27. Lira

27

LIRA

M y heart pounded against my rib cage as I flew slowly down the hallway toward the dining area. Sorcha had knocked on my door about twenty minutes ago. She informed me that my parents wanted me in the dining hall as quickly as possible, and to dress like a princess.

I'd selected a pale-blue dress, wanting a color that could pass as both Seelie and Unseelie. Though frost blue was a tad lighter, this blue wasn't quite as bright as the sky, landing somewhere in the middle. I'd glamoured my face with subtle makeup, not wanting to take too long preparing. I wanted to know what was so important that they'd woken me this early.

Nightbane kept pace at my side, staring at each person we flew past. Unlike last night, the Seelie castle workers didn't glare at me but rushed past, trying to get away from my beast.

"Why have you brought the nightmare with you?" Sorcha scowled over her shoulder. "He's causing chaos."

I landed next to Nightbane, tangling my fingers in the nape of his neck. "I'm not leaving him in my room alone after what happened last night."

When we turned into the dining room, both of my parents were standing at the opening to the balcony. The sun rose over the mountaintops, declaring a new day. This was the day that everything changed.

By tomorrow, Eiric would be back, no longer a captive, and I hoped like hell that I would be in Cuil Dorcha with Tavish.

Nightbane huffed, and Mother turned, her sparkly blue wings fluttering. "Oh, sprout. Did you sleep well after the attack?"

I smiled at the tenderness etched on her face. "I slept fine. I hope it's okay that I brought Nightbane. It's just, after last night—"

"Of course he's welcome." Father half smiled. "The cù-sìth is loyal to you, so I have no objection to him being here. Besides, the whole castle learned about your return and the huge animal staying with you after the guards retrieved Gaelle and brought her in for questioning."

My shoulders relaxed. Once again, I'd been ready for Father to reprimand me as he had when I'd first returned to Gleann Solas. Instead, he'd shown how far our relationship had come. He had begun accepting me for who I was now.

"You called for me very early." Anticipation churned through me. Between what was to come and not having Tavish beside me, I didn't feel right in my skin. "Is everything all right?"

"We've called an assembly of the people." Father steepled his hands. "Is Tavish near? I'd like him to be here for the announcement."

My cheeks ached from how wide I smiled. I never thought I'd hear anything remotely close to those words spoken by either of my parents. "I haven't heard from him, but he should be here soon."

"Don't bother him yet. We need to bring Greason and Gaelle from the holding cells first. We aren't quite ready." Father nodded at Sorcha and continued, "Go retrieve them now."

Throat drying, I tried to swallow but failed. I didn't like the sound of that.

I'm almost there, Lira. I can see the mountains of Gleann Solas, Tavish mind-linked.

Knowing he was close had the lump in my throat shrinking. The only thing that kept me sane was the fact that his magic and emotions seemed to stay level on the other side of our connection. Nothing seemed awry. Otherwise, I would've gone searching for him. Still, knowing that something would most likely happen to Greason had the walls feeling as if they would close in on me. Then you should come quick. Father has asked us to meet him on the dining hall balcony, and I don't know why. However, he hopes you are close since he wants you here for this.

Determination flooded our bond, and I wasn't surprised that he didn't answer. Tavish had one goal—to return quicker, as requested—and I wouldn't distract him. I needed him by my side. "Tavish just told me that they're almost back."

"Excellent." Father tugged on his golden tunic, topped with his earth-brown royal coat the exact color of his wings, giving the illusion that they were larger than they truly were. "We shall begin so that, when he arrives, there won't be an outcry."

My chest swelled with hope.

Mother held out an arm toward me, her pink gown hugging her every curve, and I hurried to her side with Nightbane close to my hip and looped my arm through hers, Father flanking her other side. Standing on the edge of the balcony, I could see the thousands of people gathered below.

There was a time I remembered during my lifetime that all of the fae had been called to gather… the day my parents had announced that the Unseelie were officially the enemy when they had pointed to the darkened sky that had plagued us for weeks.

Uneasy expressions strained each Seelie's face as they waited. More people flew toward us as the villagers who lived farthest away arrived.

