Must Be Magic

by Lani Aames

  “As much as I’d love to right now, we won’t have time to explore exactly how much. The Gnome, Gomit, said we needed to get out of here as quickly as possible. The Troll—I think his name is Tredje—would be checking on you before he goes to bed.”

  Myghal groaned as he straightened his legs.

  “I’m not sure why. By the size of these tunnels, the Troll isn’t much bigger than the Gnome. It seems to me you and I could handle him.”

  Myghal shook his arms to get circulation back into them. “Trolls are mean little bastards. They have magic all their own and no ethics to keep it in check. That’s why the old Faerie Queen—and the Faeries aren’t known for their morality, so you can imagine how bad the Trolls are—banished the Trolls to this realm. Their magic is severely limited here and keeps them where they can do the least amount of damage. But they still have control of some magic.”

  Kerry massaged his legs. “If the Faeries are the ones who banished the Trolls, why would a Troll help them prevent you from going back into your realm? Why would a Troll help a Faerie?”

  “The Trolls are still in service to the Faeries and are required to do their bidding when called upon.”

  Kerry nodded. All of this was supposed to make perfect sense. She supposed it did…in some other dimension.

  "How did they capture you?"

  "When the last customer left--"

  "The tall brunette?" Kerry couldn't help but ask.

  He nodded. "She didn't seem to want to leave, but I finally made her understand it was closing time."

  Kerry thought he sounded exasperated rather than flattered by the attention. She bit her lip to keep from grinning like an idiot.

  Myghal stretched out one leg then the other. "They had strung rope across one of the walkways, and I tripped. I caught a glimpse of Tredje before he knocked me out. When I came to, I was here and all tied up."

  “Gomit said you have to return to Pixieland by the Equinox. He didn’t say why, though.” Kerry's elation dissipated. She was afraid to hear the answer to her next question. She had a feeling it wasn’t going to be an answer she liked. “When you go, you’ll be gone for good, won’t you?”

  Myghal reached for her, placing a hand at her neck and drawing her closer. He kissed her, his lips possessing hers. Tears filled her eyes. This is good-bye, isn’t it? One last burning kiss to carry with her the rest of her life. When they broke apart, gasping for breath, Myghal rested his head against hers.

  Kerry didn’t wait for his answer. She jerked away, knocking his hand aside. She tried to scramble back, but Myghal lunged for her. He caught her and they rolled together across the chamber floor. When they stopped, Myghal was on top, straddling her, pinning her to the dirt with her arms raised over her head.

  “Let me go!” she said between gritted teeth as she struggled to get the big lug off of her. “What’s the point? You’re leaving and that’s that.”

  “You didn’t let me finish, love,” Myghal said softly.

  “What does it matter? What were you going to say? Something like—Hey, next time you’re in the woods and find a pixie ring, wave and say hi.”

  She tried to wrench her arms free from his grip, but he was holding her too tightly.

  “No, I was going to explain why I need to return to my realm by the Equinox…and why you’ll be coming with me.”

  When the words sank in, Kerry froze. She could see his face by the beam of the flashlight, and he didn’t look like he was teasing her.

  “You— You want me to…visit?” she stammered. She never thought he would want her to go with him or that she would even be welcome in his realm.

  “No, I want you to come with me and be my wife.”

  Kerry’s mouth worked, but no sound came out. Had she heard him correctly? Was he asking her to marry him?

  He slid his hands into hers as he spread his length over hers. She still held the saltshaker in one hand, and it was trapped between their palms as he entwined his fingers with hers.

  “The truth is I have to be married by the Equinox for Pixieland to retain its independence from the Faeries. But,” he murmured as his mouth came close to hers again, “you’re the only woman I want for my Princess. Will you marry me, Kerry O’Neill?”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Marry him? Going from never seeing him again to marrying him gave her mental whiplash. She hadn’t considered marriage. At all. They’d only known each other a few days. How could they even think about marriage?

  He had to marry by the Equinox to save Pixieland…but she was the only woman he wanted to be his Princess. What should she do?

