Chapter 9

Visitors

After lunch Lynae went back to her room. Darius wanted her to go riding, but she was still peeved with him and in no hurry to make friends with one of the men who had turned her world upside down. Besides, eating had cured her hunger, but her headache was slowly retuning and she was still tired from her travels yesterday. She shooed Naomi and Grace away at the door, then shut all the curtains they had opened. With the room sufficiently dark, she undressed and climbed back into bed. She couldn't lie on her back since her hair was still wet; lying on her side wasn't much better. In minutes, from discomfort and despair, she was crying herself to sleep. Her dreams this time were not of that other place, but of the Dark Castle…her lazy days being Mr. Stiltskin's quiet company while they both worked, their silent walks, reading his old leather-bound volumes while he tinkered about in his lab. All of those memories were no better than a dream now anyway.

She must have slept a long time for night had fallen when the servant girls returned to help her dress for dinner. Lynae dragged herself out of bed and looked for the royal red-colored dress she had discarded for her nap, but like her traveling clothes, it too had disappeared probably thanks to Naomi and Grace. She had to go through the process of finding another costume that fit all over again. This time it was an off-the-shoulders, champagne-colored gown with lace around the hem. She then sat at the vanity and had her hair restyled. Thankfully, her tresses were mostly dry. The women whipped it into another braided bun, but let some hang down her back in crinkles.

Her meal with Darius was in a private, dining room. It had a fireplace and violinists were standing near it playing a soft tune. The table was set with candles and roses. Lynae threw the king a sour look, knowing he was trying to be romantic. He complimented her again and once more she brushed it off. Her head was playing a tune of its own and she wasn't in the mood for his charms. She couldn't fix her own plate this time because there were no tables overflowing with delicacies. Darius must have seen to that. She sat in the chair he held out for her and watched Naomi and Grace serve dinner. While they ate, Darius asked her a few questions about herself and she gave him the same vague answers she'd given Mr. Stiltskin at their first meal.

After dinner, he asked her if she'd join him for a light walk. She started to refuse just to irk him, but realized she had nothing else to do. Plus, exploring new territory was one of her favorite past times, so she went along with him. He took her on a tour of the estate, then the grounds. He talked about his homeland and spoke well of his parents…how they kept pressuring him, as the older brother, to settle down and give them a few grandchildren to spoil.

Other than the fact that he, or his brother, had put an arrow through Mr. Stiltskin's heart, he wasn't a bad guy. She didn't tell him that, though.

By the time she'd seen practically every inch of the property, Lynae's head pain had grown to an intolerable level. Darius escorted her back to her room and bid her good night. The servant girls were there, closing curtains and turning down her bed. The bath was ready and waiting, so Lynae washed up, making sure to keep her hair dry. Afterwards, she put on a nightgown that was way too long and climbed into bed.

When she was awakened the next morning, she did the terrible "getting dressed" process. After trying on two different outfits, she scored with a beautiful dress that had a bodice made completely of shirred ruffles. It had a V-neck collar with a silver rosette at the point. The sleeves and hem of the bodice were bell-cuffed and the skirt was tiered in fading shades of lavender.

Lynae hated it.

She had breakfast with Darius out on the back portico again. She let him rule the conversation. He talked about how Abron used to play with him and Idrus as kids; taught them how to swim, archery, fencing, and how to hunt. He talked about how his father would take them on trips into the mountains to escape palace life. He even spoke of the dozens of hilarious times he and his brother would dress as commoners and go into town. After breakfast, he wanted to teach her to play cards and chess, but her headache wouldn't allow for a learning session. Instead she asked him to take her to the library she'd seen during their tour last night. He obliged her and left her there to attend to other matters. Naomi and Grace checked on her periodically, but she shooed them away at every turn. Hours later, Darius returned with servants trailing after him carrying trays of food. The library had a balcony and this is where they had lunch. The pain in her head was not letting up, however, so after the meal, she went back to her room to lie down. She kept her clothes on, though, as she did not want to try on a bunch of dresses later.

When she finally woke up late that same afternoon, she found the servant girls in her room going about their duties.

"Has Idrus returned?" she asked them.

"Yes, My Lady." Grace informed. "They arrived over an hour ago."

Lynae sat up with a jolt. "Why didn't you wake me!" she demanded, jumping out of bed.

"We kept trying, My Lady." the young woman replied, almost cowering. "You wouldn't open your eyes."

Lynae frowned at her in confusion. She hadn't felt someone trying to rouse her. She rubbed her temples, which were already beginning to thud, and calmed herself. She apologized to Grace for yelling at her. The young woman seemed to brighten. Lynae sat at the vanity and allowed her and Naomi to restyle her hair. They asked if she wanted to change clothes and she had to bite her tongue to keep from bellowing out a resounding no. Instead she walked purposefully out of the room. She was lead to the ground floor. As she trekked down a corridor with the two young women she realized they were heading for a ballroom. Her heart missed a beat. Darius had said nothing at lunch about a party. Thankfully, when she entered the room, she saw only a few people.

