Aden

I step into my Bone Bed & Breakfast Inn room, chuckling about the porn studio joke Clav cracked as I toss the keys onto the antique vanity. The scent of mildew and general old-house smell hits my senses as I shut the door behind me. This inn has got to be over a century old. Late morning sunlight slants through the windows onto the quilted double bed of my room.

My hands are still trembling from that unexpected encounter. There is no doubt in my mind that the man I just ran into is Clavicle, known in the Fae realms as the Prince of Ruin. I didn't know that when I saw the pink-haired dude kneeling on the library carpet with a mess of paper towels in his hands. I didn't know it—until those gray eyes lined with silver peered up at me through those glasses. Spine Fae eyes, though the silver was significantly muted from his mortal blood.

Clav. He goes by Clav now.

I specifically came to Bone Hollow, Indiana to find him. Sovereign Clavicle: The feared fae king of the Spine Empire. Before he was cursed with mortality, he'd beheaded his father, sold his soul to his Shadow, and was willing to sacrifice hundreds of humans to his goddess to protect his empire from the Solar Fae.

I totally did not expect to run into an adorable bubble-gum-haired booknerd with the biggest smile and warmest gray eyes I've ever seen. I'm still wondering if he's the same person I came here to find, but how many Clavs with silver eyes are there in this small town? It's not exactly a common name.

There was a moment—when he said he knew why I was here—that I panicked so hard I swear I almost shit my pants. The Sovereign Clavicle I heard so much about would have driven a dagger through my heart if he knew I was associated with his previous life. But then he mentioned the Ren Faire and thank the gods above I was able to use that as an excuse for my visiting this small town. Clavicle—Clav—is known for being paranoid, picking up on any suspicious behavior. It's why he turned his back on his step-sibling and lover, Tarsus.

It's what got him cursed to live in the human realms as a mortal for twenty-three years.

Honestly, if I'd known I was going to run into one of the fae realm's most dangerous and powerful faes on my first day back in the human realms, I would have been more prepared. Had some story about me visiting my grandmother or some shit like that. I wasn't planning on confronting him until I knew a bit more about Bone Hollow and could come up with a believable story should the need arise.

I decided to grab a book—well, a few books—while I was here, and bam. There he was. Sovereign Clavicle—the most vicious king of the Spine Empire—fumbling with a bunch of paper towels while trying to clean up his latte from the library carpet.

I seriously wish I'd snapped a picture. Tarsus would have a day with that. Maybe it would have eased the tension between us, since Tarsus didn't want me to come find Clavicle. Not after Clavicle turned on them—nearly killed them—all those years ago.

But Clavicle is the only one who can save the fae realms. Because right now there is a massive volcano threatening to bury the fae continent in ash and lava. As the true Spine King, only Clav can convince Mother Terra to calm her temper and spare us all. I'm here to test the waters and see how cruel, exactly, this Prince of Ruin is now that's he's spent over two decades in a realm filled with the humans he despises so much.

He seemed nice enough. Either he's overcome some of his better-than-thou attitude toward my lesser humankind, or he's just mastered the art of hiding his disgust toward us. He definitely didn't seem disgusted today. If I'm not wrong, this fae-king-turned-human was flirting with me. He even blushed a few times. I remember the way he bit his lower lip, the way he fidgeted, how he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with his knuckles. My pulse quickens at the memory of his smile tucked between his teeth. Maybe he's changed…or maybe he's just that good at deceiving humans into thinking he's safe.

But that's exactly why I'm here: to see how much he's changed—if at all—and to see if he'd return to the Spine Empire to help it—or to ruin it. Unfortunately, I tend to see the best in everyone. Tarsus says that will be the cause of my downfall, but then, Tarsus has major trust issues.

I flop onto my bed and crack open one of the books I checked out, eager to lose myself for a few hours before I meet with Clav at the Renaissance faire. I need to clear my mind, stop overthinking everything. I'll see how he acts tonight, and base my approach off that.

But my heart is beating too fast, my mind racing as I consider what will go down tonight. It could go one of two ways when I mention his Spine Empire to him. Clav will either lighten up, and his acute homesickness will urge him to swear to save his empire from the doom of the blowing volcano. Or, if Tarsus is right, he'll pull his obsidian dagger out of nowhere and drive it through my heart without a warning.

The sound of storm and wind invades the space around me, tearing me from my thoughts, and I bolt upright in the bed in time to see a portal slowly expanding in the room. The black oval swells to the size of a door, and Ash steps out, her black braids whipping around her from the wind. The vampire's bright russet eyes compliment her dark brown skin as they meet mine, and a big smile spreads across her face, revealing a slash of white teeth.

Ash isn't like the vampires we read in books in our mortal realms. My human blood doesn't do a thing for her. Fae blood, however, is a delicacy for vampires, and the more power a fae possesses, the richer their blood tastes. Furthermore, vampires can possess the powers from the fae blood they drink, at least for a short time until it runs out.

Tarsus steps out behind her with exceptional, fae-like grace, their antlers too tall for this tiny room. They look significantly less excited to be here than Ash, their brows pulled down in a V and a slight pout on their perfect lips. While Tarsus and I are nesting partners, meaning we are in a committed, long-term relationship, Ash and I have a fun, purely sexual relationship built on consent and communication. Tarsus is monogamous, but doesn't mind my polyamorous nature. As long as I communicate everything with them.

"Hey, you." Ash jumps onto the bed and crawls over me, shoving me back as she crushes her blood-red lips to mine. She smells of honeysuckle and summer, and I lean in to the kiss, exploring her mouth with my own. Pulling away slightly, she studies me closely, her elongated pupil expanding as she reads my every emotion. Her dark brows furrow, her panther-like tail switching behind her when she clearly doesn't like what she sees. "Everything okay?"

