The Changeling

by Jennifer Lyndon

  “I thought you might be comfortable here. These are the finest rooms in the palace,” I observed.

  M’Tek’s gaze skimmed the drawing room, taking in the wall of windows overlooking the garden, and the fresh red tulips I’d picked myself, resting in a vase on the entry table. The room was very beautiful, I realized, larger than my own drawing room, and with better light.

  “I’ll be very comfortable,” M’Tek agreed.

  “My own rooms are on the other side of the hearth room,” I explained. “I thought we might enjoy breakfast together in the mornings,” I offered, feeling my face growing warm. To my horror, I was blushing. I turned my gaze from M’Tek, preferring not to be seen as a nervous young girl. “I should go and make myself more presentable,” I said quickly before stepping back through the entry door. M’Tek followed me.

  “What’s wrong, Lore?” M’Tek asked, her voice gentle, as if speaking to a frightened child. “Your manner toward me suddenly changed. Why?”

  “I’m not sure,” I stammered, my gaze moving from my feet to the door to my rooms through which I might escape. “I feel I know you, as if we’re connected in some profound way, but in reality you’re a stranger. We’ve met only twice before, both times only briefly,” I explained. “I’ve pictured you a thousand times, here in this palace, a girl with dark hair…” I stopped, realizing I sounded insane. “I found a painting of a Fae girl with my great-great-great-grandmother, Sarane. That Fae girl might be you. I realize she can’t be, but the eyes, and the expression, and Sarane is… but of course I’m not Sarane. That I know for certain. My people believe I am, even Pet believes it, but I’m not. And I’ve read about the battle strategies of different rulers with the name M’Tek over the past centuries, and each time it feels as though I’m reading about you. You see, I’m connecting lines where none exist, and it’s all sort of unsettling, or…”

  “I’ll wait for you, while you make yourself more comfortable,” M’Tek said, putting a stop to my nervous rambling. She indicated the nearest sofa in the hearth room. “I’ll be right here when you’re ready to talk,” she added. I nodded agreement and turned, fleeing to my own rooms before I could embarrass myself further.

  ****

  When I returned after my bath, my hair was still damp, but I was clean, and wearing more presentable attire. I found M’Tek exactly where she said she would be, on the sofa in our shared hearth room. The Fae Queen was asleep, an arm beneath her head, which was resting on a pillow on the sofa, her long legs stretched out on the cushions, stocking covered feet exposed. I couldn’t help but smile at the guileless image presented by this impressive monarch. Rather than disturb her, I retrieved a book I’d been reading on Noge history and sat on the adjacent sofa. I made little headway with my book, however, as my eyes constantly returned to the sleeping woman near me, while I imagined the softness of her white hair, and the smoothness of her cheek.

  The light changed in the room as the sun rose higher in the sky. I left her for a moment, to call for our midday meal, and returned to find her stirring. With my book folded in my lap I watched as she opened her brilliant silver eyes, taking in her surroundings with an intriguing expression, akin to astonishment.

  “I never thought to wake here again? How long have I slept?” she asked in a dream softened voice.

  “It’s an hour after midday,” I answered. “Our meal will be here shortly.”

  She blinked and glanced over at me, and then sat up, stretching like a cat after a satisfying slumber in the sun. She didn’t move to draw her boots upon her feet again, but tucked her small feet under her instead, running both hands through her long white hair, gathering it away from her face, before twisting it up into a loose knot.

  “I always took the most beautiful naps in this room,” she said casually, her eyes locking on mine, letting me know what she said was important. “I believe it’s the quality of the light through those windows. Don’t you find it soothing?” She clearly had my attention.

  “You’ve been in this room before today?” I asked. “How is that possible?” A subtle smile played at the corners of her lips as she nodded and then rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands.

  “Have I never told you, Lore? This palace was my childhood home,” she said softly.

  “But that can’t be,” I replied. “My uncle lived here, and before that, my parents.”

