The Fae King's Ruin

Streets

The next day after King Avery’s meeting with the Council of Magic, he finally plucked up the courage to visit the Unseelie village. He planned to go on his own, wanting as little fanfare as possible so as not to distract from the real reason why he was visiting. He wanted to see for himself the progress his aides had described to him in writing and after dallying for so long, attracting more attention than what was necessary was the last thing he needed.

But as it has been for the past four mornings, Res had intercepted him once again. True to form, his best friend had been unfazed by the last conversation that they had and it was as if nothing ever happened. He always had a bizarre way of moving on from the unpleasant things that happened and Avery had been caught up in it more times than he could have counted. Yet, he was slightly grateful that Res did not feel like broaching again the subject of how he had been pathetic the past few days.

Res grinned charmingly at the court ladies that they passed by, the girls simpering and giggling loudly when they thought the pair of them could not hear him any longer. Avery shook his head.

“It is so typical of you to be so… chipper with the ladies even this early in the day,” he remarked with feigned indifference. “Don’t you ever get tired of being such a rake?”

He gasped dramatically, a hand flying to his chest as Res turned to him. “Your Majesty, you accuse me of such a serious offense! I merely smiled, not take away their undergarments— even if I had done so in the past.”

“You are sick.”

“No,” Res corrected. “I am a hot commodity. After all, I am the most coveted, highly eligible bachelor next to you. And since you are out of the market, ze ladies now come to moi.” He brushed off imaginary dirt from his sleeves. “I have never been able to thank you for that, by the way. So, thanks, I guess.”

Avery elbowed Res, aiming for his stomach. His friend was quicker, though, and he had only managed to hit his arm. “Will you behave yourself?” he pleaded with his friend, even if the very words seemed to be pointless the moment they went past his lips. “Aislin’s village is very special, and I will not have you charming the impressionable young ladies in their community and breaking their hearts. The ties I have with them are not as strong as Aislin’s and I would very much like my bride to not complain of your philandering ways disrupting the village’s peace.”

He pouted. “Your trust in me, as always, is very encouraging. But sure, if you want me to behave, I shall behave.”

Res punctuated his words with a very angelic smile. On any other person, he would have believed it to be sincere. After all, he very much liked giving people the benefit of the doubt and surprising him in the end. With Res, however, that was simply impossible. He had known the guy all his life. He grew up with him, had been looped into most of the same ridiculous situations with him, and so he knew that whenever he smiled like a child not capable of doing anything malicious, Avery should be on his toes and hypervigilant.

They climbed down the stairs together. Two horses had been set to wait for them just outside the palace and Avery did not want the animals to be kept waiting for long in the cold. He tightened his riding gloves and glanced at his reflection as he passed by a mirror. His riding breeches were a little looser on him than when he wore them last and he wore a thicker surcoat today due to the anticipation of spending time outside. The circles underneath his eyes seemed to have improved as well. Last night, he had slept six hours— more than what he had gotten for the past few nights.

He still missed Aislin, but he felt as if he was getting better at burying those emotions deep inside him so they may not plague his thoughts so easily during the course of the day. Yesterday, after the Council meeting, he had focused on doing his best to function as he normally would when he did his duties. Whenever his thoughts would begin to wander, he took a deep breath and concentrated on clearing his mind instead. It helped considerably for a time, but he found that shoving all of his thoughts on Aislin in a drawer in the recesses of his mind was more effective as a coping mechanism.

Was it healthy? Probably not. Would he keep on doing it? Well, unless some trick else would be able to fix his problem, then yes.

They reached the base of the stairs, Res a little more ahead than he was, and so he was alarmed by the loud, pained groan that echoed through the chambers which came from his lips. Avery quickly scanned the area, his senses on high alert, before dropping in a snap as he saw the ‘problem’.

Catteline grinned, her feline eyes in slits as she glanced between Avery and Res. “Hello, boys,” she purred. “May I accompany you to the village?”

“Cousin,” Avery greeted her, kissing her cheek despite his expression being one of confusion. “How did you know I had such plans?”

“A hunch,” she responded enigmatically. Her eyes slid over to Res, where he was still groaning. Her lips curled in disgust. “Oh, stop your pathetic whining, Resyvlo. You look like a horse just kicked you in the balls.”

“Catteline!” Avery admonished.

At the same time, Res whined. “Why!” he cried. “Why must you always feel the need to insert yourself in situations where no one f*cking wants you?”

Before Avery could admonish Res, Catteline spat, “You are the only one who does not want me here, you doofus. And the last time I checked, you did not matter. So, this conversation is pointless and moot.” She tossed her curled golden hair back. “The horses are waiting outside. I do hope that you still know your head from your ass. I would hate to have to pick up the pieces of your skull when you fall off headfirst onto hard concrete.”

