Seventeen
It didn't take much long afterward to reach the small city of Isma.
Everyone kept to themselves and didn't seem to be bothered by new people that appeared in their city.
They looked different too - they exuded darkness.
Their skin was gray, their hair was dark as night and their teeth were razor sharp.
I caught one eating raw fish as he walked beside us and I couldn't look away.
Julian whispered in my ear, his breath hot, "Didn't your parents teach you it's rude to stare?" He took my hand and held it tight as he led me through the crowded street. The streets were alive, buzzing, much in the way my hometown would on a Friday night.
I shook my head. "I think I recognize them from when Robyn was rallying people under him."
He nodded but didn't look at me as he spoke. "We won't see Q here, he lives far away. No one here will recognize you."
Just as he said it, some of the men and women in the crowd looked at Julian and bowed their head slightly.
"They recognize you," I whispered as we moved past them.
He nodded. "Yes, they would. I used to visit all the time when I lived with Vyssen. They are all her subjects. Word will get to her soon that I am here."
I looked at the lamposts and noticed that as the sun began to set and night started to settle that there wasn't any electricity. The lamps had small flames in them not bulbs. "Why no electricity?"
He shrugged. "They like to do things their own way - they rather stay in the comforts of the past rather than move forward. I think the only thing they seemed to be convinced of was indoor plumbing."
"Oh, thank God," I murmured as he led me through the threshold of a large house.
A man greeted us just as we stepped in.
He seemed nice enough and talked to Julian animatedly about the town and the people as if they were old friends catching up.
Julian seemed in his element, more relaxed than I'd seen him since we made it to town.
I let myself relax too and wandered around the small lobby examining the paintings and wallpaper.
"Who is this lovely young lady?"
I turned around and saw that the man had been referring to me.
Julian responded. "My cousin Ava, insisted on coming with me to visit Tartus."
I thought nothing of the name. Most likely still hiding my identity.
The man turned around and looked at some drawers behind him. "Not many venture to this part of the Underworld, you must be very brave. Or foolish."
I smiled leaning over the counter with my chin propped up in my hand as my elbow rested on the counter. "So which one is Julian?"
The man laughed. "Definitely foolish." I laughed as he turned to us handing each of us a key. "Lord Julian, your usual room and Miss Ava, your own room. Adjacent to each other, I'm sure you'll find both to be comfortable."
I grabbed the ancient looking key from his hand as Julian took his.
They wished each other a good night and after making sure we'd receive food in our rooms soon, Julian led the way upstairs.
The rooms were better than the first inn we stayed in the weeks prior.
It was clean, comfortable and in no time I'd taken a hot shower (I imagined some sort of magic was involved since they had no electricity), and dressed in comfortable long pants and a long sleeve shirt.
After finishing my stew dinner a music outside made me open the windows wide and when I looked at the crowd below, I laughed. "A band."
"Yes," a voice said beside me. "They're still celebrating Saddaim."
I looked at the open window beside me and found Julian there watching the people below just as I was.
He lounged on the window sill, a leg propped up on the sill, the other dangling over.
He had an apple in one hand, a knife in the other.
He ran the knife through the apple and chucked the piece into his mouth.
"Sometimes these celebrations can last a month. "
I watched the happy crowd. "Damien never mentioned them."
When I looked back at him, he had spectered to the small roof between the windows. He sat casually as if he wasn't sitting on the roof of the second floor. He extended a hand. "Want to join?"
I nodded but looked down. Too high. "Never mind."
He laughed. "Come on, you'll be fine. If you fall, the worst that will happen is you break a leg."
I rolled my eyes. "You're such a comfort."
He laughed. "Come on, I won't let you fall."
Taking a deep breath, I stepped on my own window sill and set my foot carefully on one of the roof tiles. Miraculously, I was able to make it down to him and sit next to him unscathed.
I let out a long shaky breath as he laughed. "Don't worry, you're fine." He carved into the apple and handed me the slice. I happily took it and watched the crowd below.
I breathed in the chilly night air, grateful I had packed a comfortable long sleeve shirt. "I had no idea this is how you celebrated Halloween."
He frowned. "Really?"
I nodded. "Yes. For as long as I've known Damien he kept a lot of secrets from me. We never hung out on Halloween. Now I know why. I didn't know it was sacred."
"Hmm," was all he said.
"What about the light faeries?" I asked curiously. "Did they celebrate it as well?"
He nodded. "Some. Not all. The Light believed in balance. They celebrated dark magic for what it was - the complete opposite and the balance of the Light."
