Never trust a fae.
Never give them your name.
Never fall for their tricks.
Three simple rules that Enid should have followed, three simple rules that she forgot.
In the remote Welsh mountain village of Aethelney, Faeries are real. But unlike trad...
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Enid could not recall the precise moment she left Aethelney and arrived in Elfhame, her eyes had been squeezed shut, her face buried into the crook of Aneurin's neck, her hands clutching to his velvet tunic. When she opened her eyes, her breath tangled in her lungs.
The toadstool ring and the village she had grown up in were gone, and in their place stood a mighty Oak tree surrounded by enchanted forest and a waterfall so clear that her reflection stared back at her. It was a sight that no mortal was ever meant to lay eyes upon, so beautiful that it felt as though at any moment she would awaken in her bed beside her mother.
"This is your home?" Enid asked as she stepped out of the toadstool ring, a twin of the ring that lay at the edge of Aethelney.
"It is." Aneurin came to stand beside her, took her hand in his and led her up a cobblestone path to an archway of twisted and gnarled roots, lit by glowing orbs that glittered overhead.
Aneurin paused and turned to face Enid, taking out a small blue glass vial wrapped with vines of ivy that coiled around the bottle, twisting and turning as though it were a thing alive.
Enid stared at it blankly.
He could not expect her to drink that?
She lifted an eyebrow.
"Fairy ointment to grant the sight to mortals so that they may see through glamour. It goes in your eyes."
Aneurin held out the vial to her expectantly.
"Does it sting?" Enid asked, eyeing the vial curiously.
"Not that I know of."
She took it from his outstretched hand, popped the cork and placed a single drop in each eye. Instantaneously, it burned and Enid squeezed her eyes shut, she groaned and blindly shoved the vial back into Aneurin's hand.
"You said it didn't sting!" Enid snapped, to which Aneurin let out a melodious laugh.
"If I'd said it hurts like a bee sting you wouldn't have so eagerly dropped it in your eye!"
She swatted at him and missed, but he took the opportunity to entwine his fingers with hers and press an apologetic kiss to her forehead.
They passed through a doorway intricately carved with fire breathing dragons, rearing unicorns and Fae Folk flying through the starry night sky. The carvings came to life as Aneurin passed, watching him with familiar grins, their eyes sparkling with curiosity as Enid followed behind him.
Inside lay a great hall bejewelled with wildflowers, moss and greenery lining the tree's heartwood, with an enchanted ceiling above it that depicted the night sky. A long banquet table in the hall's centre was adorned with silver pitchers, acorns filled with nectar, pomegranates, candied violets sat atop honey cakes, frosted cranberries garnished walnut faery cakes, and red faery fruit piled high in golden bowls.
