Aliya was confused.
No more than confused, she was bewildered by this turn of events. Somehow during the day she ended up abandoning a pouting Kilnik at his cave instead of going on a planned leisurely fly. Why? Because Cade had come to her with an invitation to dinner.
Dinner with the Emperor.
She wasn't even given a chance to think about what it meant before Cade whisked her off to the dorms. Somehow, he'd gotten three seamstresses past security and they were waiting in her room. He practically threw her in the door before slamming it closed and the three women pounced on her.
She now knew how dolls felt and she regretted ever wishing for one as a child. It was horrible, she'd been stripped, bathed, and then dressed and undressed at least five times until they'd found a dress that needed only minor alterations to fit her. She was dizzy at how fast the women were. While one sat down and began feverishly sewing the other two sat her down on a chair.
One took her hair and one took her face. She'd never in her life had her hair styled or her face painted. She didn't recommend it after experiencing it, the process was surprisingly rough and painful, or maybe they were just in too big of a hurry.
When all was said and done she herself was practically sewn into the altered dress and was tossed out the door of her own room to a waiting Cade.
Now, she could admit that his speechlessness was flattering. What girl didn't dream of making a man forget his words? However, as cute as Cade was they didn't have time to dwell on it. He shook himself out of his daze and dragged her off at a near run. She deduced that they were running late.
Countless classmates stared at the pair as they flew past. Whether Aliya knew it or not she left quite the impression on everyone in her made-up state. A few people hadn't even recognized her.
Cade led her out of the Academy gates and into a gilded carriage with the crest of the Imperial family on it, which was of course a dragon, clutching a rose in its claws. They took off at a quick trot, their departure was so abrupt that she had to brace her hand on the wall not to get thrown back and damage her hairstyle. She noticed she was panting as well and she focused on calming down.
"Cade," she said a bit irritably, "you do realize that you didn't let me finish the note."
He looked up, startled, winded, and anxious.
"All I saw was, 'Lady Aliya is invited to dinner..." I made a lot of assumptions since it's you carting me off, the urgency of the situation, and the crest on this carriage. So please tell me, am I correct in that I'm going to meet with the Emperor?"
"Oh, uh, yes. You are right." He fumbled his words.
She shook her head and had to laugh a little bit. She wouldn't lie, she was nervous. She mainly remembered him as the kind man who'd visited her before she'd left with Tate. However, now that she'd grown up she knew that people weren't so black and white. Despite herself only having positive interactions with him she knew a different side to him as well second hand. She knew Tate.
When they'd been away she'd had five years to pry out Tate's life and stories. As she'd learned since returning to the capitol maybe she hadn't been as successful in that as she had previously believed. However, there were some things she knew.
She knew that the Emperor had chosen Tate as his godson. It had been decreed the same week Tate had hatched Aquana. No other person in the Empire had such favor with the Emperor as Tate outside of the Imperial family itself.
She knew that this had translated into the Emperor having his hand in every step of Tate's Dragon Riding career. She knew that once Aquana had died it was the Emperor who had decided that Tate should live with his family for the time being. It was the Emperor who'd "given" him his instructor position at the Academy, and it was the Emperor who'd asked him to do the favor of watching over and polishing the dragon eggs on that fateful day.
Aliya had only discovered much later that although the eggs were kept in the Delmont family vaults, once they were laid by a female, the Delmont's were only responsible for their security and transportation. The duty of setting them up, polishing them, and keeping an eye on the already assigned security knights at a Choosing was usually awarded to the son of a lesser house. This meant that for whatever reason the Emperor had given Tate a task that in the eyes of some was beneath his station in life.
Aliya had some developing theories but she was hesitant to think too far into it because at the end of the day she knew she did not have all the information. Compared to the Emperor she knew nothing.
Even so, she was glad that he'd been the one to catch her that day, she was even glad that he'd been ordered to take her away for her and Kilnik's initial training. There had been wisdom in that decision. She knew that Tate had tried to hide it, but she was aware that there had been threats made against them from time to time. It was selfish of her but she was glad that he hadn't been given a choice in these matters. She didn't think he'd minded those circumstances too much, especially compared to his circumstances in the capitol both before and after their return, but she was too scared to confirm that. She didn't want to know if he'd considered her a burden, or a chore. She knew he cared about her, but she didn't want to test their bond in that way, she was too much of a coward to know the answer.
