"You're going to make an excellent queen," he said. ,
"Thank you. But I think that's still up for debate. And if I want to do the title justice, then I need to learn more about magic." I glanced at the ground, feeling a little guilty that I'd been thinking about Jake as much as my role as queen when I was considering learning more about magic.
But I should put that first. The Jake thing was just a helpful by-product, and I would do well to remember that.
"Is there more you can teach me?" I asked him.
He chuckled, taking my change of subject in stride. He'd make good royalty too.
No. Wait, that wasn't the kind of thought I should be having.
"There are plenty of things I can teach you. That wasn't looking too bad, though." He gestured towards the target.
"Thank you. But I don't feel like I'm good enough."
"How long have you been practicing for?"
"Today and yesterday," I muttered. "I had some lessons when I was younger, obviously, but they were a long time ago, and I don't remember all that much of them."
"So, a few hours, and you're already this good?" He whistled appreciatively and pushed away from the pillar he was leaning on.
"Erm, I suppose." I wasn't sure how to take any of this.
"You have real talent, Kelis. With a few weeks of practice, you can probably take the title at the competition the day after the Fright Festival."
"You think so?" I asked, my eyes widening and excitement blooming in my chest. This wasn't what I expected when I started practicing magic, but for some reason, that was what caught my attention now.
"Definitely. If it's something you want."
"I do." The words were out before I even thought them through.
"Good. Then we need to get to practicing. Your stance still needs a little work. Do you have any chalk?"
I shook my head. "But, I can get some for next time we practice?" I hoped he'd agree, that would mean we got to do this again. And if I was honest with myself, it was only partly to do with the magic that I wanted to meet. I also found myself enjoying Topher’s company. He was easy to get along with.
"Yes, that's a good idea. But for now..." He pulled out his wand and gave it a wave. Two markers appeared on the floor, presumably, for where he wanted me to put my feet.
"Why do you need chalk if you can just do that?" I asked.
"Relying on magic to do everything is as an easy way of becoming complacent. Magic is a useful tool, but it isn't something we should use for everything."
"I thought you were supposed to be the president of the magic society at the university," I quipped.
"I am. But I got there from understanding things like that. From what I've seen, you're the kind of person who'll see the same things."
I nodded. There was no denying that what he was saying was true. It was one of the reasons I'd never used a lot of magic myself. Other things needed my time, and that made them more important. My parents were the same. In fact, while I'd seen them use magic on a lot of occasions, it had never been to solve a major issue.
"Right, get into position. Right foot on the front line, left foot on the back one. We'll work on your wand holding angle," Topher said.
"What was I doing wrong?" I frowned but got into the position he'd instructed anyway. He knew what he was talking about, and I was going to make the most of it.
"Nothing, there's just a better way for you to do it."
"Alright." I lifted my arm. "Up? Down? To the side?" I needed to be careful, or I was going to start babbling.
"Up slightly, and to the left. You're thinking too directly. While the wind won't affect the direction of your spell like it would an arrow, you still have to adjust for your own bias."
I nodded.
I did as he said. "How is this?"
"Better. But try firing a spell, and then, we'll see."
I shot off some magic. The golden streak headed for the target. It seemed like it was going to hit the center until it came into contact, just to the right of where I wanted it to be.
I groaned. "Why can't I do this?"
"You've been practicing for two days, and you're frustrated because you can almost hit the target perfectly?" Topher joked.
"Well, when you put it like that, maybe I'm being a little ridiculous. But I just want to make sure I do it right."
"I know that feeling. My parents pushed me to be perfect too."
"It's not my parents," I defended. "They've never been anything but supportive. I just don't want to let them down." And some of that came from my insecurity about the fact I was adopted. The last thing I wanted was for my parents to regret taking me on.
"Ah, well, mine aren't like that. They wanted me to be the poster boy for the Enchantian middle class. Good at spells, win the most competitions, you know the deal."
Ah. That made some kind of sense with what I'd seen of him. "And you don't like that?"
"It's been helpful." He shrugged. "Now I'm at university. I get to keep a lot of my winnings for myself. And I can start being myself a little bit more."
"Hence the hair?" I asked before I could stop myself.
He chuckled. "Exactly. But you understand that, right?" He gestured to my black dress.
I smiled and nodded. "Being me is more important than conforming," I said. "It's nice to find someone else who feels the same."
13th October
After a morning of paperwork, I found myself having lunch with Adam and his friends. Both Rhi and Topher had invited me, and it had seemed rude to refuse. I reached over and grabbed one of the small finger sandwiches from the tray in the middle of the table.
"Are you all sorted out for what you're going to wear to the Fright Festival?" Adam asked the group.
"I found this dress; it's got panels cut out of it here and here." Lyss gestured to her body with a smile on her face.
Jake scowled at her, clearly unhappy with what she was suggesting.
"It sounds lovely," Rhi said with a little too much enthusiasm for her to be telling the truth. She glanced back and forth between the couple, clearly trying to defuse the situation. I didn't blame her. I could already feel tension radiating from the two of them.
