Chapter Twenty-Eight

Tanitha sat with her shoulders back, looking at herself in the polished bronze mirror before her as the servant women fussed with her hair. They were doing the finishing touches now, stringing pearls that gleamed shades of blue and lilac alongside her braids in intricate loops. Her dress was a finer silk even than what she'd worn in the days spent in Darius' Hold.

It had been three days since the final Trial. Three days since she and Darius had won the right to be together. Three days since Naratha, though still visibly distrustful of Tanitha's intentions, had agreed to allow Tanitha and Darius to be wed. Tanitha had thought in the moment how strange it was that she didn't feel any remaining fear of the demon queen or of what she might do in the future. Not with Darius beside her. Naratha had lost this battle, and she knew that if there was to be any hope of salvaging the shattered trust between herself and her son, it was time for her to stand down.

"Are you all right?" Lithra asked softly. Tanitha tore her gaze away from the mirror, still a little perplexed at how different her appearance seemed from how she'd always thought of herself. Gone was the plain, quiet girl that she'd seen in the still surface of the Sanctuary's reflection pool so many times; there was a confidence in the way she was holding herself that she had never seen there before.

"I'm all right," she said. "It's just… all so different."

"Some things are," Lithra agreed. "But you… there's a rightness to this. You belong here, I think. You never should have been in a life as small as what you were born to. You were always going to grow past the Sanctuary. I think I always knew that. I used to think sometimes that I was holding you back." Tanitha sent her a startled look, and she raised a hand. "And now you're pulling me forward," she said, though there was a hint of quiet apprehension in her gaze.

"You're not nervous about the prospect of staying here, are you?" Tanitha asked, suddenly anxious. There had been little opportunity to speak with Lithra in the tangled confusion of the days that had followed the final Trial. "If you'd rather I find something else for you…"

Lithra laughed. "No, I'm not upset at the prospect of damask sheets and sugared dates on the sides of my meals, but thank you for the concern. It's… well, there's been talk about what to do with me. Apparently I need some kind of rank. One of them mentioned maybe marrying me off to a senator." She made a face.

Tanitha snorted. "You don't need a marriage to be granted rank. If they did it for me, they can do it for you. I'll put a stop to that talk," she promised, then tilted her head. "Though maybe if I could find a pretty arbiter for you, from one of the higher courts…"

Lithra shoved her lightly, though there had been a flash of consideration in her eyes for a split second. "No demons for me. You might not be terrified of them, but you're made of sterner stuff than I am."

"Fine," Tanitha said, suppressing a smile; Lithra, for all her protestations, was hardly delicate. "In the meantime… I was wondering." She glanced down at her hands, then continued, "It's not unheard of for noblewomen to have fields of study. If you wanted something to keep you busy, there's an academy that would train you as a physician."

Lithra's eyes widened. "A… a physician?" she asked. "You could get me placement doing that?"

"I think I could manage it," Tanitha said dryly.

There was a moment of quiet. "I… I think I'd like that," Lithra said at last, her eyes shining.

A knock sounded on the door, and Tanitha started to turn as one of the serving girls immediately leapt up to answer it. The door opened to reveal a young palace runner, a girl maybe twelve years old.

"Lady Tanitha," she said, with a quick bow. "He's waiting for you."

Tanitha's heart fluttered at that. She stood, then hesitated, glancing back at Lithra.

"I'm all right," Lithra said, making a shooing motion. "They told me they've arranged an escort for me as well. I'll see you after your grand entrance."

Tanitha smiled. For all Lithra's talk about how Tanitha would never have been happy staying in the Sanctuary, she seemed remarkably at ease here herself. Perhaps Tanitha wasn't the only one who had been always destined to outgrow their previous life.

After a final check over from the maidservants, Tanitha stood, the pale blue dress shimmering with the movement, its silk flowing over her like water. She followed the messenger girl through winding corridors until they came to the top of a sweeping staircase. Tanitha approached its top stair, and a smile came over her face immediately; Darius was waiting on the next landing.

He was in his usual form, dressed formally in a red and black tunic and trousers that were cut in the style of a warrior, though embroidered with gold in an abstract pattern at the cuffs.

Tanitha placed a hand on the banister, its stone a cool contrast against how warm her fingertips felt at the sight of him.

"Darius," she said softly.

He turned immediately to look at her. When he did, his lips parted slightly as if he meant to speak, but no sound emerged. "Tanitha," he said after a moment, a quiet sort of awe in his amber gaze. She smiled, her heart warming at the sound of her name in his voice, and she began the descent. "You… you look beautiful," he said as she reached him.

"You have an army of servants to thank for that," she said, her voice going slightly wry, but he shook his head.

"I don't think so. Beauty can be leant by fine clothes and jewels," he said. "But you… you have more than that. You've a radiance that comes from strength and courage. It's a rare thing. Like you." He trailed one hand over her cheek, the warmth of it setting her blood to singing.

