Chapter Text
When Cerys didn't come back after ten minutes, or at least it seemed so as checking the time was now impossible, I realised that she wasn't actually going to bring the refreshments.
At first, I still sat on the swing bench, patiently waiting for her return, but eventually, I made up my mind to get inside. I knew that looking for her in the residence was futile as she might have been angry with me for prying into Rian's personal life and the last thing she wanted to do was see me. That's why I headed straight to the yellow guestroom.
On my way, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to Rian's past than the fairies wanted me to know. Perhaps, he was involved in some kind of drama, and the Night Court simply attempted to sweep it under the carpet. For safety reason, as Rhysand once said. But they didn't realise that by trying to hide the truth, they only made me more curious about what really happened. And I just needed to know.
Asking around was one of my options. Firstly, I decided I would start with my little kidnapper as she had already told me about the whole thing. Yet, I was aware that there might be a slight problem with Meleri. I suspected that she considered Rian one of the most important people in her life, presumably right after Rhysand and Feyre, and she wouldn't spill the beans anymore. Plus, she was young and might not know much.
For a second or two, I considered asking the twins. But immediately, I remembered the conversation with Cerys in the garden, and I realised that it was one of the worst ideas ever.
Then, my choice fell on Conri. He knew something, I was sure of it. Thick as thieves with Rian, the Illyrian was a more reliable source of information than Meleri. But the real question was whether Conri would be eager to share the story of his cousin, and presumably, his best friend. Well, I wasn't so certain.
Unwillingly, I started thinking about my own past. Ever since I accidentally travelled to Prythian, I didn't even spare a single thought abouthim. I didn't have the time to do it and I was glad of that. Yet now, withhimcreeping around my mind again, I found it hard to focus as my thoughts kept reeling back tohim.
Him, that treacherous bastard whom I once loved.
For quite some time, I had tried to avoid usinghisname while talking with my friends. Every time, I had to say it aloud, I felt an unpleasant pang in my chest and all the memories kept coming back. The same was with hearing it. I simply didn't like the sound of his name.
Henry.
The one whom I considered the love of my life.
But I had never been his.
Before I knew it, I was standing in front of the door leading to the guestroom. Uncertain of what to do now, I went inside and sat on the bed. With a loud sigh, I lay down and closed my eyes for a little while.
"What will it be, Lexi?" Henry asked, closing the car boot and lifting our suitcases. It was the first day of our four-day stay in his parents' lake house and we were the first ones to arrive. The rest of our friends were still on their way to Lake District to spend the best New Year's Eve in the world. "Where will we sleep? In the master bedroom?"
I laughed, following him into the house. "If you think you can persuade me to give you more tonight… I have to disappoint you. Not yet, darling."
"Well, at least it was worth trying." Henry stopped for a moment and put the suitcases on the ground. "I've forgotten something," he said unexpectedly.
"What is it?" I asked, feeling confused.
"This." He pulled me up to him and kissed passionately.
When I opened my eyes, I saw the white ceiling of the guestroom again. Having stared at it for some time, I realised that the sun had completely disappeared from the room, so it meant that I fell asleep.
Still lying on the bed, I took a deep breath and then exhaled very slowly.
I knew I dreamt about him. I didn't like having such dreams. Usually, the things I saw were quite unpleasant and brought back an avalanche of memories afterwards. Today was no different.
Covering my eyes with both hands, I whispered to myself, "I'm so stupid."
"Come on," a male voice cut in and I turned my head left. I was so preoccupied with my own thoughts that I hadn't heard the door open.
Dressed in dark trousers and a midnight blue tunic with gold embroidery around the edges of the sleeves, Rian was leaning against the doorway with one hand resting on his hip. "Don't be so harsh on yourself," he added. Then, he approached the armchair that stood next to the bed and took a seat, crossing an ankle over his knee.
In a heartbeat, I sat up. "What are you doing here?" I asked.
He frowned a bit.
"I was sent to retrieve you as quickly as possible and show you to the main dining room. So here I am." Rian smiled slightly, fixing his eyes on my clothes. "And you're not evenready. Why didn't you get changed? The dinner will begin in fifteen minutes and you're still unready."
