Seelie Princess (The Crown of Tír na nÓg Book 1)

by Sarah Tanzmann

  “And what do you think now?”

  “The faerie world is not my place, but I don’t belong to my old home anymore, either.”

  “You don’t believe that, do you? Because you are part of the Seelie Court,” Fay said, squeezing Kayla’s hand a bit tighter. “Even more than it seemed. That crown is a burden I do not wish to carry, and now the burden is yours.”

  Kayla leaned closer toward Fay. “It’s only one of many now.” If someone had told her a while back that she was not only a faerie but also a princess, she would’ve laughed right in their face. All she had wanted was her dad, but she’d gotten a lot more than she bargained for.

  “It’s not too late for me to do the ceremony,” Fay said, tracing small circles on Kayla’s hand with her thumb. “When we get back to the Seelie Court, I can do it.”

  “Would it change anything? I’m still heir to the crown as well and Oilibhéar said it, Titania will make sure I get that crown and rule her way. She’ll kill both you and Ophira if she has to.” With a shudder, Kayla remembered Fay’s bloodless face staring up at her, and it made her sick to the stomach.

  Fay’s hand stilled on Kayla’s. “My fear of the ceremony led to this, but… I couldn’t do it. It would’ve changed me, would’ve changed my blood and who I am. It would’ve separated the last tie that still bound me to my mother.”

  Kayla nodded. “I would never want to give up memories of my father. Even taking off his watch… it was all I had left of him.” Now it was stuffed into her pouch, tucked away like all the things of him that were left.

  Kayla untangled her hand from Fay’s, wiped a tear from her cheek, and touched the necklace at her throat with shaking fingers. She was getting used to the constant beating. “Titania wanted me and she wanted whatever this necklace can do.” More tears were trickling down Kayla’s cheeks but she let them. “And because of that, Titania killed him… he didn’t deserve that.”

  Fay took Kayla’s hand back into hers, pulling her closer to her side. “No, he didn’t,” she said. “We can’t bring back the dead, but Titania will pay for what she’s done to all of us.”

  The necklace at Kayla’s throat beat even faster now. “I always believed I’d see my father again,” she said. “I-I miss him s-so much…”

  “It’s okay to miss him. But even without knowing him, he sounds like a great father and—” Fay’s voice broke off and she drew in some air. “I think he wouldn’t want you to blame yourself.”

  A laugh escaped Kayla through all the tears. “He always knew how to pick me up when I was feeling d-down. Just like you.” She tried to suppress another sob. “Y-You know what’s the worst part about him being gone?”

  Fay pressed her to her side. “No, tell me.”

  “After the night he vanished, everyone said he was dead, but I never believed them,” Kayla said, tears streaming down her face. “And I refused to go to his f-funeral, because funerals are for d-dead people.” Even more tears burst from her eyes and she tried to stop them, but so many years of grief were breaking through the wall she’d built up around it. “My mom wouldn’t listen and she dragged me there. I ran off and I-I…”

  Fay held her tight. “You’ve never had your chance to say goodbye.”

  “N-No.” She buried her face at Fay’s shoulder.

  “Would you wish to say goodbye now?”

  Kayla looked up at Fay through blurry eyes. She couldn’t read Fay’s expression.

  “It’s not the same as a human funeral,” Fay said, “but we have this ceremony for loved ones we’ve lost. Do you… I mean, only if you want to.”

  “Yes.”

  Fay pulled away a little and retrieved a tiny packet from her pouch. “Each faerie carries the seed of Sochána with them,” she said as she opened the packet and took out a single seed. “Whenever a Seelie dies, there will be a public funeral where all of the court attends. But this,” she beckoned at the seed, “this is more personal. It is something you do alone, in the quiet, to mourn the person you’ve lost.”

  “How does it work?” Kayla asked. The flow of tears had finally abated, the last of them silently trickling down her cheeks.

  “You plant it.” Fay glanced around the cave. “I know this place is not ideal… we usually do this close to our home. But I don’t think this would work in the mortal world.”

  Kayla scooted closer. “It’s okay,” she said. “This place is neither Tír na nÓg, nor the mortal world, right?”

  Fay nodded.

  “Then it’s somewhere between the two worlds I’m from,” Kayla said. “My dad would like to have his memorial here.”

  Fay’s eyes glimmered in the light of the flames. “I think so too.” She scrambled onto her knees, her free hand testing the ground. “Here’s a good spot.” As she began to dig away soil, Kayla leaned in to help her.

  Once there was a little hollow in the ground, Fay placed the seed into it and smoothed the soil over it.

  “But wait.” Kayla clasped Fay’s shoulder with her dirt-covered hand. “There’s no sunlight in here. The plant will never grow.”

  Fay picked Kayla’s hand off her shoulder and moved it over the tiny heap of soil. “Can you feel it?”

  “Feel what?” Kayla asked, but in the same moment she detected a buzz of energy coming from the ground. The pendant at her throat responded with a thud. As the buzz grew more pronounced, the soil split open and revealed a green stem. It wriggled and writhed until it was about four inches tall and a little bud had formed at its head.

  “One day soon,” Fay said, “this will be one of the most beautiful flowers.”

  Kayla looked down at the plain stem. It was the prettiest thing she’d ever seen. Fresh tears welled up in her eyes and she nuzzled up at Fay’s shoulder.

