Chapter Two
I ’m getting supremely pissed.
And not just because I’m standing here completely naked.
I have been telling these fuckers for days now to let me out of this fucking bubble and take me to Forsythia. There is no fucking way they brought Lucian and I all the way to the fae realm and didn’t bring the Noctifer Witch.
That is… assuming they even know what the Noctifer Witch is and that she’s my mate.
And worse? I can’t get a single straightforward answer out of these guys about my favorite giant. Although, I’m sure the big guy is faring much better than I seem to be. I just make friends everywhere I go. Must be my sunny personality.
“For the fifth time, you elven bitch… give me my fucking pants!”
The elf that has been my only company since waking up in this shit hole snarls at me.
“The last time I gave you pants, you tried to strangle me with them.” She glances down at my exposed body, and I resist the urge to cover myself. “Besides, you earthen beings don’t have much to hide anyway.”
Did that bitch seriously just say I had a small dick?
“Have you ever heard the phrase about a hotdog going down a hallway?”
Before I can elaborate on my suspicions about her loose nether regions, another female elf walks into the room. However, when this one notices my current state of dress– or lack thereof– she immediately averts her eyes.
Hmm… that’s curious.
“Midori. What are you doing here?”
Oh good. My elf friend isn’t just a cunt with me. What a lovely personality trait.
“Sorry for the intrusion, Madame Ave, but she asked again. Is keeping them apart really the best choice?” The new elvish woman’s voice was sweet and almost soothing. It makes me instantly suspicious.
“Midori, your youth shows in your naivety. There is no reason they need to be together. Console your bleeding heart before you let it show to someone who isn’t as kind and patient with you as I am.” The cunt elf– Ave, I suppose– turns away from the other with her nose in the air.
The reaction makes me want to punch her. Again.
The smaller elf turns and leaves with her fists clenched, making sure to avoid my gaze at all costs. My brain turns a bit as I replay the whole interaction between the two, and I can’t help but wonder if the ‘she’ this Midori was referring to is my mate.
There is only one way to find out.
Yep! I have to get the fuck out of this bubble.
I knock on the invisible wall that separates us and put on my best ‘good boy’ smile. Ave sighs heavily and dramatically turns her attention to me. Glaring in my direction. “I told you, no pants.”
I hold my hands in front of me in what I hope to be a surrendering type of gesture.
“Message received. You prefer me naked.” I pause to wink at her, and she looks like she might actually vomit from my flirtations. How fucking rude. “I did wonder, though, if I might be able to trouble you for a trip to the wash bin?”
She grinds her teeth while looking at the door in the room that serves as a bathroom in this realm. No doubt remembering the last time I went in there and tried to bust through the back wall into the adjacent room.
I continue to wait patiently while Ave considers, and thankfully she doesn’t keep me waiting long. “Very well. I will protect the walls first. That way, there are no… incidents this time.“ She gives no room for discussion as she swiftly turns and makes her way over to ward the walls.
Too bad she has no idea what a sad waste of energy that is.
She leaves me waiting patiently as she glides around the tiny space for what has to be the millionth time before she comes back to my bubble prison. I watch carefully as she weaves her hands and forms another smaller bubble. When she presses it against mine, it creates an opening for me to enter. Which I do, like a good little prisoner.
However, when she pulls the smaller bubble forward, she misses my hand slipping between the two. The wedge causes a fracture, and in an instant, both prisons dissipate with a resounding pop. The sound is loud enough to cause actual pain in my ears.
And apparently, not just in mine.
The good news is ‘Ave the Cunty Elf’ doesn’t anticipate it and doubles over in pain.
The bad news is that I didn’t expect the sound to be quite so deafening either, and it takes me a few seconds to get my bearings. Once I do, though, I lunge at the door and fling it wide open. Throwing my naked ass into the hall and dashing to the right.
Why right? No fucking clue. I am in panic mode here.
I jet down the hall and stop only long enough to throw open a few doors, which all prove to be some type of meticulously organized storage rooms. One was for linens. One for soaps. Yes, a whole fucking room just for soaps.
Elves are weird fuckers.
I hear a sound behind me and realize that Ave must be on the move. I throw myself down the next turn in the hall and rip the closest door open.
The small elf is inside and squeaks at my sudden appearance but quickly covers her mouth. I hastily but quietly close the door behind me. Hoping that Ave wouldn’t have heard me this far down the hall.
When I look back at the small elf, she looks concerned but not overly scared. When our eyes meet, she instantly flicks them to the other side of the room. Following her gaze, I see a true human fairytale come to life.
My mate, sleeping just like the beautiful princess waiting in her tower.
My body moves to her without another thought. I press my palms against the outside of her prison bubble and scan her body. Checking for any injuries. I find nothing. She looks… peaceful.
That alone is a huge red flag.
My mate is a fiery ball of chaos, and I love her for it but peaceful is not a word I would ever use to describe her normally.
I turn to the small elf, who has dropped her hands to her sides and has made no move to leave the room.
“What have you done to her?” My words come out in a growl.
“Cared for her.” The sincerity in her words and the plea in her eyes have me relaxing just slightly.
“Let her out of this thing.” My growled demands continue.
“Please, you must remain calm. I’m not sure if you are aware of her condition?”
The elvish female’s words stop me. My heart slows, and my stomach is in knots. I slowly slide down to my knees in front of the bubble, still unwilling to look away. Afraid if I do, she might disappear.
“Condition? What’s wrong with her?” My voice is uncharacteristically tiny, and my words are timid. My fear feels like a palpable living thing writhing around me. Threatening to choke me.
She lowers the bubble, but my fear holds me firmly in place.
A dainty hand rests on my shoulder, making me jump. “It’s ok. She’s not injured. She just needs to stay calm so that she doesn’t harm herself.” When I look up at her with clear confusion on my face, she smiles down at me. “If she isn’t calm, she could hurt the baby.”
Just like when my bubble prison popped, ringing fills my ears, and my vision sways, as I tumble forward towards Forsythia’s bed. I don’t even move when the elf snaps the bubble back into place. I don’t fight when the taste of dandelion jam touches my lips, a sign that the elven magick will soon take me under.
Instead, I move gently to my mate’s sleeping form and barely press my fingertips to her stomach.
I reach out with my trisense and get the tiniest notion of a fluttering heartbeat.
And just like that, I have fallen completely and utterly in love with another.
My child.
Our child.
As a lone tear of pure joy runs down my cheek, I stop fighting and let the spell pull me under.