"What in the..." I began, but she cut me off.
"I can hear your thoughts as easily as I draw breath.” She slid off her horse and looked up at me. "That's why we're camping on the outskirts until tonight," she said, as she pulled a thick, bound roll from the horses pack. "I've been able to slip inside your mind for a few seconds at a time since you first took blood from me. But this...” She paused to collect her thoughts and consider her words as she spread the heavy material out. "Since we mated, I've have a constant connection, and as much as I love you, Valeria, it's quite unnerving."
I slid off Blaze, walked over to her and took both of her hands in mine. "You should have told me sooner," I said as I brought her hands up and kissed each one. "You need to learn how to shield, baby, that's all."
She brushed a stray hair out of her face and nodded. "I need to be perfect at it by morning,” she said quickly.
OK, she didn't have unrealistic expectations at all. "Baby, I'm not sure if..."
"I don't care how impossible you think it is,” she huffed. "It's got to happen and before we reach the palace.” I was just about to ask why, but she started talking again. "When I go home with you at my side, there's going to be a million and one questions. If they ask me anything about you, I won't be able to lie. It's going to be hard enough evading their questions without lying. I don't need a direct line to your thoughts."
OK, that made sense, but it still didn't make the current task any easier to accomplish. In addition, the thought of me teaching anybody anything was daunting. I didn't see myself as the teacher type, but. I guess there's a first time for everything.
Irulan smiled as she passed a hand over the heavy cloth. It began to stretch and rise from the ground, filling out and proving to be not a bedroll, but a tent. "Don't worry, baby, you'll be a great teacher, especially if you have the right motivation.” She passed a hand over her jacket, it and the shirt beneath vanished into thin air, leaving her in a red lace bra, her hip hugger jeans, and boots. With a mischievous smile on her face, she sauntered inside the tent. "The faster I get shielding down, the faster you get me out of the rest of my clothes."
I spent half the morning teaching Irulan how to shield her mind, and the other half, collecting my reward for being such a wonderful teacher. By the time nightfall came, I hadn't gotten any sleep, but it didn't matter much. I was too wired to sleep anyway.
I crept out of the tent before the moon was high in the sky, careful not to wake Irulan. Frost and Blaze, both keeping watch over our campsite, came over and nuzzled my hair. "Hey, fellas, everything good on the home front?"
The pair looked at me, nodded, and then trotted off into the woods. I followed them along an overgrown path through the trees and came to a small stream. It was a good place to try out my newly combined strength, and maybe experiment with some of my new abilities while I was alone. I flexed my muscles, stepped up to a tree, and unleashed a roundhouse kick against the trunk. Part of the tree exploded into millions of splinters before the rest came crashing towards the ground. I easily caught it before it hit and eased it to the ground.
My heart jumped into my chest, and my shoulders froze as I looked around me expecting an army of angry Pixies to descend upon me at any moment. I don’t know what I was expecting when I kicked the tree, but the explosion of wood was not it. I didn’t even put that much force into the kick. Maybe I should switch gears before I inadvertently caused some real trouble.
My next target was a car-sized boulder on the other side of the stream. FaeVar said telekinesis was an inherent ability that all members of his family shared. I really wanted to see how to use this new ability. Focusing on the boulder, I envisioned it floating in the air and then threw all of that thought at the rock. Nothing. I didn't even get it an inch off the ground. OK, different approach, maybe I needed to direct it.
This time, I imagined the rock lifting off the ground and held out my hand, as if I were helping it up off the ground. Still nothing. I was getting thoroughly frustrated when I felt Irulan behind me.
She walked up to my back and wrapped her arms around my waist. "You're trying too hard. If you walked over and tried to pick it up, would you have to put this much thought into it?" I shook my head no and kicked a stray rock into the water. "Alright then," she said as she took a few steps away from me. "Don't think about it, just do it."
Just like that. Just reach out and pick the thing up. She made it sound so easy. I looked up, and I'll be damned if the boulder weren't floating five feet off the ground. "If I hear 'I told you so' even one time," I said. Eager to cut her off before the gloating started. I released the huge stone and turned towards Irulan with a smile on my face. "What else can I do?"
Irulan gave the question some thought before answering, "To be honest, I'm not sure what the limits to your powers are. You're something entirely new, Val."
"Well, that's good to know," I said sarcastically. "It's nice to know that, in a world of monsters, my family’s the freak." I turned towards the boulder and in a fit of frustration, absentmindedly swung my hand towards it. To both my and Irulan's surprise, a black bolt of energy shot out from my hand to blow the boulder into a cloud of dust.
"Well," said Irulan, "it's not exactly the lightning that the Light Courts can call to arm, but it's definitely effective."
I felt the power coursing through me, and turned towards more boulders. I practiced with varying levels of energy and was soon confident that I could control the blast. "Yes, it's effective," I whispered, more so to myself than Irulan. "But will it be enough?"
Irulan signed and shook her head, "In the words of Paul Autredies, 'Fear is the mind killer'. Against my better judgment, I agreed to let you go after Tristan once you were OK. It's too late to start having second thoughts."
