King
Challenge Name: Words
Title: King
Rating: R for language and... Tallain in general.
Required words: Traffic, secured, overenthusiastic, liberally, clinker
Word Count (optional): I can't see because beautiful Word was taken away from me, but not_quite_queen said somewhere over 3,000. X____X
Update: 3,346 words.
Author's Notes (optional): I bolded my words instead of italicized them, because I use italics a lot. That, and I like bold... also, I wrote this in two days (less, because I had to entertain a friend). It probably REALLY SUCKS, especially the end, because this is totally last minute and I think his personality kinda dies somewhere in the middle because I'm tired. For that reason, it probably also sounds like my words were pretty much thrown in (especially "clinker". That one was a freakin sadist).
Edit: OH! I forgot to mention that I believe all the names, save Svitania's and Marcus', are from a generator, and Svitania's I saw on a lady's name badge at Wal-Mart the other day. Marcus just popped into my head.
The day had previously nothing out of the norm.
I had woken up to a rather unpleasant slap across my face. Apparently, I had been magically transformed in the middle of the night to a man named "Marcus", who seemed to be a "filthy, disease-ridden, two-timing lech" and I should... well, that really isn't something that needs repeated. But it probably really wasn't something that Marcus should do, as it sounded like it would be completely counter-productive here.
I guess "feisty" would be an appropriate description for her, the gentle, warm and loving woman who had so kindly slapped me across the face in order to show Marcus the error of his ways. But then, "bat-shit crazy, deranged alcoholic harpy" also fit quite well.
Finally I was able to escape her tirade and, after stumbling my way out of the inn infested with god knows what sort of people and pestilences, I was able to find a nice, cool spring to take a bath in. 'Cool', of course, as in reminiscent of glacier water.
Then, all clean and fresh and smelling of roses, I dressed and set into town to work.
My work wasn't really "work", per se. It was more of... well, stealing, actually. I could try to justify it over paragraphs describing Why Society Has Forced Me Into This, Why It's Society's (slash my parents', slash my friends', slash...) Fault I'm The Way I Am, and How It's Somewhat Justified Since I Steal Mostly From Rich People Well Versed In The Ways Of Jack-Assery, but it would all be mostly excuses, and I can admit that. I will however say that I didn't frivolously waste the money I stole (except for maybe that one time with the whore, but that was only once), and that most of it was used for feeding myself nice meals of lovely, luke-warm soups of varying types, and yet all seemingly with the consistency of molasses, or if not that, maybe something closer to water. I even rented a nice inn room every now-and-then. 'Nice', of course, meaning here: 'infested with roaches and all sort of creepies, and furnished with a heavenly bed that mimicked perfectly a lovely boulder--bugs included--with comfortable, tattered-and-holey blankets'.
If that still doesn't make you think of me at least as an agreeable sort of thief, hopefully the fact that I got beaten, chased down my angry mobs, spat on, slapped by people who I'd never seen before, or even the nice kick in the face at least once a week will ease your mind. And if not that, maybe that I was just a general magnet for any sort of trouble that ironically hardly ever had any sort of prior involvement with me.
In any case, I was 'working', things were going well (the gentleman I'd nicked a sizable purse from was happily walking away, completely oblivious), I had enough to get me a few nice meals, when I noticed some friendly-looking, large, imposing men dressed in uniforms headed my way.
When you have my job, that is never a nice thing, especially with my luck.
...Actually, with my luck, they would be looking for... maybe Marcus, and take me instead.
It was only at second glance that I noticed that these sort of men were in fact not men.
... Well, that's not what I meant at all. They were men--as in male--but they were not 'human'. And that was a thing that was rather confusing to me, as I spent hardly any time in the Fae Realm. I probably even had a decent rap sheet there; there was nothing that really stuck out in my mind that would merit a nice trip to a comfy cell in Faery Jail. (It's not as nice as it sounds, what with fae being creatures of magic and not at all as nice in general as some like to think).
