WALKING AWAY FROM FERNANDA, I’M thinking it’s definitely time to investigate the Aquarian drink situation.
Nishi’s circle of admirers has grown, and rather than rejoin her, I decide to hunt down one of the floating trays. She’s far better at the small-talk stuff than I am; I’d rather skip this kind of dullatry and go straight to working on the Black Moon project.
The ballroom is so packed that I can’t spot any drinks, so I edge toward the outskirts of the crowd to get a better vantage point, knocking into elbows and shoulders along the way. When I reach the white marble wall, there’s a massive, gold-embossed mirror where a handful of women are checking themselves out. Their chiffon and satin and velvet gowns are so puffy that they can’t get very close to the glass.
I stand near them as I scan the room for the glint of tall-stemmed glasses.
“You look like you’re on the hunt,” says a clear, confident voice to my left, and I look up to see statuesque Skarlet Thorne holding two drinks in her hands.
It seems impossible, but upclose she’s even more stunning. Her skin is a shimmering bronze brown that seems to produce its own light, her eyes are curved and cat-like, and the folds of her red silk dress roll off her like watery flames.
She offers me one of the glasses. “Thanks,” I say, taking it. “How’d you know this was what I was hunting?”
“I figured if it was a guy, you would have checked your lipstick first.”
I stare at her questioningly, then I lean over to peek at myself in a corner of the mirror. The red paint has mostly smudged off my mouth, probably from eating.
“I think we’re wearing the same shade.” She draws a red tube from a barely noticeable pocket in the folds of her dress. Beside us, competition for space in front of the mirror has intensified, and she says, “I’ve got you.”
She hands me her glass but holds onto the napkin that was wrapped around its stem. Then she takes my chin between her fingers. “Part your lips.”
Her cat eyes study my mouth as she paints my top lip. “I’m glad we’re getting this chance to meet because I think there’s a lot we can do together to improve the situation for Risers,” she says, moving on to my lower lip. “I heard that Chief Executive Purecell is here, too, and since she’s such a vocal Risers’ rights advocate, it could be even more effective if the three of us combine forces. If you want, I’ll get your information from the Party so we can get organized.”
She slips the napkin between my lips. “Blot.” Then she steps back and admires her work. “Perfect.”
“Thank you. And yes, I’d love that,” I say, handing back her drink. “I’ve been really inspired by how you’ve bridged the divisions of your House.”
She clinks her glass with mine. “Well, it’s an honor to inspire the woman who inspired me.” Then she takes a sip of her drink, and I bring mine to my lips.
The liquid’s sweet fizz seems to invade my mouth, eyes, and nose all at once, and I cough a couple of times. To cover my mortification, I take a long sip. The drink is a mix of fruits I’ve never tasted before, and another flavor that’s familiar but I can’t place.
“I met Corinthe.”
The sweetness sours, and I nearly choke on it. “W-what? How?”
“She and the other Risers are being held in The Bellow on planet Phaet.” It’s the highest security prison in the Zodiac. “Since she’s the only soldier without a mask, most interrogations are directed at her, but she hasn’t spoken yet. The Majors felt since I’ve been advocating for Risers’ rights, and since I’ve been effective at addressing our people, I might stand a better chance.”
My mouth suddenly dry, I ask, “Did she . . . talk to you?”
“No—but I’m the only one who’s elicited a reaction from her.” Skarlet leans a little closer, and I catch a whiff of a spicy, floral scent that makes me think of a field of firebursts. “I did it by mentioning you.”
The glass slips a little in my fingers. “Me?”
“I asked if she’d rather talk to you.” The Ariean’s gaze trails down my gloved arm, where my scars are hiding, then flicks back to my face.
“And she smiled.”
I take another sip of my drink to drown the visual of Corinthe’s leering smile. As if she could see what I’m thinking, Skarlet adds, “She’s finished her transition. Want to know what House she’s in now?”
Somehow, I know before she says it.
“Cancer.”
So the person who doesn’t believe in love now looks like she belongs in the House of love. I can’t imagine a worse punishment for Corinthe.
“Actually . . .” Skarlet scrutinizes my face closely. “She looks a lot like you.”
