The three young fae were a riot. They shared stories and jokes, tales of adventure and mishaps. Everything seemed to be easy for them. The gossamer fabrics that made up their clothing glinted in the ever-present sunlight of Tír na nÓg. The light, while bright, was soft, like the sun was constantly about to set, while the land itself was a riot of color. Vibrant greens and browns of all shades covered every surface as far as their eyes could see, with fields of bright wildflowers swaying in the slight breeze. They were walking to an exit point, and Robin thought that if Hal had been there with her, she would have been happy to just walk around, discovering all Tír na nÓg’s secrets.

They approached a stone archway. Big bushes of flowers lined the path toward it, and trees flanked it on each side. It looked like something out of The Hobbit. The circle of the arch almost went all the way around, with only enough room for them to pass through one at a time at the base. She was beyond ready to leave, but something had been stirring in her brain, and she didn’t want to go without having an answer, fearful that she might be leaving Tlachtga somewhere she wasn’t welcome.

“Why did no one rescue Tlachtga?”

The three fae sobered immediately, and Chris looked at her quizzically.

“We couldn’t. The doorway to the House of the Dark One was sealed. Just as she could not open it from her side, we could not open it from ours. Plus, there is no way for us to survive there. Most of us would perish within moments of entering. The ancient laws that were set up between the gods as they divided the Otherworld meant that Donn was in complete control of his realm. If he doesn’t want someone there, he can will their death and it happens. None of the fae who live in any of the other realms are welcomed there, and he has a standing wish for our death upon arrival,” Aoife said solemnly.

“The Morrígan tried to negotiate with him once. It didn’t go well,” Ailbhe said.

“That’s an understatement,” Bran chimed in. “It almost resulted in a war between the realms of the Otherworld. We would have defeated him, obviously, but the battle would have been too costly on each side.” He shot Robin a side-eyed glance before continuing. “We aren’t able to reproduce as easily as before. It’s why we value the humans with fae blood, such as yourselves, so much.”

“I don’t know if I’ve got any fae blood,” Chris scoffed.

Bran just shrugged. “You’re close enough.”

“Then why didn’t Donn’s standing order kill us as well?”

“Probably because of your human sides,” Ailbhe said.

“Also, because he brought you to his realm himself. If you were to get there on your own, you would first have to die, and then provided you had been a follower of his or of the old ways, you would arrive at Tech Duinn before going on to your final destination,” Aoife added.

Robin nodded, overwhelmed by the complexities of the worlds that surrounded her that she’d never known about. This small part was complicated enough, let alone adding in the Greek and Roman gods, the Order of Talos, shifters, and who knew what else. “I’m ready to go home now,” she said, suddenly feeling tired.

“We just have to step through here and you’ll be home.”

“What about Chris? How will he get home?” Robin wondered aloud. It wasn’t as if they lived close to each other.

“Bran and I will be taking you, and Ailbhe and Niamh will be taking Chris.”

Robin nodded before her brain sparked again. “You can’t get me home. I live on a warded island. If you try, we will just end up in the ocean.”

The group paused a footfall from going through the arch.

“We will all go to Chris’s home, and you can contact your family from there.”

“Uh, that would be a bad plan. Walking into a pack’s home with no forewarning is liable to get you attacked,” Chris said.

“Could you take us back to the Hill of Ward, or Athboy?” Robin wondered as she rocked on the balls of her feet. She was anxious to get out of there.

Chris nodded his agreement, so they all stepped through the archway, and just like that, they were walking on what had been the lush green grass that surrounded the Hill of Ward, or Tlachtga, as it used to be known. The grass was no longer the lush green she’d seen before, though. Now it was the scrubby brown of grass in winter. The air smelled of exhaust fumes from the vehicles passing by as they began to walk to town. Robin shivered, even in her layers. The change in temperature between Tír na nÓg and the mortal realm was more severe than she’d expected. Glancing over, she saw Chris shoving his hand into a pocket and withdrawing a cell phone. She could have kicked herself for leaving hers at the hotel, but she hadn’t thought she’d need it.

