“Pluto, Jupiter, and Saturn are still out. But I have hope they’ll come around soon,” Oestera chimed. “Mars is on board.”
Astra searched for her finger, still wrapped in a red ruby.
“We’re headed to Venus tomorrow,” Antares added.
Leona stepped forward. “Earth is arriving any moment to the Lunar Palace. We’ll wine and dine them this week and feel them out. My sources believe Mother Nature will be thrilled with a chance to stick it to the gods.”
“The numbers are on our side,” Solan said, his eyes holding Leona’s.
“I had a full map of the courts drawn up to track our progress,” Maeve said, handing each leader a thick scroll. “I didn’t want to send them through the Rift, just in case. Take them with you, and Oestera,” she leaned closer. “What’s going on with the…” she gestured to her chest.
“The what?”
“Something in there is weird. Different.”
Oestera shrugged, unsure what she could mean. She climbed the steps after her sister as they left with their charts in hand, a tearful goodbye between Solan and Leona too hard for her to watch. As they sailed back through the Rift, she pressed a hand to her chest, unsure of the strange feeling knocking against her ribs.
“I’ll see you at breakfast,” Leona sighed, exhausted. She left Oestera in the gardens, the Moon just peeking over the hedges. Oestera perched herself on the fountain, but no sooner did her shoulders relax than she was back up, the sound of boots hitting the pavers surprising her.
Several dozen Earthen soldiers faded out of the Rift. Mother Nature in all her gilded glory parted them like an ocean. Maidens rushed around, grabbing trunks and bags, ushering them into the palace.
Oestera waited a moment. She didn’t want to get swept up in their current.
“Princess?” a warm voice called out to her, like something she’d never heard before. The notes were akin to the smooth Earthen clay coffee mug Leona had brought her back once from a visit.
Oestera spun, and she never stopped. Her entire world fell apart as an Earthen soldier, late to arrive, reached for his chest.
They stared in a stunned, reverent silence as the Tether took hold. And she knew in that moment exactly why her sister risked entire courts just for a glimpse of Solan.
Why she was about to do the same.
She twisted the ruby ring around her finger, the air leaving her lungs.
Chapter
Forty-Seven
“Mother—” Astra’s chest ached alongside hers. She looked to her father as he leaned in closer to his queen, placing a soft kiss on her shoulder.
Oestera sighed.
“I need you to know that I understand why you kept it from me. Why Lunelle kept it from me. The Tether is often a double-edged sword. The profound love cuts like a blade when you’re obligated to something—someone else. It’s hard enough when you’re just two people trying to navigate the world, but layer in the political implications, it’s messy at best.”
“Your Majesty,” Lux cut in, leaning around Astra.
She flinched. “Oestera, please. I hate being called Your Majesty.”
Lux glanced between the mother and daughter, a smile tugging at his lips. “Oestera, then. If you started the rebellion… why stop it? What happened?”
Oestera reached for their hands again, pulling them back into another memory.
“Oestera!”
Selenia’s voice tore through the bright Spring air, Oestera’s bare feet dug into the grass as she watched a silver-haired Lunelle pick wildflowers behind a stone manor. She rested a hand on her belly, and Astra recognized her dress immediately. She’d seen it in Solan’s study.
The Sun kissed her cheeks as they flushed. It had been years since her mother’s voice chilled her to the bone.
“How did she find us?” Nayson reached for Lunelle, holding her close against his chest.
