by Lucy Roy
“Alright, Commander, I will make the best of this situation you’ve helped put me in,” she resolved with a smile. “Maybe I’ll even make a friend or two that you haven’t lined up for me.”
“With your charms?” He laughed and shook his head. “I have no doubt.”
Chapter 11
Freya was pleasantly surprised to find that Lazarus and Collin had pilfered another meal from the dining hall while she’d been off with her father. When she walked into her room, they and Lea were all sitting on the floor with a spread so large it might’ve made a Solstice celebration seem meager.
“No dining hall tonight?” Freya asked lightly, kicking off her muddied boots and sitting down beside Laz. He handed her a seeded breadstick and slid a plate of hard cheese and fig jam toward her, which she gratefully started nibbling.
“As your roommate,” Lea said slowly, “I chose not to subject myself to the incessant curiosity of the masses.”
Freya spread a bit more jam on her cheese. “Meaning?”
“Meaning, word of your father’s stunt in Combat quickly made the rounds, and now everyone knows who and what you are.” She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Others began asking me questions, which I didn’t particularly care to deal with.”
Freya winced. “I’m sorry, Lea. He’s insufferable.”
Lea narrowed her eyes. “Aerelius wanted to come over, but I told him to give you a bit of space after his little display. Was that the right thing to do?”
“It was,” Freya said, relieved at her friend’s forethought. “I just came from talking with my father, and I don’t really care to hash anything more out tonight.”
“Do you truly feel your father was wrong?” Collin asked. “In wanting everyone to know who you are?”
Freya shifted uncomfortably. “No. It’s honestly quite rare I disagree with his choices, even when they involve me.”
Lea smirked. “Is that so?”
Collin sent her a silencing look before asking, “Then why do you seem so unhappy?”
“It’s his methods that infuriate me. I thought we had an agreement that I could take my time settling in, but he clearly felt otherwise.” Freya pouted a bit as she examined her fingernails. “And it hurts when your wings are forced to extend like that.”
“What’s done is done, though,” Collin said with a shrug. “Now you simply need to figure out how to deal with it.”
“And we’re happy to provide some insight on those worth allowing into your social circle,” Lea told her. “I wasn’t wrong when I said you’re best avoiding falling in with the wrong types.”
“Such as…?”
“Social vultures,” Laz said. “Myria and her ilk.”
“Yes, don’t be surprised if she attempts to befriend you now that she knows who your father is,” Lea added.
“Myria is part of a governing house, though, so don’t turn her away on instinct,” Collin cautioned. “Having a good relationship with her could be beneficial.”
“True,” Lea allowed. “Your species likely doesn’t matter to her, but Byrric has significant political power, not to mention the king’s ear.”
“Which was exactly why I didn’t want to be outed as his daughter so soon,” Freya groaned. “I spent my childhood being paraded around the royal court. As much as I hated being away from my father, living in Watoria was quite freeing.”
“Because you glamoured yourself?” Lea asked quietly. “I have to admit, we were a bit surprised when you showed up looking a bit… unlike your description.”
“Partly. Very few who lived there knew who I was, and those who did just didn’t care as much. The marshals saw me as an asset because my parents trained me, but they let me work with them because of my skill. No one was trying to get Byrric’s ear or hoping I could use my familiarity with the royal family to land an audience. I was just… me.” Freya tugged on her hair. “I glamoured myself so that this blasted hair didn’t stick out like a beacon and blow my cover, so to speak.”
“It is quite unique,” Collin admitted, his blue eyes dancing with interest as he scanned her newly-revealed features.
“Thank Byrric for that,” Freya grumbled. “Apparently, male Valkyrie aren’t unlike peacocks when it comes to their appearances.”
“It’s lovely, though,” Lea commented, lifting the end of Freya’s braid from her shoulder. Wrinkling her nose, she pulled at her own dark curls that now tumbled over her narrow shoulders. “I’d love a bit of pink in my hair, to be honest. It would make my eyes stand out, don’t you agree?”
