by Alison Pensy
CHAPTER SEVEN
Faedra and Faen strolled over to where her dad had parked his car, and greeted him as he opened the car door.
“Hi, Dad. Did you have a nice time with Uncle Leo?” she asked.
“Actually, we had a very nice time,” he replied with a smile as he got out of the car and planted a kiss on his daughter’s forehead. “How about you? Did you go for a ride on Gypsy?”
She’d forgotten all about her horse and the ride she was supposed to take that day.
“No, I didn’t in the end,” she said, playing for time until she could come up with an excuse as to why she hadn’t. “I just ended up relaxing in the garden. I didn’t want to wear myself out and be tired this evening.”
He gave her a thoughtful look. “Well, I’m not sure how much relaxing you did, darling. You look exhausted.”
“Do I?” She feigned ignorance and made up another excuse. Truth was, she did feel exhausted after using up all that energy practicing with her power for most of the day. “I’m just hungry. I was going in to get myself a sandwich when you drove up.”
They all headed to the front door. Henry opened it and gestured for Faedra and Faen to enter first.
“What time are your friends picking you up this evening?”
“They’re coming around about seven.”
“I know I haven’t really mentioned this before because you are always so sensible, but I feel, as your father, I need to say something.”
Faedra smiled. She had been expecting the ‘I know you are legally old enough to drink, but don’t over do it’ speech. “Don’t worry, Dad, Amy is designated driver tonight, and I promise I’ll only have a couple. I have no intention of waking up with a throbbing headache tomorrow morning.”
Henry looked visibly relieved by her response.
Faedra wandered through the dining room towards the kitchen to make herself a sandwich and caught a sideways glance of her reflection in the mirror hanging on one of the walls as she walked past. She stopped dead and reversed back a few steps until she was standing in front of it. Faedra looked with surprise at the person staring back at her with a shocked expression.
“Oh, my God, I’m nearly gray,” she gasped as she took in her features. Her skin had taken on a pallid grayish tinge and there were dark circles developing under her eyes. “No wonder Dad thought I looked exhausted. I look like I’ve got one foot in the grave.”
She rushed into the kitchen and made herself a plate of sandwiches, wolfing them down as if it was the first thing she’d eaten for days.
“Steady on,” Henry said as he walked through the door and caught Faedra stuffing a whole sandwich in her mouth giving her chipmunk cheeks. “You’ll get indigestion if you eat that quickly. Anyway, wanted to let you know that I’m going out with your uncle tonight, so I’ll be leaving around six thirty.”
She acknowledged him with a nod of her head, her mouth still full to overflowing with the sandwich she had just stuffed in there. She looked over at the clock on the oven. She had a couple more hours to go before her friends arrived; that should give her plenty of time to get ready, and hopefully, to re-energize. Faedra certainly didn’t want to go out looking like she was on her last leg. She prayed that the sandwiches would do the trick.
They did. A half hour later she dared herself to look in the mirror again. Her usually radiant skin and sparkling eyes stared back at her. She heaved a huge sigh of relief and made a mental note to take snack breaks while practicing with her power in the future.
She went to her room, grabbed her bathrobe, and made her way to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready for her evening out with friends. She was looking forward to it. When she had finished with her shower, she wandered back to her room, her hair piled on top of her head, wrapped in a towel. Faen had waited patiently outside the bathroom and was following her up the stairs to her bedroom. When they got to the top of the stairs he lay down and didn’t attempt to enter her room this time.
“Thank you,” she whispered as she closed the door.
She padded over to her dresser and commenced her ritual of putting make up on and drying her hair. The former didn’t take long at all; she had almost perfect skin, so just a dusting of powder, a little eye shadow, mascara, and lip-gloss, and she was done. The latter took considerably more time, as her hair was so long and thick. She leaned forward, turned her head upside down and continued on with the arduous task.