The carriage pulled up to the palace and without having to stop it glided through the gates. She and Cade were dropped off almost on the front door steps. Cade got out first and turned to her, she almost forgot all her etiquette and decorum lessons and had been about to hop down herself when Cade elegantly held out a hand. She smiled at him, she'd never seen him adopt this proper posture before.
She allowed him to help her down and was grateful for it. The shoes she'd been forced into were just a bit snug, and the heels were just a bit high compared to what she was used to. She almost turned her ankle stepping down even with his help.
She tried to look around as she was escorted inside the home of the Imperial family but Cade was on a mission and didn't give her a chance to see much. His quick steps were urgent and determined. She noticed that his anxious expression and tense shoulders had not relaxed on their ride over. In fact, he looked like he was bout to snap. She'd never seen such a severe expression on his face.
"Cade, can you tell me what..."
"Adress me as, Your Highness here. The walls have ears and in here I'm a prince before I'm a dragon rider." He said this so quietly and rushed she barely heard him.
"Okay," she didn't know what else to say at that moment. Suddenly this all felt too strange for her tastes. At first, she hadn't even had thoughts of hesitation. Cade was her friend and besides Tate and Kilnik she'd come to trust him the most out of everyone she'd met. At this moment he felt like a complete stranger. His tone, his walk, his mannerisms, everything about him was different from the carefree Dragon Rider Cade she knew.
Uneasiness crept up her spine and wouldn't go away. What was happening? Why was she being summoned?
Finally, they arrived in front of two large and ornate doors. Cade let go of her and straightened up even more if possible. He cleared his throat and straightened out nonexistent wrinkles in his jacket.
Two footmen swung the door open and they were admitted into a cavernous dining hall that was filled with people she didn't know sitting at the longest table she'd ever seen.
Cade stepped in and bowed deeply at the waist. He shot her a look that she had no problem understanding and she sunk into a decent curtsy.
"I greet the Sun of the Empire."
"I greet the Sun of the Empire." She echoed.
If there was some kind of response to this greeting verbal or otherwise it went completely over Aliya's head. Cade stood upright so she did too. He offered her his arm and she took it without thinking and walked with him closer and closer to the other end of the table where the Emperor sat.
At his right hand was Tate's father, Lord Delmont. Aliya had never seen or met him but she knew it was him from Tate's descriptions of his father. Next to him must be Tate's mother Lady Kira. As for the rest of the people present, she had no clue as to who they might be, but they all stared at her and Tate as they walked by.
At last, they stopped in the empty chairs to the Emperor's left, well not directly next to him. Cade was the seventh son, so the person seated directly next to the Emperor who resembled both him and Cade, she assumed to be the first prince, the crown prince. Cade nodded at his elder brother and held out a chair next to the first prince for Aliya to sit in. She gulped and sat down.
Cade quickly took a seat on her right. She hadn't noticed how loud the dining hall had been when she'd entered but as soon as they sat the Emperor raised his glass and the room immediately fell silent.
His voice boomed out over the guests. "Now that we are all here, A toast to good company. I hope you all enjoy the meal to the fullest."
Feeling like she was definitely coming in during the middle of something she followed Cade's lead and picked at the delicious smelling food in front of her.
Nothing was said to either of them, the chatter picked back up but she almost wondered why they were there if they were just going to be ignored.
Finally, curiosity got the best of her and she looked up to try to catch Lady Kira's eye. She wanted to be introduced to Tate's mother and hoped the older lady would initiate introductions. Aliya froze when she saw the woman's face.
Her plate was untouched and she was silently crying. Aliya's eyes snapped to Tate's father. The man was sitting stiffly upright, his jaw tight and eyes lifeless.
Aliya had a horrible feeling about this, something was very wrong. Her heart started to pound and her hands started to sweat.
The Emperor stood and she closed her eyes. She had no idea what he was about to say but she really didn't want to know.
"My good friends," the Emperor's voice once again cut off all chatter and all eyes turned to the head of the table. His voice was different this time, it was icy cold. "I have an unfortunate announcement to make."