Astra ran a finger over the wing of the phoenix, glowing with an iridescent shimmer. “What’s in the ink?”
“Pixie dust,” he laughed, turning to face her.
“I’m serious!”
“So am I,” he grinned. “Jovian specialty. Wait until you see it in the sunlight.”
She shivered. “If I don’t catch fire the second I wander into it.”
“I believe Mirquios has already ordered his courtkeeper to add shades to the windows,” he teased.
“So thoughtful.” The mention of the king’s name was a stark reminder that she was not just a friend enjoying a relaxing evening, but a future queen he needed to guard. She should have been more considerate about the position she put him in.
The leather cord around his neck pulled her from the thought. She’d seen it before, peeking over the top of his shirts, and once in Ellume, but she’d never gotten such a close look at the raw moonstone hanging from the leather. A delicately carved gold Sun and Moon hugged the iridescent moonstone, catching the starlight above.
He jumped back as she reached out to touch it, returning to his side of the pool.
“I’m sorry,” she gasped, surprised by his sudden movement, intrigued but also kicking herself for intruding on his space. He dropped his eyes toward the sea beyond the springs, squinting in the low light.
“It’s fine. It’s just, no one else should touch it.”
She nodded, afraid to pry further. He briefly looked back toward her, touching the amulet with a wince. “Apologies, Princess.”
“Lux.” She crossed the pool, moving closer but careful to give him time to react. “Must we fight about this constantly?”
He chuckled. “When you’re married, you know I’ll have to refer to you as ‘Your Highness,’ right?”
She groaned. “Please don’t. You know I hate the honorifics. They just feel so unearned.”
“Most of your court would kill for the title, but you hold it in such little regard. I would say it seems ungrateful, but that doesn’t fit.”
Her brows curved in curiosity. “Then what is it?”
“You feel unworthy of it.”
Astra held her breath, her eyes giving away how right he was.
“You move through this world with the grace of a queen and the grit of a dragon, but the discipline of a feral animal. It’s bewildering how your mind runs in all directions at once. But you don’t see what an asset it would be if you mastered it. You see what a danger you are if you don’t. I know I’ve contributed to that. Perhaps I was too quick to judge.”
“A feral animal,” she repeated, scrunching her nose as she laughed, ignoring the near-apology.
Lux nodded. “I’ve seen many atrocities in this life, Astra. One of the biggest is that you don’t have the faintest idea of your potential for destruction.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but he stopped her. “That wasn’t an insult.” His amber gaze held hers, the hard line of her brow softening. “This time,” he added.
She considered this. She was used to her demeanor being boiled down to untamed impulses, but rarely did the critics of the court acknowledge what ran beneath her flesh in unseen currents. The control she’d worked at for years. So much of her strength lived between breaths in what she didn’t show them.
She narrowed her eyes, trying to understand what he was getting at.
“The women here have done me a great honor by opening my eyes to the injustices of the system within which we operate. You’ll notice not one of them calls me princess unless they are mocking me—that is where my aversion truly comes from. We’re all equal here. We’re working toward the same goals. Everyone agrees on the rules, and if there’s any opposition, we examine the issue from all sides and hear each other out. Everyone cleans, everyone cooks, everyone rests. It’s a system that works, but not if I’m a princess.”
“You sound like someone I know.” Lux grinned, leaning his head back again. “Mirquios dreams of a titleless world.”
“So he’s said. I look forward to introducing him to Cam and a few of the other leaders, and showing him how we work.”
“I imagine your mother opposes the idea.”
Astra snorted. “She won’t even hear of it.”
