by G. Bailey
My mates stand around Sage, and Ambrose at the side of them next to my sister. Izora sings loudly in her white jeans and crop top, her waves of silver hair falling around her as she claps her hands. Beside her are Willow and Jane, clapping as she smiles at me.
Jane and I had a long way to go after the war, but we soon found out we are more alike than we knew. And even if Jane annoys the heck out of me most of the time, she is damn smart and good at negotiating with dark creatures and fae alike. I needed a royal advisor to help me and she was perfect for the job. The rest is history. I would even go as far as to call her a good friend now.
The rest of the room is filled with my old teachers that survived the war, the light and dark fae I got to know over the years, and even Zander’s dad…which is a whole other story that has a lot to do with Izora’s mates who aren’t here. When the song ends, they wait for me to say something and I’m speechless for a moment.
“Thank you so much, everyone,” I start off, clasping my hands together and looking out at the statue of my mother for some encouragement. Echo snoozing on top of the statue, now bored with the celebrations, makes me smile. “I never once believed I would be lucky enough to find love and have a family again, but here you all are,” I say. “You’re better than anything I could have dreamed about. There are so many I wish were here with us right now, but I know they are watching us from the stars. I love each and every one of you, so thank you for being in my life. For loving me. For being the light in my darkness…”
I stop and wipe my eyes, shocked that I’m actually crying in front of them. My mates surround me in seconds, holding me tightly until I calm down.
“Out of the way, pregnant lady coming through,” Sage commands, and my mates, the kings of the dark fae, move their asses like a wasp just stung them.
They haven’t said it, but I think pregnancy scares the living daylights out of them all, and me too a little bit. It doesn’t mean I don’t think of having children, because I do.
One of the biggest changes I made in my time as queen is the rule that shadowborn children have to be taken from their parents to a foster home. The new rules state that parents can move into the dark fae kingdom with their child if they wish, and if not, the child will be brought up in the new and massively improved foster homes in my city—not the ones hidden in the human world. I regularly visit the ones here and bring the children gifts and food, as well as paying the dark fae who looks after them like their own. No more shadowborn children are going to grow up feeling unwanted.
Sage hugs me and I savour the embrace as everyone in the room starts settling into the glorious feast laid out.
“How are you feeling?” I ask her, instantly touching her belly like I always do.
Sage’s hands cover mine over the bump and she shrugs. “Weird today. I can’t put my finger on why, though. I believe it’s time I move into the castle for the birth if you still want me.”
“Yes!” I practically shout at her, grinning wildly. “Besides, you can’t give birth at the academy, Headmistress Milhouse.”
The new headmistress of the academy only grumbles at me, not liking that her deputy head, Willow, will be taking over for eight months while Sage gives birth and spends alone time with the baby. I know I will be sad when Sage, David, and the baby move back into the academy, but I will be visiting all of the time.
When we reopened the academy, it was a no brainer who should be taking control and looking after the students. Sage is a very powerful Light Fae now and with David at her side as headmaster, and a good mixture of shadowborn and fae teachers, the academy has never been as strong as it is now.
Sage links her arm with mine and we go to help ourselves to food. After eating as much as I can possibly manage, I sit back in my seat and watch how my family, my friends, and everyone I love fills the room with laughter and joy. It’s perfect here in every sense of the word. I couldn’t think of a more wonderful way to start my mid-twenties.
Zander steps behind my chair, resting his hands on my shoulders. “I want to show you my gift. Will you come with me, my queen?”
“Is that where you and Gage went last night?” I stand up and wrap my arms around him.
Zander winks at me as he shadowlocates us out into the stables at the back of the castle. I frown at him as I look around the three empty stalls and Zander gently grabs my hand, leading me down the aisle to the stall at the end. Inside is a truly stunning and elegant black Shire that towers over us. Its silver eyes and mane have blue tints to them as the sunlight shines through the doors. I place my hand on his head, and he neighs at me, kicking his legs.
