by Amy Sumida
“Not as obvious as a gancanagh,” he chuckled. “And as far as dogs go, we know tricks. I'd be happy to show you some of mine.”
“But an old dog can't learn any new ones,” I looked him up and down. “And I have a feeling you're a very old dog indeed.”
Conri leaned back his head and laughed. It was rich, deep, and had a lot of women in the room shivering in delight. I felt the breath catch in my throat. There was something about a masculine laugh that was hard to resist. Then there were those horns. I could imagine using them to pull his face down to mine. I'd never thought I'd find horns sexy but they were. Oh, they so were.
“I like a sharp wit,” he said finally. “A mistress with a firm hand. Perhaps firm enough to make even a bargest stop roaming.”
“Oh I'm afraid you'll have to look elsewhere for that firm hand,” I smiled coyly.
“Already set your collar around another man's neck?” He waggled his brows at me.
“I hope not,” I huffed. “I'd hate to think I could tame him.”
“A collar doesn't mean he's tamed,” Conri leaned in again to whisper in my ear. “Just that he's taken.”
“I don't think you're the type to wear anyone's collar,” I smirked as he pulled back.
“You never know,” he licked his lips. “With the right touch, a woman could put nearly anything on me.”
“Oh wow,” I laughed. “Is it wrong that I'm suddenly imagining you in lederhosen?”
“Terribly and utterly wrong,” he grimaced. “That line is supposed to evoke a different type of leather garment entirely, preferably black with lots of straps.”
“I'd rather see leather armor on a man,” I shook my head at his antics. “I think you'd do better with another girl.”
“At the very least, you'll live longer,” Tiernan said from my right. The dance had come to an end and he seemed to know just where to be waiting for us.
“My Lord Shadowcall,” Conri nodded and gave Tiernan my hand with a flourish.
“My Lord Conri,” Tiernan nodded back but his tone was clipped.
“I think you were wrong about the collar,” Conri whispered to me before he backed away.
“Well the men like you, that much is for certain,” Tiernan shook his head as he began to lead me around the dance space. “I'm not so sure how the women feel though.”
“You've been enjoying this,” I accused.
“I've never seen anything so amusing as your efforts to dance the fey waltz and those of your would-be suitors trying to help you,” he chuckled.
“I think I did alright with Conri,” I smirked.
“Yes, well Conri knows all about handling women,” Tiernan grimaced.
“I kinda figured that,” I chuckled.
“And the bargest does his own style of dancing,” Tiernan nodded his head to where Conri was clutching a lady cat-sidhe as they swayed together.
“Yeah, it's called dirty,” I laughed some more. “There's a whole movie devoted to his style of dancing.”
“That's his style of everything,” Tiernan rolled his eyes. “Best to stay away from that one, Princess.”
“Your concern is noted,” I tried to look serious.
“That dog is only interested in getting at your...” Tiernan pointedly looked over my cleavage.
“My wobbly bits?” I offered and he nearly choked. “My lovely lady lumps?”
“Your generous curves,” he corrected with a grin. “Once he's got his teeth in your flesh, he'll get bored with the taste and move on.”
“To another meaty bone?” I asked.
“Yes, precisely,” he nodded.
“He's a dog, I get it, but you're a jackass,” I said as I accidentally/on purpose stomped on his toe.
“Hey,” he pulled his foot back from me and shook back his long hair with an affronted attitude. “I am a Lord of the Wild Hunt, you know. I could carry you away from here in an instant and none could stop me.”
“I'm not sure if I'd want them to,” I purred and his eyes flashed as he inhaled sharply.
He looked incredible, in case I haven't mentioned that. He wore a white velvet tunic, embroidered with intricate designs of fairy creatures along both hem and cuffs. His pants were cream leather and so were his boots but his belt was a startling black with a silver sword hanging from it. The white made him look like some mythical knight out to save his fair maiden and the muscled chest that showed through the slit of his tunic seemed to attest to his capabilities of doing just that. His hair was loosely pulled back, so that it looked almost normal from the front. The platinum of his roots shone down to bright gold, then tawny yellow like a lion's mane before it disappeared behind his shoulders. The relief from his distracting hair gave his stunning facial features dominance.
