Lesson 37: Between East and West, Family Is Best

For someone supposedly descended from royalty, Grielle felt uncharacteristically out of place in a castle. She appreciated the fluffy beds that helped soothe her weary mind and tired body, but having to wear dresses and be attended by servants felt odd, bordering on unnatural. It also didn't help that an armada of maidens had shown up to woe Benedikt away from her. She took comfort in his words of the previous morning when he had assured her that nothing would keep them apart.

"It's just a setback," she told herself as she nibbled a slice of toast from the tray the kitchens had sent to her room.

News of the ball traveled quickly, and the castle was already humming with excitement as preparations had to be made in only three days' time.

Grielle felt a sudden sliver of unease. She would soon have to attend a ball — in a dress. And she'd have to dance — in a dress.

A knock sounded on the door, breaking her from her brief moment of panic. She wrapped her dressing gown tighter around her waist and answered the door. A servant entered with a box adorned with a bow. She placed it on the bed beside the breakfast tray. Before Grielle could inquire about it, the girl had gone.

Grielle didn't find a card tucked in the bow, so she tugged the velvet ribbon loose. Under the lid of the box, she found a necklace of glittering gems. Her breath stopped as the stones caught the light from her window.

"Do you like it?"

She spun to see Benedikt leaning against the door frame.

"I've never seen anything so beautiful," she said.

He crossed the small chamber and helped her fasten the cascade of white gemstones around her throat. Grielle's breath hitched as she felt his fingers brush the tender skin of her neck. She turned to the mirror above her dressing table to admire the effect.

Ignoring her own reflection, she watched as Benedikt drank in her appearance. "It's a bit too much for everyday wear," she remarked, drawing her hand to finger the cold stones.

"Of course," Benedikt said. "It's for you to wear to the masquerade."

And suddenly the spell was broken and Grielle felt her heart sink. For a moment she had almost forgotten it all.

"Are you all right?" he asked, placing a comforting hand on her back.

Grielle schooled her lips into a smile and turned to face him. She nodded. "Just a little nervous about the ball."

Benedikt smiled back. "That makes two of us."

Grielle laughed nervously. "I can't dance."

"Me neither. Not the kind of dancing they do at a ball, anyway."

"Moose can teach us," she said, feeling moderately relieved.

"I'd appreciate that," he replied with a laugh that fell off into silence. His smile faded. "I'm off to pay my last respects to Fanna. I thought you might want to join me. I invited the other Liberators as well. They'll be meeting us in the grand hall."

"Of course I'll come with you." She slipped her hand in his and turned to leave.

"Wait." A tug on her arm stopped her short. "Before we go..." Benedikt slipped his hands around Grielle's neck to unclasp the necklace. As he did, he placed a long kiss on her lips. "I love you," he whispered.

Grielle could still feel the shadow of his lips on hers as he released her — the weight of the necklace too. Her pulse fluttered, but she couldn't tell if it was from excitement or nerves. "I love you too," she replied, but the words felt surprisingly heavy on her tongue and a strange sensation in the back of her head told her to run. Benedikt watched her quizzically but she pushed the thought from her head.

In the grand hall, they found the rest of the Liberators looking well-groomed in fresh clothes and heavy furs. Grielle had seen them all come in and out of her room in the infirmary, but she was glad to see them all up and about with a healthy color to their cheeks.

They each hugged Benedikt in turn, including Yorick who normally avoided all outward gestures of affection.

"I thought you were a goner," Ludvig said, patting Benedikt roughly across the back.

"Me too," the prince replied.

"Where's Talitha?" Grielle asked.

"Right here!" The musical voice carried from behind her.

They turned to see Talitha flouncing down the white stone steps to the grand hall, her tawny hair floating behind. It took a moment for Grielle to recognize the tall woman who walked behind her as Talitha's sister.

"Princess Unae," Benedikt said as recognition dawned on him too.

Grielle felt a slight pang of jealousy as she watched the elven princess offer her hand to Benedikt for a kiss. Her dancer's movements seemed to give new meaning to the word elegance.

"You'll forgive me if I don't swoon," Unae remarked imperiously.