Hope bloomed in her chest. Maybe now that they were back in the mortal realm, it would work. When he tapped on the screen only to have it remain blank, that same hope quickly withered and died. He shoved the phone, which was now as useful as a paperweight, back into a pocket and blew into his hands, the cloud of his breath briefly visible around his face before he walked through it.

The young fae took everything in with wide eyes. They’d been to the mortal realm before, but not for a while, and they knew time passed differently between the realms. Robin wasn’t exactly sure what the conversion was, but she hoped that she’d only been gone a little while. Dread gnawed at Robin’s stomach. What if it had been years? Or decades? Robin knew about Alec and Ellie’s situation, but magic didn’t always play by the same rules.

They rounded the corner onto the main street and ducked into the first shop they came across. Luckily Chris was able to charm the girl working the counter into letting him use the phone. Within moments, there was a car coming to pick them up. A man named Aiden had been relieved to hear from his packmate and had said that he would get in touch with Hal. Warmth filled her heart at the thought of her soulmate. She couldn’t wait to see him again, but a storm of butterflies took up in her stomach, as though they were trying to break out. Tension crackled along her muscles, and she knew she needed to find out how much time had passed before she saw him. She needed to know what kind of distance had separated them.

“Excuse me, do you have a paper?” she asked the girl, who was much less impressed with her than she was with Chris. All she got was a nod of the girl’s head toward the stack by the end of the counter.

Robin walked over and picked up the top copy. Almost a month had gone by in the short time they had been in the House of the Dark One and Tír na nÓg. A month. She breathed deeply. It could have been worse. Alec and Ellie were separated for almost three years while she recovered from mortal injuries in Tír na nÓg. The time conversion didn’t add up, though. Robin should have been gone more than a month, unless time in Donn’s realm worked differently than the Land of Youth. Her brain hurt trying to think about it, so she watched Aoife and her cohorts marveling at everything in the shop. From candy bars to magazines, everything fascinated them.

A while later, a man burst into the shop. A thick brown wool hat mostly covered a head of chocolate hair, while matching dark brown eyes roamed the shop until they landed on Chris, who had been standing in a corner reading a magazine. In two quick strides, the man was there and embracing him like a brother, with a couple big claps on his back.

“Ye gave me quite the scare.”

“Sorry, Aiden. It was Donn.”

“To be sure.” The man nodded.

“We’ve got some guests who would like to stay with us for a few days,” Chris said, inclining his head to the young fae.

Aiden noticed her then and walked over. “I’m glad you made it back. That fella o’ yours was lookin’ for you somethin’ fierce. He’s on his way and wants to meet you at the same hotel you were staying at before. D’ye remember?”

Robin nodded.

“Come on, then, I’ll drop you.”

They all started to walk out when the young woman behind the counter called out, “Oi, you’ve been reading those magazines. You can’t just put them back.”

Aiden turned and pulled out his wallet. “Here. That’ll cover whatever they read or ate or anything.” He dropped a large bill on the counter that more than covered everything they’d even touched. “Thank ye for lettin’ him use the phone.”

They walked out and around the corner where a big Land Rover waited for them. They all piled in, even though it was a tight fit. The drive was short for Robin, and when she got out of the car, Hal was waiting for her on the patio area in front of the hotel. He looked amazing, and all of a sudden, Robin couldn’t catch her breath. Tears began rolling down her cheeks, and she wanted to scold herself for being so silly and emotional, but the truth was, she hadn’t thought she would get out of there and she’d started to try and get used to the idea that she would never see him again. Her knees went weak, and she almost fell, but he was there. His strong arms supported her as his scent invaded her nose, making her cry even harder.

“She’s been a trooper.” Chris’s voice sounded behind Robin. “None of us would have made it out without her.”

Thunder rumbled overhead, and she felt Hal’s head raise to the sky. She hadn’t even been able to look him in the eyes yet. The emotions that she’d been suppressing had risen to the surface too quickly.

“Thank you.” Hal’s voice rumbled through her, his smooth baritone making her press into him even more.