He took her hand in his, pulling her gently to walk at his side.

"Are you nervous?" he asked her.

"A little," she admitted. "I've never done something like this before."

He chuckled. "Over the past few weeks, you have defeated challenges that the queen of demons set for you. I don't think you'll find a party overly taxing. And if you do find yourself needing to call on the powers of the elements themselves…" His hand gave hers an affectionate, reassuring squeeze, and suddenly she found herself thinking back to the weeks at his Hold, back to the time when they'd had only words and touch between them. Strangely, the thought bolstered her. "I'll be right here with you," he said.

They reached the grand entry hall. Servants opened the doors for them.

The main hall was built entirely of alabaster, its walls shining white in the blaze of magelight that coiled and darted across the ceiling like ribbons in the wind on a festival day, its radiance toned toward the pleasant gold of sunlight. There were both humans and demons present, intermingling to a degree that Tanitha had rarely seen in her life. On one side of the hall, musicians played lively music, and the people nearest were dancing in pairs, their movements elegant and yet joyful. Tables laden with elaborate dishes were surrounded by other people, all of them engaged in spirited discussion.

The crier announced them, and a hush came over the crowd. Those dancing continued, but a stillness had come over the rest, both human and demons, as they looked up the staircase at the demon prince and his bride. Tanitha expected to feel nervous, perhaps even frightened, at the weight of all the eyes, at their assessments and curiosity, but in that moment, with Darius' hand on hers, she felt none of that. Whatever else might be true, she had him at her side. And that would always be enough.

They began their descent. Conversation began to pick up again, and as they reached the floor of the great hall, people began to approach in twos and threes, offering their congratulations and their good wishes. Some of them, demons mostly, were looking at Tanitha with veiled hostility— she'd expected that— but to her surprise, the vast majority seemed respectful. For the first time, it occurred to Tanitha that perhaps Naratha had done her a favor with the Trials; she was certain the balance would have been tilted far further toward hostility if there hadn't already been obvious displays of what she was capable of.

She soon lost track of the various names and titles of humans and demons that they spoke with, but Darius was a reassuring presence beside her the entire time, and whatever reaction she sensed from the demons toward herself, their attitudes toward him was uniformly respectful. Much as Tanitha had hated conforming to the story that had been crafted, much as she'd hated playing the role that Naratha had set for her… if it had protected Darius and preserved the respect his people had for him against the mistake that Tanitha had made, then it was worth it.

In the midst of a conversation with a pair of senators, one human and one demon, her gaze caught on a solitary figure behind them, standing alone on one of the balconies overlooking the city. Alethia.

After the initial jolt of surprise at Alethia's presence had faded, Tanitha watched the demon woman for several moments. She supposed it was natural that Alethia was here; the story that she had been party to willingly shielding Darius from scrutiny while he determined how to move forward with his unconventional relationship still stood, so her absence at the celebration of that relationship, perhaps, might have been marked as odd. Alethia had voted with the other two arbiters in favor of Tanitha's successful completion of the Trials, which hadn't surprised Tanitha; she didn't think that Alethia truly had any choice about that. But now… even standing alone, with no one nearby to guard her expression against, Alethia didn't look angry, or even frustrated. If anything, there was a hint of sadness to her gaze and posture.

Tanitha bit her lip, her mind drifting back to something that had been bothering her for days. Everyone said that she'd had a death surge, that her abilities had flared violently in what should have been her final moments, preserving her life. But there were some problems with that. First was the fact that she knew very well what a surge of elemental power felt like, and she couldn't remember anything of the sort rising within her at that moment. She might have been willing to overlook that; she had been so panicked, so desperate in the moment that the water flooded her lungs, that she thought some lapses in memory could be excused.

What she couldn't overlook was that she didn't believe her fate had been tilted toward death, at least not enough to have spurred such a rise of hitherto unknown power. Because if the water hadn't receded… Tanitha didn't believe she would have perished. Darius had been there. He would have saved her. It was a simple sort of faith, that feeling, but unshakeable nonetheless.

Which meant that something else had been at play.

Tanitha lightly touched Darius' arm, murmuring that she needed to speak with someone, then left his side as he continued his discussion with the two senators. She approached Alethia, who was still standing looking over the city. No, not over the city, Tanitha realized, following her gaze. Toward Zharen, toward her home.

Alethia gave Tanitha a bare half-glance as she came to stand beside her. "Congratulations," she said, her tone level. "I imagine you're feeling pleased with yourself."

"Why did you do it?" Tanitha asked her, keeping her voice very low.

Alethia finally turned to face her, a puzzled furrow in her brow. "I'm sorry?"

"In the final Trial," Tanitha said quietly. "I didn't do that, with the water. Did I?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Alethia said calmly. "We all saw it. You exhibited a death-surge. And an impressive one, at that."

