BTS: A Court of Embers

11: The Summer Solstice pt. II

The fae hunter donned a dress of maple red and hints of sap. Her pinned hair waved over her shoulders and down her back. As she smiled, Maren couldn't help but smile back. The most dangerous girl in the bunch had been dressed like a sweet apple. Lyra came up behind her, the kind sparkle in her eyes that much more like starlight in her white gown.

Lyra opened her mouth to say something, but halted as the crowd of women parted down the middle to reveal the Prince. His coat was the color of fresh snow. His buttons were fastened rubies rather than buttons at all. Gold epaulettes dangled from his broad shoulders, the white cape on his back fanning out to reveal the red velvet undertone as he took a step towards her. The women hushed instantly, eyes narrowing as he crossed the void to reach Maren in only a few steps.

"Thank you for doing this with me," he said, a small smile creeping onto his lips. Maren couldn't help but stare back at the dozens of eyes behind him. Lyra and Vernice watched with curious smiles. The others turned to whisper amongst themselves. Either way, she was torn between taking a step back to increase their distance or wanting to smile and laugh. There was no way to balance this hyperactive feeling of wanting and not wanting at the same time.

Awkwardly, she shrugged. "You're welcome."

He stood straight and offered his arm.

Maren bit her lip. As low as she could, she whispered, "Are you sure about this?"

He listened to her intently, not retracting a bit as she went on.

"I assume there are High Princes waiting for you and it could send the wrong message. Besides that, all these women really appreciate you and for me to take this when someone else wants it feels wrong."

Seokjin tilted his head. "Penelope. As my friend, I would like you to have as many experiences as possible."

Because he likely wanted to take care of the young woman that promised him honesty and goodwill when she did not need to. Because he learned to acknowledge her as a friend due to her own insistence. Because one day, he planned on sending her home.

The name Penelope did not calm her down as much as she hoped it would. She wondered what Maren would sound like leaving his lips--and felt more of a fool than she probably looked.

She had chosen her steps and decisions with diligence. She considered their consequences. Yet, she supposed she never considered that living out her faerie dream suddenly meant having him in it.

Sighing, she let herself take his arm.

"Thank you," she muttered.

He said nothing, his close-lipped grin telling her all that it needed to. Side by side, the maid and the Prince strolled through the throng of women to the final door. It opened slowly. Slow enough that the first strip of sunlight to spill through the crack nearly blinded her. She closed her eyes as a gentle and warm breeze combed through her hair. When she opened them again, she could barely breathe.

Petals fell from the rose-tinted sky in shades of dandelion, crimson, and silver. They whisked over the bricks of a polished cobblestone courtyard. They fell into grand torches with bonfires that could have touched the clouds. Porcelain fountains poured a scarlet and gold mixture into narrow streams that flowed through channels in the floor. Not water, for it was too thick and rich and colorful. But lava. Molten lava. The heat radiating from it kissed both of Maren's cheeks as Seokjin led her down a white granite staircase. She prepared herself to endure the stifling temperature, but relaxed the closer she came. It only felt eerily similar to an ambitious summer day. Nothing she hadn't felt before.

But it was nothing she had seen before. Beautiful. All of the Fire Fae were beautiful. Sickeningly so, in every essence of the word. Tears welled in her eyes, every ounce of her being wishing to bow to each of them. Holders of wildfire. Children of the sun. Scores of masculine and feminine creatures filled the courtyard. Hundreds of them, maybe. She lost count trying to see into all of their faces. Their golden eyes burned into their leader, countless pointed ears and canines adding to the ferocity of their united front. When a few of their concentrated gazes seared into her, she swiftly looked away, choosing instead to marvel at the red and orange swirl of sky over their heads; a permanent sunset.