So, why they would want me to punish me was something I couldn't come up with. And with that thought in mind, I made what was probably the worst mistake of my life.
I let them approach me, and they walked past, staring at me all the while. One gave a small, almost unnoticeable jerk of his head that told me to follow him, probably to a place where we could talk away from the humans. So I did.
But of course they were not taking me to a quiet place to have a pleasant chat. Nope. The only thing that they really told me was that I was being escorted--only without the whole 'choice' thing--to see the King of Winter.
And that was not a nice thing because, you see, the King of Winter was one of those 'Not-So-Nice' sorts of fae. He matched his season perfectly; he was cold and cruel, known to be harsh and stubborn and unyielding, like a blizzard, and as sharp and biting as dry ice. He was also probably the sole reason for many of the hunger and famine problems of the world.
... He as a person, not the season itself, that is. I bet he killed flowers, too; just traipsed about, crushing them under his feet for fun. I could also see him eating babies for breakfast. He probably also went around, beating women and torturing animals, pillaging and plundering and burning down villages--or maybe burying them in snow since he was Winter, I don't know--stealing hordes of humans away to be his slaves...
Okay, maybe that was a bit much. He probably wouldn't want humans as his slaves.
In all honesty, though, he wasn't too much of a pleasant guy. Everything I said previously about his personality was true; he was aligned with the Unseelie Court. The Unseelie Court likes to maim and torture, break minds; they are in general dark and twisted and cruel, sometimes even to their own kind. I'm not going just off of that, though; really, he just... hadn't proven to be very nice at all.
So I was needless to say not very excited about any of this at all. I had in fact tried to get myself out of this situation, only to be reminded of how big and strong they were and how powerless I was since I was not only smaller and weaker, but also had pretty much forgotten most magic. The whole 'living with humans' thing did that to you. I still retained some, mostly used to help me here and there, tricks for stealing things and making it easier to escape out of situations, but I'd forgotten most else.
Which sucked in this case, since I couldn't slip away from these guards. I sighed and complied, letting them lead me to a carriage they had waiting.
It must have been drawn by fae horses, or magicked, because it was able to swiftly weave through the town's traffic with much more ease than it should.
After what felt like hours (though with fae you can never know about these things; it could have just as easily been days, or only a few minutes) it came to an abrupt halt, triggering Gravity, which grabbed me and jerked me forward so unexpectedly that I hit my head.
Rubbing the spot and glaring at the guards as they opened the door for me, I stepped out onto the ground and was completely taken aback by what I saw. They'd taken me to a huge castle upon a large expanse of land.
The castle seemed to have no sense of seasons. The trees were cold and dead, without their leaves, and the windows of the castle were frosted over and their sill's had a layer of snow liberally applied to them, like Winter. The ground, however, was covered in a plush carpet of bright green grass, like Summer or Spring, maybe, I had no idea. All around us, the gardens were bright and vibrant, alive with life, and the temperature was warmer rather than cold.
What a freaky place.
The guards merely looked at me and headed up the stairs that led to the castle doors, silently ordering me to follow with their eyes. I almost wanted to completely defy them and get back in their carriage for thinking themselves too good to talk to me or whatever it was. Almost. Aside from the part where they were more powerful and under the order of the scary Winter guy.
I ruefully followed them up the steps and inside as they held the doors open for me, and secured them tightly behind me. I couldn't help but feel like it had been a bad idea to follow them... I should have ran when I'd spotted them.
Instead I just walked ahead at a slow gait, causing them to slow down even more as they felt some sort of weird duty to stay behind me and keep an eye on me, and looked at all of the nice, lavish pictures and trinkets and decorations on the way as they directed me through the halls.
At last, we arrived in a wide, open room; it looked like a throne room. There was a man lounging boredly in... oh, look at that, a throne, seated at the end of the room, across from us. The guards left me to approach him, taking a stand on either side of him.
I found them rather overenthusiastic; who wanted to return to a mean King like him?
