by Trisha Lynn
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Upon arriving at the front castle door – as apparently her window descent was somewhat unorthodox - they were bombarded by Fae. Adeila instantly tensed, and hid behind Loki, until she recognized one of them. A small, slim female with short silver blond hair, and gray blue eyes that had a smoky appearance to them, and a very bright smile.
“Hi!” The girl exclaimed in a very excited voice that matched the smile. “I'm Kammile, or Kami, as just about everyone calls me!”
Adeila swallowed and stepped up next to Loki. “Ah, hi. Um, I'm Adeila.”
“I know, I'm so excited you're here!”
Loki held up a hand. “Relax, Kam, give Adeila some space, and remember this is all new to her.”
He gave Kami a look and she instantly simmered from over excitement to barely contained exuberance.
“Oh, yeah, okay, right.”
Loki looked to Adeila. “Kami came here three years ago from the human realm. Her mother decided to lead a life in the human realm after her father died. Kami was only a few years old when her mother took her away; her re-entry into the Fae realm was challenging.” He leaned closer and whispered. “You can learn a lot from her, once you get past the exuberance.” He smiled when he leaned away, clearly affectionately towards the girl.
“And this is some of the rest of my team.” He gestured towards Sorryn, whom she instantly recognized. Not hard considering he was incredibly gorgeous, much like the rest of the Fae before her, but with Sorryn there was a different energy. Easy and goofy, almost like a brotherly feel came off him towards her, it made her feel comfortable and safe. She felt in her core, in her magical energy that she could trust him.
“Sorryn, you've met. Beside him is his sister, Saibol.” The girl had long chestnut hair, and big green eyes that shone like emeralds. Her face was heart shaped and speckled with freckles. The family resemblance in the bone structure, lips and eye shape was unmistakable.
Then Loki gestured towards the next two guys, the one on the left was very big, muscled, tanned and had a handsome rugged face. His nose was slightly crooked and turned his face from attractive to intriguing. He had short dark hair and very light brown eyes. “This is Devrin, and Marston.” She then turned her attention to the smaller boy. He seemed younger; his face seemed much more reserved and guarded then the others. Something about him reminded her of a mouse and a strange inkling of unease shot its way up her spine. When his very dark russet brown eyes flitted to hers, she swallowed back the discomfort. His pale, almost pasty skin, matched his dark hair and eyes. His tattoos were a dull gray in color. Something was off about him.
She pushed the strange feelings the boy gave her down and let a very guarded smile come across her face, showing a bit of the unease she felt.
“Good to meet everyone.”
Loki, feeling her anxiety, gestured to everyone. “The Princess needs breakfast. Sorryn, please take over briefing the team on the mission we discussed last night.”
Sorryn made a small bow and gestured to the rest of the team. Kami turned to Adeila and smiled brightly, waved and trotted off. The happiness around her was contagious.
“Sorry, I didn't realize they would all be out here. They were all a small part of my mission in obtaining you and bringing you here.”
She could only nod. It was harsh hearing that she was a mission. Some prize the King wished to obtain. She hated to think of it that way, but that is how this little interlude made her feel and the thought didn't make her feel good in anyway.
Guards opened the door, and Loki put a hand on the small of her back to guide her through it. A small zap of electricity traveled along the heat of his hand and up her spine, she almost faltered her steps, but steeled herself. She really needed to learn to control this strange magic inside her and willed the heat to go away. She focused her energy and the humming in her blood and willed it to stop. When it went down into a very tolerable purr, she was pleased with that personal progress.
When Loki removed his hand, it stopped. Well, as long as he didn't touch her, apparently she was fine. She hadn't felt like that when her parents had touched her yesterday. It had just been contented warmth that had spread through her, warming her blood and bones and heart. What Loki put off was something strong. Something intense, like an electrical energy spike. Like the hum of current before a storm. It was annoying, and fascinating all at once which irritated Adeila even more.
