Went and bought myself a language correction software. Hopefully it'll make a difference! :)

Chapter 6—Uncertainties

Marianne dropped to the ground as soon as she could, shrugging off some dirt from the leaves impatiently. The pull of her damp wings, while not as bad as it was under the direct rain, still strained at her back and she was more than tired of it.

She landed with pain in her shoulders and a laugh on her lips. The laugh grew until it became an actual burst of voice. "So… you think I don't know who you are, eh?"

He'd presumed she hadn't noticed the way he had been about to say, 'my castle.'

"Joke's on you! Your Majesty."

But then, her amusement slowly evaporated. Now she knew: he was a king, she was a princess, and both their kingdoms were in opposition. She wasn't to see him again. It would throw hers into chaos if it were discovered.

Behind her, a familiar "thump" coming from the forest cut her short in her internal argument. Then another one, and another one. She froze, listening to the sound as it got closer.

Frogs. Heading home. Maybe she could use one to move faster.

She squinted to discern their green silhouettes in the dark and tried to calculate where one would land. With that limited knowledge in mind, she went to stand experimentally with her arms spread, wincing and ready for a slam. A large bullfrog was effectively surprised into a stop in front of her. Before it could hop away, she grabbed at its shoulders and climbed on its back. Its skin was cold and wet under her hands; she couldn't keep herself from grimacing in disgust. Though not trying to shake itself free, the creature looked at her with one very confused eye.

"Sorry, don't mind me. I'm just in a terrible state and would appreciate a little help in going that direction. By all means, do continue hopping."

It didn't seem to care. Either way, she felt its muscles contracting between her calves, and it dashed forward in the night, in a movement so sudden she almost lost her grip. As it landed, it took her every bit of focus she had left not to fall over its head. At least, the animal's skin was covered in tiny bumps, so it made it slightly easier for her to cling. The bones of its hind legs gave it two humps that she could use as a seat, too.

After the fourth hop, she started to have confidence. And fun; it was more fun than she'd have thought. The wind was a bit cold on her wet clothes and not seeing very far in front of them was somewhat distressing, but the velocity was making her heart beat pleasantly. The plants threatened to cut her face with their leaves so she lowered her head as close to the amphibian's body as possible. Good thing frogs and toads were a friendly kind.

Apparently, her mount was following a route on the ground. There was a broken-down pave under a thin layer of dirt that the rain had disturbed. Where it led to, she wondered.

She suddenly realized they were heading for a little swamp and the animal was not waiting at all for her to notice before diving. She jumped from its back (and slipped in the dark mud) just in time to avoid being thrown along into the murky water. Muttering a quick "Thanks!" to the ripples it left behind, she wiped her legs and her hands together and kept going on foot.

On the other side of the swamp, the pave continued, but she quickly lost track of it under the plants, dirt and overall poor lighting conditions. It seemed to go straight towards the fairy castle.

"That's weird," she thought aloud. "A forgotten route to the Dark Forest. I didn't even know we had routes outside the village at all. A day full of surprises indeed…"

After some more walk, she arrived at the village's gates, down the hill. Her feet were soaking wet. Nothing would distract her from the way to her bath anymore.

Except, maybe, for the Elf guarding the entrance that frowned when their eyes met. Or the few ones that were sitting around a fire behind a house, near the path she was taking—when they saw her, they cast her an angry, contemptuous look that she was not expecting. She held their gaze as she walked by them but didn't stop nor say anything. Higher up the hill, two female elves also stopped when they noticed her, and stared down at her with disdain. It was confusing, to say the least.

She passed the doors to the castle. The alley was empty, with no guards standing by the stairs, fuelling her fear that a good portion of their army was out of commission. Her sprites came to greet her, making happy circles around her and making gagging noises at her clothes. Marianne was not in a state of mind to do anything but ignore them.

One soldier was sitting inside the front hall, glowering at his feet. When he raised his head and saw her, a look of relief washed over his face and he kneeled: "Princess Marianne! Oh, it's so good to see you! Are you alright?"

She suddenly became very self-conscious: wet clothes covered in mud, damp hair probably standing in all directions, makeup completely run down, wings still dark from the water... "Yes, thank you. Is my father asleep?"

"Yes, but he ordered me to wake him if I saw you arrive home."

