FIVE
Idris let his steps echo as he entered the throne room, and for once, he didn’t find the booming voice of the seneschal announcing his name to be entirely annoying because, as he intended, every eye turned to him. Gone was the ridiculous nine-step dais of his grandfather, so he had no trouble seeing his father’s expression of surprised approval as he approached. He hadn't even needed Rhosyn’s hurried explanation to understand the problem. His parents did not, understandably, want to go to war with the Court of Bones. There was little doubt in his mind that they would win, but the loss of life would be catastrophic. However, they also did not wish to deliver Maeve into the clutches of her family if she did not want to go. Technically, her father had no standing to compel her, since she was of age, but his family would be out of line to continue extending their protection to her unless they had a compelling reason.
The answer Idris had come to, as he buckled on his sword and cloak and placed the winged silver coronet on his head, was drastic, but he was sure it would be effective. He only hoped that Maeve and his parents would forgive him the presumption.
The slender and ghostly pale male fae that stood at the foot of the dais could be none other than Prince Conall. He had the same blood red hair as his sister, but his eyes were a cold silver-white. “Who is this whelp who is so insolent as to interrupt us?” he sneered.
“I had no idea you were hard of hearing,” Aidan replied coolly. “As the seneschal said a moment ago, this is my eldest child, Prince Idris.”
Conall tensed. “I only meant that his presence has no bearing on our present conversation. All I wish is to have my sister returned to me, a transaction on which, I am sure, he has no opinion.” Idris had disliked Conall almost immediately, but upon hearing him discuss Maeve like a parcel to be bartered for, his hatred intensified. He stepped onto the dais, and took Maeve’s hand. She glanced at him, confused and terrified, and he squeezed her trembling fingers.
“On the contrary,” he said, his voice firm as he met Conall’s eyes. “I intend to make Maeve my bride, and I'd be quite put out if you took her away against her will.” Her eyes flicked to his, more bewildered than anything, and he tried to convey without words the urgency and importance of her cooperation, even as he also attempted to look intimidating for her brother.
“Is this true?” Prince Conall demanded, and to Idris’s relief, Maeve squeezed his hand.
“It is,” she said, straightening her spine. “Prince Idris is my fiancé.”
*************************
When Maeve had been summoned to the throne room before she’d even eaten breakfast, she hadn't known what to think. She'd been anxious, but not really afraid because she knew that Lord Aidan and Lady Rowan could be trusted. But then she saw Conall, and her whole body went cold. Her father had come for her at last; her brother was only the instrument of his will.
“Your brother seems to think we’re holding you hostage. He insisted that he see you for himself,” Rowan said, as apologetic as she was angry.
Maeve took a breath to steady herself. “As you can see, I’m completely well, and you ought to know that I left on my own. I'm not interested in being part of that madness any longer.”
“You can't just run off and live in another court whenever you feel like, Maeve. Father is furious. Do you really want to provoke war on a whim?” Conall said. His condescending tone set Maeve’s teeth on edge.
“This isn't some sort of girlish prank!” she exclaimed, but in truth, she was barely holding herself together. Though Lord Aidan and Lady Rowan did not seem at all perturbed by her brother’s threats, the thought of being the cause for a war between the courts shook her to the core.
“Maeve is of age. If she does not wish to return Lord Cian’s court, she is not obligated to do so,” Aidan said, raising his eyebrows.
“And you would risk your position to protect her?” Conall said, clearly challenging. “In a week or so, you might come to regret your decision.” Maeve felt all the blood drain from her face at the thought that her brother might reveal the truth before she could, and then, the door to the throne room opened with a boom.
The seneschal made an announcement, but she barely heard, as she was stunned and captivated by the figure striding into the room. She’d never seen Idris like this, not only his clothes but the presence he exuded. He was as commanding as his father, but in a different way. Lord Aidan was powerful but remote, like a cold mountain peak. Idris felt like a more immediate threat, a dangerous predator intent on murder. If Aidan was a star that shined from the far-off heavens, his son was that power come to earth in white-hot incandescence. Even so, Maeve was relieved to see him.
He came up beside her and took her hand, facing her brother without fear. He might not have known Conall well enough to tell, but Maeve knew her brother had been affected, not only by Idris himself, but by the show of solidarity. And then Idris said he intended to marry her. She assumed she had to be hearing things, so she looked at him with the question in her eyes that she dared not speak aloud. His expression pleaded with her to play along, to wait for an explanation, and she trusted him. She turned back to her brother with her shoulders squared.
“Yes, Prince Idris is my fiancé.” The whole court seemed to draw in a collective breath, though Maeve knew, without looking, that the Lord and Lady continued to give nothing away.
Conall took in this whole tableau with wide eyes. “I don't believe you,” he said, but his fists were clenched and shaking.
