''Don't you remember, little flower?'' he asked, his voice low and melodic, ''Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.''
''Perhaps,'' I whispered, ''But Shakespeare was referring to a man...''
He cocked his head in confusion, his eyes growing darker...
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"Bullshit."
Cedric rolled his eyes from his position at the island counter. He leaned back in the chair, his lithe and powerful limbs exuding confidence and well, currently, exasperation.
"No, your highness. It is not, as you so eloquently put it, 'bullshit.'"
I crossed my arms, annoyed at his pompous tone and the way he looked like he owned the entire apartment building.
"My sister calls me with some cracked out warning and you're telling me you've got no idea what it means? Or where she is? Or who she is with-"
He leaned forward, his dark eyes narrowing. "That is, indeed, exactly what I'm saying."
Brighid's phone call weighed on my mind. Her words rang in repetition in my ears, warning me against trusting. But who did she mean? And why give me the warning so suddenly? And so cryptically?
No matter how many times I tried calling her back, she didn't pick up. Eventually, the calls went straight to voicemail, and I knew that her phone was, at the very least, turned off. Naturally, I panicked after we'd hung up, but Cedric had been at my shoulder, sensing my panic, and curious at the cause.
I rushed out a lame excuse to Ellie at the gym, returned to the apartment building we both shared, and sat on Cedric's couch berating him for information.
He was not forthcoming.
"As I said before," he began with a shrug of his shoulders, "the best place for you is Elphame. Her Majesty the Queen and the court may have answers for you."
"Really?" I glared, "the magical faerie realm that I've been to less than five times in my entire life is the best place for me? Even with the Winter court faeries trying to kill me? And my own Summer courtiers who look at me like they're waiting for me to fail? That's the best place for me?"
Cedric coughed. "Yes. Yes, it is."
I groaned loudly, slamming my palms onto his countertop. The entirety of his apartment was much neater than Ellie and I's. He hadn't decorated his brick walls while Ellie and I had various band posters, candles, and plants hanging about. The cleanliness irritated me further, but with Cedric's prim attitude I suppose I should've expected it.
He cocked his head to the side, a small smile growing on his face.
"Fine!" I conceded, "but we're only going for the weekend. I can't miss any more classes."
Cedric's face turned into a teasing, thoughtful pout.
"Yes, because then who would paint the nude models? It would be an utter travesty."
***
Elphame was a spider's web- beautiful, mysterious, and transparent to those who didn't know how to look for it.
by Kennedylee
