She had a thought. “Do you have a phone?”
He blinked and fished a small, flat black rectangle out of his vest.
“May I make a call? I left my phone at home.”
He smiled. “Of course. You are my daughter now, in one way or another. This is very odd.”
She grinned. “It is, but you are a shifter. You get used to odd.”
She dialed quickly and waited. “Hello, my lady. It seems that things have come to pass as you wished.”
The amused tone was unmistakable. “Well, congratulations. What can I do for you?”
“I would appreciate it if you could contact the king and get this area declared my territory. I can now pass into and out of my tree for the video if necessary.”
“It should be fine. Anything else?”
“Find out if there are any fey elders who are close to death who want to be buried under a dryad’s tree. I have daughters that I want to get started.”
“Dang. Okay. Can I call you back at this number?”
Hector nodded.
“Yes, but I also need someone to get my stuff from my home. Including my phone. And I have to gain immigrant status to Canada or, at least, landed fey status.”
“Hang on, I am writing this down.”
“I can normally transport via my tree, but I don’t want to draw on her when she wants to hatch acorns.”
“Okay, I will get on this as soon as we hang up. I should be able to call you within the next hour.”
“If you get a guy named Hector, just update him. Thank you, Eilonwy.”
“You are welcome. Now, go and be with your new husband, and congratulations again.”
They disconnected the call, and she handed it back to Hector. He held up his hands. “If you only need it for the hour, keep it.”
She nodded, and Huron’s head cocked. “What are you hearing?”
“Guns. Smelling oil. I need to go.”
She nodded. “I will be at your side as soon as I can be.”
He stripped off his formal uniform, and he left her alone with his guardian-father.
The hoof falls were silent as he moved through the woods to protect it and its inhabitants.
She looked at Hector. “So, the weirdest day this year?”
He laughed and nodded. “Is this really a dryad oak? He said it was, but the being inside my son was never very good at emotion.”
“No. He lives for the silence of the woods, the whispers of the trees, the ripple of the brooks. They are all he knew. Putting himself into a living body was a change for him. There was time. There was alteration as time passed. His communications skills had to grow.”
“You say it very well. How do you know?”
“I was born in a tree. When the tree was large enough, I stepped out of it on chubby legs and began to experience the world. There was no easing into it. I was nothing, and then, I was walking. My mother was a dryad and her tree, and they had seen a thousand years, but humans were coming for the wood. They needed the wood to survive, to feed their children, to live. My mother protected me until I could run, and I was nearly grown by then. We dug up my tree and wrapped the roots. A dragon friend of ours flew me across the ocean when he came, and then, I walked the world until I found the perfect place for my tree. I planted her, and she woke up the god beneath my feet. He instated his territory, and I was locked away from her.”
“You don’t hate him for that?”
She looked at him and shook her head. “No. I know what he is. I have met gods in my travels. I was mad, do not get me wrong, but I understood. My tree was no longer mine, and I had to find a new life.”
“Why come back now?”
She chuckled. “The woman I was speaking with? She is going to be the bride of the king of the fey. She contacted me and told me where to find Huron, though no one knew his name at the time. I took it as a sign to touch my tree once again.”
“Oh. So, you weren’t kidding when you said that you were registered fey.”
She grinned. “No, I was not. I am not a shifter, I am not precisely fey, but there is no category for me or for him. So, we will be fey as that will excuse the lifespan. Until gods and demi-gods are on the list, we are stuck with what we have.”
He chuckled. “Our family is going to love this. The thought of woods where we can run for hours and not be shot is too delightful.”
The phone rang. Aster answered and began organizing the rest of her life.
Epilogue
Aster walked out of parliament where she had just addressed the members on the importance of maintaining green spaces and that included burials.
Her phone rang, and she answered. “Hello, sweetie.”
“How did it go?”
Folks were taking photos of her as she walked. Her green skin was distinctive, and her gown fluttered as she walked. She looked damn good and was proud of what she had achieved for her and the new dryads growing in the clearing.
“It went well. We have our clearances; we are free to begin the green burials as long as we keep GPS coordinates locked in.”
“Excellent. Hector has been taking reservations for space in our new burial forest for the last few days.”
“They didn’t even know it was legal.”
“I know, but there is a certain amount of cache at not just being food for the earth but food for a dryad. There is a public belief that part of them will live on. I don’t know how they could have come by that understanding.”
She grinned. “I have no idea. It was a productive interview, though.”
She walked toward the green space next to the building, and she headed for one of the thicker trees.
“So, how long are you going to be away? I have missed you.”
“I am on my way home. I will see you in five minutes.”
She laughed at the kissy noises he made into the phone, and then, she hung up.
Crowds of people were following her with phones held up, and she grinned, pressing her hands to the bark of the tree, calling her own home and companion, and then, she stepped inside.
She felt her tree around her and stepped out, into Huron’s arms. She laughed. “Hello, darling. What have you been up to?”
“Terrorising hunters and selecting sites for the burials. It has been a busy few days.”
“Aw, are you tired?” She stroked his cheek and continued upward to grab his horn, pulling him down to her for a kiss.
“Never that tired.” He grinned. He lifted her up and carried her into the house that she had encouraged to grow from saplings and moss.
She laughed and giggled as they worked to get her skin exposed, but that was part of the fun. When they fell together onto the bed, she wrapped her arms and legs around him and welcomed him into her.
They had a wedding to attend in a few weeks and were going to be there on the queen’s side of the fey court. They may as well have as much downtime as they could before they had to get uptight in actual clothing.
There was something to be said for being in the woods with the person you loved, even if they weren’t human.
Author’s Note
More fey with weird skills. Next up will be fey with a deep resentment at being stuck as partners.
She’s a better fighter, and he’s a better shot. When they each take time off to go seek a mate, sparks fly.
Thanks for reading,
Zenina Masters
About the Author
Viola Grace (aka Zenina Masters) is a Canadian sci-fi/paranormal romance writer with ambitions to keep writing for the rest of her life. She specializes in short stories because the thrill of discovery, of all those firsts, is what keeps her writing.
An artist who enjoys a story that catches you up, whirls you around, and sets you down with a smile on your face is all she endeavours to be. She prefers to leave the drama to those who are better suited to it, she always goes for the cheap laugh.
In r
eal life, she now is engaged in beekeeping, and her adventures can be found on the YouTube channel, Mystery Bees Apiary. Just look for the cartoon kittens.
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