“And that was the list that had Councillor Alina on it,” Biana jumped in. “Which was how they ended up dating. But she was too smothering, so they broke up, and after a little while, my dad asked for a new list—and that time, my mom was his number one match.”

“So if my dad hadn’t waited,” Fitz finished, “Biana and I wouldn’t exist.”

“Wow.” Sophie couldn’t imagine Alden and Della not being together. They were one of the sweetest couples she’d ever known.

But it was hard to wrap her mind around the timeline Fitz and Biana were describing. It was so different from the things she’d seen growing up. Most humans married people who were within a few years of their own age, since a thirty-year-old and a ninety-year-old were practically a different species. But it didn’t seem to be that way for elves.

In fact, Edaline had once explained that that was why the elves did matchmaking. Their indefinite lifespan—and ageless appearance—made courting extra tricky. If they weren’t careful, someone could end up marrying a distant relative without realizing and . . . ewwwwww

Still, the matchmaking thing felt like a mountain of awkward looming on the horizon. The whole process sounded arbitrary and unromantic—especially since the matchmakers focused on things like ideal genetic diversity. And it was a big deal. If you married someone who wasn’t on your list, the relationship was branded a bad match and the scorn would follow you—and your children—for the rest of your lives.

Sophie had seen the kind of hurt and problems the system caused, and it gave her a sour stomach.

“Well,” Biana told her brother, “you’re welcome to be boring if you want. But I know I’m getting my list the first second I can—right, Sophie?”

The best answer Sophie could give was a shrug.

She was torn between hoping the elves would see the flaws in their system and decide they were done with the whole matchmaking thing before she ever had to face it, and really wanting to know who would be on her lists.

“What about you?” Biana asked Dex.

He took a deep breath. “I’m still deciding if I’m going to register.”

Biana’s eyebrows shot up so fast they practically launched off of her face. “But . . . that would guarantee you’d be a bad match.”

“So? It worked out fine for my parents.”

Kesler and Juline did seem very happy—but they’d had to deal with a lot of drama over the years. Edaline had told Sophie that they’d even been nervous to have children, since they knew their kids would face a ton of judgment. And Sophie had heard some of the teasing Dex had endured—and it had to be a million times worse for the triplets.

“It’s just . . . look at the mess matchmaking has made,” Dex mumbled. “Brant wouldn’t have joined the Neverseen if he and Jolie hadn’t been ruled a bad match. If they want to give recommendations, that’s one thing. But it shouldn’t be mandatory.”

“I guess I get where you’re coming from,” Biana said. “But you can always choose to ignore your lists if you don’t like the names on them, right? So why not at least give it a chance? You might find the perfect person is part of your match and save all the hassle.”

Dex stared at his hands. “Maybe. It just feels like . . . if I register, I’m saying it’s okay. That everything that’s happened to my family was fair—and it wasn’t. I guess the good news is, I don’t have to decide for a few more years.”

“Right,” Sophie said, deciding to change the subject to something that didn’t make every part of her feel twitchy. “So what time should we come over to go through Alvar’s records?”

“Oh, you want to come to my house?” Dex asked.

“Isn’t that where all the stuff is? Why? Is that bad?” Now that Sophie was thinking about it, he’d never invited her over. Not even when they were practicing alchemy all the time—though that could’ve been because he was afraid she’d burn down his room.

“Would you rather come to my house?” she offered.

“No, my house is fine. But the triplets will be there.” He pointed through the crowd, to where his mom was fighting to keep two boys who looked like mini-Dexes and a red-haired girl from tackling each other. “That’s them on good behavior.”

Biana giggled. “What are their names again?”

“Rex, Bex, and Lex. My dad’s not nearly as funny as he thinks he is.”

“Aw, I think it’s cute that you guys rhyme,” Biana said.

“That’s because you don’t have to be named Bitz,” Dex told her.

“Ohhh, I should start calling you that!” Fitz said, grinning at his sister.

“If you do, I’ll start calling you Fiana.”

Sophie laughed. “Be glad Keefe’s not here or those would be your names from now on.”

The teasing screeched to a halt.

For one awkward second, they all just stared at each other. Then Biana whispered, “I miss him.”

“Me too,” Dex agreed.

“Maybe that’s his real plan,” Fitz told them. “Make us forget how annoying he can be so we let him be twice as obnoxious when he comes home. Though Sophie’s still stuck with him. How are the check-ins going, by the way?” he asked her. “Learn anything useful?”

“Not yet. I’ll tell you his plan once we’re at Dex’s house. Should we head over after we’re done here?”

“Actually, I can’t today,” Dex said. “I promised my dad I’d help at the store as soon as I could. But we could meet up tomorrow morning. Not sure how you guys will get there, though. Rimeshire isn’t on a lot of Leapmasters. And the Vackers and the Dizznees don’t exactly run in the same circles.”

“Well . . . they should.” Biana pointed to the ring he gave her. “Go Team Vackiznee!”

“I should’ve known I’d find you arranging some sort of scheme,” a whispery voice said behind them.

They all did a double take when they turned to find Sir Astin with his long blond hair and nearly translucent skin.

“How come you’re here as him?” Sophie whispered. “Won’t the Council be expecting to see Magnate Leto today?”

“Actually, Magnate Leto is off doing a favor for them. But I wasn’t about to miss the big announcement.”