On the other side of the room, to the right, stood Darius and Idrus, their profiles to her. To the left was a tall, handsome white man with short hair and a crown atop his head. He was dressed just as regally as the dual kings- all three with long swords hanging from their waists. Standing next to the white man, with her arm entwined in his, was a beautiful woman with pale skin and a head full of long black hair. She was dressed in a lovely white ball gown bedecked with jewels. She also wore silk gloves that reached her elbows and a cape. Diamonds glittered from her ears, neck, wrist and left hands. The most interesting sight was hovering above the floor between the royal visitors and the dual kings. There was a glittery blue light that Lynae did not focus on right away it because it made her head hurt worse.

The sound of her footfalls caused everyone to turn her way. From across the room, she could see Darius' face brighten into a smile. She wondered if he had just been speaking of her. As she crossed the expansive room, she heard the doors being closed behind her. The only sound for a moment was the click of her heels as she traversed the marble floor to join the group…and the closer she came, the more she realized that the hovering blue light was something else. It was a tiny woman with wings that flapped softly back and forth. She had on a gleaming dress in various shades of blue and was holding a wand. Glitter fell out of the blue light she cast. That familiar acceptance of anything new and weird settled over Lynae. Her eyebrows didn't even rise in awe at the sight of the tiny creature before her. Darius had said that he'd sent for the Blue Fairy, after all…this must be her. She finally reached the group and came to a stop. Darius' laid a hand on her back and turned her slightly toward the visitors.

"This is Lynae," he presented, a bit too proudly for her liking. His dark eyes met her brown ones. "This is King James and his wife Queen Snow White."

She glanced at the queen. Something about that name made her head pound like two pots banging together. "Hello." she mumbled to them. James dipped his head slightly and his wife gave her a genuinely kind smile.

Darius next gestured to the blue glow above all their heads. "And this is the Blue Fairy." Lynae looked up at the floating woman and stammered another hello.

"Greetings, Lynae." she returned. The fairy's voice was small but clear. She swayed from side to side in her hover. Lynae felt dizzy.

"King Darius told us he and his brother rescued you from Rumplestiltskin." The queen mentioned. Lynae shot her a look.

"Rescue is not the word I would use." she replied hotly, turning her cold gaze on the dual kings. Darius dropped his hand from her back.

"If King Darius liberated you from the Dark One, then he surely saved your life." James said. Lynae turned her sour gaze on him.

"You've been lied to." she said. "My life wasn't in any danger." The visiting king and queen exchanged a look with one another, then with Darius.

"It's why I sent for you." he replied to their unvoiced question, his own voice betraying the agitation he felt. He looked to the Blue Fairy for help.

Abruptly, the little woman's light got a lot brighter and then there was a dazzling flare. Lynae squeezed her eyes shut against it, but it did not stop the pounding that rocked her skull. She rubbed her forehead. When she reopened her eyes another person was standing in the room.

No…not another person. The Blue Fairy had gone life-sized. She was a bit shorter than everyone else, but otherwise a regular woman. She was a brunette with big brown eyes. When she shimmied her shoulders, her wings disappeared. She strode right up to Lynae and stared into her eyes. The Blue Fairy then closed her lids and inhaled deeply. The others in the room frowned in confusion and looked bewilderingly at one another.

The Blue Fairy's eyes suddenly popped open. She stepped back, a stunned look on her face. "How did you get here?" she whispered.

Lynae was looking down at the woman like she was crazy. She pointed at Darius. "He kidnapped me."

Darius smirked.

The Blue Fairy shook her head. "You're not supposed to be here."

Lynae almost bounced up and down on her toes. "That's what I've been trying to tell him!"

Darius, not liking the way the conversation was headed, stepped forward. "Is she under a spell, or isn't she?"

"No." the fairy answered him, her eyes still on Lynae.

"Hah! I told you." she gloated, smiling for the first time since she had set foot in this place. Darius exchanged a look with Idrus, who had been listening and watching the proceedings intently. James and Snow did the same. Darius turned back to the fairy.

"No. She has to be." he argued. Lyane couldn't help but think how the tables had turned.

"She's not, King Darius." the Blue Fairy insisted. "Rumplestiltskin doesn't cast spells."

"That's right." James spoke up. "He makes deals."

"Deals you regret having made." his wife added.

The Valinmorian king appeared defeated. He glanced at Lynae with sadness in his coal black eyes as though he had been expecting a different outcome.

"Why did you sniff her?" Idrus asked the Blue Fairy.

"Because she smells different."

"I don't smell anything." Darius said.

"Only those who wield magic can." the fairy explained, still looking at Lynae.

"Why?" Idrus inquired.

"Because magic brought her here."

