors and sat–eyeing the spread of food that was set out on the table.
Joining her, Auraelia sat and offered her mother a cup of coffee before pouring one for herself–she had a feeling she would need it for this conversation. Taking a large sip, she squared her shoulders and readied herself for whatever information was about to be bestowed upon her.
“My love, you look as if your world is about to come tumbling down onto your head,” the queen joked as she popped a berry into her mouth.
“Well, being as I have no idea what this conversation is about–never mind that whatever it is, is so private that you felt the need to throw up a wall of water in my room–so I am atadnervous about its outcome.”
“Auraelia, do you know why we are the Court ofEmerald?”
“Aside from a large portion of this estate being made of, and being built upon a large deposit of emeralds...I don’t think you’ve ever told me a specific reason, no.”
Queen Adelina took a deep breath, “What gift was bestowed upon you by the Goddess Rayne and our ancestors?”
The sudden switch of direction gave her whiplash. “What? What does that have to do with–”
“Just answer the question. Please. I promise I will answer every question, but this is where we must start.”
With an exasperated sigh, she answered her mother’s question. “It seems I have the ability to summon wind.”
Queen Adelina raised a questioning brow. “Is that all?”
Her mother’s question was a blow that she hadn’t expected, and her face fell. She quickly schooled her features, donning a mask of indifference, but she wasn’t fast enough to escape the eyes of her mother.
“Oh, my love, I’m not suggesting that it’s a minor ability. I merely think that there is more to your magic than you know. But only time will tell at this point. You’re sure about the ability to control and manipulate the air around you?”