But then I glanced up and found my pace slowing. And this time, it wasn't because I was being a jackass.
He had to be the most beautiful man I'd ever beheld. His face was perfect; high cheekbones, a delicate chin and strong jaw. His eyes were perfectly spaced and seated high above his small nose, elongating his face. He was a whole head taller than me, with a build that was perfectly balanced between lanky and toned.
But of course, being fae, it didn't stop there.
His hair was white and billowed elegantly down his shoulders before coming to rest at his waist, soft and curled ever so slightly at the ends. His porcelain skin shimmered softly, like pure, freshly-fallen snow, and his almond-shaped white eyes were exotic, especially in that the "whites" of them were black, like a wolf's. His full, plump lips had a soft tinge of blue to them, and his long, elegant fingers ended in obsidian, claw-like nails. His wings must have been hidden with glamour.
He was clothed in ornate armor and furs.
It was simply too much for a common pixie like me; one who had not only no nobility but played the part of a common thief in the human realm. The sight of him made my heart flutter oddly.
He quirked an eyebrow at me, and that really didn't helped the situation with my heart.
"Do you have no manners? It is general custom to bow to royalty."
Flushing, I gave a small bow as the guards exchanged a look. I sent a glare their way, and the King of Winter frowned at me, but that seemed to be at my bow, and not my glaring at his croonies.
He stood, making a show of it, being all graceful and elegant about it.
"Tallain," he said. How had he learned my name? I frowned. Though I couldn't say that I didn't like him saying it... with that voice of his, so calm and soft but low, like a winter breeze, "You are aware of the death of Selris, are you not?" I paused; the name sounded familiar, but it didn't jog any memories. What did he expect from me, though? I'd been with the humans most of my hundred-and-seven years, so I hadn't had much time to pay very close attention to Fae matters. He stared at me indignantly. "You didn't know of the death of the Autumn King?" he asked, disbelieving.
I shrugged. "I don't even know his name. For that matter, I don't know yours." Everyone I'd talked to had just referred to him as "the King of Winter".
His face matched the disbelieving tone in his voice. "I am Naeliss," he said. "And the Autumn King was Selris. The problem--and where you come in--is that Selris had no direct blood relations." My curiosity was piqued, but my stomach filled with dread. How, exactly, did this relate to me...?
"After searching for months, the only relation that we could find to him was you," He sighed, as if this whole thing tired him. "We didn't want to as you, a common pixie--and I'm also sure that this probably isn't what you'd rather be doing--but we really have no choice."
I prayed he wasn't going to say what I think he was going to say.
"You're to be the next King of Autumn," he said. "Tomorrow, you will start your lessons to catch you up to the other Seasonal Rulers and I, and three days from now, you will be crowned." My jaw fell open, but he only stood and headed down one of the halls we hadn't explored. The guards motioned for me to follow.
I frowned and with a huff, I trotted after him, wishing he weren't so... pompous? Really, he shouldn't have opened his mouth. It ruined his pretty.
"Before you protest, there is nothing you can say or do to stop this. There is no way someone without the blood of Autumn can be Ruler of Autumn, and you are the last left. Believe me, if there was another way, we would take it. There isn't, and if you try to fight this or escape you will be thwarted. The world needs Autumn." I stopped in my tracks.
"There's no other way?" I asked. He stopped and turned towards me.
"No. Someone who doesn't have the right blood physically can not do the job."
I followed him silently as he led me to my room, the guards opening the door for me as I stepped inside.
I ignored all the lavish decor, simply heading to the bed and flopping down on it.
This would happen to me.
Fortunately, unlike whatever places I could find to stay when I wasn't staying out in the wilderness, the curtains were thick enough that the first light didn't wake me and I was able to sleep in.
The guard at my door informing me that breakfast was ready was another matter.
With a sigh I rose and looked around for clean clothes to wear, a feat made difficult by all the fruity shit they liked to call "clothing". Really, it was just ridiculous. These were men's clothes? Really?
