Anwen
I look up the flight of stairs into the ballroom, my pulse hammering in my mating mark.
"Alpha King Isai and Luna Queen Suniva Sollabella," the page declares.
The king and queen appear in the doorway, smiling and waving, both of them dressed like they think any color they don't wear will disappear from the sky forever.
I squeeze my hands behind my back. They look good. I'm just-
"Princess Estrella Sollabella, and her companion, Tesandra!"
And there she is, like nothing I've ever seen before. Her gray eyes sparkle as she takes in the ballroom. The soft flush on her cheeks calls up fuzzy memories of the Haze. Her hair drapes over one shoulder, loose and curling like a new plant, like she wakes up in the morning looking like this. But the dress is what threatens to knock the breath out of my chest.
Around here, we mostly wear single shades, sometimes with a little embroidery. Estrella is a swirl of color and hue. Golds bring out the warmth in her skin, purples turn her eyes luminous, greens harmonize with the other two and make her look like a work of art. The swaths of wrapped fabric highlight the plush curve of her hips, the soft swell of her breasts.
She curtsies then takes the arm of the woman next to her and hurries down the stairs.
'Pick your jaw up off the floor,' Kieran says wryly. 'Sleeping with her is only going to make a mess.'
He has no idea how right he is.
Castor arrives, I assume, and I think I hear the page say something about Nessa, but I couldn't give less of a shit. Even with Kieran's warning ringing in my ears, I keep glancing at Estrella, talking to her parents across the ballroom. Then, it's time for the ceremony.
Kieran and I stand on the musicians' dais. Aylin, the holy woman, joins us, and so do King Isai and Estrella.
"The Moon Goddess rules many chambers of a shifter's heart," Aylin declares. "She gives us many gifts, but she also offers us the chance to stumble. A shifter's rage is often their greatest enemy, occasionally their greatest strength."
I glance at Estrella out of the corner of my eye. Up close, fuck, it's like she's glowing. My mouth waters.
"For too long, Dun's Crossing and Sundrop Gem have let their rage come between them." Aylin raises her arms. "Tonight, we celebrate the quiet of a new moon, the quiet of peace and friendship to come."
Kieran bows to King Isai, then holds out a bottle of whiskey. "In honor of the new moon, I offer you drink from our cellars, that you might never go thirsty."
Estrella looks at me, just for a second. As soon as she catches my gaze, her eyes go wide, and she turns back to her father. My mark pulses with want.
King Isai takes the wine, bows, and offers something folded in a brightly colored scarf. "In honor of the new moon, I offer you aswore, a bread my lady wife made in your kitchen, that you might never go hungry."
Kieran takes the bread.
"Now, partake of the others' gift, in view of those assembled, to show this is no mere promise but an oath to be honored," Aylin says.
King Isai uncorks the whiskey, and Kieran unwraps the aswore. Apparently, Queen Suniva made it recently enough that it's still warm. Its smell fills the air, and it has that same floral note as Estrella herself. Kieran rips off a piece and eats it, then offers one to me. It takes all my willpower not to devour the whole thing. The soft sweetness on my tongue reminds me so much of Estrella that I can't help but look at her.
With the bottle tipped to her lips, she meets my gaze and holds it. My pulse hammers in my ears. I have to have her. Once this ceremony is over, neither of us have any obligations. It would be easy to sneak off for a few minutes.
She finishes her pull and looks away from me. Aylin declares our houses forever reunited, says something about letting anger never separate us again, then proceeds off the center of the dais. I take a step forward, hoping we'll all follow her.
'Back the way we came,' Killian says.' Apparently, it's bad luck to follow in the exact footsteps of a holy woman in Sundrop.'
Fuck luck. Every fiber of my body screams for Estrella. I need to get to her before that moment between us fades.
But she's already walking after her father with her back to me, and there are a metric fuckton of dignitaries looking at me. I scowl at the floor and trudge after Kieran.
