Lhoris
I’d never been to the marshal’s office in the months we’d been living at the chateau. Whenever I’d consulted with Marshal Guille Granat and Duke Nicolas, they held meetings in Nicolas’ study at the map table. Guille’s office was, dare I say it, cramped. It hardly struck me as an appropriate space for the marshal and his handful of administrative staff.
Guille sat at a desk that was far too small for his large frame. He appeared to be opening mail from one stack, reading it, marking a ledger, and then setting the open letter on top of a stack of other open letters.
He glanced up and did a double take before greeting me. “Lhoris, good afternoon.”
My hand trembled as I offered a letter to Guille.
“What’s wrong?” Guille asked.
I stuffed my nervous hands into my pockets and said, “I’m informing my foster family about my circumstances here,” I nodded at the letter in Guille’s hand. “I need my sister to come visit. Oz’s pregnancy is a bit more complicated than Clovis can manage.”
Guille’s mouth dropped open. His wife, Eve, was expecting twins as well, and I saw the sympathetic fear in the man’s eyes. “What? Lhoris, sit down. Tell me what’s happening?” He gestured across his messy, paper strewn desk to the chair across from him.
I plopped down in the rickety chair and took a shaky breath. I’d been training with the chateau physician, Clovis, for months now. The old healer knew he was going to need help delivering all the incident babies in a couple of months and I had more experience than most as a medicinal apprentice. I’d attended many deliveries with Clovis and learned much, but it wasn’t until the day before that I’d learned that humans don’t gestate as long as elves.
“Elves carry their pregnancies for ten months and humans for nine,” I started.
Guille uttered a curse. “And twins come early.”
I nodded. “Oz’s babies are going to be more elf than human … what if Oz can’t carry them long enough? There’s no knowing how her mixed heritage will impact that.” I rubbed my face with both hands and leaned back in the chair.
“So, what can your sister do about it?”
“She is a physician. One that can offer care for babies born too early. Care that isn’t available without magic.” I frowned. Clovis explained that there wasn’t anything he knew of on the human side of the continent that could offer the support such early births might need. “I’m not entirely sure how the news will be received, or if they’ll accept my invitation to come visit. Especially since I’ve waited these months to inform them that I am safe and out of Dulanzo’s debit.”
Guille winced. “I doubt they’ll receive the news of your starting a family poorly, but surely your sister will come through for the babies,” he reassured me. “Though waiting to tell them you are alive and safe … you’re in for a devil of a tongue lashing if your parents come.” He shook his head at my stupidity.
“I suspect you’re right about all of that,” I cringed. “We wanted to be sure the babies would survive the early stages of pregnancy before telling them. But how could I tell them about my safety and not Oz?” I knew it was stupid to wait this long, though. “There had just been so much going on here that I lost track of the days. Next thing I know Oz tells me her days as Emmelina’s personal guard were approaching their end and I realized my folly.”
I glanced over the contents of the marshal’s office again and my confidence in Guille’s ability to see the letter delivered wavered. There was mail everywhere, on every horizontal surface aside from the chairs we sat upon. I wondered if my letter would even make it out of the room. “I see you’re still working out how to do the job?”
Guille sighed and looked around the room. “It’s hard when there’s nobody to show you the ropes, but the new clerks and I are working out a system that agrees with us.” He frowned at the mess on his desk. “Mostly. I assure you that running the military aspect of this job is much easier.” The position was supposed to have been a temporary one for the young man, but there wasn’t anybody more senior than him left after the incident. The old guard were either killed or decided it was time to hang up their swords. He’d kept things running as best he could with all the new staff. I was confident he’d manage … eventually.
“How is Eve?” I asked.
“Fair,” Guille sighed. “Getting huge and uncomfortable. I wish I’d had the sense to send a letter to my parents before I married her. Not that I regret marrying her.” He smiled for a moment, as if considering his wife, then his expression shifted over to something a little melancholy. “My father wrote back to inform me that my mother was very upset and not speaking to me until the babies are born. They live in the capital, so I really should have made sure they were here for the wedding. Lucky you didn’t marry Ozanna before telling your family.”