“We spent four weeks negotiating with fae traders for him,” Zander says, stroking a hand down the horse’s neck. “They wanted so many things that involved going through swamps and such… Anyway, he’s yours. What do you think? It’s the main gift from your mates. Happy Birthday.”
I jump into Zander’s arms, raining kisses down on him as he picks me up. He chuckles before kissing me hard and passionately. I wrap my legs around him as he pushes me harder against the wall outside the stall, his hard cock pressing into me through the thin fabric of my leggings. Using magic, I make all our clothes disappear, and in seconds Zander easily slides inside of me, filling me up. I moan against his lips as he thrusts in and out, using the wall to hold us up.
“Fuck, Corvina, to this day you drive me insane!” Zander groans against my lips as I get closer to my release. The mixture of my nipples rubbing against his hard chest, the way his trusts hit the right spot every single time is addictive.
“Zander….I….love….you,” I moan each word out as I crash into an orgasm, tightening around Zander’s cock.
He moans as he feels me come and his tongue dives into my mouth, sparring with my own. He thrusts one more time and fills me with his cum. Breathless, we stare at each other and he softly strokes the side of my cheek.
“I love you so damn much, Corvina Charles. I will always love you.”
I kiss him again, pushing all my emotions and love into the kiss. I don’t know how long we stay like that, entwined, holding each other, before I sense someone arriving. I pull away from Zander and reach for my dress, only to see Gage walking into the stables. He doesn’t even blink as Zander lets me go and I use my magic to put my clothes back on. When I see his eyes, I know something is wrong.
“Sage is in labour and it’s too early. The healers are with her now but she needs you,” Gage says and I rush to him, fear and panic pounding in my mind. We always knew Sage’s pregnancy might not be normal because she was forcibly made into a Light Fae and she’s shadowborn. Nobody knows what her baby will be or how the birth will affect Sage.
Selena, please keep her safe.
“Take me,” I say as I reach for Gage’s hand.
Gods, I can’t lose my best friend.
I pace around the room, my steps echoing in the corridor as I wait for the healers to come out and give an update. They asked to be alone with Sage to do a healing spell after nearly forty-eight hours of labour and no sign of the baby yet. David is sitting on the floor in a state, my mates are pacing at either end of the corridors, and Izora is trying to comfort everyone with no luck.
The doors finally open and two healers step out, leaving Sage alone in the room. David doesn’t wait, rushing in as the healer with blue hair a similar colour to mine, bows at me, and starts to speak.
“We have delivered the baby safely. Both mother and babe are doing well but Sage is weak. We will go and gather healing supplies,” she says, just then I hear the small cry of a baby.
I burst into tears and hug the surprised healer before rushing into the room with Izora behind me.
Sitting on a huge bed that dwarfs her tiny size, Sage looks down at the baby wrapped in a white blanket in her arms.
David kneels next to the bed, kissing Sage’s other hand, and I slowly walk over to look down at the tiny bundle in her arms.
“Vina, meet your niece,” Sage softly says,
handing me the bundle. “Nieve Corvina Milhouse.”
My tears splash on Nieve’s blanket as I look at her little button nose, her black wisps of hair, and bright pink eyes that look up at me.
“She is beautiful. Her name means heaven, right?” Izora asks, leaning over my shoulder to gaze down at Nieve.
“Yes,” Sage says, glancing at David who’s crying silent tears of relief and love. “I named her after David’s mother who sadly died. Her middle name is after the bravest woman I have ever known.”
“I love you,” I tell her as I gently pass Nieve back and slide onto the bed beside her. Nieve’s little hand reaches out of the blanket and I gently place my finger next to her hand. The second she touches me, darkness slams into my mind, and as a vision blasts through me.
