The Fae King's Ruin

The Princess and the Once-Enemies

They walked back to the village with the King enthusiastically pointing out a few more charming features of the little witching village they were in, but he might as well have been talking to air since Aislin was still reeling. Her thumb anxiously fiddled with the ring now adorning her left hand, that small but immensely considerable weight taking up space in her mind almost completely.

What Avery had done back in that lagoon was… surreal. She knew there were plans of an engagement party for the both of them and she had assumed that he’d just present a ring to her then. So when he knelt and took out the gorgeous emerald-and-sapphire ring, everything in her world simply stopped.

He was a romantic. Aislin knew that and had her own issues about it given that she was determined to be reserved with matters of the heart herself. Yet him doing that? It still caught her by surprise. Even if the move was purely Avery: thoughtful, sweet, and not at all what Aislin thought she wanted.

Because she had never actually thought of herself getting involved with anyone in a romantic capacity. As Crown Princess, she saw marriage as more of a duty than a personal endeavor. That is just how it is. She didn’t expect to go through the whole process of dating and courtship when it was obvious to her that she’d be consigned to someone with great political standing, who had ties that would make her court stronger.

Avery had not only all of that, but he was also willing to offer Aislin something more. For once, she felt hopeful. ‘Someday’ would be a terrific place to start whatever the King meant about loving her. And she would let him—would be open for that possibility with him.

“What is making you smile so beautifully, Princess?”

“Nothing!” Aislin quickly dropped the corners of her lips and fixed a neutral mask over her face. “Um, where were we?”

He smirked at her and she narrowed her eyes at him, daring him to say a word. Thankfully, Avery turned back ahead. As soon as his eyes weren’t on her anymore, she breathed a small sigh of relief.

“Do you see that cottage over there?”

Aislin followed to where he was pointing and immediately spotted a quaint little house, a bit offset from the rest of the village and surrounded by a beautiful, enchanted garden fenced in by a wooden grate. The stone facade had vines creeping up on its sides and was where a handful of pixies chose to reside, their small, leafy homes almost looking like it was built into the cottage itself. Nighttime flowers were blooming under the light of the single outdoor lamp posted over a simple wooden door with iron detailing. 

Avery put a hand on the grate and gently pushed it open, the metal hinges barely groaning as he did so. She followed him to the door, noting how the dahlias simpered at the sight of the King, much like how the dahlias in the garden outside of the Silver Hall back in the diamond palace were with Res around. It seemed that the flowers were very partial to males, as they started huddling closer and whispering to each other in a rather vicious manner when she walked past.

Noting her gaze, Avery smirked. “I’m their favorite,” he bragged.

“No, you’re not,” said the male with sharp blue eyes and blond hair lighter than Avery’s. He wore an impeccable, three-piece suit that was of mortal fashion, a handsome smile on his naturally red-stained lips. Instantly, Aislin recognized his face. “You shouldn’t lie to a lady, Majesty, especially one you are betrothed to.”

Avery stepped forward, pulling Aislin with him, and shook hands with the tall. Fair-haired wizard. “Ebenezer, I would like to introduce you to Crown Princess Aislin of Cetha. Aislin, this is Ebenezer Locke, the eldest of the Locke siblings and brother to Safiya, whom you met earlier.”

Ebenezer bowed and kissed the back of her hand. “It is a pleasure to formally meet you, Your Highness.”

“And under such favorable circumstances,” she agreed. “Thank you for having me in your home.”

He smiled, and he was yet another friendly soul from the other side of the war that Aislin could not help but feel distrustful of. 

Unaware of the internal debate going on inside Aislin’s head, the King smiled up at Ebenezer. “Is everyone already in?”

Blue eyes rolled in their sockets matched with a groan of disgust. “Ella and Laurie are probably out necking in the woods again. Typical, newly-mated behavior, you know?”

Aislin blushed even as Avery only smiled wider, used to whatever it was the Queen got up to during her free time. 

Ebenezer ushered them in and the humble home within had Aislin completely smitten. It was snug and comfortable, but most importantly, warm. The large fire providing heat to most of the cottage roared in the cabin-like living area and the people already convened therein. There were a couple of handsome males that looked almost identical to Ebenezer and his sister, whom Aislin took as the other Locke siblings or something similarly familial. The blue-eyed, pregnant female she met earlier stood smiling from her seat at the settee, her brute mate slowly rising behind her.

