by Amy Sumida
“Can we all sit down now?” Queen Iseabal asked dramatically. “My feet are furious with me.”
“Tiernan?” A woman had come up beside us and she stared at my boyfriend like he was the biggest gift under the Christmas tree but she wasn't sure if it was for her.
“Join us when you're ready,” Queen Iseabal shifted her gaze from me to the newcomer. She gave the woman a soft smile and a nod. Then the seelie Queen sashayed away with her husband, her sons, and Aideen in tow. I was left alone with Tiernan and the woman. Oh, and Cat of course.
“Mother?” Tiernan reached cautiously for the woman and she rushed forward, wrapping herself around him tightly.
I saw the resemblance then. She had the same strange ombré hair, going from nearly white to pitch black, and the same color skin. As she hugged Tiernan, a seelie man and a seelie woman came up behind them. The man looked grave and a little resentful. His hair hung in a sheet of midnight black down his back, nearly to his waist, and his thick arms were crossed over his chest. His sharp features were very familiar and the silver eyes cinched it for me. He had to be Tiernan's father.
The woman beside him shared his silver eyes and dark hair but her features were softer, more refined, like the woman who held Tiernan. Her hair was set in big bouncy curls and they seemed appropriate to the huge smile she wore. She glanced from Tiernan to me and smiled brighter.
“I'm Latharna,” she came forward and gave me a curtsy. “It's an honor to meet you, Your Highness.”
“Latharna,” Tiernan broke free from his mother to hug the woman.
“Brother,” she hugged him tight. “I'm so impressed and jealous!” She whispered dramatically. “A Lord of the Hunt and consort to a princess? You've shown them all and made a better life for yourself. I couldn't be more proud to be your sister.”
“Thank you,” he whispered and held his hand to her cheek. “Goddess, I thought I'd never see your face again.”
“Yes,” the man cleared his throat. “You've done well. It would seem that I did you a favor when I asked you to leave.”
“Father,” Tiernan nodded, instantly cool.
Is it wrong that I immediately wanted to punch Tiernan's dad in the face? Cat reacted to my tension and whined, looking up at me with a question in her eyes. Should we attack or not? I mused it over for a moment but finally shook my head and she sat back on her haunches to wait for me to change my mind. I'm sure she could sense my uncertainty.
“I can't believe you're here,” Tiernan's mother spoke into the silence and then she turned to me. “Thank you, Princess Seren for bringing my son back to me.”
“Thank you for raising such a wonderful man,” I beamed at her. “I'd be dead if it weren't for him.”
“Yes, we heard you say so,” Latharna said excitedly. “Did he really save your life?”
“Twice, so far,” I chuckled. “Though it irks me a little to admit it.”
“Why?” Latharna blinked at me. “It's so romantic.”
“Because I'm an Extinguisher, I should be able to take care of myself,” I shrugged.
“So that's true as well?” Tiernan's father lifted a black brow over those silver eyes which looked so much like Tiernan's and yet were so different.
“Seren is an impressive fighter,” Tiernan added. “And now her new magic has made her even stronger.” He looked over to me, “I don't think you'll need me to save you anymore.”
“It's a good thing I love you then,” I teased. “Otherwise I wouldn't need you at all.”
“You're rather forward,” Tiernan's father's personality seemed to be stuck on disapproval.
“Yeah, I am,” I agreed. “So you should be prepared for what I'm about to say next. Piss off, Pops.”
“Seren,” Tiernan chided but I could see the smile hovering around his lips.
“What? I can defend you to the Seelie Queen but not to your father? He is your father, right? You haven't exactly introduced me yet,” I chided him back.
“Oh, Tiernan,” his mother slapped his shoulder.
“Mother,” Tiernan sighed and shook his head. “Princess Seren Firethorn, may I present my mother; Countess Sorcha Silverlight, my father; Count Diocail Shadowcall, and my sister; Countess Latharna Shadowcall?”
“It's a pleasure,” I nodded to them and then frowned at Tiernan's father. “Well, mostly a pleasure.”
