by Riana Lucas
“I understand. It is a lot to take in all at one time. Besides, I have never hugged anyone before. It was…interesting.” I say thoughtfully, still trying to analyze it in my head.
“What? You’ve never been hugged?” I look up quickly, startled by the sudden loudness in Reeds voice.
“No.” I say wearily, not sure what has caused Reeds sudden outburst.
“You can’t be serious, Poppy. Everyone hugs. Friends, family, lovers; even strangers sometimes hug.” He looks at me incredulously.
“I do not have any of those things, so I have never experienced that. Besides, I do not usually like to be touched,” I shake my shoulders as if even the thought of touching made me uncomfortable.
“None of those things?” he asks in disbelief. “You don’t have any family?”
“No, I told you I was raised by my guardian. He is a Warrior. He does not show affection, at all.”
“Lovers? I know you’ve had a boyfriend,” He smiles and looks inquisitively at me.
“No.” I say sharply, indicating that I do not wish to speak about that subject, but of course, Reed does not know boundaries. So when he begins to ask I give him a stern look, telling him that I am very serious.
“Okay, okay. Not my business.” He says smiling. “Friends” he continues, “I know you have friends. What about Rho?”
“Yes, I do have Rho, but I honestly did not realize how important to me she was until this mission. I think when I get home; I will give her a hug.” I give a decisive nod, happy with my decision. “I did find that I kind of liked it. It was nice to have that connection with someone you care about.”
“So you care about me huh?” he asks slyly.
“Of course I care about you” I say matter-of-factly. “Otherwise, I probably would have killed you by now.”
“Gee. Thanks.” But he smiles, knowing that is the most he will get from me.
Wanting to change the subject from such sentimental nonsense, (even though I am finding I kind of like it) but needing the subject change none the less, I ask Reed “So how did the magic feel?”
His playfulness disappears and pure joy takes over his face. “It was amazing! I didn’t think I could do it, but I listened to what you told me and tried to do exactly what you said. After a few minutes I was about to give up, but then I felt this tingling feeling in my fingertips and I grabbed it. Just like you said. It coursed through my whole body and felt like it went out of my feet. I didn’t have it long, but I know I could get it again if I tried. And now I can still feel this little sensation all around me. Like its still here, but I just can’t see it.” He peeks over his shoulder as if looking for something that he knows is not there.
“Exactly!” I tell him triumphantly. “Now imagine that times a thousand. That is what I feel right now.”
“So once I learn more about my magic and can control it better, I’ll feel that same as you?”
“Maybe not completely like me because I am full Fae, but you are very strong for a Halfling. I am honestly not sure what your abilities are going to be. When we get back to Faery Land you will be trained. Then you will see your true Fae side and your skill.”
“I can’t believe I am actually excited about going,” he says.
“I told you.” I say teasingly.
“Yes, but don’t get too cocky.” He smiles, but then grows serious before saying, “I still want to go back to see my mom, Poppy.”
“Yes, I know.” And I do. Reed will not allow himself to forget his mother. “We will cross that bridge when we come to it. Okay?”
“Yeah, okay.”
“So…Are you ready?”
“Let’s do it!” he says enthusiastically which causes me to smile and roll my eyes.
We make our way over to Holly, who has finally stopped trying to talk. I stand still and take a few deep breaths to calm myself. I close my eyes and concentrate. I allow my inner white calming light to surround me and I call to my own magic and the magic around me. I feel it begin to pour into my body. It is strong and intense and feels wonderful.
I allow time for the magic to grow to a strength that I believe will allow me to open the portal to Faery Land and then I release it all at once willing a portal to open. Before I open my eyes, I hear Reed’s gasp and feel an overwhelming relief, knowing that it has worked.
I open my eyes and gasp in shock.
The Queen of the Seelie Court is standing in my portal.
