Eden Undone (The Dawn Mirror Chronicles Book 2)

by A. R. Meyering

  “Entil, don’t change the subject. I want to hear more about it. Go on, we won’t breathe a word,” said the fourth faerie.

  “Well, she’s got them cooped in there, drugged out of their minds. A little amusement for the lady is harmless I suppose, but there’s this new creature who is of particular interest to not only her, but to all of the members of court,” Entil said indulgently. Penny’s breath grew short.

  “This human girl was brought here a couple years back, intended to be a refreshment for Gonta and Deridon Verres. Do you remember them? They started acquiring all these expensive things and the fools showed them off to everyone. They were so proud. They were getting wealth from somewhere, and no one could figure it out. Finally, Tharn caught wind of it and wouldn’t you know those two ended up having themselves an arranged accident, and the Empress comes away with this pretty little human child who can—prepare yourselves for this, my friends—see magic.”

  Penny covered her mouth to keep from gasping. Noct poked her from the alcove he was hidden inside.

  “That’s preposterous, Entil. Now I know you’re―”

  “Why do you think we’re so well off in this shortage, you twit? They’ve been taking this girl all around Aulbaine and forcing her to find the magic that no one else, not even the court crafters, can sense. Irunie and Tharn have been fighting over that little human for months now. Tharn wants her out in the field, constantly digging up more magic, and Irunie wants the little creature around to play dress up and have tea parties with,” Entil said with disdain. “The girl just got back tonight. That’s why Irunie ran off in such a tizzy.”

  “Fire from Heaven,” Feirne marveled.

  “What is it? What? What?” Noct hissed at Penny.

  “Do you hear something?” Yrax asked suddenly, and Penny felt her heart stop. With silent steps she turned and threw herself into the alcove beside Noct. They pressed their backs to the wall, listening to the screen door roll aside and watching a beam of light spill into the hall. Yrax stuck his head out and looked around for a moment, and Noct clutched Penny. For a tense moment Yrax peered around the hallway, then shrugged and closed the screen door.

  Tentatively Penny and Noct crept out of the alcove and back to the stairwell. Penny resisted knocking him senseless until they were safely back in their room.

  “You almost got us caught!” She smacked him on the back of the head and he groaned.

  Annette drew back the shimmering curtains around her hanging bed and peered at them. “What’s going on?”

  BEFORE THE SUN had risen, Penny was shaken awake by two long, spindly hands. She jumped, frightened until she realized she was being greeted by two faerie handmaidens. The faeries coaxed the girls from bed, introduced themselves as Melle and Shion, and announced they would be taking Penny and Annette to join the refined games of the high society ladies of the faerie court.

  “Games? Oh, please, we’d rather not. We’d really like to see our friends, instead. We need to talk to them,” Annette protested as Shion fixed her hair.

  “Oh, but they are so diverting, you’ll love it! And if the men wish to see you, they will come here after playtime is over for today,” Melle said firmly.

  After dressing the girls, they woke Noct and struggled to brush his hair and dress him in faerie robes—something he was determined not to take with good grace. The boy was escorted to practice archery with the faerie youths, and Penny and Annette were whisked away to a painted room overlooking the snowy garden.

  Faerie ladies of high-standing filtered in and sat down around the table, each one wearing a robe more ostentatious than the last. They greeted Penny and Annette in broken Andronian with impeccable politeness, then promptly switched to more exciting conversation in their native tongue. Penny did her best not to give the slightest hint she understood them.

  “Now that we are all here, we can start. Lady Csai, would you please grace us with a poem?” Melle asked the most senior lady in the group.

  The regal lady cleared her throat and shut her eyes as if in thought, then intoned, “Water…running freely…though time wares on mountains, water is constant.”

  This seemed to thrill the other ladies, and Lady Csai looked smug as they all complimented her. One by one the other faerie ladies composed poems while the others listened and shared their thoughts. Penny had loved poetry in school, but heard nothing that intrigued her.

