But Cyrene’s words came back to her, as they always did when she was afraid. Cyrene had won the dragon tournament five years prior and was the first person to see Kerrigan for who she truly was. Her mentor and friend. When she’d told Cyrene of her fear, Cyrene had told her that everyone was afraid, but those who mastered their fear, they were the ones who went on to do great things.
Kerrigan lifted her chin and continued forward. Fear wouldn’t hold her back. She could do anything.
A breeze blew in across the meadow, ruffling her hair. She tilted her head to the sun. She wished that something so evil couldn’t come out of something so beautiful. But that was fantasy, and she was in the real world.
The entrance was a wide stone archway, rough on all edges, as if battles had been fought against it and won. Large metal doors were thrown open invitingly with a Fae male standing in the center, awaiting their arrival.
“Prince Fordham,” a man said, stepping forward with a stiff bow. He was short in stature and round in the middle. He had flimsy blond hair and eyes like a weasel. “You have returned to tribe Charbonnet.”
“Indeed, Langdan. Are you here to prevent me access to the House of Shadows?” Fordham asked, his voice low and lethal.
Tribe Charbonnet? Kerrigan had never heard the House of Shadows called that before. Was this another term lost to time?
“Of course not, Your Highness,” Langdan said.
“Then, stand aside.”
Langdan sniffed. “First, allow me to direct you to refreshments and a place to freshen up after your long journey.”
Fordham narrowed his eyes at him dangerously. He could force his way in. This sniveling little man couldn’t stop him. Not with Fordham’s skill with a sword and magic. But that wasn’t the entrance they wanted to make either.
She cleared her throat slightly, and Langdan’s eyes found hers. His nose wrinkled at her appearance.
“Maybe freshening up would be good.”
Fordham didn’t look at her, but he stiffened at her words. Langdan’s smile grew.
“As the lady wishes,” Fordham said finally.
Langdan turned on a mark and headed into Ravinia Mountain. Fordham kept his head high, following him into the depths. Kerrigan had no other choice but to do the same.
The doors closed behind them by magic, sealing them inside the Dark Court. The way was brightly lit, and though she should have felt at ease, being in the heart of a mountain, it didn’t quite have the ambience of Draco Mountain. This felt like a tomb.
They saw no one as Langdan showed them down a set of stairs and to a bathing chamber. Unlike the hot springs under her mountain, this was a large claw-foot tub already brimming with magically heated water. Fordham was shown to his own bathing chamber. Langdan formally bowed to him as he left but said not a word to Kerrigan.
A pair of twins appeared from behind a curtain and came toward Kerrigan. They were dressed the same in beige dresses with their blonde hair pulled back into severe buns.
“I am Benton, and this is my sister, Bayton. We will be your attendants while in the House of Shadows,” Benton said.
Kerrigan frowned. She hadn’t had a bathing attendant since she was five years old. “Oh. That’s okay. I can do it myself.”
Bayton frowned and looked to her sister. “That is unnecessary. We were assigned to you.”
“Right. Just doing your jobs,” Kerrigan said. “Well, okay.”
They hurried over and stripped her down, plunging her into the heated water. Thankfully, she’d lost most of her modesty in the House of Dragons. The bathing quarters were filled with dozens of littlings at any given time. The last year, she’d actually enjoyed that only the senior Dragon Blessed had to share a space.
“So, which is which?” Kerrigan asked.
The twins looked at each other.
“I’m Bayton,” the first said. She had a small mark on her upper lip that was her only distinctive feature.
“I’m Benton.” Benton might have been just a little softer in the face, but otherwise, they were entirely the same.
“Ben and Bay,” Kerrigan said. “Got it.”
The sisters giggled, and Kerrigan joined them. Then, they straightened and sobered. Their eyes were wide with alarm.
“Apologies,” Bayton whispered.
“We didn’t mean …”
“To laugh?”
“At you, miss.”
“With me actually,” Kerrigan said. “It’s fine. I like to laugh.”
But apparently, laughing wasn’t an approved task because the twins withdrew after that. Saying nothing while they finished with the bath, dried her off, and pulled her hair up and out of her face. A fine silk dress appeared, and they slipped her into it. It was the black and silver of the House of Shadows livery that she had so admired on Fordham. Maybe this wasn’t so bad after all.
“Thank you,” she told the attendants.
Their eyes rounded, and they curtsied deeply before disappearing from the bathing chamber. She shook her head in confusion. They’d acted like beaten dogs.