  “We’ll find the Elder Tree,” Fay said and brushed a kiss on Kayla’s head. “And once Titania’s defeated, you and Abby and your family will be safe again.”

  They sat in mutual silence, the only sound coming from the crackle of the fire. As Kayla watched her dad’s flower grow, a heaviness was lifted from her heart.

  The past nine years Kayla had spent in a haze, each waking moment thinking about her dad, hoping to see him again one day. To have him back in her life, the way it used to be. And somehow through all this pain of missing him, aching for him, she’d forgotten how to live.

  Now she drew the first real breath in years.

  More magical stories await

  The best part about being a writer is to communicate with my readers. For that purpose, I’ve set up a newsletter which I’ll occasionally send out with information on upcoming new releases or special offers.

  If you’d like to become part of my mailing list, I’ll send you two completely free short stories as a small thanks.

  The King’s Daughters (a prequel short story)

  In this first short tale about the Fair Folk, the Faerie King of Tír na nÓg is caught in a battle between his two warring daughters, Titania and Ophira. As one strives to bring down her father, the other is plotting her revenge against her scheming sister. The king now has a fateful decision to make because he can only save one of his daughters.

  Aoife (an exclusive short story)

  Before Fay was the Seelie Princess, she was a normal teenager and the daughter of two loving parents. When her name was still Aoife, she had to learn what it means to be a faerie—and how to live her life among mortals.

  Sign up here to receive your free short stories.

  Happy reading!

  Sarah

  Enjoyed this book?

  I hope you have enjoyed reading Kayla and Fay’s story as much as I enjoyed writing about them. It means the world to me that you took the time to go on this journey to the land of Tír na nÓg, and I’d love to hear about your experience.

  Even a short review can go a long way.

  When you’re on the hunt for your next favorite book, chances are that you check Amazon or Goodreads for recommendations. I certainly do. And you probab
ly find yourself drawn to books with a fair number of reviews. For a newbie author like me, reviews can be crucial to get my book in front of readers who would love the kind of stories I’m writing. Apart from helping to persuade people to give a new writer a shot, reviews help drive early sales, which in turn will give the book more visibility.

  So if you’ve enjoyed this book, I would be very grateful if you could spare a few minutes and leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads.

  Thank you!

  Acknowledgements

  Even after all the writing I’ve done, getting these words on the page was challenging. Five years ago, when I started this journey, I never thought I would make it this far. Fear was a constant companion, but with the help of many wonderful people, I kept working toward my goal. And finally it’s time to say: thank you!

  First, I want to thank Angela Fristoe, who created this stunning cover that I fell in love with at first sight. It’s everything I ever dreamed of and so much more. Thanks to my editor Lindsay York, this book is as pretty on the inside as it is on the outside.

  Thank you to Write Now, the Vienna Storytelling Collective, and the Creative Writing Café, who not only introduced me to my writers group (and amazing writers from abroad. Hi Lenny!), but who offered me an open and supportive space. To Keith Gray, who reminded me that the first step of being a writer is to write.

  To my friends Tamara, Mara, and Coco for believing in me when I didn’t. You never doubted I would finish this book, and you always supported me as a writer. And a special thank you to Tabea for loving Kayla and Fay’s relationship (#Fayla) as much as I do. It’s about ten years late, but now we both have the love story we would have needed then.

  Anna, my best friend since childhood, who was my first fan and who always supported my dream to be a writer. With you, I could always be me, and our friendship transcends time and space—just like Kayla and Abby’s friendship.

  My writing would still be in its baby shoes if it weren’t for my fantastic writers group. Stef, you always took special care of all my grammar and spelling mistakes. MT, with your help, I managed to create well-rounded characters and emotional scenes (which made me cry even on the tenth time reading them). John, thank you for your help on…at…by…with the prepositions (pick one). And Kathi, my very first reader, who asked the really important questions. Thank you all for your valuable feedback, your time and patience, and, above all, your unwavering support. Life keeps getting in the way of our writing, but we always find time for each other. We may have started out as a writers group, but we’ve become so much more. I hope we get to spend many more years doing what we all love.

  Of course I wouldn’t even have made it to the day I met my writers group without my family’s support when I left for the big city. My sister taught me that there was so much more to see in the world. And Mom, I’m especially grateful that you always let me pursue my dreams. It means the world to me. Dad, I’m glad we finally reconnected and I hope you’re proud of what I achieved.

  To my partner, who gave me the strength to keep going when I had none left. Without you, I would’ve never been brave enough to let go and release this story into the world. You took my fear and transformed it into bravery.

  And lastly, to the person this book is dedicated to. Grandma, thank you for the stories you told and the books you gave me. You made me fall in love with storytelling and you always valued the power of books. Now it’s time I create my own stories.

  About the Author

  Sarah Tanzmann is a Young Adult fiction writer and author of SEELIE PRINCESS. An avid fantasy reader since childhood and an advocate for queer literature, Sarah opens up new and diverse worlds filled with magic and faerie dust. Sarah has a BA in English and is always on the lookout for writing workshops to hone her skills and connect with fellow writers. She lives and works out of her home in the center of Vienna, Austria, and travels the world with her partner whenever possible. Sarah is always excited about photos of a cat’s toe beans, so send them her way!

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