Evanara "I didn't push her." I told Prince Dameon who was hell bent on getting me punished. He looked away from me and to Queen Mother who was trying her best to look as pitiful ever. I didn't understand why I was forced to stand in the middle of the court in front of the King and other weird looking people. I had done nothing wrong. The only reason I still stood here was because Gawain warned me never to disregard the members of the court no matter how tense the situation got. "Do you suggest the Empress Dowager is lying?" A very old man who sat next to Emperor Ajax, Gawain' father asked me,looking at me strangely. I had never seen him in the castle before and his clothes were different from ours. The red of his cloak was really eye catchy. He was covered in a red cloak that swallowed his whole body up I couldn't even see what he wore inside. I could not help but imagine what I would look like if I wore something like that . Ugh. The color would contrast with my hair and I'd really
Evanara I winced as Madge pinned the final lock of hair that was left into place. Honestly, I would have preferred a scarf but I was not given so much as a choice. "All done,your Grace." Madge said.I stood from the wooden stool and looked at myself. I looked away instantly as I felt the contents of my belly reach out for my throat. "Can you not get a tunic for me instead of this... this clothing?" I asked. She looked at me,rather stunned by my remark and her lips pursed in a way I concluded she took offense of my words. With the look on her face,I could have sworn if I was not with child...the Emperor's child,she would be mopping the castle floors with my face. "No your grace." She mumbled a few more word underneath her breath and laughter erupted from the left corner of my room and it came from the maid scrubbing the floors who after a glare from me stopped laughing. "What did you say?" I asked her."Nothing." She said, giving me an evil eye. "Get out."
Evanara The Empress's silver hair was plaited beautifully to keep every strand in place. Such beautiful work. She walked through the huge doors into a vast hall way. Princess and Ladies, more than I'd seen together in one place walked ahead of us. I had thought the palace was a serene environment for only the royal family. What section of the palace was this? Why were there so many here? "The Grand Empress to pass through the Court!!! "Someone shrieked behind me. I would have looked backward to see who it was had the orderly movement not struck my eye. The women froze at first then immediately recovering from their shock, the ones closest to the right side of the wall, moved to it and the ones closest to the left side move to it, thus creating more than enough space for ten people to pass through. I stole a glance at the old empress as she moved, hands behind her back like she was inspecting. Grand? The previous King's mother? A really weird monarchy this is. It was no wonde
Gawain I stomped out of Gaius' quarter, hands crossed behind my back, fuming. I met Orien waiting outside by the door and he trailed behind me, quietly. He knew when not to ask me questions. There was no sign of grandmother. She must have gotten tired of waiting for the treatments to be done. "Gawain... ". Orien said. "Cancel my meeting with the Clan heads and Head Merchants. Send an apology note to them and fix another date for the meeting. Assemble every maid, every one of them and every royal who has access to the kitchens in my Throne room. Send for Magus Adonis as well. "I ordered. "Why-" "Do not question me. "My voice boomed across the hallway. Not with the voice of a friend but of a Emperor. "Magus Adonis only comes once in four weeks. He will not heed the call-" "Call. For. Him. "I said sternly. Orien was right though. He would not come but I would have him send word anyway. "An hour, Orien. An hour to assemble all of them. Fix your nose befo
Evanara I'd woken a few hours ago in my chambers, in fresh clothes and had found Gawain nodding off at the edge of my bed, head leaning on one of the poles made from the furniture of my bed. One movement from me and he jerked upwards. Murmured that my child was fine and a few other things I no longer remembered. When I asked what had happened, he murmured again about going to get me food from the kitchen. Before I could ask where my maids had gone, he was out the door. The door swung open and Gawain walked in, tray in his hands. He looked around the room as if to find a suitable table to place the food atop but he shrugged and placed it on the bed beside me. He stood there and peered down at me. I frowned at him. He frowned back and inclined his head towards the plate of roast chicken and soup and fruits on another plate. I rolled my eyes and sat up, folding my legs in front of me as i dug in. It tasted fabulous and it took me a few minutes of stuffing m
Katherine "Come in." I said, dropping the coffee mug on the wooden stool beside my bed. The door swung open and he bowed on instinct. "You called for me, Your Grace." "Yes. Shut the door, will you?" I said with a wave of my hand. He did and turned back to look at me. His grey eyes traveled from my face to my exposed cleavage and my nipples that weren't so much as protected by the lacy gown I wore. His eyes traveled down to my thighs and legs and his throat bobbed. "You called for me, Your Grace."His voice bold and unshaken even if his eyes betrayed him. "Quit the formalities, Sir Adrienne. I see the way you look at me with those eyes of yours that beg to see me undressed." I said, rising from my bed. I trailed him, swinging my hips left and right, his eyes drinking me in. "I hear Evanara was your bride and my husband stole your right." His eyes darkened on the sentence and my lips curled upwards. "I've also heard what transpired when she came looki