“It's lovely to meet you too, Princess Seren,” Sorcha curtsied.
“I think I'm going to let you four catch up,” I gave Tiernan a quick kiss on the cheek, knowing that I needed to excuse myself before I said something truly offensive to Tiernan's dad. “I'll be over there, getting to know my new family members.”
“I love you, Little Star,” Tiernan whispered in my ear before he returned to his family reunion.
I walked away from them with Cat by my side, as pleased with myself as I could be. So maybe the night wasn't going exactly as I'd envisioned it. It was going even better than that and I sent a quick prayer of thanks to Danu as I crossed the huge ballroom to where my father sat with the seelie royals.
It really was an amazing room and now that I had a moment to breathe, I gave it the attention it and its occupants deserved. Fairies of all shapes and sizes filled the massive space, some sedate and glamorous while others were... less so. A kallicantzaroi rode by me on a chicken. The little fairy had an elaborate headdress of gold and multicolored feathers on his head but wore nothing else. He whooped as he passed and waved up at me. I waved back with an amused smile.
Then I stopped and looked down at Cat, “When did my life become such that a little naked man riding a chicken seems normal?” I asked her. She looked up at me as if she couldn't understand a life in which that wasn't normal. “As I ask a puka,” I rolled my eyes.
The chicken rider wasn't the only tiny fey around. Closer to the gold-veined, white marble floor, were other small fairies; like kobolds, who were a type of shapeshifting sprite. Cat startled one of them and he changed from his rabbit form into that of a dancing flame.
“Oh, sorry bout that,” I held up a placating hand as we gave the fire a wide berth.
There were also buttery sprites; tiny, sweet looking things. They were close to pixies in appearance but they didn't have wings and they were just a little bigger. You'd never guess it to look at them but they loved tormenting priests. Specifically; hypocritical priests. So I guess they were pretty cool. I'd saved one from an unseelie prison once. In fact...
“Princess Seren,” the sprite in front of me gave me a cute curtsy. “It's good to see you here.” Cat leaned down and sniffed her aggressively. The sprite giggled and hugged Cat's muzzle. “It's good to see you too, Cat.”
“Rose,” I crouched down to speak with her. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you,” she twirled, her layered, pink silk dress fluttering about her like the petals of her namesake. Her creamy blonde hair was curled into tiny ringlets and her huge brown eyes were lined in gold, making them look even larger. “I'm so happy, Princess. Isn't it funny how being imprisoned by the unseelie made me appreciate my life even more?”
“No, it's not funny,” I smiled softly at her. “It's wonderful. Instead of breaking you, tragedy has made you stronger. That's not easily done. You should be very proud of yourself.”
“I am,” she nodded and then whispered. “And I've joined Aodh's alliance.”
“Aodh's Alliance?” I frowned and then remembered how my friend Aodh was secretly preaching the gospel of unity and peace to the seelie. “Oh yes. That's pretty impressive too. Well done.”
“Remember that you have our support, Your Highness,” she gave my finger a tap. “You are not in this alone. Peace is possible.”
“Thank you,” I said and she gave me one last curtsy before twirling away beneath a table.
I stood with a feeling of supreme joy and I realized suddenly that the ballroom fit my mood. Pillars of sparkling citrine soared up the sides of the room. At the ceiling they became arches, sweeping up to form
the rays of a sun which was set in the direct center of the ceiling. The main body of the sun was a polished sphere of citrine held in place by bands of gold. In between the sun rays were clear quartz panels and I was sure I would have been able to see the night sky beyond them if it weren't for the massive amount of fairy lights drifting about and casting a glare on the panes.
The fairy lights did their best to bring out the beauty of the room though, causing the faceted pillars, arches, and rays to sparkle and shed golden light over the pristine white walls. But I sensed that this room had been built for daylight and would have been ten times more beautiful if the actual sun was shining through the orb in the ceiling. Still, it was magnificent and I suspected that should I see the room in its full glory, I'd have to shield my eyes from the brilliance of it.