"Okay. Tell him I'm fine, and not to ask to see me until morning. Under no circumstances."

"I will, your Highness."

She took a step towards the central stairs leading to the back of the castle, where her chambers were, but her legs refused to carry her further until she asked the question. "How are… the other soldiers?"

The male fairy's expression became sombre again. He lowered his chin and his bronze helmet hid a part of his face. "Not… Not well, your Highness. Many are hospitalized at the moment. Princess Dawn included. We're not sure what's causing their sudden… disease."

Even Dawn, huh. Not surprising but still painful to hear. "It's their wings, isn't it? It's because of the powder."

He nodded silently, not meeting her eye.

"And you, soldier? Are you alright?"

"Me? Yes, thank you… It would be a lie to say I'm not—but I'm scared."

"You shouldn't be. Don't worry, we'll fix this mess."

He looked at her with a small smile and hope in his eyes. "Yes. Those that have not yet been infected trust you. So… they'll be happy to know you are home at last."

Such sincere words were pleasing to hear, but at the same time, she felt it as a huge burden on her shoulders. Indeed, it fell into her hands to correct her family's mistake. By letting them go along with it, she was equally guilty. "What about those that are infected?"

"Some of them trust you too, but some others are mad. I don't think it's a good idea to see them, like… in the near future."

"Okay. Oh and, what about the soldiers that were in the Dark Forest? Did they arrive safely?"

His smile came back slightly. "Yes, they're being taken care of. They were in a pretty bad state, though."

"How bad?"

"Their wings were almost completely black. I saw them myself when they passed through here… They're the most seriously afflicted right now."

She winced and turned her head, feeling shame that she couldn't quite explain.

"But your Highness, they said you were heroic. Is it true that you caught a dragonfly so they could escape the Dark Forest?"

There was clear admiration in his voice. If he knew she went as far as riding a frog… "Well, yeah… Desperate times call for desperate measures."

"Wow! It was true then. You're incredible, Princess. Despite their, err… their condition, they had only good words for you. They told us a million times how grateful they were."

"Thank you, but… really, it's not that big of a deal. I couldn't even save their wings, so I was more a carrier than a saviour." Before he could add anything, she started climbing the stairs. The soldier followed her, since her father's chambers were in the same direction. "Anyway, we'll get this mess sorted out somehow, so don't panic, alright?"

"Okay. Thank you, Princess."

They went their separate ways around the centre of the back cliff. She wished him a good night, reminded him of her message to the king and promptly crossed the corridor to hide in her room and lock the door.

The call of her bed had never been quite so fetching. There it stood, suspended in the middle of the room, waiting for her to crash on it and not rise until next week.

But she wouldn't be able to sleep knowing she was this dirty. With the greatest sigh of exasperation yet, she turned back and unlocked the door.

Last effort, she thought to herself as she closed the bathroom door behind her sprites. Clear water first, then peace and blissfulness. Never in her life had she shed her clothes this forcefully while the little creatures busied themselves on the tub to summon warm water. Her body was numb, like she had forgotten what warmth felt like.

While she waited for the bath to grow a bit fuller than usual, her thoughts drifted to the King of the Dark Forest, to his rough voice, to his slenderness, to the nimbleness of his wings. What was his real name, again? She'd have to ask her father—after enquiring about the soldiers, obviously.

Now, all the fun surrounding him had died in her mind. Her heart had gone as cold as the November mist, and everything was being put into question in her head.

There had definitely been chemistry between them—she had made small talk to him like no guy had inspired her to before. She had then asked if he visited that spot often, to which, of course, he had replied with a very precise time of day: around daybreak. Clearly, an invitation.

In turn, by pretending that she had no idea who he was, she had gone as far as offering to spar, but… he'd looked happy. He had even made her forget the disaster her appearance was—any fairy would have made fun of her interminably. She had hoped there was a connection.

It all made sense now. She'd been tricked into thinking so. While she was tempted for sure to go look for his clear blue eyes and his stern gracefulness, it was undoubtedly what he wanted her to do.

…Then again. What did that change?

So, there was a bit of attraction on her part. So sue her! There wasn't any on his side, fine. Why was that supposed to keep her from having fun? He was a rare respectful opponent. While on enemy territory, she had felt truly on a par with him. If she had a foolproof device to make sure she was never captured, and she never divulged a single thing about the kingdom, she had nothing to lose, right?

