Page 86 of A Monarch's Fall

“It’s true, Ana. She said she wanted the Houses to be like Viridis of all places, and she hates them,” I told her.

Ana eyed me suspiciously and flinched as a loud group of younger recruits walked by nearer the tree line. We both turned to see if they had noticed us.

“Why?” she asked, in a whisper, after we had watched them pass us, apparently unaware that we were there.

“For me,” I admitted, worried that Ana would turn away again. “She wants to be able to be with me. Marry me. Have a family with me. Without the constraints of the current laws and customs. She used House Viridis as an example of what could be. She took House Ardens for herself as a backup if she couldn’t change everything, somewhere for us to be. I know it’s not for the right reasons, but does it matter the motives if it works out for the greater good?”

Ana looked perplexed, like she didn’t know how to respond.

“She wants to marry you?” she asked.

I pulled the necklace Selene gave me on my birthday from under my shirt.

“It was her grandmother’s ring. She gave it to me as a promise that one day I’d wear it on my hand,” I told her.

Ana stepped closer and looked at the ring. She’d never given it much attention before, and I kept it hidden under my shirt.

“She wants to marry you?” she asked again.

“And she wants me to have kids. I’m not ready for that, and she seemed disappointed, started talking about wards and preparing for all possibilities...” I trailed off, remembering the point of this conversation. “She isn’t the monster everyone here thinks she is,” I said quietly and put the necklace back beneath my top.

“She plans to give up her royal titles, the crown, leave the capital and live in obscurity with you, in Ardens?” Ana asked in astonishment.

“Only if she can’t change the House system. But can’t you see that there’s at least the possibility of another way? If Selene can change, couldn’t others?” I asked.

Ana looked away for a long moment.

“I trust you, Percy. But I don’t know if I’ll ever trust Selene. She forced something unforgivable upon me,” she replied, and I looked away in guilt, knowing she was speaking of the blood oath Selene forced her to take in the summer, “but you’re my best friend, and I’m with you.”

“You’ll leave with me?” I asked.

“Yes, but I can’t come with you to Arvid. I have a meeting, more like an interrogation within Witching Command. I don’t think they fully trust me yet,” she revealed.

“What kind of meeting?”

“They keep calling me in to question me about Syngeneia… and you,” she explained.

“What kind of questions are they asking?” I asked, curiously. Maybe Persephone didn’t trust me as much as I thought she did.

“Things like how close we are, if I’ve had any access to Selene, if she trusts me. About my coven, where I am in the hierarchy, who I have access to, and my brother and his role. It’s the same questions each time; this is the third time they’ve called me in. I think they’re trying to decide if I’m more useful than I seem and if they can use me for anything.”

“You think they want you to spy for them?” I asked.

Ana shrugged, “I get that impression.”

“How will I speak to you again to tell you how Arvid plans to get me, us, out?” I asked.

“The mess hall. Go during the first hour, that’s when most people eat, and I haven’t seen you there, so you must be comingto the second hour. I thought they were trying to keep us apart. I guess I was right. You told me what was going on immediately,” she smiled.

“We trust each other,” I said.

“We do,” she agreed and enveloped me in a tight hug, “I’ve missed you. And I’m sorry. I think I was so angry about what happened in the summer, and I let myself get tangled up in all of this. I should have spoken with you.”

“It’s okay, we’re still friends?” I asked, squeezing her back.

“Best friends,” she said and released me. “I can’t be late, they’ll ask questions, they're suspicious of everyone,” she told me, “The mess hall, first hour,” she reminded, before she left.

“I’ll see you there,” I promised and watched her leave for a moment before I turned around, trying to leave the treeline without being seen. I was close to the accommodation where I knew Arvid was staying, but I had no idea if he would be there.