The gnomes were on top of the humans in a flash. Aurora was thrown to the ground. A gnome grabbed at her feet and the bottom half of her skirt tore in his hands. Losing her shoes, the Empress kicked wildly at the gnome's nose and eyes. Devrim only had a moment longer than Aurora and had his sword half-drawn when he was engaged. He kicked away the first gnome that came toward him giving him just enough time to pull his sword from its sheath. Devrim's foot throbbed. 'These creatures feel like stone!' He had little time to think as he slashed at the next two gnomes, drawing blood from each of them. The next, realizing the folly of his friends, held his own sword and swung to cut off the man's head. Thankfully, Devrim was a skilled swordsman. He dodged the deadly blow and placed a large gash in the arm of the gnome as he fell forward. The gnome held his limp arm and screamed in pain. Devrim looked frantically to see what had happened to Aurora. Other than her initial outcry, she

"How did you find us again? I mean it has been a long time and a long way since Aurora saw you with the stag." Devrim asked the question that had been itching in the back of his mind. "Oh I have been following you for weeks," Brinn admitted easily. "I spotted you back before that gnome attacked you." Devrim's eyes opened wide and he tried to speak several times. He had not seen the elf a single time. He had only heard Aurora's recount of their meeting. "In the human world, we call that a stalker," Aurora said. She had slowed down and allowed the others to catch up to her. Brinn's words confirmed her suspicion that they had been followed. The elf nodded, "Oh I was definitely stalking you. I am an excellent tracker, and it was extra easy since you were leaving marks for those two soldiers to catch up. Pity they never did." The humans could not tell if she was being sincere. "Do you have any idea what happened to them?" There was a slight air of

Devrim squirmed beneath the servants' touches. They pawed at his clothes and clipped his hair, even daring to shave the tiny bit of stubble from his face that he had spent months trying to grow. Outside of his duties as Emperor consort, at home he was generally left alone to his own devices. His personal servants knew he liked his space, and only assisted him when they were requested. In the wild, he had gone slightly feral. No one was around (except Aurora) to see what he looked like, and he had enjoyed the freedom. The amount of attention and preening that was now occurring was a shock to his system. The treatment was akin to torture. Finally, the work was done. "Would you care to take a look, sir?" one servant asked. Devrim reluctantly walked to the looking glass. He had on a long emerald green robe over a white shirt. His waistcoat was the same stunning green  and sat above brown pants and dark knee high boots. The cloth was fine and Devrim wondered if all guests go

As Brinn's story concluded, a soft music wafted toward them from the far end of the courtyard. Aurora realized that the empty half of the courtyard was actually a dance floor. Her suspicion was confirmed as Prince Ithel stood and offered his hand to Aurora. "Please dance with me," he said. Aurora was flattered, but she did not want to dance. Her last foray into dancing with a stranger ended with her nearly losing control of her mind. Of course that was an isolated incident. It was unlikely that the prince wanted anything more than a dance. The Empress needed to get past her fear. Everything would be fine. Ithel waited patiently as Aurora worked through her emotions. "I would be honored," the girl said as she took his hand and stood. The pair made their way to the dance floor. Brinn raised her eyebrows at Devrim and cocked her head to one side. Devrim stared back confused. She kicked him under the table. "Ow!" He said as he rubbed his shin. Alvar opened his mo

"I can explain…" Aurora spoke quickly. "I am sorry that you were deceived. We do not know who are friends and foes in the land of magic. We did not mean harm or offense.""We shall let the matter pass for now," the King said magnanimously, "and hope in time this insult will be remedied."Aurora was relieved. The tension in the room lightened. Queen Lanassa spoke next, "How have you found your accommodations? Do they meet with the standard of your palace?""They are quite wonderful," Aurora answered candidly."And have you found the elven people…inviting? I believe Prince Ithel and Lord Alvar personally attended you last night." Zoltan motioned to the prince on his right."Everyone has been most kind," Devrim answered."I was told you were rescued from the gnomes by an elf yesterday," Lanassa added.Aurora looked toward Brinn, but the elf was staring ahead stoically. Except for the outburst at Aurora's title, she had been