Mia's POV
--------------------
My hand slips into Knox's and he guides me into the crowd of elves slow dancing to the music. It's just like dances on Earth; some people are stepping in a choreographed way, others just swaying. I spot Elanil, dancing with Halion, her face lighting up with laughter as they talk to each other. I smile subconciously.
Once we step around a few people Knox stops, hesitating for a second. If I didn't know how confident in themselves elves are, I would think he's a little nervous.
We keep our left hands together, Knox resting his other hand on my back. I put my right arm on top of his, my hand resting on his upper arm. I've never slow-danced with anyone before, but Knox seems to know what he's doing, taking small steps back and forth. I copy him, looking past him at the other people dancing in order to get my heart rate back to normal. Should I look at him? Would that be awkward? It shouldn't be. I also notice a few elves, mostly girls, glancing over at me and my partner. I can't help it- I look down and smile. Who would've guessed the newbie halfblood would be dancing with the Prince.
Well, technically I am a princess. Ex-princess.
The music plays softly in the background. I'm acutely aware of everything at the moment- how his hand rests on the small of my back. How warm the air in between us is- and how close we are to each other. His smell, like fresh air, cedar wood, the forest, maybe a bit of cinnamon. The music combined with the feeling of Knox's strong arm around me has any unease melting away, leaving a content yet energetic feeling inside me.
After a few seconds I decide to be brave and look back at him. He's looking over my shoulder, but slides his eyes to mine when I look over.
"So, how long have elves been doing this? The Solstice, I mean."
"Hmm... I don't even know. As long as I've been alive, as long as my mother has been alive. A long time." He closes his lips in a small, soft smile. I nod, taking a deep breath and letting it out in a sigh.
I glance up at the ceiling, at the fireflies lazily bobbing up and down under the clear canopy, the stars glittering. It reminds me of when I was little, and my mom and I drove to a hiking trail on a mountain and hiked it as the sun set. By the time we got to the top it was dark, and the stars were so bright I just lied down and looked at them for hours. As we walked back down my mom pointed out fireflies, and I remember commenting that they were like 'ground stars.' My mom had laughed, agreeing and holding my hand as we headed back to our car.
Suddenly I can feel the lump building in my throat, and I can feel my eyes about to become misty. I quickly tear down the memory. I don't want to think about home now. I don't want to cry now, on this perfect night.
"What is it?" Knox says quietly, obviously noticing my discomfort. I bite my lip, debating whether I should shake my head and keep dancing. Whether I should tell him or not.
"Just... I got a memory. Thinking of home. Stupid," I sigh, looking at him. His amber eyes shine in the lantern light. It's completely night now, but the full moon above us casts the whole world in a cool, creamy blue glow.
"It's not stupid," Knox says kindly, squeezing my hand comfortingly as we continue to dance, moving aside as a pair of elves dance past, laughing. "You must miss it."
"Sometimes, yeah. Mostly just my mom." I don't always miss Earth itself. I like it here, a lot. I just miss my mom. It's only been a little under a month since I left, but still. I wonder what she's doing right now.
Knox nods.
"You know, I don't know what kind of fate brought you here, or what will happen, but I know that you're here for a reason. And you will see your mother again. I promise. I-" He pauses, as if trying to find the right words. "I'm glad you're here, though. I think your dad would have liked you to see his home. No matter what happens, you'll always be welcome here. And If you need anything, I am here for you Mia."
I stare up at him, not sure how to respond at first. I just listen to the pounding of my heart in my ears as I try to think of what to say. Then I get a thought, that I don't have to say anything at all. Throughout this whole crazy journey Knox has been kind to me, has become my friend. And no matter what has happened he seems to care about me, and still does.
So I step forward and raise up on the balls of my feet, wrapping my arms around him in a genuinely grateful hug. He seems surprised for a second, but then returns the gesture. I can hear his fast heartbeat as I rest my head against his shoulder, closing my eyes as his smell wraps around me. I stupidly pray that he can't hear my heartbeat when I know he 100% can. But I still hope.
"Thank you," I whisper, knowing he can hear me just fine as the slow, rhythmic music seeps into the night.
The bare tree branches knock against each other overhead as a gust of wind passes through, hitting me and tugging at my skirt. But I don't feel the cold now; how can I?
-
After another, more lively dance with Elanil and Hal, I part from the group to get food, eating dinner by myself at one of the tables on a platform a good 50 feet up into a tree. It was nice to get some alone time, to think and not think at all, just eat and survey the elves below me.
After eating I search for Elanil. It takes asking around a bit, but I finally find her. She's in a clearing a few yards away from the commotion, lying on her back on a padded, round chair. It looks like those beach chairs you see at fancy hotels, the round ones with no back, just a white, soft pad to sit on. It's like that, and I notice as I walk over to her that there are multiple on the snow, and a few elves sit or lie on other ones as well. Trying to ignore how cold my hands are already I walk over to El, knowing somehow that I won't trip even though it's pitch black, with only a few lanterns to light the way.
The pad of the chair is soft and almost velvety as I place my hand on it and ease myself down next to El.
"Hi," I say quietly.