A woman near the front scowled and pointed at me then turned her head to the person beside her. One by one, people noticed me standing next to Mother and aimed looks of mistrust or disgust my way. Unease coiled inside me. I hated that my people viewed me as a traitor.

Those who weren't directing their attention to me seemed to have homed in on Nightbane. The cù-sìth hunkered down and growled. Even I could feel the animosity wafting from the crowd, and I didn't have animal senses.

"Erdan, how have we allowed our people to hold our daughter in such disdain?" Mother rasped.

"I'm unsure, dear, but it ends now." Father looked at me and continued, "It's time to unite our land."

The three of us flew up above the edge of the balcony so that everyone could see us, even those far in the back. Mother and Father held hands while Mother and I kept our arms interlocked, a symbol of unity as we hovered together.

People stood below us, looking up as they waited to hear what we had to say. The sheer magnitude of our numbers overwhelmed me. There were easily over ten thousand, proving that the Seelie population was now more than three times that of the Unseelie fae.

No wonder Tavish had wanted to drain my blood so they could catch the Seelie off guard. That would have been the only chance the Unseelie would have to win.

Father cleared his throat, and the crowd became quiet.

"Something happened last night that has made it abundantly clear to both the queen and me that we need to make an announcement." Father's voice boomed, similar to Tavish's, as he addressed the crowd below. "Last night, our daughter, your princess, returned home."

A few brows creased while others shook their heads in disbelief.

A brave young woman shouted from the back. "After she freed the nightfiends? She's a traitor."

Mother's arm tensed. "Say that one more time, and you'll be punished." Her normally sweet voice held a ruthless edge as she stared at the young woman who had dared to speak such words about me. "She is our daughter, and we won't tolerate any disrespect toward her."

The woman jerked back, and a few of the people who'd been glaring at me gasped.

Six figures appeared in the distance, flying in our direction. The yank in my chest informed me who was heading our way—Tavish. I wanted to race to him and bury myself in his arms, but I couldn't leave. Not now. Not when Father was informing everyone of what had happened and showing his alliance with the Unseelie.

The rest of the world faded as my entire being called out to my mate. It'd been way too long since I'd last seen him.

As Tavish and the other five approached and flew over the gathered Seelie, heading straight to us, the people below us shrieked.

"Unseelie!" one yelled. "Where are the guards to protect us?"

"Be quiet," Father thundered. "They are our guests here."

Tavish didn't hesitate as he flew directly to me. He took my hand and hovered next to me with our arms pressed together.

Finnian and Struan fell in behind us, flanking Nightbane, as Mom flew to the other side of Tavish and Dad to the king, making it clear they were guarding the four of us.

That Tavish was essentially family.

Unshed tears burned my eyes. I'd never expected a moment like this to happen for Tavish and me.

I never imagined coming back to a moment like this, Tavish linked as if he'd heard me, his shock and happiness running through me. However, I sensed a little bit of worry underneath.

"Each one of you should remember what I just said because a reminder is coming for what happens if you go against the queen's and my command."

Father lifted a hand, and Sorcha yelled, "Bring in the prisoners."

Both Gaelle and Greason were in the dining hall, and guards dragged them past the table. Greason's face bore yellow bruising, and Gaelle's pale-yellow nightgown was torn to one hip.

"Oh… I'm so glad we got back for this," Finnian whispered. "I hope the coward guard dies."

The four guards forced them onto the balcony underneath us, where Father held out his hand to Dad. Dad didn't hesitate, removing his sword from the sheath and handing it to him.

Lowering himself to the balcony floor, he first moved to Gaelle.

Tears rolled down her cheeks. "My King—I didn't—"

"Be quiet," he spat. "You stole royal clothes and alerted people that my daughter had returned, knowing it would put her in danger. You are no longer employed in the castle and instead assigned to manual labor in the fields."

Her bottom lip quivered, but she shook her head. "Yes. I'll gladly take that and not death."

"You won't die." He raised his sword, stepping now in front of Greason. "But you will live knowing that you were the cause of his death."