“Our pleasure,” one of the men said. The voice was too muffled for her to tell which one.

The car door shut, and thunder cracked overhead as it drove away.

“Well, I see you’ve got your human back.” A different voice spoke, one she’d never heard before.

She didn’t want to look. Whatever it was just needed to go away. She wasn’t ready for the next crisis yet. All Robin wanted was time alone with Hal, and if it was in their cabin, all the better.

Hal’s form bent, which meant she bent too.

They were bowing to someone.

Her curiosity got the better of her then, and she looked up. A large man with slicked-back brown hair with a thick gray streak coming from the crown of his head stood in front of them. He was muscular and tall and dressed in a three-piece suit, but the pant legs were folded up, as were the cuffs of his jacket. A curly beard and glasses adorned his face, along with a scowl that made Robin want to run and hide. There was something menacing in his gaze as he watched her reaction to him.

“Zeus, my lord.”

She almost felt lightheaded as she realized that Hal wasn’t joking, and this really was Zeus. She’d known gods and goddesses existed, but she’d never expected to meet the king of the Greek pantheon.

“Halcyon, you have taken a human companion after I expressly told you not to.” The way he said human sounded like he’d tasted something foul, and it made Robin want to take a step back.

“My lord, she’s my soulmate.”

“How do you know? I haven’t heard of any proof of that.”

“I do not need to sing for her to know that we were meant to be together, or that the fates set us on a path to find one another.”

“I do not believe you. You will sing for her right now, and if you do not, then I will send her back to Tír na nÓg, or maybe Tech Duinn.”

“You cannot enter a fae realm. No gods outside of their pantheon can.”

“Ah, but I do have a fae who owes me a favor. I’m sure he would be glad to be out of debt to me.”

Hal gulped and looked down at Robin. She hated that the first time they’d made eye contact was in this situation. Damn her emotions. His green-blue eyes stared down at her as though he were willing her to give him the answer.

“Sing for me,” she whispered before standing on her tiptoes and pulling his head down to hers for a brief kiss. They had both feared this moment for too long, and it seemed silly to have denied it now. Randall had ruined her life for such a long time that they hadn’t wanted the fear he’d created within her to ruin whatever was between them. She had been scared to fall under someone else’s control, and Hal hadn’t wanted to push her into anything. He’d given her time to heal, to adjust to her amazing new life, and she loved him all the more for that.

“My lord, allow me to call a witness?”

Zeus inclined his head, his stormy blue eyes scorching Robin as he watched her.

He pulled his phone from his pocket and texted someone. Within a few tense, quiet moments, Alec was standing with them.

“My lord.” He bowed, but there was an undertone of disrespect to his voice. He might be performing all the right motions and saying all the right things, but he didn’t mean them. The cocky swagger as he turned to face his brother confirmed that. “It’s time,” he said, facing Hal and Robin.

Hal turned back to her, and his eyes were so full of emotion that it made her breath catch. This was everything to them. If she fell under his spell, then everything they felt for each other was only temporary, but if she didn’t, then it was as Hal had said—the fates had worked their magic and put them on a path to one another.

He opened his mouth, and Robin held her breath. Suddenly, the sound pierced the air, and her ears rang with pain. She winced. Every note rang in her head, echoing and repeating while he continued to sing. She wanted to shut his mouth, to make it stop, but she didn’t know if she had to endure it for a certain amount of time or if they would know right away. It was a million times worse than the drums of Tech Duinn or listening to her dad drunkenly try to serenade her mother. That at least sounded like someone trying to sing. Hal’s song just sounded like someone shrieking, mixed with nails on a chalkboard and that noise that silverware sometimes made when it scraped across a plate.

After a few more moments, Robin couldn’t take it anymore. Her hands covered her ears, and she began to curl in on herself. She hoped they’d passed the test, because she couldn’t take it if she had to leave him now. It was almost like hearing that sound had sealed her heart. It would only ever belong to him. Whether she was here or in Tír na nÓg, it didn’t matter. She was Hal’s, and he was hers. There were no ifs, ands, or buts about it.