My dear readers, I'll be forever grateful for your reviews and alerts! No way I'm going to abandon that now, so let's see how this will go on….
Dust
Chapter 10
Gandoli was elated to see Teresa again.
"My, my, look at you!", he squealed, "You look like a fairy! Unfortunately, a male fairy…well, with breasts…lovely breasts, if I may say so…"
Teresa chuckled.
"Stop staring, dwarf!", she said, "I need your help."
"No problem, love!", he drawled, "I owe you big time. Shoot!…that is, if you don't want me to shoot first…"
Teresa sighed, deciding to leave the last remark uncommented.
"Listen, Gandoli", she said, "do you know any Watchers?"
"Oh", the dwarf exclaimed, "I know several- do you want the best there is, or…"
"Oh no", she sighed, "I'll just take second best, it's not that important…of course I want the best there is, you moron!"
"Brittle, then", the dwarf chuckled, "he's shy and hates dealing with the fairies, so he never takes any assignments from them, but he might be convinced to get involved when I tell him you're a pixie. Curiosity is at the base of every watcher, you know. And Brittle always wanted to meet a pixie."
Teresa frowned. He always wanted to meet a pixie? Interesting…
"Can you contact him?", she asked.
"No.", Gandoli stated cheerfully, and her heart sank, "But my brother can. I'll send you a message as soon as the contact has been made."
Teresa nodded and hugged the dwarf- and ignored with just a tiny sigh how gleefully he pressed his face into her breasts.
xxMentalistxx
She was early for the council's meeting next morning.
Rigsby stood in front of the throne room, opening the door for her with a small nod. She was about to enter, but hesitated for a second.
"Rigsby?", she shouted.
He squatted down.
"It's not your fault what happened yesterday", she said, placing her tiny hand on his knee, "it's theirs."
"I should have been there, councilor", he whispered, his eyes desperate and woebegone, "been there to protect my king."
"You will be there the next time, Rigsby", she said firmly, "He depends on you, do you know that? Don't falter. We all need you on top of your game right now."
Rigsby straightened, a look of determination spreading on his features.
"You're right", he said, "I will protect him. With my life."
"That's what I want to hear.", Teresa smiled at him and moved to enter the room.
"Councilor?", Rigsby stopped her, and she faced him, "Good you're here."
She smiled, nodded and stepped into the throne room.
She was all alone and strolled through the hall for a moment, looking at it thoroughly for the first time. The king's throne was at the end on an impressive stage, surrounded by gold. The huge round table where the councilors met was placed next to the door.
Teresa wandered around for a moment before she headed back to the table, ready to take her place. She stopped in her tracks. The king sat on her chair, looking at her with a soft smile on his face. Her heartbeat accelerated. Damn. This guy drove her nuts.
"Your highness", she said, bowing slightly, "here so early?"
"As are you, councilor", he replied.
"I didn't sleep very well last night", she muttered.
He looked thoughtfully at her.
"You know what the…incident yesterday means for the work of the council, don't you?"
She nodded slowly.
"A traitor", she breathed, "there has to be a traitor in our ranks."
"That's true, Teresa", he whispered, "and I'm going to find him today."
He got up when Galvan entered, slapping his back encouragingly.
Galvan looked at Teresa, his gaze cold and hostile. She shivered, remembering Cho's words. Galvan is not the king's friend, and he can't see it, because he's blinded by his thirst for revenge. And the scrawny advisor made sure it stayed this way. She willed her face to remain impassive.
The other councilors strolled in one by one, until no seat around the table remained empty.
The king rose and looked at his advisors.
"Most of us have deduced by now what the attack yesterday told us about those assembled here", he said slowly, his voice firm and commanding, "there is only one way the Shadows could have known where I would spend the last evening."
A murmur ran through the crowd.
"We have a traitor in our midst", Jane continued, starting to walk around the table, watching the group of fairies intently, "someone who told the shadows exactly where they would find me in the dark of the night. And I will find him today. With the help of my chief advisor, who bravely saved my life last night- Teresa Lisbon."
He extended his hand towards her, and she took it, allowing him to pull her upright. Her skin prickled where his dust touched her.
He released her hand and resumed his walk behind the backs of his councilors.
"Nobody here knows anything about the pixies", he said, "but I learned lots about them while I walked next to councilor Lisbon on my way to the trolls. And I now know of a special talent all pixies have."
He stared at her, willing her to play along, and she nodded imperceptibly.
"The pixies", he exclaimed, pausing for effect, "can make the aura around a creature visible by a flick of their hand. So, if councilor Lisbon works her magic in a minute, every one of us will show his true colors. Only the aura of the traitor will be black. Teresa- please reveal who betrayed your king."
Teresa had no idea what she should do now, but that wasn't necessary. Before she could raise her hand, councilor Jeff Bergstrom jumped up and raced towards the door- only to be stopped by a growling Rigsby.
The giant grabbed Bergstrom by the neck and pushed him down at the feet of his king.
"You can do no such thing, can't you?", Cho whispered into Teresa's ear.
"Absolutely not.", she answered and sensed the cardinal advisor's faint smile.
"Well", Jane said, smiling coldly at Bergstrom, "I can't say that I'm surprised. Bloodshot eyes, trembling hands, problems to concentrate…you've been addicted to Sleeva, the Shadow's designer drug, for quite some time now, haven't you? I never thought you would go that far. Sloppy of me, I'm afraid. Rigsby- take him to a cell in the basement until he can be shipped to Ravanna."
Nervous chatter started among the councilors when the fairies' infamous prison Island was mentioned. Not a place any fairy longed to see.
Bergstrom was taken away by Rigsby, and the king took his seat again.
"Now that we got rid of the waste", he said quietly, "let's talk about my schedule. I will visit the fairy kindergarten today, accompanied by Rigsby-and councilor Lisbon."
He flung his megawatt smile at her.
And Teresa had the feeling she faced another long, hot day.
Fair warning: next chapter, we cross the borders to M-country- and it won't be just for language this time...please, review! I'm always so curious to know what you're thinking!