The Luna Choosing Game

Nicholas

I had no idea why I decided to help Piper. She had betrayed me in the past. By all accounts, I should

have been pleased to see her fail.

Yet, when I stood outside the sitting room and heard Lena suggest the traditional punishment for Piper, I

couldn’t stand idly by and do nothing.

The thought of Piper kneeling out in a storm, soaked, chilled, and miserable sent an unfamiliar tremor of

rage through me.

I didn’t feel strong emotions like that anymore, not since I turned off my heart three years ago. But this

hot anger had been enough to melt through my emotional freeze.

I couldn’t be detached, not with this.

Ambassador Zale had taught the royal family the secret Merfolk greeting only a few hours before. The

timing had been peculiar, almost as if he had expected us to utilize this new knowledge to help the girls

with the challenge, if we so wished.

I hadn’t intended to teach the greeting to anyone. But that had been before the Queen threatened Piper

over something as trivial as glove length.

An insult to the royal family, the Queen had said. Unlikely. She had always been fickle with such frivolous

extent that she would exert so vicious a

purposeful, like Piper was being

unwanted attention simply by being here,

cruelty made my

to earn the favor of our kingdom’s people, and yet, the Queen

of them for not knowing her obscure,

of the kingdom in mind, I could almost pretend that I was

gamer goodwill

the truth. I sent Mark to teach Piper the secret greeting solely because

wanted to

Zale while everyone else

myself to

+15 BONUS

to ponder over other concems. Mainly, why didn’t Piper’s maids war her about her glove

that it had been Piper’s duty alone to know, but we had assigned knowledgeable maids to each of the girls precisely to

the

thrones, but she was gone from her

satisfied look on his face. I

always.

now, how quickly he

for someone?” he

“Lena,” I said.

a comer of the ballroom. 1

sir.”