Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. But if we went to school together, I'd definitely sit with them at lunch.
The next day finds me full of stress. I wake to Kartik's kiss as he steals out my window and I smile into my pillow for a quarter of an hour before waking Henry. Outside, the sun is warm, but the breeze is cool and Henry enjoys exploring the grounds. Felicity, Ann, and I stroll through the rose garden, following Henry as he chases after a butterfly.
"I received a letter from Simon Middleton last week, Gemma," Felicity says, stealing a glance at my reaction. I find I am oddly at peace with my former suitor.
"Did you? And is he well?" Ann giggles. Felicity is disappointed, but proceeds to tell me the contents of the letter.
"He and his wife have settled into a new home some few blocks from parliament. They are expecting their second child just next month." Her lips purse as she continues. "He seems quite happy."
I smile. "And I am happy for him. Truly." I turn to Ann, taking her hand. "But what of you, Ann? You have been so quiet! Tell us of the Gaiety!"
Ann blushes. "My life is simply a balance of lessons and rehearsals. It is hard, but I do so enjoy it!" She looks down, attempting to hold back a smile. "I also have some marvelous news! I wanted to tell you in person, and now seems the perfect moment to tell you." Felicity and I implore her to tell us and she obliges with a giggle. "You remember Charlie Smalls, don't you?" We both nod anxiously. Mr. Smalls was quite smitten with Ann's voice. She would be out of a job if it were not for his admiration. "As I mentioned, I have been spending quite a lot of time with him since I began working in the theatre. He has indeed expressed great interest in me."
"Why Ann darling, that is wonderful!" Felicity coos.
"In fact, he took me to dinner just last week and…" She slowly tugs off her left glove, revealing to us a beautiful diamond ring gracing her finger. We break into a chorus of squealing, laughing, and hugging one another in joy. Ann looks so proud she could burst, and I cannot find the words to tell her how glad I am to see her so satisfied.
"Charlie is a very good man. We shall be married before the fall!" It is hard to believe that four years have passed since we were last together. I have missed them so, and it is like a part of me is whole again to have them with me.
"I can't believe you are the first of us to get engaged, Ann!" I laugh.
Felicity turns a stony glare to me, though it lacks the strength and confidence it once had. "Pippa was engaged first." Our giggles cease as a heavy silence overtakes of small circle. It seems that a small part of Felicity will never quite be able to move past her first love.
Felicity suddenly shakes off her stern demeanor, leaving us a bit rattled. "But that's no matter, we should celebrate!" Felicity leans in, whispering mischievously. "If you should like, I bet you a shilling that Reverend Waite still hides his whiskey in the cupboard behind the pulpit!" We erupt in a chorus of girlish giggles behind our hands.
"I am afraid that I must decline. Henry shall be-"
"Oh, come Gemma!" Ann begs, taking my hands.
"I did not realize your fondness for the bottle, Ann," I jest. Ann blushes.
"Of course not!" I simply wish to have a night of fun, as we used to!"
"Ann is right," Felicity chimes in. "And Henry shall be fine! Your Indian friend can watch him."
I ponder this. I have not allowed myself a free night in ages, not with Henry to consider. "Please, Gemma?" Ann pleads. They close in on me with pouts, their lips protruding so far they both may trip.
"Alright!" I placate them. "Tomorrow night, after we meet with the realms creatures, we shall steal away to the caves." They whoop with joy and my heart is light. Perhaps a night of fun is just what I need to calm my buzzing nerves.
Henry bounds over, his cheeks flushed from running. "Mama?" He takes my hand. "Where is Daddy?"
"Shall we go find him?" His face lights up and he nods emphatically. Felicity takes Ann's arm and excitedly begins discussing wedding plans. We search the stables, but they are empty. Where could Kartik be? "Perhaps he took one of the horses for a ride. He shall be back soon." Henry's face falls. "Oh, come now. I am sure Aunt Felicity and Aunt Ann would love to play a game with you!"
"Daddy said he would teach me to play cricket," he says through a mighty pout.
"So I did." We turn to see Kartik riding in, looking magnificent on Spence's finest horse. He slides off the horse's back, leading it into its stall. "Do not think I have forgotten, Henry! You shall be the greatest player England has ever seen before you know it!" He leads Henry over to the stall, handing him an apple. "But until then, would you like to feed Midnight?"
Henry looks a bit nervous, but nods. Kartik shows him how to hold his hand flat, tickling him playfully when telling him that the horse might nibble off his fingers. Their laughs echo through the stables, filling me with unspeakable joy. "Her whiskers tickle!" Henry giggles.
He picks up another apple, offering it to the horse, who accepts it gladly. Kartik turns to me, pulling me closer.
