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“Would it matter if it weren’t?” I catch her eye over my shoulder, and the fairy offers a small smile because we both know the answer so what’s the point of saying it out loud??
“If you sleep, sleep when the glitter glows a midnight blue. When you see coral it’s what you would call morning and lavender the rest of the time. This is the only way you’ll be able to track human time here.”?
Our gazes lock and mine narrows. So, did she get the same ‘lost Gifted girl’ story as the Ministry seems to have?
“Does everyone know I was raised in the human world?”?
“You hated the room before you even walked in, but it remains the same with each passing moment,” the woman says. “Rathe-raised Gifted are far too spoiled for that.”??
A small laugh breaks from me and I swear the woman spins to hide her smile.??
“There’s a full wardrobe in the closet and the schedule of events will show itself should you stand in front of its doors. Next up is breakfast in the Gnomes Gardens. Your one-on-one with Lord Deveraux will be your final task before it all starts again.”??
“One-on-one?” My stomach sours, and when I press my palm to it, I’m met with smooth satin. Looking down, I find I’m no longer in the sexy dress Legend dressed me in, but pure white pajamas, baggy and covering every inch of my skin from my neck to my ankles.?
Sighing, I drop my head back squeezing my eyes closed, but when I open them, I gasp.???
The ceiling has shifted, the skies showing themselves above, but that's not what has my lips parted.
It’s him.
Kaia’s dragon friend hovers above, its giant wings flapping to hold it steady, sending a gust of wind over my face and blowing my hair into my eyes. I scramble to tuck the loose strands behind my ear so I can stare at the magnificent beast again … but it’s gone, and in its place is a vortex of white fucking clouds.??
“You guys realize you’re hosting a courtship for the future King of Dark Magic, right? A Stygian, not an Argent?”??
“Of course, my lady.” She pulls the bedding down, and then hovers her hand before the bedside table. Suddenly steam rises from the small teacup. Her gaze meets mine over her shoulder, and she offers a hesitant smile. “However, the rooms are spellbound by blood. Your blood. What you see is what the Ministry has deemed you are.”?
“That doesn’t make sense.”?
“We do not gain answers from things such as common sense. That is a human practice. This—” she points around the room “—is a result of your humanity. It consumes you.”?
Humans have better qualities than most I’ve met in Rathe so far, but I don’t say that to this woman who has likely never left the lands. I stick to the facts.
“I’m not Argent. I’m of Stygian blood. I mean shit, my d—” I cut myself off. “I mean, if I’m supposed to be the future King’s mate, I’ve got to be pretty dark, right? Like ... a few steps below The Slasher, dark...” I throw it out, testing to see if she knows more than she’s said.
“Do not speak of him in these walls,” she hisses in a whisper, swiftly coming my way as she looks around the room. Her eyes shine a bright green as they hold mine, and when she speaks, it’s in a hush. “The Faelific Fortress is a place of safety and sanctuary for all kinds.”?
“So, I’ve heard.”?
“Did you hear why it was created?”??
Tension rolls through me and while I feel like I can make an educated guess at this point, I want to hear it from the maiden's mouth. I shake my head no.??
“For those believed to be hunted by you know who and the families that were left behind after the fact.”??
The Gifted my father spared after murdering some of their family members, she means.??
The maiden, my maiden, goes on. “We continue to protect the civilians of magic to this day, hence why the courtship is held here. Yemon cannot breach these walls; they were built of the bones of the first Fairy to ever walk these lands. Here, you are safe from what is beyond these walls.”?
But not what lies within them...?
She doesn’t say it but the way she tips her chin says it all.??
I jolt when the woman grabs my hands, but there's a softness about her that has me allowing her palm to meet mine.??
She murmurs so low I almost miss it, and when her brows raise, I speak the words with her in unison.??
“Using tongue is not the simplest of ways when most can simply think or snap what they wish and make it happen, but it is the quickest way to learn and requires little energy.” She releases me and steps back, frowning at my chest. “Not what I would have expected.” Her eyes find mine. “Until next time, my lady.”??
