I can hear movement coming from the kitchen, so I hesitantly shuffle my way over. Bastian rummages around through cabinets, pulling out plates and cutlery. He casts a glance over his shoulder at me at my approach.
“Sit,” he all but commands with his gruff and grumpy voice.
“Good morning to you too, sunshine,” I say sarcastically, but I obey and settle into one of the chairs at the small table.
He drops a plate in front of me with a hunk of bread, some sort of pink colored melon, and some dried meat. “Eat,” he orders.
Again, with the commands.
I suppress the eye roll. “What’s with the one-word sentences? Did someone wake up on the wrong side of the sofa this morning?” I prod at him, starting to tire of his attitude. Especially this early in the morning.
He rolls his eyes, but I swear I catch a twitch of his lip. “Eat your breakfast. We need to plan, and I have other things I need to do.”
I pick up the fork that is set beside the plate, but hesitate before spearing the melon, fork frozen above the fruit.Can humans eat Fae food?
“It’s safe to eat,” he says, as if reading my thoughts. “There’s nothing to worry about there.” He pauses a moment, a smirk overtaking his features. “Now our wine on the other hand… That stuff makes your human wine look like grape juice.”
I watch for a moment to determine if he’s being truthful before my stomach lets out a loud rumble, making the decision for me. I pierce my fork into a cube of melon and pop it into my mouth. My taste buds are instantly flooded with the sweet but slightly tart flavor of the melon. It’s nothing like anything I’ve ever tried before, but I think it might be one of my new favorite things. I rip off a piece of the bread and swallow it down. It’s similar in taste to the breads we have in the human realm but there’s something about it that seems lighter, fluffier. I quickly scarf down everything on my plate before I’ve cleared the full thing. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until now.
Bastian whisks the empty plate from the table and ditches it in the sink, returning to the table with a large, rolled piece of parchment. He unrolls it and smooths out what I assume is a map of the human realm, but I’ve never seen anything like it.
“What village are you from?”
“Willowbrook,” I answer quickly, eyes scanning the map for it.
His expression turns thoughtful. “Remind me, what kingdom is that in?” I blink at him. My confusion must show on my face because he lets out an exasperated sigh. “Do you not know?” More silence from me. “How do you not know?” I can hear the frustration lacing his words. “Didn’t you have lessons growing up?”
“Lessons?”
His eyes widen with disbelief. “You know, like tutors. Someone that teaches you the history of your kingdom and other seemingly important human things.”
“Oh. Um, no… my aunt did all of that at home, but I never had anything I would call formal lessons.”
He tilts his head and studies me, confusion written all over his features. But also, he’s looking at me like I’m a puzzle he’s trying to solve.
“Okay, let’s try something different. Describe your village to me.”
“Why?”
He sighs. “If you don’t know the kingdom name, the general landscape might be able to help me narrow it down. We tend to learn a little bit about your realm growing up and I’ve been there a few times myself.”
“Right, okay.” I quickly start to rattle off details about my village. The layout of the town square, the river running alongside, the types of trees we have, how dense the forests are.
“Sounds like it’s this one right here,” he says, pointing to a small dot on the map. There’s no name associated with the village, but the layout of the land looks exactly like Willowbrook.
“I think that’s it.” Relief rushes through me.
He studies the map for another few moments before he leans back in his chair and crosses his arms across his chest, staring straight at me. “Which do you want first? The good news or the bad news?”
Just as fast as it came, the relief I felt is swept away by concern and dread. “The good news?”
“I know of a portal that lets out right at your town.”
“And the bad news?” I say cautiously.
“It’s at least a two-day journey to get there.”
“Two days?” I screech.
