A pink flush spreads from her neck to her cheeks and the tips of her ears, lending a lovely, ethereal glow to her beautiful skin. The moonlight reflects in her sky-blue eyes as she watches me, and a stunning smile curves her lips.
“What do you think of dancing now, Ella?” I grin because her smile is contagious.
“I love it,” she replies breathlessly.
As we continue to move, her long silken hair spills out of the twisted knot atop her head. A few stray tendrils framing her lovely heart-shaped face. She is so beautiful my heart physically aches just from staring at her.
When we are finished, she sits on the nearby fallen trunk. Her chest rises and falls as she catches her breath, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “That was wonderful, Ryvan.”
I bend over to retrieve her discarded shoes, then drop to one knee before her. “May I?”
She lifts her foot toward me. I take her calf in one hand while I gently slip her shoe on with the other, marveling at how soft and smooth her skin is and how small her feet are. I do the same with the other shoe, suddenly realizing how worn and tattered they appear.
“Do you not have any better shoes to traipse through the woods?”
I realize I’ve said something wrong when she jerks her feet back and drops her gaze to the ground. “These are the only pair I have.”
“Forgive me.” I cup her chin and tilt her head back up to me. “I did not mean to judge you.”
“It’s all right.” She shrugs. A faint smile crests her lips. “When I get to Arnafell, I’ll find myself a job straight away and make some money to buy new ones.”
My heart stutters and stops at the mention of her leaving. I dread the day she must go.
“What’s wrong, Ryvan?”
Her question catches me off guard. “I… worry for you,” I admit.
“Why?”
“Because you will be alone in Arnafell.”
She sighs. “I know. It will be strange. I’ve never had a”—she pauses for a moment as if searching for the right word before finally settling on—“friend before. I will miss you, Ryvan.”
“I will miss you, too,” I say solemnly.
Silence lies heavily between us for a second before she stands with a composed smile. “In the meantime, though, I look forward to meeting you again tomorrow.”
I dip my chin in a subtle nod. “Likewise.”
I watch her retreating form as she makes her way back through the forest. Each time I must watch her leave is becoming more difficult, knowing that every day brings a future without her so much closer.
As I make my way back to the castle, thoughts of Ella fill my mind. I want her, but I know it cannot be. Even if I were not Dark Fae, my father would never accept a human as my bondmate.
I walk through the palace gardens and notice a lone figure seated on a bench near the crystal fountain. It is late, and I wonder who it is. Cautiously, I approach and soon recognize my grandfather.
“Grandfather? What are you doing here?”
He turns to me, his eyes bright with unshed tears. “Ah. Ryvan. Just the person I was looking for.”
I tip my head to the side. “You were looking for me?”
“Yes. It seems you’ve been returning late these past few weeks.”
I still.
“Which can only mean one thing.” He places a hand on my shoulder. “Who is she?”
My mouth drifts open. He knows, but how? I did not think anyone was aware of my nighttime ventures. I have been careful to only leave on horseback instead of flying where I may be seen and I always return to my chambers before the rest of the household awakens.
“Well?” he presses.
“Her name is… Ella.”
His brows rise thoughtfully, and he lifts his gaze briefly to the sky. “Starlight,” he comments. “What a lovely name. Why do you not bring her to meet us?”
My shoulders sag in relief. He does not know she’s human, and I must keep it that way.
“Her family is…”
“Not wealthy?” he asks, finishing my sentence for me.
I nod, hating that I am withholding the truth from him.
“There are worse things, you know?” he tells me gently.
I frown. Little does he know that it is worse. She is human, and as such, considered an enemy of our kingdom.
“As you know, your grandmother was the daughter of King Mydian of Cyridil.”
“I remember. Your betrothal and bonding united our two kingdoms under one banner.”
“Yes, but we were not betrothed.”
My head jerks back. “What? I thought your father arranged the marriage to forge an alliance.”
He shakes his head. “My dear boy, that is the story he told after the fact, but that is not the truth. Not at all.”
Now I’m extremely curious. “Then tell me. I wish to know what actually happened.”
He turns his gaze to the crystal fountain, and a wistful smile crests his lips as if reliving a memory. “I fell in love with your grandmother when we were only eighteen. She attended the failed peace talks with her father. The moment I met her, I knew there was something about her that told me she was the one.” He pauses. “She felt the same. We asked our parents for their blessing, and they refused.”
“So, what did you do?”
“I went to a shoemaker who specialized in magical shoes.”
