by E. D. Baker
Aislin nodded. “I did. A lot of thought, actually, and I came up with a list of my own. I have a question, though. Why did you give me such a big list of names if you wanted me to pick five?”
Queen Surinen frowned. “I gave you a list of seven names. I don’t see how that’s very big.”
Aislin took the fairy queen’s leaf out of her pocket and handed it to her. “I was too tired to look at it last night, but when I checked it this morning, I found twenty-two names on your list.”
The queen took the leaf from Aislin. “This isn’t my list!” cried the queen. “A few of the names were ones I picked, but the rest are fairies that I wouldn’t even consider. The handwriting looks like mine though. Just a moment and I’ll get to the bottom of this.”
With a tap of her finger, Queen Surinen made the leaf turn black. Seven names on the list glowed yellow, while the rest turned blood red. “I see what happened. The fairies whose names are red used magic to add themselves to the list. I didn’t know my fairies could be so brazen! I’ll have to speak to them about this.”
“Here’s my list,” Aislin said, and took it out of her other pocket. “I’m afraid I didn’t use your list at all. I don’t intend to sit around writing letters and chatting over tea while ladies wait on me. There are places I need to go and people I need to see. My ladies will have to keep up with what I plan to do, so I don’t want the traditional ladies-in-waiting. I thought about the qualities I’d want in a lady-in-waiting and chose from the people I know. As you can see, I’ve included some who can qualify as my guards as well as my ladies. I came up with a new name for all of them. I’m going to call them my mestari.”
“How marvelous!” her grandmother cried. “That’s a very good name for them. I knew you’d handle this your own way.”
Looking over the list, Queen Surinen nodded as she read Aislin’s choices. “Wonderful. I’ll inform them right away,” she finally said. “I think it’s good that you didn’t include anyone from my list, considering what happened. I don’t believe that the fairies who added their names deserve to be your mestari. They’ve automatically disqualified themselves. I know they’ll be disappointed, but it serves them right for trying to go around me. Besides, not one of them would have been nearly as suitable for what you seem to have in mind as the ladies you’ve chosen.”
Chapter 8
That very morning, Queen Surinen held a meeting in the throne room, summoning all the fairy maidens who had wanted to be Aislin’s ladies-in-waiting. “I know that there has been much curiosity and debate over who Princess Aislin should choose to be her ladies,” said the queen. “Normally I wouldn’t make this announcement, but because some fairies have taken it upon themselves to add their names to the list, I feel I must set things straight. Princess Aislin has made her choices and will be delivering her invitations soon.”
The ever-hopeful fairies quivered with anticipation as they cast furtive glances at Aislin.
When the queen told them, “Those of you who added your names to the list without my permission have been disqualified, so you need not look for a letter from the princess,” more than one fairy started crying and flew away. “From now on, Princess Aislin’s ladies-in-waiting will be called her mestari. I hope that all of you will welcome the new mestari and do your best to make them comfortable among us,” the queen added.
Queen Surinen had already left the throne room when one fairy asked another, “Does that mean the new mestari don’t live here already?”
“I don’t know,” said the second fairy. “Don’t all the best fairies live in the palace?”
Poppy turned to Aislin with a question in her eyes. “I didn’t add my name to any list,” the fairy said, sounding hopeful.
“You didn’t need to,” Aislin told her.
Just then a tiny fairy flew up and landed in front of Poppy. Peri grew big long enough to hand her a folded leaf before he nodded and became tiny again. “Is this what I hope it is?” Poppy asked Aislin as Peri flew off.
“Take a look and see,” Aislin said.
Opening the leaf, Poppy hurriedly read the message inside and looked up to grin at Aislin.
“That shouldn’t be a surprise,” Aislin told her. “Did you really think I might not ask you?”
“You asked her?” Hydrangea said from only yards away. “That isn’t fair!”
“Why not?” Aislin asked, irritated. “Poppy has always been there for me and has helped me whenever I needed it.”