  “And before that, a string of false rulers, starting with the Demon Prince and his father Valek the Butcher,” she added. “But if you look back to a time before all of those usurpers, when this was Eatherdam Palace, and the town of Eatherdam was the glittering capital of Nogeland, a young Fae girl was kept here by the royal family. She was intended to end the wars between the Noge and Fae peoples. She was to join with the Noge Prince, Svenar, when he came of age, uniting the royal houses of Castelyne and Tannuk,” she said.

  “But what has she to do with you?” I asked.

  “Everything, my darling. I was the dark-haired girl in the painting with...” She stopped, took a deep breath, and started again. “I was the girl standing behind…” I shook my head.

  “The girl behind Sarane?” I asked, offering that name she seemed incapable of pronouncing. “I don’t understand. Do you mean in a metaphorical sense?”

  “No. I actually was that Fae girl,” she said. “I lived here, in Eatherdam Palace, with the royal family.”

  “What are you talking about?” I asked, scrutinizing her, waiting for her words to make sense. “Is this about what I said earlier? I was only…”

  “Trying to understand why you’re so unreasonably important to me, why I care so deeply for you already, when we’ve only met twice,” she finished for me.

  “Sarane lived over two centuries ago,” I stated, pointing out the obvious flaw in her tale. “You would have to be around…”

  “Two hundred and fifty-four years old,” M’Tek supplied.

  “And since that’s impossible,” I observed. “You’re clearly lying to me. Why?”

  “Is a shield made of ancient words that can kill your enemies possible?” I swallowed hard and stared down at her discarded boots on the floor, unwilling to accept what she was telling me. “Have you truly never heard of the Fae Lemu? Even in Vilkerland, you must have been told legends about a people who live forever, or maybe a couple of fairy tales.” I shook my head.

  “Who was supposed to tell me fairy tales? Certainly not Aunt Kessa,” I replied. “The woman hardly tolerated me.”

  “I’ll tell you about the Lemu, if you’ll allow me,” M’Tek offered gently. I watched her without responding, noting the way her hands moved across her thighs, smoothing her breeches. I nodded. “The Lemu were once about fifteen percent of the Fae population. I’m not certain we truly live forever, but I know we have very long lives, provided we don’t find death in an accident, or seek it out in battle, or succumb to disease, or find some other equally useless end.” She was watching me, a pale eyebrow lifted slightly. “All were of high-ranking military, and government families. But I’m the only Fae of pure Lemu blood still living,” she added.

  “What happened to them?” I asked. “There can’t have been so many battles and accidents.”

  “A plague swept through Faeland almost a quarter of a millennium ago. Those with pure Lemu blood were most susceptible. Once the disease struck, the mortality rate was very close to one hundred percent. Those of mixed blood faired better, sometimes not contracting the illness at all. Still we lost slightly more than two in five people. Entire families were wiped out. It nearly destroyed our civilization,” she explained. “It was devastating.” I tried to imagine more than forty percent of the Vilken population dying. “Have you truly never read about this, maybe in connection with the Borderland Wars?”

  “There are very few books on the Fae in my library,” I replied. “None mentioned a plague, or a people who live hundreds of years.” M’Tek laughed and shook her head.

  “Incredible,” she said under her breath. �
�Yours was once the greatest library in all of Pangia, with more books on Fae history than could be found in all of Faeland. The Noge studied their adversaries from every angle, searching out their most obscure limitations, and then exploiting them with devastating effect. It’s why they had such great success for so many generations,” she explained.

  “You have to know your enemy well in order to defeat him,” I quoted her in response. M’Tek straightened, her gaze concentrating on me for a moment.

  “Yes, you do,” she agreed with a nod. “Anyway, the Tannuk line was nearly obliterated by the plague,” M’Tek continued. “We call it Diminishing Sickness,” she added. I nodded, wanting her to continue.

  “Is that when Sarane’s family took you in?” I asked. M’Tek smiled softly.

