by Godiva Glenn
Blair stood in the doorway watching Alethea work at her desk. Her back was to him, but he could imagine her eyes scrunching at the numbers on the report in front of her. Could guess that her lips were moving as she read it silently, and furthermore, argued with it. He hated to disturb her when she was busy, but he couldn’t simply ignore the strange pulsating in his chest, and regardless of what it meant, she needed to know.
“Lovely?”
She turned, one hand holding a highlighter. “Yes?”
“Something strange is going on.” He rubbed his chest through his shirt and her eyes flicked to it.
She stood and glanced back through the window as she placed a hand over his. “Your tree?”
“It’s fine. Nothing there.”
“Then...”
“I know you’re in the middle of something, but—”
She tossed the highlighter over her shoulder. “I’m not doing anything. What do you need?”
“Let’s go for a drive.”
Concern creased her brow but she took his hand. “Where do you have in mind?”
He shrugged. He simply had the urge. They made their way to the garage instead of requesting a driver. As a wedding gift, Vevina had brought a pouch of pixie dust from Prism. Leaving it in their car meant they could drive right out of the palace gates without notice. People saw, as it didn’t grant invisibility, but they simply didn’t care what they saw.
As such, Blair had become quite fond of driving, particularly when he could take Alethea out on a whim. He glanced at her in the passenger’s seat.
“I don’t think you should worry.”
She arched a brow. “You’re insane if you think I could keep from worrying. Calm, I can do, but you’ll never get me to change my attitude just because you say ‘don’t worry, ‘ especially when magic is afoot.”
“Fair enough.”
They drove in silence, the radio on but low. It took a while for him to realize where they were headed, as he selected his route entirely using instinct.
“Are we near...” Alethea peered out the window. “Isn’t that the Faerriot?”
The bright white tower was like a beacon in the middle of the city. Much like their car, however, it was under a spell that kept it from drawing attention to any but the fae. Alethea had spent enough time there, however. The magic didn’t keep her away. Is that the magic drawing me in? He’d never heard of a spell backfiring. Could it be that what normally repels humans is now misbehaving and calling the fae?
Anything seemed possible.
He parked the car in the garage and they entered the lobby. Nothing had changed. Same white-gold marble tiles. Same massive mirrors and chandeliers. He glanced up. “There,” he said. “We need to take the stairs.”
“The elevator is right there.”
“But the elevator doesn’t lead to the portal. Only the stairs.”
She pouted and looked down at her navy stilettos. “These are only for sitting.”
He rolled his eyes and led the way to the stairwell. “It’s only a few steps. You should know by now... magic is meant for convenience.”
The doubt shone in her expression but she followed nonetheless. The journey to the top equated to less than a flight of stairs, yet they went from the ground floor lobby to the roof of the hotel. Alethea gasped at stepping out into the sunlight and being bombarded with the cool air sweeping over the city.
“Forget the moving sidewalks, we need this magic in the palace,” she said with awe.
“What?”
“I’ll explain later,” she said. She rubbed her arms and looked around. “How do you feel now?”
He slipped his coat off and placed it on her shoulders before motioning to an engraved wooden arch that sat beside a fountain. They approached it and Alethea turned to stare at him.
“I know what this is,” she said. “The portal. You’ve described it before. And the water. Blair, you can’t be thinking...”
“We have to go through,” he said.
“You said you couldn’t return. What if you step through that portal and get blasted into atoms?”
He didn’t exactly have an answer, only a feeling. As they stood by the arch, flowers grew along it. Aurleis, the most beautiful and profound flower of Prism. Alethea glanced from the purple blossoms to the fountain. Blair scooped some of the clear liquid up using the hanging ladle nearby and held it to her.
“The water of reflection.”
He could see the arguments running through her eyes, but she took it and drank. He refilled the scoop and drank his share. He’d forgotten how sweet it was and how it chilled him to the bones. Alethea pulled his coat closer around her body.
“Didn’t you say that was the water that comes off a fae spirit?” she asked.
“Yes. The last living undine blesses them with her presence.”
A strange grimace flashed over Alethea. “We just drank fruit-flavored fae bathwater.” She lowered her voice. “The things we do for love.”
He chuckled softly then nudge her towards the gate. “After you.”
She took his hand and kissed it before stepping through. He followed immediately, and within seconds they stood in a green meadow. Home. He looked at his hands. Faint silver lines ran along them, and when he pushed up his sleeves he realized it was the familiar pattern of the bark of his tree, only muted. Alethea gasped beside him.
“It worked,” she said with awe.
“I have a theory,” he said. Taking her hand, he led her down the dirt path off to one side. “My tree used to be over this way.”
Her head swung left and right trying to catch everything. “It’s all so bright and beautiful.”
“You’ll get a tour, I promise. But first...”
“No, you’re right, I know.” She hurried with him.
Curiosity became a fire within him and he had to stop from simply dragging her along. They came to the field he’d grown up in, but nothing was there. Not even a bare patch of dirt.
“I don’t understand,” he said.