"Let me!" I snarled, and backed away from her. "I don't have to ask your permission to do anything.” The look of shock on her face egged me on, and a sneer darkened my face. "It's too early in our relationship to start acting like a ball and chain, don't you think?"
Irulan threw up her hands, turned and stalked off through the woods, heading back in the direction that she came from. "If you want to push me away because you're scared, then fine," she called back. "But I won't stand here and let you twist the meaning of my words around."
Damnit! Open mouth, insert foot. Again. I didn't mean to lash out at Irulan. It was much harder to get a hold on my senses than I thought it would be. I pounded my fist against my hands and took off after her. "Ire, wait a minute," I called. "I didn't mean it. I'm sorry.” I flashed to the tent and burst inside hoping to plead my case, but Irulan wasn't there.
Kether flitted inside and hovered in front of my face. "Silly little Darkling, must you feed from your mate? Did the Dark King teach you no manners at all?"
"What I do with Irulan is none of your concern, Pixie, but if you must know, I haven't gone near her this morning, so how can I have fed from her?
Kether was one bold little Pixie, I'll give him that. He zipped forward and thumped me in the nose with enough energy to give me a decent shock. "Such beauty, a shame it didn't come with a brain.” I growled and swatted at him, but he darted out of the way. "You're not just Vampire any longer, so you must not think like one. You are just as much Fomori as you are Vampire now, and you can feed like either one."
For all his babbling, I still had no idea what the irritating little man was talking about. I guess from the look of confusion I was wearing he guessed as much, because he slumped against my shoulder and patted me sympathetically. "I see it's the Dark King that is lacking in the brains department. My apologies, Princess," he said.
I picked him up by the collar of his jacket and placed him in my palm. "What in the world are you talking about, Kether, and where is Irulan?” I was so frustrated. I felt like I was going to blow.
"Don't let your emotions get the better of you, Princess," exclaimed Kether. "I'm only so big. I wouldn't survive if you fed from me.” He held up a tiny finger and shushed m
e. "I'm about to explain if you will allow," he said. "But first…” Kether put a little space between the two of us. "Nothing personal." he said. "Now, you are of the Dark Court, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The Dark Court welcomes the misfits that the Light shuns, so because of that, there are many falsehoods that people believe to be true."
Kether looked around the tent, flew over to a bedroll and sat down, then motioned for me to do the same. "No thanks, I'll stand," I said, "Now, where's Irulan?"
"In due time, Princess," he said. "First, you must understand your nature, so you won't repeat the problem. Now, to shorten a long story, you are able to feed off strong emotions. The more you feed, the stronger your own emotions get, and, for the person you feed from, a cold and hollow sadness settles into their heart. This is what you did to your mate."
Kether's revelation appalled me. Yet my shorter than usual temper made sense now, and it had been that way since I'd arrived in the FaeLands. Apparently, my emotions must have taken a nosedive into more agreeable climates because Kether came and patted me on the cheek.
"The Dark Court thrives on the emotions that the Light Court deems unfit for civilized people," said Kether sympathetically. "You couldn't help yourself, so don't beat yourself up about it. Now that you know, you can work to control it."
"I can't believe Fae...Grandfather, didn't tell me," I said as my mind raced to come up with an acceptable reason why he failed to mention that little tidbit of information to me.
Kether shrugged his shoulders and frowned. "Not to take up for the old fool, but I can think of many reasons.” He began taping fingers as he listed them, most of which I must admit, were very plausible. "And the last one," he said. "The last is the most important. You're a Fomori Princess, about to walk into the court of the Tuatha De Danann, unattended save for a princess who, because she is your mate, could soon be outcast. You have no control over when you feed, so I'm assuming he'd rather you stay open, so to speak, so that you'd have another source of power, than closed and potentially not know how to open if you need to.” He looked at me sideways and scratched his head. "Am I making sense, Princess?" he asked.
Surprisingly enough, he made perfect sense. "Yes, Kether," I replied. "You're making perfect sense. Now will you please tell me where Irulan is?"
Kether bowed slightly. "As you wish, Highness," he said with a flourish. I tapped my foot and waited for him to spill it, but he never said a single word. Instead, he flew over to a corner and showered it with Pixie dust. Irulan became visible right before my eyes.
I couldn't believe it. She'd been here the entire time and didn't say a single word. I didn't hear, or scent her, which would have been near impossible even before my senses got a significant boost from my Sidhe heritage.
My first instinct was to get mad and rant and rave, but I ate crow, swallowed my anger, and held my arms open for Irulan. She looked at me as if she wasn't impressed and didn’t move and inch. "Please, baby," I pleaded and took a step closer.
Irulan looked past me to Kether and folded her hands over her chest. "I'm 'baby' now, Kether," she said with contempt in her voice. "But the last time we spoke I was the 'ball and chain'."
"OK, I deserve that," I muttered and took another hesitant step closer. "I deserve that and so much more.” I took another step and reached out to take her hand, but she slipped out of my grasp. "Please, Ire, you heard everything we talked about. Now I'm not using that as an excuse, but please cut me some slack."
I reached out for her hand again and held my breath, waiting to see if she'd take it. Ordinarily I was the last person you'd catch begging for something, but if she didn't come to me, I'd be more than willing to drop to my knees.