I found something that retained a small grain of masculinity, finally, and threw it on and went out to meet the guard at the door.
He eyed me oddly, at that my clothes were fruitier than what normal people wore or not fruity enough, I wasn't sure. I ignored the look, though, smiling at him cheerfully before he gave me another odd look and headed down the halls.
I followed, resisting the urge to pocket some of the nice trinkets I saw--no more need for that, I supposed. No more need for any fun--not that that was something that was allowed here, judging by Naeliss.
But, finally, after an excruciating five minutes in which I debated things to steal and ways to escape and have my fun, we arrived at the dining hall.
It was obvious that it was the dining hall, and the sheer size of it implied that it was meant for many people to enjoy; a thing that had me wondering. It was either for parties, or just entirely frivolous.
Eyeing the table--the very long table that could probably seat near 50--I noticed someone sitting at it. The guard left my side and I made my way to it, and it was only after I got closer that I noticed that this person was a man.
Not that they were an effeminate man, but his body was delicate enough and his blonde hair long enough that from behind, he looked like he might be a slightly masculine woman.
He wasn't quite as striking as the King of Winter had been to me, but he had his own sort of beauty. His skin had a soft golden hue, and he was around my height with a strong face and wide, curious green eyes. He let his wings show, shaped after a swallow-tailed butterfly's and alight with all sorts of colors.
If I had to guess, I would say that this was the King of Spring.
"Tallain, right?" He asked cheerfully, leaning his elbows on the table and propping his chin up on his hands. I gave a small nod. "I'm the King of Spring, Khiter." I smirked; I loved being right.
"Let me be the first to welcome you properly, I'm sure Naeliss did a horrible job of it." He extended his hand out to me, and I felt some comfort in that I at least had someone who was nicer than that... well, I'm not going to sully myself with the words.
"What's wrong with him, anyway?" I asked, taking a sip of the porridge-esque food that was placed in front of me--Khiter had one, too--by a rather lovely maid. It was better than what I'd eaten before, that was for sure.
Khiter stared at me a moment before breaking out into... oddly musical, yet still very loud and enthusiastic, laughter. I really didn't see what was so funny, I was perfectly serious.
"Don't worry about him. He wasn't always this way... he's had a pretty hard time." Khiter smiled sadly.
"You aren't really in touch with the other fae, are you?" he asked. I shook my head back and fourth as I continued to shovel my mouth full of... whatever this was. It seemed that with every bite, it got more and more delicious. And it had a faint hint of cinnamon to it; I loved cinnamon.
He "hm'd" and began to eat.
"Him and the Queen of Summer--Nemun--can be hard to deal with sometimes. They're the more intense of the four seasons, and their personalities tend to reflect that. You and I are the calmer of the two, the transitional seasons, and our personalities, too, reflect upon our respective seasons."
I nodded slowly; that made sense, a little, though I didn't really like the idea of things like that being set in stone. Winter always being cold and cruel and Summer always being fiesty and aggressive just got boring after a while. Why couldn't winter be the fiesty one?
Finally, after him and I--I guess the others weren't joining us--finished, I had been about to head back off to catch a few more hour's sleep when the sound of heels clipping on the floor at a strident pace made me turn my head.
Approaching me was a woman who would have been stunning, if she didn't fill my gut with terror. Her whole being was imposing, and that expression on her face wasn't one that helped to put me at ease. She was dressed in all black; a short, tight dress and high-heeled boots. Even her hair was black.
She came to a halt in front of me.
"You are Tallain?" she asked, her voice containing a faint accent. I nodded quickly.
She eyed me, seeming disappointed.
"Very well. I am Svitania, and I will be re-teaching you your magic. Now, come with me," she said, striding off.
She only took a few steps before she turned, however, and looked towards Khiter.
"Have you fed Clinker today?" she asked. I could only wonder what the fuck a "clinker" was and why it needed to be fed.
Khiter, seeming to react from her the same way I did, only nodded.
I had a feeling that between Naeliss and Svitania, all of my joy would be sucked dry.