  She looked out the nearby window, surprised when she spotted the very teahouse that Entil mentioned the night before. It sat in the middle of a wide lotus pond, and Penny thought she could see a silhouette through its tiny windows.

  “Um, I wonder. Is it at all possible to have an audience with the Empress? I believe she wanted to see Annette perform, and we’d be very happy to oblige her,” Penny asked Melle discreetly, but the other faerie women heard this and broke into a cacophony of shrieking giggles.

  “What an impudent little girl! Oh, these humans. So uncouth!” one faerie exclaimed. Shion looked as if she were choosing her response carefully.

  “You cannot simply get an audience with the Empress. It is what we all strive for and desire. It is why we hold these various forums across the palace, why we play these games. Those who can compose the most lyrical poems, the most beautiful songs, the most amusing stories or prove themselves to be artistically gifted earn a chance to impress our great Empress. You must have something to offer, you see,” she explained and Penny frowned.

  “So you mean to say that if we come up with a good poem, then we can meet her?” Penny clarified.

  “Well, I’ll give it a go,” Annette said, clearing her throat delicately. “Moons shine over the reeds. The lake is still, as is the air. Tranquility.” She looked at Melle, who translated for the other faeries.

  “Oh, how dreadful.”

  “She possesses not a hint of talent.”

  “Humans are unrefined creatures, dear Ulah. Don’t be so hard on the dull thing.”

  They spoke their cutting words in Fae with saccharin smiles, batting their long eyelashes, and Penny did not have the heart to tell Annette the truth. Melle turned graciously back to Annette.

  “They are pleased. Keep trying and you may get to see the Empress, after all.”

  ARRIVING BACK AT their room, the girls found Hector, Simon, and Argent waiting for them outside their door, all looking quite sour. Inside their room was Noct with bow and arrow in hand, as impatient as ever.

  “We’ve been trying to find you ever since the debates ended. Where were you two?” Simon questioned.

  “Hell,” Annette sighed and rubbed her temple as Penny gave a snarling review of the day’s events. Simon found their situation humorous, while Hector seemed a touch hurt that Annette had such biting remarks about poetry.

  “Any news on your end?” Penny inquired.

  “Noah forced us to come along and be his little spies. I honestly don’t know who is more impossible—our king or theirs,” Simon groaned.

  “None of this matters,” interrupted Noct. “We have more important things to be worrying about! Mia is here. Big sister Penny and I confirmed it last night when we were spying on the faeries! And we’re going to go save her, of course. Tonight.”

  “You. Explain,” Hector demanded of Penny, looking unsure who to be upset with first. She gave a quick rundown of the night before, and Hector collapsed in a chair and put his face in his hands.

  “Penelope, I thought you were smarter than that. Do you not understand what we are trying to accomplish here? This is a very delicate situation. You could have compromised all the negotiations and ruined our chances to save Mia forever.”

  “Who cares? My sister’s been trapped by that psycho Empress for years and put through Heaven knows what else, and now that I’m here I’m going to go get her!” Noct cried.

  “No, kid. Hector’s right,” Argent cut in. “There’s a right way to do this, and charging in there blindly isn’t it. We’ve just got to play nice until the treaty is signed, then spirit
her away without the Empress finding out. It would help if you two could keep trying to get an audience with Irunie. You might be able to find out how to get the girl away safely by getting into that teahouse.”

  “But―” Noct spouted indignantly, and Hector cut him off.

  “This will all be done in a few days, I’m sure of it. Though Tharn is proud, he’s scared. He wants Noah on his side if Nestor and the clergy decide to attack. His fear will force him to rush, and when we’ve got that taken care of, I promise you we’ll get Mia out of there,” Hector told Noct. “Trust me, Noct. We’re just as desperate to see her brought to safety as you are.”