Chapter 14
I take a step back and angle my body so that I am positioned between Reed and the Seelie Queen. There is not much I would be able do if she decided to kill either one of us, but my protective instincts take over. I do not wish for Reed to be harmed.
That is the only instinct I can seem to muster because now I can only stand there in silence and stare at her. She is unbelievably beautiful. Her body is tall and lean, and very intimidating. But she still appears dainty, like you would expect of a Queen. Her hair is straight and a silky white blonde that flows loosely down her back, reaching to the backs of her knees. When the sun hits it just right, I can see it sparkle almost if she has strands of tinsel in her hair. Her facial features are sharp like is common for all Fae, but they are softer and less cruel than that of the Unseelie Fae. Her skin is pale but it glows in the sun as if there is spot light behind her. Her lips are full and red like berries. Her cheeks are rosy but I can tell it is natural, not paint like Holly uses. She turns her eyes on me and I inhale sharply. Her eyelashes are white like her hair and her eyes are a beautiful soft green. They make me think of fresh grass or new leaves on a spring tree.
They are mesmerizing.
She turns her face from me once again to face Holly. She waves her hands at Holly impatiently and I feel her magic overpower my hold on Holly as the spell I placed on her disappears with no effort at all. The vines we wrapped around her hands and feet unravel and drop to the ground. Holly relaxes her posture and brings her hands up to rub her wrists as if they were bound too tightly. Suddenly she freezes her movements, realizing what she is doing. She immediately bends down to one knee and bows her head to her Queen.
I hear a tsking noise first before Queen Lily finally speaks. “Holly. I am extremely disappointed in you. You were sent out to complete one simple task and you have failed. Not only have you failed, but you have managed to get yourself captured on top of that.” She takes a moment to look Holly up and down with disappointment. “Because of this little predicament you have found yourself in, I was forced to come myself. You know that I am not overly fond of coming into the human world and I absolutely detest having to do things like this myself. That is what I have you and my army for, my dear.” She pauses again for a moment as if thinking, then continues, “Now what shall we do about this?”
Holly wisely does not respond. She remains silent, on one knee, head still bowed, in front of her Queen.
As I stand here listening to her, my mind understands that she is berating Holly and her voice is harsh and commanding, but I can only hear the beauty. Her voice is like music. It flows through the air, over and through me, calming and harmonious. I can almost feel my body wanting to sway toward it. I have to force myself to remain still.
After studying Holly for a few more moments, she shakes her head and lets out what sounds like a tired breath. Then she turns her penetrating gaze to me once again.
“Well hello.” I hear her say cheerfully. Her entire demeanor has shifted so quickly all I can do is stare into her eyes. “I do not believe we have officially met. I am Queen Lily.” She waits for a response, but I find that I am unable to form words. I am torn between confusion, fear and awe.
On one hand, this is the Seelie Queen, she is the enemy of my King and therefore, is my enemy. She is extremely powerful, as she has proven by overpowering the Unseelie’s ability to open portals. I know now that I probably did not even open this portal. I used so much power from the earth and all of my own magic, and still she was able to bend the magic to do only her will.
All of this would invoke fear into anyone, not to mention the fact that she could kill me with a wave of her hand.
On the other hand, this is the Seelie Queen! She is extremely powerful and beautiful. She is the exact opposite of the Unseelie King. For all that he is cruel and evil, she is light and good. One cannot help but to be in total awe of her. And for some reason, she has not already killed me. She seems to be almost pleasant now.
“You must be Poppy.” I am so transfixed by her eyes and voice, that I do not hear the wistfulness in her voice. I continue to stare. “And this is your Halfling?” This statement is finally what gets my attention.
“He is not my Halfling.” I say defensively, yet somewhat respectfully. I do not wish for her attention to be directed at Reed whatsoever. If one of us must die, I would wish for that person to be me.