“If I’d known that was all it took, I would have done that ages ago,” Hydrangea said, looking bitter. “The rumors I heard about you were right. You are a hateful girl.”
“What rumors?” Poppy asked, looking puzzled.
“She says that the princess doesn’t care what anyone else thinks or what would be best for the fey. The princess only thinks about what she wants, which is why we’re moving back to the human lands. The princess liked it there, so now we all have to go.”
Aislin frowned. “That isn’t it at all.”
“Who is this ‘she’ you’re talking about?” Poppy demanded.
“Someone I met who opened my eyes to a lot of things,” Hydrangea replied. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that the princess is asking her friends to be her mestari. The rest of us never stood a chance!” Darting a scornful look at Aislin, the fairy made herself small and flew off.
“I don’t like to hear that someone is spreading rumors,” Aislin said, and looked around as if one of the other fairies might have something to add. “Do any of you know anything about this person?”
Only a few fairies were left. Most of them shook their heads, but two refused to meet her eyes and flew off before Poppy or Aislin could question them.
Disquieted at the thought that someone was spreading nasty rumors about her, Aislin turned to leave the room. The fey had mentioned something similar when she was returning to Deephold from Mount Gora, but the trip to Fairengar had put it out of her mind. Hearing that the rumors had spread this far was even more disconcerting. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, now a group of fairies resented her because she hadn’t chosen them. Although she couldn’t have chosen all of them anyway, and some were bound to be disappointed no matter what, Aislin had a feeling that they were going to resent her actual picks even more when they discovered whom she had chosen to be her mestari.
After spending her life among fairies, Aislin knew that they easily felt slighted and were known to hold grudges. Although she appreciated her grandmother’s efforts, she wasn’t sure that the fairies would let their rejection go so easily. The only thing that might keep them in line was their fear of what the fairy queen could do if they misbehaved. Queen Surinen was known for being kind and generous to those who deserved it, but she could also be harsh and vengeful when someone was in the wrong.
Aislin wasn’t worried that the fairies might take it out on her. First of all, the fairies had watched Aislin grow up and none of them had ever been mean or unkind to her; it would be odd to start now. Secondly, everyone knew that the queen was very protective of her family. Doing anything hurtful to a member of the royal family could make Queen Surinen truly angry. Poppy was a different story, however, and would make an easy target if a fairy wanted to take her disappointment out on anyone. Aislin hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
But Aislin had something else to attend to. “I need to see Twinket,” Aislin told her friend, and they started toward the princess’s rooms.
They found the doll seated on the floor of the bedchamber, plucking the loose fur off a longhaired cat. “What are you doing?” asked Poppy. “You’ve got cat fur floating all over the room!”
“Furball is hot and itchy. I’m taking her loose fur to weave into a blanket for Aislin. I thought Poppy could help me with the weaving part,” she said, giving the fairy a hopeful look.
“I’m not weaving cat fur!” the fairy replied. “But I will clean up this mess.” With a flick of her fingers, the floating fur flew down into the pile on th
e floor as if a magnet had drawn it there. When the fur was all collected in one place, Poppy gave a satisfied nod and said, “There! I’ve completed my first task as one of Aislin’s mestari!”
Twinket yanked at Furball’s fur so hard that the cat hissed and stalked away. “You’re a mestari?” the doll asked Poppy. “What about me?”
“That’s why we came back to the room,” Aislin told her as she handed the doll a leaf. “Here’s your letter. It’s naming you an honorary mestari.”
“Really?” Twinket cried. “That’s even better than a regular one! You already know that out of all your mestari, I’ll be the very best one. I can’t wait to start. What can I do?”
“You could take that cat fur somewhere else,” said Aislin. “And promise that if you do turn it into a blanket, that you won’t give it to me. I don’t want a cat fur blanket.”
“Okay,” Twinket declared. “In that case, I’ll just throw it out. It smells like Furball, anyway.”