He held his own skull between both his hands. Avery wanted nothing but a quiet, peaceful ride to the village. Had he been so cruel in his past life that his simple request could not be fulfilled? He enjoyed spending time with Res, and he adored the time he could spend with his cousin. But all three of them? Together? That was a recipe for a heart attack if there ever was one.

Catteline chose the horse to the right of his white stallion, a magnificent mare that was both docile and swift. Res had climbed up on his own horse, a brown mare with white spots that he had bred himself. Avery tried not to look so tortured by the way he was sitting between the two nemeses, knowing that a whole new rally of fresh banter could set them off easily.

Really, being with the two of them felt like holding a ticking time bomb in his hands, not knowing when the explosion would finally put him out of his misery.

They passed through the main village with little difficulty even though it was the time of day when the folk went out to buy and barter the goods they would need for the day. Avery pushed the thought of his quarreling friends to the side and interacted as much as he could with his people. He nodded to them and smiled when his horse trotted past. 

Their faces smiling back and returning his enthusiasm a hundred times over felt rewarding. They made him feel better just by merely being in their presence and cemented his belief that his people fueled him. By the time they were at the edges of the main villages, Avery felt much lighter than he had when they left the palace.

“So,” Catteline pressed after a brief moment of silence. “What is it we are going to do at the village?”

“Not shopping, that’s for sure,” Res muttered acidly, which Catt thankfully ignored.

Avery sighed, taking calming breaths as he felt his high spirits begin to plummet again. “We are merely doing groundwork check,” he explained to his cousin. “When we arrive in Mhoryga, Princess Aislin would no doubt want an update on the progress of her people’s homes.”

“Meaning?” she asked, her head craning over to Res.

His Hand sighed. “Meaning, he has been feeling guilty and wants to remedy it and feel closer to the Princess in spirit both at the same time.” He plucked up a brow at him. “Did I nail it or what?”

“I really wish you two did not feel the need to come with me,” he muttered sullenly. “The two of you, in each others’ company, literally repel peace, which is what I really need at the moment.”

Catt’s face fell. “Nothing good ever comes out of being alone when one feels upset. We thought we were helping by keeping your mind off of things.”

Avery chose not to answer. How could he ever explain what he was feeling— what he needed— without hurting the feelings of the only family he had left? He ought to have been grateful instead that they were showing this much concern for him, even if together, they were the most infuriating forces in the world. 

Res shrugged, looking ahead and keeping vigilant as they followed the path to the village. “Let’s not talk about that when we can talk about the party I had planned for tonight,” he announced rather excitedly. “I have invited the wizard company of Las Vegas to perform at the party you are sponsoring, Your Majesty. Food, music, and entertainment.” He ticked them off with three fingers. “This party is one they will be talking about long after we leave for Mhoryga.”

“A magic show?” Catteline asked, her face pinched in a way that Avery clearly felt was meant to tell Res he was being stupid. “You hired wizards to perform a gods-damned magic show for the nobility tonight?”

He glared at her. “It’s not as if you had any helpful input when I talked about it yesterday.”

“I wasn’t paying attention to you yesterday, nor any other day from the past and future, for that matter.”

“You are insufferable.”

“You are dumb.”

“See? You can’t even come up with a clever insult?”

A gasp. “And you think ‘insufferable’ was genius?”

Avery tuned both Res and Catteline out, focusing instead on the sound of a breeze flowing past and the wide animals in the distance. He spurred his horse on, just enough to go ahead of his cousin and best friend to be able to drown out their noise a little better. It wasn’t long before their voices had begun to sound more like a faint buzz in his ear rather than the irritating peal that it was.

Then, like an eagle soaring over the dawning sky, the Unseelie village came into view.

Unlike the last time that he visited the village, the warehouse made of metal sheets was now not the only building jutting out from the ground. Although it was still the largest, Avery could pick out the several houses that dotted the small bit of land. Smoke escaped from their chimneys, which to him was a great sign of functionality, and he felt amazed at how quickly the villagers were able to put together their homes in such a little amount of time. He heard a trumpet sound from afar, coming from the village, and wondered idly what it was for.

It did not take him long to realize the trumpet’s purpose.

One by one, he saw the villagers file out into the streets. They all stared after him and his companions, watching their approach before a sharp voice called out something incoherent to him. As he grew nearer, he got the feeling that they were waiting for him. They grinned at him, big smiles that he could see even from afar, and even though they could clearly see that their Princess was not with him, opened up the streets to welcome them into their home.