“I find it rather insulting that you won't accept my word, or that of your own sister, but I'm not opposed to proving the truth of my intentions,” Idris said, his tone even. He turned to face Maeve, and there was something mischievous in his eyes. “Should we show your brother how deeply we love one another?” She had no idea what he was talking about, but she wanted very badly for Conall to leave, so she nodded. However, she was not expecting him to reach up and caress her cheek, nor for him to then lean in and kiss her.
It was no friendly peck on the lips either. She stiffened at first, too surprised to respond, but when she felt his tongue lightly brush against her upper lip, her body acted of its own accord. Her arms slid around his neck, and her mouth opened as he pulled her tight against him, passionate but still gentle. His mouth was warm, his lips soft, and she could feel the strength in his arms as he embraced her, one hand at the small of her back and the other cupping the back of her skull. When he pulled away, his breath was ragged and his pupils were wide and dark. She doubted she was in any better shape. She felt giddy, and her heart was pounding.
“Does that satisfy you?” Idris said in a rough voice. Conall looked nearly as stunned as Maeve felt, but certainly not as pleased.
“I will inform my father of this development,” he said. “But rest assured, I will return. You may not welcome her so warmly when the moon wanes.” Conall turned on his heel and stormed out.
“Fenella.” Lady Rowan called out to a shadow in one of the corners. “If you would, go make sure he actually leaves.” The shadow disappeared without a sound.
Lord Aidan, meanwhile, eyed them with puzzled amusement. “Now that this crisis is momentarily averted, perhaps we can retire to the sitting room, and Maeve can tell us what’s going to happen next week.”
**********************
“So that's why you were hiding in the ice forest,” Rowan said, her lips pursed. The sitting room, like the rest of the palace, was comfortable and elegant. A table with snacks and drinks had appeared soon after they’d entered, though Maeve felt almost too nervous to eat, at first. Lord Aidan and Lady Rowan sat across from her in matching armchairs, their hands loosely linked, but Idris had seated himself next to her on the settee. He gave her plenty of space, and yet, she was acutely aware of his presence.
“It was a stupid idea. I don't know what I was thinking,” Maeve replied. “I guess I hoped if I got far enough away, the curse wouldn't affect me, or at the very least, maybe I wouldn't hurt anyone. I couldn't believe that killing people is the only way, but Conall wouldn't even listen to me. It’s not just that they accept the curse… they almost revel in it. My father likes hurting people, and my brother is heading in the same direction. I couldn't stay there anymore.” She took a deep breath, knowing what she needed to say but dreading it. “I’ll understand if you don't want me around. I was going to leave when I got better, but…” Even after such a short time, they were more than just her rescuers. Rhosyn was her friend, and Idris… She could hardly bear to look at him, for fear of what she would see, but instead of rejecting her, he took her hand in his own again.
“We don't want you to leave, Maeve,” he said, before looking at his parents.
“Of course not,” Rowan said, and her husband nodded in agreement.
“Other arrangements will have to be made,” Aidan said. “I think our first order of business is to determine the origin of the curse. You said it's only in your immediate family?”
“My father and brother, obviously, and my father’s siblings and all their children. The curse is like an open secret. Everyone knows about it, but it's never spoken of in public. I've never heard anyone even guess where it might have come from.”
“Someone must know,” Rowan said. “We’ll send Fenella to try and ferret out information, and Rhosyn and I will start researching.”
“I'll work on ways to counteract or contain the curse magically,” Aidan said. “Even if we weren't personally fond of you, this shouldn't have been allowed to continue for so long. How many people's lives have been blighted because Cian and his father were too proud to ask for help?”
Maeve felt tears coming to her eyes again. “Thank you all so much. I don't know how I can ever repay your kindness.”
Rowan shook her head. “This is simply the right thing to do. Nothing about this is your fault, Maeve, and no one here wants to see you or anyone else suffer because of it.” She and her husband stood up together. “We’ll take our leave for now, since I’m sure you and Idris have plenty to talk about,” she said, smiling. Maeve couldn't believe how they'd just taken this whole mess in stride. Idris’s impromptu engagement announcement alone had to be a political nightmare, but if anything, they seemed pleased.
When they were alone, Idris turned to her with a serious expression. “I'm sorry if I surprised you earlier.”
His words were so unexpected that she laughed out loud. “You have nothing to apologize for. You saved me from my brother at the risk of your own reputation. If anyone should be sorry, it’s me. I've done nothing but cause you and your family trouble.”
He shook his head. “I meant what I said last night. I don't care about your family or the curse or any of that. I think you are kind and brave and beautiful, and you deserve happiness as much as anyone else.” She met his eyes, surprised by the fervent sincerity she saw there. He swallowed, and his next words were halting. “I’ve… come to care for you, Maeve, and I don't exactly know the right way to go about it, and I know a public proposal of marriage is a little unorthodox at this stage, but I want to know you better.”
