Iwoke up feeling more like myself again. Whatever melancholy had set in last night was chased away by the smells of freshly brewed coffee and meat roasting over a fire.
Nothing had really changed, after all. Iiro was determined to fight for me, Theo had said he would protect me, and I was fairly certain the Summit wouldn’t actually risk a war with my people. More likely they would enjoy the power play of making me sweat, then leverage what they could from me.
Probably.
Theo’s bedroll was empty already, but I heard the low murmur of voices in the main room. Wrapping one of the blankets around myself to cover my shift, I poked my head through the tent flap to find Theo and Inessa in the main room.
The latter was hastily stitching at a pile of fabric, but she looked up when she heard me stirring.
“Did our trunks come already?” I asked, though the teal fabric she was working at was brighter than the fabrics Elk seemed to favor.
“No,” she answered. “My mother sent clothes for me, and Clan Lynx sent a few things for our…visitor.” She nodded toward a small trunk with a bright pink gown and a sunny yellow one.
Both colors looked dreadful on me, something I suspected Inessa realized since she didn’t choose either to alter.
I looked sideways at Theo. “I thought they weren’t our allies.”
“They are staunchly neutral,” Theo confirmed. “But it never hurts to ingratiate yourself to another clan. They know that as well as anyone.”
“Which works in our favor,” Iiro’s voice preceded him into the tent, and the man himself followed. “Because it might garner you sympathy, the duke seeing you in his daughter’s clothes.”
I wasn’t sure how to feel about that, so I only nodded.
Inessa finished stitching the hem on the fabric she was holding, then offered to help me dress for the day. It didn’t take long to see that it wasn’t only the color of the fabric that differed from the dresses I had been wearing.
This one was stitched more loosely, and the ribbon-style corset it came with was far less restrictive. I could even take a deep breath without wincing, although doing so certainly strained other parts of the dress.
Inessa shook her head. “I took the bust out, but apparently not enough.”
She finished lacing me up in silence, and I took a moment to admire the feel of the dress when she was finished.
It had layers like the others, the teal splitting in the middle to reveal a creamy underdress, and the skirts were still narrow enough that I wouldn’t be running any time soon.
The sleeves fell past my wrists, but in loose folds, rather than the insect wing look from before, and though the neckline was high, it, too, was soft and unobtrusive. I let out a little sigh of relief.
Inessa made a noise that might have been disapproval, considering the style of her own dress was almost identical to the ones we had worn at Elk, but she didn’t comment on it.
“They will probably figure out you are from Lochlann,” she said in a low tone, fastening my hat into my hair and tucking my long plait behind the veil. “But we can avoid letting them know exactly who you are until Iiro announces it this afternoon. Besides, there’s no need to incite a panic. At least your eyebrows are dark enough to pass for brown.” There was the tiniest hint of amusement in her voice, and my lips parted in shock.
“Ah yes, wouldn’t want to send any burly Socairans running for cover,” I teased, and she shook her head.
Only when I was deemed presentable with each of my telltale strands tucked away beneath a teal-and-cream hat the exact shades of my gown did I emerge back into the main room.
Theo’s eyes widened, and this time he let me see his admiration shining through. “Perhaps you will make a proper Socairan lady after all.” He smirked.
I sighed dramatically. “I suppose there are worse things to be.”
Theo led me over to a cookfire nearby, and though he was showing me the way, my nose was the true leader in this situation.
The smell of bacon lured me with its smoky, delicious promises of a full and satisfied belly. Once we were seated on one of the logs surrounding the fire, a woman quickly filled two plates with eggs and bacon and bread rolls and brought them over to us.
Then the blessed creature left only to return with steaming mugs of coffee.
I was certain I had never loved anyone more.
I took a sip and surveyed the camp over my mug, noticing there were quite a few women here, more than would be accounted for by only the immediate families. I mentioned it to Theo.
“The clans don’t get together for many other reasons, so they use this time to make arrangements, alliances. And most of them have bigger families than ours. My father was an only child, and my mother married into the clan from the royal family.” He gave me a half smile. “Besides, as I said, we needed all the manpower we could get, escorting you.”
I rolled my eyes. Though, whatever their rationale, I was grateful we had as many guards as we did when the Unclanned attacked.
My ravenous stomach growled and I focused my attention on my plate, feeding it one delicious bite after the next. Theo shook his head, a small grin hiding in the corner of his mouth, but he didn’t comment. He appeared to be just as famished as I was.
Once my stomach allowed me to slow my pacing, I tried to do a better job of observing the scene around me. I hadn’t missed the small glances shot in my direction or the whispered Socairan words that followed, but for the most part, the people nearby seemed only curious.
I wondered if that would change once they knew who I was.
Theo conversed with a few of the other men in friendly tones. I suspected he was going out of his way to take the pressure of their scrutiny off me, and to remind the other clans that they were on good terms, both of which I was grateful for.
Most of the men wore a variation of the coat and trousers Theo favored, though some were in brocaded tunics instead. The women were largely dressed like Inessa had been, or Venla, in the case of the servants.
When my plate was empty, the woman from before returned to take it away. Then she offered to refill my mug with coffee, confirming once again that she was my favorite person. I grinned and thanked her, sipping slowly on the brew.
Like Theo’s, most of the conversations around me were in Socairan, and they blended into a steady hum in the air until a girl around my age sank onto the log beside me.
She was stunning, with large brown eyes and dark hair that fell in sleek waves around a face the same tan shade as Theo’s. Her dress was similar to mine, only a coral color that would have clashed marvelously with my hair, and she wore a matching headband.
“I think that dress looks better on you,” she said by way of greeting, her smile showing off a row of even white teeth.
“You’re from Clan Lynx then? Thank you. It means a lot—” I began, but she waved a hand.
“It was nothing. I’ve more dresses than I know what to do with, and father always says I pack too much.” Her accent was thicker than Theo’s, and she had a lower, raspier tone than Inessa, but she spoke the common tongue fluently. “Besides, when I heard the visitor was my age, I couldn’t bear the thought of you in those stuffy southern dresses. Though, I wouldn’t have guessed the mysterious visitor was from Lochlann…” She raised her eyebrows, blatantly examining my features.
Instead of responding to that, I focused on something else she mentioned. “Are the fashions different in Lynx?”
She grinned in a way that said she knew that I was skirting around her comment, but was going to let me get away with it for now. “Things are more relaxed by the sea, as much as the other clans are scandalized by it. Though, I suspect I don’t have to worry about being the talk of the Summit with you here.” She laughed then.
The sound was soft, but the infectious nature reminded me of my sister. I found myself gravitating toward her in spite of Theo’s warning to be on my guard.
“You’re not wrong,” I allowed, smiling in return.
“I’m Mila, by the way.”
“I’m—” I stopped, realizing I wasn’t supposed to reveal that.
Thankfully, Theo noticed my discomfort, breaking off his own conversation in Socairan to step in.
“You said you wanted to see the vendors?” His voice was that of a polite stranger’s, rather than holding the warmth I had come to expect in the last two days.
I nodded with equal polite distance, determined to do my part as well.
“It was nice to meet you, Mila,” I said, getting to my feet. “And thank you, again.”
Theo whisked me away without waiting for a response.
