Yara awoke, her throat parched. It felt drier than a long emptied river bed. A cough fought its way out, and she strained to look up as the light blinded her. 

It was morning. And she had been sleeping with her mouth open, she figured, drool dried on the sides of her lips. 

Yep, I basically passed out last night, she thought, glancing around at the silken veil that surrounded her. It was a soft, almost pink color, and it flowed in the breeze from the open windows. The barrier Dev had placed around her was still active, but it had a softer glow to it, not as bright as when he had first conjured it. 

“Dev?” Yara asked, and within moments, the doors opened. Dev rushed in. 

“Are you finally awake?”

“Did I sleep in? I’m sorry. I don’t even remember going to bed.” She rubbed her eye. 

“You didn’t. Not exactly, anyway. You’ve been in bed for almost two days.” 

Yara blinked in surprise. “Wha—?” 

“What’s the last thing you remember?” 

“Some blurry dreams. I remember talking to you during the welcome party.” 

“Yes. It was something you ate or drank, but it was poisoned.” 

“Poisoned?” She had let down her guard, much to her displeasure. Yara had been at near-paranoid levels of care, but she had missed something as simple as a poisoned drink or snack? Pitiful, truly. 

She scoffed in disbelief. “Am I going to die?”

“It seems to have a sedative effect on you, not much more,” Dev said. He smiled warmly. “I’m glad you’re awake. I had the physician check on you, and he said it’s likely due to your elven physiology that the poison did not harm you.” 

“Are you sure it was poison?”

“You coughed up blood and collapsed. We tested the sample and found it to have traces of a tried-and-true poison used to assassinate several prominent fae figures throughout history. So, yes.”

“I believe you. No need to get worked up,” Yara said, raising an eyebrow. “What? Are you worried?”

Dev said nothing, shying away from her pressing gaze. 

“Does the illustrious Sixth Prince of the Fae care for some elven princess abandoned by her own people? Left at your doorstep like some stray animal or an unwanted child?”

“Nothing of the sort,” Dev replied. “The wedding ceremony has been put off. We will head to the tree at once to complete the terms of the peace treaty.” 

“Really?” The ceremony seemed important to the fae. They took great pride in preserving and performing their rituals. If even they were willing to part ways with their traditions in favor of this peace treaty, that meant they were serious. Or they were planning something sinister—but maybe that was just her overthinking again. But…she had just been poisoned, so it could have been true. 

“We will be joined by my personal guard. The only ones I can trust,” Dev said. “They have been with me since I was a child, and they have never done anything to break my faith in them. We will be in good hands, I assure you, Yara.”

A short-statured woman approached them. Her hair was light, colored like the white bark of an aspen tree, and her pale blue skin was striking. Her eyes didn’t possess the cosmic dust of the other fae, and crystalline sparkles that resembled snowflakes floated about instead.

She raised a hand in greeting, then stood next to Dev, not saying anything else. 

“This is Lumi,” Dev said, patting her on the head. “She came to us as a refugee from the Winter Court many years ago. Since then, she has proven herself to be a talented greatsword user, and she was appointed personally by my mother to watch over me when I was born.” 

Lumi nodded. 

“As you may or may not know, the Summer Court is the ruling body of this region, Yara,” he added, before motioning to Yara. “And of course, this is Yarasovelia Ellewyn, my bride-to-be.” 

“Pleasure,” Yara said, and Lumi nodded again. 

“She’s a little quiet around new folks.” The fae prince glanced around. “Now where is Jolan?”

“You called?” A soft voice called out from above them. Yara looked up, and saw someone drop down from behind one of the flowing tapestries. 

They landed gracefully on their feet, without use of their wings. This fae stood a bit taller than those around them, but still about half-a-head shorter than Dev. 

“Jolan…I didn’t know you were already here,” Dev said quietly.

“I was simply doing my job of watching over you, prince.” Jolan glanced at Yara, giving her a once-over with their hazel eyes. The fae had sharp features set upon a copper-toned complexion. “Introductions are in order, I presume. It is nice seeing you up close, Princess Yara.” 

“Up close?” Yara asked, thinking back to her previous encounters with Dev—she had not noticed anyone else lurking about. 

“A fae is always announced by the breeze. I’m sure you’ve noticed a chill wind out of the blue.” 

“Not particularly.”

“Well, I’ve been keeping to higher vantage points as of late. Miss Lumi has the ground angles covered.” 

Lumi agreed silently. 

“Seems we’re in good hands after all, Dev.” Yara chuckled, a bit nervous. 

“You’ll get used to them. They generally stay out of sight, as you can tell by now.” Dev clasped his hands together, about to say something else, when Jolan cut in.

“The ceremony. It’s not happening?” Jolan asked, raising a brow.

“No. She was just poisoned. It’s not safe here for her.”

“So that’s what that was…” 

Dev fixed his eyes on Jolan. “That’s what what was?! Did you see who did it?”

Jolan pointed, as did Lumi. “The maidservant that is now wearing a hood.” 