A hard jaw, sharp cheekbones, and a nose which looked just a touch arrogant. His lips softened things a bit, slightly fuller on the bottom and perfect for pleasure. He was clean shaven, to show off the inward slope of his cheeks and that glittering scar curling across his cheekbone, just below his shimmering eyes. I found myself following the line of the twisting scar and then moving beyond, back to the top curve of his ear, revealed by his pulled back hair. I traced the swirl of his ear with my eyes, down to the lobe that begged to be bit. His pulse beat rapidly beneath it but when I glanced up, his expression was controlled. A brow lifted arrogantly and I flinched at being caught staring.
“You keep looking at me like that and I won't be a teasing any longer,” he growled and I noticed the tightness around his smoldering eyes, all that control was costing him. “I'll be forced to carry you out of here and find the nearest alcove to ravish you in.”
“Wow,” I blinked and gave a little laugh. “Ravish, eh? I don't think anyone has ever said that to me.”
“You, my Twilight Star, should be ravished and savored and pleasured often,” he grinned.
“Twilight Star,” I whispered. “Somehow, that doesn't sound silly when you say it.”
I knew we were surrounded by fairies, that my biological father was sitting no more than six feet away from us, most likely staring at us right that very second, but I couldn't resist the pull of him any longer. I lifted my face to his and it was all the encouragement he needed.
As if it were part of the dance, Tiernan's body eased forward into mine, pressing tighter and tighter against me till it felt as if there was nothing between us at all. I knew the curves of his chest, the wide expanse of muscle and the ridged belly beneath. I could feel the dips at the sides of his belly and the tension in his thick thighs. I saw it all in my mind as his lips pressed to me as firmly as his body did. He just held his lips there a moment, then slid them gently over mine, a caress with his mouth. Then his lips parted and he inhaled softly, breathing me in. My tongue darted out to taste him, just the quickest of movements, but the flavor was like salt on ripe fruit; an enhancement of what was already so sweet.
He groaned and his tongue filled my mouth, his lips closing over mine to prevent any retreat. The feeling of his fingers digging into my back and of the silk of his hair in my own hands fell away in the rapture that was Tiernan's kiss. Back and forth, he lured my tongue within and then slid along it back into me. I was getting lightheaded, falling back into his strong arms, when I felt the tingles of power flowing from my fingertips down to my feet. We pulled apart slowly, our breath ragged in the air between us, and then my eyes widened as I saw what those tingles of power had portended.
The whole court had stopped to stare at the spectacle we'd made. No, not the kiss. The star filled, misty, lavender cloud we were standing on. We were levitating, kissing in the in-between on twilight fog. It was seeping from my fingers still, little trails of sparkling mist that fed our cushion of magic. The mist was spreading out with snake-like tendrils and instead of backing away from it, the other fey were eagerly coming forward to touch it.
I watched as the magic twirled around the hands of all who reached for it, then swept around them like a thing alive. It flowed throu
gh their hair, flitted over their skin, and settled over them all until every face I looked at sparkled with lavender light. Keir came down from the high table and I held a hand out to him automatically. He took it and as he did, mist formed below him and lifted him up to us. He grinned broadly and I turned to take his offered arm. Tiernan took my other arm and the three of us faced the Twilight Court.
“Are there any among you who would now deny that this is my daughter? That she has the right to rule?” Keir's voice boomed out. “Uncrowned and unknowing, she offers you her light despite the reluctance in some of your hearts. Let go of your biases and accept the truth, that she is our star!”
There was no cheering and no applause, just reverent silence as the entire room sank to its knees. Even the pixies dropped to the floor in front of us and bent a knee as they bowed their heads, looking like miniature knights from some medieval story. I shivered, feeling out of place and so very wrong, but then the mist swirled up around me and seeped into my heart. For the very first time since stepping into the twilight castle, I felt at peace. I felt like I belonged, but more importantly, I felt like this, all of this, was rightfully mine.