When they arrived in the dining hall, the smell overwhelmed her. Fragrant juices and blossom scents wafted out the opened doors. Guards saluted Loki and he moved aside and gestured for her to enter, she stopped dead. An array of every exotic fruit imaginable was on the table, along with many vegetables. She almost swooned. Not a single processed anything, was present at this table, and she thought for once she could actually eat like a glutton instead of fearing nausea.
Her mother, tall and beautiful, stood up. The simple lavender dress she wore clung to her willowy frame and her long, dark blonde hair ran in natural cascades around her. She gestured to the table, but walked around it and towards Adeila. “Please try one of everything! I hear the human realm is filled with processed and packaged foods, but here you will find none of that. We obtain meat only from hunting, and our vegetables and fruits are obtained from our own foragers and gardens.” Then she hugged her, enveloping her in warmth and the heavenly scent of vanilla and lavender.
Once the four of them were seated, her father spoke. “We know about you leaving your room through the window. You are no prisoner here, my dearest, but please be more careful. If you leave through the front door Guardians will follow you and yes I am quite sure that is annoying, but it is for your own safety and they will not disrupt your need to be alone. They are very respectful men, and I hope that you can see that. They only wish to keep you safe.”
She gulped and got ready to begin apologizing or defending herself, she wasn't entirely sure which way she'd go, when he interrupted her.
“But beside that point I hear that Obysson has chosen you. We are all shocked and pleased by this.”
She perked up at this. “Chosen me?”
“Yes. Each Unicorn may choose one Fae, in its lifetime, in which it has a magical bond. It comes to you in time of need and sorrow. It is a presence that keeps you focused. He may present himself to you at odd times, and you may also call upon him. Don't abuse such a bond; however, he is not a common domesticated horse. Only call upon him when you are in dire, desperate need of his ancient, magical being. When you touched him, or should I say, he allowed you to touch him; your bond was cemented and made permanent. I personally don't know very much about the bond between Unicorn and Fae, but I hear it is almost that of psychic proportions.”
She could only nod. Whoa! She has a magical bond with a freakin' Unicorn. If she ever even mentioned this to someone in the human realm they would have her committed to a mental institute or drug tested, or both.
“It is something that hasn't happened in hundreds of years, and we don't really know what to make of it.”
She didn't really know what to say, so she ate some of the mango looking fruit that was cut up in front of her.
“Today we would love for you to see some of the village and surrounding areas. As much as your mother and I would love to show you around ourselves, such things would seem too strange to the folk here and thereby raise suspicions, which we cannot afford until we know of your complete safety. But since Loki brings in Fae from the human realm sometimes from other kingdoms it would be less peculiar for him to do so. In which case I have asked him to show you around the village some. The market, the river and waterfalls, the stables, the gardens. Our grandmother willow, Gh'ehelila, of course. Some of what makes up our kingdom. If that is something you would wish to do?”
She smiled slightly. “Yes, I would like that.”
“Okay, then we will put a bit of glamour over-”
Loki leaned forward, and interrupted the King. His dark hair and tanned skin illuminated in th
e gentle, low lighting. “Sire, if I may, Adeila has such a strong will, heart and stubborn streak. Her magic is strong; you can feel it within her blood. Your blood. I would imagine a small lesson in glamour would be sufficient enough for her to do it for herself.”
The King smiled brightly and gestured with his hand. “Very well, Loki, you are absolutely right. Please.”
Loki made a tiny frown and then turned to Adeila. “Alright, first official magic related lesson. You ready?”
She smiled, but a nervous flutter floated through her stomach. Was she ready?
“Yes.”
He smiled; flashing brilliant teeth in that magnetic smile that almost made her forget time and space. But this smile was one a bit more feral; like a challenge sung between them. Well, damn, if she wasn't up for challenges.
“So glamour is a very easy, basic magic, most do it as easily as breathing. We're not going to do anything crazy, just maybe change the shade of your hair and eyes. And you are already wearing a long sleeve to hide the very prominent tattoo that represents your bloodlines and birthright.”
Adeila took a steadying breath. “Okay.” That reminded her of the weird tingling and almost stringing she had felt at her tattoo when the Unicorn, Obysson, had touched her. She'd have to check that out later and see why.