As it was, I could admire the arched carvings which gave the illusion of doorways within the walls, and the gilded frescoes of fairy forests within them. Above the artwork, a balcony circled the room, supported by even more citrine columns and bordered by a gold railing. Laughing fairies leaned against the railing to admire the view from above.
My wandering eyes stopped when I spotted Conri. He was angled against the railing rakishly beside a dazzling seelie sidhe. He said something to her, giving her one of his practiced smiles, and she laughed, throwing her head back in a manner that looked just as calculated as his. He glanced down at me as if he'd known I'd been watching the entire time, and winked rakishly at me. So much for his promise to leave his bad boy charm at home.
The Court of Light seemed more than capable of dealing with Conri though, so I didn't worry about it. My gaze slid down from the balcony to the padded benches beneath, filled with fascinating fairies. From silky seal selkies to the foxy kitsune, animal aspects featured predominantly on quite of few of the seelie. Then there were the glorious sidhe who, despite being quite shiny, were not actually the Shining Ones.
The name Extinguisher had, for me, always meant those who extinguish the light of the fey; the Shining Ones. But I'd recently learned that “The Shining Ones” is not a term for all fairies but for a very specific group of fey... dead fey. They were the spirits of fairies who had decided to stay behind and guard their brethren instead of passing on to fairy heaven (whatever that was). In times of great need, the Court of Light could call upon the Shining Ones for aid. And you didn't have to be seelie to join the Shining Ones, any fey could as long as they were dead.
The Unseelie Court had a version of this called the Sluagh, who were the opposite of the blessed Shining Ones. Opposite in several ways, the first of which being that they were alive. Cursed instead of blessed, the Sluagh were children of fairies who had bred against their own instincts and the will of the Goddess. Perversions, such as a sidhe mating with a puka, resulted in mutated children. In short; monsters. These poor creatures were doomed for their parent's indiscretions. They were both hideous and very powerful. The fairy version of the boogeyman, one of their roles was to hunt down any fairy who dared to murder a fey royal. After meeting several royals, it was easy to see why there needed to be such extreme protection for them.
You may be wondering who the Twilight Court had to defend us when we needed it. Well, as the neutral court, we had the power to combine the Shining Ones and the Sluagh into a single fighting force which we could command to defend not only our kingdom but all of Fairy. Pretty groovy, eh?
“Princess Seren,” It was Nighean, a fairy I'd rescued from Bress and the Unseelie Court. She was a sylph, which is a type of seelie fairy with wings, and we'd become good friends. Her brother, Aodh, had gone with me to rescue fairies in both courts and was the one who had begun the alliance Rose had spoken of. He was also there, standing beside Nighean with their mother, Neala.
“Oh thank goodness,” I sighed. “More friendly faces.”
“I'm so happy to see you, Your Highness,” Nighean curtsied, along with her mother. Aodh gave me a courtly bow. Cat, who was getting tired of me getting all the attention, strode forward and posed before them. She received immediate strokes and praise for her efforts, as expected.
“Seriously?” I shook my head at Cat as she returned to my side. Then I focused back on my friends. “Come here, you guys,” I pulled them each into a hug, being careful to avoid their delicate wings. “I just ran into Rose,” I said to Aodh. “Sounds like you're doing well with your alliance.”
“We are,” Aodh grinned brightly and his wings gave a happy flutter, shimmering metallic green in the fairy lights. “There are obstacles but we expected that.”
“We meet secretly,” Neala continued. “But the secret is slowly becoming known to those who are ready to hear it.”
“That's wonderful,” I nodded. “I just wish peace didn't have to be a secret.”
“Hatred runs deep among the courts of Light and Dark,” Nighean's eyes went distant for a moment and I knew she was remembering her time in the Unseelie Court.
I reached out and took her hand. Her wings, which were a paler, more feminine opalescence than her brother's, shivered as she focused on me. I nodded and that was all that she needed. Just a moment of understanding. I'd only spent one night in the Unseelie Court and I hadn't been tortured, not really. I'd only witnessed the horror the fairies had become so good at. One night, and it still haunted me. I couldn't even begin to imagine what over twenty years of such treatment had done to Nighean.