Chapter Twenty-Five
I was having sex with Tiernan when it all went wrong.
It started out wonderful. He did all the right things, going slow at first, touching gently and then with more force. It was so good, I rushed him a little and he was soon rising up above me, his smooth, sculpted chest under my hands, his heartbeat thudding wildly against my fingers.
The sable ends of his hair were sweeping forward faster and faster, teasing me with brief glimpses of his face. Then that inky darkness started seeping up the strands, devouring the light around him until his hair was completely black. It grew longer, pooling around us, until it blocked my view of him completely. I reached up to brush the hair away from his face.
Staring down at me were the eyes of a stranger. Even the body laying between my thighs had changed. This man was thinner than Tiernan, physically fit but not with the warrior's bulk that I preferred. His skin was paler too, pure white like Iain's, and amid all that black hair, he looked like the moon made flesh. His lips were pressed together in a relentless line, a sullen slash across his face, but his eyes were emotionless. Or perhaps they just seemed that way because they were completely black, rim to rim, like the eyes of some predatory beast.
There was something familiar about the point of his chin or perhaps the slope of his jaw, but I couldn't figure out where I'd seen it before. I was about to ask him who he was when his large hands circled my throat and started squeezing. I gasped for air, my hands clawing at his, my feet thrumming against the bed, my hips bucking wildly in an effort to throw him off, but his grip was unfailing.
His lips twisted into a smile and he leaned forward to press them gently against mine as he moved his body against me, mimicking the intimate act I'd been enjoying with Tiernan mere moments before. Despite the mocking motion, I could feel him flaccid against my thigh. No, this wasn't about sex, it was about death and possibly humiliation. I stared at him in horror as he continued to strangle me and then I used my pyrokinesis to light his beautiful hair on fire.
His eyes widened as the fire surged up to his face but then he just casually shook his head and the flames went out. I called my iron dagger to me, apportated it into my hand, but he flung his own hand out and the knife went darting away as he laughed viciously.
“That iron does not truly exist here, little star,” he purred, “and you're not powerful enough to stop me from extinguishing your light. Extinguishing an Extinguisher,” he laughed again. “How poetic. Do you like poetry? I do. Very much. Words are lovely, so many meanings depending on how you pair them or say them... and so much power for those with the magic to wield them. Too bad you don't know any powerful words to use against me but you wouldn't be able to speak them anyway. Not with my hands at your throat.”
My own hands flung out blindly for help, scratching at the silk sheet and then the open air. His face started to blur and I could hear my heartbeat slowing to a fatal dirge. The calamitous cadence filled my head and I knew death was coming closer with every pause of my heart. But then a sharp pain shot through my arm and I sat up, gasping for air.
My hands flew to my throat as the breath sawed in and out of my lungs and then a pitiful whine alerted me to Cat's presence beside me. I blinked down at her in shock, trying to sort out what had just happened. My left forearm ached and I lowered it to see a large bite on it, blood dripping onto the silvery sheets.
“You bit me?” I rasped and she whined again, edging forward to lick at my wound.
Then her eyes darted to the foot of the bed and she began to growl. I tensed but saw nothing there, just a shimmer, a disturbance in the air that coasted across me before disappearing entirely. Cat quieted and looked at me again with grim intensity.
“It was a dream,” I whispered, “and you woke me from it, didn't you?” She yipped and sat up, her head towering over me. “Good girl,” I stretched a hand up to her and her head fell into my lap with a heavy thud. “Thank you.”
Her tail started wagging back and forth over the tangled blankets with canine delight as I tried to recall everything that had happened in the nightmare. My fingers traced over the abused flesh at my throat and I swallowed hard, past the pain.
“Who was that?” I whispered to the night and the dark seemed to shiver as if it knew the answer.
