I love my sister.
I love my sister.
I love my s...ister.
I lo...ve my sis...ter.
I LOATHE MY SISTER!
"That does it," Marianne growls, throwing her pillow away from her and abandoning her bed. "I'm gonna kill her!"
The nearby guards touch the ceiling without needing their wings as Marianne slams the door open and storms down the hallway. Flying would be too quick. She is going to let her rage simmer until it reaches its optimum peak and then strangle her annoying little sister.
Six months living in the peaceful quietness of the Dark Forest and she had somehow forgotten the nauseating love-sick fools of her birth kingdom. She'd rather deal with horny goblins who have no problem getting extremely frisky in very public places, the fact that she and Bog have been one of them has nothing to do with her feelings about that at all, but at least they're not singing nauseous love songs at the top of their lungs at a time when sensible people should be sleeping.
"Dawn! You better have a good reason to stop me from ripping your wings off," Marianne growls, slamming the throne room doors open.
The terrified eyes turned toward her seething figure makes her blink.
Oh, right.
They were in the middle of a crisis. How did she manage to forget that?
"Oh, Marianne! I just found the most perfect male," Dawn sighs dreamily before scowling at her father. "But Daddy says no."
"Really? So, who's the unlucky...I mean, lucky male," Marianne questions?
"Boggy Woggy Kingy Wingy," Dawn squeals.
Poor Bog.
"It's not what you think, dear," Dagda hastily reassures, worried at her deadpan expression. "Dawn's been dusted by the love potion and..."
"Really, Daddy! I'm perfectly fine," Dawn insists. "Bog is just so perfect."
"He's also married," Dagda reminds with a growl. "To your sister!"
"You look like you're enjoying this immensely," Marianne comments to Vincent, ignoring ongoing the father-daughter argument.
"This is a lot better than seeing my life flash before my eyes," Vincent remarks. "They were about to kill me when Bog and his subjects attacked. Unfortunately, Sunny and I were too disorientated to warn Bog from opening the sack containing Dawn. Your partner is very noble."
"He is," Marianne agrees. "I see you and Dawn but where is Sunny?"
"It seems the thief had run into the Dark Forest around the time our captors had also escaped there and Sunny had seen it. So, he's helping Bog locate the love potion thief by showing him where he saw it," Vincent answers.
Marianne groans at the implication. It will be nearly impossible to find the love potion thief in the immense network of brush and trees in the Dark Forest. It'll take days, at least. That's if it doesn't decide to travel right through it to wetlands on the other side.
A budding headache forces her to rub her temples. She didn't have enough sleep before Dawn's crooning woke her and now with the added burden of the possible escape of the love potion thief...well, it's no wonder that she's feeling overwhelmed, especially hearing her father's attempts to talk sense into Dawn. All she wants to do right now is go home and curl up in her nice soft moss bed with her husband but she'll be lucky if he's able to return for her before sunrise.
Then there's the whole problem with the Breezy Meadow that needs to be dealt with before the other kingdoms' delegates arrive in the afternoon.
"Where are we at concerning your kingdom," Marianne asks?
"You're looking at the new King of the Breezy Meadow, once we return home, anyway. After this fiasco, Sir Thadius has finally admitted that Vesper is not looking out for my best interest and will never be the mother to me that Mother had hoped that she would be. He's taking it hard but is no longer admonishing me to abide by kingdom rules and I informed him of the old law I found to clear him from feeling guilty of breaking his promise to Mother," Vincent comments. "He managed to weed out those loyal to Vesper, which isn't many once they found out that Vesper had ordered me to be killed if everything didn't go according to plan."
"I can understand her wanting to kill you to start her own royal bloodline but it seems strange that her first plan was to dust you into falling in love with Dawn," Marianne mentions.
"We have a law that can force an abdication of the throne if the ruler or heir has been corrupted by outside influences," Vincent explains. "A love potion is the cleanest way of getting rid of my royal bloodline since all my offspring would be deemed corrupted and unqualified for the throne. The traitors had agreed with Vesper's plan for that reason because they're still angry with Mother for agreeing to King Elatha's trade agreement. Such fools."
She couldn't agree more. She also couldn't help but think her father is acting foolish himself right now. Dawn is past being sensible at the moment and her faulty reasonings are beginning to revive Marianne's previous murderous thoughts.
"I'll do what I want," Dawn states firmly. "Marianne is not the boss of me."
Seriously maiming is not killing.
"Oh, yes I am," Marianne pipes up, interrupting her father's rebuke. "I am the Crown Princess of the Light Field as well as the Queen of the Dark Forest, meaning I outrank you twice and that I am the boss of you. Dawn, you've been love-dusted and before you say anything more that will get you into more trouble than you already are, go to sleep."
"But I saw Boggy first," Dawn pouts.
"I was born first," Marianne quips. "Sleep, now!"
Vincent's suppressed laughter at Dawn's sulking is interrupted by a yawn and Marianne pushes the male sprite's shoulder, nodding to the door.
"No point in you staying up any longer," Marianne remarks.
"I want to wait until news com...," Vincent protests softly before yawning again. "Plus, I want to thank Sunny. If it wasn't for his bravery, Bog might not have rescued us in time."
"Sunny! Where is Sunny," Dawn questions?
"Probably getting eaten," Marianne comments dully, smirking as Dawn's face turns to panic. "It is dangerous in the Dark Forest if you're not aware of the area, after all. Just today, Bog and I came across a huge lizard that was trying to eat a couple of goblins. There's also badger cubs to worry about, wild spiders, frogs, and there's even a plant that will eat small creatures that get stuck in it. Sunny is just the right size."
Okay, so maybe she is being a little cruel but she'll blame it on being cruelly woken up by her now sobbing little sister.
Her first official Wild Hunt with Bog was interrupted and though they managed to get a kill, it's a failed hunt because of her suggestion of giving the mouse to Lizzie. Both her kingdoms were put in danger because of a power-hungry old female sprite. Her sister and both of her childhood friends were nearly killed. It's been a long day and a long night with no prospects of tomorrow being any more relaxing, so she's not feeling up to being nice at moment.
Marianne sighs as Dawn keeps crying without stopping. Just as she's ready to reassure her that Sunny is safe, the throne room door opens again and Sunny walks in. The small male elf opens his mouth to report but takes one look at the crying Dawn and runs to her side.
"Dawn! Are you okay? What did Marianne do," Sunny asks?
"Why is it that your first idea of what is making Dawn cry is that I did something," Marianne questions?
"Because you're usually somehow responsible," Sunny remarks.
Marianne lightly glares at him as her father coughs to cover his laughter. It's not like she can actually deny it.
She's the one laughing, though, when Sunny yelps as Dawn pulls him into a tight hug. Her mirth almost causes her to miss the pink-haze leaving her sister's eyes.
Huh?