Evanara I awoke to a hand over mouth and nose and something sharp teased my neck. "Scream and I'll slit your throat." A male's voice said behind me. I stilled, eyes darting over to the edge of the bed where Gawain usually sat. He wasn't there. Instead I saw another cloaked figure standing at the edge of the bed, watching. He'd returned to his chambers last night on Katherine's request. Cold sweat trickled down my neck and my breath hitched. Pair of hands yanked me from my bed and another pair tied a cloth around my mouth. Something fell over my face and all I could see was darkness. My hands were tied in front of me tightly. They could have easily slit my throat and ended me when I was asleep but they were taking me captive. If they went through all this trouble just to cart me away blindfolded, I was important to them and they wouldn't try to kill me. Someone pushed me forward and another yanked my hands, pulling me by the rope that tied them. I heard the slight creak
Evanara Surprisingly, the next morning, Gawain didn't bring breakfast to the room. Instead, he said we would be eating with his family. The maids had been released but he changed them. Now we were seated at the long mahogany table that had enough room for over twenty people, evenly spaced but there were only seven of us. Gawain took the head of the table, his father at the other end of it. Katherine had taken the seat to his right and his mother took the seat to his left. The old hag was surprisingly present again and she'd taken the seat next to Hera. Leaving me to seat beside Prince Dameon who was beside Katherine. At the table there was a silence, but not one of happy eating. There was tension and the few unsaid words that filled the air fell like dirty pebbles onto the table. I looked about at the faces, how the tightness of their jaws and shoulders are reflected in one another. My belly became tight and I felt the hunger i felt slip away from me slowly,well, t
I stood before a large oak tree with my back turned to Zephyros. He had brought me here a moment ago after taking me from Tymon's without my permission. I had predicted something like this. His restraint burned to ashes the moment he saw me in the fighting leathers. I just hadn't predicted he would bring me to the middle of nowhere i could recognize. I felt him behind me,a steady wall of heat that threatened to warm me up from the inside,dare i let it. I closed my eyes as a familiar thrill built up inside me. I could not afford for him to smell my need. Control. I needed to control myself else my skin would light up again. It was difficult but with ice in my core and steel for bones, i turned around and met his predatory gaze with cold eyes. "Why have you brought me here?"My question came out as a song,silencing the birds that chirped in the air and the wind that howled in the distance,each word coming out an octave higher than the last. He gave me a knowing lo
"Why?" I asked with a yawn. My joints and muscles ached from the transformation and the cold. I held the quilt tighter and waited for her reply. She was silent for a long time and I found myself already dozing before she finally said, "Rest. You are tired." I did not protest as her voice was a lull on its own. I fell into dreamless sleep and for the first time in years, I felt like I was being looked after. I awoke shortly after to the sound of raised voices outside my room. I squinted at the brightness and looked out the square window. It was morning already yet I felt like I hadn't slept in days. The voices grew louder, causing my focus to shift from the window. I stared at the door and lifted my right hand. I cocked my head slightly before pointing at the door and glamouring it without so much as a thought. The voices grew distant until all i could hear were the birds chirping from far away. I sighed and drew the covers over my head. I dozed, only to be awoken by something slamming
Zephyros "You will go and bring her back this instant!" My cousin yelled again and I cringed inwardly at her foul display of childishness but made no effort to reply her. I gripped my pen hard yet not enough to break it. I had cut down men, impaled my enemies on stakes, burned lands and lands that housed creatures that threatened my kind, surely, a cranky woman... Or three cranky women were nothing to me. "The situation at Gantreth?" I question Bren, scribbling down a message for their scrawny leader. As per tradition, to visit a land, you must notify and gain permission first. Showing up and tearing down their gates would have been easier but Father refuses violence. I am a creature of violence and he continuously tries to hold me down. You're brooding. You should go bring her back, Zephyr. I didn't need to look up to know Bren was frowning down at me. I could hear it in his voice. Feel him in my head even. I frowned mentally at him and pulled my mental s
