The soft glow of golden lamps filled Aurora's chamber as Faye fastened the last clasp of her gown. The dress shimmered faintly, simple yet radiant, like moonlight caught on water. Aurora sat still before the mirror, her face calm, but her maids clustered behind her whispered uneasily.
"I do not trust her, Your Grace," Faye muttered, adjusting the hem.
"Neither do I," Lira said firmly, folding her arms. "A viper never comes without poison."
Aurora's lips curved faintly, though her eyes softened with thought. "You both may be wrong. Perhaps she truly wishes to make peace."
The maids exchanged wary glances. "Then still, be careful," Faye said. "Her words may be sweet, but her heart is Elareth's."
Aurora gave a quiet nod, then rose. "Bring Evelyn," she instructed two of her attendants. "If she is to eat with us, she should walk with me."
Moments later, the two women descended the corridor together. Aurora moved with unhurried grace, while Evelyn, in her finest Elareth silk, kept her smile fixed but her eyes restless, darting over every golden wall and carved pillar, drinking in the wealth she both envied and despised.
In the dining hall, Selene was the first to arrive. She glided to her place with a cool expression, her gown rustling like water over stone. Soon after, Virelda entered, regal and sharp-eyed, a faint smile tugging her lips as she leaned close to Selene.
When Aurora arrived, Evelyn just a step behind her, both queens exchanged quick glances. Selene's eyes narrowed, and Virelda's smile deepened.
"How curious," Selene said, her voice dripping with sugar, as Evelyn bowed. "The Princess of Elareth, come all this way… to visit the girl her kingdom once named a slave."
Virelda laughed softly, as though the notion amused her. "Or perhaps she witnessed Aurora's triumph when last she set foot in Elareth and thought to follow—hoping some fragment of that glory might be claimed, hm?"
Aurora's voice cut through gently, her tone firm without raising itself. "We are here to share a meal, not to trade jests. Let us not sour the evening."
The tension hung unbroken for a moment. Then the doors opened once more, and Queen Ava entered, her presence immediately shifting the air. All rose swiftly, bowing as she passed, her expression serene yet commanding.
"Be seated," she said, and they obeyed.
Her gaze drifted down the table, pausing at Evelyn. "And how do you find our hospitality, Princess?"
Evelyn smiled sweetly, folding her hands. "Most gracious, Your Majesty. Velmora's welcome is unlike any other."
Ava's eyes lingered, calm but searching. "I trust your heart matches your words. May it truly be amends you have come to seek."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Evelyn replied, her voice soft and convincing.
Ava inclined her head and turned her attention elsewhere. Conversation resumed, but under the clatter of silver and the soft music of the servants, tension pressed heavily on the chamber. Selene and Virelda's eyes watched like hawks. Evelyn's smile never faltered, though her thoughts burned. And Aurora, ever gentle, ate quietly, as though her calm presence alone could steady the storm swirling invisibly at the table.
The morning after the first dining, Aurora summoned Evelyn's attendants. The women who had come with her from Elareth were politely dismissed, sent back with the soldiers who had escorted the princess. Instead, Aurora appointed two Velmoran maids to her. Their presence was gentle but firm — both a courtesy and a quiet safeguard.
Evelyn endured the exchange with a painted smile, but when the maids led her out, her eyes burned with humiliation. Even her servants were not deemed fit to stay in this golden palace. She masked it well.
On the tour she had demanded, her voice was all honeyed politeness, but her questions dripped with hunger.
"Queen Aurora, what is she like? Truly?" she asked as they walked the colonnades.
"Her Majesty is kind," one maid replied without hesitation.
"And clever," the other added softly. "She remembers every name. Every favor."
Evelyn's lashes lowered, hiding her displeasure.
"She must have some… faults," she pressed with feigned lightness. "A habit, perhaps, or a temper?"
The women exchanged glances — then shook their heads. "No, Princess. She is… beloved."
It stung more than any insult.