“It is better to learn to control the magic inside of you, before learning to do things outside of the body.”
She nodded, and he turned to the King who nodded as well. She knew he must be used to being watched while he taught someone, but she was pretty certain he'd never had to teach the daughter of a King, in front of him.
“When I first enter the human realm, my eye color changes to a dull light brown. For personal reasons, I manipulate the glamour and give them a bit more of my true color, while still keeping them rather unremarkable to the human eye.”
She almost laughed aloud, but hid it with an exaggerated nod. Unremarkable? Yeah, right, who was he fooling? His eyes were stunning, even in the human realm, but he was right, he did tone them to be nothing like the swirling vortex of color they were here in Faerie. The color they obtained in the human realm certainly made him more normal then the intriguing swirls of colors they were now.
Loki moved slightly closer and more head on to her and spoke in a very clear, very teacher-like voice. “Blank your mind and look for that pulsing within your blood. You can call upon it anytime, anywhere; you just need to learn how. Once you feel the pulsing, envision within your mind the shade of hair you wish to change yours to, and then do the same for your eyes. It is different for everyone, that is why teaching to use magic is incredibly difficult unless you've grown up with it, but your will and connection to magic is strong, Adeila. I believe you will pick this up easily. This is a basic place to start, and remember nothing crazy; subtle changes are all that is necessary.”
She tried not to dwell on the praise that Loki was dishing out to her. It was rather shocking and gave her a small tingling all along her belly that had nothing to do with magic. With a deep breath she blanked out any thoughts of Loki, as hard as that was as it was his voice caressing her to find her inner magical pulse, but she did. She focused on herself. Drowned out all sounds, thoughts, worries and fears and really searched within her very soul. The very essence of her being.
Why hadn't she tried this before? Isn't this what yoga had tried to inspire her to do? Maybe that was why she felt so much more at peace and at ease after a yoga session. It had settled her magic.
It was ridiculously easy to find the pulsing, it was right there on the surface. It was more like a thrumming. Like unreleased energy. She felt herself pull at it, manipulate it, get to know it. After a moment of familiarizing herself with something that was so much a part of her, but yet something she had pushed away to the wayside for so long, she remembered her purpose for this exercise. She envisioned her hair a pretty shade of medium brown with no blonde highlights. She focused for a moment, letting the idea of the color really sink in, and still feeling the pulsing, opened her eyes.
“Great, Adeila!”
Both of her parents exclaimed, grinning. But she only looked to Loki who nodded. “Now eyes.”
She didn't close them this time, instead focused them on Loki, but her mind was solely on her task. She pulled at that thread and thought of the color of the sea, that liquid blue and green swirling into a perfect vortex. When his eyes widened and flashed with pride, she knew she'd done it.
“Nicely done, Princess. You’re a natural.”
She grinned and had to suppress the urge to do a happy dance. Whoohoo!
“Now hold onto that tiny thread; it may take a lot of concentration at first but soon it will be as easy as taking a breath.”
She smiled and nodded at him.
“Now go on up and change or do whatever you need and meet me at the front door.”
Before she could turn to do as she was told, her mother came over and hugged her. “Well done, my love.” Adeila only had a moment for the shock to wear off so she could hug the lovely woman back. She smiled and waved to them before heading to her room.
When she reached it, she slipped inside and leaned heavily against the strong wood door. Wow! What an amazing feeling. She felt so alive and so free. Being able to do magic freely without the fear of getting caught was something she'd looked forward to, but to actually do it; to actually magically change her features? It was amazing, and a little scary. It felt good to release something that lay so dormant, for so many years, inside of her. It felt wonderful to not have to hide her true self. The resentment she'd felt towards herself and her magic on the human realm for being different, subsided. For once she was exactly where and who, she was meant to be. She was still coming to terms with a lot of things, but she knew meeting these people and coming here had been the right thing to do. She just felt like she might be a huge disappointment to her real parents. Fall short of their expectations of her.