“She wouldn’t keep you here,” Alethea said. “I think I see what’s happening, and Vevina wouldn’t have placed the tree here.”
“This was my home.”
Alethea squeezed his hand. “This was a field of death. This is where you existed when everyone ignored you and kept their distance. That’s not where I’d plant your tree.”
“Then where?”
“It’s with your friends.” She pointed to the nearby wall of blue-green hedges. “Didn’t you say that separates your field from the back of Prince Kerren’s manor’s grounds? We need to go there.”
“I only met him once. I don’t think—”
“Trust me.”
They walked together, though Blair didn’t feel the optimism Alethea had. He could sense his tree nearby, but only in faint blinks. The rest of Prism’s magic called to him and distracted him. It had been too long since he breathed it in, and the sensation was overwhelming. They set foot on a stone walkway and he felt warmer.
“There,” she breathed.
He looked into the distance. Only a few feet tall, but it was next to the ivy-covered home. He ran to it. Pixies were sleeping on the broad leaves, and he stopped short to keep from disturbing them. Alethea caught up with him, her shoes in her hand.
“Oh my—”
“Shhh,” he whispered, taking her wrist and stepping back from the gauzy-clad demifae. “They’re grouchy when woken. They’ll throw fruit.”
“Are they...”
“Pixies.”
“Freeloaders,” a deep voice corrected. “And you could probably scream at them and it would be fine. They’re hungover.”
Blair turned and grinned. “Oh, this should be fun. Alethea, this is Kerren Aodhán, the Pure court Prince and Duke and protector of Weylan Barrows. Also known as Vevina’s boss.”
She held out her hand. “Your title is more cumbersome than mine,” she joked. “It’s... simply amazing to meet you.”
&nbs
p; “I didn’t think I’d see either of you here, though of course, I’ve heard everything about you both...” Kerren looked back over his shoulder. “Brook! Guests!”
Blair peered to the side. After a moment, Brook appeared and strutted forward in a tight peach dress and nude pumps. He nudged Alethea and whispered, “You need that dress.”
She sighed and slipped her shoes back onto her feet.
“Blair!” Brook ran to Blair and embraced him. Vevina appeared behind her and hugged Alethea.
“I don’t understand,” Vevina shrieked. Her hair was bright white with surprise and it made her glittering amber skin even more vibrant.
Questions and introductions overlapped for a minute until Kerren cleared his throat.
“This calls for wine,” he said simply.
“I still can’t believe it,” Vevina said.
Blair held Alethea to his side and kissed the top of her head.
“Wild magic,” he whispered.
“Looks like you get to teach me a new world now,” she replied.
Author’s Note
Thank you for joining Blair and Alethea’s adventure. If you continue on, you’ll find a bonus short story with Vevina and Nikki. Vevina first appeared in Royally Screwed, and she was one of my favorite side characters to write.
I know a few readers were looking forward to Vevina’s novel, but that was never intended, and I couldn’t force it to work. Her story simply doesn’t match the usual PDA theme and couldn’t be published within this world as its own entity. Keeping it as a short story allows me to attach it as a bonus to this book, which I think is a perfect fit.
I hope you enjoy it.
Insane & Magical
Vevina
Vevina’s stomach churned as she and Kerren finished up their morning meeting. She had a lot on her mind, and now that her work was done, everything she’d pushed to the back came forward in a sickening spill. She slid from the kitchen stool and her hand dragged on the table as she started to leave.
“You’re sure you’ll be okay?” she asked.
“I know it pleases you to believe that I’m incapable of taking care of myself, but yes.” He gave her a sly glance. “Shouldn’t you be running off to the portal?”
She turned the screen off on her tablet and tucked it safely into the side pocket of her bag. “I am.”
His brow arched, and a knowing expression came over his face. “Something’s happened.”
She waved him off. “It’s nothing.”
“You’ve been to Earth several times in the past month to see Blair, and usually you all but throw my schedule at me and jet off. Why the sluggishness today?” He rolled an apple across the counter to her. “Need more energy?”
“I don’t know,” she admitted, taking the apple and palming it. Since her best friend now lived there, she often found herself stepping through the portal and donning a human guise, even if she’d previously had an absolute disgust for the planet.
“Is it Nikki?” he asked.
Of course, he’d guess. As much as she loved seeing Blair, she couldn’t deny that part of the pull that kept drawing her back was Nikki, a human she really couldn’t have. They kept their relationship low-key, as Nikki put it, but Kerren knew just about everything when it came to Vevina’s life. “I’d rather not talk about it.”
“You know I’m your best source of information for troubles with human women.”
“I know, but there’s no solid trouble. I can’t put my finger on it exactly. And maybe that’s the problem.”
“How so?”
She rolled the apple back. A snack wasn’t what she needed right now. “I don’t know what to expect going forward. We were never supposed to keep seeing each other like this.”
“That doesn’t mean it can’t be more.”
“It already is more.” She glanced through the nearby window. “I should go.”
“You can always talk to me,” he offered.
She gathered her things from the counter. “I know. If I figure out what there is to talk about, we can give it a try.”
