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“That sounds nice,” I replied. “And Gaelin…” Gaelin stopped, turning back to face me. “You can call me Gen.”
“I’d like that.”
I smiled back at him as he made his way to his bed. I curled up on the couch and pulled the blanket up to my nose. Tonight, had been a good night, I thought to myself, but a feeling like guilt quickly followed and any natural smile I had been sporting a moment ago faded. I didn’t know what type of relationship Gaelin wanted out of this arrangement, but this was not the situation I would have chosen for myself. I had to be careful moving forward. I couldn’t lose focus of my mission. Lily.
I lived my whole life not knowing how the alfar race who I shared one half of my genetic makeup lived. I feared them, for good reason, but that still didn’t subdue my desire to know and understand them. In public, Gaelin began to look in my direction during meals and events. He would smile at me, not caring who saw. I began to notice the desire in his eyes grow throughout the weeks. Princess Daealla also noticed his consistent attention towards me. Regardless of what race you claimed, jealousy looked the same and I knew I had a target on my back.
One day during lunch, when I was on clean up duty in the kitchen, Levos came out of nowhere grinning from ear to ear. “What do you want, Levos?” I asked, scrubbing a platter caked with raspberry jelly.
“Have you ever seen a nymph?” he asked.
I stopped, taken back by the question. “Unless they’re allowed across the border, that would be a no,” I said matter-of-factly.
“Best follow me then,” he said, strolling out of the kitchen.
I dropped the platter, drying my hands on my apron before tearing the disgusting thing off and chasing after him. “One is here?” I asked as we made our way to the great hall.
“That is correct. See, each race has their own ambassador that acts as a mouthpiece for their royals. It’s an honor to be chosen as such. It shows your intelligence and merit. From what I’ve gathered, the nymphs have had some run-ins with some fairies and are here to ask for help. Word of advice, stay away from any nymph. They are horny little creatures, and they don’t care if you are male or female, they will pounce.”
“I’m beginning to think everything on this side of the border has a hyperactive libido,” I said.
He laughed, nodding. “You may be right, sweet Genevieve.”
We slid past the two guards posted at the throne room entrance and stood at the back of the crowd, turning our attention to the thrones. Gaelin was perched on a lower step next to Princess Daealla, listening intently to the nymphs. I moved, trying to get a better look.
Five nymph representatives stood gracefully in front of the light royals. Four females and one male. They each had beautiful flawless skin that glowed unnaturally, as if they were being lit from underneath. Two of the females had beautiful green hair, the color of a spring field. One female had white and blue hair, and the other had hair the color of stone. The male had rich brown hair that was neatly tied against the back of his neck.
They wore animal skin clothing, covering the barest amount possible. No weapons could be seen on their bodies. The stories back in The Frey said they were peaceful beings, caring only about each other and nature. They were barefoot and their ankles, wrists, and necks were littered with jewels and metal chains of all sizes and colors.
Levos leaned into me. “The two green haired ones are tree nymphs, the blue is a freshwater. The grey-haired female and the male are mountain nymphs. The water nymph’s name is Haeza. She is their ambassador,” said Levos.
“I thought nymphs were only female,” I said quietly.
“There are males, they’re just rare. I think there's something like one male to every twenty females. Aren’t they lucky,” he whispered, chuckling to himself.
Haeza stepped forward. “Your highness,” she said in a low sensual voice, “the fairies continue to cross into our lands and take our livestock, goods, and now members of our race have begun to go missing. This can’t be a coincidence.”
“Do you have any eyewitnesses?” asked King Lysanthier.
“We have multiple witnesses that have reported fairies flying overhead. We have not directly seen our members being taken by their kind, but we are not ignorant. We know how those foul beasts operate,” she replied.
“There are other things happening in these woods that we are working very hard to stop, as you well know, Ambassador Haeza. We cannot retaliate against the fairies unless we have proof of their transgressions against your race. I am sorry, but I am unable to assist your queen at this time,” said the king.
Haeza looked directly at the king fearlessly. “Your Highness, our territory falls under your protection. If members of our race go missing, this is a problem you must address. The fairies are not permitted to fly overhead, let alone touch down in our lands. They are restricted to the Kingdom of Doonak’s territory which is where they should stay. We offered our assistance and our allegiance to your people in return for your help and protection in matters such as these. That is our agreement and that is what my queen expects,” said Haeza.
With a few moments of silence, the king pondered over the conflict at hand. He finally nodded as he released a breath. “I see where you are coming from, ambassador,” said the king, “I will assign a small number of guards to your territory for the next month. I will also have our ambassador pay the dark alfar court a visit to make sure they are keeping their kingdom… controlled. If these accusations have merit, we will fulfill our side of our arrangement and aid you in ridding yourselves of the threat. Is there anything else, Ambassador Haeza?”
“No, your grace.”
“Good. I am glad we could come to an agreement. Lord Atros will select a group of soldiers to escort you back to your kingdom. They will remain stationed there for the next month. We would be honored if you will feast with us this evening.”
“Thank you, King Lysanthier. It would be an honor,” said Haeza, bowing before him.
The king waved his hand to release the court. Levos and I moved into the hall and found our way to the library. As intelligent and capable as the alfar were, no one ever seemed to use the library in this castle. It wasn’t very big, but to me, it was a treasure room.
“Pretty interesting creatures, right?” asked Levos.
“Very. So, they can control nature like you all can, right?” I asked.