"How?" Snow White asked.

The fairy shook her head. "I don't know." she admitted. "But it was a mistake. It tried to send her back, but she ran. In the wrong direction, I'm guessing."

Lynae remembered the monster that had chased her through the woods. It had nearly scared her heart out of her chest. "You weren't there. How could you know that?"

"I'm a fairy." the woman replied simply.

Lynae was irked by the nebulous answer but didn't press the issue. "Are you trying to tell me that the beast that chased me through the woods was some kind of..." she had to pause to think of the appropriate words, "… magical manifestation trying to correct some mistake it had made?"

"It was."

"And you think I'm from another world, too?"

The fairy nodded. "You are."

Darius exploded. "This is madness! I did not request your presence to befuddle her mind further. I asked you here to-."

Idrus laid a hand on his shoulder to calm him. Darius fell silent.

"What are you talking about?" Idrus asked the fairy. "What do you mean another world?"

"She thinks I'm from another planet." Lynae answered, unwilling to believe such nonsense. "Which makes her just as crazy as Mr. Stiltskin."

"Then why do you still defend him?" Darius demanded to know.

Lynae almost growled at him. "Look. I don't owe you anymore explanations. I proved that I'm not under a spell, so whatever accountability you think you have for me is null and void. I'm leaving."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Don't beg. Just tell me where my things are so I can get out of here."

"What things?"

"The clothes I had on when you kidnapped me!"

Darius sighed in annoyance. "Shahla, I had those things burned."

Lynae's eyes bugged. "What? Why?"

"Because Rumplestiltskin gave them to you. They could have been part of the spell for all I know."

For a moment she thought about slapping him, but then figured it would be a waste of energy. The Blue Fairy had proven her point for her so there was no need to argue any further. She took a breath and rubbed her forehead. "You know what, it doesn't even matter. I'm outta' here." She turned and started for the door.

Darius clutched her elbow. "Where are you going?"

Lynae snatched her arm out of his grip. "Home! Where else?"

"Be reasonable, shahla."

She pushed him… hard. "Stop calling me that!" she screamed. "I don't care what you say. I'm leaving!" She spun from him and almost ran smack into a pair of guards.

"No, you're not." Darius said as they spun her back around to face him. They each took an arm to keep her in place.

Lynae scowled him. "Is this were we are now? I'm officially your prisoner?" She tried to shake out of the guards grip without success. "You're gonna' do the exact same thing you accused Mr. Stiltskin of doing?"

"You're not a prisoner, shahla." Darius said calmly, gesturing to the guards to release her. They did so obediently. "I know you want to leave, but just think for a minute, all right? The nearest town is four hours away by carriage. That's at least a day of walking. You don't have the right attire, you don't have any provisions and it'll be dark soon."

"He's right." Idrus quickly agreed. "It would be rash to just walk out of here."

Lynae shot daggers at him. "I've about had it with you two's sense of decency."

"They're just trying to look out for you." Snow White reasoned, thinking Lynae might listen to someone of the same gender. "Just give it two more days."

"My wife and I will be leaving then." James spoke up. "We can take you home on the way back."

The thought of being here for another two days made Lynae want to scream, but even she had to admit that it seemed like the smart thing to do.

"She doesn't have two days." The Blue Fairy unexpectedly declared. All eyes settled on her.

"What do you mean?" Darius asked. "Why not?"

The fairy's brown eyes had turned sad as they focused on Lynae's face. "There's something you need to know," she began. "I'm sorry, but-"

She didn't get a chance to finish. Suddenly, the double doors of the ballroom exploded off their hinges. One flew left, the other to the right. Everyone in the room ducked instinctively and the women screamed in fright. The flaps crashed against the far wall a few feet away with a loud clatter, shattering windows in the process. Darius grabbed Lynae and yanked her behind him. James did the same with Snow White.

The loud eruption as well as the crash of the doors rang through Lynae's head. It felt like her brain was pummeling itself repeatedly against her cranium. She slapped her hands over her ringing ears, her head pounding relentlessly. When the trilling in her ears lessened, she peeked around Darius. She saw a cloud of dust and debris over by the entrance. The two guards that had stopped her from leaving charged forward. They vanished into the haze… and abruptly came flying back out of it, each in opposite directions just like the doors. The others watched them soar in astonishment. The two guards landed a few feet away. They groaned in anguish and quickly lost consciousness.

That was all the three remaining men in the room needed to see. The ringing sound of multiple swords being drawn from their sheaths echoed throughout the vast room.

By the door, the dust was starting to settle. The Blue Fairy, whose magical eyes could see the best, gasped in fright. She quickly disappeared in a shower of sparkles and blue shine.

The attention of the five remaining occupants was on the door-less entry way. A tall, lanky figure stepped brazenly into view. Darius and Idrus tensed reflexively while Lynae's eyes widened in shock.

Now it was she who gasped…