“Gee thanks.” Reed mumbles behind me. Although he has managed sarcasm, his voice is low and I can hear the awe in it. I look back at him for the first time since the Queen appeared. His eyes are wide with wonder and I can tell that he has been just as affected as I have been by her presence. I turn back to face the Queen. Now that some of the initial shock has worn off, I take a moment to weigh my options.
A very powerful Queen is standing before me. She does not appear threatening, but I am not fooled. Holly is now free and able to do as the Queen wishes. And although I cannot see them, I am well aware of the fact that the Queen has at least some of her guards with her. I can feel their eyes on the back of my neck and their weapons aimed at my back, which means that Reed and I are extremely outnumbered. My only option seems to be to find out what the Queen wants with me and to try and bargain my way out of it, while keeping Reed safe. The last three days have really proven be a trial.
The Queen inclines her head slightly toward me before saying, “I do apologize, Poppy. I truly did not mean to offend. You are quite the Faery, are you not?” She sounds almost proud and I am puzzled by her words. The last thing I would expect from my enemy is a compliment.
“Yes. I do believe that I am.” I answer her bluntly. I know that I am one of the best and refuse to state otherwise. Even to the Queen.
“You have definitely proven that over the last few days. Holly is one of my best hunters and you have evaded her every attempt to bring you to me, and then you captured her. I am quite impressed.” There is unmistakable pride in her voice. I cannot understand where this is coming from.
“Yes. I did capture her and I should have killed her for her attempt on my life, but I decided it would be best for the King to decide her fate.” I do not think that the Queen should know that it is actually Reed that saved the other Faery from being killed. She is being pleasant, but I do not wish for my friendship with Reed to be revealed to my enemy.
The Queen’s eyes had sparked and narrowed slightly on Holly when I mentioned her attempt on my life, but quickly jerk back to me once again when I say the Kings name. She catches herself quickly though and relaxes her features once again before speaking, “Well I do understand why you would want to bring Holly to him, but I think we can all agree that will not be necessary now.”
“We can?” I ask defiantly, even though I already know Holly will not be returning with Reed and I to the Unseelie Court now that her Queen is here to defend her.
“Why of course. Now Holly can come back with us and I will see that she is punished properly for her failure and disobedience,” the Queen spares a quick angry look in Holly’s direction.
I glance over to where Holly is still frozen in her bow and see her shoulders tense slightly, but otherwise she does not respond. With everything that is going on in front of me, I still cannot help the feeling of satisfaction at the thought of her punishment.
Reed finally speaks up behind me. I cringe when he addresses the Queen, wishing he would not draw unwanted attention to himself. “Wait a minute. You said ‘come back with us’. Poppy, are we going with the Queen?”
I know that he is trying to help, but he does not understand the extent of the situation we are in. My only option is to get him to be quiet and I regret how I will have to do that. “Quiet, Halfling.” I say in a stern voice. I turn my head and look into his eyes, willing him to understand what is going on.
He stares intently at me for a moment before giving a slight nod and bowing his head to look at the ground, falling silent once again. He understands. I let out a relieved breath and turn back to the Queen. “With all due respect, what is it that you want with me, Queen Lily?” I try to sound strong and sure, but I am really very nervous and scared for Reed.
“I would like for you to come back with me to my Kingdom. We have many things to discuss,” she spreads her hands out in a broad arc as if to illustrate the large amount of things we need to talk about, all the while still smiling serenely at me.
“What is there that you would wish to discuss with me? We are of two different Courts. We have no business together, that I am aware of. My King does not assign me to treaty work, and we are both well aware that a treaty has not been attempted for decades,” I say, hoping this will get me out of whatever conversation she hopes to have with me.
“This is not about a peace treaty or the war. This is not Fae business at all. This is personal. I understand how you may think that we have nothing to discuss, but trust me Poppy; there are many things that you need to know.” She makes a small gesture to Holly and she finally rises from her kneeling position, but remains where she is.
I look at her trying to figure out what she is saying. This is very unusual and I am finding it hard to trust anything that she says. “Are you giving me a choice or are you only stating it as if there were one?”
