Chapter 10
“Festival? What festival?” Brea stared blankly at her new Lady’s maid. Neeve was a thousand times better than the creepy triplets, but she still wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to having servants.
“It is Beltaine, my Lady.” Neeve stared back at her, equally perplexed.
“What is Beltaine?”
“It’s one of our most special holidays. It’s a celebration of peace and prosperity for all Faekind. It is why her Majesty invited the delegations from Iskalt and Eldur, my Lady.”
“Please, Neeve, I’m begging you, enough with the ‘my Lady’ this and ’my Lady’ that. My name is Brea, when it’s just us here in my rooms, it would please me if you would call me Brea.”
“Yes my—Brea.” Neeve stumbled over the name.
“I think I’ve read something about Beltaine before.” Brea scratched her head. “Isn’t that a summer holiday?”
“Summer?” Neeve frowned. “It is always spring here, ma’am.”
“Ha!” Brea whirled around with a smile. “Nice try, but no ‘ma’ams’ either. Isn’t Beltaine in May?”
“Yes. It’s always the first of what humans call May.” Neeve couldn’t seem to sit still, bustling about Brea’s rooms with a duster, but there wasn’t a speck of dust anywhere. Brea had looked on one of her many boring days spent in her rooms over the last week.
“But that’s months away.”
“It’s tonight.”
“It can’t be.” Brea’s heart climbed up in her throat. She couldn’t have been here four months already. “It was January when I arrived. That was just a few weeks ago.”
“Are you quite well, Brea?” Neeve crossed the room to help her sit in one of those vine chairs Brea was always afraid she’d crush.
“I don’t know.” Brea fanned her face, blaming her too-tight corset for her dizzy spell. If she was going to be here much longer, the fae world was about to discover sports bras and yoga pants. Surely someone around here could grow her a pair with their magic.
“Are the rumors really true?” Neeve leaned close to whisper. “Did you come from the human realm?”
“There are rumors about me?” Brea groaned. That was all she needed.
“Just a few. Our people are very curious about you. I promise… Brea… I will not repeat anything you tell me. You can trust me.”
That’s what he’d said. Lochlan. If you need help, trust Neeve. No one else.
Brea nodded. “Griff brought me here from the human realm. But I’m fae,” she added quickly. “I just didn’t know it till recently.”
“Of course you are fae. You have the look of royalty, no less. You’re the Fargelsi Queen’s niece. Which means everyone is curious about you.”
“I get it, but I just… how have I been here four months and not noticed the time passing?”
“Oh dear, I’m sorry, I thought you knew, but of course you’d have no reason to know. Our calendars don’t exactly line up with the human calendar. You arrived here when it was January where you came from, and it’s been three fortnights. So for you, it’s not quite March yet. According to our calendar, for you it is only early spring, though we do not adhere to human months.”
“So I didn’t lose a whole bunch of weeks I don’t remember living?” Brea took a deep breath.
“No, of course not.” Neeve laughed. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to laugh. You are just quite funny sometimes.
“So I’ve been told.” Brea got back on her feet and crossed the room on shaky legs. Reaching for her teacup, Brea tried to pour hot water over the tea leaves.
“I’ll get that for you, my Lady.” Neeve swooped in and grabbed the cup from her hands.
“I can pour myself a cup of tea.” She felt like stomping her foot, but that was childish. She wasn’t above it, but she needed to keep her cool and remember Neeve was only trying to do her job.
“Please relax, you have a big night ahead of you.”
“And what is expected of the queen’s niece tonight?” She sighed. Not looking forward to this first of many formal events.
“You will sit in a place of honor with the queen, where you will meet the delegates from all the fae courts. Beltaine is a celebration of peace, love and fertility. A night where all our differences are set aside and new friendships are formed.”
“So, I just have to sit there and look like I belong? I think I can manage that. What do I have to wear?”
“You’re going to love it.” Neeve smiled, but then she probably remembered who she was talking to. “At least I think you will.” A frown marred her face. “Are you ready for the triplets? They’ll be assisting me tonight.”
“Must they?”
“I couldn’t manage to get you ready without help.”
“You know.” Brea sipped her tea. “In the human world, I managed to dress myself without any help at all. I even made my own breakfast.”
