It Isn't Easy Being Queen

34. Beware the Enchanted Pond!

The problem with fairies is there are so many rules—they can't lie, but they can deceive. If you eat the food in fairyland, you'll never leave. If you dance, your feet will bleed. And just when you think you've got a handle on all the rules, and you're safe ... Boom! Turns out the rules are not set in stone. But you could be set in stone if you're not careful.

Fairies are pretty, and sometimes grant wishes, but they're not worth all the trouble.

On the upside, after Tyra had moved Blade atop a comfy bed, surrounded him with fragrant roses, applied a healing balm, and had him serenaded by a harpist and a choir of sprites, I could almost spend an entire thirty seconds without worrying about him.

So, the begging was worth it. It had to be! Blade would live to annoy me once again. Or else!

That night, Tyra, Olivia, and I feasted at a long wooden table with lifelike birds carved into the legs. The carvings looked so precise and detailed; it was as if they were actual birds turned to wood mid-flight. I tried not to focus on this, but instead on the silver platters loaded with meat pies, perfect apples the color of fresh blood, honey cakes, and flasks of golden wine. Vermeil had left us to the revel and dine in the garbage heap outside the kitchen.

Following dinner, Vermeil and I were given a beautiful underground cavern, bathed in rainbows of light, with a magically moonlit pool in an accompanying chamber. On the ceiling, a massive chandelier with twisted crystalline arms shaped like jellyfish tentacles dangled over the cavern. The surface of the water was dotted with giant pink waterlilies and tiny fairies glowing like fireflies zipped from flower to flower. It was so inviting; I couldn't wait to jump in and wash, and lo, there were fluffy white towels and silk pajamas on a table near the shore.

'Lo' Again, with the medieval language!

Vermeil wasn't much interested in the 'getting clean' idea, claiming the dirt was beneficial for his fur and that people had stupid skin that had to be constantly washed.

I left him to sleep in a bed I made him from an extra pillow and headed for the pond. Dipping my toes into the water, I found it was as warm as a bathtub. Tossing my gown (now a rag) to the floor, I jumped in, the warm, fragrant water enveloping me like a lover's caress. Wait, where did I come up with that simile? Was this place having some weird effect on me? Turning me into a character in a romance novel? Geesh!

After my swim, I toweled off, dressed in the pajamas, and crawled into the bed, which was so soft and fluffy, it was like climbing into a pile of clouds. As soon as I laid my head against the pillow, I spun into a dream where Blade joined me in the magical pool.

Fade to black.

What? You feel ripped off? Like you should get to read all about my sexy dream bath with Blade?

Okay, fine, but only because I've grown fond of you, dear readers, over the time we've spent together.

The light in the pool's cavern had dimmed, and the waterlilies had closed tight, bobbing on waxen leaves. I plunged beneath the surface, and the underside of the lilies was straggly dark, twisted roots undulating in the water. They almost seemed to reach for me, like they wanted to drag me under, but with a powerful kick, I jetted away from them to the middle of the pond, where I pierced the surface, flipped over on my back, and floated, gazing up at the jellyfish chandelier casting ribbons of colored light over the water.