The mirror barely recognizes me.
The woman staring back has Leah's eyes, but she's not Leah. Her hair is darker, her skin looks thicker with the added meat, lips plumber, jaw slightly sharper.
She looks... confident. Careful.
"Mia," August says, standing behind me. Or no, not August. Elijah. That's who he is for today.
I blink, my vision slightly blurred from the contact lenses. "You think it's too much?"
He tilts his head. "No. I think it's just right. No one's going to look at you and say 'Hey, that's Queen Leah.' Not even your own brother."
I laugh, but it sounds wrong. Hollow. Like this new version of me hasn't learned how to laugh yet.
He steps closer, his voice dropping low. "You sure you want to do this?"
"No," I say honestly. "But I think we should give this a try."
He