“Hatred is a perfectly normal reaction. The fact that you've overcome it, is a miracle,” I whispered, thinking of the hatred I'd given up only when Danu had coaxed it from me.
Seeing Nighean there, striving to make peace between the courts, despite what had been done to her, made my vengeance seem petty. Perhaps Danu had been right and I needed to accept what Uisdean had done. Not just for myself but for the good of the Fairy Realm. How could I ask the fey to overcome thousands of years of cruelty when I couldn't get over my own pain? Yet, even faced with the facts of my hypocrisy, it was difficult to accept my mother's death. It would take time. As would peace in Fairy.
“If I have to make peace with the unseelie to prevent that torture from ever happening again, then letting go of my hatred is a small thing,” Nighean sighed. “Both sides are guilty of great evil. I think those of us who experienced it, understand that the most. It's actually easier for us to embrace the idea of peace; to let go of blame.”
“Easier?” I blinked in surprise. “Just because you know it was done to both sides?”
“Yes,” she set her huge ivy eyes on me earnestly. “It calms me, knowing that we are both equal in our evil. That no one is innocent. How can you let hatred fester when your own hands are covered in blood?”
“Not your hands, Nighean,” I whispered, my throat constricting on the words.
“Yes, even mine,” her eyes went sad. “I've fought in the wars. I am no innocent.”
I gaped at her, taking in her slim form, those translucent wings, and her sweet face. I've been taught my entire life that fairies are not what they appear. That the cruelest heart can live within the most beautiful body. So it wasn't the paradox of violence within a fair form that shocked me. It was the fact that I knew Nighean's heart was good, that she was as sweet and as kind as she appeared to be. To think of her as vicious or cruel was nearly impossible.
“War is different,” I recovered. “Some would even consider it honorable to take up arms against an enemy.”
“Not a fairy war,” Aodh whispered, his eyes flitting around anxiously as if he were afraid to be overheard. “But enough of this talk. What does it matter how Nighean has found her peace? As long as she's happy, that's all I care about.”
“True,” I shook my head and took Nighean's hand again. “I didn't mean to question your reasons. I was just impressed by your ability to let go of your anger. It was much harder for me.”
“Anger is just another form of torture,” Nighean kissed my cheek. “Self-inflicted and as such, it's insidious. You must love yourself enough to let go of the hatred.”
Chapter Seventeen
“Care to dance?” My Uncle Shane had caught me off guard. Probably because I was still reeling from Nighean's words. She was like a fairy guru.
“Oh, um,” I blinked and glanced over at the dance floor, which was off to one side of the room, in an alcove beneath a balcony. It was full of seductively swirling couples and looked really intimidating. I thought back to the last time I'd been caught in an endless loop of fairy dance partners and cringed.
“I promise to make it enjoyable,” he took my arm and escorted me away from the direction I'd been heading; towards the dais and my father.
“But I have Cat with me,” I waved a hand to her.
“Cat, would you mind waiting right there?” Shane pointed to an open spot near a table brimming with food.
Cat's eyes lit up and she immediately tromped over to the spot Shane indicated. It just so happened that sitting beside the table made the food level with her face. She began surreptitiously slurping everything off the shiny platters.
“So much for my guard puka,” I rolled my eyes.
Fairies made way for us, bowing and dropping into deep curtsies as we walked by. Shane smiled and nodded politely to them as I tried to remember the dance steps for the fey waltz. Maybe I should have paid more attention to the tutor Keir had brought me. He'd tried to teach me proper dancing and I'd told him I was too busy training for important stuff like battle. Now I regretted it.
“Come now, dancing with me can't be that much of a torture,” Shane teased as he took my hand and waist.
“No, there's been much worse done within these walls,” I muttered.
“What was that?” He lifted a pale brow at me.
“I said I'm not very good at dancing,” I gave him an innocent look.
“Just follow my lead,” Shane gave me an amused smile. “Or is that too hard for an Extinguisher woman?”
“I don't have a problem letting a man lead,” I set my hands on his shoulders and tried to let him pull me along.