She vanished from the kitchen using her magic, but she didn’t teleport herself all the way to the gate, instead bringing herself to a quiet path that meandered but eventually would get her there.
Long walks did more for her thoughts than blinking through the air. Her interest in Nikki was never supposed to evolve. They’d met on Earth and had instant chemistry—and that was supposed to stay on Earth.
But the evolving technology of Prism meant they could still talk once Vevina had left Earth, so they did. Talking led to flirting. Flirting led to repeating their fling. It was impossible to ignore the fun they’d had the first time around.
And that’s all it was at the time—fun. Though Nikki was young and human, she seemed jaded about romance. She and Vevina had that in common.
Of course, Vevina had been dating around for about eighty years. To a fae, that wasn’t long, but Vevina had quickly tired of it. Her duty to Weylan Barrows and her charge, Kerren, gave her fulfillment that she couldn’t imagine anything else topping. Her family owed his a blood debt, and she put it first. Meaning, she put him first.
There was no room for love in her life, even if she wanted it. Her feet dragged on the brick walkway that circled the main square. She knew that if she could get Nikki here, everything would work out.
But that had been the problem for a while now. There was no getting Nikki to Prism, and her usual excuses were getting old.
Nikki
The main frustration of waiting on someone traveling across the galaxy was that time never lined up. It wasn’t as simple as adding or subtracting hours as if they were from a different time zone.
Or maybe it was, for other planets… But not Prism. No, the fae planet ran on its own crazy clock. The fae were used to it and could all simply look at the sky to determine the time, but when it came to coordinating things like meeting up with someone on Earth—the entire system fell apart.
Which was why Nikki was currently lounging on a sofa in Vevina’s hotel room, and Vevina had yet to show up.
On the one hand, it gave Nikki time to think about their current silent argument. On the other, it made her wonder if Vevina had simply decided not to come at all.
No, she wouldn’t do that.
The doubt crept up, but she reminded herself that Vevina didn’t like games. If she was done with Nikki, it would be clear. In a way, that wasn’t as reassuring as it could be.
They had reached a plateau in their long-distance relationship and were tip-toeing around the inevitable next step. A next step that they always knew would come if they continued seeing each other, but a step they had tried not to think about.
Someone had to move.
Neither of them wanted to.
Nikki turned the tv off and stepped outside for a breath of fresh air. The Faerriot was luxury through and through, and even though Vevina’s room was the most modest they offered, she still had a gorgeous view from her tiny balcony.
There was no doubting it—the fae knew how to live.
Prism sounded wonderful, even from Blair’s melancholy and bitter view of things. She wanted to see the real Vevina and get a taste for real magic. But leaving Earth had consequences she couldn’t return from.
She’d be kicked out of her family. That wasn’t the sort of thing she could ignore, even if she often joked about needing space from her mom and siblings.
The door slid open behind her and Vevina joined her on the railing. She slid a slender arm around Nikki’s waist and leaned her head against her shoulder.
“Hey gorgeous,” Vevina said softly, sounding exhausted.
Nikki sighed into the wind. “Hey.”
They watched the distance together, and Nikki imagined that their brains were each battling their own beasts and reasons.
“I’ve missed you,” Nikki said finally.
“I’ve missed you, too.”
More silence crept up. Moments ticked by.
It used to be fairly standard that the moment Vevina would arrive, they’d fall onto the couch and make out like there was no tomorrow. They’d make plans and ditch half of them so they could just hide in bed watching movies and eating gummy bears.
Now apparently they stood and pretended the looming future wasn’t eating at their insides. This is ridiculous.
“We should talk, shouldn’t we?” Nikki asked.
Vevina nodded against her arm. “Let’s do it.”
Vevina
“Brook doesn’t get it either,” Vevina muttered.
“Because we don’t have blood debts on Earth. Not like this, at least. It sounds like—”
“Don’t say slavery.” Vevina rubbed her temples. “It’s nothing like that.”
“But it’s just close enough that it’s unsettling,” Nikki said, her brows lifted as she looked away.
Vevina gulped her water. Thanks to a wrong decision from one of her ancestors and a heroic deed from one of Kerren’s she was tied to his family by a sacred oath. She took that oath seriously. Every fae would.
“If you came to Prism and met Kerren you’d see how wrong that perception is. Everything I do for him, for the Barrows, it comes from my own free-will. I want to help. My heart beats for the continued legacy of the land and people,” Vevina explained. “If anything, Kerren probably wishes I took it less seriously. That’s why he hired me as his assistant—so he could stop thinking of me as a servant.”
Nikki chewed the corner of her lip, a sign Vevina understood to mean she was considering it. But she shook her head and a layer of resolve replaced the momentary weakness. “We keep coming back to the same arguments. I can’t leave my family. You can’t leave yours.”
“Humans leave their families all the time,” Vevina insisted. “Cities, states, countries… but Prism is just a portal away. You can have tea with your mother every weekend. Visit Alethea every time I visit Blair, or more often.”
“It’s not the same. I’m not just a human. I’ve got obligations to the crown. I can’t run off.”
