Page 22 of Princess Takes Academy
Princess Takes Academy - Part 1
1
Xochitl
Age Seventeen - Thirteen Years after Queen Takes Triune
Magic pulsed all around me, stirring my hair to flutter about my shoulders. But I couldn’t touch it no matter how hard I strained. Or begged. Or prayed to our goddess, Coatlicue, Mother of the Gods.
My magic had been stolen from me years ago.
Great-Grandmama Tocih stood on my left and Mama on my right, each holding my hand. The full moon hung low in the sky overhead, illuminating the entire clearing even though it was midnight. Ancient stone trembled beneath my feet, responding to the sheer weight of power the other queens cast into the night.
Every spring, Zaniyah queens stood on our ancestors’ once-grand pyramid and sacrificed our blood for our people. We bled to bring the rains and sun for the best crops, to welcome the new livestock that would be born, and to rejuvenate the land itself and all the Mother’s bounty.
I’d participated in this ritual for as long as I could remember—though all I’d been able to offer the past few years was my blood. I had no magic to coax the ground into springing forth with new life.
Once upon a time, I’d pranced as a unicorn on top of this pyramid, casting sparkles and rainbows over the stones with my joy. But all my joy had gone away with Keras. My best friend. My first Blood. I’d lost him, and nothing would ever be the same until I was reunited with him.
Determination steeled my spine and I gripped Mama’s hand firmer. She had to let me go soon. I’d be eighteen in a few months. By human law, I’d be an adult and free to do as I chose, but as an Aima queen…
I couldn’t disobey my queen mother. Not until I came into my own power and could take my place in the Aima courts. Even then, I’d still be subject to our Triskeles queen, Shara Isador. Mama had sworn to her when I was just a kid, and House Zaniyah was allied with House Isador in all things. Queen Shara had even named me an Isador heir. Before I could do anything or go anywhere, I had to get their approval.
Without Keras, I’d never come into my power. I was stuck in a Catch-22 with no way out. Worse, they knew it. Mama and Queen Shara both had forbidden me from finding him. They were holding me captive in my own home.
:You know that’s not true.:Mama’s bond ached with reproach.:We’re only trying to protect you.:
:I’m done being protected. It’s time for me to have my own life.:
She didn’t answer in our bond, which was always her answer. Silence.
I bit back a retort. It didn’t do me any good to scream and cry and beg, all of which I’d done as a girl trying to convince my parents to bring Keras home. It had beenmyfault that we’d gotten in trouble. Not his. I’d promised to never break the rules again. I’d sworn to stay out of the magical heart tree that Queen Shara had gifted to us. I wouldn’t sneak away again. Ever.
But nothing I tried to change their minds had worked. Keras was gone, taken from me, and without our bond…
I couldn’t even feel him anywhere in this world.
I missed his calm, steady presence in my head. He’d been a part of my life since I was five years old. We’d grown up together. To lose him…
My heart shredded all over again, a raw pain that had been with me for five years. I’d lost him. And it was my own stupid fault.
Grandmama leaned into me, her shoulders trembling. I released her hand and wrapped my arm around her waist to support her. Her strength had been failing more and more over the last few years. She should be relaxing, puttering away in her witch hut, rather than straining to fortify the land with her waning strength. This duty should be mine now. Not Mama’s, and certainly not hers.
Mama had already accomplished the impossible by having me. In the last few centuries, only a precious handful of queens had been born. The weakened Aima magic made it impossible for a queen to sire an heir.
Without a god at her side.
Citla, the Grandmama I’d never known, had loved Huitzilopochtli, Hummingbird on the Left, and gave birth to my mother. Then Mama had spent twenty years searching for the jaguar god, Tepeyollotl, so she could have me. I had the blood of two ancient Aztec gods flowing through my veins. I should be powerful enough to bring this pyramid back to its former glory and rain down peace and prosperity for our people.
Instead, all I could do was support my frail Grandmama while she did the work for me.
Mama sent one more pulse of magic swirling off into the night, a powerful surge that stirred my heavy hair off my neck and made goosebumps tingle down my spine. I could almost see the green and gold magic dancing into the night. Almost.
With a weary sigh, she relaxed, her shoulders drooping. “Thank you, Mother of the Gods, for the blessings You bestow on House Zaniyah.”
“Blessed be,” I whispered, blinking back tears.
Grandmama sank down to the stone, groaning softly as her knees creaked. She tugged on my hand. “Sit, child. Let’s enjoy the night music.”
