The Wildness Within

Two Kings 3

When the Raven Prince returned, he was alone, and Augus was sitting cross-legged on a chair, deep in a still lake in his own mind. He looked up slowly, quietly, saw the look of sparked triumph in his King's eyes.

'Let us return then, to Ethallas,' the Raven Prince said, and he gestured for Augus to get up, then touched his arm lightly with his fingers, both of them whisking away on the winds.

Augus landed badly on the grass, stumbling a few steps. The Raven Prince stood still and composed, the feathers of his cloak and his hair the only parts of him moving in the breeze that had sprung up around them.

'Quercus will repudiate the family,' the Raven Prince said softly. 'Ultimately, he wishes to save the Kingdom over one family, and he will let them go, though it pains him. I think he sees something he was unwilling to see before – Crielle has made herself seem indispensable, has possibly been playing him with her glamour for a very long time now. It might do him some good to be away from her influence and have an independent thought for once. That's the thing about oak trees, they stand strong, but they are so easily parasitised by mistletoe.'

The Raven Prince looked off into the distance. 'I cannot execute them. But the Word Stealer is not without his tricks.'

The Raven Prince walked over to Augus, grasped him and teleported them both once more before Augus knew to brace himself for it.

Indeed, the Word Stealer always had tricks up his sleeve. At the entrance to the An Fnwy estate – a charming villa that looked welcoming – they stood and waited as the Lord and Lady of the house were summoned. Golden wisteria wept yellow flowers everywhere, bees humming musically. Augus caught at least one hundred separate species of poisonous flowering shrub and herb in carefully tended garden beds that harmonically framed the massive entry road that led to the columns before the estate itself. It was all made of a creamy sandstone, and on a wide reaching verandah, so many tables and chairs and flower arrangements – this was a house of entertaining on a grand scale.

A house that had its own secret in the dark woods behind.

If that doesn't sound exactly like the beginning to a fairy tale... Augus thought with some scorn.

Augus could see Gwyn's face in both Lludd's and Crielle's. Crielle was stunning, an exceptional specimen of fae, and Gwyn was a coarse version of her. But in the largeness of her eyes and her thickly curled hair, a certain scrutiny in her direct gaze, he saw echoes of Gwyn. It was obvious though that Gwyn took most after Lludd – his height, the heavier features, the jawline that was heavy and square, the broad shoulders.

But these were two fae who wore their appearances well. Lludd still wore his navy uniform, and Crielle wore a sundress that was pale gold, blue flowers embroidered at the base.

'Crielle ferch Fnwy, Lludd Llaw Eraint, where is your nephew, Efnisien ap Wledig?'

'Your esteemed Majesty,' Crielle said, her voice rich and unctuous, 'the stories don't do you justice, truly. If you leave a message with me, I'll be sure to pass it onto him.'

'I doubt that,' the Raven Prince said.

It didn't take anything more than him extending his hand like he wanted to give them something. Then his fingers curled in quickly, his wrist jerked inwards, and Crielle's hands flew to her mouth. Lludd stood there, looking as though he'd been struck.

'It's temporary,' the Raven Prince said, 'and I've been told the shock wears off. I've left you with your thoughts, for which you owe me gratitude. Do not ever try and keep one of my own from me again. Gwyn ap Nudd is a member of my Court, and he is one of mine. That you would try this crime against the Unseelie Court is reprehensible, that you would try it against me, during my reign, is foolish on your behalf. Take a few centuries to think on what you've done, won't you? Eventually your words will find their way back to you.'