I picked up the teapot and poured myself a cup rather than enter the conversation. Lyss already didn't like me. There was no need to make it worse.
"Not drinking, Kelis?" Adam joked, trying to help Rhi out.
"I have work to do this afternoon," I reminded him. There was no point in explaining that I didn't drink much anyway. It wasn't my thing. I had the odd glass of wine at official dinners, but I didn't like the way it made my head hazy. Not unlike the situation at the arena the other day. I repressed a shiver, just thinking about it.
"Work?" Jake scrunched up his face. "Why are you doing work?"
"I'm a princess; it comes with the job description," I joked, only a little offended that he didn't think I did anything useful with my time.
"But why? You have all these servants to do things for you."
"That's not how it works. Some things only the royal family can deal with. We have the whole of Enchantia to look after."
Everyone's eyes were on me, causing my nerves to spring to life. I wasn't sure what was putting me so on edge.
I met Topher's gaze across the table, and he gave me a reassuring nod. I sucked in a breath, steadying myself.
"It's not something anyone but me needs to worry about," I said, putting on the best imitation of Mother's queen-voice that I could. If this wasn't going to convince them, then I wasn't sure what would.
Luckily for me, they seemed to find it uninteresting and moved back to talking about the Fright Festival. I didn't want to admit that I felt relief to be out of the spotlight, but I couldn't help it.
"I was thinking about putting some of that glitter here," Lyss said, running her fingers along her neck and collarbone. She was the center of attention again, just where she liked to be.
"You can't do that," Jake fumed.<
br />
I frowned. Why couldn't she? I might not like Lyss, but the part of her body she was indicating wasn't exactly provocative. I actually thought it would look pretty good under the lights filling the street during the Fright Festival. Not that I said any of that, I didn't want to get between them, especially not when they were fighting.
"I can." Lyss narrowed her eyebrows at Jake and picked up a cupcake.
Rhi pushed a crumb around her plate, and Adam turned to Topher to strike up a conversation. None of them wanted to be part of the argument that was no doubt brewing. I didn't want to be either.
Lyss and Jake exchanged heated whispers. I tuned them out, not listening to whatever it was they were arguing about. Even if I'd seen her with Michael, it wasn't really any of my business.
I gestured to one of the servants, knowing that if I wanted to get out of here before they started screaming, this was my chance.
One of the footmen shuffled forward, eyeing the couple cautiously.
"Your Highness." He dipped his head and waited for my orders.
"Could you clear the food plates and bring a pot of coffee to my office, please. I’ll be heading up there shortly."
"Of course, Your Highness." He gestured to the other servants, and they swarmed the table, clearing up the food and plates.
Rhi flashed me a grateful look, clearly pleased to be getting the excuse to leave.
I rose to my feet and opened my mouth to say that I was excusing myself for work.
"You don't know what you're talking about," Lyss half-screamed, tears in her eyes.
"I do! You've been acting ridiculously since we got here," Jake growled.
"What do you know? You don't pay me any attention at all."
I shot a look at Rhi, who seemed about as confused as I was. Perhaps Lyss wasn't just using Jake after all.
"Lyss..." Jake's face softened a bit. A harsh voice in my head whispered that he was only acting that way because he knew the rest of us were watching now.
"Don't Lyss me!" she hissed, jumping to her feet even as she eyed up the glass of wine by Jake's hand as if debating whether or not she should throw it on him. A small part of me wanted her to do it, if only because it would be one more thing that might help Jake see that she was all wrong for him.
"Lyss..."
Adam sucked in a breath from beside me, no doubt, realizing that his best friend had said completely the wrong thing.
"Argh." Lyss didn't pick up the wine glass, but stormed out instead, her long blonde hair flicking behind her as she did and adding to the drama. At least, she'd appreciate that. She seemed like the kind of girl who cared about making a scene.
"What did I do?" Jake asked, looking straight at Adam.
My cousin shrugged, as clueless as the rest of us.
Darkness shrouded Jake's eyes as he scraped his chair back. The sound went right through me, setting my teeth on edge. I held my tongue. He was angry, and like a beast, he didn’t need prodding.
He grabbed his wine glass and downed it in one, before leaning into the center of the table and snatching up a full bottle of the stuff.
"No one wants this, right?" He looked between us as if daring one of us to contradict him and tell him he couldn't have it.
I shook my head. "The servants can bring us more if we want it," I said evenly. Though from the expressions on the others' faces, they wouldn't be partaking themselves.
"Good." Jake strode away, the bottle in hand. At least, he'd left the glass behind so the servants could clear it up.
I slumped back into my seat, relieved that was over with.
"Do you want to head out to do some magic practice?" Topher asked, looking straight at me, though I was certain he meant the room in general.
"I think that's an excellent idea, it'll take all of our minds off things," Adam blustered, getting to his feet.
"I'd rather go read a book," Rhi said softly.
“We have an excellent library,” I assured her.
"Alright then, Rhi will go read a book. Topher and I will go cast spells. You coming, Kelis?" Adam asked.