She blinked. Once again, he'd surprised her. “I'm not sure I know what you mean,” she said. Because it couldn't be what it seemed to mean.
He frowned, and she noticed his ears had gone red. “I told you I'm no good at this. I mean… I think I would like it if what we pretended for your brother were true someday. I'd like to court you, Maeve. I mean, properly.”
“Oh.” For a moment, she didn’t know what to say. She hadn't allowed herself to believe, and now that he'd stated it so clearly, her brain was having trouble formulating a response.
“If you don't want that,” he continued in the silence, his voice wavering, “I wouldn't hold that against you, of course. You'll always be welcome here.” Luckily, she recovered quickly enough to prevent him from getting up, tightening her grip on the hand that had not yet released hers.
“Idris, I do. That is, I… I want to be with you too, only I couldn't quite believe it,” she said, her joy finally breaking through her shock enough to let her grin. His answering smile was relieved and hopeful.
“I had hoped the kiss would give you some clue as to my feelings on the matter,” he said, his ears a little pink despite the mischief in his eyes.
“Well, it was my first kiss,” she said, laughing to cover her embarrassment at the admission. “I didn't have anything to judge it by.” Idris looked a little taken aback by this piece of information.
“In that case, I feel like I should apologize. That was hardly appropriate for a first kiss,” he said with a wry twist of his mouth.
“I wasn’t complaining,” she said. It had been somewhat shocking, but not at all unpleasant. Perhaps her relief at his family’s easy acceptance of the events of the day had something to do with her surge of boldness as she smiled at him. “If it truly bothers you, you’re welcome to try again.” This time, he took her face in both of his hands, and held her gaze for the space of a held breath. His eyes were clear and bright; if he was unsure about anything, it wasn’t this. The kiss was tender, his lips soft and warm as they pressed into hers, all too briefly. She might have felt ashamed by the knowledge that she wanted more, except she could clearly see that he felt the same.
“I’ll do whatever I can to help you, no matter what happens between us,” he said in a low, rough voice that made warmth bloom in her chest. “But we shouldn’t linger here. There’s much that needs to be accomplished, and only a week to do it.”
******************************
He was right, of course. The next week was a blur of activity, but the thing that bothered Maeve most was how little she could help with the problem, considering it was hers. She did what she could, assisting Rhosyn and Lady Rowan in their research, and letting Lord Aidan magically examine her, but as she was neither particularly learned or magically skilled, she often felt she was more in the way than she was helpful.
Idris took her riding every day, as he had promised. She had thought it was mostly to keep her from getting depressed, but she realized after a few days that it was just as much to keep himself distracted. He confessed that he was frustrated at how little he was able to help. Though his education had been similar to that of his sister, he had never showed aptitude for research or for complex magic. He knew how to talk to people, to evaluate threats and get information, but since he was too recognizable to be a spy, his skills were not much use in discovering the source of her curse or its cure. And now, the week was over. Fenella had not returned from the Court of Bones, though she had made contact with someone who she thought could help. Rhosyn and Rowan had been, so far, unable to discover the source of the curse, and though Lord Aidan was confident that he would be able to undo it eventually, it was complex magic that he admitted could take years to unravel completely.
Maeve was feeling both afraid and disheartened as Idris brought her to the room they’d prepared for her. It was bright and comfortable, painted a color of blue that reminded her of his eyes. Everything in the room, she had been told, down to the books, had been spelled to be unbreakable. She knew they had expended a lot of magic to make things easier on her, something she never would have questioned before, but now that she knew why this court conserved power the way they did, the gesture affected her deeply. Still, a prison cell, however nice, was still a prison. Maeve couldn’t help but wonder how long she would have to remain within. Would she go mad? Could the curse kill her? As far as she knew, no one in her family had actually tried to refrain from blood for more than a day or two.
When Idris opened the door, she could feel herself shaking. He paused on the threshold and pulled her into a tight embrace. Just the feeling of his arms around her was reassuring. “We’ll do everything we can to figure this out,” he said. “We don’t want you to suffer any longer than you have to.”
“But what if there is no cure?” she whispered her greatest fear into his shoulder, and he pulled away to look her in the eyes.
“All magic can be negated with enough power. I’ll summon every fae I know, if it comes to it,” he said fiercely. “But my parents are confident the curse can be reversed easily if the source is discovered. Until that happens, I’ll be here, watching over you.” It was a promise she hadn’t expected, hadn’t even known she needed to hear, but her heart swelled with warmth. He kissed her forehead, her cheek, and finally her lips. It was enough for now. She could allow herself to believe that everything would be all right in the end. The door closed and locked behind her. She was alone, but this time, at least she knew someone was out there waiting.