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My body dips,toward the floor in a slow arc thatme back up in an easy second

"Sorry," he says, half-eht you were ready for it"

I’h, to hide what I can’t show hiain"

He isn’t easy to chase off and dips his head a little, looking me in the eyes "Still worried about the ball?"

"More than you know"

"One step at a tihs at hi us back into simpler steps "I know it’s hard to believe, but I wasn’t always the best dancer either"

"How shocking," I answer, ht princes were born with the ability to dance andour pace with the e or the barracks, building and training Not like Maven He’s twice the prince I’ll ever be"

I think of Maven, of his kind words, perfect s he pretends to be to hide his true heart Twice the prince indeed "But he’ll only ever be a prince," I "

His voice drops to aze There’s a sadness in hier every day Maybe he doesn’t like war as much as I think "Sometimes I wish it didn’t have to be that way"

He speaks softly, but his voice fills h the ball loo more about him and his hands and the faint soes It makes me think of war heart on the melody, the ht reminds me of Julian’s lessons, his histories of the world before our own That was a world of empires, of corruption, of war--and more freedoone, their drea only in smoke and ash

It’s our nature, Julian would say We destroy It’s the constant of our kind No matter the color of blood, man will always fall

I didn’t understand that lesson a few days ago, but noith Cal’s hands into see what heto go with the legion?" Even the words eneral’s place is with his eline," I add hastily Good one, Mare, h Cal doesn’t ht, I think She’s not exactly attached to aze, I focus on what’s right in front of me Unfortunately, that happens to be his chest and a ed breath

Then his fingers are under aze Gold fla the heat beneath "I’ll miss you, Mare"

As much as I want to stand still, to stop time and let this ht feel or think, Cal is not the prince I’ side He’s my enemy Cal is forbidden

So with hesitant, reluctant steps, I back away, out of his grasp and out of the circle of ware, though I know ret, tears I swore not to cry