On closer inspection, I notice the tree castle has multiple levels of floating porches wrapping around the entirety of it, as well as windows all the way to the top.
Every porch my eyes can reach seems to be bustling with activity. People chattering with each other, watering potted plants, or simply sipping from steaming cups as they gaze out at the world below them. Not a single sliver of concern or unease is apparent in any of the people I’ve seen here today, which gives me pause. How has no one noticed their queen missing?
Before long, I gulp in a breath and follow Sapling right into the castle. There is no door and, considering the fact that this entire place is hidden by magic, I find myself not surprised. There shouldn’t be anything they need to protect themselves against. At least, not until now.
“Sapling! Are you sure we’re allowed in here?” I whisper-yell to the little fox already over ten feet away from me.
“Does it matter? We have a duty to inform the kingdom of what’s happened.” He sounds so confident in his words that I hesitate to answer.
Before I can think of a response, my eyes linger over the interior of the castle. The walls look just as I expected, like tree trunks. Though, the ceiling is lower than expected with a chandelier made of deer antlers. It seems a questionable choice in decor for creatures of nature like the fae, but in reality the antlers are collected from all sorts of different deer that have shed their previous ones.
The floor continues where the outside left off, a luscious green grass splayed out in front of us—with the occasional piece of handmade furniture littered across it.
Although the castle is elegant and beautiful in its own right, the inside is more chaotic than what most would expect.
There is no specific order to the castle, trinkets of all different kinds litter the shelving available in the entryway and I’m surprised by the warm and cozy atmosphere. Not at all how I imagined a castle to feel.
Before long, Sapling stops in front of a wide door clearly made from the wood of neighboring trees.
I don’t have time to react before the little fox hops up on his haunches and starts scratching at the door like a desperate and feral cat ready to eat its first meal after Goddess only knows how long.
“Sapling! You cannot just—“ my mouth snaps shut when I hear the creak of the door opening and I take a step back, ready to be scolded.
Before us, a man of strong stature swings the door open, a scowl embedded so deeply into his features that I’m worried his eyes alone will send Sapling and I both into the afterlife.
“Who are you? What do you want?” The man gruffs. As a fae, we all collectively can set each other apart from humans. We know fae when we see them, in other words. So, seeing this rather large man with a nasty scowl on his face and realizing he is, indeed, a fae, has me shocked.
Fae can be any shape or size, but it is a bit more uncommon to see one of such a large build. Though, the most surprising by far is the very obviously older man’s expression. Fae are kind hearted and nurturing by nature, which is why I’m baffled at the man’s initial response to our presence.
Before either of us can respond, the older fae looks down and his scowl deepens as his eyes land on Sapling.
“Oh, um, I- we need to speak with the king. It’s urgent.” I gesture to Sapling and I, then hold my breath.
The man’s gray eyes steel over and a chill runs down my spine.
“The queen is dead. We need to speak with him now.” Oh Goddess, Sapling, be quiet!
My look of horror is met with one of disbelief from the other man and the way his eyes glaze over with uncertainty has me surprised. He believes us?
“Come with me. Quickly.” Sapling and I exchange glances but follow along behind him, nonetheless.
Grabbing a strand of my hair, I pull and twist it around my fingers. Having to confess the previous events has me shaking with nerves, swallowing down a lump in my throat.
As we walk hesitantly behind the black haired man, I cannot help but notice how small his presence makes me feel. Not only because of his size, but also because of the commanding presence he seems to carry with him wherever he goes.
His heavy footfalls drown out ours as we tread down a long pathway and descend a couple flights of wooden and cracked stairs.
I’m surprised to be going down, the castle itself is so tall I do not see a reason for there to be a basement. But, I remain quiet and take in my surroundings.
The walls along the staircases are bare and the faint glow of candles sitting at the edge of every few steps does little to illuminate the dark space.
Looking over to see a rather calm little brown fox does aid in soothing my nerves, but I stay wary.
Eventually, we reach the final floor, and the bigger man takes a sharp left. Sapling and I are quick to follow.
The ground floor is thankfully lit up properly in comparison to the stairs and we’re able to see much better.
The atmosphere of their basement isn’t the same warm and cozy one as before. The lights are ironically almost too bright and I squint my eyes a little to keep in tow with the fae in front of us.
The floor below is not beautiful and overgrown grass like upstairs. Instead it appears to be some kind of solid marble, a dark gray in color.
It isn’t much longer before we reach another large door, one of the same wood that’s recurrent throughout the castle. Before I have time to even swallow down my nerves, the man I still have yet to learn the name of is knocking on the wood.
In record time, Sapling and I are ushered into the seemingly small space. Guards stand near the door and one of them shuts it back behind us after allowing us in, then immediately goes back to their post by the side wall.
Aside from the rather intimidating crew of men and women standing along each wall, the first thing I notice upon entry is how the big space is filled with a large wooden table and upwards of fifteen chairs scattered around it, making the room appear much smaller than it is.
There are no windows, but the light in the room appears natural. Some sort of light spell I suppose?
The only thing hanging on the bare wooden walls is a single painting on the left one, painted to resemble the forest outside. Or, at least what it used to look like.
Swallowing thickly, I finally allow myself to glance at the most prominent presence in the room.
The King.
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