Swan Song ~ Shadow & Bone

7

When I got to Kirigan's study, I had calmed down slightly.

Very slightly.

He was leaning over his map as he typically was, but Ivan was there as well. They both looked up as I walked in, and I clasped my hands behind my back, lifting my chin as the epitome of professionalism (which I really was most definitely not).

"You sent for me, General," I said. He nodded and waved Ivan away. The tall Heartrender nodded to me as he left, and I did the same in return as I stepped further into the room, dropping my hands. "How did it go with Alina?" He chuckled under his breath and turned to walk into his room, motioning for me to follow him.

"You know perfectly well how it went," he said as we walked. In a quieter voice, he added, "You always do somehow." I smiled a bit and nodded. "What about you? You said you would be here nearly twenty minutes ago. What kept you?" He stopped walking and looked back at me. "Does it have to do with why you're trying to act like you're not upset?" My eyes widened a bit, but I chuckled, looking down and shaking my head.

"And you say I always know," I muttered. I looked up at him and sighed. "I'm fine. Really. I just... saw someone I hadn't seen in a while. We disagreed about something." I blinked slowly, looking away from him. "We never used to. We used to agree about everything." He sighed and nodded.

"Who was it?" I gulped and shook my head.

"Just somebody I used to know." Despite everything, I couldn't bear the thought of Kaz getting hurt because of something I said. He was still my brother, and I would still do everything I could to protect him for as long as it was possible. I sighed and looked up at Kirigan, "Is everything set for tonight?" He narrowed his eyes at me, suspicious of my change of subject, but said nothing about it.

"Yes," he confirmed. "Everything is ready. And if it's a success, we may be able to move forward with the plan sooner than we thought." I smiled a bit.

"Well that's good news." He smiled and nodded, leaning back on his bedpost.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked gently. "Usually by this point you would have made some joke about how everything is working because you were involved, but today..? Nothing..." He sighed. "I just don't like seeing you upset. Please... what can I do to make it better?" I sighed and shook my head.

"You can't fix everything, Aleks," I told him. "This is one of those things that... just happens. No one can help it, and I'll just have to get over it and move on. I won't let this get in the way." He shook his head.

"I know you won't, you never let anything get in your way. Trust me, I know. But that doesn't mean you have to pretend it never happened." I sighed and forced myself to look away from him, my eyes landing on the clock on the wall and widening.

"Shit," I muttered. I looked up at him. "I'm supposed to meet Hadley and Jeliah to start getting ready for the Fete." I smiled apologetically. "We'll talk later?" He sighed and nodded, waving towards the door. As I went to leave, he called after me.

"Don't think I'll forget about this!" I chuckled under my breath and shook my head.

"Trust me, I know you won't!"

🜂

Somehow–I have no idea how–Hadley and Jeliah were able to convince me to wear a dress to the Fete as opposed to sticking with my kefta. It was similar to my kefta, but a hell of a lot nicer. Plus the makeup and hair that Genya had done earlier? I looked almost like a completely different person. But in a good way.

So as I stood in front of my mirror with Jeliah and Hadley on either side of me grinning like maniacs, it was safe to say I felt very, very good about myself, which wasn't something I said a whole lot.

"You look," Jeliah said happily, "absolutely stunning!" Hadley laughed and nodded enthusiastically.

"Are you sure you don't have a partner?" they asked. "Because that would be a monumental waste." I furrowed my brows and looked over at them.

"You're taken!" I exclaimed. "Back the hell up!" Jeliah laughed, and Hadley rolled their eyes.

"Shut up!" they said, trying to hold back chuckles. "I'm just saying you look stunning. Take the damn compliment, bitch!" I laughed, and a knock on the door brought us back to reality. We had very little time before the demonstration, and I was a part of that. Hadley ran to open the door as Jeliah touched up a few stray hairs that had fallen in the time between Genya doing it and now, and I swatted her hands away, looking towards the door to see Hadley leading Kirigan in. He stood there with an awe-struck look on his face.

"You look..," he trailed off, unable to form the proper words. I smiled, and he chuckled nervously, which was a rare occurrence for the Darkling. "You look amazing, Katya." I stood up, smoothing out my dress, and curtsied jokingly.

"Why, thank you, moi soverenyi," I said happily. He grinned, rolling his eyes, and held out an arm.

"Are you ready?" he asked quietly. I glanced back at Hadley and Jeliah, who in turn motioned me forwards. I laughed and looked up at Kirigan.

"I suppose I am then." I hooked my arm through his, and he led me through the halls of diplomats and ambassadors, some of whom stopped us to say hello and express their thanks for the war effort. When we finally reached the main ballroom, we both dropped our arms and approached the king and queen, bowing slightly.

"General," King Pyotr greeted. His gaze turned to me. "Lieutenant." Kirigan nodded.

"Tsar," he said softly. "Moya tsaritsa." He smiled politely and stood to his full height, making me feel even shorter next to him. "I do hope you're both enjoying the festivities." King Pyotr nodded, glancing around the room.

"I must confess, I'm not bored." Queen Tatiana nodded, smiling (though I could tell it was forced).

"I quite like it," she said. "There's always been a certain... quaintness about the Little Palace." I forced myself not to glare, and I felt extremely lucky when everyone's attention was drawn to the entrance to our right. I looked over and smiled when I saw Alina approaching in a black and gold kefta.

Everyone's conversations stopped at the sight of the Sun Summoner.