  The boy nodded, looking crestfallen. Annette patted his shoulder reassuringly as the men bid them farewell. Hector was almost out the door when Penny caught his arm.

  “Uh, Hector,” she began, feeling awkward about asking him this question but aching to know the answer, “Noah didn’t say anything about—”

  “He didn’t mention you at all,” Hector said tersely, and Penny found she didn’t want to look at him.

  “Ah. I see. Well, goodnight.”

  “Goodnight.” Hector stalked off as Penny retreated, a whirlpool of emotion stirring behind the stillness of her countenance.

  THE DAYS THAT followed became a miserable routine for everyone. Each morning the girls were dragged to the freezing garden to watch the sunrise, then locked in a room while they competed against the faerie court ladies at handwriting, weaving, and riddles. Penny and Annette tried their best at each, but spent every day being laughed at and ridiculed. On the fourth day, when the chosen method of play was singing, Annette was sure she would have all of them beat. Instead of being impressed, the faeries mocked her foreign style and Annette spent the rest of their playtime muttering poisonous things under her breath.

  Once they had been released from the grasp of Melle and Shion, Penny decided to take a stroll through the gardens and said a quick goodbye to a miserable Annette. At the edge of the palace walls, Penny climbed onto a stone bench to catch a glimpse of Umbrie-Alantier. Intrigued by the towering spires, colorful shops, and unfamiliar smells and sounds, she discovered the guard would not let her leave the palace.

  The next morning Annette pretended to be ill, and Penny was forced to endure another round of endless poetry alone. She attempted to recite poems she had memorized from her school days, but even the words of John Keats and Robert Frost were not enough to impress the faerie court. Penny sat smoldering, silently vowing to get revenge for her favorite poets whom the faeries ridiculed and mocked.

  Freed several long hours later, Penny went to sit by the pond amid the pines, scheming how to meet the Empress and punish the elitist faeries all at once. Hearing the crunch of footsteps on gravel, she turned to see a face that caused her chest to tighten.

  Noah stood timidly on the other end of the garden, his gaze wary and hopeful. Penny thought she should pretend not to see him, but their eye contact lasted too long.

  “Good evening, Penny,” he greeted.

  “Hello,” she replied, miserable at the sight of him. Noah took a very small step forward, a cloud of white billowing around his face as he breathed.

  “May I join you?” he requested. She nodded, hating how painful it was to see him now.

  “Thank you.” His voice was thin as he sat beside her. She felt the warmth radiating off his body in the cold, early-evening air, and her stomach clenched tighter.

  “I’ve laid awake every night since we’ve arrived here. I can barely sleep, Penny―”

  “Political negotiations are stressful.”

  “It’s not because of that, and you know it.” His tone grew harsh for a mere moment, then became soft again. “Penny, I’ve can’t stop thinking about what happened, even if the memory of it makes me sick.” His gray eyes were sad and Penny bit her lip. “The next morning, I realized what I did wrong. I rushed you, and that was unfair of me.”

  “Come again?” It was not what she had been expecting to hear.

  “I just got so anxious at the thought of losing you. I thought it was the best way to stop it from happening.” Noah’s hands clenched and unclenched, his face looking pained by his confession. “Ever since we’ve met, I’ve wanted nothing but to have you as my own. When I think that you may not feel the same way, or that others might be interfering, I go out of my mind. When I think that you might not feel the same way it’s…almost too painful to breathe.”

  Penny swallowed, unsure how to respond. Noah’s feelings ran so much deeper than she’d thought, and the earnestness of his words touched her, but at the same time she knew that his worst fears were true. She looked into his glassy eyes and felt as if someone were squeezing her stomach in a mercilessly tight grip.

  I don’t feel the same way. But how can I look at you and tell you that, especially when you care so much about me? I don’t want to hurt you, Noah.

  “I failed to consider things from your point of view, though.”

  Penny perked up, hoping he had heard the words she could not force herself to say. “I failed to consider that you might want to take things a bit more slowly. So please, just do one thing for me. It’ll be all I ask of you.” He took a deep breath.