  “I know everything is moving too fast.” His heartfelt apology touched her. “I wish I had time to court you like you deserve. But I can promise you I’ll do everything within my power to make you happy. The palace gardens will be yours to do with as you will. And we can visit this realm whenever you like.”

  “Gardens?”

  He grinned. “The palace is surrounded by gardens, filled with every flower and herb imaginable—and some not imagined in this realm. We’ll rule Pixieland together, but the gardens will be yours.”

  The thought of expansive gardens, a sea of colorful flowers and blooming herbs, tempted her. But a marriage couldn’t survive on the promise of a garden alone.

  “What— What will happen if I say no?”

  “My heart will break,” Myghal said. “If I don’t marry, Pixieland will revert to the Faerie kingdom. The Faerie folk would invade, and the Faerie Guard would police us. We would wither under their rule. Are you saying no, Kerry? If you say no, I’ll have to return to the Faerie realm and marry to save my princedom. I have to do this for my people. But I’ll never forget you, Kerry, and I’ll never love another, not even the one who would be my Princess. You are the other half of my heart.”

  Kerry’s eyes filled with tears again, but this time because of what she felt for Myghal. If she never saw him again, her heart would break as well.

  “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

  “Are you sure, Kerry?” he asked, but he was smiling.

  She nodded. “I’m not sure what I’m getting into, but I do know what I feel for you is real.”

  “Good.” He kissed her again, a lingering fusion of their lips that left her breathless. When he pulled away, he touched her face. “We probably should get out of here before the Troll comes.”

  “Yes, we should.”

  Myghal helped her sit up. Only then did she remember the saltshaker. She handed it to him and showed him how to remove the top.

  “Gomit said you would need this. But I can’t imagine what you can do with salt.”

  He stuck his finger into the salt crystals and touched them to his tongue. He became more excited than when she’d agreed to marry him.

  “Do you know what this is?” he asked incredulously.

  “It’s salt.”

  He laughed. “It’s Pixie dust in its raw form.”

  “Salt is Pixie dust?”

  “And Faerie dust. Pixieland supplies the Faeries with their dust. That’s why King Norfe wants control over us, so he can control the dust. But what none of the Faeries or other folk know is that dust isn’t mined in Pixieland. It comes from here, your realm.”

  “We supply you with Pixie dust?” Kerry had momentary visions of mining conglomerates shipping truckloads of salt to Pixieland.

  “The Gnomes do. They were always soldiers, but after the Realm Wars ended, they started mining these crystals for us to use with our magic. The crystals have to be reconditioned and charmed, but—”

  A thud reverberated through the tunnels, and Kerry heard a gruff voice shout, “On your feet, you clumsy git.”

  “The Troll is coming,” she whispered anxiously. “Can you use the salt to get us out of here?”

  “Not like this. I have to change the matrix and charm it. It will take a few moments. Can you keep the Troll distracted until it’s done?”

  “Sure,” Kerry said, but she wasn’t sure a
t all.

  Myghal poured the salt into his palm and cupped his other hand over it. His face pinched in concentration, and a pale white light, growing stronger as she watched, glowed through his fingers.

  Footsteps sounded just outside the doorway. She didn’t know how to keep the Troll occupied, but blocking the doorway would be a start. She crawled forward and when she reached the opening, she looked up into a misshapen face—sunken muddy black eyes, a twisted bulbous nose, and a lipless slit for a mouth revealing mismatched and discolored teeth. It was the ugliest face she’d ever seen.

  The Troll lifted his lantern. “Well, now, what have we here?” he growled.

  “What do you want?” Kerry snapped.

  “You’re an intruder in me home and ye ask what I want?” He jerked his chin to indicate the chamber behind Kerry. “Gomit, get in there and see that the Pixie is still secured. I’ll take care of the human.”

  The Troll reached out one stubby hand, aiming a blunt finger at her. She felt a pull behind her navel, then she was jerked through the doorway and slammed against the opposite tunnel wall.

  Dazed, Kerry watch as Gomit, moving slowly, entered the tunnel. He glanced back at her, and she thought she saw him wink. Then the Troll was in her face, his lantern raised high.