"Since you saw me last night?" I snort and playfully shove her off my lap before she sees the panic written all over my face. Propping myself on my elbows, I look between her and Tarsus. "Yes. Everything is fine. Stop being such an overprotective vampire."

Behind her, Tarsus is glowering as they look around the room. Tarsus always seemed larger than life to me, but in this cramped inn room built for humans, I notice just how much they would never fit in with the human world. Besides being exceptionally tall due to their fae nature, topped with foot-tall antlers that mark them a native to the Spine Empire, there's an energy about them that's too much for mortals to withstand. It's why I'm so taken with them.

They can't stand up to their full height in this small room, so they decide to sit down in the wooden rocking chair in the corner, gathering their violet robes around them as they sit.

"You couldn't find better accommodations than this?" They ask in a glum tone, their silver eyes meeting mine. Their bone-white hair falls down their shoulders in straight, silky plates, half of it braided and pulled back to a ponytail. The kohl lining their eyes and the smoky eyeshadow painting their lids makes them appear both intimidating and utterly captivating. Wicked and inviting.

Days. It's been days since I saw them. Nearly a week, which might not seem like much to most, but Tarsus and I are connected by a bond that's only grown stronger over the past five years that we've been together. I stand and cross the room to meet them, my heart nearly beating out of my ribcage at the sight of them. My chest feels like there's a cavity that only Tarsus can fill.

"I thought you wanted no part of this," I say, taking both their hands in mine.

They stare at me for a beat, their expression guarded, then tug me onto their lap. Combing their long fingers into my shaggy hair, they tug me close and press their face into my throat. Relief washes over me as I wrap my arms around their neck. Last time I saw Tarsus, they'd stormed off because they disagreed with my plan to bring the evil fae king-turned-human, Clavicle, home.

"What made you change your mind?" I ask when I pull away.

A knot bobs in their throat. The tears gathering in their eyes makes the silver of their irises brighten like steel as it captures the sun. "I'm still not on board," they say, their low voice husky, "But I love you too much to let you do this alone." They squeeze my hands, and now it's my turn to choke up with tears.

"You were always such a hopeless romantic," I say with a chuckle.

Tarsus lifts my hand to their mouth, pressing a kiss into my palm, and my heart fills to the brim with love for them.

"Not to cut into this adorable moment between you," Ash says, still sitting on the bed while flipping through a magazine she no-doubt found on the nightstand. "But have you figured out where the evil king lives yet? Or where he works so you could casually confront him?"

I chew my lower lip. Here goes nothing. "So…we kind of bumped into each other at the library this morning."

"What?" Tarsus' smooth voice is laced with fear as their fingers dig protectively into my hips. "Did he hurt you?"

"He was actually…super sweet." I shrug, my cheeks heating at the memory of those warm gray eyes, that pink hair. "I don't think he has any idea why I'm here."

"Clearly," Tarsus' silver eyes have turned to ice now, their jaw clenching and unclenching. "If he knew who you were, that you were associated with me in any way, you'd already be dead."

I know it's taking everything in Tarsus not to throw me over their shoulder and force me to go back to the faerie realms with them. But that's what I love about Tarsus. They let me make my own decisions. Something my own human family never let me do—especially when it came to transitioning.

While I decided not to get gender reconstruction surgery below the belt, I have gone through top surgery. That was enough to make my parents decide I was dead to them. Because apparently, to them, it's better to have a dead daughter than a transgender bisexual son. I can't imagine their reaction if they saw me now, my muscles toned and my voice deepened from the testosterone injections I've been getting for six months now.

"I'm guessing there's no convincing you to return with us?" Tarsus asks with a resigned sigh.

I look between them and Ash. "I'm meeting with Clavicle tonight at the Ren Faire. Let me get to know him, get a good read on him." I shrug. "Maybe he's…changed his stance on humans after living with them for twenty-three years. Maybe he'll want to save his empire from the volcano."

Tarsus dips their chin and stares at the floor, their long index finger drawing lazy circles on my knee. "Fine. But we're coming back tonight to get a report." They shift their gaze to mine. "And to make sure he doesn't slaughter you the first chance he gets."

I expected no less. "How's everything at home?"

"I mean, the same as when you left," Ash says as she tosses the magazine aside and flops onto her back, staring at the ceiling. "Smoke from the volcano continues to cloud the skies. Ash has blanketed the Terra and Spine empires and is slowly expanding across the rest of the continent. Everything is…slowly dying. There's no fresh produce, and several wild animals have already died from the lack of vegetation." She folds her hands over her firm stomach. "We could really use Clavicle's help. Like, soon."

The urgency of our situation makes my chest ache. How can I get a good read on Clavicle without straight up coming out with my reasons for being here? To him, I'm just a nerdy human who traveled all this way for a Ren Faire. To him, this is nothing more than hanging out for the afternoon.

But the fact that he's willing to spend time with a human speaks volumes of his character. Either he's lonely as fuck and would date just about anyone at this point. Or he truly has changed and doesn't see humans as the scum of the earth, good for little more than being used for breeding more slaves, manual labor, and sacrificing to his goddess, Mother Terra.

"I need to find a costume," I mutter, looking between Ash and Tarsus. "Or, I don't know. Some every-day clothes from your realm."

Ash sits up and arches a brow. "You're calling our clothes costumes?"

Tarsus' lips quirk and they jerk their chin. "Come on then. I'll help you find something that will leave my step-brother drooling for you, human or not."