89. Rosalina
89
Rosalina
C arefully, I place a folded blouse into the bag on my bed. After months in Coppershire, we are finally returning to Castletree. It feels bittersweet, but I know the Autumn Realm will always be home to me.
Strolling through the room, I stop, noticing my reflection in the gold-plated mirror. The pointed ears are still a shock, and I delicately reach up and touch the tips. Physically, that’s the biggest change. But inside…
Inside, everything is different. Parts of me have opened up, vast wells of… I’m not sure. Magic? Power? The princes have promised to help me explore this transformation, and I trust them.
The world has changed. Colors are more luminous, and I can perceive the glint of enchantment in the air. My bond with Farron burns so brightly sometimes I think it’ll ignite my whole self in flames. And my bond with Kel… Well, that’s stronger, too. An insistent tug, an itch that can’t be scratched.
“Hey-o!”
“Hello! Rosalina!”
“Rose, dear!”
Three voices call from outside, and I rush to my balcony. Down below—atop horses laden with full saddlebags—are Billigan, Dominic, and my father.
The trees around the burnt library are still unfurled from the battle, but my view is no longer of the ruins. The broken wood is covered in lush moss, the ground now grassy, and there’s even a small pond with crystal-clear water. A combined gift from the High Princes. One day, I know Farron and I will rebuild the library.
Currently, my horse, Amalthea, and Farron’s elk, Thrand, graze in the clearing. Thankfully, Thrand’s no worse for wear after being frozen in the battle. Farron found him amid many of the other frozen soldiers and steeds and was able to melt the cursed ice. I’ll miss them. Perhaps one day Castletree and the lands beyond will be safe enough for them, too.
I turn my attention back to the trio. “Shouldn’t you be on your way already?” I yell.
They’re about to set off on their own adventure. For the first time, seeing Papa leave doesn’t fill me with loneliness. Instead, I’m filled with hope. Perhaps my fae mother truly is out there.
“One more thing!” Papa calls up. “What would you like me to bring you?”
“Just a rose!”
He laughs. “That got me in a bit of trouble last time.”
“Trouble of the best kind,” Dominic chuckles.
“True enough if it brought you here,” Billy adds.
“You two better keep him safe,” I say, waving. “Now go before I start crying again!”
“Goodbye, Rosalina!” Papa calls. “I love you!”
“I love you too.” I wipe a tear from my face and step inside.
A part of me understands his love and devotion in a way I hadn’t before. I would never stop trying to get back to my princes, and he’ll never stop searching for my mother.
I return to my packing, placing another sweater in my bag. The corner of a book peeks out. My heart shudders, as it always does, when I see it. Carefully, I pull away the clothes hiding it and run my fingers over the cover.
It’s the grimoire Caspian stole from the alder tree. It hadn’t been hard at all to control the thorns he gave me, to reach into his armor and switch my book with this. He’d been so focused on completing our bargain… On kissing me.
The material is weathered and rough. Intricate symbols etched across the cover writhe before my eyes. Each time I look, they’re in a different place, like the book is alive.
The thorns encircling my wrist, shrunken down to only delicate bracelets, weigh heavily as I look upon the book. The pages are yellowed and brittle, their edges frayed with age. They feel fragile, as if they might crumble at any moment.
I’ve only had a chance to briefly flip through it. The words are written in a flowing script that twists across the page, defying the rigid lines. It’s a book about humans. This passage speaks of the Queen’s fondness for people, of their curiosity and ingenuity.
It’s strange. I’d been in the alder tree with Farron, and there had been many books that seemed more dangerous. No world-ending spells or dastardly secrets here. In fact, the whole thing seems purely scientific and observational.
But he went to so much trouble for this one book. Why? I have no doubt he’ll return for it. I’ll have to hide it well and be ready with my own bargain if he wants it back.
A light tap sounds at my door, and I quickly tuck the book deep within my bag. “Come in!”
Keldarion steps into my room, raising a dark brow, the look he always gives me when he thinks I’m up to something. “Rosalina.”
I haven’t told any of them yet about seeing Caspian on the battlefield or the bargain I made. They haven’t questioned the thin thorns around my wrists. Perhaps they think I summoned them myself.
“Almost ready to go?” The Winter Prince strides before me. He’s dressed in that simple elegance he excels at, a laced black shirt with tight pants and boots.
“Almost.”
He tucks a piece of hair behind my ear, fingers delicately stroking the point.
“If I’ve always been half-fae, why did I look human?” I ask softly.
“I’m uncertain.” He shakes his head. “There are illusion spells, but to physically change your appearance for so long requires a magic beyond what I understand. But we’ll find the answer, I promise.”
