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No one dances yet It’s up to oes silent Hector pauses in the threshold, giving thehtly to his arives aze fixes on ive them a defiant smile in return and wait the space of a few beats for theesture for everyone to rise, and Hector and I resume our procession The crowd breaks into a flurry of low-voiced conversations I catch the words "Godstone" and "sorcery" I holdthe crown has had its intended effect
At the end of the hall, my throne dais has been rolled away to reveal the aze upon only once each year My Godstone leaps in rapturous response I cal, "Stop that"
The man who carved the hand, Lutián of the Rocks, spent his whole short life working on it They say he was overcome with God’s spirit, that he carved with fevered frenzy, stopping only for occasional food and drink and sleep When he finished at the age of twenty-one, he pronounced it good and pro Godstone, like reat service
With Hector’s help, I cliers I step across theers I spread the skirt of own around iant palm
The crowd hushes in expectation
I close my eyes, lift
In you our ancestors put their trust,
they cried out and you delivered the world they were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shahteous right hand endures forever
"Selah!" the crowd thunders
The musicians resume, dancers float onto the center floor, and the Deliverance Gala has officially begun
Froestures for me to come down Normally, the monarch would sit in the Hand of God for several dances, absorbing luck and blessing But it is too dangerous for ht to his hand for support, I navigate the steps, mindful of my full skirt My foot has barely reached the floor when I am accosted by my first partner
"May I have this dance, Your Majesty?" asks Prince Rosario He boith the ease of long practice, his sentleenuine enthusias the offered hand
His head does not even reach my chest, and I’m tempted to lead him, but he seems determined to do the job credibly, so I let him
"Did your nurse put you up to this?" I ask
He peers up at me from beneath thick lashes--his cinnamon eyes are so like his father’s--and says, "No, but Carilla wants to dance with irl ild curls and satin ruffles standing at the edge of the crowd, no more than nine years old Rosario wrinkles his nose "She tries to kiss h "So you told her you had to dance with h you are a terrible dancer Dancing with you is better than dancing with Carilla"
With equal sole one day"
"Yes," he agrees "Wiser than Papá Everyone says so"
My heart breaks for him a little "We should drift across the hall so that you are far away frohtens "Good idea!"
As we dance, I ask him about his studies, which he loathes, and his swordsmanship lessons with Hector, which he loves By the tiether over his favorite pony, who can nose his way to a syrupy date even through three layers of clothing I don’t step on Rosario’s feet even once
When we separate, he bows "I thank you for the dance, Your Majesty," he intones
"It was a pleasure, Your Highness," I respond Several people around us applaud lightly, as if we have put on a bit of theater And I suppose we have I hope it has cheered theether
A hand grasps my elbow I look up into Hector’s worried face He whispers, "Please Do not drift through the crohile dancing Stay close to the edge, where I can see you"
The es to a slow, rhythmic bolero
"I didn’t realizeI’m sorry" He is very close, and my heart starts to pound I remember our last lesson, the way his hands stroked upmy movements The way the world dropped away as we ether, lost in the drill that was more like a dance
I whisper, "Dance withThen, "Yes, Your Majesty" Andwith me may be yet another duty for hi at all, for his hand has slipped around aze, his left hand slides gently down ers He entwines them with his own and spins h as we dance I iainst him, my face buried in his neck But this particular dance deraphed distance, and we comply I focus instead on the hand at the small of ers, but it protectsit I can feel the pressure of his hand but no ers, his war
"How is your injury?" I ask, to distract otten to notice it"
I have no idea how to respond After a moment of my stunned silence, he says, "Of all your suitors, has any one caught your particular attention yet?"
His question startlesa joke but abandon the idea Instead I say, "I haven’t encountered ent and char Andand I think he likes ood friend, then?"