AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Kes’s feathers bristled again. “Anin, you must know by now it is not simply the blood oath that bonds us. I have this gut feeling that I am vastly unprepared for what is to come.”
“And what is it that bonds us, Kes? Your gut seems to be ayouproblem,“ she said with a growing edge to her voice.
“I don’t know what it is. All I know is I hold your safety above everything else.”
Anin softened slightly at his words and sighed. “Oh, my darling feather duster, you can be infuriating and lovely all at the same time. I want to trust in you. Truly, I do. I’m just not there yet.”
While Kes knew this was true, it still stung to hear the words come directly from her mouth. “Oh, my darling nymph, you can be so cruel and yet wildly thrilling. You must understand, trust is important if I am to do my job adeptly. Do you at least trust I value your safety over everything?”
Anin was quiet for a moment, then gave him a sad smile which told him everything he needed to know. She did not trust he placed her above all else. Kes felt incredibly forlorn; he felt something in the bond between them strain.
She must have, too, because she suddenly rubbed at her chest and looked concerned. “You must understand, Kes, with the exception of my sisters and Galetia, everyone has abandoned or betrayed me. My mother died when I had barely grown out of my youngling stage, leaving me entirely alone. I never knew my father. My own court abandoned me and chased me away. I had to flee to the Borderlands. It was lucky I showed up at the gates of the Silver Moon Coven. Galetia took one look at my sorry state and took me in immediately. They couldn’t help me cultivate my power since witches seem to have a completely different kind of magic from most fae. I grew up with my sisters and learned what I could alongside them, though the day finally came when there was nothing left for the witches to teach me. The head witch called upon a fae she thought trustworthy to come and give me lessons.
“The nymph showed up to our coven a few days later and taught me everything she could that a nymph should know. She felt the depth of my power and likely figured out who I was, so she went running to tell the high fae who she had found and where I had been hiding. I would imagine she was hoping it would give her higher status. The lesser fae are treated even worse in the Day Court, compared to here. We received word they were coming to kill me, apparently no longer content to have me out of sight. Hastily, I ran the night of the blood moon, determined to live the remainder of my life in the Human Realm. I needed to protect the witches I had come to view as family, free from my court’s torment.
“I knew my sisters would fight to the death for me, and I could not bear to be the reason they died. I do not think my court can reach me here Kes, not after how poorly it went for the Day King.”
Kes was grateful for the information she had freely given, though none of that told him anything he really needed to know. If anything it only gave more credence to the questions he already had. He was loath to do it, but he would use one of her five questions if he must. He would keep the question vague enough, giving her the chance to cleverly word her response in a way not to tell him too much, but he would at least learn something.
“Anin.” He said her name with such sincere regret, she shrank as far back as she could in her chair, preparing herself for something she knew she would not like. “I hate to do this, but I am calling on one of the five questions you have sworn to answer.”
Anin had turned her head to look off to some far corner of the room, but at his words, she whipped her head back around and glared at him. She was so angry, she was turning a deeper shade of green, and her nostrils were flared with her heavy breathing.
Kes had already known this was not going to go well, but he decided there was no turning back. He took a deep breath and swallowed hard while he considered his next words wisely. “Why does the Day Court want you dead?”
He felt this was the safest option. She didn’t have to reveal anything too momentous, but perhaps if Kes knew why, he could be better equipped to handle whatever it was he could feel coming. Anin seemed to realize what he had done, and her anger dissipated mildly.
“Because, you nosey bastard, I am not just a wood nymph even though my physical traits take after my mother. My father was…powerful. According to my mother, she hadn’t had much choice in their affair. My court sees me as a threat to their power and wishes to eliminate me before I am able to cause them any trouble,” she said snidely.
“Why would you cause them any trouble? You hadn’t given them any reason to think you would while you lived in the Borderlands, right?” Kes was regretting his choice of question.
Her answer had only created further questions for him. It made no sense to spend that much energy and time on a fae if she hadn’t stepped foot back in the Day Court.
“Are you using one of your four questions, Kes?” she asked in an overly sweet voice as she renewed her glare at him, clenching her jaw tightly.
He didn’t want to push her too hard, and he hoped she would answer this question freely. “No, I am not. I am just trying to help you, Anin.”
Anin stood and looked down on him. “Well then, that’s enough questions for you. I have plenty to do to prepare for the ceremony tomorrow night.” She stormed away from him and entered her bedchamber, slamming the door behind her.
Anin was mad. She was big mad, and Kes didn’t feel like he was any better off than he had been prior to their conversation. He dropped his head in his hands and rubbed his temples. Maybe if her sisters would not tell him anything, they would at least help him keep a watchful eye during the ceremony and the celebration to follow. It was the best he could hope for at this point.
Maybe at first night Anin would be feeling slightly more forgiving, and they could at least go back to their verbal sparring. Kes could hope, but he had a feeling Anin was not the type of fae to quickly release a grudge. Knowing her, she would take great joy in making him suffer for the foreseeable future. He smiled when he thought about how wicked she could truly be sometimes. For some reason, she reserved all of it entirely for him. It pleased him to no end that she gave that part of her to him alone. There was nothing he desired more than Anin when she was being particularly snarky towards him.
His smile dropped as he got up from the chair and made his way down the hall towards his bedchambers. He paused at Anin’s door and listened for a moment – all was quiet. He knocked on her door and wasn’t surprised when she didn’t answer. “Sleep well, Anin.”
The response he received was something crashing against the door and shattering. He was definitely in trouble. He could not deny her anger and attitude built a heat inside of him that had been burning into an inferno. He rubbed his chest while he made his way to his bedchambers, still feeling as if something had torn inside him, almost like a fraying of something important. He began to think he knew what that pull in his chest was, but he had no idea what this new sensation could be. He knew it couldn’t be anything good, as he rubbed at that spot in his chest again. No, it definitely wasn’t good.
Forty Five
Laterthatnight,afterCiaran had bathed, he redressed in something less dusty. Etain couldn’t stop smiling. She hadn’t had a day this perfect in a long time. Ciaran already told Etain he and Kes had gone to the archives earlier, and how that had been the cause of his dusty appearance. Apparently no one had been down there in a significantly long time. He suggested a flight to their spot at the falls to enjoy the beauty from above the Night Court; they could tell each other all about their days.
Ciaran ported them to the same spot high above the palace, and Etain took a few moments to really admire the view of the city below. Tomorrow at crescent night she would become one of its rulers and that felt surreal.
It was also unsettling. She was terrified the fae would never accept her, and she couldn’t stop the anxious thoughts running through her head as she braided her hair back. Last time her hair had been down, it had blown all over the place, so this time she followed Ciaran’s lead and braided it just as he did. The city was lit up with all types of light, from glowing orbs to lanterns of fire. It made the city feel alive with all the activity of its dwellers.
“What’s it like in the city?” Etain asked. She had wanted to go, but hadn’t had the time to ask Ciaran to take her.
“It’s filled with restaurants and businesses. Many of the fae in the city live in what we call apartments. Each floor is someone’s home. It allows more beings to live comfortably in the city. There are places to go and dance all night, if you wish, and others where you can watch all manner of live performances. After our ceremony, we will go into the city often so they can get to know their queen, and we can have some fun.”
