Page 134 of Triumph at Pemberley

But there was also a debt she needed to pay, so she whispered in the smallest possible voice the words she had intended never to say. “Everbright Gossamer-in-Moonlight.”

A form materialized before her, the slender silver-haired High Fae she had met in the Welsh Faerie Glen. “What is your will, Frederica Fitzwilliam?”

Apparently Frederica was doomed to always be known by her maiden name. “I have no command for you, simply an introduction I wish to make. Pray come with me.” And she boldly grasped the fae girl’s oddly cool fingers and strode forward.

The new High Queen looked inquiringly at her, only a shadow of Georgiana Darcy left in her face.

Frederica curtsied. “Your Majesty, pray forgive the interruption. I have a great debt I need to discharge. May I present Lady Aster to you, the High Fae who risked her family and future to bring me the Artifact which opened this Gate?” She hoped ‘lady’ was the right title, or at least showed the proper respect.

The High Queen’s newly vivid emerald eyes rested on Aster. “Lady Aster, is this true?”

“Yes, Your Glorious Majesty,” the fae girl stuttered. “I feared for the fate of the people of Faerie under he who came before you.”

“My loyal lesser fae have mentioned your name as one who helped them escape bondage. You played an important role in my ascension, and are now among the first High Fae to greet me as High Queen. You will henceforth be known as Lady Aster the Bold, and a place in my inner court is yours if you wish it.”

Aster whispered, “I am greatly honored, and will serve you loyally all my days.” She squeezed Frederica’s hand briefly before dropping it. Then she took a position on the other side of the Queen who had been Georgiana, standing tall, a tear glistening on her high cheekbones.

Hmm. Lady Aster the Bold. Frederica wondered who she could ask about the significance of the new title.

The High Queen turned to her. “Lady Frederica Fitzwilliam, you have been blessed with riches, birth, beauty, and Talent, yet you were kind to me and always treated me as human even when you knew I was not. Given your advantages, there is little I can give you in return, but I will command my lesser fae to bring fertility and good fortune to the soil of Gwynedd.”

That was unexpected. It was a good thing Frederica had practice in speaking to royalty, or she would be stumbling over her tongue right now. Instead she managed a perfectly creditable, “You owe me nothing for the basic civility of treating others as we wish to be treated, but the farmers and shepherds of my new country will heap blessings on your name.” She sank into a deep court curtsey, ignoring the scuffed dirt beneath her. She could deal with a soiled skirt later.

The High Queen turned back to Darcy with a long, serious look. He had no idea what it meant, but he met it steadily.

Then she turned away and said, “It is time for us to say farewell to this world and return to Faerie.” She stepped into the Gate and disappeared. Her lynxes and Lyren of Everdale followed. Lady Aster waved to Frederica before vanishing, too. The lesser fae raced after her, at least the ones who were visible. Mistletoe, who had once saved Darcy from being poisoned, was among the first.

Then the clearing fell silent. Georgiana and her entourage of lesser fae were gone.

Elizabeth, still cradling Jenny, leaned against his side, offering quiet comfort in this moment of unexpected loss.

Jenny, perhaps with some baby instinct, reached out her little hand and grabbed a fistful of Darcy’s sleeve, cooing at him.

It helped, at least a little. He had so much to be grateful for. Elizabeth and Jenny, and now a new infant sister, too. Coquelicot, always present at the edges of his mind, and even the annoying dragonet Topaz. A new relationship with his mother and Mrs. Sanford. No doubt Frederica, Jasper, Granny, and Richard would leave soon, along with the Hartung children, but he would see them again. Jack, at least by Frederica’s report, was still alive, even if no one knew where. And they were all safe at last from both Napoleon and the Wicked King. It had been a fine day’s work, and he should be proud of it.

Elizabeth must have seen the pain in his face, for she said softly, “You still need to grieve, even in the midst of triumph. So will we all.”

“I rely on your wisdom,” he said unsteadily. And how true it was.

Frederica hurried over and did her best to embrace them both at once. “What a day!” she cried. “Stopping Napoleon would have been a towering achievement by itself, but we had to go even farther and destroy the immortal Wicked King! Who would have thought it possible? Elizabeth, you may claim your Talent is weak, but today you have proved yourself one of the greatest mages!”

Darcy struggled to rally his spirits. Frederica was right; he should be celebrating Elizabeth’s achievement in opening the Gate. “I could not agree more. You worked hard on this, and no one can question your success.”

Elizabeth laughed. “So says someone who did not fall out of a tree today because of creating a unstable Gate! I did not even know the Gates needed to be warded against the fae, though it should have been obvious. I knew Gates were similar to faerie rings, and never thought of what it meant.”

Frederica said loyally, “If any of the Dark Peak dragons had seen fit to instruct you about how their Gate worked, you would have known far more. You cannot be expected to guess everything!”

“True, they could have made this much easier. But Darcy was the hero in killing the Wicked King. Did you hear when Georgiana said he had fulfilled the prophecy by loving and caring for her?”

Frederica looked dubious. “No doubt he set it in motion, since we could not have done it without Georgiana leading the way, but Darcy is not the only descendent of Ysmeina who played a crucial role today. If you had not opened the Gate, if I had not brought the Artifact, if Jasper had not wounded the Wicked King, if your sister Jane had not been willing to be dragged through the Gate – I would say we all fulfilled the prophecy together.”

“I agree,” Darcy said firmly. He was much happier not bearing the entire credit for destroying the Wicked King. “Let us not forget Georgiana’s mortal body was made from Lady Anne’s, which means she, too, is a descendent of sorts. And Granny! Had she not run off to Wales, Elizabeth would never have met Cerridwen, and we would still think dragons were extinct. Frederica, your whirlwinds played a crucial role today, too. Without you knocking Napoleon into the pit, he would have kept us all in thrall and handed our dragons to the Wicked King.”

Frederica beamed. “We worked together to do the impossible.”

With a laugh, Elizabeth said, “And I will be haunted for years about how many things could have gone wrong, if each of you had not been here to do your part!”

Darcy said, “That reminds me. Frederica, how did you manage to avoid falling under Napoleon’s spell? Without your well-timed whirlwind to knock him into the pit, my trap would have been useless.”