  “If ye weren’t so damn ugly, I’d keep ye for my wife-slave after I send the Pixie Prince back to his own realm.” His fetid breath washed over her and she gagged, shrinking back from him as far as she could. “But I can’t stand the look of ye. I’ll have to get rid of ye for knowing too much about me bridge.”

  Before she could tell him the feeling was mutual, sparkles in the air caught her eye. They glittered in the lantern light and floated down around the Troll. He gasped and his eyes widened when they came within his view. “What th—?”

  Before he could finish the sentence, his body went stiff. Just as he started to topple over, Myghal plucked the lantern from his grasp, and the Troll fell with a solid thunk.

  Myghal helped her to sit up. “He’ll be all right. In a couple of days.”

  Kerry grinned. “What about Gomit?”

  “I’m here, Lady Kerry.” The little Gnome, not nearly as ugly when compared to the Troll, appeared in the doorway. “You’d both best be off now. Tredje had received a message by Sprite that more Trolls are on their way because the Thane isn’t pleased with the way Tredje is handling the situation. They could arrive at any time.”

  “You’re right, Sir Gomit.” Myghal flashed him a smile. “I thank you, and all the Pixies thank you for your help.”

  Gomit bowed. “It’s been a privilege and an honor to serve in my small way.”

  Myghal looked at her. “Are you ready to go with me into the Faerie Realm?”

  “What about Gomit? Won’t Tredje and the other Trolls think it’s strange if Gomit isn’t unconscious or something? I wouldn’t want him to get in trouble.”

  “Never fear, Lady. The Prince has charmed a little dust for me.”

  Myghal laughed. “He’ll be unconscious with bruises and cuts all over him, but without the pain. They’ll think he put up a good fight.”

  Gomit leaned closer to Myghal. “An excellent choice, my liege. She cares about those who serve. The mark of a true Princess.”

  Kerry blushed, but Myghal nodded and clapped him on the back.

  Once again, Kerry heard sounds—this time, loud voices ranting and raving—echo through the tunnels.

  “It’s time, my liege,” Gomit whispered.

  “Are you ready, Kerry? Transportation will feel strange, but it will be over almost instantaneously.”

  She nodded that she understood.

  “Hold my hand. You’ll experience complete darkness, but it will be over in a moment.” He looked at her questioningly, as if asking if she’d be all right.

  She nodded and did as he directed, intertwining her fingers firmly with his. Then he threw a bit of dust over them, and sparkles filled the air, each miniscule crystal shimmering and glinting in the lantern light. The crystals coalesced into a swirl that whipped around them both. Her bones felt loose and a sharp sensation sank to the pit of her stomach. Then all went dark.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Kerry walked along the path of rose-pink stone through the wildest part of the vast gardens that surrounded the Palace. Here, indigenous plants were allowed to flourish and overflow every available space. The garden was a riot of color and the air scented as sweetly as a perfumery with every plant in full bloom even thought it was only the first day of spring.

  Her wedding had been as magical as any childhood fantasy. Whisked away by Pixie dust to a land somewhere over the Rainbow—as good a description as any, as far as she was concerned—the wedding had taken place immediately. No one needed to fill out a form to get a license.

  She wore a wedding dress straight out of a fairy-tale, a frothy confection of iridescent white, shimmering with every color of the rainbow whenever she moved. The longest points of the uneven handkerchief hem barely reached her ankles, the shortest her knees. She’d been crowned with a circlet of white and blue roses. And she’d already seen beds of blue roses, all shades from palest sky blue to deepest indigo.

  Blue roses were a genetic impossibility in her world.

  How strange that even as a child she’d never envisioned being swept off her feet by a prince and taken to his castle…er, palace. She had always pretended to slay the dragon, find the treasure, and save the kingdom…er, princedom. Yet, here she was, the only human—as far as she knew—to marry a prince and become a fairy princess…er, Pixie Princess.

  She’d slain no dragons—Myghal said they lived deep in Wildwood, the dark and forbidding forest that separated Pixieland from the Faerie Kingdom—but by marrying a Prince she’d saved the princedom.

