Page 10 of The Beautiful Blade

I stopped behind Charlotte’s chair, wanting to offer her comfort in any way I could. She didn’t look at me as I set her plate in front of her, didn’t acknowledge my presence. She never did when others were watching. In Evergrove, it was unthinkable for a fairy princess to befriend a human servant.

Her fingers shifted slightly, angling the crystal viewer in her lap just enough for me to catch the glowing image on its surface so I could see her favorite champion at work. I personally thought Kael Drakos was a brute. I kept that opinion to myself.

“Charlotte, Lord Falcos wished you a happy birthday.” Queen Indira’s voice cut through the air like a blade.

Charlotte’s head snapped up. The crystal fell from her hands. It hit the floor with a sharp crack. Silence hung heavy in the air, all eyes turning toward the princess and the glittering fragments of light at her feet.

Queen Indira’s gaze darkened, her lips thinning into a line of icy displeasure. “What was that?”

“It was my fault, Your Highness.” I stepped forward, lowering my tray and bowing my head.

The queen’s sharp eyes fixed on me. I felt the weight of her stare like a physical blow.

“I was watching the Games. The crystal slipped from my hands.”

A murmur rippled through the guests, their gazes shifting between me and the queen.

The thin-lipped man arched a brow. “Interesting. I wasn’t aware the House of Evergrove paid its servants well enough to purchase a handheld crystal. And a human servant, no less.”

“This one will not be an employee any longer.” The Fairy Queen rose from her seat with a flourish. “You have disgraced this household. Leave. Now.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” I bowed my head lower, my body aching under the strain of my own unworthiness.

I took a step toward the door, but my foot landed wrong. The fragile bones in my ankle twisted. Pain shot up my leg. Before I could stop myself, my knees buckled. I crumpled to the ground in a graceless heap.

There were snickers from the highborn, low groans from the serving class. But all I heard was the sharp intake of breath that came from behind me. Charlotte rose so fast her chair scrapedagainst the floor.

I gave a sharp shake of my head, warning her without words. She couldn’t come near me. Not now. Not when all eyes were on us. Not when her mother’s wrath was so dangerously close to turning on her.

Charlotte ignored me.

Bending slowly, deliberately, she picked up the fork she’d dropped onto the floor. She let out a long, low sigh. The sweetness of her breath tickled my nostrils. Like any taste of her I could get, I swallowed the scent down. She didn’t look at me as she rose, her movements stiff and composed, and returned to her seat.

"Thank you for the birthday wishes, Lord Falcos. Thank you all for coming to my birthday party on this sacred night."

I pressed my palms against the cold, polished floor, forcing myself upright. My legs didn't tremble as I did. I felt nothing, not an ache or pain. The queen’s attention was off me and back on her guests. Not only had I been dismissed, I was already forgotten.

The walk back to the stables felt longer than usual, the sounds of the party fading into the distance as the cool night air wrapped around me. Above, the sky was a swirling canvas of celestial light and shadow. The First Moon loomed high above, caught in the throes of the Hunter’s Eclipse. The planet’s shadow crept slowly across its surface, veiling its usual brilliance in a deep, blood-like crimson. The sight sent a chill through me, areminder of how small I was beneath the weight of the cosmos.

I wasn’t worried about being dismissed. I’d never received wages, just food and lodging. The queen couldn’t afford to lose me—not when I was the one who cared for the animals. With the coffers bare, the queen still needed me to maintain the illusion of wealth with my forgery of metals and repairs of her tarnished trinkets.

The stables were quiet. The soft huffs of the pegasuses and the faint rustle of hay were the only sounds to greet me. I made my way over to the straw mattress. At least I'd get in some early rest and got out of cleanup duty.

I was awakened some time later by the soft creak of the stable door opening. Charlotte slipped through the gap, her cloak drawn tightly around her. She crossed to me in a few quick steps, her bare feet hardly making a sound on the dirt floor. When she reached me, she knelt, her blue eyes shimmering in the faint light.

"Let me see," she demanded, pulling at the threadbare sheet. She'd snuck in a thicker blanket years ago, but I kept it hidden and up high unless she was with me. When she was, I'd tuck her into its warmth.

“Charlotte, I’m fine.”

Before I could stop her, she reached down and tore the covers away. The cool night air prickled against myskin, highlighting every imperfection. My legs were bent awkwardly, pale and too thin beneath the rough fabric of my trousers. There were reddish roses blooming on my knees where they’d slammed into the floor earlier, angry bruises spreading like ink beneath my skin. Along my shins, faint red marks traced where the forge fires had kissed too close during my work. A network of scars ran over my ankles, faint and silver from the strain of walking, running, existing in a world that was too heavy for me.

I couldn't feel a thing, not with her floral magic still caught in my nose and on the tip of my tongue.

She didn’t say anything at first, just knelt beside me, her lavender fingers trailing over my battered knees. Her touch was feather-light, almost reverent, as if she feared breaking me further. The sight of her inspecting my weaknesses like it was her right to do so made my stomach twist. I turned my head away, swallowing down the shame.

“I wanted to apologize,” she said.

“You never need to apologize to me.”

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