Seva Moonwhisper's Arc

Chapter 1 of 1

Seva Moonwhisper pinned the last crystal rose into her hair and knew she could win. The masquerade ball at Rathorn gave one prize each year: a crown for the finest costume. Seva had built hers for months. Teal silk matched the streak in her hair and the color of her eyes. Pointed elf ears caught the light. She looked at the invitation lying on her table and saw the problem. It wasn't hers. It had no name, no seal. The guards at the ball turned away anyone who couldn't prove they belonged. She had tried to buy a real invitation. Every seller laughed. She had written to the host and gotten silence. The ball opened at dusk, and dusk was close. Through the clear walls of her glass house, Seva watched the sky turn orange. Her whole plan ended at a locked door. Then something tapped the glass. A small black-and-white penguin stood on the stones outside, blinking up at her. Faint sparkles ran across its feathers. It held a folded card in its beak. Seva opened the door, and the penguin waddled straight to her four-poster bed, where it dropped the card on the blanket. "Where did you come from?" she asked. The penguin only stared, charmed by her ears and her teal hair. Seva picked up the card. It was a true invitation to the ball, sealed in gold. The name line was blank, waiting. She understood at once. This strange penguin searched for elf women, and it had chosen her. She wrote her name in the empty space. The gold seal flared and settled, binding the invitation to her. The penguin bobbed its head, pleased. Seva reached the ball as the last light faded. A guard stood at the shut doors, arms crossed. "Invitation," he said. "No card, no entry." She held out the gold-sealed card. He studied the name, pressed his thumb to the seal, and watched it glow under his touch. His face changed. He stepped aside and pulled the door open. "Welcome," he said. Seva walked in. Light poured over a hall full of masked dancers in silk and feathers and jewels. The penguin trotted at her heels, and no one stopped it. She had solved the door. But the room told her a new truth. Every costume here was stunning. A woman passed in a gown stitched with living moths. A man wore armor cut from mirror glass. These were the finest makers in Rathorn, and they had entered long ago. Judging was close, and Seva stood at the back of a crowd that had already claimed the best spots before the panel. Getting in had cost her the hours she needed to be seen. Now she had to make the judges look at her before they chose.