  “No. The Noge royal family took me long before the plague swept through Faeland. I was offered up as a portion of the Fae tribute payment at the end of the last Great War. I was the youngest daughter of the King of Faeland, and at that time, two years old. The Noge King regarded me as a living promise that the Fae would never again attack Nogeland,” she explained. “My father had a choice between giving up a child or a section of the Borderland.”

  “You lived as a prisoner here,” I observed.

  “Yes,” she replied. “But, of course, my family was given a choice. Apparently, I held less value for them than that arid section of the Borderlands.” M’Tek laughed. “And they lost that miserable piece of desert five years later, to the Vilkerlings, anyway.”

  “But you never joined with Prince Svenar,” I pointed out.

  “Svenar died in an accident just before we were to be joined. At the time, I was fifteen,” she explained.

  “I’m sorry,” I said quietly. M’Tek laughed.

  “Don’t be. Svenar was a vicious little brute. His favorite pastime was shooting arrows into kittens. I never loved, or even liked him,” she admitted. That took me back a bit.

  “And the rest of the family, how did you feel about them?” I asked, wondering about her opinion of Sarane but not ready to ask directly.

  “I respected the King. He was a visionary, wanting to end all wars through the marriages of his children. He treated me well, and wanted me to join with his son to bring in untainted blood. His wife was also his niece, and he blamed what he called ‘degrading of the line’ on inbreeding. The King was under no illusion about his son’s character,” she added. “And I loved the Queen. Her affection was uncomplicated and whole,” she explained. M’Tek’s gaze shifted about the room as she spoke, as if remembering the people who had once inhabited the area within those walls. “But it was all such a long time ago,” she pronounced, forcing a smile.

  “You haven’t mentioned Sarane,” I pointed out, even though I was aware I was pushing her. I held my breath a moment, awaiting her reply.

  “She was easily as vicious as her brother, though far subtler,” was her answer. “But of course, I worshipped her.” I let out my breath, certain I was nothing like this distant relative, the source of only a fraction of my blood.

  “Did she kill kittens?” I asked. M’Tek shook her head.

  “Not that I’m aware of,” M’Tek replied. “With regard to me, she conveyed cruelty through love.”

  “Pet believes I’m Sarane reborn,” I whispered. “And she’s not the only one who believes that,” I added. I wanted to ask her what she thought.

  “You must realize how closely you resemble her,” M’Tek explained in a tone meant to mollify.

  “I’ve seen her portrait,” I said, making an effort to remain casual. “You say you worshipped her,” I continued. “Is that why you’ve protected me? Was it for her sake, because I look a little like her?” M’Tek’s gaze moved slowly over me.

  “There was a time when I’d have done anything, agreed to anything, for her sake,” was her reply.

  “And now?”

  “She’s been dead a long time,” M’Tek replied sharply.

  I was about to probe further, but there was a knock at the hearth room door, followed by the entrance of two servants with our midday meal. I watched M’Tek as she leaned down to slip her feet into her boots. She then stood and walked over to the table in the corner.

  As we ate, M’Tek carefully herded our conversation to safer topics. She then rested throughout the afternoon, and the evening afforded me no opportunity to question her further about her motives. We had dinner in the banquet room with my staff. Council members and guards sat on one side of the room, scowling with suspicion at M’Tek’s guards and Pet. As far as my people were concerned, they believed I was under some sort of powerful spell cast by the Fae Queen. Needless to say it was not an extremely pleasant evening. I sat with M’Tek to my left, and Aunt Kessa to my right. Aunt Kessa kept up an incessant stream of inane conversation in an effort to monopolize my attention. In hindsight, I think Aunt Kessa was actually trying to protect me, by preventing my own people from observing the obvious affection I felt already for the Fae Queen.

  M’Tek left the banquet as soon as civility allowed, claiming exhaustion due to travel. I knew better, however, and caught her wink as she said she would immediately turn in. Not long after her disappearance, the Fae guards and Pet politely took their leave as well.