This time, it was my turn to frown.
"What dinner?" I asked.
"The one that will start in fifteen minutes?"
I rolled my eyes. "I've never heard of such dinners."
"Oh, they're really nice and usually start infifteenminutes," he added angrily, still frowning.
We kept staring at each other.
Suddenly, he fixed his eyes on my chest, right where he put the tattoo.
I grunted. "My eyes are here," I said.
Smirking, the handsome muppet vanished from the armchair and reappeared next to me. I jumped a little. "I was simply admiring my masterpiece," he replied.
"Masterpiece, my arse," I muttered, giving him a disapproving look.
Still smiling, Rian leant back on his hands and said, "Get changed, Lexi, and let's go. We have thirteen minutes left."
"There's one little problem."
He clenched his jaw slightly and I noticed that he had shaved. "Meaning?"
Standing up and opening my arms, I replied, "I have nothing else to wear. This is all I got from Meleri and your mum. Just two sets like this one. I don't have gowns or dresses." I looked at Rian and his elegant clothes. "I don't have anything appropriate enough to wear to a fancy dinner."
When our eyes met, I noticed he was thinking over my words.
"You can borrow something from Cerys," he said.
I laughed.
"Haven't you noticed that I look quite differently than your sister?" I asked, sliding my hands down myfullbody. His blue eyes followed the movement and I felt a bit hot on my cheeks. "I would probably tear her gown while trying to get dressed," I added quietly.
"Surely not," Rian replied, sitting up on the bed. When I just crossed my arms and didn't say anything, he asked, "Why didn't you prepare a gown?"
"Because I didn't know I needed one."
He frowned. "Are you saying that no one told you about the dinner?"
I shrugged.
"You mentioned some guests yesterday," I said, "but I didn't suspect I would need to dress up. Had I known, I would have asked your sisters for help this morning. For your information, we do have fancy parties on Earth." I flashed him a forced smile.
"Ah, sh*t," Rian whispered, shaking his head. "And here I was, hoping to impress you with a fancy party."
"Sorry not sorry."
We both got quiet for a moment.
Unexpectedly, he let out a sigh and got up. "Unfortunately, there is no time to get you a gown, even if we hurried up. So you will have to come with me, just as you are." He reached out his hand towards me.
I took a step back.
"No winnowing," I said.
With a straight face, Rian nodded at the door. "After you, then."
Quickly, I left the guestroom and heard the sound of his footsteps behind me. Suddenly feeling nervous, I turned around and asked, "It's just dinner, right?"
"Just dinner," he confirmed, smiling politely and closing the door.
Then, we headed to the dining room.
###
When we reached our destination, I wanted to murder Cerys and Meleri with my own hands. And Rian on the fly.
Just as the rest of the riverfront residence, the main dining room was a large bright place with several windows overlooking the river. The last rays of the setting sun were shining on the wood-panelled walls and light-coloured marble floor, casting a warm golden glow. In the middle, I noticed a long black table with more than twelve elegant chairs, half of them already taken.
But I stopped admiring the room when I fixed my eyes onallof the fairies inside. Dressed in elegant clothes, they were talking and laughing and having the time of their lives. Women were wearing mostly long backless dresses and lots of sparkling jewellery, men had shirts or tunics and trousers, and I…
I, on the other hand, looked like af*ckingCinderella who didn't get the chance to meet herf*ckingfairy godmother and attended the ball without herf*ckingbeautiful blue gown. Or, as in my case, didn't talk with herf*ckingfairies.
Turning towards Rian, I opened my mouth to tell him everything that was now on my mind. But he leant closer and whispered into my ear, "Just dinner." Then, he left my side and approached Conri. It didn't escape my notice that his cousin was also wearing an elegant green tunic and a pair of dark trousers.
Everyone dressed up, except me, I thought.
Detecting a move from the corner of my eye, I turned my head right and saw Cerys in a pretty dark blue gown.
"I'm glad you're here," she said, stopping next to me. With her hair tied in a loose braid, she didn't look like the princess warrior I saw the first day. "Lexi, I apologise I didn't tell you about the dinner. I had completely forgotten about it when we started talking abouthim. And then I thought that maybe Meleri told you about our plans for tonight and I started preparing myself." She seemed genuinely sorry.