A while later when her hair was dried and styled, her face glowing, and natural, she wandered over to her closet. Due to the fact that she hadn’t done what most teenage girls do on their eighteenth birthday and go shopping for a new outfit, she looked with deliberation at the clothes that already existed there, and decided on a pretty royal blue dress with thin straps. It had a fitted bodice that nipped neatly in at the waist flowing into a full skirt that skimmed her hips, and came to just above her knees, accentuating her figure perfectly. The color complimented her skin and hair, and she felt really good in it.
“I’m off now, Fae,” she heard her dad call from the bottom of the stairs.
“Okay, Dad, have fun tonight.”
“You, too, darling. Hey, did you know Faen was out here?” he asked in surprise.
“Yes, Dad, I’ll let him in a minute.”
She heard her dad mutter something about never knowing Faen to be shut out of her room before as he walked out of the dining room.
She sighed. She had to admit it did feel kind of odd not having him in with her, but that dynamic had completely changed now, and would never be the same again. There was a heavy feeling in her heart at the thought. Her dad’s car door slammed. She watched from her window as he drove up the driveway and out of sight.
She wandered back to the closet and took one last look at her reflection in the full-length mirror that was attached to one of the doors. That’ll do, she thought with a smile and wandered over to her door to let Faen in. She never knew which form he would be in now, but guessed that because her father had left he would probably be in his true form.
She was right. Faen was standing in her doorway when she opened it, all six feet of him. He didn’t make her jump this time; she looked up at his face and smiled. She wasn’t sure, but as his eyes skimmed over her, his usually stoic features melted for just a split second to reveal something more like warm approval, but then it was gone in an instant. She wondered why he was so loving with her when he was in his dog form. Always wagging his tail, always looking pleased to see her. But in his true form he seemed distant, almost as though being there was an inconvenience. She brushed the thought aside. It seemed like they were stuck together for the time being, whether either of them wanted to be or not. At the very least, until she had learned all she could to defend herself against the Unseelie.
“You look very nice, Ms. Faedra,” he broke the silence, and pulled her from her reverie.
“Thank you.”
“Where are you going tonight?” he asked.
“The Old Brewery House in the village,” she narrowed her eyes at him. “Why?”
“Because I am going with you, of course,” he replied.
“Oh, I don’t think so,” she said defiantly. “It’s a girl’s night out with my friends. You can’t come.”
“I will be there whether you like it or not,” he reiterated with a firmness that was undeniable. “I told you, I will not make the same mistake twice. Do not concern yourself, I will blend into the background, no one else will have to know I am there.”
She looked him up and down. Blending into the background was not something Faen would accomplish, especially dressed as he was.
She sighed. “Okay, I understand that you want to stay close to me, but you will definitely not blend in dressed like that.” And she gestured down his body with her hand as if showcasing something unusual.
He looked himself up and down, and returned his gaze to her. “What’s wrong with what I am wearing?” he
asked.
“You look like you have walked straight out of a Disney movie,” she replied somewhat sarcastically, then kicked herself for sounding so rude.
He looked perplexed.
“Faen, what you are wearing is very old fashioned. You have seen how humans dress nowadays. You need to wear something more… modern.
“Oh, modern,” he replied. “I can do modern.” And with one of his blurs he was standing in front of her in a complete change of clothes.
She took a step back and sucked in a breath. She hadn’t expected him to look so good in modern clothing.
“Ms. Faedra, you look shocked. Are you alright?”
“Absolutely fine,” she squeaked, as she took in the ultra modern Faen.
From top to toe he was dressed in designer clothing. Shiny black boots with a square toe. Jeans that were belted at his waist with a black leather belt, accentuated with a buckle that looked like a silver Celtic rose. He wore a black t-shirt that fit him like a glove, skimming every contour of his torso and upper arms. She swallowed hard, it was an involuntary response.
“Will this work?” he asked.
“Yes,” she breathed, “that will work just fine.” Then she noticed the design on his belt buckle and lifted her wrist to examine the bangle her father had given her earlier.
“Your buckle, it’s the same design as my bracelet.”
Faen looked at her and the corners of his mouth turned up very slightly in a knowing smile.