  The atmosphere of the banquet room changed in a matter of moments to one of camaraderie and celebration, as if the room itself were territory conquered in the name of Vilken Nationalism. Aunt Kessa relaxed beside me, and began conversing with other guests. Soon I found a chance to sneak away.

  The moon was full and bright, evoking in me hunger for a walk in the crisp evening air, with Faira. What I truly needed was time to process the startling information I’d learned that day about M’Tek’s past. I was still uncertain whether or not I truly believed her peculiar story, but I could determine no advantage she might gain by lying to me. Besides, such deception would be impossible to maintain.

  Faira and I set off through the rose garden, slowly walking the maze as I let the day’s events unfold in my mind. Thinking about Sabea made me smile, and some of the tension eased from my shoulders. In response, Faira and I left the maze to walk through the orchard and across to the stable. I wanted to check on my filly. When I reached her stall I found her sleeping deeply, actually sprawled on her side in her stall. She appeared so content I couldn’t bring myself to disturb her, and so carried the apple I’d picked in the orchard to M’Tek’s horse, Twyneth. Faira whined softly when I offered the apple to the black gelding, apparently jealous of my attention to a rival animal. I scratched Twyneth under his jaw as Faira lost interest. Having discovered the hoof clippings left behind from the farrier’s work earlier that afternoon, Faira abandoned me to chew on her malodorous prize.

  Twyneth was still in the process of licking the last traces of apple juice from between my fingers when Pet wandered into the stable, her gold-green eyes shining like a cat’s, lit by the moonlight streaming in from the upper windows of the stable.

  “I’ve been searching for you everywhere, Lore,” she said in almost a whisper as she walked up to me. “What are you doing out here all alone?” she asked.

  “I’m not alone,” I replied.

  “My cousin and I have been waiting in your apartment, hoping to share a carafe of black berrywine,” she said softly.

  “I need a moment to catch my breath,” I explained.

  “Will you come up with me?” she asked. I shook my head.

  “Not yet,” I replied. “I’m not quite finished here.”

  “But you’ll be chilled out here in this night air. You’re not even wearing a wrap,” Pet pointed out.

  I didn’t reply, but turned my attention back to Twyneth to pat his dark neck. The gelding extended his long neck and sniffed at my sides in search of more fruit. When I reached to the base of his mane and rubbed his withers he stilled, relishing the scratch.

  “Is something wrong?” Pet finally asked. “Have I done something to upset you?”

  “Of course not, Pet
. I’m only a little disillusioned by the events of the night. Everything will be fine,” was my reply.

  “Why disillusioned?” she asked.

  “You attended the banquet. You saw the way the Fae and Vilkerlings reacted to one another,” I explained. “I’m just not sure what to do about the hatred and distrust between our peoples.” I finally turned back to face her. “I don’t know how to bridge this gap.”

  “But tonight was a great success,” Pet observed. “No one drew a weapon.” I laughed at that. “And the Vilkerlings are still in there drinking and joking, rather than killing us in our rooms,” she added.

  “If that’s your definition of a successful banquet, I’d hate to attend one that failed,” I observed.

  “You must realize that this evening very easily could have ended in bloodshed. Lore, the Vilken and Fae peoples have been at war for centuries. Tonight they ate together in the same room without conflict, simply because you willed it. Queen M’Tek ate your food, at your table. This was an enormous achievement. You must know that,” she insisted. I nodded, grudgingly. “Why don’t you tell me why you’re really upset,” she suggested. Involuntarily, I sighed. “It’s my cousin, right?” she asked. “She finally explained about Sarane,” she continued.

  Suddenly I wanted Pet to go away, to let me be alone with the horses and Faira, to not make me put into words what I was feeling, but she wasn’t leaving. In fact, she took a step closer, and in a moment I was afraid she might actually touch me, possibly even embrace me. This fear focused my thoughts.