“This is different, Brea.” A note of annoyance crept into Neeve’s voice. “Your human clothes were simple. Your costume for tonight is—”
“Costume? You didn’t say anything about a costume.”
“Well, yes, it’s tradition on the night of Beltaine for the nobility to don costumes for the festival. Everyone will dress like flowers and creatures of the forest.”
“So it’s like a masked ball?”
“No masks tonight. Would you like to see your gown?”
“Call in the trio if you must.” Brea sighed. “Any chance someone has a stash of mood suppressers around here?”
“Is that like… a potion? Tonight won’t be that bad, Brea.”
“Not for me. For the three little maids on speed.”
~~~
Brea couldn’t walk. Her gown was too heavy. It had to weigh more than she did.
“I’ve heard people talk about suffering for fashion, but this is a new one.” Her knees nearly buckled.
“Just lean on me. If you fall down, at least we’ll go together.” Griff chuckled, tucking her arm around his. “If it helps, you look stunning. Like the first perfect white rose of spring.”
“Ooh that was cheesy.” Brea giggled behind her fan—an actual white lacy fan!
“Cheesy usually works for me.” He straightened his tie with an arrogant smirk.
“You know they built a crazy contraption under all this tulle, you wouldn’t believe it if I told you. I’ve got pillows stuffed around my hipbones to keep the dress foundation from stabbing me. The scaffolding under here weighs a ton and that’s before they decorated me like a cake with all these fresh roses. They actually made the roses grow around the dress.”
The ball gown was stunning on the dress form with its yards of white silk and the palest pink tulle, but when Brea finally got a chance to see herself in it, she thought she looked more like a marshmallow Peep.
“The triplets spent hours sewing beaded rosebuds all along the bodice and the hem. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“I take it you are not pleased with the weight of the gown?” Griff escorted her down the grand staircase, gripping her carefully so she wouldn’t fall in her ridiculous heels.
“Ya think?”
“Maybe this will help.” Warmth from his hand running along her arm spread through her body, and his green eyes shimmered violet for a moment.
“Oh,” Brea almost toppled over as the massive weight of the dress lifted and she felt as light as air.
“It seems someone forgot to do that for you.”
“And you let me walk down ten flights of stairs before you decided to help me out with that little trick?”
“I find your complaining amusing this evening. And it wasn’t ten flights of stairs. It was two.”
She studied his ‘costume.’ A trim cut white suit with a white fur hat shaped like a wolf’s head.
“You seem to be missing a tail.”
“There’s only so far I’m willing to go for a costume party.”
”That’s what I said, so why can’t I opt for the easy suit and hat costume?”
“I grew up as the queen’s ward, but I’m not deemed part of her family. You are. And most of the people here would give anything to be in your shoes tonight.”
Brea took the last few steps at his side. “It’s hard for me to think of myself as anything other than plain old Brea Robinson.”
“There is nothing plain or old about you, Brea.” Griff laid his free hand on top of hers still clutching his arm. “Ready for a night you’ll never forget?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Brea followed him to the rear of the palace, frowning as she realized she hadn’t come down from the queen’s quarters since she arrived, and she hadn’t even visited this part of the palace yet. “Where are we going?”
“To the park just across the queen’s gardens. It’s magical at Beltaine. You’re going to love it.” Griff pulled her through the massive rear doors of the palace and Brea gasped at the wonderland before her. Sweeping lawns with pathways and fountains, and every kind of flower she could imagine—in full bloom at night!
“It’s beautiful.” She breathed.
Brea and Griff followed a line of nobles along the pathways leading to the festivities at the center of the park beyond the high brick walls.
“You will enter with the queen.” He whispered in her ear, his breath warm against her skin. “This way.” He tugged Brea away from the crowd, skirting the garden walls to a separate gate just for the queen’s use.
“Can you stay with me?” She clutched her dress to keep the hem from dragging across the wet grass.
“I will be right behind you and the queen.” He squeezed her hand. “I know this is all overwhelming for you, but the people will love you if their queen does. And it’s pretty clear Regan already adores you.”
