“Is there still such a great threat to your rule? Now that the Fate Maker’s gone I would assume you could rule in peace. All these precautions shouldn’t be necessary.”
“The Fate Maker may be gone, but there are other wizards out there who took part in the rebellion against me.”
“Not all of the wizards fought against you.”
“None of them fought for me,” I said pointedly.
“But—” He glanced between me and John, his eyes wary.
“Some even ran away and hid in the forests so they wouldn’t get caught in the crossfire.” I raised an eyebrow at him, daring him to challenge me. “They’re a threat.” My free hand lingered on the hilt of the sword hanging from the jeweled belt around my waist. “They’re a threat to me and to my kingdom. Even those who didn’t actively follow the Fate Maker.”
There, let him think about that for a little bit.
“Not all wizards are against your rule, Your Majesty,” Eriste said. “I know that I, for one, am happy to see you on your mother’s throne.”
We made our way out of the throne room and into the wide, marble entrance hall of the castle. Once we reached the back doors, two woodsmen guards stepped forward and opened them for us, their heads bowed as we passed.
“Thank you,” I said as we entered the patio. I smiled at the head of the woodsmen guard, whose blond hair curled around his ears and gray eyes squinted against the glare of the sun.
John had suggested that I learn the names of as many soldiers as possible, and give them a brief, polite hello, or make quick conversation when I saw them. Just something to let them know I recognized them as people, not tools to be used to help me stay on the throne. He claimed it made me look friendlier, especially compared to my aunt, who was known to be distant with her subjects.
“Eamon.” I smiled at John of Leavenwald’s only son and the future head of the woodsmen. “How are you?”
“I’m fine, Your Majesty. How are you?” he replied stiffly, his eyes not meeting mine. Which wasn’t that surprising, really. Eamon was always more rigid around me than I understood.
“Fine, thank you. I’m going on a picnic with the new ambassador for Bathune. Ambassador Eriste, meet Eamon, head of the woodsmen members of my Royal Guard.”
Eriste nodded to Eamon. “It’s a pleasure.”
“Eamon, meet the newest ambassador from Bathune, the wizard Eriste.” I tried not to smirk. The few times I’d met John’s son since his arrival at the palace he’d made sure to make clear his absolute hatred for wizards.
“A wizard?” Eamon’s shoulders tensed as he let his eyes rake over Eriste. “My men and I will accompany you on your picnic with this wizard. Just in case.”
“That would be great, Eamon. Thanks.”
He nodded and then followed behind John.
“Will you be at the ball tonight, Eamon?” I asked over my shoulder as we moved down the wide sloping marble stairs that led from the patio onto the grass.
“I’ll be on guard, Your Majesty, protecting you from any who wish you harm. Even those who should not.”
I smiled. Eamon was just the right sort of gung-ho creepy that even if the war memorial and the soldiers didn’t scare the ambassador into good behavior, he might. “Well, let’s hope we both have an uneventful night. Then maybe we could get a dance in.”
“I don’t think that would be appropriate.” Eamon glanced down at me with gray eyes that matched his father’s, something dark and angry flickering in his eyes for just the slightest moment before it disappeared. But that didn’t make sense. Eamon and I had always gotten along okay. Sure, he was a bit stiff and stuffy, but he’d never been mean.
“I don’t think we need to worry too much about all those old customs, now do we?” I tried to smile at him, even though I knew my lips were barely managing to curl upward. “Besides, what could be more appropriate than a queen dancing with one of her bravest warriors?”
“A queen who knows her place,” he muttered quietly. I flinched as if stricken. Well, so much for being nice. “At least where those who would harm her can see.”
“Right.” I nodded and tried not to take it personally. Some people were still having trouble adjusting to a less formal royal court. Eamon was probably just one of them. I followed Eriste off the patio while everyone else, including the rest of the woodsmen guards, shadowed us.
“It’s lucky that I brought a magic picnic basket,” Eriste said in my ear as we turned toward the west side of the palace. “Otherwise we wouldn’t have enough food.”
“They won’t eat,” I said. “I mean, one of them may taste any food that you hand to me, but other than that they won’t eat. They say it’s disrespectful.”
“It is, but royal poison testers?” Eriste raised an eyebrow again. “You are that worried about threats to your throne?”
“Civil war broke out in the Hall of the Pleiades during my coronation. I think I have every right to be that worried about threats.”
“Threats from a royal ambassador?”
“Threats can come from anywhere,” I said sharply. I clutched at my skirt to keep my hands from shaking “I learned that when my own regent raised an army and started a war against me.”
“I must admit,” Eriste said quietly, “I am curious about what happened that day during the battle. You and the Fate Maker, alone together in a room, battling for control of this world. I have heard that you smashed one of the great relics and then killed not one, but both, of the most powerful wizards who have ever walked in the World of Dreams.”
“Yes.” I tried not to think about what it had been like, the way the room had seemed to explode as the Mirror of Nerissette was destroyed, blocking off my way home to Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, where my foster mother moved on with her life and my mother still lay ill in a hospital bed. I shook off the reminder.
“Rumor is, when the mirror exploded they were trapped inside of it, lost in between the realms of reality,” Eriste fished. “That he and Esmeralda were lost between the World That Is and the World of Dreams.”
“Yes, he was taken by the light. They were taken by the light. Even so, we keep tight control on security here, just in case one of his wizard friends comes looking for revenge.”
“With the army inside your walls? They would be fools to attack a queen so obviously prepared for battle.”
“Who knows what a wizard would do? You and my aunt may trust wizards as a rule, since you have so very many of them in Bathune,” I taunted, letting him know that I knew exactly where the wizards who had fought against me had fled after the battle. “But I don’t trust them.”
“It is true that many wizards have come to Bathune now that you’ve outlawed the practice of magic. We all simply wish to live in peace and practice our craft, and your aunt allows us to do that. But that’s not what I’ve come to discuss. Your aunt doesn’t wish to meddle in what laws you make or don’t—even if she disagrees with them.”
“I didn’t outlaw magic,” I said. “I outlawed the wizards’ attempts to control Nerissette and its people. The dryads are at peace here, practicing their magic—as are the Naiads and the Aurae. The Firas practice their fire worship in peace, too. Everyone is welcome in Nerissette as long as they follow the laws. But you’re right. How I decide to rule Nerissette doesn’t involve my aunt. This isn’t her country, and it never will be.”
“I see.” Eriste set down his basket on the grass and waved his fingers. A blue-and-white-checked blanket appeared, curling out of the side of the basket and slithering onto the ground, laying itself out for us. Plates and goblets followed after, spinning in the air as Eriste twitched his fingers, and then set down in front of us. He waved his fingers again and platters filled with sandwiches and fruit shimmered into existence, a glass pitcher of water with ember fruit sliced in it beside the platters.