Queen Amaya marched up the spiraling staircase with Asha in tow. She'd given Valentino one sharp look that sent the goat scampering down the halls leading to Asha's chambers. Perhaps it was just as well, Asha thought, clutching her satchel tight. Star would be plenty enough for the Queen for one day.
Once the two were safely tucked away in the Queen's private chambers, she sighed and pressed her fingers against her forward, squeezing the skin between her eyes.
"You go running off in the middle of the night. Then this blinding light shoots across Rosas and nobody has an inkling of an idea what it could be or where it came from! What if it had struck you in the forest? No one would know! You could've been hurt or killed, and I would've never known! What were you thinking Asha?"
"I wasn't really," Asha admitted. "I'm sorry, I never meant to frighten you. I just needed time to think about….well everything."
Queen Amaya's shoulders slumped, and a strange look crossed her face. She walked to Asha and placed her hands gently on the girl's shoulders.
"I've been thinking as well. Asha, you're so bright, and you've come such a long way with your studies. But I worry about how much pressure you put on yourself. You study so hard! And I don't want you to burn out before you've even begun to shine so…I think we should put our lessons to the side for a while."
Asha twisted her shoulders out of Queen Amaya's grip.
"What?! I can't stop now, not when I've finally come so close to understanding the charts! To understanding what my father meant about the stars and the wishes!"
"It wouldn't be forever," the Queen assured her, calmly. "Only for the time being. Just to give you a bit more freedom. Time to focus on other things, like the other apprentices do."
"But Rosas wishes!"
"Rosas wishes are my responsibility remember? It is my task as queen to protect the wishes, and grant them when it's time. It's not your burden."
"Helping people get their wishes isn't a burden! Helping Saba's wish finally come true is all I want, while I still have time to make it happen!"
She didn't mention her fears surrounding her own wish. If she couldn't help Saba get the one thing he wanted most, how did she ever have hope of bringing her mother back to her when it was time?
"That's a noble goal," Queen Amaya said with a nod. "But there's still time for Sabino, and perhaps we must leave it to the stars to determine what will be and what won't for now. Much as we may like, Asha, we cannot chart our lives like we do the sky."
Says who, Asha thought, casting her eyes on the ground solemnly.
The Queen continued, "I promised your father I would make you a fine star charter. But I also promised him I'd take care of you. Even the best need their rest, Asha."
Asha knew it was no use fighting her further. Once the Queen made a decision, there was no changing her mind. Still, her head was swimming.
"What about Helena and Esteban's wishes? At least let me try to figure out what I did wrong to make them change like that."
"You did nothing wrong." The Queen cleared her throat and a short silence ensued between them.
"I met with Helena and Esteban when they first came to Rosas. We spoke about their past, and where they came from. Some wishes that are made look a little…different then others. Those who are born in Rosas are very lucky, to be able to wish for the things they want instead of what they need."
She stared at the charred cloth with glassy eyes, and immediately Asha's chest grew tight. The girl looked to the tapestry as well, focusing on the rough bits below, only to have the squeezing sensation grow stronger.
Suddenly, Queen Amaya turned to face Asha again.
"But never mind that now. When we resume our lessons, we will speak more on that subject. Know that Helena and Esteban's wishes are safe with the others. In the meantime, I believe I wouldn't be much of a teacher anyway. Until I find the cause of last night's explosion, I cannot risk too many distractions. What was it? Who could've summoned it?"
Asha was so stricken by the Queen's initial anger that she hadn't even noticed the disarray of the round room when they entered. Now, the amount of unshelved books lying on tables and next to chairs overwhelmed her. Open editions with yellowing pages lay top the Queen's desk, cabinets containing texts Asha had only spied in passing stood with their doors opened for what she could assume was the first time in years. Looking at the Queen herself, the girl noticed frizz underneath her circlet, a smear of black shadow in the corner of one eye, and most alarming, fingers covered in gray and black splotches of ink mingled with dust.
"I don't know what we're up against!" Queen Amaya said, running her fingers through her hair. "And these books are useless!"
"It could've just been a shooting star?" Asha suggested, softly.
Queen Amaya snorted and walked to a window. "I've never seen a shooting star like that. I've never seen a star like that! To summon such a light would demand a powerful spell. Something extreme, something devasting!"
"Devastating?" Asha's head snapped up. She bit her lip and anxiously glanced down at her satchel.