I was seconds from doing just that, when she reached out and took my hand, and in a move reminiscent of my mother, she reached out, quicker than I could follow, and slapped me on the back of the head. "If you ever in your lifetime refer to me as a 'ball and chain' again, you'll get more than the silent treatment for a few minutes."
I smiled and pulled her into my arms. "Whatever you say, baby," I said, right before I leaned forward and planted one on her. I intended to give her a thorough, but brief kiss, but it didn't work out that way. She bit my bottom lip when I tried to pull away, and drew me right back to her. Her tongue ran across my lips then pushed through to stroke my tongue.
I moaned into her mouth and ran my hands under her shirt to loosen her bra when I heard a nagging buzz going off in my ear. I swatted at the noise and pulled Irulan closer, only to have the buzzing return. Except this time, the buzzing sounded an awful lot like Kether, an angry Kether.
I pulled away from Irulan and turned around to find him inches from my nose. "This is unacceptable," he snapped, as he turned a deep shade of red. "You are both Princesses of Faerie. To behave in such a manner outside of the confines of a secure bedchamber is totally unacceptable."
I looked back at Irulan, and it took all of two seconds for both of us to burst out laughing. Kether's head looked as if it were going to explode at any minute. I stifled another giggle and took a huge step away from Irulan with both hands in the air. Kether harrumphed and zipped over to each of us and gave us both one of those electric punches.
I had to bite the inside of my mouth to keep from laughing again. Kether pointed at me with an accusing finger, "From you, this is no surprise.” He shook his finger in Irulan’s direction. "But from you..." he shook his head in one final condemnation and promptly flew out of the tent.
I turned back to Irulan and shrugged my shoulders, "I have to say, my time in the FaeLands has been anything but boring."
Irulan laughed so hard I thought she was going to pass out from lack of oxygen. "I know," she managed to say in between laughs. "Where else are you going to get reprimanded by a two inch Pixie for making out with your wife?"
I could feel the smile creep up the edges of my face and lock in place. I was grinning so damn hard I must have looked like the Joker's kid sister. I couldn't help it. Hell, I didn't want to. It felt good to hear her call herself my wife. I hoisted her up by the waist and spun her around in a fast circle. Irulan grabbed me around the neck and squealed. "Say it again.” I managed to get in, in between her fits of laughter. I eased her to her feet and ran my hands into her soft mane. "Say it again, Ire."
Irulan kissed me and pulled away to giggle again. "What in the world are you talking about, Val?"
I laid three quick kisses on her and let my hands fall to her waist. "Wife," I said softer than a whisper. "Call yourself my wife again."
Irulan's mood turned somber like the flip of a switch. "It sounds too good to be true, Valeria. This...us. We happened so fast."
"Don't do this.” I didn't want to hear her worries and uncertainties. I had enough of my own, but no matter what doubts I had, I was sure of us. Of what we already were to each other, and of what we would grow into. "It's too late to be getting cold feet, Ire. The wedding's over."
I dropped my shields and felt the sum of Irulan's growing anxieties. The mounting tightness that was growing in her chest as each minute passed. "You're worried about what your family will think when they find out we're mated."
Irulan nodded and pulled away from me. "I know I act like it doesn't bother me what they think but..."
"Fazion and Francesca," I said, and she smiled even as she locked her mind down tight.
"My cousins are the brother and sister of my heart.” She placed a hand over her heart, and her eyes got a faraway look in them as she talked. "I may not agree with the direction Fazion has taken the monarchy, but there's no one in the FaeLands I'm closer to."
"If they love you as half as much as you love them, then they'll only care about whether or not you're happy.” I took her hand in mine and led her out of the tent. Frost and Blaze were waiting outside. They looked at me with an eagerness to get going in their eyes. "Come on." I nudged her with my shoulder and pointed to the tent, as I waved my hands through the air. "Do your hocus pocus and let’s get this show
on the road, baby. We might as well get this over with, so you can see you didn't have anything to worry about."
Just two days ago, Irulan said almost the same thing to me as I spazed over what my parents would think about our relationship. Looks as if we'd come full circle. It's funny, Irulan had been comfortable in her skin for so long that I never thought she'd be the one to have insecurities about us as a couple.
"It's not the fact that you're a woman that has me worried.” She packed the tent roll into Frost's saddlebag and thumped me on the nose. "It's the fact that you're Fomori. How many times do I have to tell you that?" Irulan had become such an integral part of me over the last few weeks, that my natural instinct to shield was becoming lax. Her shields didn't have to be down to read me. I was projecting like a damn movie. I went on lockdown as I walked over to Blaze.
"I'm a Trumaine first," I said, echoing my father parting words. "That's the part of me they need to worry about.” As we mounted our horses, I looked at her and frowned. Tristan aside, our little excursion to the Tuatha court had the potential to go very badly. If anyone caused Irulan to shed so much as one tear, I didn’t think I would be able to control my reaction. As if I needed any more worries. "If they hurt you, I can’t make any promises, Irulan. Please don't hold it against me if I end up slapping them around a little."
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