I place my hand over his.
“Oh! Ah!” An awkward sound comes from my doorway: Farron, eyes wide and hands jittery. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“Come here, Farron,” Keldarion says.
Farron grits his teeth, looking like he really regrets entering my room at this moment. But I hold out my hand to him and relish the feeling as his fingers weave into mine. He might still be awkward around Keldarion but having both my mates close settles an ache in my chest.
Keldarion places a large hand on my shoulder, and the other on Farron’s, then holds both our gazes. “There is a tether between the three of us now. Do you feel it?”
Farron swallows, throat bobbing. “Yes.”
“I feel it,” I say.
“High Prince of Autumn,” Keldarion lowers his forehead to Farron in a sort of surrender, “you are mate of my mate, and I swear I will protect you from this moment to my dying breath.”
Farron flushes deeply. “Uh, yeah. Same, Kel.”
Kel turns to me, and his eyes blaze. “Rose, I will never send you away again. You have saved me and saved the Autumn Realm. Without a doubt, this is where you belong forever.”
My heart sings at his words, at the devotion in them. “Kel,” I say, feeling the unbreakable tie between all three of us. “Farron broke his curse. He freed his people in Castletree. Together, we could—”
Keldarion straightens. “The events here have only strengthened my resolve. I’ll help the others to break their curses and hope that is enough to heal Castletree. But this curse will lay upon me forevermore.”
He turns to leave.
“Kel!” I yell angrily.
He waves a dismissive hand. “Do not be sad, Rosalina. Now your other mate may satisfy your base needs.”
Farron lets out a long sigh. “He really is infuriating, isn’t he?”
I loop my arms over his shoulders. “Sure you’re not regretting being my mate forevermore with all that icy baggage?”
“I’ll take you whatever way you are.” He drops his nose to nuzzle against mine. “Forever with you doesn’t sound too bad. And now I don’t have to continue my secret research on extending the human life.”
I giggle as his lips drop to my pointed ears. There’s the rustle of wind as a gale brings a tumble of golden leaves. “I love you, Farron.”
“In the starlight way,” he says.
“In the starlight way.”
K eep Oakheart’s halls are lined with Autumn nobility to bid the residents of Castletree goodbye. They whisper that their High Prince is a wolf guardian, that the other High Princes are blessed with the same magic. It’s good enough gossip to keep the curse under wraps for now.
Marigold, Astrid, and my princes wait by the door that will lead us back home.
Farron explained Castletree is still too weak for us to keep the door open, allowing the staff to come and go as they did before the curse. But it won’t be closed permanently anymore. Already these halls have been dusted and polished.
Dayton gives Delphia one last hug, spinning her up in the air while she grumbles. But when he goes to put her down, she wraps her arms tightly around his neck.
Farron groans, squeezed in the tight embrace of his father.
“I’ll be back soon,” he grumbles, squirming out, and quickly bestows his little sister Nori with a kiss to the top of her head, who bears it well.
Padraig straightens, wiping his watery eyes. “Thank you, High Princes of Castletree, for all you have done for the Autumn Realm.”
Then he gives me a broad smile I can’t help but mimic. “And here we have the Lady of Castletree, whose bravery has saved my son. Has saved us all.”
“There is nothing I wouldn’t do for Farron,” I say, “and for the Autumn Realm.”
“Ey, there it is. Because you’re not just the Lady of Castletree anymore.” He opens his palm, revealing a simple golden leaf. “Mate of the High Prince, a courageous defender. Rosalina O’Connell, Princess of the Autumn Realm.”
He drops to a knee, and akin to leaves falling from a tree, the rest of the nobility follow suit, one after another. Suddenly, everyone is bowing and I’m the only one left standing.
My princes incline their heads with the utmost respect. Farron stands and takes the leaf from his father’s palm. Delicately, he moves the hair from behind my neck and threads the leaf onto my necklace, so it falls perfectly next to the moonstone rose. “Princess of Autumn,” Farron breathes, “will you lead us home?”
I touch the golden leaf, feeling in my heart the magic of this place: the crisp nights, blazing bonfires, the forest of a thousand colors, the bravery and legends of these people.
“Woven together,” I say, looking out at everyone.
“Woven together,” Padraig and the others say. He rises. “You will always have a place in the Autumn Realm, Rosalina.”
Tears brim my eyes as I leave behind this new home for my other one. With a heavy heart, I turn toward the great door and grip the handle. I feel the magic of Castletree calling me as I pull the door open. Farron clasps my hand, and Dayton holds his. I reach out for Ezryn’s gloved hand, who follows suit to take Keldarion’s. I step onward to Castletree, to home, woven together with the princes who make it so.