"Hmm," was my answer.
Cerys made a sad face. "I'm really sorry, Lexi."
"Yeah," I muttered and looked around, feeling a bit upset. It seemed to me that I was the only one dressed casually. "I should have listened to your brother when he told me about changing my clothes and try one of your dresses."
"He really proposed something like that?" she asked doubtfully, but then shook her head. "Don't worry. No one will notice that you didn't dress up. Or at least no one will say that aloud."
Longingly, I glanced at her dark blue gown. Gleaming like a starry night, the dress clung to her perfectly and highlighted all her curves. Only now did I notice Cerys's slender and ideal body, and wished I could look like that.
"I thought you weren't allowed to attend such dinners, Melly," Cerys said and smiled. I looked over my shoulder and saw Meleri, wearing a burgundy dress, who was walking towards us with a young redheaded fairy at her side. "Whom did you bribe? Mother or Father? Or both of them?"
Meleri flashed her a smile. "No one. Rian let me come here, knowingly and wilfully."
I lifted one eyebrow but didn't say anything. Apparently, theheirto the Night Court thought he could dispose his dad and mum's dominion and make decisions in their stead, giving anyone the nod right and left.
My little kidnapper glanced at my clothes and, frowning, asked, "Why are you still wearing your pink outfit?"
Crossing my arms on my chest and eyeing Cerys, I whispered, "No one?"
She shrugged. "You know, Meleri is still learning this and that about social contact."
"Please continue as if I am not even here," my little kidnapper said and crossed her arms like me. "Treat me like a child as you have always done."
Cerys put an arm around her younger sister and kissed her head. "Oh, sweetie, don't be angry with me," she replied. "You do realise I love you and I must protect you at all cost. I'm your elder sister and have the right to sometimes make fun of you, though." She gave her a poke on her nose.
Meleri rolled her eyes, but she eventually smiled.
Looking over the sisters, I set my eyes upon the redheaded fairy who came with my little kidnapper. She had a lovely round face with hazel eyes and a shapely nose covered in freckles. Her reddish-brown hair was short and curly, bringing orange candyfloss into my mind. She was really gorgeous, though I didn't recollect her from the books. Maybe she was from the Autumn Court, considering her reddish hair and freckles.
Having noticed that I was staring at her, the fairy gave me a look and smiled.
"Hello," she said sweetly. She had a warm and soothing voice, perfect for reading audiobooks. "You must be Lexi. Cerys and Meleri told me a lot about you. I'm Zareen."
"Nice to meet you, Zareen," I answered, showing some teeth.
Smiling, Zareen added, "I've heard you're my cousins' guest."
Cousins?
"And you travelled here from another world. Is that true?" she asked quietly.
I nodded. "From a world without magic where there are just humans. No fairies. No magic."
"No magic?" She frowned. "I know humans don't have magic, but surely, there must be some fairies in your land." When I shook my head, she furrowed her eyebrows again and asked, "Then how would Bryaxis be able to bring you to our court without magic in your world?"
Shrugging, I said, "I don't know. But I'm here, aren't I?"
"And we're happy because of that," Cerys broke in, looping her arm through mine and offering the other to Zareen. "Our Court needed an unusual guest who would bring some freshness into our rusty lives and entertain us with glorious stories of other realms." She beamed. "I believe our parents are ready to begin the dinner, so let's have a seat."
Still holding our arms, Cerys started walking slowly towards the long dinner table that was now surrounded by all the fairies. Meleri minced behind us.
Next to the table, I picked up Rian and Merlin who were talking with a white-haired woman in a pale blue gown. I didn't see her face, so I began wondering who that might be.
"Lexi, you will sit between Conri and Zareen," Cerys said. "I'll be next to Con and our guest of honour."
"And who's the guest of honour?" I asked, still looking at the table. I noticed that Rhysand and Conri were having a conversation with a white-haired man. I frowned. First I saw a woman, now there was a man.
Who are they?Are they from the Winter Court?
