Her mind flipped back to the garden of the Santiran Fountains where they had kissed. The feel of his lips had been like warm, sweet, honey. She could still feel the heat from his breath skimming her cheeks, and the pounding of his heart beating against her chest as he held her so tight when he had zapped the Lonares soldiers with his power. The bluish fire and lightning electrified them, but had done nothing to her but leave her breathless and tingling all over. She wondered what it had meant, the way he had held her felt like he would never let her go. She totally remembered how she had not wanted him to let go.

Now he stood here, watching her as her thoughts floated in her mind, waiting for some sort of reaction from her. Shade suddenly felt like she had neglected their relationship greatly. His haunted eyes drew her into the wells of pain and suffering he held deep inside. She wanted to open him up and draw it all out, make him smile and make him continue to feel happiness in the dreariness of life.

She snapped back into the present and watched Dylan flick his grey eyes away from her and back to the painting. She swallowed and wondered if everything she had felt had meant something to him. She did not have to wait to long for an answer suddenly feeling his warm, soft, fingers lace through her hand, curling and holding it tight. Her hand responded to his grip as she felt the warmth of his hand radiate up her arm and fill her with his tingling magic. She had almost forgotten what it felt like to touch Dylan; it made her body vibrate in response. She missed him, in more ways than one.

“Well, the lovebirds have arisen.” The deep baritone voice startled Shade. She turned to see who was spying on them, letting go of Dylan’s warm hand. Draden stood in a hard stance at the turn of the hallway. He held a spear in one hand and a heavy looking sword strapped to his side. His long, blond hair was pulled uncomfortably tight at the nape of his neck, and was tied with a plain leather tie that matched the full warrior gear he wore. The smooth lines of his muscles bulged from under the soft material that fit him like a glove. The hardened lines on his face seemed to have softened since she had saw him at the Santiran Fountains. She had not taken the time to study his face much when he had taken her to Prince Ursad’s chambers, but now she had plenty of time to take in his soldier’s face.

“Am I interesting to you, little Princess? Moving on to the next one already, huh?” Draden’s eyebrows arched inquisitively, glancing between her and Dylan. His eyes filled with mean laughter as he snickered.

“What? No, I just, I…” Shade stammered, caught off guard by the husky guard. His laughter roared around them, echoing down the halls, taunting them. Dylan’s face was blank and hard like stone, not betraying any kind of feelings under his mask. Shade could still feel him tense up beside her.

“Wait a minute, what did you say?” Shade gathered her senses. She was still confused, but now very interested in Draden’s words.

“Which part? About moving on already? I’m single if you really want to know. You aren’t really my type though. I like ‘em a bit bustier with a spill of red hair, but there is a shortage of Fey women around here, so I’m not really gonna be too darn picky.”

Shade’s face rushed in a spill of scarlet. She wanted to slap the guard but restrained herself. Her curiosity was too much to bear. “I meant the part where you called me little Princess. Why did you say that?” She waited, her confusion playing around her eyes. She was hoping he wasn’t going to continue to joke around.

Draden’s face turned serious then. His hard stare bore into her like a stake that turned and turned her insides to a messy mush. His smile was gone, replaced by the hard thin frown that made him look incredibly scary.

“Paying attention I see. Yes, Shade, I said little Princess, but you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” He approached her, tilting his head to stare her down. Shade now had to tilt her head back and straighten her stance to stand just even with his chest.

“You remember what I said at the Fountains, right? About your father? I did know him–I was his second in command, first lieutenant. I knew him well.” He eyed her, daring her to speak.

Shade gulped as she tried not to look away, determined to not back down. She felt him testing her.

“What was his name?” Shade pressed her lips together, biting down on her lower lip. She could feel the sweat build up and her heart racing as she stared right back at him.

Draden sized her up with his hard, stormy, blue, eyes. His face softened as he chuckled and backed down. Shaking his head he reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“You are a stubborn little brat aren’t you? You’re just like him. His name was Verenis. He was the King of the Southern Realm of Faerie.” He watched her, pausing for a moment for her to take in the information.