My brow furrows. “Magical shoes?”
“Actually, they were slippers made of pure crystal. They allowed one to easily cross the veiled barrier.” My jaw drops as he continues. “I found out your grandmother was to be married to the Elven Prince of Rivenyl to keep the peace between their kingdoms, while my father arranged for me to marry a daughter of one of the Fae High Lords.” He gives me a knowing look. “My mating cycle was approaching, and I had to be paired soon, but I did not want anyone but your grandmother. So, I sent the slippers to her and asked her to meet me at the veil.”
“How? How did you get them to her in the first place?”
“I had the help of a dragon.”
I blink at him in shock. “But… they are enemies of our kind.”
“Not all,” he explains. “Yes, they are destructive, but some merely seek gold and other valuables, as this particular dragon did. So, I offered him gold in exchange for passing through the barrier and smuggling her the slippers. As you know, the veil cannot contain their kind because their magic is strong, and their tough scales protect their passage.”
I wait with bated breath for him to continue.
“So, he delivered the magic slippers to her, along with a note to meet me in the forest near the barrier. As soon as she stepped through, I sealed her to me in the woods, beneath the stars.”
My eyes widen. “That’s… more than I needed to know.”
He chuckles. “You asked.”
A curious thought occurs to me. “The slippers. How do they work, exactly?”
“They allow the wearer to cross the veil’s magic without difficulty. Much like dragons do.”
I lower my gaze to the ground in contemplation. Such items would be dangerous if they fell into the wrong hands.
Grandfather lifts his hands. Swirling tendrils of magic make their way to the fountain. I watch in wonder as a glowing orb appears in the center. It floats toward us, carrying a pair of crystal slippers inside it.
Grandfather takes them and hands them to me. “Here, my boy. These are the glass slippers I gave to your grandmother. The reason she was able to cross the veil and return to me.”
I eye him curiously. “And why are you giving them to me now?”
His eyes flash with a hint of mischief. “I suspect you will need them.”
“How did you know?” I ask, staring at him in astonishment. “How did you find out that I—”
He raises his hands in a silent bid to allow him to speak. “I see more than you realize, Ryvan.”
I open my mouth, bursting to share the truth, but he stops me.
“I do not want to know anymore. Our people used to bond with humans many years ago before the great rift between our people. If you are courting one while the veil is thin, it is none of my business. Besides, maybe such a pairing might lead to peace between our kingdoms.” He pauses. “Your father has blamed them for your mother’s death for far too long. Not all humans are bad.”
“Why do you say this?”
A faint smile crests his lips. “My aunt was human. She met my uncle at the veil during a silver moon cycle—when the barrier was weak.”
My brow furrows. “You never spoke of her before. Why?”
With a slight clench of his jaw, he lowers his gaze. “Because it is painful to think of them now. They died during a great plague when I was a child.”
His eyes shine with tears as they meet mine. “I simply want you to be happy. If you are secretly courting a human, I do not want to know the details. If your father knew I was encouraging your clandestine outings, he would not leave me alone until he discovered the truth. You know he can ferret out a secret like no one else.” He narrows his eyes. “The only reason he has not discovered that you go missing at night is that he is so worried about the dragon in Eryadon that he cannot think of anything else. He has been worried for you ever since Oradon said the dragon was tied to your fate.”
“He should know by now that he need not worry so for me,” I reply bitterly. “I am Dark Fae. The dark destructiveness of my magic can protect me from almost anything.”
He nods, but says nothing. What can he say?
I hold the glass slippers out to him. “I will not need these.”
He arches a brow.
I continue. “As a Dark Fae it is already dangerous enough to consider bonding to one of our own people. I could never bind myself to someone who lacked innate magic. It would be too dangerous for her.”
His eyes shine with pity as he pushes them back into my hands. “You must trust yourself, Ryvan. There were Dark Fae long before King Erebyr. Many of them lived normal lives side by side with the Light Fae. My brother’s powers were strong, but he managed to contain them. He—” his voice catches a moment before he continues. “I know if he had been given a chance to live… he would have been able to control the darkness within him. Just as I know that you will be able to do this too.”
Grandfather rarely speaks of his brother because the memory of his death is too painful for him, even now… all these many years later.
I meet his gaze evenly. “Thank you for your faith in me. You have always believed in me, Grandfather.”
“And I always will, Ryvan.” He glances down at the glass slippers. “Now take these and know that if you decide to use them, you do so with my blessing.”
