The Fae King's Ruin

The King and the Rings

There were only a few moments in Avery’s life that had moved him to tears, but seeing Aislin hugging her people as they cried tears of joy at seeing the princess they had come to leave their homes for was a special thing that he was grateful to have been witness to. 

After a momentary break in the festivities— none of them quite believing that the Princess Aislin was finally in their midst— the music restarted even louder, another barrel was opened in celebration, and food began to a point of almost overflowing. He was honestly content to just stand to the side and watch Aislin be received by her people, but several of the other females had shoved a plateful of roasted pork and a tankard of fresh beer in both of his hands and steered him to one of the long tables near the back of the shelter.

Almost instantly, people began talking to him left and right, treating him with the same amount of enthusiasm Aislin was receiving on the other side of the large room. They did not seem to care that he was not the Princess, and instead, he was flooded by questions about a range of topics. They asked about why they were both here and not at the party happening in the palace, how they were faring with nobles from both courts converging in one event, and how he was finding the Unseelie nobles that had once been their leaders.

Avery answered as truthfully as he could, especially with the last two questions directed at him. He was not really sure how the Unseelie fae residing in the shelter felt about their nobles. After all, they supported Aislin instead of her brother while everyone with a position did their best to appease him. Nevertheless, he was not about to go badmouthing the Lords and Ladies of the Unseelie court or overly praise them, too.

While they talked, he could not help but keep glancing at Aislin as she held court with at least half of the residents of the shelter. It felt as if he was getting an early glimpse of the life he would have ruling beside her. Avery had long known that Aislin had all the qualities that it would take to be an effective queen, but seeing her now? 'Surreal' did not even begin to cover it.

At one point in the night, after most of the residents were getting ready to greet the New Year with fireworks of their own, Aislin sat down beside him on the wooden bench he was sitting on with a sigh that sounded a lot like contentment. He grinned at her and the dopey expression she wore on her beautiful, flushed face.

"Was this the best gift ever, or what?" he jokingly asked, sipping from his tankard of ice-cold beer that had been bottomless since he arrived.

She closed her eyes, smiling. "The absolute best! I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate that you did all this for them." Aislin cracked open an eye. "It makes this really small in comparison."

She tossed a small, wrapped box up in the air that Avery caught deftly with one hand. Frowning, he examined the box wrapped in sheer blue paper that was almost sparkling, with a thin, black ribbon holding it all together with very little fanfare. He tried shaking the box but heard nothing rattling from within.

Curiously, he asked, “What’s inside?”

Aislin chuckled. “Aren’t you supposed to find out by opening it?”

He gave her a lopsided smile. “You shouldn’t have bothered giving me a gift, Aislin.”

She put a hand demandingly over her hip, a perfectly sculpted brow arching in a way that Avery was slowly starting to associate with Aislin’s reprimands. “And why not? You have given me lots. And this one did not even cost me a penny, unlike you, you extravagant, selfless King.”

“All right, all right,” he answered with a roll of his eyes, blushing a little as he unwound the ribbon. “I just kind of feel bad accepting something from you when you have already given a lot.”

“Why?” she asked in genuine confusion. “None of the things I’ve given I have done so begrudgingly. I went into this with eyes wide open.”

Avery smiled at Aislin and the way she almost pouted indignantly at his own feelings of insecurity. Truly, nothing else could describe what he felt with her but genuine happiness. She made his heart soar every time she returned even just a percentage of what he felt and her assurances were like a balm to his soul every time. 

And while he wished Aislin didn’t have to feel the need to give him something, he wished he could voice out just how honored he was that she thought of him in this way. He let his eyes drop to the package in his hands and peeled away the blue wrapping, tucking the thin paper inside his pocket. 

Avery stared at the lightweight box in between his fingers, his heart thudding as suspicion of what was inside grew. He only glanced at the way Aislin was biting her bottom lip nervously for a split second before pinching the top and pushing the lid open.

Nestled in velvet was a simple thick silver ring, laid in with a square-cut onyx with a smooth top that was transparent enough to see within a silver sun and a soaring falcon. It was obviously an heirloom and the crescent and the falcon part of a family insignia. Avery turned his head towards Aislin who swallowed nervously.

“It is my family crest,” she murmured quietly against the riotous noise around them. Somehow, though, Avery heard every word of hers perfectly. “Worn by the many great and infamous leaders of the Unseelie Court. It has been passed down from king to king, starting from the day of the Divide, and it has been recognized that whoever wears the ring rules the Unseelie Fae.”

He exhaled, the breath in his lungs rattling as he grappled with the amount of history that the small object in his hands have seen. It had been through wars and death and famine and exile, and yet somehow, this piece of metal was still here. He looked to Aislin, gaping.

“You are giving me— a Seelie King— quite possibly one of the only few surviving links that you have from your ancestors,” he told her, unsure if she knew how much of a big deal this was. “Aislin, I can’t. This is yours. Every single one who has come before you must be rolling in their graves right now!”