My left arm suddenly starts to boil. I rub it against my dress to calm my skin, as the thought of Corinthe wearing my face burns me from the inside.
“Strange, isn’t it?” whispers Skarlet.
“What’s strange?”
Her fireburst scent grows stronger, like she’s about to spark. “The stars’ sense of humor.”
She walks away before I can say anything, leaving me to stare after her as she goes. And I’m not the only one looking.
Heads turn wherever Skarlet passes: She’s like a blaze of fire you want to keep your eyes on at all times in case the wind changes direction, and her flames blow your way.
• • •
When I find Nishi again, she clutches my arm. “There you are! Let’s go! It’s speech time!”
I run with her to the grand staircase, and we come to a stop next to Blaze and Geneva and the rest of his entourage. “Oh, good, you’re here,” he says, seeing Nishi. “Stay close.”
“I will.”
Blaze hands his date his drink, then hitches his purple skirt up on one side so he can climb to the middle of the staircase. At his signal, the orchestra stops playing, and in the absence of music, everyone looks around.
“Welcome, trailblazers!”
His voice comes from all corners of the room, and I notice a small volumizer—a black ball that’s a sound amplifier—hovering in the air near his head. He waits for the wild cheering and clapping to calm down before speaking again.
“Everyone who came here tonight is a pioneer of a new tomorrow. A different tomorrow. A united tomorrow. One that looks like this.” We look up to see holographic captures materializing in the air above us.
All the images are of the party attendees as we descended into the ballroom, each of us walking alongside a person from a different House. Mossy-eyed Virgos with dark-haired Sagittarians with tawny-skinned Geminin with broad-faced Leonines with athletically built Arieans and so on. No divisions among the Houses.
“If you’re here, you’ve heard me give plenty of speeches already, so I’m going to cede the floor to someone far more eloquent than myself. But first, I would like to give special thanks to a few guests who—despite everything going on in the Zodiac—still made it a priority to come here tonight and support our cause. Chief Executive Purecell, Wandering Star Rhoma Grace, and, of course, our guest of honor, whose hospitality we’re testing tonight, Ambassador Crompton.”
The room breaks into applause as Blaze steps down, and Ambassador Crompton climbs the stairs. When they meet, Blaze and Crompton trade the hand touch and then the Ambassador turns to face us.
I hear Nishi and Blaze murmuring as he returns to our group, but I’m not paying attention. I just spotted Hysan in the crowd.
He’s standing with Skarlet to the other side of the staircase, and she’s whispering something in his ear. My gaze lingers on how his hand hangs off her hip, and I take another sip of the sugary drink. Almost immediately, I start to feel a little lightheaded.
“Thank you, Lionheart Blaze, for this generous invitation to address tomorrow’s leaders. I am honored to be honored by you.” Crompton bows in our direction, toward Blaze. “I’ve thought a lot about what possible wisdom I could impart to such a talented group. What can I offer you in return for awarding me this distinction?”
My gaze keeps straying to Hysan. Each time I look over I feel like his eyes have just been on me. And yet he seems so completely immersed in whatever Skarlet’s telling him that it seems impossible his sight would have strayed, even for a second.
“Assurance.”
Ambassador Crompton’s voice booms through the space, bringing my attention back to him. “There is nothing humans fear more than change, and that is why, from here on out, you are going to face profound opposition. The best thing I can try to give you before you set off is assurance that what you’re doing is worth doing. That you are not living your life in vain.”
The whole ballroom has gone silent, and I’m happy to see even Skarlet has stopped talking.
“Helios forgive me, for I am an Aquarian!” Laughter breaks out across the room at Crompton’s cry. “And as a Philosopher I must beg you to allow me this moment to philosophize.”
His pink eyes shine brightly, reflecting the room’s colors back to us. “Why are we crawling one year and walking the next? Why is it that one birthday we’re asking our parents for toys, but the next we want an Ephemeris? Why does a shirt that fits us today not fit us tomorrow? Because we are ever-changing organisms. We were not meant to be static. Change is the universe’s only currency, and that is why it is futile to stand against progress, for evolution will always prevail.”
Clapping breaks out, and Crompton waits for it to die down completely before continuing. “So why do we fear our own growth?”
