Stars Above

  “I heard of a tradition,” said Thorne, “where the guests are supposed to make a bunch of raucous noise outside of the bridal chambers on the wedding night, until you give us candy and send us away.”

  Scarlet glared at him. “Yeah, please don’t do that.”

  “How many people will be there?” asked Kai.

  Another groan from Scarlet. “The whole blasted town, from what I can tell. I’m not sure how that happened—I certainly didn’t invite everybody. Small and intimate, I kept saying. Only close friends, I told them. But in a small town, I guess everyone just assumes that they fit under that umbrella. If it was up to me, it would just be the people in this room.” She paused. “Well, and Émilie. Because, again, she’s bringing the dessert.”

  Wolf stood up and began gathering everyone’s empty plates to be returned to the kitchen. After he had gone, Iko leaned forward and clapped her hands. “I know! Why don’t you show us your dress? I’m dying to see it.”

  Scarlet cocked her head. “You can’t wait two more days?”

  “Absolutely not. Please?”

  With a careless shrug, Scarlet pulled herself to her feet. “Come on, it’s upstairs.” She left the room, with Iko close on her heels. Cinder made to follow, but hesitated, glancing around at the guys.

  “You can handle this?” she asked.

  Thorne saluted her. “No problem. Just distract her for as long as you can.”

  Wolf reappeared from his trip to the kitchen and settled an enormous hand on Cinder’s shoulder, so heavy it made her jump in surprise.

  “Don’t let her come down here without the Something Old,” he whispered.

  “Something Old?”

  He nodded. “She’ll explain. She didn’t mention it before, but I know it’s one of the traditions that is important to her.”

  “Better hurry up,” said Jacin, nudging Winter, Cinder, and Cress toward the staircase. “You’re in our way, and evidently we have decorating to do.”

  He didn’t try to hide his disgust at the idea, and Cinder snorted at the mental image of Jacin decorating anything.

  She turned and hurried up to the second floor, but paused halfway up the staircase. Cress crashed into her, nearly knocking Cinder to her knees, but she grabbed the rail and steadied herself.

  “What is it?” asked Cress.

  “Nothing,” said Cinder, trying to shake off the wave of memories that was accosting her. She had climbed these stairs once before, when she and Thorne had come to the farm searching for Michelle Benoit. When they’d come searching for answers to Cinder’s past. “It’s just weird being here again,” she said, as much to herself as to Cress and Winter. “Being here, and not feeling hunted or afraid.” She glanced back and shrugged. “It’s a big difference from the last time I was here.”

  With a smile she hoped looked cavalier, she vaulted up the rest of the steps.

  The second floor held a small corridor and three doors—two of which were shut. The open door revealed a bedroom with blankets in disarray, sun-bleached curtains, and a large tuxedo hanging from a hook on one wall. Iko was sitting on the mussed bed with her knees drawn up to her chest, watching as Scarlet wrestled with a garment bag. No sooner had Cinder and the others filed in than Scarlet spun toward them with a pronounced “Voilà!” and held up the dress for them to see.

  A mutual gasp arose from Iko, Cress, and Winter, followed by a round of giddy oohs. Cinder couldn’t help chuckling at the drama of it all.

  The dress was beautiful, though, and uniquely Scarlet. A simple white cotton dress, with a sweetheart neckline accented with sheer fabric that continued to her neck and was finished with white piping. A full skirt that would hang just below Scarlet’s knees. A bright red sash around the waist was tied in a simple bow, matching the red vest and bow tie of the tuxedo.

  “It’s perfect!” said Iko, scrambling off the bed to touch the dress. She ran her fingers adoringly over the sash and down the full gathering of the skirt. “Simple and lovely—just like you, Scarlet.” She sighed dreamily. “You have to try it on for us.”

  Scarlet waved away the suggestion. “You’ll see it on me in a couple of days.”

  “Oh, please,” gushed Cress, tucking her clasped hands under her chin. She was joined by pleading doe eyes from Iko, but Scarlet just shook her head and made to put the dress back into the garment bag.

  “I don’t want to risk spilling something on it,” she said.

  “It’s good luck!” Winter said suddenly, her eyes bright with mischief.