The doll had gathered up the fur and was carrying it out of the room when two full-sized fairies carrying baskets arrived at the door. Aislin knew Sage and Parsley very well; the two seamstress fairies had made many of her favorite gowns over the years.
“Queen Surinen wants us to make gowns for you and your mestari,” Sage said as she set her basket on the table. “That is what you’re calling your ladies, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Aislin said, glancing at Poppy and Twinket. “Mestari have a much more important job than that of a lady-in-waiting.”
Poppy grinned and stood a little taller while Twinket stopped in the doorway and turned around, her smile so big that all her seed-pearl-sized teeth showed.
“To show how important they are, I’d like to have a new mestari emblem created that incorporates the fairy leaf and the pedrasi hammer,” Aislin told Sage. “I’d like you to put the emblem on my mestari’s clothing.”
“We can do that,” Sage replied and Parsley nodded.
“I know some of your ladies haven’t arrived yet, but we can get started with you, if you don’t mind, Your Highness,” said Sage. “The queen wants your gowns to be especially beautiful, as they’re meant to impress the humans.”
“Poppy is one of my ladies,” Aislin told them. “You can start hers, too.”
“And mine!” Twinket called from the doorway. “I’m a mestari! In fact, I’m an honorable mestari, which means that I’m the best and should go first, right after the princess.”
“I thought you were taking care of that cat fur,” reminded Poppy.
Twinket nodded vigorously. “I am. I’ll be right back!” The doll dashed down the hall, leaving a floating trail of cat fur behind her.
“She meant honorary,” Aislin told the seamstresses. “And she can have new gowns, too.”
“Very good,” Sage said with a smile. When Aislin was just a toddler, Sage and Parsley had helped Queen Surinen create Twinket, though it was the queen’s magic that had brought the doll to life. The two fairies had always been fond of the doll and looked pleased to hear that she had acquired a new job.
“As a fairy princess, you must wear only the best,” Sage said as Parsley emptied the baskets onto the table. “We’ve brought you lots to choose from. Just tell us what kinds of gowns you’d like.”
Aislin examined precious goods from all over, brought back by traveling fairies. She saw sea foam and bits of coral from the Misty Sea, pearls from the coast of the Sunny Isles, moonbeams and rainbows collected in Eliasind, diamonds from the land past the mountains, as well as flowers of every kind and color. After much discussion, the two seamstresses used their magic to make her everyday dresses as well as gowns for fancy dress balls.
None of the gowns were ordinary, but the most impressive was the one made of moonbeams. When Aislin protested that she didn’t need a gown like that, Sage told her, “I happen to know that you’ll need this gown very soon. Your grandmother specifically told us to make it.”
“Can you tell me why?” asked Aislin.
The fairy’s eyes twinkled when she said, “Some things are meant to be surprises.”
Twinket dashed into the room, so excited that she was vibrating. “When will it be my turn?” she asked. “I want lots of dresses!”
“A soon as I fetch some fabric,” Parsley replied. Taking a golden needle from her strawberry-shaped pincushion, Parsley blew through the needle’s eye. Pink sparkles heralded the arrival of bolts and squares and mounds of fabric more varied than a rainbow.
Twinket’s fabric hands made a soft padding sound as she clapped. “They’re all so pretty. Can I have one of each?”
“You won’t need that many!” Aislin said with a laugh.
“Poppy, I’ll help you while Parsley works with Twinket,” said Sage. “You’ll wear poppy petals, of course. I think we’ll include some poppy leaves as well. Do you have any color preferences?”
“Red’s my favorite,” Poppy told her as she followed the seamstress to the other side of the room to study her choices.
As the morning wore on, Aislin went from one side of the room to the other, giving her friends her opinion only when asked. The rest of the day went quickly, with a short break for lunch. It was late afternoon when Sage said, “I believe we’re done for the day. There are a few last-minute touches that I want to make to the gowns, so I’ll bring them all back to you tomorrow.”