"I thought that went well," Raven says as we return to the floor.
I nod absently, scanning the thickening crowd for Estrella already.
"It's time for the first dance." Kieran puts his hand out to Raven. "My love?"
She takes it with a smile, and they leave.
Candace nudges me. "Do you think we're supposed to dance too?"
"With you?" I scoff. "If Kieran wants me to dance, he'd better let me pick my own partner."
Candace sighs. "Always wonderful talking to you, brother."
I wave her off and begin cutting through the crowd. All the nobility worth knowing in Dun's Crossing are here, but there are more than enough strangers. It turns out if nearly a dozen packs send a couple of representatives, the place tends to get crowded.
"Prince Anwen!" Sybil, an Escurian woman I spent a brief night with, waves.
I'm about to brush her off when her mother, Luna Delaney's lady-in-waiting, steps up next to her. Even with Raven in the family, I can't forget the lessons Mother drilled into my head about who is acceptable to offend.
"Sybil." I bow deeply. "You honor us with your presence."
She curtsies, then puts her hand out for me to kiss. I oblige. Her mother smiles.
"I was just telling Mother how I wished we were here for the Haze." She flutters her eyelashes. "I heard you were not mated."
"Unfortunately not." My bite sears. "Perhaps next time."
Sybil doesn't take her hand back, and both women look at me expectantly. Hot frustration pours through my veins. I'm supposed to ask her to dance, with the taste of Estrella on my tongue.
"Will you come to the dance floor with me?" I grit out.
Sybil grins.
At the very least, Sybil is a half-competent dancer. The same is not true of Maia from Lilywind, to the east, or Ivy from Tansy Beach. All of them laugh in a register that grates on my ears and irritates me further. After them is the parade of Daniela, Gia, and Hope, all Dun's Crossing nobles or nobles-to-be that took our nights together far more seriously than I intended. I've been attending these balls for long enough that my feet usually don't hurt until the end of the night even if I spend the whole evening on the dance floor, but I think they must know how little I want to be here because they ache only an hour in. I make my apologies and head for the edge of the room where I'll hopefully be able to spot Estrella.
'You look like someone asked you to walk over hot coals,' Baz says from somewhere else in the room. 'Loosen up, or the whole kingdom will know you're mated before we get to dinner.'
I grimace. He's right. Asshole. I grab a glass of something alcoholic from a servant passing by with a tray and down it. The slight fuzz around my thoughts dampens Estrella's smell, reminds of me what really matters. This is a diplomatic event. And until the night ends, the most diplomatic thing to do, as always, is to make as many of the women in the room as possible think they have a chance with me. The more they believe it, the more they'll spill their secrets. I roll out my shoulders and throw myself into the party.
Paloma is a low-ranking noble from Whaleberry Harbor, and her father doesn't believe Dun's Crossing can change, but she's convinced after one dance with me. Nathalia of Redwood Nimbus is only here for the party, but her mother may have some sway with their Alpha, and she laughs at my jokes. Oakspring Dunes produces the lovely Lana, who believes in us even before our dance and is happy to inform me of their aging Luna. Apparently, she and the Alpha were never mated, so he may be looking for a new wife soon.
In the chaos, I pick up a scent. That wolf from the back woods the other day is here. The skin on the back of my neck prickles, but I force myself to relax before Noemi can notice in my arms. One of the packs probably just took a strange route to the castle. Very quickly. The music trills, calling for a spin, and I lose the scent in the crowd before I can even ask Lana to find out a little more.
The party wears on, and I allow myself another brief break from dancing. I'm leaning against the wall, nursing another drink and watching the crowd for any pack I haven't spoken to yet when I see her. Estrella. She's dancing with that woman she walked in beside, laughing as they both struggle with no one leading. My heart hammers.
Fuck it. I'm dancing with representatives of every pack. It would be strange if I avoided Sundrop Gem. I wait until she and the woman leave the dance floor, finish my drink, and stride over.