Powerful: A Powerless Story

Adena is back in the castle, talking to Paedyn’s maid, Ellie. It is a week later, and Paedyn is away from the castle, participating in the first Trial. Adena tells Ellie that she does not regret sneaking out to see Makoto every day; she has learned a lot about him, and no one seems to care where she goes, anyway, as long as she is back in time to make Paedyn’s next dress for the second ball. As Adena hurries out to go meet Makoto again, she nearly runs into the king. He silences her flustered apologies with a lifted hand and asks who she is. Upon learning that she is Paedyn’s seamstress and a close friend of Paedyn’s, he tells her that Paedyn survived the first Trial. Adena notes that he sounds disappointed. She asks who did die in the Trial, and when she learns that Hera is one of those killed, she is devastated—the king, by contrast, seems to care little about the deaths of two of his subjects. As he leaves her, he tells her that he is certain they will see each other again. Adena hurries to Makoto’s shop. He has already learned of Hera’s death, and he falls into Adena’s arms, sobbing. He tells her that it should have been him, not Hera, who died. When Adena tells him that she needs him, he tells her that he will only disappoint her.

On a mission to bring back Makoto’s smile, Adena tries to teach him to skip, a skill he has never been able to master. He is predictably resistant, and they bicker good-naturedly about how different they are. Adena asks him why he was so sure that the man who harassed her when she was selling clothing recognized her from the previous harassment incident and was deliberately ignoring Makoto’s warning to stay away from her. He explains that he made the men he tracked down on that first night memorize her features so that they would know who she was and to leave her alone. She is grateful that he went to so much trouble and grateful that now, she can return the favor by being “[h]is bright spot within the bleak” (146).

On the day of the second Trial ball, Makoto reluctantly agrees to Adena’s suggestion that they stay in the uncomfortable Fort on the night of each ball, since she believes that it brought Paedyn luck in the first Trial. He is sad at the reminder that it has been two weeks since Hera’s death, but he tells himself that it is time to pull himself together: It is what Hera would expect him to do. He helps Adena redecorate the Fort in anticipation of Paedyn’s eventual return. Makoto thinks about how Adena is a guiding light in his life, now, and he does not want to return to stumbling in the dark without her. She asks him what it is like to be a Wielder with so much power; he tells her it is lonely, and they talk about the likelihood that he will be killed if his power is discovered, since the king has a long history of killing those who threaten his power.

Adena nervously gives Makoto the weapons belt she has been fashioning for him; he is impressed with its careful construction and functionality, and he favors her with the “smile reserved only for her” (155). He realizes that her excessive joy no longer bothers him—he simply feels privileged to be a part of it. She is saddened to learn that she is the first person to give him a gift, but he tells her that he knows he will have many more happy memories to look forward to with her in his life. When she lies down for the night, she comments on the beauty of the stars, and Makoto tells her that someday she will make the stars jealous because, a long time from now, she will be one of those stars, shining down on the people below. She makes him promise that when that happens he will be in the firmament beside her, because she does not want to be there alone.

The next gift that Adena gives Makoto is a black vest like the green one she made for Paedyn. She has lined its pockets with leather so that he can stash knives there, if he wants, and stitched stars with “See you in the sky” in blue letters below one pocket. He says that this seems “ominous,” but she tells him to “think of it fondly” (162). Makoto wonders aloud about how one person can be so filled with goodness. He tells her that he calls her “honey” so often because “You are what you eat” and because he craves her sweetness (164). Adena is terrified of the depth of her feelings for him; she has no idea how to function in a romantic relationship and worries that she will do it wrong, somehow. She jumps back from his touch with the excuse that her bangs are poking her in the eyes and driving her crazy. Makoto offers to cut them for her; she squirms with fear at having the scissors so close to her eyes, but soon dissolves into giggles at how much the process tickles. When she comments that Makoto has perfect hair, he disagrees, saying that the streak of silver mars it. She runs her fingers through the silver streak and he pulls her close. Adena’s fear fades away, and she kisses him for the first time. He kisses her, then, more passionately, and she ends up in his lap. He smiles broadly, and she thinks that his smile is more intimate than any touch. They kiss a while longer, and then Adena tells him that she must return to the castle to finish Paedyn’s final dress. She reminds him that they will be spending the following night together, in the Fort.

Adena is thrilled with the black dress she has created for Paedyn to wear to the third and final Trial ball. Because she was with Makoto on the night of the second ball, she was not in the castle when rebels attacked it that night; now, she notices how many extra Imperials are on duty for the final ball. As she admires the dress she is carrying and thinks about how very soft the castle’s carpet is, she does not watch where she is headed, and she bumps into Prince Kai. She thinks that he is very attractive, and that Paedyn is a lucky woman. He recognizes her as Paedyn’s seamstress, since Paedyn is the only woman wearing a color other than green to the balls. Adena notes that, unlike his brother, he is unbothered by Paedyn’s unconventional choice. This makes Adena sure that Kai is a better choice for Paedyn than Kitt. When he tells her that she will get around the castle faster if she phases through walls, she suddenly remembers that he is a Wielder and therefore a danger to Makoto.

When Adena proudly presents the dress to Paedyn, Paedyn comments that she may have done her job a little too well: The dress will certainly draw attention. Adena and Ellie tease Paedyn that Kai will fall to his knees when he sees her, and she blushes. When she learns that Adena talked to Kai about her in the hallway, she is embarrassed. Paedyn hints that some disagreement related to the ball has come up between her and Kai, but she will only agree to fill Adena in after the next Trial, when her head is clearer. As Adena wrestles Paedyn into the dress’s tight corset, she tells Paedyn that she is taking full advantage of what might well be her last chance to dress Paedyn in something so fancy. Paedyn tells Adena that, after she makes it through one more Trial, they will both be free. Adena happily exits, eager to spend the night with Makoto in the Fort. On her way out, however, a servant intercepts her, saying that the king would like to see her.