"And how is the fine lady today?" he asks with an unmistakable glance at my lips. My stomach turns pleasantly.
"The lady is very happy," I say simply. My words have more weight than I realize. Four years ago, my life crumbled in despair. Now, I have more than I could possibly wish for and everything seems to be just right. "And you?"
Kartik smiles, trailing his fingers down my jaw, his eyes not leaving mine. "I am very happy." I cannot help the smile that bubbles to my lips as he kisses me. I am lightheaded and giddy and I am loved and I never want to spend a moment without Kartik.
Henry, his attention drifting from the horse, tugs on Kartik's shirt. "Cricket!" he demands. Kartik swoops him up with a chuckle.
"Is it time?"
"Yes!" He insists. They go to fetch Kartik's cricket bat and ball and I sit on the front steps as Henry attempts to hit the ball and misses time and time again. Kartik is patient, showing him to swing the bat and watch the ball and my heart is full to bursting as I watch them.
After some time passes, Henry yawns, rubbing his eyes. Kartik volunteers to take him up for his nap. As I rise to follow him, he leans to me and whispers, "Meet me in the stables."
I wait, pacing down the aisle, counting the floorboards. Although I have seen him quite a lot, I can never seem to find enough time with Kartik. I am anxious for him to return.
As I turn on my heel to pace down the aisle again, my skirt swings, catching a bucket on a stool and sending it toppling. I scramble to replace it when I notice a piece of paper lying in the hay, folded neatly. As I bend to retrieve it out of curiosity, I hear footsteps in the hay behind me.
"What is this?" I pick it up, offering it to Kartik. He cannot hide his disappointment.
"I had rather hoped for a more enthusiastic greeting," he jests, but his smile does not reach his eyes. But he takes the paper, unfolding it and scanning it quickly. His face turns down, hardening as his eyes greedily take in the words on the page.
"Kartik? What does it say?" He drops his head into his hands, running his fingers through his hair.
"They have found him." I wait for him to tell me more, but he says nothing.
"I am afraid I am not following you."
Kartik's eyes meet mine. His face is lined with rage, his jaw clenched, his eyes glassy in frenzy. "Fowlson. He is dead." Dead. I remember the man who helped us four years ago, put his head on the chopping block to save us and the realms. Despite our differences, Mr. Fowlson was a good man. I feel a pang of loss at the thought of him.
Kartik throws the note at his feet, grinding it under his heel as he turns away. "I am going to kill them, I'm going to find them and I am going to kill them for it," he spits as he strides toward the open door. My heart leaps wildly in my chest, fear seizing me.
"Kartik, no!" I reach for his arm, holding him back. "Please, you can't!"
"I have to, Gemma!" He stops, shaking off my hand. "You remember how much Fowlson sacrificed for us. For you. He was our ally and our friend. They must pay for his death." He turns again and it takes everything I have not to fall apart.
"You told me you weren't going anywhere!" I call after him. He stops. "You promised me!" The muscles of his back, tight with anger, tremble under the thin fabric of his shirt. I speak slowly, hoping that he will listen. "If you go after them, they will kill you."
He turns. "Gemma, they-"
"You know they will." His eyes soften, his body half-turned toward me and half-turned toward the door. "It is over. If they cannot fulfill the one condition I presented, they shall not be a part of the alliance. It is as simple as that. Now they may worry us no further." Kartik is still hesitant.
"It isn't over, Gemma." Kartik strides quickly to the spot where he dropped the crumpled page, smoothing it so I may read the message scrawled across the bottom of the page.
"We are coming," I read aloud, the message sending chills down my spine.
Kartik speaks before I can. "I know the Rakshana. They are relentless. You may have outwitted them, but when they want something badly enough, they will break each and every rule to get it." With a sigh, he neatly folds the note and slips it into his back pocket for safekeeping.
"I cannot force you to stay. But Henry needs you. And I need you."
The tension leaks from Kartik's muscles like air from a balloon. "That's a lie," he says, taking my hands. "You survived four years without me. You don't need anyone."
I entwine our fingers, pulling him closer. "If that is true, then I may choose with whom I desire to spend my time. And I choose you."
He smiles, brushing a curl from my face. "I had a dream last night." My blood runs cold. Kartik's dreams and I have not exactly been the best of friends in the past. "Oh, don't look so petrified. Though I will admit, this dream would be easier demonstrated than explained."
I blush as Kartik leans down, burying his head in my neck and covering it with kisses.
"Kartik?" I ask. "Do you still believe in fate? And destiny?" He straightens, studying my face.
"For a very long time, I did not think so." He releases me, noticing the forgotten bucket I upset and cleaning my mess. "But now that we are together, how could I not believe?"
