Page 39 of Knowing Trust

Tears filled my eyes and he nodded. “Don’t be sad, my beautiful daughter. This is a blessing. You are fine and healthy. I am simply mourning that I won’t be here to celebrate with you when it happens.”

“Children,” Calarel sighed. “You sensed she can now have children.”

Lageos nodded as I gasped. “Yes, it’s early, but we expected that since your wings were as well and you’re part demigod.” He waited until I nodded. “I felt the same… Pulses that your mother experienced.” He searched my eyes. “Your mother did not faint though. That worried me.”

I opened my mouth but then closed it. “I think it was the timing.” I tried to say more but then licked my lips, glancing between him and Calarel.

“I can step out, Your Highness,” she offered.

“No, I just…” I sighed, scrubbing my hair with my free hand and grasping my dad’s with my other one. “How literally do we believe that I am a mouthpiece to the gods?”

“Very,” they both said immediately, Calarel continuing. “Not words or—your gut. I’ve heard you talk about your gut and morality the way it’s been passed down that the gods guide the heirs and queens.”

“Yes,” Lageos agreed. “Your mother would sometimes get flashes.” He studied my eyes. “What happened? Something in the meeting wasn’t acceptable to the gods according to the morality of fairies, right?”

I slowly nodded. “It happened the same time as the nerve charge thing to my body. It was a gut feeling and almost like—they don’t approve of fooling humans to make funds for Faerie. It was as if you were disappointed in me for even considering it but more. And at the—can they give me messages at the same time?”

He shrugged. “Probably. I wouldn’t expect the gods to be patient or communicate well. Given how impetuous my siblings were, it would be silly to think the gods were any better.”

I nodded. “I think one gave me a message of disapproval and said not to fool humans and one told me a better suggestion to help while that was also going on with my body.” I sighed and scrubbed my face. “So fucking weird.”

“What’s the suggestion, Your Highness?” Calarel cleared her throat. “Sorry, that wasn’t for me to ask. I haven’t…”

I chuckled. “Yeah, I would ask too.” I smiled at her to let her know that there weren’t any hard feelings. “I’m not… The sorbet. They—the god want—suggested…” I blew a raspberry and looked at my dad. “Seriously, this is fucking insane.”

He chuckled and kissed my forehead. “You are such a treat. I love you so much.”

“I’m glad. Love you too, Dad.” I felt better that he thought I was amusing at least. I took in a deep breath. “Expand the sorbet but for humans. Their rare fruits. Sorbet now is the easy cheap fruits like oranges and limes. Or like even the good ones are mango and raspberry but… We—ours are actually and truly healthy even if treats.

“That was the vibe I got. Grow there and help that world like helping ours. Give back and remember we now get a lot from that planet and help them, not trick them to make money. Grow rare fruits that are healthier and expand that way.” I shrugged. “It was a suggestion or opportunity more than a command. But I saw fairies giving it out to poor communities like…”

“Donating time—community service?” Lageos offered, nodding when I did. “Yes, that would be a message from a god. Give and take. A warning for sure. Your mother would get those when things would cross the line or people would suggest things too far.”

What he was saying hit me like a ton of bricks. She was warned never to just go kill Queen Elora. I nodded. That was a line the gods wouldn’t allow.

Fine, I could be angry at them instead of her. If that wasn’t okay to them then they could fucking handle more shit instead of letting all of this pain and death play out. Could they do more than give warnings if they were going to involve themselves? Seriously?

I had a flash of something in my mind and hissed at the migraine I suddenly had.

“Ask and ye shall receive,” I grumbled knowing exactly what it was.

“Did you snark in your head and receive an answer?” Lageos asked, mirth in his tone.

“I think so but about something else,” I answered. “There’s no rune that’s simply an X. I asked for clearer lines, and it was just made clear to me that I should always use my magic to put that on myself before…”

“Intimacy so your vast magic is never confused about if you’re ready to have a child,” Calarel spelled out, nodding when I did. “Right, well, may the gods forgive me, but let’s check you out in the way of fairies so I earn my salary.”

I snickered at her sass. Fair enough.

She did and even confirmed that my cycle had started which was right on time, so that explained why now. She warned me that it was going to be much, much harsher than normal and I would eat even more than normal.

Was that even physically possible? Seriously?

She promised to speak with Irma and that the hobgoblin would figure it out, but it was best she know to help me anyways. I was fine with it. I wasn’t going to hide this. I was clear that even when I could have children I wasn’t going to until at least fifty or so. People could deal with that or not.

It wasn’t my fault that things weren’t stable. They could fuck off.

Seriously. If nothing else, this would quiet worries that I could have children in the future given I’d grown up with humans and as an unknown. So I thought telling people I could should shut them up but making it clear that I wouldn’t have a child or heir until Faerie was stable and at peace for at least a decade was reasonable.

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