“Nieve, wait up!” A boy about eight with deep black hair shouts as he runs through the trees. He has black trousers and a white top on, with a small sword clipped to a belt on his waist. The boy isn’t alone. At his side is a younger boy with blonde hair in similar clothes and it’s clear they are brothers. They have almost the same faces and they are so familiar to me as if I’ve seen them before. The way the little boy looks up at the older one is a look only a brother can give.
The boys step into a beautiful meadow where Nieve dances around in the middle of the air. Her long black hair sways around her, white wings fluttering ever so softly at her back. Flowers and wisps fly around the children like they know each other well as the sun shines down on the clearing. There is magic here. Good, pure magic.
The older boy, who has black wings like Pitch, flies into the air, and the younger boy who has wings just like mine, follows after him. The children all laugh and chuckle as they dance to no music. I oddly feel emotional as I stare at them.
Turning my head, I see two people coming out of the trees close to me. It’s myself, but I’m older, and next to me is Sage. We hold hands as we stare at the children.
“I’m so happy my boys love your daughter so much. They will keep each other safe always,” I say to her, and the future version of myself glances my way with a wink. I turn back to the boys who are my future sons, joy making my heart soar, and I watch them play until the vision drifts away.
I wake up on my bed, moonlight trickling into the room. Gage is softly stroking my hair. I smile up at him when he sees I’m awake.
“What happened in the vision?” he asks me in a whisper as I sit up and crawl into his arms. “We have all been worried.”
Remembering the children playing together, my oldest boy couldn’t have been more than a year younger than Nieve, so I must get pregnant soon. Or possibly I already am. When was my last period? Now I think about it, my visions have never been this strong before or in the daytime at all. I would usually get visions at night.
Smiling about my maybe secret, I burrow my face into Gage’s neck and kiss him softly in the spot I know he loves. His hands tighten on my waist as I kiss up to his neck to his lips, covering them with mine.
He groans and tugs me harder against him. Undoing his trousers, I kiss him harder. Using magic, I get rid of all of our clothes and lean back onto Gage’s cock.
He slowly slides inside me, fitting me perfectly as his thumb rolls on my clit. I play with my own nipples as I ride his cock, loving every second of having him inside me. Gage growls and picks me up, placing me on my back and driving right back inside me with one smooth movement. His lips devour my own as he thrusts hard in and out of me, drawing me closer to the edge of ecstasy. I curl my toes as the pressure becomes too much, and I crash into an orgasm. Gage continues to slam into me, making it more intense as he smothers my moans with his lips. I moan as he drives in one last time, spilling his cum inside of me, his eyes blazoned with lust.
“You’re too good at distracting me, Vina,” Gage groans as he rolls off me and I chuckle. “Too damn good.”
“I will tell all of you tomorrow about the vision. Are Sage and Nieve okay?” I ask as he covers us with a blanket.
Pitch is the one that answers me as he shadowlocates into the room. “I just checked on them and they are doing well,” he says. “Izora had to return to Vasili, so Zander and Jonah are staying guard outside Sage’s room until you come back. We all knew you would want someone you trust watching them until they feel better.”
I sigh with relief. My mates know me so well.
“Now, what happened in your vision?” Pitch demands, but instead of answering, I lean up and kiss him.
I’m the master of distraction after all.
The ruins of my childhood home surround me, filling my heart with sadness and regret. I haven’t been here since Keeper Maddox suggested I say goodbye before going to the academy. That was over six years ago now and so much in my life has changed.
I competed in the Fae Tryouts, I fought in a war and won, I became the Dark Fae Queen of Zorya, and I have four incredible men at my side. I also gained friends as well as sisters, and I even met my birth parents before they died. But the most amazing thing of all is the news I have come to tell the man and woman who raised me.
“Hey Mum, hey Dad,” I whisper, placing the wreathed flowers on the gravestone I had made for them. It was Gage’s idea, and although I’d wept like a child when I came back here for the first time, I’m happy I did it; it’s nice to have something beautiful within all the wreckage.
