Song: "Razz" from The Music of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

The queen of Bright Moon does not confuse me in the slightest as far as her unmarried status goes. She is five hundred years old, and I understand why she never wed. She and her deceased parents are the last of her kind that stayed when the stars burned out, besides the Angel of Transcendence. She must watch as we bicker and fall ill and die decade after decade. If she married, she would have a mortal husband whom she would have to let go of in eighty years anyway, and such estimates are generous.

❂❂❂

Light Spinner forced down panic. Micah was certainly small and skinny enough to be an easy target for the terrorists, but he likely would have screamed, or there would have been an uproar. Light Spinner couldn't accept that they could just steal a teenage boy without making some sort of ruckus.

She grabbed a blue violet from the wall next to the flag, crushed it between her fingers, and spread the petals around a puddle of water sitting in the square. Taking a vial of magic moondust, she traced the mandala for a location spell. "Show me Micah," she commanded.

The water hissed, then revealed her student exiting a transportation spell into Queen Angella's throne room. Light Spinner stood rigid, stamping down the illusion. She had to get to the palace fast, being careful not to display her powers to the queen.

✧✧✧

Micah exited the transportation spell and dropped into an impossibly large room - it must have been at least three times the size of the Lunarium - with ornate walls and stained-glass murals. Blinding light poured down as he stood; guards resided all around him.

"Aw, man," he groaned. "Is this a prison?"

"A prison?" a woman's voice giggled from the far end in Meyan, where a golden throne was perched in the air. "Who are you, silly little boy?"

The speaker rose, even taller than Light Spinner and wearing a pink-and-white dress, her rosy skin shining in the light of the palace. A pair of enormous, iridescent wings trailed down her back. She smiled at Micah with violet eyes and a kind face.

"Queen Angella," Micah replied in his broken Meyan, blushing slightly. He bowed a bit, trying to imitate the way Light Spinner curtsied before Norwyn as if that could be a reference to bowing before this...angel.

Angella tilted her head. "What brings you to the palace?"

"Oh. Um..." He straightened his messy hair, then cleared his throat. I can see why someone would think she's a goddess. "My name is sorcerer, and I am a Micah." Did I just say that out loud?

Angella folded her hands, her smile growing wider. "Are you with the Emeth I invited?"

"Yeah." His cheeks were unnaturally hot. "I tried to get us both to the palace, but we were separated because I forgot to hold her hand."

Angella stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder. "You are such a bright boy," she said softly. "I can tell you will make her proud already. Now, where is she?"

Micah's body melted at that compliment, and it was a moment before he could respond. "I don't really know," he said. "She won't be happy with me, though."

A guard ran up to the queen just as he finished. "There's someone at the gates who wants to be let in."

"Who?"

"Uh...tall, Delvalian, lots of hair - "

Micah grinned. "That's her."

"Let her in," Angella said with a smile. A moment later, Light Spinner burst through the door on the far end of the courtroom, lifting her skirts and running toward Micah.

"Your Majesty," she said, curtseying before the queen. "It's an honor. I apologize for him - we're still working on transportation spells."

Good. She gets my mistake. Angella gave a sweet smile. "You two are precious," she said, interlacing her fingers. "Light Spinner, he was no trouble at all. I am so glad to meet you both. Today has been stressful, with party-planning and dinners and the likes."

Light Spinner sighed. "Well, Your Majesty...there is a bigger problem I must make you aware of - "

Angella sighed. "I am so glad to have spoken to you - thank you so much. I'm sorry, but I have to shoo you out early. It's been a pleasure - adeu!"

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Did you know...

● The Angel of Transcendence is actually a familiar face. I'll be dropping clues leading up to Seraphite as to who it is and officially reveal it then, but here's a hint: it's a canon character (that I retconned to be an angel).

● I made a point to reference as many memes in this book as I could without being awkward.

Tell me what you think...

● Now that Angella's shooed them out, how will they handle the issue of the terrorists?