Page 27 of A Divided Duty

“In the name of Queen Arden Windermere, we welcome you to the Court in the Mists,” said Madden, his voice carrying in an effortless way that had to be enhanced by some sort of magic. I caught a faint whiff of grapefruit and turpentine on the air, and smiled to myself. Cass was boosting his voice with her magic. That was a new application of what she’d already been able to do—she was an aeromancer, reading futures in the movement of the air. Looked like she was learning to do more than that.

We hadn’t been talking much lately, for obvious reasons, but we really needed to catch up soon.

“Our Queen appreciates your attendance, especially as we know that the mortal side of the park remains open well into the night this time of year. It can be difficult to manage the trails in proper formal wear, and if any of you suffered any … incidents during the journey, we have Bannicks on call who will be happy to help you remove the stains,” said Cassandra, and her voice carried just like Madden’s had, reaching every corner of the hall. “Refreshments will be provided after tonight’s scheduled business has been seen to, and open court will commence at that time. To those of you who are familiar to the Court in the Mists, welcome back. We’re glad to see you.”

“To those who are joining us for the first time, welcome,” said Madden. “I am Madden, Seneschal to the Court in the Mists. Our Captain of the Guard, Lowri, is at the door, and can be reached for any security concerns.”

“And I’m Cassandra Brown, Chatelaine to the Court in the Mists,” said Cass. “If you have any questions about the food—apart from ‘When do we get the food’—just find me, and I’ll be happy to answer them.”

“And with that, we welcome Her Majesty, Arden Windermere, Queen in the Mists, daughter of King Gilad and rightful ruler of these lands.”

“Accompanied by her brother, Nolan Windermere, Crown Prince in the Mists.” Cass and Madden turned to face each other, giving a shallow bow, then turned again and walked to the sides of the dais, descending the shallow steps back to the floor.

Two portals opened on the stage. Arden and Nolan stepped through, accompanied by their own unique magical scents. They were both wearing purple and silver, hers in the form of a bell-sleeved gown that brushed the floor as she walked, belted with a silver chain whose links had been shaped to look like twists of blackberry briar, his in a matching suit with blackberry vines stitched around the hems. They bowed to the room, then turned and walked to their respective thrones, sitting.

Quentin leaned around Raysel and Chelsea, toward me. “Who taught Arden about showmanship?” he whispered. “This is a lot more pomp and circumstance than she usually goes for.”

“Too many newcomers,” I whispered back. “Gotta impress them if she wants them to take her seriously.”

I hoped the “impressing our new neighbors” phase wasn’t going to last all that long, but I could see the value of it while it did. Sadly.

Arden cleared her throat, and the silence that had begun to fray around the edges of the room snapped back into place, leaving everything in quiet. “I now declare this court formally in session,” she said. “Our first order of business tonight is the discussion of Rayseline Torquill’s term of offense, approved by this court almost exactly one year ago, prior to the establishment of the Lady of Flowers’s false reality. Will the parties involved step forward?”

I moved toward the dais, Raysel moving with me, while Quentin, Chelsea, and Tybalt hung back. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dianda and Dean doing the same. And behind them, out of the crowd, came Sylvester.

The sight of him made my breath catch and my heart beat harder in my chest. He looked defeated in a way I had never seen from him before, not even in the days immediately following Luna’s disappearance. Not even in Titania’s Faerie, where he’d been alone and drinking himself slowly to death. He walked like he had nothing left, eyes dull and chin down.

“The claim of offense was made by Duchess Dianda Lorden of the Undersea Duchy of Saltmist,” said Arden. “Duchess Lorden, in your eyes, has this term been completed?”

“It has not, Your Highness,” said Dianda. I was close enough to her that she wouldn’t have needed to shout regardless, but everyone’s voice was still carrying loud and clear throughout the room, while the whispers and murmurs around us weren’t. Cassandra’s control over the wind was even better than I’d assumed. I’d have to congratulate her for that later.

“And why not?” asked Arden. “A year has passed. A full turn of seasons. What cause could you have to claim the offense has not been accounted for?”

Raysel tensed beside me, and I bumped her with my hip, trying to calm her. We’d been warned about this part of the process; before she could issue a judgement, Arden needed to make sure that all the information was available to her court. If Raysel hadn’t been a duke’s daughter, this would have been a lot simpler. By involving the nobility, we’d made things incredibly difficult for ourselves.

I hate politics.

“The term of offense had barely begun when the Lady of the Flowers enchanted the land, and Rayseline Torquill was pulled from the home where she had been placed to serve and thrown into a skerry with no way to fulfill her obligations,” said Dianda. “Time passed normally during that enchantment. Four months of service were lost. We will not be satisfied that the girl has paid properly for her actions until she has served a full year.”

“A reasonable argument, and well fitted to our understanding of time and enchantments,” allowed Arden. She turned to me. “Sir Daye, Rayseline has been serving in your household. Do you agree that the term of offense has not yet been completed?”

“I do, Your Highness,” I said, bowing my head so she wouldn’t see the way I smirked uttering her title. It’s hard to take noble titles seriously sometimes, especially when they get all fancy. “Rayseline has served well over the past eight months, but eight months are not a year. Had she run away at the start of her service, we would hold that time against her term. She wasn’t in my household to offer service as she should have been. She’s not finished yet.”

“I see,” said Arden, and turned her attention to Raysel, who seemed to wilt under her gaze. “Rayseline Acantha Torquill, do you also agree that your term of service has yet to be completed? Are you prepared to continue to serve?”

“Yes, Highness,” squeaked Raysel. She looked at the floor as she spoke, and I was pretty sure that without Cassandra’s enchantment, she would have been entirely inaudible. “I want to—I mean, I need to finish out my term of service. I owe another four months. Even that’s not going to be enough, probably. After everything I did, I can’t imagine being forgiven that quickly.”

“The term was to serve for a year or until both you and Sir Daye could agree that your service was discharged,” said Arden. “With that in mind, I declare that—”

“Wait!”

Luna’s voice echoed from the back of the hall. I whipped around, eyes going wide. Sylvester shrank in on himself, looking like he wanted nothing more than to vanish into the floor. Raysel was doing much the same, and in that moment, they had never looked more alike.

The crowds parted as Luna stormed toward us, pink-and-red hair streaming out behind her, wearing a structured gown that looked like it had been made by stitching giant rose petals together. It was less beautiful than it was stunning, the sort of thing you expect to see in an animated movie or on a Broadway stage, not in open court.

“You do not have the full story,” declared Luna, stopping as she pulled up level with Sylvester, who didn’t even look at her. “Without all the information, you can’t possibly pass your judgement, however fair and balanced it might be intended to be.”

“The court recognizes the Duchess Luna Torquill,” said Arden, sounding only a little miffed—something that could easily be excused as displeasure over the interruption of normal proceedings. It was important that she not seem biased here, not with Raysel’s future on the line.