Daughters of Blood

Chapter 6

The gardens of the castle were small, but well-maintained and luxurious. Jaia didn't know how such lush foliage was able to grow here, even if it wasn't as cold as the North. The staff employed at the castle must have plenty of time on their hands and a love of plants. She appreciated that.

The light from the ballroom illuminated a winding path that disappeared into the garden, trees and flowers creating an element of privacy. Ducking under the branches of a weeping willow, she gazed up at the fireflies that sparkled in the tree, lighting up the path underneath with warm light. Holding out a finger, she let one land, watching how it fluttered its wings before flying away again. Here, she could breathe. Here, she could pretend that men in power didn't want anything from her, not death or sex or decisions.

Zephyr ducked under the branches to join her, tilting her head. The fireflies painted her in a warm, soft light, and few danced around her horns as they brushed the upper branches of the tree. "Are you alright, Your Majesty?"

"He thinks he can just insert himself in my life... in me... without consequence." Jaia wrapped her arms around herself, letting out a long breath. "I am a Queen! I am the ruler of my kingdom and he is nothing but a ladder-climbing fool who wishes to bed me. He probably wants to steal my kingdom out from under me because he can't have his own. He probably has the pox!"

Zephyr muffled a laugh, cutting off her rant, and covered her mouth. "I am sorry. I don't mean to laugh."

"No, laugh. It is laughable that he thinks he can weasel his way in like this, talk to me like this, when I am more of a ruler than he will ever be." Jaia closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then let it out. She lowered her arms and straightened her back, the very picture of a monarch who had it all together, who wasn't bothered by handsy, forward Princes. "I came here to relax. I just wish I could dance at a ball without feeling like my partner will take something from me at any moment."

"I wouldn't take anything from you."

The monster's voice was soft, almost too soft for Jaia to catch, but she did. The Queen glanced at her silk-clad bodyguard, hidden from prying eyes under the weeping willow with her, eyes shining in the soft glow of the fireflies. Something in her belly fluttered as if she had swallowed one. "Do you dance, Zephyr?"

"I have never danced." Zephyr stepped forward slowly, holding out a hand. "But I would dance with you, if you would dance with me."

Jaia reached out a hand to take the monster's massive one, stepping closer. An arm hesitantly slid around her, and Jaia rested her arm on top, almost embracing her. Their size difference made the position awkward, but in this moment, neither cared. The Queen gazed up into the face of her bodyguard and saw softness, adoration. She could feel herself sinking into the warmth of her fur. Gentle music from the ballroom stirred the silence and it felt like the most natural thing in the world to shift their feet together, Jaia gently leading and Zephyr following her steps. They glided in a circle, step by step, underneath the tree.

Jaia felt lighter, somehow. Here was a dance partner who didn't want to kill her, to use her, to do anything other than enjoy this moment, dancing together, out of the public eye where she could relax. No Prince or King could give her that. This monster of fame and legend, who cradled her so gently in her arms, who gazed at her so lovingly, was the most human of them all.

Above their heads, Zephyr's horns got caught in the branches, and she stumbled, attempting to wrench them free. A heavy foot caught on the hem of Jaia's gown and tripped her up, and she grabbed hold of the monster as she stumbled and fell. They landed in a tangle of limbs on the ground, shocked and winded. Zephyr was quick to push herself up, terrified that she'd crushed her Queen underneath her massive weight, but Jaia was giggling, her dark curls with their gold beads woven in scattered around her head in the grass. "I've never failed so badly at a dance that I've ended up on the ground before," she grinned up at Zephyr. "Lucky it's only you who saw that, or I'd never have anyone's respect again."