Page 13 of Muse

“Rest up, Izzy,” Soren said, and he’d already started walking back towards the exit. “We have another long day tomorrow.”

Chapter 9

For the next two weeks, I spent my days in rehearsal and evenings in the courtyard with Soren as my private tutor. As time passed, my performance definitely improved, leading to positive and negative changes. He was yelling my name in rehearsal less and less, but he was also dancing with me less and less.

I found myself missing the feel of his arm around my waist. The proud smile he had when he watched me succeed almost made up for it.Almost.

By the time of our final rehearsal, he assured me that I would be perfect for the Ashoralida. I had to believe him because the other option was terror and failure.

My gown was finally finished with only hours to spare before our first performance. It was a bright yellow-gold, reminiscent of the sun that beat down on the desert. The fabric was semi-sheer, so light and airy. It was taut across my breasts, but it flowed around the rest of my body like a gentle breeze.

Across the bodice, there was embroidery in shades of blue and gray, in stark contrast to the yellow. The patterns were so detailed that they almost seemed real, as if raindrops were dancing across the fabric.

Once I was clothed, a skilled dresser came in to do my makeup and style my hair. They weaved flowers and ribbons through a soft braid, and they put golden highlights on my cheeks and eyes.

After that, I waited with the other muses until we were called, and then Soren led us down to the ballroom.

Our conduction began with Soren singing, his voice low and full of longing as he called for the rain in an ancient incantation. I stood in a circle with the other muses, surrounding Jessalyn in the center. We all had our arms raised towards the sky, and as the music filled out with other instruments joining Soren's vocals, we began to move in unison, and our fingertips cast a warm glow.

As the dance continued, we moved faster. With each step, we called forth the rain, our fingers reaching towards the sky as if to pull the clouds down to earth.

When the music reached a crescendo, I closed my eyes and focused on drawing the magik from deep within me, the way Soren taught. We spun and twirled—I felt the air moving from all the dresses swirling around me—and finally, the music crashed to a stop, and we all fell to the ground in dramatic unison.

The ballroom erupted in applause, and when I lifted my head, the air was still filled with the sparkling illusion of a thousand raindrops pouring down from the ceiling. Through the skylights, I could see that real rain had yet to fall. But King Marcel was sitting on his throne, smiling and clapping, and we did still have two more performances to go.

Once the conduction was finished, the mood shifted from audience to revelry. A minstrel band played in the corner, andthere was a sumptuous buffet of fruits, bread, and sweet wines. Usually, I wouldn’t have time for much eating or socializing before Adora would insist that we depart, but tonight, I had nowhere else to be.

Jessalyn invited me to join her and the other muses. With our work done, we had a brief opportunity to let loose. They drank wine and danced together, playfully, without abandon, and Jessalyn took my hand and pulled me onto the dance floor with the rest of them.

As she spun me around, I caught sight of Soren. He walked across the ballroom to talk to the King but smiled proudly at me. I hadn't even had any wine yet, and already, I felt drunk on the night. I wondered (and hoped) that I would be able to dance with him again.

“Lady Isadore Dellamousa?” a royal messenger said, interrupting my merriment with the muses.

I stopped and brushed my hair back from my forehead. “That’s me.”

"I have a message for you." He held up a rolled tube of pale paper bound by a ribbon that shimmered iridescently.

That was the ribbon of an enchanted message, one that traveled instantly over great distances. The sender would write the message using a psychic quill and magik, holding it like a wand and composing it in the air. Then, the sender would chant the destination, and a messenger at the location would be compelled to write it word for word on a special pale parchment.

"This is for me?" I asked in surprise, but when I took it from him, I knew it must be from Adora.

“Did you get an enchanted message?” Jessalyn asked. “Is everything okay?”

"Yes, I'm sure it's just my mother wishing me well since she couldn't be here to see the conduction," I said, but the sick feeling in my stomach sincerely doubted that.

Jessalyn laughed. “I know how that can be. My mother would die if she had to miss one of mine.”

I excused myself since reading a note from Adora in the middle of the dancefloor didn't sound ideal. I waited until I was in the shadows of the ballroom to unroll it, and as soon as I had, I wished I hadn't read it at all.

“Isadore, my dear daughter who I have sacrificed everything for –

I have always trusted and supported you, which is why I allowed you to go off to a faraway anddangerouskingdom on your own. What eased my mind was the knowledge that you were traveling with your oldest friends, both from good families.

So you must imagine my dismay when I arrived at the Ashoralida at the summer palace in Calida, and I was greeted by none other than Briar and Wrenley, your two oldest friends. It took only a quick conversation to learn that they had never been offered the performance in Sudamon, and they knew nothing of your travels or even that you were going alone.

Up until tonight, I would’ve told anyone that my daughter is not a liar, that she is trustworthy and honest. But I cannot say that now. You have broken something that cannot be easily mended, and you have put yourself in a danger that I can only pray hasn’t touched you yet.

It is with that danger in mind, as a single young woman entirely alone in a strange kingdom, that I must command you to come home immediately. Leaving with only one of the three of Ashoralida's performances done will undoubtedly be a dark mark on your record. It will likely lead to worse placements in the future,but that is the unfortunate consequence of your reckless behaviors.

---