Title: King
Rating: R for language and... Tallain in general.
Required words: Traffic, secured, overenthusiastic, liberally, clinker
Word Count (optional): I can't see because beautiful Word was taken away from me, but not_quite_queen said somewhere over 3,000. X____X
Update: 3,346 words.
Author's Notes (optional): I bolded my words instead of italicized them, because I use italics a lot. That, and I like bold... also, I wrote this in two days (less, because I had to entertain a friend). It probably REALLY SUCKS, especially the end, because this is totally last minute and I think his personality kinda dies somewhere in the middle because I'm tired. For that reason, it probably also sounds like my words were pretty much thrown in (especially "clinker". That one was a freakin sadist).
Edit: OH! I forgot to mention that I believe all the names, save Svitania's and Marcus', are from a generator, and Svitania's I saw on a lady's name badge at Wal-Mart the other day. Marcus just popped into my head.
The day had previously nothing out of the norm.
I had woken up to a rather unpleasant slap across my face. Apparently, I had been magically transformed in the middle of the night to a man named "Marcus", who seemed to be a "filthy, disease-ridden, two-timing lech" and I should... well, that really isn't something that needs repeated. But it probably really wasn't something that Marcus should do, as it sounded like it would be completely counter-productive here.
I guess "feisty" would be an appropriate description for her, the gentle, warm and loving woman who had so kindly slapped me across the face in order to show Marcus the error of his ways. But then, "bat-shit crazy, deranged alcoholic harpy" also fit quite well.
Finally I was able to escape her tirade and, after stumbling my way out of the inn infested with god knows what sort of people and pestilences, I was able to find a nice, cool spring to take a bath in. 'Cool', of course, as in reminiscent of glacier water.
Then, all clean and fresh and smelling of roses, I dressed and set into town to work.
My work wasn't really "work", per se. It was more of... well, stealing, actually. I could try to justify it over paragraphs describing Why Society Has Forced Me Into This, Why It's Society's (slash my parents', slash my friends', slash...) Fault I'm The Way I Am, and How It's Somewhat Justified Since I Steal Mostly From Rich People Well Versed In The Ways Of Jack-Assery, but it would all be mostly excuses, and I can admit that. I will however say that I didn't frivolously waste the money I stole (except for maybe that one time with the whore, but that was only once), and that most of it was used for feeding myself nice meals of lovely, luke-warm soups of varying types, and yet all seemingly with the consistency of molasses, or if not that, maybe something closer to water. I even rented a nice inn room every now-and-then. 'Nice', of course, meaning here: 'infested with roaches and all sort of creepies, and furnished with a heavenly bed that mimicked perfectly a lovely boulder--bugs included--with comfortable, tattered-and-holey blankets'.
If that still doesn't make you think of me at least as an agreeable sort of thief, hopefully the fact that I got beaten, chased down my angry mobs, spat on, slapped by people who I'd never seen before, or even the nice kick in the face at least once a week will ease your mind. And if not that, maybe that I was just a general magnet for any sort of trouble that ironically hardly ever had any sort of prior involvement with me.
In any case, I was 'working', things were going well (the gentleman I'd nicked a sizable purse from was happily walking away, completely oblivious), I had enough to get me a few nice meals, when I noticed some friendly-looking, large, imposing men dressed in uniforms headed my way.
When you have my job, that is never a nice thing, especially with my luck.
...Actually, with my luck, they would be looking for... maybe Marcus, and take me instead.
It was only at second glance that I noticed that these sort of men were in fact not men.
... Well, that's not what I meant at all. They were men--as in male--but they were not 'human'. And that was a thing that was rather confusing to me, as I spent hardly any time in the Fae Realm. I probably even had a decent rap sheet there; there was nothing that really stuck out in my mind that would merit a nice trip to a comfy cell in Faery Jail. (It's not as nice as it sounds, what with fae being creatures of magic and not at all as nice in general as some like to think).
