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“Work the crowd. It’s important that you appear personable,”he lectures as if this is the first time I’ve ever been to an event like this.“We’ll be doing dinner in about an hour. You and your brother will be at my table, so make sure to find him before then.”
“Understood.”
“Eirik.” I turn and grin when I spot Katol standing there. He’s wearing a simple suit, not very expensive or flashy, so he’s not here to network.
He’s a friend from The High Order, and is another squad leader so I’m not surprised to see him here. We’ve worked together a few times on field assignments, but we talk nearly weekly since. Mael works with him a lot.
Katol is an air witch, and his squad is lacking a fire witch. When I reach his side, his dark eyes meet mine, both of us standing tall at about 6’2”.
“Where’s your team?” he drawls, a cheeky grin in place as he tacks on, “Not their scene?”
I raise an eyebrow, and he smirks, finding it hilarious.
“Etrix will be here,” I say in lieu of an answer.
“He’s not on your team,” Katol says, and I return the smirk. Maybe not yet, but the transfer will be coming sooner or later.Not that I’ll admit that.“Mael did good today. Thanks for loaning him to us.”
“Whatever we can do to help,” I say, nabbing two drinks from one of the waitresses walking around. I murmur a spell, “Revelare.”
I pass one of the glasses to Katol, and watch as he takes a sip. I wait a beat, and when there’s no reaction, I follow his lead. The drinks are safe.
“Protego,” I whisper, protecting my glass from anyone who wishes to tamper with it. I trust my father’s men, but you never know when a revolution member is hiding in plain sight.
I make small talk with Katol, mostly consisting of teasing each other, before moving on to the next person who grabs my attention. It’s about fifteen minutes later when the announcement I’ve been waiting for sounds.
“Prince Etrix Farglory of the light Primordials, and hisanima nexum,Elzora Miller, unknown magicae.”
Immediately, there’s a buzz among the guests, for more than one reason. The first is that Etrix has finally come back to court. After seven years of no public appearance, he’s finally doing one. The second is he has found his mate.
But the third, the one I hate most of all, is discussion on Zoe. She’s been announced without a magicael type, and it’s causing the gossips too much intrigue. There are going to be too many rumours, and it’s going to cause her even more issues.
I hate it.
But that’s tomorrow’s problem. Instead, I’m going to watch my beautiful mate walk down the stairs. She grins at Etrix, who takes her hand, and the look of pure love between them is astonishing.
Her blonde hair is curled, and mostly down, but some of it is tied up. She’s donning the crown from Etrix’s family, a delicate golden tiara that matches her dress, and I know this is a source of great pride for Etrix.And a giant fuck you to our dear old dad.
She’s gone without her glasses tonight, using contacts so that she can still see. I know they’re not her favourite, but I love that I’ll get to see her eyes more clearly. The make-up she’s wearing is a shield, but her eyes are never going to lie.
And fuck, that dress. It does things to me, things I can’t act upon. When not in the school uniform, Zoe’s usually in a hoodie and leggings, so seeing her this way is a rare surprise. And she suits it. It’s form-fitting and shows off every curve she has.
She’s dressed to impress, and both Owlyn and Fayetta have given her the best introduction to this kind of high society.
“What took you so long?”I demand, stepping off to the next person who immediately draws me into conversation about Etrix’s mate. You know,mymate. I hate that we’ve not yet revealed my tie to her, but my pride is something that can stand the blow when it comes to protecting her.
“The guards were being fucking cunts,”Etrix replies, helping Zoe down the stairs. Her golden heels are ridiculously high, and she’s not used to wearing them. I’ll have to give her a foot rub later.“They held us up, saying some shit about a grand entrance, but we got the exact same announcement every fucker else did. It’s just another ploy from prickface over there, clearly.”
I cut the connection with him because I know he could rant about our father all night, and smile at Mrs Acti. She’s a scholar at the Royal Archives, and is enamoured with my mate.
“She is very beautiful, yes,” I say, smiling that same fake polite smile. Mrs Acti walks off, and finally I get a moment to breathe.
I grab another one of the effervescent drinks, sipping at it after I do my checks. Ciar and Ryes warned Zoe, and I know Etrix will be on top of her safety. It’s all going to be fine. I work the crowd, chatting with those who catch me, hating every single moment of this.
I want to so badly rush to Zoe’s side, and show off myanima nexum,animus meus, to those here, but I can’t.
I fucking hate politics.
“Eirik Farglory,” a man says, tipping his head in greeting. He’s unfamiliar to me, but he seems to know exactly who I am. Not unusual, even if unnerving.
