Court is abuzz with excitement over tonight’s ceremony.Running my fingers over my father’s initials on the hilt beneath my slip, I feel sentimental. I spent many days on my balcony pondering my world, my choices. It’s as if I’m standing where it all began. And now, soon, it will end. I say a silent prayer to the wind, hoping there is someone in the clouds who hears my plea. That my father and mother hear the love I have for them. Even if my father’s mind is gone, I pray that he can feel it.“My lady?” Madity’s soft voice comes from behind.I turn and face her, clearing the tears from my eyes. “I’m ready.”Her steps are slow and determined. She stops right before me, her eyes serious, her face showing more strain than I’ve ever seen before. “When I was younger,” she says. “I had hard choices to make myself.” She pulls a necklace from beneath her bodice. Dangling in the center of the silver chain is a winged crest.A Rebel crest.My heart shudders in my chest, and my lips part.She ignores my confused expression and continues.
