“But he’ll heal completely?” I held my breath.
“He will. By tonight, Murl believes his healing affinity will have soaked in enough for Norivun to only bear a thin scar.”
I sagged against the covers once more, relieved yet still confused about why the queen was at my bedside. I didn’t know how to politely ask, so I settled with, “Are Daiseeum and my sister preoccupied with something, Your Majesty?”
The queen’s eyebrows lifted. “I’m unsure. Shall I ring for them?”
“No, it’s okay. I just wondered why—” My cheeks burned. Mother Below, I never was taught how to properly address royalty.
A knowing smile curved her lips. “You’re wondering why I’m here.”
“I’m sorry.” I twisted my fingers together, the lotion making them slippery.
“Don’t be.” Her gaze drifted to my hair. Black locks fell around my shoulders.
She pulled the scarf from her hair, and I swallowed a gasp when the female staring back at me suddenly looked uncannily similar to my own image. It took me a second to realize that she wasn’t wearing her customary illusion spell. She must have removed it before she donned her scarf.
Raven-dark hair fell in a waterfall down her back. Her hair was as straight as an arrow, long and thick. And it was the exact shade as mine.
“I wanted to acquaint myself more with the female who bears hair like mine and to also see who my son has become so invested in.”
My earlier blush returned with a vengeance. “Do you know why our hair looks like this, Your Majesty?” I asked, desperate to keep our conversation away from the prince.
She capped the lotion and set it on my bedside table. “I do not, and I’ve spent a fair amount of time trying to discover an answer.”
“Oh.” Any hope I’d once had of explaining my strange genetics vanished. If the queen of the Solis continent was unable to secure an explanation, the Mother only knew that I would never be able to. “Do you know anyone else who looks like us, my queen?”
She shook her head. “There have been Solis in the past with hair the shade of night—I’ve found that much in my studies, but other than a fluke of genetics, I’ve found no reason to explain it. Every other Solis who’s had it had no family history of ebony hair, and it’s a rare trait. I’ve met no others like us in my lifetime. You’re the first.”
“Truly?”
She nodded.
I frowned. A fluke of genetics—what an unsatisfying reason for the lifetime of torment I’d suffered from thanks to my black hair. I played with the bedsheets, wanting to ask her more questions as I mulled that over, but I was unsure if propriety allowed it. I tangled my fingers in the bedsheets more.
She laid her hand over mine. “There is no need to be anxious. I’m here of my own making and am happy to speak freely.” She leaned closer and whispered, “Nobody even knows I’m here.” She winked, and the gesture was so ordinary, so normal, that it felt as though I was speaking with Birnee.
I laughed.
Her smile grew, and she patted my hand. A hum of her magic washed over me, vibrating beneath the surface of her skin, and in that prolonged contact, I felt it. The queen held power. Immense power. “Would you like to speak more?”
“I mean, I would. I just—” I twisted my fingers again, but instead of seeing annoyance wash over her features, she simply folded her hands in her lap.
“You may ask me anything, Lady Seary.”
My eyes widened. “Truly?”
She smiled again. “Now, what is your first question?”
“Did your affinities also bloom late?”
An understanding lit her eyes. “Ah, yes, they did. Mine bloomed quite similar to yours in fact. My family was convinced that I was a defective—probably as your family also labeled you—but when my first affinity manifested, they were proven wrong.”
“Nuwin mentioned that you have five affinities.”
“That I do.”
“And did they all manifest around the same time?”
She settled into her seated position more. “They did not. When the first one manifested, my illusion affinity, I thought it was to be my only one. But my second and third came several weeks later. A fourth a few months after that, and my final affinity, not until a full season had passed.”
“They were that spread out?”
“Indeed.” Her look turned serene. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re similar. The crown prince tells me that to date, you’ve had three affinities manifest. Is that correct?”
“Yes.” I debated telling her what Matron Olsander had told me. That she sensed something slumbering within me, but I decided against it. If I truly was to manifest more affinities, the less fae that knew, the better. If having three affinities put a target on my back for the Olirum Accords, I didn’t even want to fathom what more would do. “And in your family, did others have affinities like yours?”
“My mother shares my illusion affinity, but other than that, no, not in the slightest. Like you, I come from a non-noble family of average affinities. However, my mother’s affinity was strong enough that she could hide my black hair from an early age as a way to protect me from hateful comments and gawking. Consequently, I grew up as any defective does and was able to lead a relatively normal life on the shores of Osaravee. My father was a merchant, and my mother was our store’s bookkeeper. My four brothers still live there.”
My eyes widened even more. I’d known the queen hadn’t been born of noble blood, but I hadn’t realized her beginnings were so humble.
“How did the king find you?”
Her expression took on a faraway look, as though morphing into a void that only she could see. “In the same manner that the three other females were found. Sir Featherton has proven quite useful in sniffing out fae with multiple affinities.”
Her comment reminded me that I was supposed to have met with the noble last night, but I imagined Daiseeum would have shooed him away if Sir Featherton had made an appearance while I was sleeping. I also surmised that I would be seeing him soon, perhaps even this afternoon, so I could learn the rest of the Trial’s requirements.
“Did you also partake in a Rising Queen Trial, Your Majesty?”
Her lips thinned. They sealed so hard they were practically white. “I did not. That is something the king has created for my son. The king has many beliefs that I do not share.”
Her angry comment smoldered between us, but her aura didn’t grow. Not like the prince’s did when his emotions ran high. I figured she had mastered complete control of her Outlets, perhaps even discovering a way to release her powerful magic in a way that didn’t affect others. I’d yet to detect any aura from her.
She took a deep breath and then another. Slowly, her thinned lips softened, and that faraway look entered her eyes again. After a few more breaths, she patted my hand, then replaced her scarf, covering her hair once more. “I must go now. I shall have your lady’s servant notified that you’ve awoken.”
I sat up more, wondering if I’d done something to offend her and sorely hoped I hadn’t. “Thank you for coming to see me, Your Majesty. And thank you for . . . answering my questions.”