“When I was a kid,” I tell them quietly, “I used to have a dream that I was a princess who lived in the sky. Do you remember? Dad, you built me a treehouse in the garden and we painted clouds and rainbows over it. Although my clouds looked like snowmen.” A quiet laugh escapes me and pained tears well in my eyes. “I wish you were both here so I could tell you this in person.”
Taking a deep breath, I glance at the sky, about to say the words out loud for the first time, but movement in the trees stops me. I turn to see Wren landing on a branch. Rook and Crowe follow her, and the three of them squawk in encouragement.
“I’m going to have a baby,” I tell my parents, smiling at the gravestone. I place a hand proudly on my stomach. “I’m only a few weeks but I already have so much love for my little soybean. I’m more nervous than excited, though. I can’t sleep or think straight. Did you both feel like that when you adopted me?” No one but the wind answers me and my smile fades. “I’ve lost two sets of parents before I got the chance to become a parent myself. I’m worried I’ll make a mistake, or I’ll not be a good enough mum.”
“You will be as great a mother as you are a queen,” Wren says, and I glance back to see her spreading her wings out in a bow.
“We are proud of you, Your Majesty,” Rook adds, his voice thick with emotion.
“Yes, very proud.” Crowe hops excitedly on the branch. “And your birth and adoptive parents would be just as proud of you, too. We are sure of it.”
I blink the tears away and nod at them. “Thank you. If it wasn’t for you guys, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now. I’m so lucky to call you my friends.”
Rook and Crowe bow along with Wren.
“Always,” they say in unison.
Branches snap behind us, and a gust of wind lifts my hair onto the breeze. My guys emerge from the shadows, each one looking as worried as the next. Pitch’s red eyes land on me and then on the gravestone. Slowly, the redness fades and his eyes turn gold again. He nods once, giving me a pained smile.
I place a hand on the gravestone, hugging my parents the only way I can, and stand on my feet. The tightness in my chest has gone and I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off me. I can breathe again. I’m so glad that I came here.
“Corvina,” Zander whispers, rushing over to me. “We woke and you were gone.”
“Are you alright?” Jonah demands, sweeping his eyes over me. His gaze lands on my hand pressed on my stomach.
“I just wanted to tell my parents the good news,” I say, looking at them,
Gage steps forward. “What news, Vina?”
A smile spreads over my lips. “
I’m pregnant. We’re going to have a baby!”
Their answer is to embrace me, showering me with kisses and whispers of love and adoration.
I have finally got the happy ending I dreamt of as a child, and I couldn’t be happier.
My name is Corvina Charles. I’m a shadowborn, a fae, a queen, a mate, and now I am a mother.
My life is no longer in the shadows and it never will be again.
My dark robes billow behind me as I step out from the shadows. The figure slouched in the dragon throne is not the king I thought I would see here, and nor is the blood seeping through the dais.
“Make yourself known,” I say into the darkness, sensing another presence lingering close by.
A low, quiet chuckle circulates around me. “You have come at a bad time.”
I sweep my gaze over King Cyrus’ dead body bleeding out on the throne. Even I, God of the Dead and Underworld, do not like to see fae killed so brutally. Fae lives were once created and honoured by my mate, and they each should have a death worthy of her love. “It seems I have come at the right time.”
At my reply, the Dark Fae appears from behind the throne. His robe and medallion are the same ones the Dragon King’s advisor donned, except this face does not belong to Julius Griscor.
This is the face of a coward and now a slayer of kings.
“Professor Greyhorn,” I spit his name scathingly. “I do not believe I was summoned here by you.”
“No,” he offers dryly, dragging the king off the throne and dropping him on the dais in two swift moves. “Cyrus called you before I slid my sword through his throat. It’s funny what pleas even a king gives when threatened with death. Even funnier are the noises they make when choking on their blood.”
I watch him settle down on the throne and run his hands over the gilded armrests. I know that look on his countenance all too well; the feeling of power and victory filling your soul until there is nothing left but the need for more. This fae will soon learn that nothing will ever fill that void.