I shook my head. "I really should get some work done, but I'll come down in an hour or so." I wasn't sure I was ready for him to see how unpracticed I was at magic. Topher might be a risk in that too, but he'd never made me feel bad about my lack of magical training.
Topher's face fell, but he covered it up the moment he noticed me watching.
"I'll be down later," I promised with a smile. I wanted to practice as much magic as possible, especially with Lyss and Jake's relationship falling apart in front of me.
Much later, I shrugged off my jacket, freeing my arms from the stiff confines. I didn't mind this time of year, but the chill in the air was too much to go out without one.
"Your hair is a disaster," the mirror said moments later.
"Thanks," I muttered. What did I care what it thought? I'd been outside practicing magic, and a fall wind had swept through the yard.
"That wasn't a compliment," it retorted.
"I didn't think it was."
I slipped off my holster, and put my wand back on the stand. I wasn't planning on leaving my room again tonight, so there was no need for me to keep my wand strapped to me.
A knock sounded on my door, and I startled.
"Coming," I called.
The door opened before I reached for the handle.
"Jake?" I said surprised. He was the last person I'd expected to see staggering into my room as if he owned the place.
"One of the servants told me where your room was." His words slurred together, but I could still work out what he was saying.
"They did?" That was surprising. But, Jake was charming, so perhaps that was it.
"Yes." He pushed past me and into my rooms, letting out a loud whistle. "Wow, they give you nice digs here, don't they?"
I wasn't sure what was the best way to respond to that. This wasn't the way I expected Jake to end up in my room, and I wasn't sure how I felt about that.
"Can I help you?" I asked, trying to keep my cool, but it wasn't easy.
"You can explain how you have so much room when all I have is a one-bedroom with a tiny window that barely lets in any light."
"I live here," I pointed out. "This is my only room."
"Other than your office," he slurred, stumbling towards my dressing room. I hoped he didn't go in there.
"Yes, this and my office. But I only use that for work," I insisted.
"That's no fun." He stumbled towards the mirror.
"So, you said." I couldn't relax enough while he was that close to it. What if it said something? Magic was normal around here, so he shouldn't find it too strange if the mirror started talking to him unless he'd heard the stories about Mother. Then he might have some questions.
"You still haven't told me what you're doing here," I reminded him.
"You're nice. Did you know that?" He swiveled around and faced me, his eyes roving up and down me.
"I try to be," I responded.
"How have I overlooked you?" he murmured.
I stood in the middle of my rooms staring at him. How did I respond to that?
"I shouldn't have said that."
"It's fine," I whispered, looking down at the floor. It felt like it was less likely to put me in a weird situation.
Every thought in my mind faded away as Jake closed the distance between us, his footsteps all I could focus on. I'd thought about this moment so many times. Dreamed of it and hoped that it would become real.
And now it was.
I opened and closed my hands, resisting the urge to wipe them on my skirt to dry away some of the nervous sweat that seemed to have formed on them.
Jake reached out and placed a hand under my chin, lifting my face so he could look into my eyes.
I blinked a few times, trying to determine if this was real or if my imagination was running wild with some fantasy.
His breath smelled like the wine he'd taken from the table, but
there was no way he was still under the effects of that. He must have gotten some more from one of the servants. I didn't like the sour scent of it, but I wasn't about to let that ruin my moment with Jake.
He closed the gap between us by circling an arm around my waist and pulling me closer. The smell intensified with him being closer, so I started breathing through my mouth to help against that.
"I want to kiss you, Kelis."
It sent a shiver down my spine, and not in a good way.
“What about Lyss?” I whispered.
“She’s sleeping with one of your staff, I believe,” Jake snorted.
He knew about that?
There was no more time to think about it, as his mouth crashed down on mine. My eyes widened before I realized what was happening and closed them. I was finally getting the moment I'd always craved with Jake, I was going to enjoy this, no matter what.
So why did I have the urge to push him away? This wasn't right. I wanted to enjoy this. More than that, I needed to enjoy it.
But his hold was too tight, the kiss was too wet, and the stench of alcohol was too strong. More importantly, I was able to think. That shouldn't be the case.
What did I do now?
I needed to stop this. It was wrong. He was drunk, and this wasn't how I wanted our first kiss to go.
With as much strength as I could, I pushed Jake away from me, breaking our kiss. This definitely wasn't what I expected to happen.
"Kelis?" He frowned, a fleeting look of anger crossing through his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I can't." I shook my head. "It isn't right."
"What do you mean, it isn't right? I thought you had a crush on me?" he demanded.
My mouth dropped open. I knew he was aware of my feelings, Adam had told him while I'd listened. But that didn't mean he got to take advantage of the fact while he was drunk..
"I want you to leave," I said softly. "If you want to pick this up tomorrow once the wine has worn off, then you know where to find me. But right now, you need to leave." There was more strength in my voice than I expected, but that was good right now.
"I'm sorry, what?" Confusion was written all over his face.
Queen of Reflections: A Snow White retelling (Kingdom of Fairytales Snow White Book 1) Page 7