I snorted. "I know what I look like. You are not it." It rumbled again. "You tell fine jokes, child. Without me, you are nothing. Look closely. Tell me what you see. Who you see." I peered up at its bright eyes. It blinked and its slitted gold turned blue, like its scales... I paused. Those eyes... The time I'd invaded Dameon's thoughts, I had seen me with them but I had disregarded it, knowing I didn't have blue eyes. Looking closer at its hairy scales made me want to touch my hair. They were the same color. I snorted. My mind was playing tricks on me. I would know if I was a... A... I frowned again. What was it? "What are you? Do you have a name?" I asked again. "I am you." It repeated in thick layers. I tried to growl but I ended up making an embarrassing sound. It merely watched me with wise old eyes. How was I supposed to ask it questions if it kept giving vague and odd answers? I rubbed my forehead with my thumb. If it thought it was me
My body jerked as he yanked out the sword, cutting through flesh and no doubt bones. I choked again and coughed as I staggered backwards, staring at nothing but my brother's face. An illusion. It had to be. He was dead. He was dead. I fell on my knees as my surroundings started to darken. Was it getting dimmer or was I starting to black out? I placed my hands on the gash and coughed again. The metallic tang in mouth tasted so disgusting I had to spit it out. I looked up. It was him. Kevan. Grown. Fully grown into a man. His eyes were so cold and distant. He smiled down at me and I noticed the fangs in his mouth. Fangs? The tip of his ears were rounded like a human. His hair was long but not the Fae kind of length. He looked ordinary, yet not. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Bren inching towards him with a raised sword. "No!" I cried. He paused, fuming. "No?! He harmed my mate!" His voice came out in layers, making the ground vibrate. His eyes... T
Nyxaria's lips compressed into a thin white edged line. "No. That isn't right. Maybe... Maybe you aren't feeling well. There can not be Faebane here." I blinked uncomprehendingly. "You think I wouldn't know if I was ill?" I pointed at the entrance. "There is something wrong here Nyx. I am not ill." She made an impatient sound and her eyes narrowed. "You don't understand. It is near to impossible that Faebane be in this building. The security--" I inched forward. "Wasn't the security high in Alfheim as well? Yet, somehow, the entire hall got drugged and had no explanation for it. This," I pointed at the entrance again, " This is an actual explanation Nyx. If there is anything I've leant, it's that there's no such thing as impossible." Nyx's eyebrow pulled together in the biggest frown I'd ever seen on her face and her silver eyes burned with anger. "There is no--" Vivi dove between us and held both her hands up in front of her. "Okay. Okay. Calm your h
I got through training, though my thoughts were distorted. I found it hard to concentrate and I had to apologize to Kyria over and over again. It got harder when at the end of it all, I could not do a thing. "Do not berate yourself about it. You made major progress today. A little more practice and you will be perfect at it."Lord Vas wrapped his arm around my shoulder and patted my head on the way out. "Lord Vas. Lady Danae. My my, isn't this lovely?" Tymon walked in through the huge doors, arms spread out like he was expecting a hug. I cocked my head and Lord Vas retracted his arm that rested on my neck. I heard Zephyros's growl behind me and chose to ignore it. "Tym, you are late." Anya quipped beside me, nose buried in another book bigger than her heart shaped face. The girl-woman never stopped reading. Tym's eyebrows rose and he gave that lopsided grin again. "Am I? The lesson's just about to begin."★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ Having Tymon host me was not
Katherine I toyed with the dagger in my hands as we strode to the stables. The horses were unnecessary but it was one of those days. I wanted my slaves to look upon their Queen. My other purpose was strengthening the barrier again. If Leandros was who my grandmother made him out to be, it would be a smart enough move for him to try intrude my lands now. I could not have that yet. Especially not with the resent losses I incurred with the mission. I clenched the dagger tightly with simmering rage. "How many did we lose?"I asked again. "None came back alive, my Queen." Adrienne answered again for the fifth time. I clenched my jaw. "You have investigated like I told you to?" "Yes, my Queen. Our sources tell me it was the dragon. He burned them alive at once." I swiveled and glared at Adrienne. "Did they not tell us Neradia would be unguarded?! Did they not tell us the one with ichor in his veins would be away?!" I screamed. His eyes widened and he b
The pungent smell of Faerie fruit was enough to make me befuddled. I refused the sixth cup that was offered to me, knowing how good I was at holding my liquor. I sat beside Lord Vas and his family on the dias, sticking to the left side of him and being forced to watch how crude the Lesser Fae really were when Faerie fruit was involved. "I must thank thee, My Lord!"A drunk Sylph with wickedly handsome features grinned and bowed clumsily, nearly toppling over the two Nymphs that he held by their waists. The first with long green hair kissed his face and neck, occasionally pinching her nipples through the thin silver fabric she wore. The other fumbled with his jacket and let out a growl when she could not take it off. She looked down and giggled before grabbing his crotch. "Patience pet." The male growled before moving away with his drunken companions. It was not the first nor was it the worst i had seen that night. I avoided gazing at the left corner of t