“It’s not customary in my culture,” I explained, somewhat relieved to know I wasn”t the only one suffering for his own stupidity. “I suspect they’ll be disappointed enough that I waited so long to tell them I have a mate.” I got to my feet. “It was good to speak with you, Guille. That letter is important. Handle it with care?” I asked, giving the office one last look of concern.
Guille smiled reassuringly and said, “I’ll get it delivered. On my Honor.”
Roughly two weeks later,I was preparing pain relieving poultice ingredients for Clovis. The expectant mothers were starting to come to us more often for back pain and such treatments were gentle enough to use in their condition. We went through the supply faster than I could prepare it and Clovis often joked I could assemble it in my sleep. I was grinding dried dandelion root with pestle and mortar when Guille entered the apothecary. Initially I greeted him with a smile and started to ask what he might need but froze when I saw the letter in his hand.
“Delivered by Marshal Granet himself,” I said, trying to force some cheer into my words. I set aside the herbs and brushed the dust off my hands. “Is it…?”
“Yes,” Guille said, handing it over, “it’s for you. And I suspect it’s from the elves because it appeared out of a paper butterfly.” He said it with humor and awe. “Damndest thing I’ve ever seen. Almost had to change my underwear when it landed on my desk and popped open.”
I examined the folded paper with its wax seal. If I looked hard enough, I could make out the lines where it had once been folded into the aforementioned butterfly. I sighed deeply and said, “Thank you for handling this carefully.”
Guille leaned across the counter and clapped me on the shoulder fondly. “Good luck, friend,” he said and left to attend to his other duties.
Clovis knew I was expecting an important letter and offered no objection when I asked to take a break. The possible contents of the letter had weighed on my mind for too long to wait. I left to find Oz in the courtyard, where she was every afternoon with Oshruli, my palms sweating with apprehension.
I tracked her to a bench near the hot spring garden, not far from where a swarm of children were playing a game for which I was certain there were no rules. Oz looked tired with dark rings around her eyes. Sleep often eluded her those days. Her belly didn’t look so large from a distance since she was rather tall for a human woman, but up close it appeared huge, heavy, and uncomfortable. I didn’t know how she kept up with the mass of children while so encumbered. She was so strong. Stronger than myself in some ways. It was why we worked well together. Which was why I needed her now.
Our bond alerted Oz to my approach. She turned and smiled at me, her brown hair shining red and bronze where the late afternoon sunlight caught strands gone errant from her braid. My throat bobbed a little as our eyes met. Did she feel the unrest in my heart as her smile faded into concern?
I sat down beside her on the bench and wrapped an arm around her, inhaling her scent and taking the comfort I could from it. “Lhoris, what’s wrong?”
I gave her the letter and she turned it over in her hands. “You haven’t opened it?”
“No, I don’t think I can do it,” I admitted.
She let the letter sit on her belly. It rocked a little as one of the babies moved. I smiled a little and rested a hand where I could see the movement. The little person inside pushed against my fingers. The wonder of it … those moments never ceased to amaze me. Such magic!
“What are you worried about?” She asked, content to leave the letter closed for the moment and placed a hand over mine.
“That they’ll be disappointed in me. Or worse, that they’re ambivalent and not care one way or the other.”
“That’s understandable,” Oz nodded and looked at the children, as if counting to make sure they were all there. When she turned back to meet my eyes again, she asked, “What would you do if they didn’t care?”
“I … I don’t really know,” I answered honestly. “Endure the grief. Continue my duties. Love you and the children.” I shrugged and looked down at the sealed envelope.
“What if they’re happy?” she asked with a slight smile.