"I'd prefer it if you didn't," Benedikt replied with good spirit, and the princess seemed to relax.

"I want to thank you personally for stopping the Witherwitch who placed a curse on me," she said. "I'm not under any impression that you are my True Love, but I am greatly indebted to you for keeping my sister safe and sending the dragon away from my resting place."

"You're welcome. We all had a hand in it," Benedikt said, gesturing to the rest of the Liberators. "Will you stay for the ball?"

"My presence in the court of Rosenfjell is long overdue and my sister is missed as well. We will be leaving tomorrow morning," Unae replied.

Benedikt nodded.

"And I'll be going with them," Yorick added, his voice somber.

A stillness fell over the Liberators. Grielle felt a lump lodge itself in her throat. "What?" she croaked out.

"So I can learn to master my magic. Unae says that she and Talitha will vouch for me so the elders can teach me to really use my powers."

"But you are already a powerful wizard," Grielle objected.

"I can't control my magic yet. Not the way the elves can — and Talitha thinks I have some untapped potential." Yorick was pleading, almost like he was asking for her permission.

Hot tears pooled in Grielle's eyes. She didn't know why he needed her permission, but she was glad to be asked. She felt Benedikt's hand on her back like he could sense the tears she was refusing to let run down her cheeks. "Of course," she replied with a forced smile. "I'll admit that I don't want you to go. But you deserve an opportunity like this."

Yorick smiled at her answer.

Leaving Talitha and Unae behind, the Liberators left the hall and headed out of the castle keep and into the outer courtyard. The Temple of Kings stood menacingly within the castle's defenses. A tall building with a white marble colonnade for its facade, the temple saw little use outside of royal weddings and funerals. Beneath the temple lay the crypts where bodies of the royal family and notable members of the court were laid to rest.

They entered the antechamber of the temple and paused.

"Do you want us to come with you?" Grielle asked when Benedikt turned to see why they had stopped.

He pressed his lips together. "Will you?" he asked Grielle specifically.

She nodded, swallowing nervously. A darkened archway opened to a staircase that descended and curved into darkness. They took the steps carefully, moving deeper into the belly of the temple.

Grille rubbed the flesh of her arms. Their air felt warm and damp beneath the mountain's surface, but something about the fact that she was entering a resting place of the dead made her shiver. Or maybe it was the memory of Fanna. What Grielle had done to her.

Her eyes adjusted to the dark, and Grielle could just see a light ahead. They emerged from the stairs and into a large chasm. Torches hung on the walls of the cave, casting the space in an amber glow and creating flickering shadows across the floor. The chasm didn't look man-made. It must have belonged to the mountains long before it belonged to the temple. She tried to suppress another shiver as she noticed the rectangular, stone boxes that filled the cave.

"Which tomb is hers?" Grielle asked as she followed behind Benedikt.

He snaked his way in and out of the tombs. Some were elaborately decorated with corroded filigree and gemstones darkened by time and the damp cavern air. Other tombs had marble statues of the deceased resting peacefully atop their caskets.

"The newer tombs are deeper in the cave," he said. His voice echoed to fill the dark corners of the crypt.

He stopped at a white tomb that looked newer than the rest. A bouquet of wilted flowers sat on the unmarked marble.

"This is it," he said with voice lowered to a reverent whisper.

Grielle slipped her hand into Benedikt's as she searched for a name on the tomb. She knew she wouldn't find one.

"My parents told the court she has been lost on a journey through the mountains," Benedikt said, his voice shaking. "They don't want anyone to know that a member of the court was practicing Withering Magic... or know what she did to us... or know how much of a hero you are."

Grielle heard the tremor in Benedikt's voice, but she wasn't sure if it came from a place of anger or sadness. She held his hand tighter like he might slip away at any moment. "I don't need recognition. I just need to know you're safe," she said while finding her thoughts drifting to Yorick in the temple above.

The last of her family would be leaving her in the morning, and the thought was agonizing. She let her shoulder rest against his. They stood in silence, leaning on one another. For a moment, the voice in Grielle's head telling her to run before she got truly hurt was silenced.