Crown of Midnight

At the ball, Chaol knows Celaena is in a bad mood, so while watching the ballroom guests, he also watches her from his position in an alcove. The royal family is throwing the ball in honor of Prince Hollis. Chaol notices Celaena is missing, so he leaves his post to find her. He walks outside to the garden and sees her dancing by herself. During one of her turns, she sees him and immediately stops. Embarrassed at being caught, she explains that she’s bored and cold and it’s his fault for leaving her here. She asks him what her punishment will be, but he extends his hand and tells her to dance with him.

Celaena reminds him that he refused her invitation to dance at the Yulemas ball because it would be dangerous, but he says things are different now. She forgets about everything and takes his hand. They waltz together, staring only at each other. Celaena realizes that, for the first time in 10 years, she’s home.

Dorian watches his friends dance from a window in the ballroom. Nehemia joins him and tells him not to cause trouble for the couple, to which Dorian replies that he is moving on. The princess mentions that Roland informed her that the king approves expanding Calaculla to accommodate more slaves. She asks Dorian to attend tomorrow’s council meeting to convince the council to reject the proposed expansion. He says that he can’t. As Celaena and Chaol slip back to their guard posts, Nehemia tells Dorian that he has more power than he realizes and that when it awakens, she will be there to help him. She slips back into the crowded ballroom, and Dorian watches her, feeling something ancient awaken within him.

The following morning, Celaena is in Archer’s townhouse parlor awaiting his return. She came mainly to distract herself from her dance with Chaol. When Archer arrives, she tells him she needs more than just a list of names and asks him for more information. Archer asks for more time because everyone is more cautious after Davis’s death. She gives him six more days, threatening that her next visit will be unpleasant unless he has information.

Dorian looks over maps and figures of Calaculla during the council meeting, shocked by the number of slaves held there, but no one else appears bothered. He knows that the councilmen have already decided to expand Calaculla. He notices that the king, Perrington, and Roland all wear the same black ring. Roland reports on the labor camp, and the king looks on approvingly. Dorian asks where they will house the new slaves and if new shelters will be built for them, suggesting that they release some of the slaves. He asks if the king plans to throw all his opponents into Calaculla. Dorian’s rage causes the buried power within him to flicker. The king tells Dorian to stop or he’ll throw him out of the room before the vote. Dorian responds that his vote is a no and storms out. He walks to an abandoned hallway and punches the wall. The impact causes a web of cracks that expand to a nearby window, shattering it. He crouches to the ground to avoid falling debris and looks at his hand, which has no injury. He stands and sees the area where he was crouching is entirely free of debris. This should be impossible because magic is gone.

Chaol and Celaena are resting on the couch in his room. Celaena avoids her room because she knows that Mort and Elena are nearby. She also avoids the library and the secrets buried there. Chaol leaves to get a chocolate cake, and when they have eaten half of it, Chaol falls asleep. She watches Chaol and thinks about how different the court and world would be if men like Chaol led them. She also realizes that the life she dreams for herself includes Chaol. She leaves Chaol to rest, taking the cake with her.

When she reaches her room, Celaena sees Dorian sitting in the hallway outside her door. He says he’s looking for Nehemia and thinks she might be with Celaena. She notices that the hallway is cold and asks Dorian what’s wrong. He says nothing is wrong as he walks away.

Chaol gives his daily report to the king. He tries not to think about how hard it was to feign sleep while Celaena touched his hair as she left. He is glad he didn’t reach out to her, as crossing that line would jeopardize his loyalty to the king. The king tells Chaol to keep watch on the castle grounds during that night’s carnival and to watch Nehemia; she is starting to influence people in the castle.

Dorian spends his afternoon practicing his sword fighting to escape his thoughts about magic. Roland appears and asks to join him. He apologizes for yesterday’s council meeting and says he called off the vote after Dorian left. Dorian questions Roland’s sincerity. Talking to Roland makes Dorian examine Roland’s relationship with the king and Perrington, and he wonders if he could use the king’s pawn against him. Leaving Roland behind, Dorian turns into the courtyard where people are setting up the carnival, a belated Yulemas gift to Hollin. Chaol sees him, so he, Dorian, and Celaena walk together through the celebration. They eventually come to a wagon with an old woman out front; she asks if they’d like her to read their palms and tell their fortunes. Celaena accuses her of being a witch, and the woman cackles that she is the last born of the Witch Kingdom. They eventually pull themselves away from the witch’s taunts.

The encounter with the witch disturbs Celaena, as she has heard the terrible myths surrounding the witch and her people. She felt drawn to the witch’s wagon, as if there was something inside for her. Her amulet also felt heavy and warm. They arrive at the castle stables, where Dorian gives Chaol an Asterion stallion as an early birthday present. Chaol says he can’t accept such a gift, but Dorian insists. When Dorian asks Chaol what he’s doing for his birthday, Celaena sharply says they have plans. Celaena leaves the stables after an uncomfortable silence and returns to her rooms. She wants to visit Elena’s tomb alone because she realizes that the hollow eye in the wall looks like a perfect fit for her amulet.

Celaena goes to the tomb door and asks Mort if her amulet truly has powers. He says it does. She enters the tomb and goes to the face on the wall. She places her amulet in the hollow eye, though it only slightly fits, and peers through it. She sees the same blank wall. Celaena becomes frustrated with the riddles and mysteries she must solve. Mort refuses to help her because she still isn’t asking the right questions.

That night, Celaena wakes from the dream she has every year on this day. She’s standing on the edge of a large ravine and sees a glowing white stag on the other side, similar to the one she saw from her prison wagon on her way to Endovier. As she stands on the ravine, the stag beckons to her. But she can’t cross, and the stag turns and walks into a forest. Now awake, she leaves the castle before dawn breaks.

When Celaena doesn’t show up for her morning training session, Chaol goes to her suite. He finds Nehemia in the foyer drinking tea; she tells him Celaena isn’t there. When he asks where she is, Nehemia says she’s as far away from the castle as a half-day ride can take her, for today is the 10th anniversary of her parents’ death.