“You never know, Freya,” Laz said with a laugh. “You may start a trend.”
Freya gave them a half-smile. “Maybe. It’s just so frustrating that my reputation is tied to his.”
“Irrevocably so, unfortunately,” Collin agreed. “Although you knew that before you got here.”
“Well I think you’re both wrong.” Lazarus gave Freya an encouraging smile. “You’ll forge your own reputation sooner than you think. And look at the bright side,” he added. “That whole ‘receiver of the crown’s charity’ spiel Myria was spouting just got put to rest quite cleanly.”
Freya couldn’t help but smile at that.
Freya was thankful that her first class the following day was History, the only other course she had with Lea, Lazarus, and Collin. As with Toxins, Lea insisted on arriving early to ensure they got the best seats.
Pursing her lips, she looked around the room, taking in the number of students who seemed to share the idea of arriving early.
“The back is still mostly empty,” Freya said.
Lea sent her an annoyed look but relented when Collin began to lead the way toward the back of the room.
“I prefer it, too,” he told Freya, who was trying hard to shut out the whispers about “the commander’s daughter” and “the Valkyrie who’d flattened the prince,” that followed. “It’s more comfortable when you can see everyone else, don’t you think?”
She shot an I-told-you-so look at Lea. “Exactly.”
Freya looped the canvas satchel containing her texts around the back of her chair and took a seat beside Lea, while Lazarus and Collin sat behind them in the back row. Slowly, the room continued to fill, and more than a few furtive glances were sent in her direction as they waited for their professor to arrive. Her instinct was to look away when she caught the eyes of others, but she forced herself to meet their gazes, holding them until they looked away.
The seats immediately surrounding them remained mostly empty.
“Speaking of seats,” Freya said, nudging Lea as she recalled their previous conversation. “I believe you owe me twenty sils.”
Lea sent her a scathing look. “I’ll buy your outfit for dinner this weekend. How does that sound?”
“Dinner?” Freya arched a brow. “What dinner?”
Lea gave her a curious look. “Byrric hasn’t told you? We’re doing a family dinner at the palace.”
“But we’re not family.”
“You’re as good as,” Lazarus said. “And if Collin has to be subjected, it’s only fair that you do, too.”
Collin’s answering smile more closely resembled a grimace. “Yes, please, Freya. Don’t leave me alone with that clan.”
“It doesn’t sound as though I have much of a choice,” she murmured.
“So we’ll still plan to go shopping later this week?” Lea said, clasping her hands hopefully in front of her chest. “We can get fitted for dresses for the Commencement Ball, too!”
“Formalwear, hmm? I suppose spending a bit of Byrric’s money would be a good way to get back at him for yesterday.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “I think Edhilian gemstone barrettes to set off my hair might be nice.”
“Heavens, no!” Lea pressed a hand to her chest. “Opal is far more appropriate for a casual palace dinner. Save the gems for the ball.”
Freya tapped a finger to her lips. “Yes, green opal. The shade is one of my best colors, actually.”
; “There’s a lovely jeweler in Iladel who I’ve used on several occasions. Here name is Rosina, and she does wonderful work.” Lea squealed and clapped excitedly, then turned to Laz and Collin. “Oh, this will be so fun! Do you two want to come?”
Lazarus laughed as Collin gave her a dubious look. “Not on your life, dear cousin.”
“Oh, why not?” Lea whined. “You’ll need something new, too!”
“Which is exactly why Collin and I employ personal shoppers,” he said with a grin. “And it’s quite impossible for you to make a quick decision when it comes to fashion.”
“He’s not wrong,” Collin whispered to Freya.
“It’s fine, Lea,” Freya said, laughing. “A bit of girl time would be nice.”
“I suppose,” Lea said with a sigh. “It has been awhile since I’ve had female company.”
