Lunelle must have looked as drained of color as she felt. “Um, yes. Yes, of course. I think I fell asleep.”
She spent the rest of her evening allowing her eyelids to flutter shut, waiting for the spiraling drain to begin.
To her disappointment or relief—she had no way of telling—she remained firmly in her bed, staring at the journals on her nightstand, the slightly larger gap between the middle volume taunting her with its tempting ideas.
ChapterSeven
“Yallara!”
Lunelle hadn’t expected to see anyone in the far wing of the palace, but she was delighted to see the princess back out and about. She’d only briefly seen her at meals and, even then, Yallara had avoided speaking with anyone.
Not that Lunelle had been much more sociable. She’d spent her last few mornings tucked into the corner of a small library, lost in one of her novels, enjoying the peace and quiet.
Yallara swept into the room with her own book, clearly surprised to find her favorite room in the palace occupied.
“I see I’ve been found out. This room has thebestview of the Plutonian silver pools.”
Lunelle glanced out the window. A dozen small pools ran from the window down the hill, liquid moonlight slipping from one to another in a rhythmic breath. She found herself lost in their whispers for nearly an hour on her first morning there.
“They are quite something.”
“I’m sure nothing compared to the Lunar Court’s views.”
“We’re both quite fortunate, I think,” Lunelle returned. She leaned back in the soft armchair as Yallara settled into the settee across from her.
“Do you mind if I join you?”
“Not at all,” she said. Astra would have leaned over, demanding to know what Yallara was reading. If she liked it, should she read it too? But Lunelle was happy to let the princess live in her own world as she stared at the map, distracting herself from the weight of her decisions as a certain invitation came to mind.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course,” Lunelle said.
Yallara tucked her legs beneath her in a soft posture that immediately eased Lunelle’s tension. She was shaken, of course, but she was still the bubbly princess Lunelle had met in the garden upon her arrival.
“I’ve heard rumors about the Lunar Court.”
Lunelle twisted toward her. “We can’t read minds,” she said stoically. It was always the first question anyone asked.
Yallara’s chin dropped as a shocked gasp slipped between her lips. “Are you sure?”
Lunelle giggled, crossing one leg over the other.
“Well, I suppose in some ways we can. My sister and I, for example, are able to communicate within the confines of our minds. But that’s quite uncommon these days.”
“It wasn’t always?” Yallara asked.
“No,” Lunelle said, her eyes dropping to her hands as she twisted her fingers. “It wasn’t.”
“Your sister…” Yallara looked toward the door of the study, half open to the hall. They were far enough away from most of the action, but Lunelle appreciated her discretion. “Is it true she breathes fire?”
“She’s not a dragon,” Lunelle scoffed. “But she does have some… heated tendencies. Yes.”
Yallara sighed. “Fascinating.”
“Plutonians have their own peculiarities, I’m sure.”
Yallara set her book aside, leaning her elbow on the back of the couch.