I follow him as he tidies the stables. "That day, you said to me that you had finally realized your destiny. And it was your sacrifice. What now? If your destiny is not the Rakshana or the Tree…"
"Then my destiny is you. And Henry."
I smile at that. "I suppose our destinies are still intertwined after all."
He chuckles, remembering his dream where I said just that. "I simply could not see it before. But now that Henry is here, it is clear that I was meant to be here, protecting you. A job you make quite difficult for me."
I laugh. It is true, I am not only clumsy, but danger seems to be my most unyielding suitor. "Well then, if you would like a more docile girl, I shall go fetch Lady Whatsit. She appeared to be the next in line to dally in your, oh what did she call it, "forbidden Indian blood," I believe."
Kartik laughs, capturing me within his arms. "Tell Lady Whatsit to save her third china bowl." His disposition changes suddenly and he is very serious. "Unless she has money. Has she any money? For I haven't a shilling." He begins to sweep me into a grand waltz and I laugh more freely than I have in longer than I can remember. I am so glad he has returned.
After Henry wakes from his nap, Kartik teaches him more cricket. Henry is getting closer to hitting the ball with the bat, but he soon tires of the sport. When he does, they lay in the grass and Henry listens to Kartik's stories of India and the legends of the Rakshana. He is completely engrossed in Kartik's words and I desire nothing but to watch them this way forever.
Henry and I depart from dinner early. He whines that he would like to play with the girls, but I insist that he be in bed early. I meet Fee and Ann in the main hall and we find Kartik near the East Wing.
We aim for the door, but Ann pipes up. "Gemma, have you tried summoning the door of light yet?" I have to admit I have not.
"Perhaps I can now." We join hands in the cramped hallway, heads bent in concentration. Before long, my fingers begin tingling with magic and I can feel the magic pulling in me. I open my eyes and before us stands the door of light in all its magnificence.
"You've done it!" Ann claps as I turn the knob. The gardens are beautiful as ever. Ann rushes in, followed by Fee. Kartik watches me as I warily step across the threshold. He takes my hand once he is inside, pulling the door shut behind him.
My stomach churns. "Kartik, what if I cannot do this?" I ask in a whisper. "What if I do not have what it takes to lead them?"
He gently squeezes my hand. "You are Lady Hope remember? They have faith in you, Gem. You can do this." I feel the magic flowing from him to me, erasing my doubts. My lips press into a grin.
"That's not fair," I tease. But I immensely appreciate the gesture. He laughs and begins guiding me toward the river.
The creatures are already gathered and waiting, though discussions are a bit less friendly than they were last night. Exchanges are tense and curt and a cold chill runs through my blood. I finger the folds of my skirt, where I have sewn an inner pocket to hold the guide gifted to me by Nightwing. It brings me a strange peace. I wonder if any priestess before me ever felt so frightened by her powers, of her position over the realms.
"Before we begin this meeting, I would like to remind you all why we are here." The faces around me appear perplexed, but I continue. "I believe that every tribe here is worthy of receiving the magic. The magic is not ruled by the Order or the Rakshana, but by the people of the realms. You are all here to receive an equal share, so that the magic may be used to the benefit of all. If we truly desire the realms to be at peace, and I believe we do, this fruitless arguing must end. Perhaps instead of thinking of individual tribes, we should think of the realms as a whole. Broken, we can accomplish nothing. But as one, the realms could thrive more than they have in all the years of the Order's rule." The heads around me begin to nod. Their respect and willingness to comply fills me with an unexplainable joy. "Now, with that in mind, and for the sake of the realms, let us begin."
Boaz, of course, sits across the table, chillingly still. But not once does he fight back. Perhaps I am wrong, but I believe he is beginning to soften to the idea of the constitution.
The representatives of the tribes nearly run the meeting on their own. I merely become the mediator, making small suggestions and assuring that the final decisions are agreeable to everyone's terms. It is smoother than I could have imagined and I could not be more grateful, for I was not sure I could handle a full week of unpleasant meetings.
We adjourn for the night, agreeing to meet again tomorrow. Before I am even to my feet, Ann and Felicity have popped up like dandelions, positively itching to explore the realms again. "Come, Gemma, perhaps just the golden waterfall!"
"Or the Borderlands!" Ann suggests, but with a glance, we all agree against visiting Pippa's former home.
"I have a better idea. We have not visited the poppy fields. Perhaps the Hajin would like a visit at the Caves of Sighs." Felicity does not miss the blush that rushes up my neck. She knows the real reason I am suggesting the Caves.
"I cannot wait! The realms are so beautiful!" Ann twirls across the grass. "Come on!"