“So… how long do you think this will go on?” she asked Lea, letting her eyes drift across the room.
“The whispers will stop soon enough,” Lea replied. “Once the sucking up begins.”
“You know, they’d have far more luck sucking up to the prince,” Freya commented.
Lea laughed. “It’s been some time since you’ve been around my cousin, hasn’t it? He is the epitome of unapproachable.”
Freya inclined her head toward Myria, who sat in the front row. “She seems to have made her way in.”
Lea waved off her comment. “He tolerates her for his mother’s sake. Myria’s parents and the queen are friends. Lucia Bryton has high hopes of her daughter gaining upward mobility, although I don’t think she ever truly believed Myria would land Prince Aerelius.”
“They do nothing to discourage it?” Freya frowned. “That’s a bit cruel.”
“Oh, Aer discourages it, often and loudly,” Lea said. “Myria simply doesn’t listen. By the way.” She leaned toward Freya, eyes gleaming. “Aer is in this class, too.”
Before Freya could respond, two black-uniformed officers entered the room, each taking up flanking positions beside the door. The prince strode in a moment later, and the room went silent. He was dressed in a cobalt suede tunic, belted at the waist over fitted black pants tucked into gleaming, knee-high boots.
Movement at the front drew Freya’s attention to where Myria half-rose from her seat, a hand in the air in greeting.
Aerelius let his dark eyes roam over the room, taking in the students, the empty seats, before landing on Freya and the others. Mirth shifted into his dark eyes, and a smirk twitched the corners of his mouth.
Laz snickered from the other side of Lea as he waved Aerelius over. “Freya, we probably should’ve mentioned… putting the prince on his ass on the first day of Combat will draw just as much attention to you as who your sires are.”
“Attention based on skill is never unwelcome,” she told him haughtily.
There was a loud thud as Aerelius dropped his textbook on the desk next to Freya.
She smiled sweetly. “Good morning, Highness. Sleep well?”
“Funny thing,” he said, rubbing his jaw as he sat down and brushing lightly over the scruff. “I had this horrendous bruise on my chin that took several hours to heal before I could doze off.”
Freya stuck out her lower lip in a mock show of sympathy. “You should really take better care who you challenge in a fight, then. Don’t you think, Lea?”
Lea nodded sagely. “Without question. Our Lady Valkyrie here has quite the upper hook, from what I hear. Isn’t that correct, Myria?” she called.
Turning, Freya saw that Myria was staring unabashed at the five of them, her green eyes blazing. At Lea’s call, her face went crimson.
“A few lucky shots do not make a good fighter,” the blonde shot back. Clenching her jaw, she sent an annoyed look at Freya, then turned and faced forward.
“You shouldn’t goad her,” Aerelius commented as he flipped idly through his text book. “Myria can be quite vicious when she’s angry.”
“Oh?” Lea lifted her brow innocently. “What would you know about it?”
Aerelius angled his head to the side and gave his cousin an amused look, then shifted his eyes to Freya. “So, Valkyrie, I hear you’ll be gracing us with your presence at dinner this weekend.”
“I’ve heard that rumor, as well,” she replied. “Although, funny enough, no one has yet told me that I’m to attend.”
“I do hope you’ve managed to acquire appropriate attire,” he continued. “I hear Allanor's capital is a bit lacking when it comes to fashion.”
“It might surprise his Highness that I do recall what it means to attend a royal dinner. You act as though I was raised in the slums of Jotunheim.”
“And even if she were raised in that wretched empire,” Lea interjected, sending Freya a sharp look, “that’s what she has me for.” She gave the prince a brilliant smile.
“Yes, I can only imagine what the two of you will come up with when left to your own devices,” he muttered.
“I was thinking chartreuse, personally,” Lea began, tapping a finger thoughtfully against her chin.