  Scarlet paused. “What’s good luck?”

  “On Luna,” said Winter, folding her hands as if she were reciting from a wedding etiquette guide, “it’s considered good luck for the bride to don her dress for at least an hour for each of the three days leading up to the wedding. It symbolizes her commitment to the marriage. And as your groom is Lunar, I think we should follow some of his traditions, don’t you?”

  “An hour?” said Scarlet. “That’s really pushing it, don’t you think?”

  Winter shrugged.

  With a drawn-out sigh, Scarlet said, “Fine, I’ll go put it on. But I’m not going to stay in it for an hour. I still have chores to do.” She slipped out of the bedroom carrying the dress, and a moment later they heard the click of the bathroom door in the hall.

  “I’ve never heard of that tradition before,” said Cress.

  “That’s because I made it up,” said Winter.

  Iko beamed at her. “Well done. Now, quick.” She hurried to the tuxedo and pulled it off the peg, passing it to Cress, who passed it to Cinder. “Get that down to Wolf before she comes back.”

  Cinder rushed it to the staircase and hissed. Within seconds, Kai appeared in the foyer below with a garland of ribbon and roses draped across his shoulders. Cinder smirked. “Having fun down there?”

  “Surprisingly, I sort of am. Turns out Thorne has a weird knack for this wedding thing. He says it’s because Cress has been poring over wedding feeds for the past few months, but … I think he’s secretly enjoying it.”

  Thorne’s voice came booming from the sitting room: “Don’t mock a guy for having good taste!”

  “Here, give this to Wolf,” said Cinder, lowering the tuxedo to Kai. He flashed her a thumbs-up before retreating.

  Hearing the click of a door, Cinder pivoted around to see Scarlet emerging from the bathroom, wearing the white dress. “I need someone to zip it up,” she said, pulling her curls over one shoulder and turning her back to Cinder.

  “Er, we should let Winter do it,” said Cinder, coaxing her back into the bedroom. “You know my tendency to leave grease stains on every pretty thing I touch.”

  The other girls were anxiously anticipating Scarlet’s return, and her appearance brought on another chorus of swoons. Winter pulled up the zipper and Scarlet gave a half turn, letting the full skirt swish around her legs. It was the girliest thing Cinder had ever seen her do, and even Scarlet was beaming when she caught sight of herself in the full-length mirror in the corner.

  “Oh, Scarlet,” Cress sighed. “You’re getting married. It’s all like a dream.”

  “I guess it sort of is,” Scarlet agreed, her cheeks flushing pink around her freckles.

  Iko petted the edge of the bed. “Sit down and let me do your hair.”

  “My hair? What are you going to do to my hair?”

  “I’m not sure yet, which is why I need to practice for the big day.”

  With Scarlet’s back turned, Iko winked at Cinder, who alone knew that Iko had been researching popular wedding styles and practicing on the palace maids for weeks.

  Scarlet groaned. “How long will this take?”

  “Why, you have somewhere else to be? Stop whining and sit down. Cinder, you have those hair accoutrements I told you to hold on to?”

  “Oh. Right.” Cinder had forgotten all about the brush, clips, bobby pins, and curling iron that Iko had ordered her to stash in the hollow compartment of her cyborg leg before they’d left Lu
na. She sat down and pulled them out.

  Scarlet’s jaw dropped. “You’re frighteningly prepared,” she said, pushing a fingertip through the pile of bobby pins that Cinder set on the bed. “What if I told you I just wanted to wear my hair down, like normal?”

  “Then I would use my powers of persuasion to change your mind.” Iko grabbed the sides of Scarlet’s head and forced her to face forward. “Now hold still.”

  The others sat down to watch Iko work. She’d just finished teasing the hair at the crown of Scarlet’s head when Scarlet asked, “Why is Wolf’s tuxedo missing?”

  Cinder traded looks with the others. “It … um … we were…”

  “Thorne came up and took it,” interrupted Cress. “When you were changing.”

  Scarlet frowned. “What for?”

  “Because … he wanted to…” Cress swallowed. “Um … compare it to his own tuxedo. To make sure they were, uh … matching?” Her gaze darted to one side as she realized how implausible that sounded, even for Thorne.

