The seal was small enough to hide in her palm. Smooth metal. Cool against her skin. A crescent moon with a thin line through the center like a cut through light.
It looked harmless

It was not harmless

Lena walked back through the private wing with the seal held tight in her fist. No one stopped her this time. No one dared. Guards who would not have looked at her yesterday now stepped aside to let her pass. Some nodded. Some watched her with quiet suspicion. One even bowed his head for half a second like she had become something holy or cursed and he had not yet decided which

Elara was waiting in the corridor just outside Lena’s chamber. The moment Lena appeared Elara rushed to her side her eyes wide with worry

“What happened. Are you all right. They said the Queen Mother called for you and the prince was furious and the council is whispering and—”

Lena held up her hand. “I’m fine,” she said softly. “For now.”

Elara looked at the seal and her mouth fell open. “Is that what I think it is.”

“She named me,” Lena said. The words felt strange in her mouth. “I belong to the Inner Court now.”

For a moment Elara just stared. Then she let out a weak laugh that did not sound like relief. “That’s good,” she said. “That’s protection. No one can touch you now without permission. Not even a noble. Not even a captain.”

Lena leaned against the wall. Her body felt tired in a way that sleep could not fix. “It’s also control. She said I answer to her first even before the prince.”

Elara winced. “That,” she whispered, “is a problem.”

Lena nodded. “Yes. And it’s going to get worse.”

Elara lowered her voice. “Do you think she’ll make you open the Gate.”

“She’ll make me keep it from opening for anyone but her,” Lena said. “Which is almost the same thing.”

Elara swallowed. “Then you’re not safe.”

“No,” Lena said. “But I’m still breathing. That counts for something.”

Elara tried to smile but it faded fast. She reached for Lena’s wrist. “I’ll bring you water. You look pale.”

When Elara left Lena finally let herself sit on the edge of her bed. The seal rested on her knee like an eye that never closed. She turned it over with her thumb. She had seen this mark before. On the dead guard. On the secret message that had led her to the Gate. On Lady Serah.

Lady Serah

The Queen Mother wore white and smiled like calm weather. Lady Serah wore violet and spoke in warnings. Both used the same symbol. Both worked in the shadows of the throne. But not for the same reason

Which side am I on now Lena thought

Her chest tightened

A knock sounded before she could decide

She did not answer right away and still the door opened. Only one person in the palace walked in without waiting

Prince Alden

He shut the door behind him without speaking. His jaw was set. His eyes were sharper than she had ever seen them. Not angry exactly. Focused like a blade

Lena stood “Your Highness—”

“Show me,” he said

She opened her palm and held out the seal

His gaze darkened. “She marked you”

“She said it was protection”

He gave a short humorless sound. “Protection,” he said. “Is not when someone wraps a ribbon around your neck. It’s when they don’t need the ribbon at all.”

“So you’re angry,” Lena said

“I am past angry,” Alden said. “I am at calculation.”

They stood in silence. The air in the room felt tight. She could hear her own heartbeat

At last she said quietly, “She wants me to answer to her before I answer to you.”

“I assumed she would,” he said. “But I did not expect her to move this fast.”

“It wasn’t a request,” Lena said. “She told me I belong to the Inner Court now. I have a place. I have a name.”

“And you understand what that means,” he asked

Lena nodded. “It means if anything happens to me it will be seen as an insult to the Queen Mother,” she said. “So no one can touch me.”

The prince gave a slow nod. “Yes. That part is true.”

Lena waited. “And,” she said

His gaze did not leave her face. “And it also means,” he said, “that if you betray her even once she will erase you and no one will be allowed to speak of it. You will not die as a girl in service. You will die as a secret.”

Lena felt cold

“So,” she whispered, “I’m safe unless I breathe wrong.”

“Exactly,” he said

He took one step closer “Listen to me Lena. From now on you cannot speak freely in any room that is not mine. Not to the servants. Not to the council. Not even to Mira. You cannot ask questions in the open. You cannot say Gate where anyone might hear you. If you need to tell me something urgent you look at me. Not at the map. Not at the guards. Me. Do you understand.”

“I understand,” Lena said

He looked at her for a long moment. “Good,” he said softly. “Because we are almost out of time.”

Her stomach tightened. “What happened.”

“The southern wall cracked again,” he said. “Only this time it didn’t stop. A line of light came through the stone in front of the workers. Not fire. Not heat. Just light. And one of them swore he heard a voice.”

Lena’s breath went still. “What did it say.”

Alden held her gaze. “It said the way is not closed and balance demands an answer.”

Her throat felt dry. “It’s getting louder,” she whispered

“It’s getting public,” he said “That’s worse.”

“Will the council move on the Gate again,” Lena asked

“They will try,” he said. “But they’ll do it through the Queen Mother now. They’ll tell her you can finish the sealing if she orders you to. And she will believe them because belief is easier than fear.”

“And you,” Lena asked. “What do you believe.”

He did not answer right away. Then he said, in a voice quieter than the room, “I believe the Gate wants to use you. I believe my mother wants to use you. I believe neither of them deserves to break you to get what they want.”

The floor under Lena’s feet felt unsteady

“I won’t let either world disappear,” she said. “I won’t choose like that. I won’t.”

His eyes softened just a little. “Then we choose first.”

He reached into his coat and pulled out a rolled strip of parchment. He placed it in her hands.

“What is this,” she asked

“A plan,” he said. “A dangerous one. If we finish the pattern in our way not the Gate’s way we might lock both worlds in place without one taking the other. It will hurt. It will cost something. But it will not erase everything.”

Lena stared at the parchment. “Will it work,” she asked

“If it doesn’t,” he said, “the palace won’t be here long enough for anyone to argue about blame.”

Lena let out a slow breath and nodded. “Then we do it.”

Alden almost smiled. “Good,” he said. “We start tonight.”

He turned to go then paused at the door. “And Lena,” he said without looking back

“Yes,” she said

“Do not wear that seal unless someone is watching,” he said. “And never forget who handed it to you.”

When he left the room Lena sat with the parchment in one hand and the crescent seal in the other

One was a promise

One was a threat

And both were now her life