Before they left, Sage and Parsley used magic to whisk away the nearly finished gowns as well as the leftover bits and pieces. The room was neat and tidy once again when the seamstresses shut the door behind them.
Aislin glanced out the window to check the sun’s position in the sky. “It’s time to get ready for supper,” she told her friends. “I’ll see you both later.”
She went into her bathing room to freshen up, then put on her sky-blue gown decorated with snowdrop flowers. Twinket climbed onto the window ledge and waved when Poppy came to the door. The two girls walked to the great hall together. Then Poppy left to take her own seat below the dais. Soon after Aislin sat down at her grandparents’ table, the king and queen entered and everyone stood. When the queen nodded and they all sat down again, Aislin glanced at the empty chairs where her parents should be sitting. The queen noticed and said, “I believe they’re still in the council chamber meeting with some of the fey who will be staying behind when we move the palace. I don’t know if we told you, but all the land between the mountains that was part of Fairengar is now going to be part of Eliasind. Your parents’ kingdom is more than tripling in size.”
“Did my parents know that this was going to happen?” Aislin asked.
“No, although we had discussed the possibility with your grandfather, King Talus,” said King Darinar. “He gave the plan his full approval.”
Aislin was delighted. Her parents would rule over the land just the way her grandparents had, which meant that everything would stay the same. All the fey who had fretted over the king and queen leaving needn’t have worried at all.
“What did you do today, my dear?” the queen asked her.
“I was getting fitted for my new gowns,” Aislin replied. “I really don’t know why I need so many.”
“No one puts a shabby frame on a masterpiece,” the queen said. “A fairy princess always needs to look her best, particularly when dealing with humans. Your gowns will be the first thing they notice. Humans rely heavily on first impressions.”
“You’re right, of course,” said Aislin. “I met a lot of humans in Morain who did just that.”
“Are your new mestari enjoying their titles?” Queen Surinen asked.
“Oh yes!” said Aislin. “Especially Twinket. She was thrilled to get new dresses. I didn’t know she liked new clothes so much or I would have had some made for her long before this.”
The queen smiled. “She probably likes clothes because Sage and Parsley each had a hand in her making. Some of their enthusiasm probably passed on to the doll. Tell me, have the fairies who weren’t chosen given you any
trouble?”
“No,” Aislin said, looking out over the assembled fairies eating at the rows of long tables. “Though I can tell they aren’t happy about it from the way they look at me.”
“They should get over it,” the queen said with a shrug. “But let me know if they don’t. I know my fairies and what they’re capable of doing. Sometimes I have to remind them of their place.”
The cook had prepared some new vegetable dishes with sautéed greens and fried tubers, all of which Aislin liked. After supper, a few fairies played the flute, the drums, and a stringed fairy instrument called the bandolino while other fairies danced—some in the air and some on the ground. Aislin enjoyed the entertainment, but by the time it was over she was ready to go to bed.
Twinket was asleep on one of the pillows when Aislin walked into her chamber. Not wanting to wake the doll, she undressed quietly and slipped under the covers. Moments later she was fast asleep as well.
The stars were shining into the window when Twinket poked Aislin’s face to wake her. “Deela and Lin just got here,” the doll announced. “Peri made them little and found bats for them to ride. The steward was really surprised when he saw that Deela is an orc. He showed them to their rooms and they’ve gone to bed already. I wanted to tell them that I’m an honorable mestari and better than them, but now they’ll have to wait until morning to find out.”
“Honorary, not honorable,” Aislin murmured from under the covers. “And no mestari is better than any other.”
“You can say that,” said Twinket. “You’re a princess and better than just about everybody, but I know I’m right.”
“I hear you need my help,” a soft voice said. Aislin opened her eyes again and looked around. The sun was just starting to come up, fading the black of night to the gray of early morning.
