RISING (#2, of Crows and Thorns)

Chapter 23

Instant alarm set my nerves on edge. What could it be? What kind of trouble could Dolcie be in? I was about to press for more, when abruptly Beckah lunged forward and snatched a tankard of beer foaming with froth from one of our colleagues as he walked past, carrying a tray full of beer and an earthen jug. He scowled as Beckah grabbed another one, but after she'd given him a cheeky wink, he shook his head and carried on toward his friends.

Beckah handed me a tankard. The glass was cloudy with condensation and slippery beneath my curved palm. She tipped her head back and swallowed a large mouthful, and then another until she'd drained the whole thing. I looked on with wide eyes, in awe. She licked the froth from her upper lip coated in red lipstick and made an Mmmm-ing sound, while I'd only managed to take a couple of sips from my own malty beer.

Ditching the empty glass on a tall beer barrel, Beckah spun around and bounced up and down on the balls of her feet, both hands raised and fisted, almost squealing in excitement. "Boys!"

Oh my gods she was right. Boys!

"I'll deal with Dolcie tomorrow," she said, grinning and waving her hand dismissively. She linked arms with me, spinning us both around. My beer slopped over the side of the glass, splattering over the floor. "Come on, let's go to the dance. Tonight, it's time for boys!" She suddenly narrowed her eyes, enhanced with glittering pink eyeshadow. "Just kissing, Tabitha," she warned, and pointed a forefinger at me. "No more than that."

Oswin strolled back from the buffet tables, dumping his paper plate in a trashcan, and joined us as we walked through the open back doors of the Banquet Hall, across the stone porch, and down the steps to the lawn. He raised one blonde eyebrow at my dress. "What the hells are you wearing?"

"Aunt Ellena made it for me," I said defensively, unlinking myself from Beckah to scratch my arm because the material itched. It was so tight around my armpits I wasn't sure I would be able to raise my hands above my head.

"When are you going to tell her the truth? That she can't...shouldn't be sewing anything for you?"

"It would hurt her feelings." And besides, it would have taken her ages to make the dress with the way her bones and joints hurt.

"Well..." Oswin said, pulling a face as he further inspected the frump of a dress. "Better than hurting your chances out there," he said, cocking his head toward the crowd of dancers and onlookers.

I looked down as I scuffed through the grass in my boring high heels. "Really?" Would Mr. Whiskers be put off by what I was wearing?

Hang on...what the freaking hells?

I meant Tomas.

Didn't I?

Frowning, and wondering what the hells was wrong with me, I trailed behind Oswin as we slipped between straw bales where people sat beneath the wavering light of paper lanterns strung above, leaning in to shout-talk over the noise of singing and dancing. My friend shoved a path for us through the thick crowd and we came to stand at the edge of the dancers.

The loud, rambunctious folk music beckoned me to join in. Our band played on a raised platform with instruments from all over the world. Djembe drums covered in goatskin pounded a beat alongside taiko and steel drums; lutes, sitars, and shamisens mixed with fiddles and banjos; flutes and reed pipes made from wood or bone played alongside accordions and zithers, chimes and bells. The high-spirited melody enticed me to move my body with the sway of the song.

I sipped away at my beer, half-dancing on the spot, stamping my feet in time with the pounding beat. I shared a mad grin with Oswin and Beckah who were doing the same as me. The dancers flowed in front of us. Men and women, arms over each other's shoulders, linking them into small circles, sang along with the lyrics as they stamped their feet and moved the entire circle around. And then as the lively chorus kicked in, they individually spun around with a flurry of intricate footwork, their hair ruffling and swinging wide as they clapped their hands over their heads before relinking into a circle.