"No," Tanitha said, still pitching her voice low enough that it would be inaudible to anyone further than a few steps away. "I didn't. And I think you know that." Alethia regarded her wordlessly as if weighing something, but she didn't speak, so Tanitha pressed on. "I think you know that it wasn't me, because for some reason I don't understand, you pulled the water back," she said. There was the faintest hint of a shift in Alethia's expression, but it was enough to serve as confirmation. "Was it because Darius was approaching?" Tanitha asked, bewildered. Had it been simple self-preservation, fear of what vengeance Darius might take on her if Tanitha died? "Did you know he was near? I can't think of another reason you would change your mind."

Alethia gave a short laugh. "I had no idea he was there at first, and I didn't change my mind, Tanitha," she said. "I did precisely what I had been doing since the day you surrendered yourself to Naratha's power." Tanitha blinked, confused. "I'm a little surprised no one seems to have seen it," Alethia said. "Especially you. I thought you'd realized, that moment you told me to stop playing the role I'd chosen. But even then, you still saw me as how I'd introduced myself. The spurned woman, filled with jealous rage and spite." She took a sip of her wine, watching Tanitha contemplatively. "I don't blame you. I knew if I came to you and directly offered help, you'd never believe that I had anything less than murderous intentions toward you. So I had leaned rather hard into the performance." Tanitha watched her warily as she continued, "I had to present myself the same way to Naratha. She never would have agreed to the Trials if she'd thought I meant them as a way for you to survive. And you? You never would have listened when I warned you about what types of Trials were coming, when I told you that Naratha knew your weaknesses, if I'd come in the role of a friend." Tanitha stared at her, stunned. "So I did what I had to do to ensure you survived," Alethia finished with a shrug. She looked at Tanitha in consideration, then nodded once. "I consider my debt to you more than repaid," she said.

"What— what debt ?" Tanitha asked, her astonishment giving way briefly to confusion.

Alethia drew one finger around the rim of her goblet, the metal giving a faint hum with the motion. "You did me two services," she said. "When Darius proposed that we move to a contractual engagement… I was not in a position, politically, to refuse. And so I lied to myself about what that meant. I told myself that he and I could grow to love each other, that I could be at the side of someone who loved me the way… well, the way he loves you. And the way you love him. By winning his heart, you woke me up to the reality of the situation and saved me from being bound to someone who would never truly be mine. And as for the second service," she said, "you gave me hope."

"Hope?" Tanitha asked softly.

Alethia nodded. "Hope that perhaps, that sort of love isn't impossible. And with it, proof that the hope isn't vain. If a human foundling can stand against a demon queen to claim that sort of love, perhaps I can be steadfast in searching for it as well." She tilted her head. "I do wish you'd displayed more of a tendency toward self-preservation, though," she said mildly. "There were a few times I was certain you were trying to end yourself, perhaps out of some misguided desire to die on your own terms."

Tanitha stared at her, her mind flashing back to event after event. Alethia insisting after the first task that she be taken to Darius, so that he could help her. Alethia's casual, barbed comments that Tanitha had interpreted as cruelty, but that had nonetheless put her mind on paths that had led to her being able to prepare herself for upcoming Trials. Alethia, warning her of what Naratha knew about her, about the weaknesses she intended to exploit.

"I should clarify that I still rather detest Darius," Alethia said casually. "Using me to shield himself from scrutiny… well, I'm less than impressed with his behavior on that front. But I suppose he'll likely have a chance to make it up to me in the future." She inclined her head to Tanitha respectfully. "You have all the traits that the Ivory Throne needs," she said. "And though you're already formidable, you are only going to grow stronger with time. With time, and his support behind you." She gave a brief bow. "You have a friend in Zharen if you ever should need it," she said. With that, she turned away, vanishing into the crowd.

"Tanitha?" She turned, her heart fluttering like a young girl's at the sound of Darius' voice. An unconscious smile came to her face as she looked at him. "Is everything all right?" he asked her. He sent a hard look in the direction Alethia had gone. "If she was bothering you…"

"No," Tanitha said. "She…" She couldn't speak of it openly here, she knew; even the discussion with Alethia had been risky. "She's not my enemy," she said quietly. He looked at her in surprise. Suddenly feeling very tired and overwhelmed at the thought of staying here, she said, "Could we go somewhere quiet to talk for a little while?" she said. "I know it's probably not very proper to leave a celebration where we are being honored, but…"

"Whatever you need," he said, drawing her close. He kissed the top of her head, then drew back to glance around. "Here. There's a way we can make a subtle exit." He took her hand, taking her to the side of the balcony, out of direct line of sight from the celebration within. Tanitha looked at the drop below, then looked back at him, at his faintly mischievous smile. "Are you ready?" he asked her.

She stepped close, and he wrapped one arm around her, the other catching her behind her knees to scoop her up to his chest. She kissed him once, the action tender but firm, and he deepened the kiss for a long moment before he spread his wings and stepped over the balcony's banister to swoop away, the wind streaming around them.