Prince Richard spent his young life secluded in the palace, kept out of the eye of the forces that spent the last few centuries controlling magic and social norms, he learned magic, martial skills, and the structure of the kingdom preparing to be king. Princess Zita journeyed from the Inland sea to wed the heir to the Kingdom of the Grasses, a man she never met.

To strengthen the twenty decade old balance between the two kingdoms. They defy court protocol by sneaking out at night alone to find intimacy, and are caught amongst the ashes of a failed coup from the now defunct anti magic order.

Amid the restructuring of power blocks in the kingdom extra dimensional traders from beyond the gate introduce a bonanza of newly available magic to an unprepared population. Richard, one of the handful of magic users in the Kingdom, assembles a team to mitigate the pitfalls and highlight the boons of new magic.

Zita's status is left in flux as rumours and delayed communications, leaveher Royal cousin from her former homeland lagging far behind the rapid changes in the Kingdom of the Grasses. Zita pushes through all the challenges to find a life for herself with Richard, fascinated by the new traders and the problems the new magic creates and solves.

They steal what time they can to get to know each other, making the decision for themselves about their future together. .