“She thinks my clumsy behavior is a riot.” Brea laughed. “But I think she’s kind of amazing,” she admitted. “And so kind. I don’t know what I expected, but she’s just so delightfully… perfect.” Brea couldn’t imagine how her aunt could ever have anything resembling an enemy. But there was beef between her and the Eldur queen. Brea might be the Gelsi queen’s niece, but she already knew she had no desire to get into fae politics.
“Oh my darlings, you look beautiful.” Queen Regan beckoned them to join her at the east gate. “Look at us, we’re just a pair of delicate roses tonight.”
Where Brea’s dress was all white with pale pinks, adorned with dozens of white roses in perfect bloom, Regan’s was blood red, covered in red rose petals from the hem of her gown to her bodice, where it flared into a stiff high collar the shape of a rose. With her white blond hair piled on top of her head, she looked just like a fairytale queen.
“You look so beautiful, Aunt Regan.” Brea responded to Regan’s air kisses with her own. She was getting used to her aunt’s larger than life personality.
“Come with me, dear, I want to introduce you to all the nobles of my realm. I hope you’ve rested because tonight is going to be… oh what do the human kids call it these days? I do love their marvelous expressions.”
“Epic?” Brea supplied.
“No, tonight’s going to be amaz… no that’s not it either.”
“Amazeballs?” Brea grinned. For the past few days, Regan had Brea teaching her all the slang from the human world. They always ended up laughing hysterically by the end of their afternoon tea.
“That’s it. Tonight is going to be amazeballs, just you wait. Your Auntie Regan has stopped at nothing to make your first Festival of Beltaine a night to remember.”
“Thank you, Aunt Regan, I can’t wait.” And to Brea’s surprise, it was true. She felt more relaxed with her aunt now and with Griff right behind her, she thought she just might get through this party unscathed.
Brea fell in step with her aunt as they strolled through the gates; the queen never hurried anywhere she went. Brea could hear the gasp and roar of the crowd, but it had no effect on Regan.
“The Festival of Beltaine is all about expressing love and putting peaceful thoughts out into the world for the coming season,” Regan began, lifting her hand to wave at the crowd. “It’s no secret that relationships between the fae courts have seen better days. I’ve invited delegates from both Iskalt and Eldur to celebrate with us tonight with the hope it will foster more positive communication among the leaders of our world. You will help me charm them, won’t you, dear?”
“Oh, Aunt Regan, I seriously doubt you need my help charming anyone, but I will give it my best.”
“You flatter me, dear. Come sit with your auntie while we watch the festivities.“ Regan made her way to the raised dais where a throne waited for her. A miniature version of that throne sat to the right of the queen’s chair and just slightly back. Regan made herself comfortable and gestured for Brea to take her seat beside the queen.
Brea felt like a piece of fine jewelry on display. The crowd had grown quiet at the queen’s entrance, waiting for her permission for the merriment to continue.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I present my niece, daughter of my late brother, Brandon, Breanna Louise O’Rourke. You may call her Lady Brea.”
“But, that’s not my name,” Brea tried to say, but the queen didn’t seem to hear her. She felt Griff standing behind her and wished he could sit at her side.
When he leaned in to explain, his presence calmed her, and she could breathe again.
“Relax. It’s just a formality. She hasn’t taken your name away. She’s just given you a proper title—giving you her last name, no less. This is a good thing, Brea.”
“Thank you, Aunt Regan,” she managed to murmur, smiling shyly for the crowd.
“Please continue the festivities,” the queen said with a wave of her red-gloved hand.
Brea took a deep breath, gazing around the park at the hundreds of fae celebrating the holiday. Bonfires roared in every corner, lively music played, and people danced under the stars. Gymnasts on stilts took great lumbering steps through the crowd, wowing the children from their great height. Fire-eaters and jugglers performed, each trying to outdo the other. Beautiful women wrapped in yards of silk hung suspended from the trees, performing amazing feats high above the crowd.
The evening was perfect. The weather was beautiful, as if Regan ordered a balmy night with cool breezes just for her guests. Servants buzzed around the park offering drinks and the most sumptuous finger foods. Brea and the queen sampled their fair share of the food and wine while they gossiped about the lords and ladies of her court.
“Your Majesty, you do us a great honor introducing your beautiful niece to Fargelsi on this lovely Beltaine evening.” Brea had heard a version of this speech throughout the night. This time the nobleman was young and quite handsome, if a bit stuffy.