So, why they would want me to punish me was something I couldn't come up with. And with that thought in mind, I made what was probably the worst mistake of my life.
I let them approach me, and they walked past, staring at me all the while. One gave a small, almost unnoticeable jerk of his head that told me to follow him, probably to a place where we could talk away from the humans. So I did.
But of course they were not taking me to a quiet place to have a pleasant chat. Nope. The only thing that they really told me was that I was being escorted--only without the whole 'choice' thing--to see the King of Winter.
And that was not a nice thing because, you see, the King of Winter was one of those 'Not-So-Nice' sorts of fae. He matched his season perfectly; he was cold and cruel, known to be harsh and stubborn and unyielding, like a blizzard, and as sharp and biting as dry ice. He was also probably the sole reason for many of the hunger and famine problems of the world.
... He as a person, not the season itself, that is. I bet he killed flowers, too; just traipsed about, crushing them under his feet for fun. I could also see him eating babies for breakfast. He probably also went around, beating women and torturing animals, pillaging and plundering and burning down villages--or maybe burying them in snow since he was Winter, I don't know--stealing hordes of humans away to be his slaves...
Okay, maybe that was a bit much. He probably wouldn't want humans as his slaves.
In all honesty, though, he wasn't too much of a pleasant guy. Everything I said previously about his personality was true; he was aligned with the Unseelie Court. The Unseelie Court likes to maim and torture, break minds; they are in general dark and twisted and cruel, sometimes even to their own kind. I'm not going just off of that, though; really, he just... hadn't proven to be very nice at all.
So I was needless to say not very excited about any of this at all. I had in fact tried to get myself out of this situation, only to be reminded of how big and strong they were and how powerless I was since I was not only smaller and weaker, but also had pretty much forgotten most magic. The whole 'living with humans' thing did that to you. I still retained some, mostly used to help me here and there, tricks for stealing things and making it easier to escape out of situations, but I'd forgotten most else.
Which sucked in this case, since I couldn't slip away from these guards. I sighed and complied, letting them lead me to a carriage they had waiting.
It must have been drawn by fae horses, or magicked, because it was able to swiftly weave through the town's traffic with much more ease than it should.
After what felt like hours (though with fae you can never know about these things; it could have just as easily been days, or only a few minutes) it came to an abrupt halt, triggering Gravity, which grabbed me and jerked me forward so unexpectedly that I hit my head.
Rubbing the spot and glaring at the guards as they opened the door for me, I stepped out onto the ground and was completely taken aback by what I saw. They'd taken me to a huge castle upon a large expanse of land.
The castle seemed to have no sense of seasons. The trees were cold and dead, without their leaves, and the windows of the castle were frosted over and their sill's had a layer of snow liberally applied to them, like Winter. The ground, however, was covered in a plush carpet of bright green grass, like Summer or Spring, maybe, I had no idea. All around us, the gardens were bright and vibrant, alive with life, and the temperature was warmer rather than cold.
What a freaky place.
The guards merely looked at me and headed up the stairs that led to the castle doors, silently ordering me to follow with their eyes. I almost wanted to completely defy them and get back in their carriage for thinking themselves too good to talk to me or whatever it was. Almost. Aside from the part where they were more powerful and under the order of the scary Winter guy.
I ruefully followed them up the steps and inside as they held the doors open for me, and secured them tightly behind me. I couldn't help but feel like it had been a bad idea to follow them... I should have ran when I'd spotted them.
Instead I just walked ahead at a slow gait, causing them to slow down even more as they felt some sort of weird duty to stay behind me and keep an eye on me, and looked at all of the nice, lavish pictures and trinkets and decorations on the way as they directed me through the halls.
At last, we arrived in a wide, open room; it looked like a throne room. There was a man lounging boredly in... oh, look at that, a throne, seated at the end of the room, across from us. The guards left me to approach him, taking a stand on either side of him.
I found them rather overenthusiastic; who wanted to return to a mean King like him?
But then I glanced up and found my pace slowing. And this time, it wasn't because I was being a jackass.
