The Crown of Embers, Chapter 16: A Holiday Special, Continued

Last time on The Crown of Embers, Elisa attended a holiday dance and socialized with a lot of people. Will something more exciting happen? Find out after the cut.

Hector offers an arm, and I accept gratefully. We turn at the same moment Lord Liano calls out, “Your Majesty!”

Luckily, Elisa and Hector manage to avoid boring and corpulent Lord Liano and head for the gardens. Elisa then manages to convince Hector to give her some alone time.

It turns out that Elisa isn’t alone in the garden, though. She hears someone whispering nearby. Elisa decides to get a closer look…

… And finds Tristán and Iladro cuddling.

Okay, I bet some of you called that Tristán was gay.

After dismissing Iladro, Tristán explains to Elisa that he’s not romantically interested in women, but he needs to marry someone because Eduardo is annexing his territory. Elisa feels totally humiliated because WAAH NO MAN WILL LOVE ME EVER, AND THE ONLY DECENT SUITOR IS GAY.

Don’t worry, Elisa. You’re in a YA series. You’ll be with your Designated Love Interest by the end of the last book. Stop whining already.

Elisa then returns to Hector, and admits that she thinks everyone just wants her because she’s the queen. She then spends the rest of the night trying her best to socialize.

After the ball, Ximena gives Elisa a letter from Alodia! Wow, we haven’t heard from her in a while. Unfortunately, Alodia is being pressured to marry someone from Joya d’Arena, and Ximena has suggested that she court Hector. Of course, this really pisses off Elisa, and makes her wonder if Ximena knows about her feelings for him. However, she does write Alodia to tell her that Hector is an excellent potential suitor.

Elisa then cries herself to sleep … but the next day, she has a plan!

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Stuff I Forgot to Mention Above:
I put off writing this recap because I’ve never written about homosexuality before! So I’m really nervous about how all this came off.

So I guess same-sex marriages aren’t a thing in this book’s universe, seeing as how Tristán is essentially being forced to court Elisa.

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Next time: Elisa makes a deal with Tristán. Rosario tries to join an adventuring party. Said adventuring party is gathered and ventures forth.