Finding that middle ground took a couple of hours. When I finally left the council chamber, I found Uncle Dylan asleep on the couch where I'd left him. He had his arms flung out to the sides, across the back of the couch, and his head was leaned so far back that his mouth dropped open a little; a prime pose for snoring. Unfortunately, my Uncle Dylan was too perfect to snore and slept peacefully without a single sound. I shook his shoulder, and he even woke up peacefully; his body gracefully shifting back into an upright position as he opened his eyes and placed them unerringly on me."We can go now." I looked over his tired eyes. "Thanks for waiting for me.""It's quite all right." He gave me a sleep-softened smile. "You're my blood.""You know, you're not half bad for a relative of mine," I joked as we headed out to the car.I was surprised to see that there was still a bit of daylight left. It had felt as if I'd been in with the council forever."I'll take that as high praise,"
There was a creeping lethargy seeping into my limbs. I couldn't lift my hands or focus enough to use either my psychic or magical talents. I started to slide down the back of the couch."It will wear off soon, I promise," Dylan whispered as he caught me and laid me down gently. "You're going to be okay, Seren.""You traitor," I whispered while I could still speak."Technically, I'm a double agent," he clarified. "I was a traitor when I left the Unseelie Court; this is redemption."A ringing came from a panel near the elevator, and Dylan glanced over his shoulder at it. Then he looked back at me sadly, gave me a gentle kiss on the cheek, and got up to go to the intercom. He pushed a button on it and spoke quickly. Then he went to the elevator and pushed a button there before he turned to face me once more."This will all be over soon." He smiled reassuringly. "Try not to upset yourself."I wanted to tell him to go to hell, but I couldn't move my tongue. It felt swollen in my mouth
There was no need for me to wait another day before returning to Fairy since Keir could take me straight home. Home. Funny that the place I called home was now in the Fairy Realm. We left shortly after Uisdean did; Dylan to fire and do who knows what else to Adam Driscol while Keir and I went back to Gentry Technologies so we could use his personal fairy mound to get back to the Twilight Kingdom.A coach and a contingent of soldiers were waiting for us when we exited the rath. They were all sitting around a fire but there were no tents up so I assumed they expected it to be a short wait. Which meant Keir had perfectly timed his arrival into the Human Realm. I guess Danu did speak to him.The knights were well trained, Keir's personal retinue, the King's Guard, and they were mounted and ready to leave within moments. Soon, we were rumbling through the night-shrouded forest on our way to the Twilight Court. I sat back against the purple velvet seats and sighed deeply; going over the la
It turns out that changing or killing King Uisdean was not what Keir had in mind, but my surmisal had made him think. He wasn't ready to make any plans yet, but we had time, lots of it now that I was fey. We decided to let go of our issues with Uisdean for the moment and simply get to know each other as father and daughter.We had a full day to spend together, including a night of camping in the forest; if you could call it camping when you slept in a pavilion big enough for ten. Keir showed me how to properly call the twilight creatures and how to talk to them. Tiernan's explanation, when he'd told me that fairies could speak to all animals, hadn't been specific enough. We, as in the Fey as a whole, could speak to all animals but not as individuals. Each court had their own set of animals whom only they could communicate with. The Seelie had the diurnal animals who were active during the day, the Unseelie had the nocturnal creatures who roamed at night, and the Twilight had the crepu
Things have been quiet in the Twilight Kingdom. No one has heard a peep from Uisdean or his Dark Court. Although, we now have allies in the Light. Nighean, Aodh, and their mother Neala went home to Seelie, but they've kept in touch with us and have begun to gather supporters for peace between the kingdoms. So far, it must be a secret recruitment since the hatred between the Dark and Light Courts still runs rampant, despite the return of the prisoners, but I have hopes that someday the secret will come out.As far as my relationship with Keir goes, I now call him Dad more easily and try not to mention my other dad to him even though that relationship feels strained to the point where I despair that things will ever be right between Ewan and I. Cat remains a constant guardian and an occasional pain in the butt, especially when I'm trying to find some alone time with my other guardian. But Tiernan handles her antics as easily and as gracefully as he does mine.Tiernan. I'd never thought
Fairy-Struck: Several types of conditions such as paralysis, wasting away, pining, and unnatural behavior resulting from an enchantment laid by an offended fairy.Once upon a time; isn't that how all fairy tales begin? Except this isn't your average fairy tale. There are no charming princes or wicked witches within these pages, and the fair maidens are more deadly than any big bad wolf. This is a fairy tale in the truest sense of the words; a story about fairies... the real story.My name is Seren Sloane, and I'm an Extinguisher. That will mean nothing to you, I'm sure, so let me go back a little further. No one knows the true origins of the Fey—I don't think even the Fey themselves remember—but theories abound. One has them evolving alongside us, but where we advanced in groups—banding together to become stronger—the Fey evolved from those outcast predators who were too wild for a pack. Those who don't believe in evolution, think instead that the Fey issue from the Divine; angels
"No way." I looked down at the fax in my hand with amazement. "This can't be right.""What is it?" My dad walked into our office; his sea blue eyes narrowing on the piece of paper in my hand like a hawk who's spied a mouse.It was a small office with just a cheap particle board desk littered with all the necessary items; a computer, a phone, a fax machine, and a copier. There was an old desk chair in front of it, a cracking plastic mat beneath that to protect the boring beige carpet, and a beat up filing cabinet to the right. That was it, and with us in the room, the tiny space was almost full. Still, it fit our needs. The office was purely for communication with the Council and for record keeping. The bulk of our work was done outside these bare walls."A warrant of execution." I handed the fax to him. "From the Fairy Council.""The Fairy Council?" His narrowed gaze transformed into surprise which returned some vigor to his sorrow-lined face."When's the last time you saw one of
"It must be a lie." Dad was driving, and we were already over the mountain; away from the heat-reflecting metropolitan montage around the mall and back to the lush, breezy, sprawling suburban side of the island.We turned into a residential area; the bright sun flashing off the remnants of rain that speckled the abundant plant growth in front of every house. Our yard wasn't as well tended as our neighbor's but on the Windward side of the island that just means it was a bit overgrown. It rained too much there for the plants to die."It doesn't matter if she's lying or not," I said for the second time. "The threat of war is enough to grant a stay of execution. The Human Council can figure out what's going on. We can't take the risk that she may be telling the truth, and we don't have the authority to make this kind of decision.""Not war," Aideen interrupted as she gazed out the window distractedly."You said extermination." I turned to look at her. I was sitting in the back seat of