“Oh, certainly,” Freya added, grinning. “Thigh-length, perhaps with some contrasting beadwork in a scandalous design. I saw one once in the shape of a man’s—”
“I see your sense of humor has improved with age,” Aerelius said, shaking his head. “Although I think you’ve sufficiently scandalized poor Professor Livurnia,” he added, nodding toward the front of the class.
Freya turned and immediately cursed the flush on her cheeks when she saw the small, bird-like female who’d just walked in.
“You could have warned me,” she hissed at Lea.
“Then how would I be able to call payback?”
Chapter 12
The rest of Freya’s first week at Aldridge went by uneventfully. She still received stares and was subjected to whispers and hushed conversations that seemed to follow her wherever she went, but those things had begun to die down by the third day.
By the time she finished Combat class on Friday, where, quite notably, the prince had avoided her entirely, she had begun to break through the whispers to get to know some of her fellow students, many of whom were interested in seeing her technique firsthand. Most were the lords and ladies of Iladel and the various eastern regions within the five realms, as well as the children of the realms’ governing houses, which was perfectly typical of the wealthier regions of Lindoroth. There were a few—hardly a handful, so far as she could tell—who’d been offered places at Aldridge based solely on skill and merit. They were more reminiscent of what Freya remembered from Watoria, where the wealthiest residents more closely resembled the middle-class citizens of Iladel. They were the children of the most skilled smiths, business owners, teachers, and servants who’d shown promise in some way or another. They would be scrappy, Freya thought, willing to work and fight twice as hard as the more privileged students to prove their worth.
Most students sought to become educators, historians, archivists, scientists, or physicians. The jobs were plentiful in each of those fields, and while some positions would be more competitive than others, very few students of any background would have trouble finding work upon graduation in those areas.
The rest—those who sought power and influence in a world ruled by such things—would be ruthless. They were the children of politicians who hoped to continue their parents’ legacies, the children of wealthy lords and ladies who would come into their own power someday, and those of the lower classes who had the skill and drive to climb the social ladders and had no qualms stepping on others in order to gain the fame and notoriety they sought. Those were the ones who wanted to change and shape history, but not always for the better.
Once Combat let out for the day on Friday, Freya was eager to leave school grounds with Lea for their shopping trip. Her excitement waned, however, when she was stopped in front of the academic building on her way back to her room by one of Byrric’s underlings.
“Lady Balthana,” he said as he descende
d the steps toward her. “Commander Balthana requests your presence.” He held out a hand toward the building’s main office. “He’s just inside.”
Resigned, Freya turned to enter the building. When she stepped inside, she found Byrric and the headmistress’ assistant laughing and couldn’t help the slight curling of her lip. Despite her mother’s death being so long past, she couldn’t help the twinge of annoyance she felt when she saw her father laughing so freely with another female.
“You needed to see me?” she asked by way of greeting.
“Ah, Freya!” Byrric flashed her a smile. With a quick farewell to the assistant, he led Freya back outside and through the outer doors onto the building’s patio.
“I hear I’m to dine with the royal family,” she said dryly.
“Yes, that’s what I’m here to speak to you about. You’ll be presenting yourself to Salazar and Ordona, so make sure you’re dressed appropriately,” he told her.
She arched a brow. “Why is it no one seems to have faith in my ability to dress myself? First Aerelius, now you. I have been to royal parties before.”
“Well, it’s been some time,” Byrric replied. “And this is the first time you’ll be seeing the king and queen in six years, so I felt a reminder to bring Lea with you to choose your attire was in order.”
“And here I was under the impression the king and queen adored me, no matter what,” she said with a smirk.
“That is beside the point, Freya.”
“Oh, fine. I’m headed back to the dormitories to meet Lea now, so you can stop fretting.” She took in the position of the sun before continuing. “Speaking of which, I’ve got to go. I promise I will be perfectly proper tomorrow,” she added when she saw his look of warning.
He patted her shoulder. “I know you will.” Then, without a word of farewell, he spread his wings wide and flew off.