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But I wondered. Didn't most fae bargains in the fairytales the humans wrote usually end in disaster? Maybe the bed they offered would be a bed of nails. Maybe the heat would be flames to torture us. Maybe Yuki was right, and the food would be drugged or poisoned. But honestly? I was so tired I no longer cared.

"Let me do the talking from now on," Yukio whispered close to my ear, making me shudder. "Maybe I can get them to release you somewhere safe where the others can find you. It's the traitor high fae they have a problem with. Not you."

Ah yes, definitely the words of a man who hated me and wished me ill will.

Now, if I could just figure out how to keep Yukio's grudging affection from turning into self-sacrifice… we might just survive.

Chapter 11

Ruya

Ifelt like I was living in some sort of waking dream. Two days passed in the wild fae enclave, as we were welcomed into the strange underground village like reluctantly invited in-laws. Or, at least, that's the only good analogy I could come up with. Not that I had any real-life experience with that situation.

Yukio was definitely the black sheep in this little fae family. It was odd, strange undercurrents running under every interaction. We were given a room to share in the surprisingly warm, dry, cave-like underground dwelling. Our clothes were whisked away to be cleaned while we were provided with warm, soft, woven garments that kept out any lingering chill from the winter air outside. We were given delicious, hearty food to fill our bellies—none of it poisoned. And we were invited to eat communal dinners with the fae folk every night, when there would be singing and music, sweet wine, and general merrymaking until the wee hours of the morning.

We were allowed to wander, as I was doing now. But I knew we were watched. I could always sense a presence, eyes on me at all times. We were guests, but we were outsiders. Not trusted.

"Why treat us so well, if they hate us so?" I asked Yuki, the first night we spent in this strange place.

He had explained in a tired voice that told me exactly what he thought of these people. "It's fae custom. Our kind take hospitality very seriously. Only the nastiest, most vile, hateful enemy would be treated with any less grandly than this. And even then… for many fae—like O'Dell's court—the more grandly you're treated, the more likely you are to die at their hands." He sighed. "Games. It's always games with my kin. Undercurrents and unspoken things. And I am fae. Much as they hate to admit it, I am kin and that warrants some sort of acknowledgement."

I mulled that over. It seemed nonsensical on the surface. And yet… wasn't it the same with The Coven of the Triple moon, where I had been raised? Everyone there had an image to uphold. One of pious, magical prowess and importance. And maintaining that image often meant smiling and bowing to the most odious patrons, feeding them tea and savory delights, hosting them in a lavish set of rooms if they had traveled far. Anything to garner the approval of influential people while maintaining that facade of the benevolent better. The fae's treatment of us carried an air of haughtiness, just like O'Dell's court had. Something in the air, in their manners that said, "I am better than you and you should be honored that you are tolerated with such grace."

And yet, we were never mistreated. Currently, I was exploring out of sheer boredom. I trailed my fingers lightly along the bumpy stone wall at my side, following the gentle curve of the hallway that I thought must loop all the way along the outer edges of the enclave in a big, rough circle. I could sense the presence of others around me, but they observed my passage without comment, not interrupting their activities or conversations as I moved on by.

The wall underneath my fingertips curved more sharply than before, a rounded corner. I sensed an open space around me, and a faint shift in the movement of the air. I must be at an intersection of sorts. I hesitated, wondering which way I should go.

"To the right are the main gardens. To the left you will eventually come upon the bathing pools. And continuing straight on will bring you past a small library and rectory of knowledge, and eventually back to your rooms." I didn't startle at the soft female voice that spoke from just behind me and slightly to my left. The sound was slightly cooing and with a little bit of a trill here and there—birdlike and strangely beautiful. These fae were more animal-like than the others I had encountered at O'Dell's syndicate fae court. It was why they didn't live among the humans or the high fae. I wished I could see them. I was sure they were as wonderous and strange as everything else here.

I turned toward the voice with a polite smile. I knew we were never left unsupervised. Though I had no idea what nefarious things these fae thought we would get up to. "The bathing pools?"

Our room had been furnished with a small basin and piped in water that could be magically heated to a tolerable temperature for a quick sink bath with washcloths and towels made from the same soft, bumpy woven fabric that our clothes were made from. But… a bath? That sounded like heaven, especially after being exposed to the cold for so long on our trek here.

"I shall lead you there, if you wish," the woman said politely. She didn't sound overly friendly. But she did sound like she would do me the honor of playing tour guide if needed.

I sighed. Yukio seemed fairly certain that no one would harm us here at the moment. They wanted us to fulfill some sort of bargain for them, after all. But I was hesitant to place myself in such a vulnerable position, stripping down naked and hopping in the bath with no knowledge of my surroundings and no one there to look out for me.

I didn't consider myself helpless or weak. But I had to admit that being blind and largely sheltered all my life did not give me an advantage in situations like this.

The wild fae woman must have sensed my hesitation. "Your mate has returned from his visit with the elder," she informed me without any particular emotion. "I will lead you to him."

I opened and closed my mouth, unsure what to say. I hadn't been thinking I needed Yukio to take me to the bath. And he certainly wasn't my mate. At least… not in the sense that I understood the term. I might be attracted to him. I might want badly to include him in the strange, wonderful new relationships building around me. But I was pretty sure he would retreat into sharp, icy coldness if anyone were to ever imply we were mates.

A soft tapping sound told me my guide was moving off ahead of me. "Come, deathling witch."

I hurried after her, following the sound of her voice, hand out as I felt for the continuation of the wall on the other side of the intersection of hallways. My thoughts about Yukio were firmly derailed by her words. "Deathling?"

She made a clicking sort of sound, like a bird clacking its beak. Did she have an actual beak? I thought it might be the least weird thing I had experienced in the last few days. "Yes?" she finally said, as if she didn't understand my question.

I shook my head. "Why did you call me that? What does it mean?"

She was silent for a moment. Her voice was a bit wary when she spoke. "You truly do not know the fae name for your own nature? For the woman who wails? Your kind and ours are distant cousins. Even if your heritage is tainted with witch blood."

Ah. More information I should probably already know but didn't, thanks to my fake mother and her cult. "I didn't know," I said calmly, not letting my consternation show. "I've never heard the term before. Thank you for explaining." I didn't bother commenting on what she and the other fae seemed to think of witches. After all, the other witches I had known all my life had been horrible, deluded people. She may well be right to think us all disgusting.

I was almost relieved when my guide slowed and murmured a fae greeting to someone. "Here he is," she informed me. "It seems your mate was already headed our way to seek his deathling."

I let that all pass. "Yukio? Is everything okay?"

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