When they entered Aurora's garden, Evelyn faltered. Her mouth parted in shock at the sheer expanse — the marble fountains glittering, the blooms in full life, even rare herbs and silver-petaled flowers swaying in the soft breeze. It was more than a garden. It was a sanctuary.
Her stomach twisted.
In Elareth, not one royal possessed a single patch of earth for themselves. Here, Aurora not only had a garden — it was the heart of the palace.
"Take me back," she ordered abruptly, her voice sharp.
Alone in her chamber, she clenched her fists so tightly her knuckles paled. Every corner of Velmora reeked of prosperity, of Aurora's power. If only she had agreed to wed Aldric when the offer once lay before her — all of this could have been hers.
She crossed to the window, staring down at the glowing courtyards and lanterns burning in crystal sconces. Her nails dug into the sill.
She does not deserve it. None of this.
But she swallowed her anger. To destroy Aurora, she would need patience. She would need to smile until her jaw ached, and bow until her knees threatened to break.
So she played her part.
At dining, she laughed softly when the queens spoke, lowering her gaze as if humbled. At women's gatherings, she praised Velmora's delicacies, complimented their embroidery, even applauded Selene's harp playing. Inside, fire gnawed her — each time Aurora sat at the Queen's table, each time Aldric's gaze lingered warmly on his wife.
One evening, she entered Aurora's chambers. The moment she stepped inside, her eyes betrayed her. The chamber was vast, gleaming with polished wood, golden candlelight, silken draperies that fell like rivers. Her lips parted, a flicker of raw envy breaking through.
Lira, silent at her post, saw it.
But then Aurora emerged from the bath, hair damp, robe white and unassuming, and Evelyn's mask returned instantly — smile sweet, voice smooth.
"I wondered if… I might be permitted to walk outside the palace gates," she asked.
Aurora blinked. "Why?"
"Oh, only to breathe air beyond these walls."
Aurora shook her head gently. "We rarely leave the palace without purpose here. It is safer so."
Evelyn's smile did not falter, but her hands folded too tightly before her skirts.
When she left, Lira spoke quickly.
"My lady — I saw it. The look in her eyes, before you came out. Envy."
Aurora glanced at her maid, calm as still water.
"Do not trouble yourself, Lira. Perhaps she only compared it to her home."
But in her chest, unease stirred.
ELARETH KINGDOM
The sound of hooves thundered first — a weary, uneven rhythm that carried through Elareth's dry wind. By the time the convoy reached the palace gates, Queen Isadora was already waiting, her figure tall and stiff against the pale stone walls.
Her heart pounded. For days she had dreaded what news might return.
When the soldiers drew near, her breath caught.
It was not a bier. No shrouded body lay across the wagons. Relief softened her features for a fleeting instant.
But then her eyes narrowed. Standing before her were Evelyn's two servants, dusty, exhausted, their heads bowed low.
"What is this?" Isadora's voice cracked like a whip. "Where is the princess?"
The servants dropped to their knees.
"She is safe, Your Majesty. The Velmorans… received her well. But we— we were dismissed. Sent back."
Doubt flickered in Isadora's cold eyes.
Dismissed?
Stripped of her own attendants, Evelyn was utterly alone in foreign walls.
Her breath escaped in a sharp sigh. Half relief, half unease.
"She must succeed," she muttered under her breath.
Magnus, looming just behind her, let out a low scoff.
"She will. My sister is sharper than most give her credit for. If she sets her mind on something, she will find a way."
Isadora studied her son's face — then nodded faintly. She wanted to believe him. She needed to.
Her gaze shifted back to the trembling servants. "This cannot be known," she declared coldly. "If people see you, tongues will wag. If word spreads she is gone, that she is in Velmora—"
She cut herself short, her voice lowering to a dangerous hush.
"We cannot afford such weakness."
With a flick of her wrist, she gave the order.
"Take them. Lock them away in the lower chambers. They will not be seen."
The guards seized the women at once. Their pleas echoed off the stone, thin and pitiful, before vanishing into the shadows of the lower wing.
Isadora turned away, her face unreadable. She could not decide which frightened her more — Evelyn's failure, or Evelyn's success.