  And the only treasure she ever wanted was Myghal.

  Princess Kerry turned to find her husband, Prince Myghal, a few steps behind her. He was devastatingly handsome in fawn-colored leggings and a billowy-sleeved shirt made of the same soft-as-cotton but iridescent material as her gown. Their ceremony had been performed in a Pixie circle, witnessed by most of the good folk of Pixieland, and presided over by Chancellor Malthe. Myghal’s friend Sirrin had served as his best man, and Sirrin’s sister had acted as her maid of honor. They were called by different terms, but the meanings were the same.

  At the conclusion, they’d been showered with a cloud of glittering, sparkling Pixie dust that had been charmed to bring them all kinds of good luck, good fortune, and bright blessings. Kerry had watched the sunlight play off the bits of crystal, knowing in its raw form it was simply salt mined from the earth in her realm by the Gnomes. That was a royal secret, of course.

  While everyone had danced to wild Pixie music and drunk dandelion wine and honeymead, she and Myghal had slipped away to be alone. The gardens were empty. Everyone, including the gardeners, were celebrating the royal marriage and the saving of Pixieland.

  “Are you happy?” Myghal asked as he caught up to her.

  She nodded and melted into his arms. She was happy, satisfied, contented. This was an entirely different world, but she felt up to the challenge of trying to fit in and be a princess. With Myghal to help her, everything would turn out all right. He had said they could visit her realm any time she wanted. She had family and friends she needed to explain to…somehow.

  “I wish Gomit could have been here. Without him, none of this would have happened.”

  “In time to save Pixieland,” Myghal amended. “I would have made you my wife, regardless.”

  Kerry kissed him, a lip-searing kiss that aroused her. It had the same effect on Myghal. She felt his cock stir through their layers of clothing.

  “Do you think he’ll be all right? That the Trolls will believe his story?”

  “In case you didn’t notice, Trolls aren’t the smartest of creatures. Tredje was typical. Mean and self-centered but dim. They’ll believe Gomit because they believe Gnomes to be worthless.”

>   “They wouldn’t hurt him, would they?”

  “No, because that would require effort. Even if they decided to, I have faith Gomit will talk them out of it. Gnomes are quite glib.”

  “It’s a very good thing the Pixies did them a kindness in the past, so that Gomit was there to help us. He said no one really remembered because it happened so long ago. Do you know what the Pixies did for the Gnomes to win their allegiance?”

  Myghal thought a moment. “Ah, yes, I remember the story. A Pixie Princess fell in love with a Gnome soldier.”

  Kerry stepped back, her eyes widened in disbelief. The Pixies were enough like humans that they could pass in her realm with no difficulty. But Gnomes, if they were all like Gomit, were quite different. “Are you sure about that?”

  Myghal grinned. “Well, it’s said he was uncommonly tall and handsome for a Gnome, and she was exceptionally short and plain for a Pixie. She was the youngest of a large brood of the Prince’s offspring, and therefore not in line to inherit the princedom. And because she wasn’t the most beauteous, to put it kindly, her father despaired of ever marrying her off and eagerly gave his blessing. The Gnomes, fearing the wrath of the Pixies over one of their kind having the audacity to ask for a Princess in marriage, were greatly relieved and swore their allegiance to the Pixies for forever and a day.”

  When Kerry had moved back, she’d stepped off the pink stone path and into a bed of wild mint. The tender leaves, warmed by the sun and crushed beneath her feet, released a cool crisp scent that wafted around them on the light breeze. She caught Myghal’s hand and drew him into the center of the bed of mint and into her arms. Her hand slid down between their bodies and found the hard length of his cock. It swelled at her touch.

  “You know, we have yet to consummate this marriage,” Kerry whispered. “In my world, a marriage isn’t a true marriage unless it’s consummated.”

  “The same is true here.” Myghal sounded as if he fought for breath, and his fingers skimmed the neckline of her bodice. “Our marriage won’t be recognized as legitimate until we complete the union.”