“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
She was distracted by the crunch of gravel as a car appeared coming down the driveway. When she turned back to him he was holding a tiny clay pot with a cork stopper in the palm of his hand.
“You will need this,” he said, offering her the pot.
“What is it?”
“Rub a little on your eyelids. You will be able to see all fae now, even if they are trying to hide themselves with glamour.”
She did as instructed and rubbed some of the ointment over her eyelids. She figured she could use all the help she could get. A warm buzz lingered on her eyelids for a second, but when she opened her eyes and looked around, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
“Thank you.”
Faen nodded a ‘you’re welcome.’ Then they both turned their heads when a loud rapping could be heard from the front door.
“That will be Amy and Zoë. Stay here until I’m gone. You know where the Old Brewery is; I’ll see you there,” she made to leave and then thought of something else. “Oh, and Faen, please try to look inconspicuous.”
“I will try, Ms. Faedra.”
She grabbed her purse and almost ran down the stairs. Faen watched from the window as Faedra got in the back of her friend’s car. As soon as they were out of sight he was outside. Although the pub was a few minutes down the road by car, he arrived before they did.
“Good grief the car park is full tonight,” Faedra commented as they pulled in.
“It’s Saturday, Fae, what do you expect?” Zoë replied.
They got out and looked up at the outside of the pub. Actually, it was more than just a pub. It was a Georgian house that had been built in the late eighteenth century for a wealthy landowner. It had since been turned into a hotel with a very nice bar. The beautiful old building still retained many of its original features. Because of Faedra’s love of all things old, she enjoyed coming here, if only to soak up the atmosphere and imagine what it must have been like to live there when it was originally someone’s home.
“Come on, dreamy,” Amy snapped her from her thoughts. “Let’s go in and get you your first official drink.”
She responded with a smile and they trooped in through an open door way. The heavy oak door had been propped open with an ornamental doorstop. It was such a balmy evening; the owners had decided to let the fresh air in. As they entered the bar, Faedra stopped dead upon seeing Faen relaxing at a table in the corner of the room. She narrowed her eyes at him. How did he get here so quickly?
“What’s wrong, Fae?” Zoë asked looking over to where Faedra had turned her attention, then looked back at her with a confused expression. “There’s nothing there.”
“What? Sorry, nothing I’m fine,” she spluttered, and continued to the bar, glancing back at Faen who was giving her a wry smile. She narrowed her eyes at him in response.
“Where’d Amy go?” she asked upon noticing her friend’s disappearance.
“Probably to the bathroom,” Zoë responded nonchalantly.
A couple of minutes passed, and they had their drinks in hand. Faedra had decided on a nice glass of red wine.
“Hey, you guys, you have to come and see this,” Amy said as she burst through the door. “They have a new statue back here, it’s so cool.” She came over and grabbed Faedra by the arm.
Faedra slid reluctantly off her bar stool and allowed herself to be half dragged by her friend through the door towards the bathrooms.
“Where? I can’t see one,” Faedra said when the corridor they were in was empty, except for a row of floor to ceiling windows that ran the length of it to reveal the beautiful courtyard outside, complete with fountain.
“It’s just through there,” Amy pointed to the double doors up ahead.
“Amy, I hope you haven’t been snooping around again,” Faedra said with a frown.
“Of course, I have, I always snoop,” she was proud to admit.
Faedra raised her eyes heavenward. Amy could be so brazen sometimes. Amy and Zoë got to the doors before Faedra; they each took a handle and pulled the doors open.
Faedra peered into the darkened room. In a heartbeat the lights came on and a chorus of “SURPRISE!” rang out loud and clear. She nearly jumped out of her skin, and Zoë surreptitiously grabbed her glass of wine, for which she was grateful, otherwise, she would have been wearing it all down the front of her dress.
