Page 18 of The Mirror and the Curse

She nodded. “I do. And . . . I’m sorry I let things stand that way for so long. I was afraid, too. Of . . . of losing you. Your friendship.”

For a moment there, she thought he might grip and squeeze her hand in the old way, but he shoved both hands into his jeans’ pockets instead. “Starting fresh, then. Clean slate.”

The satisfaction in his voice made her smile. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean you can play practical jokes on me.”

He kicked at the dirt path. “Foiled again.”

Eddi chuckled. “You’re so predictable.”

He left her in the castle lobby, and only then did Eddi realize she hadn’t yet entered her room. Her luggage would be waiting for her, and a brownie had probably already unpacked and arranged her things.

She checked in, chatting happily with Mr. Sten at the front desk, who didn’t mind at all that she could see him as a stocky dwarf with a long gray beard. A glance around the lobby revealed none of her special crowd. She wasn’t sure she really wanted to socialize anyway.

A hot bubble bath was in order. Plenty of time and space for analyzing her entire afternoon and evening with Kai and anticipating their lessons together in the week to come.

A hint of guilt tweaked her anticipation, but she squelched it. Prince Fidelio wouldn’t arrive until next weekend at the earliest, so why worry about him? This was her week with Kai, and she intended to enjoy every moment.

Monday morning, Eddi arrived at the stables for her first lesson, filled with a volatile mix of trepidation and anticipation. What if White would never open his heart and mind to her? Or what if he’d been trying to all this time and she simply couldn’t comprehend it?

In the courtyard outside White’s stable, she saw Flurry and White waiting, both wearing saddle bands. Kai stood before them in a flight suit much like Eddi’s, only a darker blue.

“Where’s your purple suit?” Kai asked, squinting at her in the early-morning shadows.

“I dumped it after the Stakes race. No more purple grape. This is my usual suit, white to match my horse. Sure, it shows the dirt, but not as bad as you might think.”

His brows rose slightly. “Too bad. I liked the purple, but white looks good too.”

Her heart gave an extra beat. He’d thought the purple suit looked good on her? She strove to sound casual while asking, “What’s going on?”

“I thought we ought to start your lessons with a flight. Your pack is ready.” He held out her helmet.

She accepted it without looking. “You mean, just fly around? Not a race?”

He nodded and pulled on his helmet.

“Yes!” Eddi squealed.

It was the perfect time of day and ideal weather for a flight. They arrived at a hidden valley north of Faraway Lake just as sunlight tipped the highest peaks with a golden glow. Mist still clung to the mountainsides when they landed in a hillside meadow. As soon as White’s canter slowed to a walk, Eddi dismounted without a word, so intensely did the silence and grandeur of their surroundings affect her. Kai had removed his helmet, so she pulled hers off too, letting her long braid uncoil down her back.

“Wow, it’s cold! How high are we?” she asked in a near whisper.

He smiled. “Pretty high, but no worries; there’s plenty of air here.”

While Flurry and White tore into the lush grass, Kai beckoned Eddi to follow him. They hiked up the slope to a trickling brook, perched side by side on a flat boulder, and drank in the view. Only after sitting in comfortable silence for some time, watching sunlight creep down the rugged slopes, did Eddi speak. “My ears are freezing. Aren’t yours?” Eddi studied Kai’s ears, which always had protruded a bit.

His eyes crinkled when he smiled. “You can always put your helmet back on.”

“Not a chance.”

When Kai slowly leaned closer, Eddi’s heart rate sped up, but he merely said, “Look to your left. No quick movements.”

She obeyed, and her eyes went very wide. Just up the slope, almost within arms’ reach, three tiny foals gazed at her with wondering eyes. Down-fluffy wings fluttered on their shoulders. Hearing a snort and whinny, Eddi faced back down the hillside to see a group of adult winged horses approach White and Flurry.

“This is Flurry’s family,” Kai said quietly.

A tall black stallion moved to the forefront. White took a step back and dipped his head, showing deference, but Flurry approached the larger horse in a familiar way. “Is that her father?” Eddi whispered.

“Yes. Her mother is the dapple gray.”

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