Chapter 395

Two brothers stand in the door, one a lovely man who I suspect is lying to his Luna. The other, terribly corrupted by the god of Darkness in exchange for the immense power to protect his people. Both of their gazes move immediately to me.

I set my shoulders back, putting on my Princess Cupcake persona a little more than I did when I was alone with Pippa, and call on my years of Princess lessons as I slowly dip into a deep, formal, old-fashioned curtsy.

“Well?” I ask, my head bowed low. “Elias, Gabriel? Will I do?”

“You’re beautiful, Ariel,” Elias says, crossing the room with his brother as I raise myself back up. Eliasi gives me a soft smile before he dips into a low, low bow – the kind I know from my lessons is only used in Atalaxia for members of the royal house.

“Yes,” Gabriel says, studying me, his hands slipped deep in his pockets. “I suppose you will do, now that you’re dressed correctly, and not as a man. Or a slut.”

I go a little still at that accusation, only my lessons with Faiza stopping me from either laughing boldly in his face or slapping him hard across the cheek. Or both. Probably both.

“Pippa?” Gabriel calls, turning his head to look for her. “Isn’t there a crown that goes with this? And jewels?”

“Yes!” She scurries away to fetch it.

“Our grandmother’s crown,” Gabriel says, turning his eyes back to me, narrowing them a bit. “A great Princess of Atalaxia. I hope that you will endeavor to live up to the honor bestowed on you by wearing it.”

“I will try,” I say, quite soft and gentle, going to my knees before this Prince as Pippa comes back and reverently hands him the crown. I demurely lower my chin so that he can place the object on my head. It’s heavy, and when I turn to look in the mirror I see that it’s a gorgeous, elaborate crown, studded with diamonds and sapphires.

But even as I admire it, my heart sinks. Because I miss my simple rose-gold crown, the one that marks me as a Princess of Moon Valley. The one my mom picked out. The one that Jackson once told me he thought was pretty.

“And the necklace,” Gabriel says next.

I raise myself up, my eyes going wide when I see the diamond choker in Pippa’s hands not only because it’s absolutely dripping in diamonds but because –

“Yes,” Gabriel snaps as Pippa steps forward and lifts it to my throat. “The necklace will cover your shame until I can cover it with my own mark.”

I do my best to contain my horror as Pippa works at the clasp, loosing a slow breath, my hand gripped tight on my wolf’s fur as she snarls at the thought.

When Pippa steps away, Gabriel offers a hand. “Come, Luna,” he says, his voice low and serious. “It’s time for you to be presented to your King and court.”

There is a loud murmur of conversation as we approach the ballroom, my hand held neatly high in Gabriel’s as he escorts me, Elias and Pippa following close behind.

I glance over at Gabriel as we walk, my wolf anxiously walking back and forth in my soul, a low whine in her throat. Because on a physical level…I mean. I get it. I understand what my grandmother the Goddess was thinking.

A great ball of self-hatred forms in my stomach as I take in Gabriel’s broad shoulders, his trim waist, the way he carries himself with utter confidence. My wolf gives a smug little huff as I consider that Jackson is taller – but then again, someone being taller than Jackson would be…absurd.

Still, I can’t deny it, especially as I look up into Gabriel’s regal, fine-featured face with those cheekbones so high and sharp they could cut glass, those shining blue eyes…damn it, but he’s hot. Less pretty than Luca, less contained-ferocity than Jacks, but…gorgeous.

Gabriel flicks his eyes over to me, a smirk on his lips almost like he can tell what I’m thinking. I snap my head back to the front, clenching my jaw, because that’s impossible at this point, right? I haven’t accepted our bond, so there’s no way that he could be beginning to sense my thoughts, my feelings.

But…my grandmother did order me to get all of my mate’s marks so that my magic could fully develop…

Still. The idea of carrying Gabriel’s mark on my flesh? Maybe this one…I’ll reject and see replaced.

She had a reason, my wolf murmurs, walking back and forth in my soul. She picked him for a reason…

I know, I whisper back, running a hand over my wolf’s soft fur, trying to calm her. We’ll think on it later. Now we concentrate, yes?

My wolf sighs as two servants begin to open the doors before us, sitting down primly on her haunches and preparing to play her role as the sweetest, stupidest, weakest and prettiest wolf in history. She grumbles as she lays down, but I murmur to her that she’s a good girl, and she gives my mental hand a little lick of support.

Golden light floods into the hall from the fabulous ballroom ahead and I take a deep breath, concentrating as we step into the room. The chatter fades, every single person turning towards us to stare.

I hold my chin high and walk proud but demure at Gabriel’s side, well aware that this is precisely how he wants me to be. A spoil of war, his tamed princess, made utterly Atalaxian under his command. A role I’m quite capable of playing. For now.

We sweep to the center of the room, our footsteps echoing. Gabriel looks around, smug, but he doesn’t say a word. He doesn’t need to. When we get to the center of the room music begins – classical strings singing out from some hidden alcove. He turns to me, slipping one hand around my waist, and then begins to move into the steps of a slow, formal waltz.

I blink for a moment in surprise but then begin to move with him, my feet remembering the steps from years of dance classes in a thousand styles. I look up into his face and he smirks down at me. I let a little smile find my lips.

“A risk, my Prince,” I murmur, my voice light and pleased like he’s the cleverest person I’ve ever met. “What if we’d gotten to the center of the room and you’d discovered I couldn’t dance?”

“Oh, I know you can dance, Ariel,” Gabriel murmurs, glancing around the room. “I’ve known since I was a child that you were my mate. I was careful to take notes on my future Luna.”

My eyes go wide. And this time, I’m not faking it. “Wha – how…how did you know?”

“My father, fool that he is,” Gabriel sighs, glaring off somewhere into the crowd that watches us, “had me dedicated to the Goddess soon after I was born. Something about your mother giving him the idea that Darkness was not the right God to guide my life. But it did reveal that one very useful fact.”

I go a bit cold at this, because my own baptism vision didn’t include any information about Gabriel – only Luca and Jacks. Why…why would my Grandmother do that? And are there…others? Lurking out there? Other mates?

A cold rush of horror runs through me at the thought.

Gabriel and I continue the dance in perfect silence, each of our steps perfectly in tune with each other, with the music. When it comes to an end he steps away and gives me an elaborate bow. The entire room politely applauds and I turn towards them all, pressing a hand to my chest and giving another deep curtsy, demonstrating to them all that I am at their mercy and glad to be here.

Secretly, though, my knee aches a bit from so much obeisance. Honestly, I prefer my own family’s court, where mom greets pretty much everyone with a hug and asks if they’re hungry. It’s much kinder on the knees. Plus, you get a snack.

“Come,” Gabriel says as the room breaks into more relaxed chatter and the crowd begins to move and mingle. I exhale a deep breath, glad that that part is over. “Time to meet my uncle, the King.”