“Then I’d be happy, continue my duties, and love you and the children.” I nodded. It occurred to me that the love of my family was the important component. I’d lived without my foster parents and sister for years. Their approval was a mere footnote compared to what I was building now. I would carry on the same one way, or the other.
Oz watched my face as I contemplated, as if she could see every thought. She surely felt the way my churning thoughts stilled. “Okay then.” She picked the envelope up and offered it to me. “You know how it might make you feel, so it’s time to see which way it’ll go.”
I nodded and undid the wax seal on the letter. There was a tiny pop of magic. My father undoubtedly knew we’d opened it. The penmanship, however, was my mother’s.
Dearest Lhoris,
We are very relieved to hear you’re well and safe. We also understand why you haven’t come home with a child on the way. It grieves us that you didn’t let us know sooner, but such wonderful news more than makes up for any distress caused by delay.
Alyndra isconfident she can help the babies if they do come a bit early. So please don’t worry too much about it, dear. All will be well!
If all goes accordingto plan, your father, sister, and I should be arriving six weeks in advance of the projected due date; roughly mid-April. We will be staying until the babies are at least a month old as you assured us a place to stay for that long.
We are pleasedyour brother is there to help you understand your duties to your pregnant mate. Your father is excited to help you with what he can. I look forward to meeting your Ozanna and playing with the babies.
There ismuch news from the woodlands, and sadly, it is all hardship. The fae courts are at war again, and it’s been spilling over into the woodlands. Even the Orcs are being pushed out of their northern territories. We may need to request an audience with your human Lord to discuss it in an official capacity. In the meantime, warn him that the wild, beast-like creatures from the magic realm have been steadily pushed south toward the mountains. It’s only a matter of time before they make their way into the human realms. Please assure him we have sent this warning ahead in good will.
We love you son,
Imryll Pernala
I readover the letter and felt lighter, despite the ominous news. I could feel Oz’s eyes on my face, anxiously watching my reaction since she couldn’t read the flowing elven script. “They’ll be here in a couple of weeks to meet you,” I said, smiling, not able to stop at least one tear from slipping down my cheek.
Oz beamed up at me and wrapped her arms around my chest for a sideways hug, made awkward by her growing belly. “See, they love you,” she said, kissing the tear off my cheek. “Will you read the letter to me?” So I did.
I brought the letter to Nicolas’study that evening—to pass on my parent’s warning. The young duke was seated at his ornately carved desk with an entire wall of bookshelves looming behind him. There was a small fire in the hearth, and he gestured for me to join him in one of the plush armchairs in front of it. Once seated I informed him of my parents” letter. As my friend, Nicolas was pleased to hear they’d be coming to visit, but their warning of encroaching wildlife left him … pensive.
“Your parents have the authority to speak for their people?” he asked.
“My father is a member of the Elder’s Council in that region of the woodlands. While he may not have the ability to make decisions for the council on his own, he will have knowledge and the ability to communicate with his peers,” I said. “It would make sense to treat him as an ambassador while he is visiting.”
“Perhaps I should have Sebastian or one of his advisors join us in that meeting,” Nicolas said as he crossed his arms and pressed a knuckle of his loosely fisted hand against his bottom lip. “We are speaking of realms and nations, not simple provincial matters.”
“I wouldn’t doubt your wisdom on this, your Grace,” I nodded. “I’m an herbalist, not one to bend the ears of men with power.”
“You crossed that line when you became my friend, Lhoris,” Nicolas grinned. “You bend my ear any chance you get. You needn’t be so formal behind closed doors either.”
I smirked back at him. It was true. I liked the young man. Nicolas was smart and loyal to his people. In my estimation, he was worthy to be a man in power.
“Besides, what’s the point of having elves as part of my household if I can’t ask their opinion on the matter of elves?” He shrugged.
“A fair point,” I agreed with a nod. “What questions come to mind with this information?”
“Your mother writes about people being displaced,” Nicolas said, with a casual gesture of his hand. “Is that typically what happens when these fae come to blows?”
