Golden Prophecy

X V I I I

THE AUTUMN Court was just like she remembered it. The chill in the air, the turning leaves on the trees, the calming presence of a season in change. Princess Carling was standing there at the foothold of her shopfront, smiling at them with such warmth, it made Andorra's heart ache for her parents.

"Welcome, welcome!" Princess Carling fluttered towards Coralia, giving her daughter a kiss on the forehead. She grasped the redhead's shoulders, smiling down at her daughter. "I am so glad you've come home!"

Coralia rolled her eyes, but it was in good nature. "Momma, you're embarrassing me."

Princess Carling moved on to Andorra next, her smile wide and motherly. "My dear, you are just as precious as the first day we met. Welcome back, welcome back! I knew you and my Coralia would be thick as thieves." She hugged Andorra tightly then, pulling her into the warmth of a woman who cared.

Callum didn't see it that way. "Unhand the Princess before I take your hand as payment." The words were dark, a growl, a warning.

Princess Carling blinked at the Winter Fae, and then let out a delighted laugh. "Prince Puck's son. How you've grown! And... you're the Princess's guard. Interesting turn of events." Princess Carling did release Andorra, and she looked at Coralia with a pointed look. "The Princess is safe here, but I suppose I understand your worry and fear. But let me be perfectly clear, Callum: this isn't your father's court. We do not have assassins in the street, hiding at every turn."

Callum stiffened, but said nothing in return. The shadows that clung to his body seemed to intensify, sweeping across the cobbled street like fog. He was more than a boy right then, more than the son of Prince Puck. Goosebumps flared across Andorra's skin at the sight of his eyes going black, like a demon possessed.

She turned towards Princess Carling abruptly. She was forgetting that Callum wasn't on her side, and he wasn't a good person. He was the son of a very harsh, very sinister Court Prince. The power he held was not the power Hans and Bort had running in their veins.

Even his girlfriend was not made of the same power. Andorra had to remember that.

Princess Carling didn't pay the shadow fae any mind as she turned towards Bort and Hans, her warm smile returning. "And, my daughter's favorite friends. Welcome back! Hans, you've grown taller I think! And so thin! Are you eating anything at that fancy school? And Bort, lovely as always. Please tell your mother I say hello. We see her very seldom at the market anymore. I do hope she is feeling okay."

There was some back and forth between Princess Carling and the boys, but Andorra was too focused on the shadows slinking past her ankles, wrapping around them like fingers. She tried to subtly shake the shadows off, but it was to no avail.

"Knock it off," she hissed to Callum, shooting him a look. The shadows were trailing up past her shins now, cool against her skin, but trapping her nonetheless. When she met his eyes, it was almost as though he seemed to snap out of the trance he was in, his eyes immediately turning back to normal, the shadows suddenly rushing back to his side.

She wanted to ask him more questions about it, but there was no time. And there was an audience that Callum would absolutely not entertain, so Andorra faced forward once again. Coralia was opening the shop entrance door, beckoning Andorra forward. "Momma, Andy and I are going to get set up with our stuff."

Princess Carling waved off her daughter. "Go ahead, go ahead! I have some phone calls to make. Please, settle in. Princess, I have heard you would like a dress for the Fates Ball. I would be honored to make one. Just let me know when you would like the measurements taken."