Page 92 of Crown of Ashes and Awe

The structure I’d seen from a distance was much darker up close, made of heartstone like the fire ring. Light reflecting off the edges of its tiny holes had made the black rock appear paler. In the center, a wide entrance and darkness beyond. The orange, late afternoon sun hurried to take its spot behind the tableau.

“I’ve been here before,” I whispered aloud. “Demius, I’ve been here before.”

The head of a druid, seated nearby, snapped up. His eyes bore into mine before he looked down again and pulled his hood forward. A few seconds later, he got to his feet and hurried away to get lost in a flood of bodies joining the party.

A woman with red hair—the same woman I’d envisioned—stood on the opposite side of the fire and waved in our direction.

“She’s seen us,” Tearloch murmured as he nodded.

“Don’t worry,” Bain said with a laugh. “Happy to sacrifice, old man.”

Compelled to take a closer look at the woman’s hands, I left both men in my wake as I hurried in her direction. I glanced to the right, expecting to see yellow flowers but found a slab of heartstone there instead.

I keenly felt each step as I closed the distance. I reached out…and Moire stepped into my path.

“Asper, isn’t it?”

I blinked. Reality shook me. “Yes. And you’re the woman trying to keep Tearloch from me.”

She let out a little gasp, a little laugh, then stepped aside to greet Tearloch and Bain. “She’s a surprise,” she said, looking me up and down.

Tearloch grinned and caught a hold of my hand to turn me away from the red-haired woman. “You have no idea,” he said, then pulled me against him. “The moment she saw me, she tried to kill me.”

Sweetie added his witness to this with a vigorous nod.

“I trust she’s stopped trying?”

I hated that she talked about me like I wasn’t standing right in front of her. “So far,” I said. “We’ll see how tonight goes.” I looked into Tearloch’s eyes, teasing, testing.

I was expecting a clever response that would also hint at our bond, but instead, he pulled me closer and crushed my lips with his. Then a series of kisses, each more gentle than the last.

When he was done, I sighed. “So far…so good.”

Moire rolled her eyes and waved us toward the redhead so she could greet Lennon and Griffon. Tearloch introduced me to Rowena, who was trying to keep from laughing.

“I’ve never seen anyone who so perfectly put mother in her place. Well done, the pair of you.” She winked then pointed. “We have seats for you there.”

Again, I reached for her hands, but Tearloch nudged me to the side and my chance was gone. Once we were seated, he frowned with concern. “Is something wrong?”

I considered lying, then gave him a shallow nod. He was instantly on alert, and we bowed our heads together. “Tell me.”

“Tearloch…I…I’ve been here before.”

He nodded at the palace.

I shook my head and pointed to the fire, then the setting as a whole.

He stiffened for a long minute, then nodded, as if he understood perfectly. “We’ll take it one moment at a time, yeah? The second you feel uncomfortable, we leave.”

I smiled and repeated Sweetie’s words from earlier. “If they’ll let us.”

Lennon and Griffon sat ahead of us, next to his father. With Minkin and Sweetie on my right, Tearloch and Bain to my left, I was once again, surrounded by my family. I should have felt completely at ease, but the smell of those memory leaves and the image of starwings fluttering above those yellow blossoms made me feel strange. And I wished more than anything that Demius were there to explain why.

How could I have been here before, unless it was prior to me being left at Demius’ door. But if he’d spent time at the palace too…

Moire clapped her hands together to gain attention. To the side of the structure, a druid sat back from his bowls and the droning notes slowly faded to nothing.

“Thank you for coming,” she said, to the rows of gold and silver-clad guests. “And welcome.” She smiled at the rows of servants beyond, then to rows of various other people, including druids. “Welcome. Unfortunately, the King Aristaeus cannot be with us today?—”

---