Page 28 of Court of Embers (Dragonesse #2)

“ One flame, one heart, one mind! ”

I stared up at Rhylan, still clutching him tight. We were bonded, yes—but now we were bonded before Larivor and Naimah, their blessings on our ashes and flames.

Nothing and nobody could come between us.

I love you , I told him, and I saw the answer in his eyes before he leaned down to kiss me, holding me tight against him.

We finally broke apart and turned, my cheeks flaming a bit. I smiled sheepishly as Kirana looked at us with exasperated patience.

Nobody else looked like they’d seen, or felt, another presence.

“To the feast!” Kirana said cheerfully, and Maristela and Mykah threw handfuls of jasmine petals before us as we left the shrine.

I plucked one of the blossoms from a garland, breathing deep the scent of home. How? I asked, glancing sidelong at Rhylan.

Mykah and Cai . He was smug, as he should be. He’d pulled it off with me none the wiser. They’re the fastest of us. Did it meet the expectations of your dreams, princess?

A thousand times better than my dreams . I squeezed his hand. Because you’re real.

We led the way to the dining hall, the Bloodless of Jhazra throwing more petals. We all smelled like jasmine, the scent rising as we crushed petals underfoot.

“Congratulations,” Cai said over my shoulder. He gave Rhylan a knowing look. “You’ll host for us, right?”

“Of course.” My mate glanced over his shoulder at Kirana. “Has she said yes?”

“Not yet. I’m letting her take her time with the idea. But when she’s ready…” He grinned, his teeth white. “Let’s hold it here. I think she’d be happier to have hers at home.”

It was kind of him to offer; most dragons expected the ceremony to take place in their own eyries.

But then, I supposed Kirana would not have chosen a traditionally-minded dragon for herself.

“I hope we get to do it soon,” I said without thinking. A little revenge on Kirana: having Jenra sew her into a dress.

Life was not a tale, all happy endings and sunshine. With war always threatening, we had to take our happiness where we could find it.

Myst had been right. There was no guarantee I’d survive the fight for the throne, but if I died, at least I died as Rhylan’s mate, blessed by the Dyad.

I hoped Kirana reached out and took what was hers.

Doric passed, slapping Rhylan on the back, and we paused at the door to show our guests in. Mykah skipped past cheerfully, a basket of jasmine still slung on her arm.

Maristela paused before us, lovely in the lavender and blue tones of her House. “I wish you an everlasting flame,” she finally said, and when I looked into her clear eyes, I saw nothing but sincerity.

A knot of tension eased in my heart. I hadn’t been sure of Maristela until this moment; she could lay her sister’s comatose state at our feet, and the blame would be correct.

She read the stiff set of my shoulders. “There are no hard feelings,” she told me calmly. “At least not on my part. They say family is everything, but mine made it clear that I was not theirs. Asura and I…were not the closest of sisters.”

I went for bluntness. “What happened was because of us. To be honest, I’m surprised you came. Glad, but surprised.”

Maristela blinked. “The Obsidian Flames are old friends of ours.” She waved a hand, indicating herself and Gaelin.

“And Asura chose her path. There are…some things I’m not ready for.

” Her glance told me she meant Kirana’s transformation.

“But…I trust in your House. I trust in my mate’s judgment. And sometimes things have to change.”

She took a deep breath and smiled tentatively. “We’re with you.”

“Come be welcome, then. I’m glad you’re here for this.”

Everyone had surrounded the tables, chatting and eating the spread of fruits, meats, and cheeses laid out.

I surveyed them, my heart squeezing. For a moment, it was easy to forget that there was a war outside. It was a cozy gathering with the people I’d come to call family, and some I dared to call friends.

Larivor and Naimah , I thought to myself, keeping the prayer private. Let us have this again. Let me find friends, and have the things I thought I’d never have.

I had learned. Hope was worth it.

I had been raised to be friendless and stand alone. But when I looked at this gathering, the people I trusted, the people I wanted to know as a friend and not just as a Dragonesse, I realized how empty that plan for my life would’ve been.

I didn’t want to be cold and aloof. I didn’t want to hold everyone at arm’s length. I wanted to feel a hand on my shoulder, and give to the friends I earned as much as they gave to me.

Sorry, Mother, but your plan never would’ve worked.

I tucked the jasmine blossoms in Mykah’s thick curls, smiling down at her. “Sneaky draga.”

“But come on.” She preened, holding a plate of cake. “I did good.”

“ Really good. I’m in awe of your talents.”

“I helped Kirana weave the garlands.” She glanced at Kirana, and none of the fascination had left her eyes. I realized I was watching burgeoning hero-worship, but Kirana was a good choice for a young draga to idolize. “I wonder…”

She trailed off, and I nudged her. “Wonder what?”

Mykah shrugged, stuffing a huge bite of cake in her mouth. “I just keep wondering what it would be like. To be more of a dragon, not reliant on a dragon.”

The light gleamed on Kirana’s delicate horns. “I wonder, too,” I said wistfully. “Everything says the Naga are wrong, but…how can someone so beautiful be wrong? Her heart hasn’t changed.”

Myst was coiling in the air above Kirana, and her eyes landed on me. I knew she’d heard every word we said, despite our lowered voices.

And then she looked away.

“I think the dragons lied,” I said softly, and my Ascendant twitched once before vanishing.

She popped up over my shoulder, her white coils wrapping around my shoulders. “Cake!” she cried. “Eat your cake, Serafina.”

She nudged me to the table, and as I passed a laughing Kirana, a smiling Maristela, Myst hissed in my ear.

“Stop trying to disrupt my plans.”

“Are you going to share them with me?” I whispered back, equally quiet, as I put a slice of the white-frosted cake on a plate. Someone had dusted the edges of the frosting with silver.

“When I’m ready. You have no idea how hard it is to herd the Ascendants. Like herding cats, the lot of them.” She huffed disdainfully.

I held back a laugh. No, I knew exactly how hard it was to herd an Ascendant who didn’t want to hear it, as a matter of fact.

“Will you explain?”

Myst nudged my cheek with her forehead.

“One day, Sera. One day soon. But you need to stop brooding and planning, darling child. Seize the moment. Enjoy the day. Take your chance with both hands and hold onto it tight. There will never be another day like this one.”

She patted my throat, and twined upwards into the air.

I brought the plate to Rhylan and held up a forkful of cake. Amusement gleamed in his blue eyes.

She was right. And the cake was delicious.