Chapter Twenty-Six
It was the morning of my coronation but instead of preparing for the event, I was sitting at the long table in my bedroom with Keir, Tiernan, and four of Keir's most trusted soldiers, including Torquil, the knight who had escorted us to the castle the day before. Cat was seated on the floor beside my chair and her presence was more comforting than I'd ever thought it could be.
A healer had tended the bite on my arm. Her name was Maggidh and she was demurely soft-spoken but had proudly informed me that she was the first born of the twilight healers. Healing was a rare gift among the fey and both the Seelie and Unseelie courts had very few healers but the Twilight Court had been blessed with several. Most of whom were descended from Maggidh. She believed it was due to the neutral nature of our court, that healing magic naturally gravitated towards peaceful conditions. Whatever the reason was, I was glad for her help. The dog bite had taken mere moments for her to heal, leaving no scar at all, only a light pink splotch... which was peculiarly itchy. I scratched at it absentmindedly as the men argued.
“This is an act of war,” Torquil slammed his fist onto the table and I blinked in surprise. “We must ride on the unseelie and avenge the attempted murder of our princess.”
“She's not technically a princess yet,” Tiernan pointed out, earning an enraged look from Torquil.
Evidently that little levitation stunt the night before had cemented my bond with the twilight fey and they already considered me their princess, despite the fact that I'd yet to be crowned. Yes, they'd been affording me the title of Princess but I think that had been out of respect for Keir and now it was out of respect for me. Who knew a little sparkly cloud could do so much? Maybe I would check out a rave sometime.
“He's right, Torquil,” Keir held up his hand before the knight said anything more. “If she were, then the Sluagh would already be seeking vengeance on her behalf.”
“She's still your daughter,” Torquil shot a look at me, his icy blue eyes warming for just a second.
I started a little at the look. I hadn't expected interest from Torquil or anyone else for that matter. Not after making a clear and obvious choice to be with Tiernan. Then again, I was in a world where infidelity, even in a marriage, was sanctioned as long as it was the call of Danu. Then there was what Mairte had said about fairies being free to take lovers without social censure. So maybe my settling on Tiernan wasn't such a deterrent to other men.
“Yes, she's still my daughter,” Keir nodded, “and I already have numerous grievances against Uisdean for his past
behavior. That he would now enter Seren's dreams in an attempt to murder her himself, shows just how desperate he's become. The coronation must go ahead as planned. Perhaps we should even perform it sooner.”
“I agree, Your Majesty,” Tiernan nodded.
I was still reeling from the knowledge that the man who had tried to strangle me had been my Uncle and was also most likely the man who killed my mother. I'd described him to Keir that morning and he'd instantly known who it was. I'd left out the part about how intimate Uisdean had become with me while he tried to choke me to death. That was one humiliation I'd take to the grave. Okay, so that wasn't the best choice of words.
“I still don't understand what happened,” I whispered with confusion. “How could he kill me in a dream? He wasn't even there. Not really.”
“But he was, Your Highness,” Torquil leaned across the table to me. “King Uisdean has the magic of dream roaming, the power to send a part of himself into another person's dream. It gives him enough substance to be able to interact with you in your mind. If he can convince you that you're dead, you will die in actuality. We who were born in Fairy know how to protect ourselves in dreams but it's clear that you were never taught the skill. King Uisdean took advantage of that.”
“If I was so convinced it was real, why didn't my iron dagger work against him?” I waved a hand towards the bed, where my little dagger lay in its sheath beside my short-sword. I'd laid them there after speaking with Keir that morning. Their proximity made me feel better.
The men cast wary looks at my weapons. Wary enough that I frowned and got up to put them away. I guess I'd need to be more careful with them. Now that the twilight fey were starting to like me, the last thing I wanted to do was make them uncomfortable. I put the sword and dagger in my dressing room and then returned to my seat. They all visibly relaxed.
“Sorry about that,” I grimaced. “But why didn't it work against him if even their proximity made you guys nervous?”