He had to be the most beautiful man I'd ever beheld. His face was perfect; high cheekbones, a delicate chin and strong jaw. His eyes were perfectly spaced and seated high above his small nose, elongating his face. He was a whole head taller than me, with a build that was perfectly balanced between lanky and toned.
But of course, being fae, it didn't stop there.
His hair was white and billowed elegantly down his shoulders before coming to rest at his waist, soft and curled ever so slightly at the ends. His porcelain skin shimmered softly, like pure, freshly-fallen snow, and his almond-shaped white eyes were exotic, especially in that the "whites" of them were black, like a wolf's. His full, plump lips had a soft tinge of blue to them, and his long, elegant fingers ended in obsidian, claw-like nails. His wings must have been hidden with glamour.
He was clothed in ornate armor and furs.
It was simply too much for a common pixie like me; one who had not only no nobility but played the part of a common thief in the human realm. The sight of him made my heart flutter oddly.
He quirked an eyebrow at me, and that really didn't helped the situation with my heart.
"Do you have no manners? It is general custom to bow to royalty."
Flushing, I gave a small bow as the guards exchanged a look. I sent a glare their way, and the King of Winter frowned at me, but that seemed to be at my bow, and not my glaring at his croonies.
He stood, making a show of it, being all graceful and elegant about it.
"Tallain," he said. How had he learned my name? I frowned. Though I couldn't say that I didn't like him saying it... with that voice of his, so calm and soft but low, like a winter breeze, "You are aware of the death of Selris, are you not?" I paused; the name sounded familiar, but it didn't jog any memories. What did he expect from me, though? I'd been with the humans most of my hundred-and-seven years, so I hadn't had much time to pay very close attention to Fae matters. He stared at me indignantly. "You didn't know of the death of the Autumn King?" he asked, disbelieving.
I shrugged. "I don't even know his name. For that matter, I don't know yours." Everyone I'd talked to had just referred to him as "the King of Winter".
His face matched the disbelieving tone in his voice. "I am Naeliss," he said. "And the Autumn King was Selris. The problem--and where you come in--is that Selris had no direct blood relations." My curiosity was piqued, but my stomach filled with dread. How, exactly, did this relate to me...?
"After searching for months, the only relation that we could find to him was you," He sighed, as if this whole thing tired him. "We didn't want to as you, a common pixie--and I'm also sure that this probably isn't what you'd rather be doing--but we really have no choice."
I prayed he wasn't going to say what I think he was going to say.
"You're to be the next King of Autumn," he said. "Tomorrow, you will start your lessons to catch you up to the other Seasonal Rulers and I, and three days from now, you will be crowned." My jaw fell open, but he only stood and headed down one of the halls we hadn't explored. The guards motioned for me to follow.
I frowned and with a huff, I trotted after him, wishing he weren't so... pompous? Really, he shouldn't have opened his mouth. It ruined his pretty.
"Before you protest, there is nothing you can say or do to stop this. There is no way someone without the blood of Autumn can be Ruler of Autumn, and you are the last left. Believe me, if there was another way, we would take it. There isn't, and if you try to fight this or escape you will be thwarted. The world needs Autumn." I stopped in my tracks.
"There's no other way?" I asked. He stopped and turned towards me.
"No. Someone who doesn't have the right blood physically can not do the job."
I followed him silently as he led me to my room, the guards opening the door for me as I stepped inside.
I ignored all the lavish decor, simply heading to the bed and flopping down on it.
This would happen to me.
Fortunately, unlike whatever places I could find to stay when I wasn't staying out in the wilderness, the curtains were thick enough that the first light didn't wake me and I was able to sleep in.
The guard at my door informing me that breakfast was ready was another matter.
With a sigh I rose and looked around for clean clothes to wear, a feat made difficult by all the fruity shit they liked to call "clothing". Really, it was just ridiculous. These were men's clothes? Really?
I found something that retained a small grain of masculinity, finally, and threw it on and went out to meet the guard at the door.