Before kneeling in the half-full tub, she was very careful not to look at the mirror.

"It was not about the fairies in the Dark Forest. That's the only hint I can give you."

"It was not? So, it was about… the king and the fairies in the Dark Forest?"

"No! The fairies in the Dark Forest were not a part of the message. It wasn't about them, and it has nothing to do with them."

"Oh, it's about the fairies outside of the Dark Forest, then!"

"I told you, I won't give you two hints. Just one."

"But… how am I supposed to know what it is if that's all you'll tell me?"

"Because you're not supposed to know yet! We'll tell the king together when he agrees to see us. Until then, we have to keep it a secret."

"Oh, Stuff, you're such a good person! Don't worry, I can help you!"

"What? Help me for what?"

"Keep it a secret. I'll protect it with you! If there are two of us guarding it, we have twice the power to keep it for ourselves!"

"Err… no, I don't think that's how it works."

"Come on! I didn't even know there had been a message after he'd left. If I'd seen the mushroom make a sign, I'd have gone with you. I have just as much a right to the message as you do, you know!"

"What about the ladybug's affair, last summer, then?"

"What? What about them?"

"You kept the message to yourself for a whole day."

"It was embarrassing! They'd asked me to tell the king about their undying lord… or something like that."

"You mean, their undying love."

"Right, their love. Right."

"No matter what I said, you refused to tell me about it. And look where that got you."

"It was just a little nudge."

"He pushed you down the bridge."

"There's a river underneath, it wasn't that bad."

"It took you three hours to climb back."

"These soft hands certainly learned from their experience."

"If you'd told me, I'd have helped you with the exactitude."

"But to the ladybugs, it was totally embarrassing! They had lost a bet, remember? I was absolutely unable to tell you, so what's your point?"

"Well, now, it's important. The king should be the one to decide who knows and who doesn't."

"But you said you were going to tell me about it right before he knows."

"What? No, I didn't say that."

"Yes, you did. You said we'd tell him together."

"Uh… Yeah, we'll be together when I say it. So what?"

"Well, don't you think I have to practice before the big moment?"

"Practice what?"

"The tone of my voice. Ahem. I'm trying to broaden its reach."

"Really? But your voice already carries very well."

"Thank you. I still have trouble with rasanity, though."

"You mean, nasality."

"Yeah, yeah, that."

Stuff sighed and stopped swinging their legs on their chair.

"Okay, I'll tell you, but only if you let me tell him."

"Sure! No problem!"

Thang almost bounced on his chair. Stuff made sure no one in this crowded communal room was listening and bent towards their colleague.

"The whole fairy army is sick."

"Oh, sick? All of them?"

They shushed the smaller creature, slightly annoyed.

"Yeah. It can't be good."

"No, it can't. The king's going to be heartbroken. What if something happens to his secret love?"

An aardvark, sitting at the table right behind them, poked Stuff on the shoulder. "Excuse me, but what are you talking about?"

Thang was the fastest to react: "The king has made a secret love."

"He's not in love," Stuff intervened, "he just really wants to keep his meeting with her a secret. We don't know for sure how he feels about her."

"So… the king has a secret love, then?" the aardvark repeated at Thang, their wet nose sniffing the air happily and round eyes glittering with mischief. "Why else would he not want us to see him with her?"

"Hey, are you talking about the king's meeting with a fairy?" an elf-bird sitting nearby chipped in. "'Cause I saw them, I was there!"

"No way!" the aardvark turned to him. "What did they do together?"

"They fought. For a long time. It was almost cute."

Both burst out laughing loudly. A few goblins glanced at them over their food.

"The no-love king is in love!"

The story crossed the room a few times, until everybody had heard a version of it. The aardvark eventually returned his attention to Stuff and Thang. "Wait, you said he was going to be heartbroken? Why?"

A few goblins turned to them. Thang smiled: "Because his lover's kingdom has no army right now. She's toast!"

A heavy silence slowly descended upon the room as all the goblins paid their full attention to him.

Stuff slapped a hand to their forehead—if they had a thousand foreheads and a thousand hands, they'd have slapped them all together.