“Not in the last few hundred years,” I shook my head and sighed. “There haven’t been more than a handful of skirmishes in living history … elf living history, at least. But it”s been thousands of years since anything so impactful has spilled out of their reality into our own.”
Nicolas’ brows furrowed and he jerked in surprise. “So, they exist somewhere other than this world?”
“Yes,” I nodded. “They created the high elves to mind the gateway.” I rolled my eyes at the self-important title my fae made cousins chose for themselves. Culturally, their distain was probably the only thing that the woodland people and dark elves shared. “They prevent the foolish from wandering into Fairy or incurring their wrath. The seelie and unseelie fae are gods, for all intents and purposes. Nothing on the mortal side of existence has even a fraction of their power.”
“What’s the difference between the high elves and the rest of the elves?” Nicolas asked. “I have no idea how anything works on your continent.”
“Well, we are very distantly related to the fae, in a manner of speaking. Our very distant ancestors were non-corporeal nature spirits. When the fae portal appeared and their magic started spilling out, the earth spirit, you call her Genarae, saw us changing and evolving with the new magic. We wanted physical bodies, and she needed allies in staving off the invasive fae.” I paused to observe my friend, to make sure he was following along. Nicolas leaned forward in his seat, his mouth gaping.
“This is fascinating, Lhoris, go on!” he encouraged. “I had no idea.”
“She gave us human bodies, but our magic changed them to fit. We didn’t need bulky muscles because our magic feeds our physical strength. And our ears are longer because, well, we needed a way to sense the energies around us, but human eyes weren’t adaptable enough for the task. We sense it through vibration. But the energy pouring from Fairy doesn’t belong to Genarae, and fae magic requires balance. So the high fae took some of Genarae’s other nature spirits and created the high elves. And because they understood how to control the balance of such magic, they imbued their version with more power.” I snorted and leaned back in my seat. “They think they’re better than the rest of us because of it.”
“But where did the dark elves come from?” Nicolas asked.
“Ah,” I nodded and stared at the crackling fire doing its best to chase away the early spring chill. “Fae magic requires balance with its duel nature. Seelie and Unseelie. Light and dark. Bargains struck, bargains broken.”
“You’re rambling now,” chided Nicolas.
“We were one once, then we split,” I sighed with a shrug. “Nobody knows for sure how it happened. There’s a lot of lore. Our creation we are certain of, down to our bones. The memories of our spirit ancestors burn brighter than my own when I recall them. But history the physical plane is hard to keep. Books can be burned or rot. Stories change and memories fade over time. What we do know is that we were once the same. If a woodland elf has a child with a dark elf, the baby would be one or the other. Not a blend.”
“Wait,” Nicolas raised a hand to interject, “you meant to tell me you can remember things that happened before living history?”
“Well, yes. But the only thing worth noting is the creation of my people. Everything before hand was … boring. Just watching the seasons change and the plants grow.”
“But the shifting of continents … your ancestor knew the world before our land mass came together?”
“Well, yes,” I shrugged. “They were there when the mountains were shorelines. But as I said, it’s about as exciting as watching water evaporate, Nicolas. The continents didn’t crash together. There was just less water between shores, then a land bridge, then the mountains grew. It took millions of years.”
Nicolas rubbed his face then ran his fingers through his hair before resting his elbows on his knees and staring up at me. “You have recollection of plants and animals that don’t fucking exist anymore. I’m an obsessively overeducated pretentious prick,” he snorted. “I would almost murder for a glimpse of those memories.”
I understood why he would want to, I did. “It’s quite frankly too much to sift through,” I shook my head. “Like seeking a single unique word in the whole of your library. The last thing they remembered before becoming flesh is the only thing easily found or worth recalling.”
Nicolas heaved a sigh. “It’s still astonishing.”
“Perhaps I can take some notes for you if I remember anything interesting,” I said getting to my feet. “It’s late and Oz is no doubt wondering where I am.”