“Lord Tadleigh Bainebridge, always lovely to see you.” Reagan turned her charms on the smitten young man. “Lord Bainebridge oversees one of the largest estates in Fargelsi,” the queen explained.
“At the queen’s pleasure, of course.” The man offered a curt bow to Brea. “It would be my honor, Lady Brea, to escort you this evening.” He took her hand, placing a kiss there like all the gentlemen before him.
“Thank you, sir,” Brea stuttered.
“I’m keeping her all to myself this evening, Tad.” The queen batted her eyes at him. “Another time.” Her tone was one of dismissal.
His expression fell, disappointment in his gaze. “Of course, your Majesty.” With that, he turned on his heel and walked toward a gaggle of ladies nearby.
Regan’s fan unfurled in front of her face. “He may be handsome, but he’s older than he looks, that one. I’m told he uses a tonic to keep his hair like that. And he’s such an incredible bore.”
“With a bit of a brown nose, too.” Brea giggled.
“Brown nose? What an odd phrase.” The queen took a sip of her wine.
Oh crap. How was Brea going to explain such a saying? She needed to start watching what she said. “Um, well he’s rather good at kissing your … royal … bum.” Brea’s cheeks flushed in the firelight. She turned begging eyes to Griff who leaned into the queen’s ear and explained.
“Brown nose indeed!” The queen roared, and Brea relaxed. “Don’t be so shy, Brea, dear. You can say anything to me. I don’t offend easily.”
“Perhaps Lady Brea would like to see the sights, your Majesty?” Griff suggested. “It is her first festival with us.”
“Oh very well, Beltaine is a night for the young, you two go have fun. Just come back to watch the fireworks with me.”
“Of course, I wouldn’t miss it.” Brea leaned down to kiss her aunt’s cheek.
She took Griff’s hand and followed him through the crowd, laughing and relishing the moment of freedom from the endless parade of noblemen.
“She’s introduced you to every eligible Fargelsian in her inner circle.”
“Eligible?” Brea giggled. “For what, like marriage?”
“Yes. It was quite irritating to watch.”
“Is she mad?” Brea’s mind swirled with too much wine. “I’m not getting married. I’m way too young.”
“I’ll talk to her.” Griff smiled, looking like he might have also taken too much wine. “I’ll explain how it is in the human world. She’s just excited to show you off. You’re all the family she has, you know. Having you here makes her happy.”
“And I’m happy to be here.” Brea whirled around, making her dress lift in the breeze. “It’s so beautiful here, Griff. I just still can’t believe this is my real home. It’s like a dream come true.”
For once, Brea didn’t let her cautious thoughts weigh her down. Maybe it was the wine talking, but she was starting to see a future here. A future she wanted. Maybe even a future with Griff.
“A flower for your Beltaine lady?” A wizened old woman offered Griff a perfect blush-stained rose from her basket. He paid the lady for the flower and turned to Brea, tapping the rosebud against her nose.
“This rose reminds me of your blushes.” He trailed the soft petals down her cheek. “The way your cheeks flush with the faintest pink when you’re embarrassed about something silly and utterly human. It’s one of my top ten things I love about Brea Robinson.” He pressed the rose into her hands.
“Top ten?” Her voice came out breathless and shaky. “What are the other nine?” She pressed her nose against the bloom to inhale its fresh fragrance. She couldn’t remember ever smelling a rose like this in the human realm. They’d always seemed overly fragrant and cloyingly sweet.
“I can’t spill all my secrets now. You’ll have to wait for the other nine.”
She closed the distance between them to kiss him, but he moved away. “We can’t here, Brea. It would cause a scandal for the queen’s niece to show affection so openly. But please know, I am dying to taste those lips again.” He tugged on her hand, guiding her to the tents where the courtiers feasted and drank copious amounts of wine.
They ate roasted venison, spiced vegetables and other things Brea couldn’t even identify.
“I need some fresh air.” Brea tried to take a deep breath, but the confines of her corset and the contents of her stomach wouldn’t allow it.
“I’ll meet you by the fountains in a moment, and then we will join the queen for the fireworks.”