To his surprise, she laughed. “Trust me,” she said to him, more than just a little amused by the panic written on his face. “I know what I’m doing.”

“Can you explain it to me then? Because this ring—” he cut himself off, blowing out a breath. “Gods, Aislin, this ring…”

She smiled. “Can never be worn by a female leader.”

He gawked at her. “What?”

Aislin nodded. “It’s true. The ring of the First King can only be worn by males who are in the position of power over the Unseelie Court. Seeing as I am not male, nor do I lose anything by giving you that ring because it does absolutely nothing but be a very phallic fashion statement, I saw it fitting to give it to you before we marry. Not to mention, I am getting a kick out of breaking tradition,” she said with a devilish smirk. “I am the first Unseelie princess to ever become a ruling Queen. While you won’t be known as my consort, I am expecting a bit of a… er, fight, when it comes to my people following you. The ring, as it has been known throughout our history, will tell them to back off.”

“And if they demand that it be taken off my fingers?” he asked dubiously. “I have met your nobles and your Cabinet, and they seem like the kind of people who would never agree that you give this ring to me.”

But Aislin waved her hand in the air dismissively, leaning against the table. “Oh, they can all go rot in Limbo for all I care. That ring does actually belong to me despite having the wrong genitalia to wear it. And as I have told you earlier, I can’t wear it. So, why can’t my husband?”

Avery stupidly grinned and instantly, a furious shade of scarlet flooded the princess’ neck and cheeks in a charming blush. “I like the sound of that,” he told her. “I like the thought of becoming your husband.”

Aislin scowled, ducking her head and looking anywhere but at him. “Oh, do shut it. Are you wearing the ring or not?”

“That depends. Is there no one else in your family that deserves this more than me?”

He already knew the answer before the words were out of Aislin’s mouth. 

“Aelthrys,” she responded, shrugging. “But he hates that ring because Drakos used to make him kiss it whenever he visited court or home. My brother liked seeing the great General Aelthrys debase himself just so he could feel powerful.” Aislin looked at him straight in the eye. “Did you know that the only reason my cousin gained jurisdiction over Ella during her captivity was so Drakos could control how quickly Aelthrys was gaining power in the south? He planned to make the people hate him for marrying a witch.”

Avery had no reply to that. Aislin turned back to the merriment of her people before her. “So, no. There is no one but you who I would like to see wearing that ring. From this point on, that ring needs to see a history marked not by death and conquest, but by hope and love.”

He weighed the ring in either hand, the considerable weight feeling more symbolic than the one he already inherited from his father. 

Without giving it much further thought, Avery took off his own signet ring resting on his right hand— one made of gold with a depiction of the Lake of Memories reflecting a full moon inscribed on the flat top— and gave it to Aislin.

Her eyes widened as she stared at what lay on his palm. “Are you joking?”

He shrugged. “I’m not one for wearing accessories. And I can’t very well wear three after we get married. I’d look like a pirate.”

“But this is yours!” she almost shouted. “Are you barking mad?”

“Let’s just say I repeat back to you every reason you have for giving me this,” he held up the silver ring with a deadpan look straight into her eyes. “Will you agree then?”

“Avery!”

He chuckled tossing the ring up in the hair, not even watching as the Princess fumbled with catching it. As she glared at him, he said with all seriousness, “Wear it, Aislin. Let it signify a new dawn for that ring as well; let it be another step in healing the history we have.”

Avery slipped the silver ring on, right at the place where his old ring had been and barely feeling any difference when it came to weight. Aislin reluctantly put on the gold signet as well, on her right-hand ring finger, where it would stay until the end.

She laid that hand over his chest and he stayed as still as he could be as Aislin leaned into him, letting her dictate the pace. As her soft lips hovered over his own, she murmured, “I cannot wait to have this new year with you.”

With a finger, he tipped her chin up and placed a lingering kiss full on her mouth, smiling as he said, “As do I.”

Aislin sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder. “We should go back to the castle.”

“Are you sure? We could stay here.”

Aislin nodded her head. “I’m sure. We have already left our guests far too long, and we can always come back here, right?”

Avery smiled. “Of course, we can. Come, let’s say our goodbyes and get back to the palace.”

They stood and, with plenty of promises made that they would indeed return soon, Aislin and Avery took the carriage back to the palace and hurried along back to the ballroom just as they heard everyone shouting as they counted down the seconds until midnight.

Catteline was solidly flanked by her brothers as Res— who was surprisingly still alive— led the whole room into a chorus of numbers. Aislin’s friends were clutching each other close, shouting along, and before they could count to one, Avery vanished the left wall and extended the floor to add a railed balcony so they had an uninhibited view of the sky, adding a strong warming seal around the balcony so they all wouldn’t shiver.

Aelthrys miraculously found them just before the first burst of silver erupted above them in the inky black sky, greeting them a happy New Year with a rare, slightly drunk smile before sauntering off. 

He looked at his fiancée’s grinning face, the lights from above reflecting in her own eyes that looked like the dark expanse above them, and felt no fear of the year that lay ahead of them.