"I—I didn't know the full story. Had I—" Greason started.

Father cut him off. "I never denounced my daughter. You attacked a royal. Therefore, your sentence is death."

My stomach roiled as Father jabbed the blade into Greason's heart. I hated that this had to happen, but it was how things were done in this realm… even if I didn't like it.

Tavish squeezed my hand and linked, Sprite, if your father didn't do it, I would. That couldn't go unpunished, or more people would try to kill you.

That doesn't mean that if he'd known everything, he would've still made the same mistake. That was what bothered me, but the rules were the rules in Ardanos.

The guards released Greason's arms, allowing him to fall as everyone watched the life drain from him. Gaelle sobbed, clutching her chest. And when it was over, the guards dragged each of them out while the Seelie people watched.

"Let this serve as a reminder." Mother straightened her shoulders. "Those rules aren't to be broken unless the king or I command it."

No one spoke as the silence hung over all of us.

"This brings us no joy." Father lifted his chin, his royal power emanating from him. "The unnecessary loss of an individual is a burden that our magic and land have to bear. Our daughter's actions may be construed as traitorous, but we understand why Lira made the decision that she did. Not only is the Unseelie king her fated mate, but he and his people are no longer our enemies." He paused, allowing the crowd to gasp and glance at each other, absorbing the information.

"But they cloaked the sky in darkness, killing our plants," a man near the middle called out, though not with malice. He scratched the back of his neck as if he were trying to make sense of it.

Father informed everyone of what the dragons had done and how an Unseelie had aided in the chaos. "There was no reason not to let the Unseelie return to their land. Any attack on them or my daughter will be punished the same as if it were an attack on our own kind." Father gazed slowly across the masses as if he were looking at each person. "It is time for fae to truly unite with each other once again, and there's no better way than the union of my daughter and King Tavish." He gestured to the two of us.

I thought we weren't going to alert everyone in case someone else was working with the dragons, Tavish linked with me, rigid.

I swallowed, knowing he was right. They didn't discuss this with me.

A few people in the back cheered, but most didn't react. It would take time to mend the twelve years of hatred that had brewed between the two species. Still, that didn't mean it wasn't salvageable.

"But even though this is part of a new chapter to our story, it isn't free of issues." Father frowned and patted Brenin's shoulder. "The dragons intended to capture Lira, but Eiric glamoured herself and took my daughter's place like a true royal guard. Because of this, the dragons are demanding that we hand Lira over to them to free Eiric. However, I refuse to bend to the will of the dragons and allow them to use my daughter to create heirs that could one day take over all of Ardanos!"

Even though this hadn't been the plan, my parents had already gone down the course. Before I realized what I was doing, I said, "And allowing Eiric to die in my place isn't right. But there are more reasons than just her death." The fae wouldn't understand why it wasn't right. I was the royal; her life wasn't supposed to be as valuable as mine. I hated that line of thought and believed that Earth's way of caring for each other should be what we strived for here. "At the end of the day, the dragons need me to create future heirs that could withstand all elements. Even if they kill Eiric, they will bring war to our land. They already expressed their intentions when they delivered their message."

"They'll ruin our land with their magic," someone cried.

"Which is their intent." Tavish spread out his wings as he hovered, wanting his strength and presence to be felt.

I could feel exactly how tired he was, though I wouldn't have known by looking at him.

"But you expect us to just suddenly trust the Unseelie?" a man called out.

"No, I don't." Father rubbed his hands together. "Time will be required to heal from the twelve years of misinformation the dragons caused. However, right now, our kingdom and royals are being threatened, which will not be tolerated. All of our resources must be focused on the dragons and their threats. The discord between the fae must end now, and we need to help the Unseelie rebuild their food supply in Cuil Dorcha once again. Otherwise, it's going to put a strain on ours."

The crowd glanced around, staring at one another. Not only was Father telling them we had a new enemy—the dragons—but he was throwing additional work their way.

"So, who can I count on to help restore Cuil Dorcha?"

Several beats passed, and not one person lifted a hand.

My heart sank. How were we going to win a war and live in peace if we faced resistance everywhere?