Brea didn’t want to be the girl who needed a buffer, but panic slowly ebbed its way into her heart the moment he left her. She went to wait by the fountains, worried she might make a fool of herself if anyone stopped to speak with her. She watched the crowd come and go, but no one even noticed her. Something was weird about that.
Several young girls skipping around a maypole caught her attention. Their ribbons fluttered in the breeze as they wrapped them around the pole. They skipped and laughed like young girls should, but there was something forced about their merriment. They did and said all the right things, but that sincerity didn’t reach their eyes.
The same with a group of young men, dancing with girls about the same age. They were everything carefree teens should be … but somehow not quite. They lacked a certain joy.
As Brea took in all the queen’s guests, a cold sense of dread lodged in her stomach. They were all just going through the motions. Like they only wanted to do what the queen expected of them. But there was a lackluster dullness in their eyes. It gave her the creeps.
“Lady Brea.” The cold voice sounded behind her. She knew it was him before she turned. “I should escort you back to your queen. It isn’t safe for you to wander around the festival alone.” Lochlan gazed down at her, his perfect mouth drawn into a thin line.
Her wine-addled brain wondered what it might do to his features if he truly smiled. He hadn’t bothered with a costume, though it didn’t surprise her he’d refused to play along. Dressed in dark leathers and a long black cloak, he would blend easily with the night if it weren’t for his silvery blond hair. Her wore the top half swept back from his face and secured with a black leather band. The hair just above his pointed ears was tightly braided, but the rest fell down his back just past his shoulders. His midnight blue eyes smoldered under dark blond brows.
“I’m sorry, what?” Brea swayed on her feet, feeling a little dizzy from staring up for so long.
“You’re drunk.”
“No, you’re just stupid-tall.” She turned to leave him, but he grabbed her arm.
“I’ll escort you.”
“I don’t need an escort. I’m perfectly capable of walking these two little feet back to my aunt, thank you very much.”
She moved to pull her arm away from him and managed to trip over her own feet. She knew she was going down the moment she lost her balance. Clutching at Lochlan, she tried to stop the inevitable, but the edge of the fountain hit the back of her calves and wet hands grabbed her legs. Brea toppled over, dragging Lochlan down with her.
Cold water closed over her head and pulled her dress down into the depths of the pool. Immediately sober, Brea scrambled for the surface. Why was this fountain so deep? Dark things under the surface clamored for her attention, clawing at her hands and feet, pulling her down. Strong arms wrapped around her middle, dragging her up to the surface. Just as stars danced in her vision, Brea thought she saw a sea of angry creatures staring back at her.
Then she was spewing water out of her lungs, coughing and sputtering like a fool in front of her aunt’s court. Something hard thudded against her back.
“This damned fool dress almost killed you.” Lochlan’s hand pounded on her back once more.
“Stop.” She tried to wiggle out of his arms to swim to the edge of the fountain, but he stood up with her in his arms. The water barely came up to his knees. The flowers from her dress floated around his feet.
What the hell just happened?
“Are you okay, my darling?” Queen Regan rushed to the edge of the fountain.
“I’d be fine if this brute would put me down.” Brea’s face flamed with heat.
“Lady Brea, are you okay?” Concerned voices rang out around her.
Oh great, I’m a spectacle now.
“I’ll see to the lady,” Lochlan said, stepping over the edge of the fountain and back on solid ground. Brea looked over his shoulder for any signs of the creatures she’d just seen, but the shiny bottom of the fountain winked back at her.
“Griffin will see to her,” the queen insisted. “Please see to yourself, Lochlan, dear, and come join me with your delegation to enjoy the fireworks.”
Reluctantly, Lochlan set her down, but not before he whispered another warning in her ear. “Heed me now, silly girl. You are not safe among this court. There is only darkness here.”
Back on her feet, the weight of her dress and half the water from the fountain weighed her down. Griffin pulled her into his strong arms, and she clung to him in relief.
“Our Lady Brea is a delightful klutz, is she not?” His laughter inspired the crowd to respond in kind. “Show them you’re not embarrassed, Brea. Laugh with them.”
Brea bent into a curtsy, flashing them her most charming smile and shrugged as if to say, I’m a lovable goof—which she’d like to think she was. She’d just rather not make a habit of falling into fountains. And she’d grown quite tired of needing to be rescued.
~~~