He takes a long pause as he pans his gaze across the room, like a teacher waiting for a brave student to raise her hand. “Because in order to change, we must relinquish control; we must momentarily lose ourselves. And in those moments, anything is possible—the best of us or the worst.
“When we’re younger, we leap across this divide with ease, eager to see what the next year brings. Yet as we grow older, we begin to fear the pain of the changing process, and we worry more and more about the person we will become on the other side. So we claw onto time, trying to keep it from ticking onward and moving us forward—and in doing this, we stunt our personal evolution.”
The place is so silent that he could be whispering and we would still hear him.
“Somewhere along the way,” he continues, “our misguided hubris hitched human pride to humanity’s progress. That is why you face such steep opposition. Because if you succeed in designing a stronger, better, fairer system, you will be the founding parents of the new world. The old thinkers will be displaced as flawed philosophers from an earlier era, caged within the confines of the past, falling further from relevance.
“So I want to use this moment to assure you that your work here is important. What you’re doing reminds us that while the past must be remembered, it cannot come at the cost of the future. Change keeps our species alive, and that is why we must shed our fear and allow ourselves—and our solar system—to grow with the times. Our eyes are in the front of our heads because what’s coming ahead means more than what we’re leaving behind. Where we’re going means more than where we came from. And as we say on Aquarius, Only when we let go of today will we be living in tomorrow.”
I set my now empty glass on the floor and join the others in a round of applause. It’s a while before our clapping dies down, and Crompton looks less comfortable accepting our praise than he did speaking. Eventually, he holds his hands up to signal us to stop.
My vision has gone blurry from drinking, and when I look at Hysan, I can no longer make out his features.
“And speaking of tomorrow,” says Crompton, “I have been asked to welcome to the stage the Tomorrow Party’s new co-captain, who will help Lionheart Blaze lead you into a hopeful new morning—Nishiko Sai of House Sagittarius.”
I turn to Nishi with wide eyes, and she grins at me, her amber irises filled with light. “I found out earlier but wanted to keep it a surprise!” she squeals.
Wrapping her in a huge hug I say into her ear, “I’m so proud of you, Nish.”
Blaze offers her his arm and escorts Nishi up the steps to where Crompton is standing. They trade the hand touch, and then he descends, leaving Nishi with the room’s attention. Watching her up there, my heart bursts with pride. After all she’s endured these past few months, Nishi has found herself and her place in the Zodiac.
“I’m going to keep this short,” she says, her voice carrying across the room. “First, I need to thank Ambassador Crompton on behalf of everyone present for that incredibly inspiring speech.” The room claps in solidarity, but tamps down quickly. “I also want to thank the incomparable Blaze Jansun for bringing us together for such a magnificent cause. And on a personal note, for trusting me to help bring his revolutionary vision to life.”
People applaud again, and I’m awed by the graceful ease with which Nishi handles having hundreds of eyes on her. There’s something comforting about the scene in front of me; it feels good being in the background again while Nishi takes center stage.
“Finally, I want to thank the person who means the most to me and whose courage inspired my own.” I feel Nishi’s gaze cut across to me, and, astounded, I stare back at her semi-blurry face. “Wandering Star, thank you for reminding us that we are not powerless, that we are the future. You sacrificed so much when you set out to warn the Houses about Ophiuchus, and you risked your life when you went out in that Wasp to bait him, and then you put yourself on the line again when you faced the Marad.
“By refusing to compromise your beliefs, you proved to everyone that we all have access to a powerful weapon, one that can change worlds with a single sound: our voice. By standing up, and speaking out, and refusing to go quietly, you showed us how change gets done.”
I feel everyone’s eyes on me as they clap, and my cheeks heat with color.
“Our system only exists because we subscribe to it; and that means we have the power to change it. The people making the rules today won’t be the ones inhabiting our solar system tomorrow—but we will. Don’t we deserve a say in what kind of worlds we want to inherit?”
As we break into more applause, a flicker of white-blond hair catches my eye. An Aquarian woman who seems familiar somehow is a few feet away, but I can’t see her face. I keep looking between her and Nishi, waiting for the chance to glimpse her features.
When at last she turns to talk to the person next to her, I hazily trace high ivory cheekbones and brilliantly blue eyes.
Everything goes still inside me.
Mom.