Chapter 6 #2
But my father was right. He was king. He could have commanded me to do as he wanted, lest I wanted to suffer the consequences of defying a king.
But I wasn’t one of their subjects. I was their daughter, and in their broken demeanors, I knew they weren’t going to force anything upon me.
And relief hit me so hard that they weren’t going to fight me further.
“Thank you,” I whispered. “Thank you both so much.”
My mother blinked away fresh tears. “Will you cast your wish here?”
I shook my head and held the Stone even tighter.
“I can’t. I need to be near Timith. My book from the Isle of Song states that if one’s wish is to affect another fairy, it’s best to cast the wish in their presence, lest the Stone misinterpret what your wish is and affect another fairy.
” I glanced at Kole. “Will you take me to him?”
My father straightened, his aura rising. “We should bring Timith here. It’d be safer than allowing Primelle to leave these walls again.”
“That would be unwise, Your Majesty,” Kole replied. “The Council believes Timith can infect others, and if a mistake is made during his transfer . . .” Kole let his words hang, but his honest and firm response had my father nodding.
“Very well.” He sagged more. “In that case, take her there and straight back. No delays and no stops anywhere else.”
Kole bowed. “Yes, Your Majesty.”
Kole mistphased me back to my aunt and uncle’s home.
He grasped my hand to do so, but I could have sworn that his touch lingered when he and I reappeared in my aunt and uncle’s residence.
But I didn’t pay it any further attention.
Fate had given me a second chance, and there was no way I was blowing it a second time.
Since we’d materialized in the hallway, just outside of my aunt and uncle’s bed chambers, I barreled through the door, not bothering to knock before doing so.
“Prim!” My aunt shot to her feet from where she’d been sitting in the corner chair.
“You’re back!” Her gaze swept over my opulent gown, her eyes widening slightly, but understanding hit her expression just as fast. And in her eyes, I saw it.
The child she’d raised in secret, far from the court’s prying eyes, was in fact a princess, and the decadent dress I wore conveyed that in a way no words could.
Jamie shifted from where he stood in the corner, shooting Kole a wayward glance.
Kole inclined his head at his fellow warrior. “The king and queen have returned the Stone to Princess Primelle. They couldn’t cast its wish. Only the princess can, and Primelle has chosen to save Timith.”
Jamie’s eyes narrowed. “When did this happen?”
“Just now,” I replied.
Jamie pushed away from the wall. “I’ll need to see proof of that.”
“Proof?” My eyebrows shot up. “Why would you need proof?” I glanced between the two warriors.
Jamie was eyeing Kole suspiciously, yet Kole didn’t say anything further.
Annoyance flashed through me that someone else was now trying to stop me, and I held up the sparkling gem in my hand.
“What more proof do you need? I’m holding the Stone.
How would I be doing that if the king and queen hadn’t returned it to me? ”
I lifted it higher, not that I could have hidden it. A myriad of colors emitted from the glittering jewel, its size like a large goose egg, and its starlight was so brilliant that at times I had to look away.
“But how did you get it?” Jamie peered at Kole again, his eyes narrowing more.
The warrior’s expression flattened. “Enough, Jamie.”
“I don’t think so. We both know you—”
“I’ve broken no vows,” Kole growled.
Vows? Confusion swam through me, even more so since Jamie continued to stare at Kole, but I was done with whatever the two were arguing about.
I returned my attention to Timith and tentatively peered at my uncle. His eyes were closed, and he lay on the bed entirely still. My magic streamed out of me so I could assess him more.
I gasped. Timith’s heartbeat was so faint and slow that I could barely detect it.
“Dear Gods.” I took another step closer to him until his face was plainly visible above the sheets.
My breath sucked in, and I clutched the Stone tightly.
In a way, my uncle looked similar to the creature that I’d encountered with Kole outside of Inisville, since his skin was so pale and taut.
But unlike that creature, my uncle still looked fae.
He didn’t look like a monster, and black claws didn’t tip his fingers, nor did his bones protrude from strange angles.
But he still had those horrifically long fangs.
As my aunt had warned me, they were longer and sharper. But other than the pale skin and fangs, he still looked like Timith.
Regardless, I shuddered, and a part of me knew that without the Stone’s wish, by either nightfall or the morning, my uncle would be entirely turned into whatever he was becoming.
I swung toward my aunt and the warriors. “I’m casting my wish now. Stand back. I’m not entirely sure what it’ll do to those around me.”
My aunt twisted her hands together. “Do you know what to do, Prim?”
“Legends of Our Realm says that all I need to do is grasp the Stone, close my eyes, and clearly state my wish. It also says if one’s wish is to affect another fairy, it’s best to be in close proximity to them, lest the Stone’s magic misinterpret the wish.”
“In that case, be clear in what you wish for.” Aunt Gwen’s voice took on a ring of authority, making me smile in her direction. It was such a typical response from her.
“I won’t make a mistake. Trust me.” I took a deep breath and cupped my hands firmly around the Wishing Stone. It warmed, as though sensing that I was about to exact its magic.
I took another deep breath and closed my eyes.
Focusing all of my energy on what I needed to do, I said in a clear voice, “I wish for the sick male before me, Timith Hollaran of Mistvale Kingdom, to be completely cured of the affliction that is turning him into the creature he’s becoming, and for him to be rendered whole and healthy once more and to be returned to the exact male that he was before he became ill. That is my wish.”
The instant I finished uttering the last word, a clap of astronomical magic barreled through the room. My eyes flashed wide open. Air roared around me, winds appearing out of nowhere as the Stone exploded in my hands into a million glittering stars.
It nearly knocked me off my feet, but I managed to stay upright. However, my hair flew back as though a giant gust of wind had been released through the window. Light bathed the chambers as if the sun had been lit from my palm, and thick potent magic encased my uncle, bathing him in fiery power.
Outside, a flash of momentary light appeared from around the curtain, and fae screamed. I knew the entire pale-green sky had just exploded in a cacophony of power.
But the clap of the Stone’s might was over as quickly as it’d begun, and I held my breath, my hands empty since the million glittering stars that the Stone had exploded into coated my uncle, falling over him like a blanket of starlight.
Beautiful and colorful rays of light encased his entire form, and before my eyes, Timith began to transform.
His pale skin disappeared. A healthy, glowing complexion emerged, that of a middle-aged fairy. The razor-sharp fangs that had been poking out from between his lips retracted, changing shape until they resembled normal fae teeth of the size and color they’d once been.
I inhaled a rush of air, my chest tightening as momentous hope began to barrel through me.
The stagnant, cloying scent of death and sickness that had clung to Timith evaporated until nothing but the fresh smell of bathed skin and a hint of my uncle’s favorite aftershave wafted around him.
Tears sprang into my eyes, and my aunt emitted a cry of joy.
The entire transformation back to the male my uncle had once been was done in less than a minute.
Just as fast, the air cleared, the starlight disappearing.
And in my next blink, my uncle opened his eyes, a dazed expression on his face.
A sob of relief shook my chest. My sobs increased, and my aunt raced to my side, her arms wrapping around me.
We jumped and danced, cried and held one another as Uncle Timith peered around, eyebrows rising in confusion when he took in the two huge warriors in his midst, while my aunt and I wept in joy.
A familiar laugh rumbled in my uncle’s chest. Grinning, he asked us in a cheeky tone, “And what in the realm is going on here?”