He eyed me oddly, at that my clothes were fruitier than what normal people wore or not fruity enough, I wasn't sure. I ignored the look, though, smiling at him cheerfully before he gave me another odd look and headed down the halls.
I followed, resisting the urge to pocket some of the nice trinkets I saw--no more need for that, I supposed. No more need for any fun--not that that was something that was allowed here, judging by Naeliss.
But, finally, after an excruciating five minutes in which I debated things to steal and ways to escape and have my fun, we arrived at the dining hall.
It was obvious that it was the dining hall, and the sheer size of it implied that it was meant for many people to enjoy; a thing that had me wondering. It was either for parties, or just entirely frivolous.
Eyeing the table--the very long table that could probably seat near 50--I noticed someone sitting at it. The guard left my side and I made my way to it, and it was only after I got closer that I noticed that this person was a man.
Not that they were an effeminate man, but his body was delicate enough and his blonde hair long enough that from behind, he looked like he might be a slightly masculine woman.
He wasn't quite as striking as the King of Winter had been to me, but he had his own sort of beauty. His skin had a soft golden hue, and he was around my height with a strong face and wide, curious green eyes. He let his wings show, shaped after a swallow-tailed butterfly's and alight with all sorts of colors.
If I had to guess, I would say that this was the King of Spring.
"Tallain, right?" He asked cheerfully, leaning his elbows on the table and propping his chin up on his hands. I gave a small nod. "I'm the King of Spring, Khiter." I smirked; I loved being right.
"Let me be the first to welcome you properly, I'm sure Naeliss did a horrible job of it." He extended his hand out to me, and I felt some comfort in that I at least had someone who was nicer than that... well, I'm not going to sully myself with the words.
"What's wrong with him, anyway?" I asked, taking a sip of the porridge-esque food that was placed in front of me--Khiter had one, too--by a rather lovely maid. It was better than what I'd eaten before, that was for sure.
Khiter stared at me a moment before breaking out into... oddly musical, yet still very loud and enthusiastic, laughter. I really didn't see what was so funny, I was perfectly serious.
"Don't worry about him. He wasn't always this way... he's had a pretty hard time." Khiter smiled sadly.
"You aren't really in touch with the other fae, are you?" he asked. I shook my head back and fourth as I continued to shovel my mouth full of... whatever this was. It seemed that with every bite, it got more and more delicious. And it had a faint hint of cinnamon to it; I loved cinnamon.
He "hm'd" and began to eat.
"Him and the Queen of Summer--Nemun--can be hard to deal with sometimes. They're the more intense of the four seasons, and their personalities tend to reflect that. You and I are the calmer of the two, the transitional seasons, and our personalities, too, reflect upon our respective seasons."
I nodded slowly; that made sense, a little, though I didn't really like the idea of things like that being set in stone. Winter always being cold and cruel and Summer always being fiesty and aggressive just got boring after a while. Why couldn't winter be the fiesty one?
Finally, after him and I--I guess the others weren't joining us--finished, I had been about to head back off to catch a few more hour's sleep when the sound of heels clipping on the floor at a strident pace made me turn my head.
Approaching me was a woman who would have been stunning, if she didn't fill my gut with terror. Her whole being was imposing, and that expression on her face wasn't one that helped to put me at ease. She was dressed in all black; a short, tight dress and high-heeled boots. Even her hair was black.
She came to a halt in front of me.
"You are Tallain?" she asked, her voice containing a faint accent. I nodded quickly.
She eyed me, seeming disappointed.
"Very well. I am Svitania, and I will be re-teaching you your magic. Now, come with me," she said, striding off.
She only took a few steps before she turned, however, and looked towards Khiter.
"Have you fed Clinker today?" she asked. I could only wonder what the fuck a "clinker" was and why it needed to be fed.
Khiter, seeming to react from her the same way I did, only nodded.
I had a feeling that between Naeliss and Svitania, all of my joy would be sucked dry.