Ebenezer quickly introduced her to his siblings, Giannis and Aiden. With polite smiles, they bowed and kissed the back of her hand as their eldest brother did, but unlike Ebenezer, they wore much more relaxed clothing. Instead of the stylish suit Ebenezer confidently carried himself in, Giannis and Aiden wore a simple, formal shirt and pressed trousers. She was told that Narcissus, their other remaining absent sibling, wouldn’t be able to make it due to a prior commitment.

“I’m so glad Ella thought to invite you to this!” Safiya gushed, quickly rushing forward to lead Aislin to a seat. 

She noted how almost all the males in the room gravitated towards her protectively and idly realized how, in their eyes, their sister and mate were sitting with one they still considered an enemy.

“You’ll have to forgive me, Princess. It seems pregnancy makes the brain go a little fuzzy. I keep forgetting things now.”

Aislin tried for a smile. “Thank you for having me,” she murmured, making sure she glanced at everyone else, her gaze settling on the pair of amethyst eyes glowering at her. The last thing she wanted was another discussion like the one Captain Wysterra initiated at the meeting earlier. “I know my presence will make for an awkward dinner.”

Safiya frowned then turned to her mate slowly to glare at him. “The Mistress told you not to give her a hard time. I’m guessing you still did?”

The Captain didn’t answer. Avery did for him. Golden eyes slid towards the Queen’s cousin, staring at him disappointedly. “Unnecessary, by the way. And a bit insulting.”

Settling on the other couch in front of theirs, Ebenezer frowned as he popped his buttons off. “What, exactly, did Xaero do?”

Aislin shook her head. “Nothing that is not unexpected for the Captain of the Queen’s Guard.”

Xaero smirked at Avery. “See? Princess Aislin understands why I am the way I am.”

She straightened and smirked back, staring up at him unfazed. “Insecure enough to be distrusting of a female such as me? Oh, I do understand. And terribly unimpressed.”

The Captain’s face morphed from haughtiness to another one of his sulking stares that were supposed to be threatening that she returned with a sweet smile. Gone was the initial fear she felt around him, made easier by the fact that he kept behaving as Aelthrys would in his position.

Ebenezer and his brothers chuckled. A hand settled on her shoulder. When she looked up, Avery was grinning proudly at her as he settled on the arm of her side of the settee, winking playfully before turning to the others. For some reason, his wide smile had called back the butterflies in her stomach, appearing initially at the lagoon while he was kneeling in front of her, and now this.

The conversation shifted from Aislin to the wedding, something that she was grateful for. Safiya started showing her the plans that had already been drawn up and Aislin enjoyed talking about the preparations. Even in her culture, weddings were a grand affair and no one skimped out on celebrating them. She found out Safiya had thought about all of it as the Captain would have married her in a hut somewhere either way.

Aislin supposed the notion behind it was sweet, but she couldn’t imagine her own wedding ever being small or intimate. Although with the number of things Safiya had been working on so the whole affair would go smoothly, a small wedding seemed more and more appetizing.

“How about you?” Safiya asked, closing the big binder she had to keep all her wedding plans in order. “Have you started planning your wedding?”

Avery, sensing her hesitance, thankfully answered for her. “Not yet,” he said, smiling at her. “We still have a lot to tackle in our own council and that takes precedence.”

“Oh, right! How is that going?” The corners of Safiya’s eyes crinkled as she grinned at both Aislin and Avery. “You must be very proud of it.”

She couldn’t help but smile back. “I think I speak for King Avery as well when I say that we are proud. Mostly though, there’s a lot of pressure to discern correctly what is the right thing to do in certain situations.”

Without looking at him, Aislin knew he was nodding. He took her hand, though, absentmindedly running his thumb over the ring sitting there. She squeezed his fingers and he squeezed hers back, not even noticing Safiya’s soft gasp.

“That is gorgeous! Can I have a look?”

The front door swung open, and in came Ella and Laurie, both a bit flushed and breathless. 

“What is it we’re looking at?” the Queen asked, not bothering with the formalities that should have accompanied her arrival. 

Safiya waved her over and Ella elbowed Xaero away from his seat beside his wife. “Look at what Avery gave Aislin as an engagement ring! Incredible, isn’t it?”

Ella ‘ooh’ed along with her future cousin-in-law, grabbing Aislin’s hand to look at the ring closer. “Incredible, indeed.” She glanced up approvingly at Avery over Aislin’s shoulder. “Good choice, Avery.”

“Wait,” a Locke brother, Giannis, said. “If you already gave her her engagement ring, what will you do at your engagement party?”

“Celebrate?” Avery chuckled. “I don’t know but I was never giving her the ring while making a spectacle out of it.”