  “Just consider my Declaration. Just think about it, please. Take all the time you need, but don’t say no just yet. You’re scared, and that’s understandable. But you mean the world to me and I’m giving my heart to you. So please, don’t just turn me down without thinking on it.”

  Penny’s head spun as a powerful urge to accept his apology gripped her. Will it make me a weak person if I do what he wants? Will it make me a cruel a person if I don’t?

  “Noah,” Penny said slowly, trying to arrange her next words in her head. “I never know what to say to you. Look at me. I’m not the person you want me to be, or that you think I am. And I don’t think I can ever be. I’m awkward, I’m tactless, I’m nervous. You’ve got to see that.”

  He stared at the rippling water of the pond, and she added, “But even if I’m not who you want me to be, I’m still your friend, and I really like it that way. I guess what I’m trying to say is…I just wish that it would stay that way. With us as friends.”

  “Penny, please. Don’t say that. I know you’re not ready now, but just give me a chance. I’m begging you.” He grabbed her hand and looked into her eyes so pleadingly, her heart ached to reassure him.

  He just wants me to think about things. He just wants me to consider it. Maybe my feelings will change. Don’t I owe him a chance? He’s done so much for me. It seems horrible to give him false hope, but if this is what he really wants me to do… Penny sighed, caving.

  “Everything we know is about to fall apart, and when the night finally comes, I want the people I care about to be there with me in the dark. All of them. So if it’ll really make you happy, if this is really what you want, I’ll…I’ll consider your offer. But I can’t make you any promises, please remember that.” Penny gave Noah a melancholy smile, and he shut his eyes and took a ragged breath.

  “Thank you, Penny. I promise you, I’ll do my best to deserve your affection.” The King lifted her hand and kissed it, as if her answer indicated something more than what she’d told him. Immediately, she regretted her words.

  Returning to her room, Penny found Argent, Hector, and Simon had come to update them on the events of the day, bringing dinner with them. They all took their seats around the room, Penny sitting by Hector as she chomped on a steamed bun.

  “I quoted Shakespeare to them, Hector, Shakespeare, as if I’d made it up on the spot, and they just laughed like hyenas.” Penny knew he would share in her indignation of this, and was pleased to see from his scandalized expression that her prediction was correct.

  “I swear if I never, ever see another faerie again, it’ll be too soon. Everything about this place is aggravating―and I hate wearing these clothes. I look so weird in them,” Penny continued on her tirade.

  Hector shrugged. “I think you look quit
e becoming in those robes.”

  After the slight shock wore off, Penny had to lift her cup to hide her smile. They chatted a bit longer as they finished up the food, her heart feeling lighter now that she was back with her friends, and she laughed easily as the powdery flakes fell outside the window. Noct and Simon were lobbing snide remarks at one another and Annette puzzled over a strategy game she was losing to Argent. Hector stood up, gathering their attention.

  “Well, now that we’ve all eaten, let’s get down to brass tacks. It looks like the discussions may be coming to an end tomorrow. Yrax told me as much. Which means―”

  “Which means we’ve got one day left to save Mia!” Noct jumped to his feet, almost knocking over his chair.

  “Yes. From what I’ve been told, things will proceed regularly throughout the day, but they are planning a small celebration in the evening. We’ll be leaving tomorrow night after the party, so we’ve only got tonight to plan.” Hector looked around the room. “Does anyone have any ideas?”

  A devilish smile crossed Penny’s face. “Oh, I think I’ve got just the thing.”

  I will arise and go now, for always night and day, I hear the lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, I hear it in the deep heart’s core,” Penny sang, the words of her beloved Yeats making her heart swell as she recited them. She opened her eyes, confident and smug as she looked at her audience.

  All around the room the faeries had tears in their eyes. Melle’s cheeks were slick with moisture and she was clutching her chest.