Page 71 of The Noldrin Witch

Elise hadn’t meant to make a scandal out of the gossip surrounding her and Kurt. She certainly hadn’t wished to involve Adelle in the whole ordeal. She understood that Adelle was interested in Kurt, and she harbored no ill feelings toward her. After all, who could blame her for being so taken with the duke? Elise herself would defend her chance to be at his side if she thought she stood a real chance.

Fabian was another matter entirely. It was hard to empathize with the fairy when all he seemed to want was to be admired and make others’ lives more difficult than they should be.

Both Fabian and Adelle had left the workshop after Kurt’s visit. Adelle had followed Kurt while Fabian had been escorted away by the king’s small army of servants like a prisoner being led to the dungeons.

Elise felt a measure of guilt and hoped the king would not be too harsh on the fairy. It had already been an hour since he left and there was still no sign of his return.

She swallowed hard, remembering what Kurt had stated so firmly: “I can assure you there’s nothing between us.”

His words had felt like a dagger to her heart. Of course, he was right. There was nothing between them. But, ah, how it hurt. How much she wished he would have defended her without claiming so vigorously that what they had shared meant nothing.

Perhaps it was all for the best. She had worked up in her mind enough fantasies with him that by now she had expected him to come take her in his arms and proclaim she was the one his heart desired. It all looked silly now.

Not wishing to dwell much on her disappointment, Elise worked around the potion table where Emery was mixing ingredients before the more experienced fairies prepared the final concoction. He held one of the lowest positions on the magical staff. Even Elise felt she was overqualified to do his job, and he had already been working for more than a luster in the workshop.

Elise had not yet been assigned a formal position, and instead she roamed from place to place, offering assistance to whoever needed it. She thought it to be a waste since she was sure she could mix the potions without trouble. She had gained enough experience with Morgaine, and with all her reading on the fairy’s sacred manuscripts she was eager to prove her worth.

As fortune would have it, her wish at last was about to come true.

When Fabian finally made his entrance, his mere presence cast a hush over the workshop.

His countenance revealed that the man had received a severe admonishment. He walked like a beaten dog with his tail between his legs.

Some fairies near him approached him to ask if he was faring well. The man barely lifted his head and with a most defeated gaze, his eyes soon found Elise.

“Elise, you are now to be part of a group,” he said to everyone’s surprise. “Pick a team.”

Elise stood there frozen, unable to believe her luck. It was only when Emery gave her arm a shake that she finally returned to the promising reality before her.

“Any team?”

By now, she knew the tables around the workshop, each arranged into different groups of four or five fairies. She and Emery were the only ones who didn’t have a permanent place. Emery, of course, had had the worst of it, usually in charge of the rubbish heaps. Elise was not to waste the opportunity to help the only person who stood by her side at the worst time.

“I choose to work with Emery,” she said.

Fabian, still looking like a mule at the end of a hard road, rolled his eyes at her. “I said a team, not the only other black sheep.”

Emery seemed a hair offended, but he didn’t dare to disagree.

“There’s a potion table that’s not in use,” Elise said. “I’m sure we can manage.”

“You are going to need at least one more person, then,” Fabian said, regaining some of his usual sour mood.

Elise glanced around the place, the vast majority of the fairies avoiding her gaze. She remembered the words of Morgaine: You will find your biggest allies are men. Seeing Emery at her side, she was beginning to feel that the witch’s remark was not completely off.

The only male fairies in the workshop were Fabian, Emery, and a couple of fellows she hadn’t spoken to. Neither of them looked happy when she glanced at them, but it was all it was.

She studied the two of them for a moment. One stood nervously as he noticed her looking at him. His lean frame bordered on gauntness and did not give Elise much hope. The other one appeared much less timid as he stood at a distance from her. His frame was stronger and his demeanor a touch cockier. He was a good-looking man, although after seeing specimens like Kurt and Sebastian, he seemed rather plain to Elise’s spoiled eyes. Either way, Elise felt her choice was simple enough.

“Him.” Elise pointed at the sturdiest fellow.

Fabian let out a begrudging grumble as he looked at the chosen fairy. The fairy let out a heavy breath and joined Elise.

“Good job,” Emery whispered at her side as both waited for the fairy to make his way toward them.

“I’m Conrad,” was all he said, giving a few suspicious glances at Elise. He was likely wondering why she had chosen him.

Unknown to Elise, and as is often the case among reasonably handsome fellows, Conrad assumed his good looks were the sole reason she had chosen him. In Conrad’s estimation, Elise was one of those women who could make any man howl, but married as he was, he maintained a measure of distance.