She chuckles and a broad smile spreads on her lips. It is a beautiful smile that captivates me once again. “You are very wise, Poppy. I am afraid that it is not a choice, but I do wish for you to come willingly, as my guest.”
“What exactly do you wish to discuss?” I know it is rude to question the Queen so openly, but I want as many witnesses to this conversation as possible.
“It is not really a matter to be discussed in front of others. It is a private matter that I am sure you would appreciate not having an audience for.”
“How can you know that? I am not sure there is anything that I wish to discuss with you, much less in private.” I am getting angry now at her assumptions and lack of information. It is becoming difficult to hold it back. I do not like the assumptions that the Queen is making about me and I do not like that I am about to become a prisoner of the Seelie Court. As much as she says she would like me to be a guest, I am quite aware of what she is really saying.
I take a moment to calm down while the Queen is studying me. She does not like my anger either and I can see that she is holding back as well. I take a moment to look around, trying to find my way out of this. I am forming a plan in my head, which may actually work when the Queen speaks again. It is so quiet that I do not think I have heard her right, but it stops all other thoughts. “It is about your parents.”
I blink my eyes at her and open my mouth to question her when all hell breaks loose. I hear the guards shouting, and I look over to see that another portal has opened behind me. As I watch in what feels like slow motion, but in reality is only a few moments; Damien steps out of the portal, not very far from where we are standing.
While I am distracted, I am grabbed from behind by Holly and restrained. I struggle to get loose as Damien takes a look around. He quickly assesses the situation as he looks from the Queen to me and then to Reed. I see a look flutter across his face that I do not understand. Before I can determine what the looks means, I hear crashing through the trees and know that it is the guards that were merely observing until now. They are advancing and getting ready for battle.
My only thought is that Reed is kept safe. As if hearing my thoughts, Damien reaches out and grabs Reed. He begins to drag him to the portal. Reed does not seem to understand and he begins to fight Damien. What I do not expect is the angui
sh I feel for him as he is forced through the portal. He keeps screaming, “Poppy! Help me Poppy!”
“Reed! It is okay!” I shout back. “Go with Damien!” I hope that telling him he was with Damien would make him feel safer, but Reed cannot hear me and continues to struggle against my mentor. Damien, losing his patience, jerks him around forcefully and shoves him into the portal, which quickly closes behind the two of them.
I have a fleeting thought that Damien has hurt Reed and left me behind. The look on his face unnerves me, but I quickly brush that away. Damien has taken Reed to safety. He knows that I can take care of myself. Now with Reed safe, I can fight with all of my attention and hopefully escape. I begin to struggle with all of my strength and am able to get one of my arms free from Holly. I whirl around and punch her in the face. She takes a step back, taken by surprise and I am able to gain the advantage.
I advance toward her while drawing my dagger. I punch her again in the stomach and deliver a round house kick that knocks her back a few more feet. She is still on her feet even though I kicked her forcefully and is still ready to fight. I throw my whole body at her, intending to knock her to the ground. My body makes contact, but instead of hitting the ground I feel a falling sensation. A few seconds later we finally make contact but it is not with the dirt floor of the forest. It is with the light blue marble floor of the Seelie Queen’s throne room.
The Queen has used my being distracted while fighting with Holly to her advantage. She must have opened a portal behind Holly and when I threw myself at her, it forced us through the portal and into the Seelie Court.
I only take a second to register this information, before I am being attacked again by Holly. She has somehow managed to twist us in the air as we were falling. Now she is on top of me and I am being slammed into the hard floor.
I can still hear shouting around us, but it is all muffled. I am concentrating on the battle that I am in. I swing my arm up to swipe at Holly with my dagger, but she quickly catches my wrist and slams it to the floor. The force causes my wrist to snap and the dagger to fly out of my hand and slide across the floor out of reach.