"What if someone from Rosas was just trying to help? Maybe they found something, or did something that they really didn't think would cause any harm? After all, the light hasn't actually hurt anyone-"
"Yet." Queen Amaya cut her off abruptly. "But I know one thing. I didn't conjure that light. And it affected the wishes. Anything that could cause the magic in this tower to flicker is something that must be dealt with immediately. Everything I have done up to this point is to keep that-" she pointed to the tapestry, "from ever happening again. I must find the source. I must bring them here, question them, and if need be, rid them from Rosas so we can remain safe!"
Asha hesitantly nodded and the Queen relaxed her shoulders and sighed.
"I'm enacting a curfew," the Queen decided. "Until I know what that light was and who's responsible for it, no one is to enter the woods after sundown. We will put any upcoming night festivals on hold. And the next wish ceremony is canceled until further notice."
"No!" Asha cried. "Everyone will be devastated Maya, please! And the wishes, what will happen if we don't hold the ceremony when we always do?" Would people miss their chance to have their wish granted forever? Would Sabino?
"A queen must be prepared to do anything to protect her kingdom, Asha," Queen Amaya said, solemnly. "Rosas is the priority. We must be cautious in the face of this unknown danger."
"Why didn't you just reveal Star and confess to the Queen?" Valentino asked while sitting peacefully on Asha's bed. Night had finally fallen, and hours had passed since Asha's audience with her godmother. The two parted on an awkward note; Queen Amaya still looked so distant when Asha finally left her study chambers and ran straight to her room.
"I wanted to! I thought I could! But Valentino you didn't see her face! You didn't hear her. Maya actually sounded…afraid. And she was talking like she might banish Star from Rosas on the spot! I just couldn't go through with it."
Asha paced back and forth in front of a mirror. She picked at the braids hanging over her shoulder and gazed longingly out the window. Night came so quickly. Asha spent the afternoon in her bedroom agonizing over what to do until sunset.
"So what's the new plan?"
"I have NO idea!"
At last, her pack squiggled and jostled; a brilliant light glowed beneath the brown cloth. Valentino used his teeth to flip the cover and out tumbled Star, who shifted into his human form as soon as his body touched Asha's sheets. He looked around with a smile growing on his face at the sight of so many unfamiliar treasures. Even the bed underneath seemed to delight him as he bounced softly, then flung himself backward into the pillows.
Valentino raised one eyebrow. "Well, you certainly can't keep him in here for long, so you better think of something. "
Asha knew Valentino was right. Star slept during the day, which was no doubt a plus, but that meant he was active at night. A golden ball of dust flitting around the dark palace halls was sure to raise a few alarms.
As Star sat up, a strange look crossed his face when he spied the open window. He stood and flicked over to it before leaning out. The cool night breeze tussled his hair and he shut his eyes and breathed in deep. Neither Asha nor Valentino took much notice.
"I've never seen Maya like that before," Asha said, quietly. "Nothing bad ever happens in Rosas."
"Well of course not. The Queen sees to that."
"But have you ever wondered how she does it? I mean I guess she used magic, but Maya never travels and almost no one ever comes here. And people like Helena and Esteban just….seem to show up."
And have secret meetings with the Queen. And make wishes full of wicked delights. And yet Maya says its fine?
Some wishes look….different than others.
"I've never heard of a wish that can hurt you."
"Perhaps it can't," Valentino said, chomping on a dangling bit of Asha's sheets. "Not anymore. Maybe the Queen gathers the bad wishes and I don't know, sends them hurling into the blazing yellow thing or whatever you humans call it."
Maybe, Asha thought with much doubt. One thing was certain; Maya was frightened of Star. Frightened enough of him to upend life altogether in Rosas. She felt a tightening in her chest and she cast a firm, but resolute glance at herself in the mirror. Rosas was the Queen's priority, but protecting Star, even from Maya, had to be her priority.
Speaking of Star….
She looked in one direction, then the other. Candles flickered, leaving little shadows in the room, yet somehow the brightest light of all was nowhere to be found!
"Uh Asha," Valentino bleated, suddenly quite interested in the window. "when does that curfew start?"
"Nightfall? Why?" Asha swallowed hard and rushed to join the goat at the window. Her mouth nearly fell open as she watched Star hovering in the sky, looking down at the empty streets of Rosas like an open playground.
Valentino clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Maybe one of us should've told him that."