Jelena started, snapping back into the here and now. She turned a wide-eyed stare towards Aneko, who looked down at Jelena’s hands, face frozen in astonishment. “What is the matter, Aneko? What are you seeing?” Jelena felt a thrill of alarm.
“ Your hands!” Aneko exclaimed. “Jelena, do you know what you just did?”
“ Was it…blue fire…from my fingers?” Aneko nodded. “Aneko, know you what is this…this fire?”
“ Most people call it magelight or handfire. I’ve only ever seen trained mages do it.” Aneko paused and stared intently into Jelena’s face for several heartbeats. “Do you know what this means, Jelena?” she said slowly then answered her own question. “It means that you’ve got Talent, and a high level of it, at that. Does Lady Amara know about this?”
“ N-No,” Jelena stammered. “What is this thing, Talent?”
“ Magic, Jelena. All elves are born with it. Some have it much more strongly than others.” The guardswoman’s dark eyes narrowed pensively.
“ I…I did not wish to say about it until I knew my place here, but I have had it since…since before I came to Kerala. I knew it was magic, but…”
“ This is important, Jelena,” Aneko interrupted. “Most hikui don’t have much Talent, but you…” She shook her head. “You are obviously different. Lady Amara will want to know. She’s a trained sorceress, though I don’t think she practices much anymore. She can help you to learn about your Talent.”
Aneko must have sensed the change in her attitude. “You can’t give in to despair,” the older woman said firmly. “You have the makings of a good life here, Jelena. I know that you are searching for your elven kin. If you are able to find them, and they are a noble family and they accept you, then things might change. There might be a chance for you and Lord Ashinji.” She paused and laid a hand on Jelena’s forearm. “But if it doesn’t work out that way,” she continued gently, “accept it and move on. You are young and yes, pretty. There are many men who would find you attractive. You might just find one who’ll offer you an honorable proposal. Or, with Lady Amara’s help, perhaps you could enter a mage school. No hikui’s ever done so before, but who knows?”
If making a life with Ashinji could never happen, then she would make one without him, alone. She would learn all she could about her magic, and if it meant cloistering herself away in some musty school somewhere, so be it. She would love no other man, ever. Her mind could not quite confront the enormity of her decision, not yet. But in time, it would become familiar, comfortable…bearable, even.
“ Thank you, Aneko, for advice,” Jelena said. “I think I wish time alone, now.”
Aneko gave Jelena’s shoulder a final squeeze and stood up. “Think about what I’ve said.”
She turned and made her way back up the stairs, leaving Jelena to her melancholy solitude.
Chapter 19
'Here they come!” Kami cried, jumping up and down with child-like excitement, her hazel eyes sparkling.
All the castle’s inhabitants not obliged to be at work were gathered by the main gates, awaiting the arrival of the wedding party. Jelena estimated they numbered at least a hundred people, about a third of the castle’s population. The massive, iron-bound wooden gates had been opened a short time earlier, upon the arrival of Lord Dai’s herald. Ashinji, astride a big black horse, waited at the center of the entrance, the herald behind and to the side.
Jelena had received a quick lesson in elven wedding etiquette from Aneko last evening. It all seemed quite complicated, but then, so were the nuptial customs of Soldaran nobility. According to tradition, Ashinji’s duty as the brother closest in age to the bridegroom began with his greeting of his sibling’s bride at the castle’s outer gate. He would recite a ritual greeting to the bride’s parents, then escort the entire party up to the keep where Lord Sakehera waited with Sadaiyo and the rest of the family.
Once the prescribed greetings and exchanges of token gifts between the parents of the couple had taken place, all would sit down for a midday meal. The bride’s face would remain veiled, to keep her hidden from her future husband. Sadaiyo would not be allowed to see or speak to his bride until that evening, after the official Ritual of Welcoming had been performed, the second and most important of Ashinji’s duties.
The ritual served as a formal declaration of acceptance by the groom’s family; without it, the bride would have no official place in the family, despite a legal marriage. Ashinji had spoken briefly of it, confessing to Jelena that he would be very glad when his part in his brother’s marriage would be over.
Jelena had not seen or spoken to Ashinji since their last language lesson three days ago. She threaded her way through the crowd to stand close to the gates, near enough to watch Ashinji and observe the wedding party at the same time.
She fought down the urge to call out to him. Never had she seen him dressed so richly, in brocaded silks of peacock blue and emerald green that matched the color of his eyes. His hair hung unbraided, the sides held up off of his face with a silver clip set with blue and green stones.
Ashinji bowed formally, from the waist, as Lord Dai reined in his horse just inside the gate. The large wedding party numbered at least three score, with many retainers and guards in addition to Lord Dai’s family. Several heavily laden wagons brought up the rear. Ashinji urged his mount forward until he and Lord Dai sat shoulder to shoulder. Jelena strained to hear as Ashinji delivered the ritual greeting, but she stood too far away to catch the softly spoken words. Lord Dai nodded once, firmly, and allowed a smile to soften the stern lines of his face. Ashinji then wheeled his horse, and the entire procession clattered noisily through the gates, colorful banners snapping in the air.
Surrounded by guards, a beautiful wooden carriage rolled by Jelena’s vantage point, pulled by two sturdy, shaggy-footed draft horses. Carved likenesses of warrior maidens adorned each corner, and the entire brightly painted conveyance flashed with silver and gold leaf accents. As she watched, Jelena thought she saw the merest sliver of a woman’s face peak out from between the gauzy curtains covering the window.
Someone jostled her from behind and she turned to find Kami at her shoulder. The elf girl giggled with glee. “Did you see her?” she asked breathlessly. “That was the bride, there in the carriage! Weddings are such fun! Wait ‘til you see all of the wonderful food we’re going to get. I can hardly wait for Gendan’s and my wedding day. Of course, ours won’t be nearly so grand.” Jelena had to laugh. Kami’s high spirits were infectious.
The crowd began to move forward, following in the wake of the horses and wagons toward the upper gate. “C’mon! We don’t want to miss a single moment!” Kami grabbed Jelena’s hand and pulled her along with the flow of cheerful, chattering people.
The wedding procession passed through the upper gate and pulled up in front of the keep. With Jelena in tow, Kami pushed to the front of the crowd of castle dwellers, who maintained a respectful distance from the proceedings. Kami nudged Jelena excitedly. “Look, there’s my Gendan standing there by the door! Doesn’t he look incredibly handsome and smart in his parade armor?” Kami’s love for Kerala’s Captain of the Guards suffused her face with a sweet glow. Despite her ribald talk, no one who knew her had any doubt that Kami’s heart belonged to Gendan and no other. Jelena knew what that kind of love felt like; only, for her, there would probably be no happy ending.
Lord and Lady Sakehera stood hand in hand before the open doors of the keep. To Lord Sen’s right stood Sadaiyo, coldly resplendent in a beautifully decorated robe of yellow and red silk. Jelena could not help but admire the intricacy of the workmanship, for the entire garment shimmered with an intertwining motif of flowering vines. Every few heartbeats, Sadaiyo would reach up and tug on the high collar as if the stiff fabric irritated his neck.