Sprawling in front of her were friends and relatives, spreading all the way to the back of the large banquet room. They wore excited expressions on their faces. Most were blowing on party horns and throwing streamers at her; right at the front stood the perpetrators. Her father, flanked by her Uncle Leo and Nicki. She should have known. That was what her father had been so busy doing all day, organizing a surprise party when she had expressly told him that she didn’t want a big deal made of her birthday.
It was already more of big deal than he could ever imagine, she thought derisively.
She stood frozen to the spot for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only a few seconds. She wasn’t quite sure how to react. She felt numb. All these people were here for her, but the one person she wished could have been, wasn’t… her mother.
She regained her composure. She wasn’t about to embarrass her father, or herself, in front of all these people by throwing a hissy fit. She took a deep breath and plastered a smile on her face. One she would have to fake for the rest of the evening, of that she had no doubt. Everyone cheered when she smiled. She saw her father heave a sigh of relief.
The music started and everyone dispersed and started to mingle. When she thought no one was looking, she narrowed her eyes at her father and made a beeline straight for him. He flinched, and braced for the worst. Uncle Leo and Nicki stood their ground next to him.
“Dad, you promised,” she stated when she reached him.
“Faedra, it wasn’t your dad’s idea,” Leo interrupted, “it was mine.”
She shot him a puzzled look. “Why, Uncle Leo? You knew how I felt.” She couldn’t bring herself to be mean to her uncle, and, surprisingly, she felt hurt, not angry.
“I did it for your mother,” he stated.
She stepped back like someone had just punched her in the gut and continued to look at him in bewilderment.
“Lillith made me promise to hold a big party for your eighteenth birthday. She was most insistent about it. So if you want to blame anyone, Fae,
blame your mum.”
Obviously, she could never blame her mum for anything. She stared at her dad and uncle, tears pricked behind her eyes. Her mother had wanted her to have a party for her birthday, and she was going to make sure she enjoyed herself.
“Sorry,” she mumbled at the floor, feeling a little ashamed of herself.
“No apology needed, you big goof,” Leo said, grabbing her in a bear hug. “Just make sure you enjoy yourself.”
Faedra had a good look around the room when her uncle released her from his iron grip. There were banners all over, announcing ‘Happy Birthday’ and ‘18 at last.’ A long buffet table, filled with food, stretched the length of one wall. Helium-filled balloons tied to little weights, floated above each of the tables that surrounded the dance floor. Streamers hung from the rafters of the exposed oak beams that were holding up the roof. A DJ was playing music at one end of the room, and people were already on the dance floor dancing.
“You did all this for me?” she asked her dad, uncle and Nicki. They nodded. “Thank you.” She opened her arms for a group hug.
“Go on now,” her dad said after they were finished with their hug, “go and enjoy yourself.” And without further ado Amy and Zoë each took an arm and dragged her towards the dance floor.
Faedra enjoyed dancing to all the latest music on the charts, and some of the older stuff that she liked to listen to, also. It seemed like a constant stream of people came up to wish her a happy birthday. She greeted each one graciously, and thanked them for coming. Although she had told her dad that she would only have a couple of drinks, they kept being put in her hands by friends and relatives who wanted to buy her one for her birthday. She had managed, very discreetly, to dispose of some of them in the various potted plants that were dotted around the edge of the banquet room. But when she’d been caught in conversation with someone, she found it hard not to take a few sips and was starting to get a little tipsy.
The music slowed down and she made her exit off the dance floor. She watched as Amy and her new boyfriend were slow dancing their way around it; Zoë and her long-standing beau were doing the same. They looked really happy and she smiled at her friends who were enjoying the moment with their respective partners. She turned to go and find someone to talk to and bumped straight into Faen’s chest. She took a step back in surprise and looked up at him. She hadn’t seen him since that time in the bar and wondered if he was still around. To be honest, she’d been so distracted by everything going on, that she hadn’t even thought to look.
“May I have this dance, Ms. Faedra?” he asked politely.
She squirreled around in her mind for a moment. She’d never danced with a man before, except for her dad, and that was when she was little and stood on his shoes while he twirled them both around. She didn’t think that counted in this instance.