  “She means,” interrupted Cinder, “that Thorne was concerned that he and Wolf might have purchased the same tuxedo, which I guess is considered a big faux pas. You know how Thorne is about that sort of thing. Can’t be seen in the same tux as the groom! How embarrassing, right?”

  Scarlet opened her mouth to speak again, her brow furrowed, when Iko asked, “What shoes are you going to wear?”

  Scarlet moved to turn her head, but Iko grabbed it and faced her forward again. She huffed. “I don’t know. Winter said she had a pair I could borrow.”

  Winter snapped and hopped to her feet. “Right. They’re still packed away. I’ll go get them.” She darted across the hall into the guest room, rustled around for a moment, then returned carrying a pair of red heels, almost the exact color of the dress’s sash.

  The appearance of the perfect shoes were met with another round of ahhs, and this time Cinder couldn’t contain a chuckle and shake of her head. Winter sat cross-legged in front of Scarlet and pushed the shoes onto her feet. “How do they feel?”

  “Not bad.” Scarlet turned her ankle back and forth. “If I can keep from tripping and breaking an ankle in them, this wedding will be a smashing success.”

  Iko snorted. “They’re barely a two-inch heel.”

  “Which is two inches taller than I’m used to.”

  A crash from downstairs made them all jump.

  “What was—” Scarlet started to push herself off the bed, but Iko held firm to a lock of hair and tugged her back down.

  “What part of ‘hold still’ don’t you understand?” she scolded.

  “I’ll go see what it was,” said Cinder, slipping into the hallway and darting down the stairs. Jacin was sitting at the bottom, hunched over something and working intently.

  “That was Thorne,” he said, without glancing up at her.

  “What did he do? Knock down a wall?” Cinder stepped past Jacin, but hesitated when she saw the vase of white flowers on the floor at his feet. He was meticulously pulling the flowers out of the water, one by one, and wiring their stems together. His brow was knotted in concentration.

  “Are you making a bouquet?” she asked incredulously.

  “Shut up.” He held the cluster in one hand and turned it a few different directions, before plucking out a white hydrangea and adding it to the mix.

  Shaking her head, Cinder turned away and glanced into the sitting room. It was already transformed—flowers and garlands and tulle bows draped over every surface. It was beautiful, if also a bit chaotic.

  Wolf was nowhere to be seen—probably changing, she thought—but Thorne and Kai were each standing on chairs and hanging a swath on the wall above the fireplace mantel as a part of their makeshift altar.

  “What’s going on?” Cinder asked. “What was that noise?”

  “Iss all unner control,” said Thorne through a mouthful of tacks.

  She looked at Kai, who shrugged sheepishly. “We had a disagreement with a bookshelf, but Thorne’s right. We’ve got this.”

  Cinder opened her mouth to demand more information, but hesitated and glanced around the room again. Nothing seemed irreparably damaged.

  “How much more time do you think we have?” Kai asked.

  “Iko is doing her hair right now. Maybe … half an hour?”

  He gave her a nod, and Cinder turned and rushed back up to the bedroom.

  “Nothing to worry about,” she said as she let herself back in. Iko had almost finished with a complicated-looking braid that wrapped around Scarlet’s head like a halo, leaving the bottom half of her hair loose and curly around her shoulders.

  “But what was it?” asked Scarlet.

  Cinder gaped at her, scrolling quickly through a list of potential logical responses. “Uh … they knocked over a chair. When they were … wrestling.” She flinched on the inside, surprised that her internal lie detector didn’t go off on herself. She could see the suspicion deepening in Scarlet’s face, but she smiled and said, “That looks really great, Iko.”

  “I still need to touch up her natural curls,” said Iko, turning on the curling iron. “And tuck some of these pearls into the braid.”

  Scarlet laughed. “This is just for practice, Iko. Don’t waste your time.”

  Iko made a clicking sound in her throat—akin to a subtle tsk. “How else are we going to get the full effect? Dress, shoes, hair, everything. It all has to work together.”

  Scarlet sighed. “You’re all acting weird. Is there something going on that I should know about?”