I sighed. "Is there a book I can read so I don't ask you so many questions?"
He laughed. "I don't mind the questions, Emylin. I like to share your heritage with you."
My heritage. Not only was I a light faerie - a concept that was still foreign to me- I was the very last of them. I still didn't let it sink in, didn't it want to. One crisis at a time, I told myself. Save Damien first, save the faerie kingdoms from war.
Then I'll worry about myself.
Embrace it for the moment because it's necessary to defeat Robyn but nothing more.
If he noticed my internal struggle, he said nothing and looked at the sky. He bit into his apple, the crunch louder than the crowd of spectators laughing in the street below us. "The equinoxes were particularly special to the Light."
"Dance parties like the other night?"
He shook his head. "Not quite."
"How do you know so much about them? All that anyone ever tells me is that they kept to themselves."
He shrugged. "I've been around."
I laughed at the insinuation of his words. "So Naida says."
He groaned. "Don't pay attention to that - she had no idea what she was saying."
I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really?"
He sighed, running a hand over his chin. "All right, maybe I made a reputation for myself in the past for being a playboy."
"With married women?"
He cleared his throat. "For the record, I did nothing to seduce them, they came to me. And before you ask, no, I didn't manipulate their feelings." He shook his head. "Never. That is something I never do."
I shook my head. "I didn't think you would. Doesn't seem like you." A child ran around the crowd, a small kite in his hand. "Why married women?"
"Beats me," he said. "Maybe unhappy with their partner."
I sighed placing my hand on my knee. "I feel like faeries take marriage differently from humans. For example, Damien. He had no trouble marrying that witch Leah even if he'd be unhappy forever."
Julian shook his head. "Damien had different circumstances. I'd do the same in his position."
"Marry for power and not for love?"
He chuckled. "All right, before jumping to conclusions, some do marry for love. It's not that uncommon."
"Hmm," I only said. "I'll believe it when I see it." I gnawed on my bottom lip. "Can you teach me something else?"
He raised his brows with a smile. He was surprised. "You mean now?"
I nodded enthusiastically. "Come on," I nudged him with my shoulder. "I was able to glamour my hair earlier. Maybe I can try something simple."
He chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. "All right, specter an object." He looked around the street and found a vendor on the street below, fruits and meat hung from his cart. "Get an apple from the cart like I did."
I looked at the red shiny fruit in the cart. "All right."
"Place your hand in front of you and take one."
I frowned. "Take one?"
He nodded. "Magic can be as simple as just taking what is there. Your power will take care of the rest."
I frowned. "All right." I focused on the apple on top of the stack. I pictured it in my hand, felt the waxy skin beneath my fingers, on my palm. I concentrated harder and reached for it, already feeling it in my hand. The apple appeared as if it had always been there.
I looked at the cart, the apple I was concentrating on was missing. I looked back at my hand and squeezed the red apple. It was real.
"I did that?"
Julian watched me with a smile. "Your magic is magnified here - and the fresh air is doing you good."
I laughed, giddy and just as I was about to bite into it, Julian grabbed it and bit into it himself.
"Hey, that was mine!"
He laughed, his mouth full. "Too slow."
A deep male voice yelled at us from the street. "Thief!"
Julian and I froze. I did steal that apple.
I watched as Julian finished chewing and swallowed slowly. He looked at me. "He's talking to you, you know. I didn't take it."
I pointed at Julian as the vendor yelled up at us. "He made me do it!"
"Sell out," Julian laughed as he crawled through the window. He grabbed something and tossed it to the vendor. By the way it glinted in the light I could tell it was gold. The vendor caught it and walked away grumbling.
Drumming started nearby as another band took over down the street. They played otherworldly wind instruments, a melancholy melody with deep drums. I only smiled as I watched the dancing that took place below us. I watched as they danced in giddy pleasure with their families.
I hugged my knees. If they only knew what was happening ...
"What's wrong?"
I looked at Julian who had somehow managed to sit back down in the roof without making noise.
I shook my head. "I was just thinking ... what if I can't do this? What if I fail?"
Julian shook his own head. "You won't--"
"You don't know that."
He shrugged. "Maybe not. But I can't imagine anyone else more equipped to do it than you."
I let out a long breath. "You don't know that."
"I do." He took my hand and placed a small kiss on my knuckles. "Not everyone has a strong a spirit as you do."
My heart started to do somersaults in my chest. I thanked the gods that he couldn't see my burning cheeks.
He smiled but didn't pull away from my hand. "That's exactly what it will take to stop Robyn once and for all."