“The Southern Realm. The Seelie Scren Court of Faeries is rightfully yours Shade. You are his only heir. He was a Changeling, capable of changing appearance to whatever it was that he wanted to appear as. Powerful magic that is almost now unseen in the Fey. Do you know if you have inherited these abilities?” He waited, watching the shock fill her eyes as she listened. She weakly shook her head and turned to look at Dylan, whose eyes were wider as he struggled to remain stoic.

“I–no, I don’t think so.” She felt her knees weaken as they threatened to collapse. Dylan took her arm and led her into one of the many rooms that lined the halls. He brought her into what looked like a small library. It was filled with dusty books, hardback, leather bound, and the kind you would find in an expensive collection. Dylan guided her to a small cushioned couch. She slid down onto the soft, old, velvet, and let her head fall between her knees.

She had not expected anything that Draden had said at all. The doubt filled her mind and made it uneasy to breath. Should she believe him? Was she really a Queen of her own Faerie Realm?

Chapter Seven

“I DON’T BELIEVE it,” Shade whispered.

“Believe it girl,” Draden snickered from the entrance of the room. “There is nothing but truth here, or did you forget that we do not lie?” He leaned on the doorframe and appeared rather bored by her show of weakness.

Shade looked up towards the warrior. “You say you knew my father well? Well then, what happened to him? Where is he, and why did he leave my mother?” She wiped a spilled tear that had pooled in her eyes. She slowly straightened and sat up, giving a hard stare that bore right back at Draden, awaiting his answers.

“He was killed, Shade. Queen Aveta captured him, and he was executed in her Court. There was nothing I could have done to save him. I failed him and I paid for it dearly. I had to join her ranks of Lonares Soldiers or die. When I found out that you were alive, and therefore an heir, my brother and I deserted her army. We were lost before that, without hope. We returned to the Northern Realm where we heard Prince Lotinar had returned, and was eager for fighters. I will not rest until Queen Aveta pays for what she has done. He was like a brother to me.” His face was stone cold serious. She nodded at his explanation.

“What of the Southern Realm? Who rules it now? Who’s in charge down there since I haven’t claimed it?” Shade sniffled; she hated getting a runny nose in the middle of such a serious conversation. She pulled her pack off and reached inside for a cloth to wipe her face.

“There is no ruler. A lesser Queen named Ariana has stepped up to help out until the rightful ruler comes. She is not strong enough to fight Aveta’s evil armies. They are growing by the thousands. Sluagh, scores of Orcs, Demons and lesser Fey are assembling on Aveta’s side along with the Lonares Soldiers as we speak.”

“We have to claim the crown back, Shade, and build our armies to defeat her. Prince Lotinar is already allying with Queen Zinara. With you at their side, they will be hard to beat for sure. It will be three of the great realms against one.” Her indifference agitated him, causing him to want to run across the room and give her a good shake.

“I–I just don’t know. It’s all so sudden. I can’t even fathom having a father who’s a Changeling and a King! I don’t know if I have any of his powers. If I did, they haven’t shown up yet, and I have no idea how to make them surface. I’m not a Queen, Princess or whatever. I can’t win a Faerie war! I have so little to give, and so much to lose. Why do you guys, once again, have to pin your hopes on me? I’m not the one you need.” Shade stood up and huffed out of the room, feeling a lot less faint. Anger made her heart race as the knots in her stomach clenched. She paced the hallway outside the door as she tried to figure things out. Lately, she was getting to know these feelings a bit too well.

“Shade?” Dylan appeared in the doorway.

“What!?” She heard her voice echo in the hall, angry and desperate.

“Why don’t we get a bite to eat? I’m starved and I can tell you need something to munch on while we figure it out. How about it?” He waited, letting her vent her confusion. As she paced, her heart slowed and her thoughts cleared. Finally, she stopped and sighed, Rubbing her temples, she nodded at Dylan. She motioned to him that she would follow him.