“Um, I don’t know how,” she admitted, sheepishly.
“I do,” Faen replied, holding out a hand for her. “May I?”
She felt her cheeks flush and her heart pound. Not only was she a disaster with her power, she was now going to embarrass herself on the dance floor, too.
Faen took hold of her hand in one of his, placed her other hand on his shoulder, then placed his other hand around her waist. She was too nervous to giggle, but she felt like they should be on an episode of Dancing with the Stars. That image disintegrated almost immediately as Faen led her with grace and fluidity around the floor. The other couples that had been dancing were now turning their attention to her and Faen, and had moved to the edge of the dance floor. She noticed that people who had been mingling all over the banquet room were now forming a circle around them, watching them intently. She also noticed that they were now the only couple dancing.
Faedra couldn’t ever remember feeling this alive. She felt like she was floating above the dance floor, it didn’t even feel like her feet were touching the ground. She looked up at Faen and focused all of her attention on his eyes that were doing the same to hers. She was locked in a moment of sheer tranquility and wondered if she would ever come down to earth again.
She did, with a bump. As soon as the music finished, there was a loud applause that emanated around them. She tore her gaze from Faen’s and looked around her. The whole party had been captivated by their dance, and she scanned their faces. On most, she could see pure delight, but when she got to her father, his features screamed concern. On her friend’s, Amy and Zoë, pure confusion.
Oops, she thought, none of them know about Faen.
Heck, she’d only found out about him just over twelve hours ago; she’d certainly never thought of a story to tell them when just such a thing like this occurred. But then, in all fairness, she hadn’t been prepared for a surprise party, either. She had been prepared for sitting in the bar, having a few drinks with her friends, while Faen sat inconspicuously in the corner and kept an eye on her. He’d failed miserably on the inconspicuous aspect of the evening, and she made a mental note to show him what it meant in the dictionary when they got home.
She looked at her father like a deer caught in the headlights. As he stalked towards her, her friends followed behind him. She would have to think of something quickly.
“Oh, no,” she whispered.
“Stay calm, Ms. Faedra,” Faen whispered back, putting a calming hand on her shoulder.
The crowd that had accumulated around them, was now back to mingling and dancing. Faen had led Faedra off the dance floor after their dance, and they were now standing to one side of it.
“So, who’s the dark horse then?” Amy said to Faedra, while raking her eyes up and down Faen.
“Are you going to introduce us?” her father said, with a politeness that was laced with just a hint of venom. He had never seen his daughter with a man, especially one as good looking as this one, and she had never mentioned a boyfriend. His father senses were on full alert.
Faedra scanned their faces again and swallowed hard. She could feel herself starting to tremble. Faen sensed it, too, and gently squeezed her shoulder. Her father was not doing a very good job of masking his concern; her friends were just positively brimming with excitement for her. It was about time she had a boyfriend… she could read it in both of their expressions.
“Um, everyone, meet, uh, F-red.” she caught herself at the last second.
Every pair of eyebrows shot up in unison, including Faen’s.
“Frederick, I mean. This is Frederick. He is a new boarder at the stables. We just met, recently.” Her hands were getting clammier by the second. Faedra didn’t like to lie and it wasn’t something that came easily to her.
“Pleased to meet you, Frederick,” Amy said as she took hold of his hand and shook it with just a little too much enthusiasm.
“Yes, pleased to meet you,” Zoë reiterated with a much more graceful shake of his hand. Faen did the noble head bob that he always did when acknowledging people. It was so old-worldly, and so completely Faen.
“Frederick,” her father said, taking Faen’s hand in a firm handshake. He eyed Faen cautiously and gave him the ‘you lay one finger on my daughter and I’ll swing for you’ glare.
“You can be assured, Mr. Bennett, my intentions are nothing but honorable,” Faen responded to her father’s unspoken warning.
Faedra cringed, looked up at him, and gave him a silent ‘no one says stuff like that anymore, you’ll give yourself away’. He just smiled calmly back at her and it took her breath away, as usual.