Huh. So, that was why he took her to the lagoon. Aislin bit her lip to keep herself from smiling and ignored the way her heart skipped a beat. Before, she could have chalked up the King’s response for just a want of privacy between the two of them. But things had changed, and now Aislin was starting to see his actions toward her in a different, rose-colored light.

Ella gave her a knowing look but didn’t comment on it. She dropped Aislin’s hand and leaned back in her seat. “Well, I congratulate you on your nuptials but I don’t envy what you’re trying to do,” the Queen casually commented. “In my experience, it’s easier to talk war than peace.”

“Amen to that,” her cousin muttered over a mug of amber liquid. 

Behind them, they heard Laurie snort in amusement. “Xaero, that’s just because you want to fight everyone at first sight. Need I remind you how you loved to antagonize me when I first met Ella?”

Xaero harrumphed. “That was different.”

Ella raised a brow. “How different was that, exactly?”

But the Captain merely glared at his cousin. Safiya sighed, groaning as she stood. In an instant, Xaero was there and helping her to stand fully on her feet. 

“I’ll go check on the food and see what’s taking so long,” she said. “You should all go out back and have some wine. I’ll only be gone a minute.”

“I’ll come with you,” Xaero murmured with a surprisingly gentle tone. 

As soon as Safiya and Xaero exited through the front door, the former hobbling and the latter arguing that he should just carry her, everyone stood. The Lockes led them to a back garden, outfitted with a pergola and wrought-iron chairs and a long table with a glass top. Instead of candles, white lanterns floated about the space, their soft golden glow bathing everything in sight.

Aislin spotted the pomegranate trees near the back along with the other assortment of fruit trees and shrubs where berries grew. In small pots hanging by a window that gave a view of the kitchens, fresh herbs also grew.

“Hi,” a soft, hesitant voice said from behind her.

When Aislin turned, she blinked at Laurie who was grinning at her slightly, hands clasped behind his back. “Your Highness,” she murmured. 

Laurie immediately made a face. “I’m not yet married to Ella, so if you don’t mind, please just call me Laurie.”

She nodded, watching as his grin widened, and turned back to the plants she had been looking at. 

“Ebenezer always tells me that the most important part of potion brewing is that you need fresh, topnotch ingredients.” He rolled his eyes at her conspiratorially. “Honestly, he’s so particular about it.”

Aislin smiled. “Only Fae healers dabble in potioneering. Which is lucky, since I feel like it is so similar to cooking and I am very bad at it.”

Thick brown eyebrows rose in surprise. “You’ve tried?”

“Once,” she admitted. “I was bored and the cooks let me have a go at it. A few burnt pans and one giant mess later, I was banned from the kitchens entirely.”

“Then you and Ella are similar in that way.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “She cooked pasta for me the other night. I chewed that thing and pretended to like it so well I should have been given an Oscar for it.”

At Aislin’s confused look, he explained. “It’s an award given to human actors. Very prestigious.”

She chuckled. “I’m sure it wasn’t that bad.”

Laurie gave her a look that told her it was as bad as she had imagined. Aislin glanced behind her and saw everyone with a glass of wine and laughing about something, her intended included. He followed her stare, a soft smile curving the corners of his mouth.

“It’s nice to see them all so happy,” he said to her. “They have all been alive for centuries, and yet they can still find something amusing in life.” Silver eyes glanced at her. “It makes me happy to see you happy as well, as odd and awkward as it might be for you to hear that from me.”

Usually, when people said things like that to Aislin, her suspicion would instantly overtake her thoughts almost completely. She’d start dissecting the person’s words, their tone, their posture, their expression… The list was endless. Aislin even expected it.

And yet, with the Queen’s mate, there was no such reaction that arose in Aislin’s response system.

Laurie smiled at her in the same way Avery did: as if it was not physically possible for them to have a malicious bone in their body. There was nothing but pure light and kindness within those gray eyes that Aislin felt disarmed by them. She suspected everyone felt the same around him, perhaps even before he’d been gifted the powers he had received from being the hero of the Celestial prophecy because he was just that kind. 

She did not know how some people found forgiveness as easily as Avery and Laurie did and it astounded her to even think about how she felt no animosity towards Laurie given that he killed her brother, despite being a madman and a death unto his own self. And it gave Aislin immense hope, that if the Queen’s mate thought she was happy, then maybe she could realize it for herself.

That maybe she could live a quiet life; one she might not deserve but given to her anyway by whoever deity was looking after her.