Zareen lowered her voice as she explained, "The High Lord and Lady of the Winter Court are here with their two children, Eirwen and Fannar."
"Eirwen? She's from the Winter Court? Really?" I asked with surprise. "And she's Kallias's daughter?" The two fairies nodded. "Okay. I really wasn't expecting this. I thought Eirwen was an Illyrian or someone from your Court, but the Winter Court… Where is she?"
Cerys slowed down.
"In front of us," she replied. "She's talking with Rian and Uncle Mel. Do you see that dress? It's made of real ice. I'm not joking," she added when I snorted. "I've touched it a couple of times – every time by accident, of course – and it was cold. Like freezing cold."
"Wow. She's Kallias and Viviane's daughter," I said, still astonished. "I didn't know they had children."
She laughed. "Don't tell me. There was nothing about that in thosestoriesyou read and heard." When I nodded with a bashful smile, she went on, "Then you've never heard of our dear Zareen, am I right?"
"Well, yes, I haven't," I responded, glancing at her. "I don't know you from thestories."
Cerys smiled to the redheaded fairy, and then told me, "No worries. You will have a lot of time to get to know Zar as she has just returned from Athelwood. Zareen is Auntie Mor's daughter."
I gasped. "Seriously?"
Zareen nodded.
"Auntie Mor has three daughters, Zareen, Shani and Rosalba," Cerys explained. "Zareen is the youngest and lives with Auntie Mor in Athelwood."
"My sisters reside in the Summer Court with their mates," Zareen added.
"So Morrigan is married, then?" I asked. I wished the golden hair fairy would finally meet the love of her life and live happily ever after. But Cerys's answer wasn't what I was hoping for.
"No, unfortunately not." She made a sad face. "She's still waiting for her mate. The girls were adopted by her when they were wee babies."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. About still waiting for the love of her life," I added quickly. "I think it's wonderful she has children as she seemed to be a warm-hearted person in the stories."
"Well, she is the best aunt I've ever had. As you know, there is also Aunt Amren who is great, but…" Cerys shrugged. "She's Aunt Amren."
Zareen chuckled. "Yes, she's Aunt Amren."
I laughed.
Fixing my eyes on the table in front of me, I couldn't help but notice it was now half packed with guests the High Lord and Lady invited to the dinner. I spotted Feyre in a silver gown, which was sparkling like teeny weeny diamonds, and Rhysand in a dark tunic who were talking with two white-haired people.
Frozen, I didn't blink for a few seconds when my eyes set upon Jack Frost and Elsa from Arendelle. Holy sh*t. All the pictures I saw and all the videos I watched with my sister had now come true – the two fairies in front of me were the perfect incarnations of two imaginary characters.
Dressed in a light blue tunic that was richly decorated with a gleaming silver thread, white-haired Kallias seemed to be made of ice and snow. Though I didn't see his whole face, his left profile was enough for me to find him handsome and really young. But all the fairies looked like that, didn't they? Kallias's clothes looked expensive and there was even fur on his sleeves and collar. And to think the room was getting hotter with every passing minute.
Tall and slender, Viviane matched her husband's appearance. Her long straight hair was left loose and there was a small tiara on the top of her white head. Long and lacy, her gown was silver and white, and made her look like a delicate snowflake. Just as Kallias, Viviane had fur on the sleeves and neckline of her gown.
T hey must really like feeling cold.
"I used to be Auntie Mor's favourite," Cerys said and brought me back to reality. I glanced at her and noticed a faint smile on her lips.
Looking back at the sovereigns of the Winter Court, I asked, "Used to?"
"Yes." Cerys wrinkled her nose. "When I was fifteen, I accidently put her hair on fire."
I burst out laughing, drawing the attention of the other white-haired woman who looked over her shoulder and gave me a curious look.
Pronunciation guide:
Eirwen = [ayr - wen] (meaning: white or blessed snow)
Zareen = [za - reen] (meaning: golden)
Shani = [sha - nee] (meaning: red, scarlet)
Rosalba = [roz - al - ba] (meaning: white rose)
Fannar = [fan - nar] (meaning: snow drift)