"Hey," she responds, still staring up. I look up as well, and a breath plumes out of me. The stars are brighter than any stars I've ever seen. They shine like diamonds, sparkling and twinkling in the sky. Not only can I see the closest stars but also the stars past that, so far away that they look like dim pinpricks of light. It creates layers upon layers of stars, none hindered by light pollution- All of the lights from the trees around me are out besides the ones lighting the buffet and dance floor behind us.
"This is amazing," I breath, my thoughts straying off and disintegrating as I lose myself in the universe of stars around me. I can hear Elanil shift, nodding.
"They are beautiful," she agrees.
"Do you name them? The stars, I mean."
"Yeah, actually. That one over there-" El lifts her arm up and points to a group of stars that, if I think creatively enough, resemble a crown with an arrow under it. "-is Lyra. It's named after Queen Lyra. She was our Queen thousands of years ago. That's part of the reason why the stars are so important to us. We believe that after you die you become part of the stars."
"I thought you said you return to nature? Like, your body decomposes..?" I ask, keeping my voice low to match the quiet, serene atmosphere around me.
"Yes, well, that too. Obviously your body decomposes and becomes part of the earth. But your soul, your spirit, becomes a star. If you've lost a loved one, you know what their star is. It's kind of like another elf sense. But everyone knows the stars of past kings and queens."
My breath catches at her last sentence. I turn my head to look at her.
"Does that mean... Does my dad have a star? I mean, is he a star up there?"
Elanil smiles, nodding. She raises her hand, but must think better of it, resting it on her stomach.
"See if you can find him."
I return my gaze to the night sky, scanning the stars. They all look random now, I can't see any shapes. I sigh and find Lyra again, branching out from there to try to find something. I look to my right, and get a flare of emotion in my chest when I see a star, peeking out from behind a bare tree branch. It might not look this way to El, but to me it seems to shine brighter than all the others. It's super bright, and some more dull stars around it collect in my vision until I put the duller and bright ones together. It forms a constellation of a tree, with roots of teeny stars that spiral in all directions.
"There," I say, looking over. I have a feeling I don't even need to point. El nods.
"A tree. It means peace, but the roots that stabilize it also represent strength. It's a perfect tribute."
Even though I only knew my father for the first five years of my life, I know she's right. He was kind, and strong. And so many more things. I wish I had had the time to find out.
"Yeah," I whisper, "it is perfect."
-
"I don't understand how that works," I ask incredulously to Halion. I'm currently standing on the dance floor with him, which is now more a place to stand and talk, with a few elves still dancing.
"It's tradition, sooo... You have to." He grins at me and I laugh.
"But it's freezing!"
Halion just finished telling me that it is an elven tradition to sleep under the stars on Solstices; a way to feel more connected to their ancestors.
"We have blankets. Oh, and here. I grabbed you one."
He hands me a lump of coal. Yes, you heard me. A lump of black coal about the size of my eyeball. I take it daintily, only to realize that it doesn't smear coal dust on my fingers, as I thought it would. It's oddly smooth. I stare at it for a few seconds before looking up at Hal curiously.
"What's a lump of coal going to do?"
"Just give it a few seconds..."
I wait, holding the coal in my open palm. A few seconds later I feel a warmth spread through my whole body, starting at my toes and working it's way up, until it completely fills me. It feels just like stepping into a hot bath, except I'm completely dry. I stare in shock at Hal, the the stone. Halion laughs, pointing at me as his face crinkles with laughter.
"Your face!"
I swat at his shoulder playfully.
"Anyway," he continues, "yeah. We call it an ember. Or ember stone, depending on who you talk to."
"How does it work?" I ask, turning the lukewarm stone over in my hands. The stone isn't even hot, but I'm suddenly the perfect temperature. I press my fingertips to my face. They're warm. A smile spreads on my face. This is so cool.
"It's just like the transport stones. We can't wield powers, so we use objects that can hold certain powers for us. Coals, obviously, trap heat. So we just add a little magic and boom! Don't ask how they make them specifically. That is a class I did not take in school."
I shake my head with laughter, putting the ember into a handy little pocket in an under layer of my dress.
"Well, Knox, Flint and I are going to sleep on the platform on the Life Tree. Where are you going?"
I look around at all the elves milling about, trying to spot Elanil. I frown when I can't spot her, turning back to Hal.
"I don't know... Probably with Elanil if I can find her..?"
"Okay. You can always come up with us if you want. Goodnight."
He smiles and turns, heading in the direction of the castle. I furrow my eyebrows, a slight, amused smile on my face. I guess here gender isn't a big deal. Back home things would be a lot different if a guy said I could sleep even in proximity to them. But here it's not about anything sexual, it's purely innocent and friendly.
I love how carefree elves are.
Eventually I find El- Well, actually, she found me. She invited me to sleep with her and her friends on this big platform of a branch in the same tree her home rests on. There are sleeping pads on the floor, enough for all of us. Elanil gives me a warm, animal skin blanket and we all spread out across the flat top of the humongous branch, which is big enough that I have a few feet in between me and the two elves on either side of me. One of El's friends offered to switch places with me and sleep next to the edge of the platform, which drops about 50 feet to the ground. I'm thankful, though I feel like I wouldn't fall. For some reason.
After a few minutes of tossing and turning and a while of staring up at the stars I finally fall asleep, the cool wind on my cheek and the starlight gazing upon me.
—————————————————————————