The murmurs of conversation seemed to fade down to nothing as they took their seats. The rest of her friends were already seated and eating. She was sure her emotions were written plainly on her face. She sat and stared at her empty plate, not sure she really had the stomach for food, but knew she should eat for energy. She helped herself to some fruit and croissants, but picked at them with her fork. She barely noticed Dylan pouring her some orange juice and nudging her to eat. Sighing, she stuffed a grape into her dry mouth and attempted to chew.

“Shade, is everything alright? Did something happen?” Sary leaned over, whispering to her so that only the ones at their table could hear them.

Shade nodded and looked up at the beautiful warrior. Shade cracked a pathetic attempt of a smile and blinked back to her plate. Dylan rapidly fired off the details to the others as they continued to eat. She could feel their eyes darting to her as he spoke, but tried not to get any more upset. She was relieved that Ursad and Camulus weren’t at their table.

Soap sat across from her and watched her sulk. She glanced up at him a couple times, feeling suddenly guilty about her feelings for Dylan. Soap looked at her with great concern splayed across his face, and eyes full of love. She could sense his desire to run to her and hold her tight. She felt his restraint like an iron chain that strapped him to his chair. He would never do that in front of the others, he was too proud for that. Dylan was prouder still. At least Soap’s wall was not as hard to get through as Dylan’s. She wanted to hear Soap’s voice right now, cracking jokes and being pathetic just to make her laugh and smile.

Glancing at Dylan, she realized how different the two men were. They both were Teleen, part Teleen in Soap’s case. Never the less, both wielded the magical blue lightning fires that burned under their skin white-hot. That was where their similarities ended. Soap could also change into whomever or whatever he wished. He had mentioned he could look like any person she wanted him to. He was sweet, easy going and made no secret of his desire to be with her. Dylan’s concern and care for her, and not to mention the way he made her heart flip with one glance, made it hard to choose between them. Soap’s gleaming, green eyes watched her as she thought about them both, almost twinkling as they converted to a honey-brown when filling up with slight mischief.

He knows I’m thinking about him. How does he do that?

Shade suddenly felt so invaded by his penetrating stare that she had to pry her eyes away, and stared back at her plate of food. Popping another piece of fruit into her mouth helped to distract her from her present company. Dylan and Soap were getting harder to ignore, which was what she wanted to do. She’d rather think about what Draden had said about her family and the Scren Seelie Court that rightfully was hers. She didn’t know how in the heck she was supposed to be a ruler. She almost choked on the grape as she thought about it, and took a swig of juice to wash it down.

“It’s okay, Shade, just breathe,” Dylan interrupted. “I know you didn’t expect this and it’s all sudden, but you have got to get a grip on yourself, or you’re going to choke on your breakfast!” Dylan’s urgent whisper in her ear brought her face to flush. She turned towards him, pressing her lips into a straight line.

“I know that. Just back off okay? I’m just a little in shock. I have to digest what Draden told me. I don’t even know who I am, and that scares the crap out of me. Tell me you wouldn’t feel the same way? You’ve never had to deal with this kind of stuff in your entire immortal life, so you can just leave me alone,” she snapped as she stood up. She glanced down the way towards Prince Ursad’s table where he was also watching her. She felt the weight of a thousand eyes bearing down on her, and the room was wavering as she regretted her decision to stand up so fast.

She sucked her breath as her stance wavered. The Prince whispered something into Camulus’ ear. The green Elven-Pixie glanced at Shade and nodded his head. In a flash he was at her side, catching her and gripping her in his arms gently but firmly. Another flashing swirl swam around her and brought her back to her room. She was still at the glass castle, but in the bed she had slept in that night. Camulus helped her slip into the soft sheets.

“Shade, it’s okay, you’re in your room. Prince Lotinar wanted me to make sure you made it here safely because you don’t look well. I will return with Sary momentarily.” He was readying himself to teleport out of the room when Shade stopped him.

“Wait!”

He returned to the bedside and bent down towards her awaiting her words. “Yes. Is there something you need?” His orange-fire eyes blank of any emotion, he seemed like a colder version of himself within the castle walls than when they had first met out in the forest of Faerie.