"Fee?" A chill runs down my spine as a familiar voice speaks at my ear. Felicity turns and the blood runs from her face. Ann is the one who speaks the name I was dreading.
"Pippa?" I turn slowly. Before us stands Pippa, as beautiful as she was in life.
"You have all returned. You've grown up. And you have forgotten me." Pippa's nose turns up as tears form in her eyes. My stomach churns.
"No, that isn't true. We could never forget you, Pip," Fee squeaks, but she does not move to comfort her as she once would.
Pippa's face flashes back to affected happiness. "Do you mean that?" Her violet eyes suddenly flash milky white, black flecks dotting their surface, but I blink in surprise and they have returned to their usual shade.
"Yes, of course Pip. But you have been gone a very long while." My voice shakes. "How did you manage to escape the castle?"
Pippa's face assumes a look of blissful ignorance, one I have seen many times before. "What ever do you mean, Gemma dear?" I open my mouth to reply, but can find no words. I look to the other girls, but they are just as stunned as I. "You...the castle...fell on you. And Bessie and Mae and the factory girls. Just after you sacrificed…"
"Miss McCleethy," Ann finishes for me in a scratchy whisper. There is no possible way this is truly Pippa. The Pippa we knew is long gone.
"Yes, Pippa, tell us. Just how did you escape the Borderlands?" Pippa's mouth turns down into a scowl. Another face I am quite familiar with.
"Alright you've caught me." With a girlish giggle, not Pippa's, the vision of Pippa melts into one of the Forest folk. And a shape-shifter.
Her eyes narrow, but her lips turn into a smirk. "I knew that trick wouldn't last for long. Only the best do. My mother taught me that. Do you remember her? Neela, the creature you banished from the realms? I am her daughter, Cressida."
My discomfort thaws into anger at the creature before me. "What a wretched creature! Why, I ought to-" Just as Felicity lunges for Neela's throat, I catch her, holding her back.
"Fee, don't!" I warn. "She isn't worth the fight." Reluctantly, Fee breaks away, eyeing the creature with undisguised menace.
"Still missing your little friend, I see," she sneers. "My mother told me all about you. Perhaps I shall teach you a lesson in pain. I am well-versed." I should like to smack the smug grin from her face. The magic bubbles under my skin, begging to be let free, but I restrain it easily.
"I would suggest you leave now," I advise through gritted teeth, "before your cruel tricks find you eating your words." With a flip of her hair, she turns her back and waves with a flick of her fingers.
"Ta ta now, my darlings!" She calls. "Such a lovely chat." She disappears around the bend of the river, much to my delight.
"What an awfully pitiful creature," Ann retorts with a shudder.
"Fee, are you alright?" I take her hands, but she tears them away.
"I am perfectly fine," she snaps. Realizing her temper, she quickly takes a breath to steel herself. "Perhaps the caves can wait for another night."
"I agree," Ann says with a nod. "I, for one, am quite shaken. We should take the night to recollect ourselves."
"Tomorrow, then." I reach my hand out for Kartik's, but find he is not there. "Kartik?" I find him by the bank of the river, deep in a quiet discussion with Boaz, who seems quite miffed. The latter holds a poppy in his open palm, eyeing it with disgust. With a twitch of his wrist, he crushes the poppy between his fingers, dropping it at Kartik's feet. He spits one last word at Kartik, turning on his heel to trudge toward the Poppy Warriors' cathedral. Kartik kicks the grass in frustration, then, seeing me, smiles, though I can see how tired he is. I extend my hand and he takes it willingly.
"What was that about?" I ask. "He looked quite the unhappy fellow."
Kartik rolls his eyes. We were simply having a small disagreement." He pulls me close. "But it is no matter. We should catch up to your friends before they leave us." He is right, Ann and Fee are quite far ahead of us.
"Let's." We are all quiet as we make our way back to Spence. We say quiet goodnights as we retire to our rooms for the night, not making another mention of Neela's heartless prank. I can barely undress myself before Kartik and I fall into bed, entirely drained from the day.
Hello readers! Has it really been a year since I've published? I am SO sorry for leaving you all dangling for so long! Since I last updated, I have graduated college and am now working an apprenticeship as an actor with a professional theatre company in Atlanta! Life is crazy, but I still have a few things up my sleeve for these crazy kids. This was a particularly difficult chapter to write, which is a big reason why I was hesitant to post it, but I promise it's gonna keep getting better! Please review and tell me what you think and keep your eyes peeled for another update soon! Hopefully I have enough already written that I can put out a couple more chapters as I keep writing. Thank you for sticking with me even though I ghosted you guys!
xoxo Lady Hope