They all glanced across and saw someone floating up the stairs to exit, wearing a dark brown cloak that trailed behind them. 

“Well, why are you just standing about? Go after them!” Dev pointed. 

“But, milord, you are the object of our affection and protection…” Jolan looked uncertain.

“GO!” Dev yelled. 

“At once.” Jolan and Lumi dashed off, as if carried by the winds themselves. Their wings weren’t even out, yet they darted through the air like lightning. They swerved in and out of the crowd, deftly avoiding platters and glasses and extended arms. 

The suspect was only a few feet away from the door, when Dev sighed. Lumi and Jolan would not reach their target before they made it through the door. 

Dev muttered under his breath, “If you want it done right…” He held out his hand, and the air shimmered brightly. Drawing his hand in a line, he formed a humming section of purple illusionary magic. Within a moment, it materialized into a copper-and-black marksman rifle, clearly based on current human designs, with a wooden stock and brass sights.

Instead of aiming at his target, he pointed the rifle up toward the ceiling. He clicked his teeth, then pulled the trigger without hesitation. 

There was no signature crack as the rifle fired. No smoke, either. What came out of the barrel of the weapon was a single brightly-colored illusionary bullet that rocketed across the hall. It struck the chandelier, bouncing off the polished edge and slamming down toward the escapee. It struck the stranger right through one of their exposed wings, and they crashed to the floor in a heap. 

Lumi and Jolan reached the culprit and subdued them. 

“Did you just…calculate that shot?” Yara could barely believe it. The physics of illusionary bullets really threw her for a loop. It had bounced off the shiny metal surface, but drilled through other material so easily. Was it controlled or did it interact differently based on the type of object? 

“I guess. It’s more intuitive than it looks.” Dev shrugged. “Let’s take this somewhere private.” 

Some of the fae in the crowd had noticed the commotion, while others were far too drunk on honey to have any idea what was going on. Yara and Dev made their way through the mob of people and joined the prince’s personal guard and their new prisoner. 

They continued into a well-kept storage room, bringing the suspicious individual with them. 

Lumi pulled down the hood of the stranger—a maidservant as they had mentioned earlier. She didn’t look very old—fresh out of her teens, at most. Her light blonde hair was trimmed at shoulder-length and her build was slight. What struck Yara the most was that the girl’s eyes seemed to lack any sort of joy. 

“Before we start our discussion, we should perhaps get Lumi out of here,” Jolan cautioned. He was right—Lumi was glaring at the maid, her teeth bared and her eyebrows furrowed into a scowl. She looked about a second short of growling like an angry guard dog. 

“We can take it from here, Jolan. Get Lumi some water and a snack,” Dev said, smiling.

Jolan put his hands around Lumi’s shoulders, guiding her away, but she turned around to shoot one last angry look at the maid before she was carted out.

The maid stared at the floor, staying quiet. 

“I’m sorry about your leg,” Dev motioned with his head toward the small wound in the back of her leg. “I couldn’t let you escape.”

“What do you mean…” the maid said, as if she hadn’t done anything out of the ordinary. 

“Why did you run?”

“I had to go to the restroom.” She didn’t look up at the prince, still staring listlessly at the floor. 

Dev glanced at Yara. “Do you believe her?” 

“Fae don’t lie, right?” Yara asked. The maid didn’t seem to pose much of a threat. By all impressions, she seemed like a regular girl—not someone that would try to poison a political target. 

“Half-truths can work, especially if it answers the question in a way. Her needing to use the restroom could be true, but that may not be the real reason why she chose to run.” Dev tapped his finger on his jacket, thinking to himself. 

“Did you poison my drink?” Yara made eye contact with her, and the fae looked at her nervously. 

“Wait. It’s not my fault. It’s—” the maid stammered. Her face had drained of all color and she had an air of desperation to her. “Help me.” 

“What?” 

“I didn’t want to do this. They—” She froze, her eyes going wide. Small cracks had started to form on her hands, revealing a purple light beneath. “I’m sorry…” 

“It’s okay, you can tell us. We won’t hurt—” Yara began. 

A high-pitched whine emanated from the maid, a faint glow leaking out from behind her eyes, which were filled with tears now. In that moment, she seemed so frail—like she had no say in the direction of her life. All Yara could discern was genuine fear from her face, and she wished she could do something to help. Whatever the girl had done, was not of her own will, she guessed.  

Yara gasped as Dev grabbed her arm. He pulled away with such force and such speed that she was almost slammed against the wall. He put his body between her and the other girl, obstructing her from view. 

“Close your eyes, princess,” Dev instructed, his voice stern, and she couldn’t help but obey. 

But the sound—that shrill tone, forced her eyes open. Yara looked in the direction of the maid, and what followed was something she hoped she’d never have to witness again. The small woman’s entire upper half exploded in a shower of blood and gore. The corpse crumpled to the floor, a thin purple mist leaking from it, and Yara stared in shock as a single severed arm hit the ground with a wet thud.