  A chorus of highly incriminating Nos and Not at alls flurried around her. Scarlet scoffed.

  “Why don’t you tell us about … something old?” said Cinder, sitting beside Winter.

  Scarlet frowned. “Something old?”

  “Yeah. Um. Wolf had said something about a tradition…”

  “Oh!” Scarlet fluffed her skirt, keeping out the wrinkles as much as she could. “There’s an old, old wedding tradition, in which the bride should wear something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. So, for me, my dress is new.” She gestured at the dress. “The shoes are borrowed. And my something old is right over there.” She pointed.

  Cress turned and picked something small and shining off the top of the dresser. She held it toward Scarlet, who nodded before showing it to the others.

  It was a brooch. A yellow gemstone was at its center, set into a five-pointed star, with two golden wings stretching out to either side. Cinder’s retina display recognized it almost immediately, informing her that it was a pilot pin from the European Federation military, circa 81 T.E.

  “It was my grandmother’s,” said Scarlet, holding out her palm. Cress set the pin into it. “It was given to her when she became a pilot. She gave it to me years ago, and … I thought it would be like having a part of her with me. I thought I’d pin it to the bouquet or something.”

  “Don’t be silly.” Winter rose up onto her knees and scooted closer to Scarlet. Taking the brooch from her hands, she leaned forward and pinned it through the fabric of the white bodice, right over Scarlet’s heart. “This is clearly where it belongs.”

  Scarlet was smiling as she looked down at the brooch. “You don’t think it clashes with the outfit?”

  “Oh, it definitely clashes,” Iko said from behind her.

  “But do you care?” added Winter.

  Scarlet shook her head. “Not really.”

  “I figured as much.”

  “Done!” Iko leaned back. “Get up and show everyone.”

  “When did you become so bossy?” Scarlet said, chuckling, as she stood and straightened the dress. She gave a twirl, then stopped and let everyone admire Iko’s handiwork. Her hair fell in large spiraling ringlets—still curly and wild, but neater than she usually wore it, and topped off with the elegant, pearl-studded braid. She went to look at herself in the mirror.

  After a long, silent moment, she swallowed and placed a finger against her gran
dmother’s brooch. She sniffed, then tilted her head way back and inhaled deeply in an attempt to keep tears from falling. After a second, she laughed again and lowered her head.

  “I wish she were here,” she murmured, and no one had to ask who she meant. “She would have loved him so much.” There was another sniff, and she turned around, swiping at her eyes. “She would have loved all of you, too. I think … I think she was a little concerned that I never made very many friends.” She swept her arms in no particular direction. “And now look. I have so many friends, I need a cargo ship to keep you all in.”

  Winter stood and wrapped her arms around Scarlet’s waist. “She’s in the stars,” she whispered. “Jacin and I saw her when we were in the sky, and she was smiling down at you, and so very, very proud.”

  Scarlet shook her head even as she sank into the embrace. “I thought you weren’t crazy anymore.”

  Winter grinned. “I never made any promises,” she said, lifting her chin high. “And I believe it, besides. She is watching you, Scar, and she is proud.”

  With a nod, Scarlet rubbed at her eyes one more time. “This is good,” she said. “It’s better to get all of this out of the way so I’m not a mess during the actual wedding, right?”

  Cinder looked down, but she could still sense the awkward glances shared between Cress and Iko before Cress cleared her throat and asked, “What about the something blue? You didn’t tell us what that was going to be.”

  “Oh, that.” Scarlet extricated herself from Winter’s arms. “I couldn’t really think of anything, so I thought I’d skip that part. It’s just a silly tradition, anyway.”

  Winter jolted, her eyes gleaming. “It’s not silly at all, and I know just the thing. Do you have any blue thread?”

  Scarlet peered at her uncertainly. “There’s a sewing kit in the top drawer over there.”

  Winter hurried to the dresser, found the kit, and within moments had threaded a needle with cobalt blue thread. “Sit down again.”

  “Now what are you doing?” Scarlet asked with some trepidation as Winter folded up the hem of her dress, revealing the silky lining underneath.

  “Don’t worry. I taught myself how to embroider years ago.” She lowered her head to concentrate, her thick spiral curls curtaining her face.