Page 107 of Whispers of the Water

Rance and Dax both stared at me for a moment, and the car went deadly quiet. Dallas stifled a laugh next to me.

Rance cleared his throat and focused on the road again. “Reese’s are nice occasionally.”

“Yeah. Butterfingers are cool sometimes.” Dax nodded, turning back around in his seat.

Imani angled her head to look at me. “You’re already solving conflicts, Princess. First day on the job, and you’re doing great! By the way, two things: one, is Avana single, and two, is she into women?”

I cocked a brow at her. “She’s Land Fae, you know.”

Imani shrugged and flashed me a wide smile. “I’m practicing my peace-making skills.”

I laughed and made a mental note to let Avana know she had made an impression. The front of the car erupted into chatter as Rance and Dax discussed the latest episode of some show they were watching. Imani shook her head and joined in their discussion every now and then. Dallas lay back in her seat, smiling at me before closing her eyes.

The atmosphere in the car felt warm and normal, as if this were an ordinary day. To anyone else, we would look like a group of best friends out for a drive. I honestly wished that were the case. Instead, it was a Princess being escorted home by her guards.

Huh.

Princess.

That still felt strange.

Not long after, we reached campus. The looming brick building I’d come to consider home greeted me. I was finally able to release the strangled breath I hadn’t even known I’d been holding. It felt good to be back at the place that was the start of my new life. This place was the beginning of my story with Rune and the world of Fae. Seeing it now with that lens was bittersweet.

Once parked, Dallas and I climbed out of the SUV. The other cars with the rest of the Water Fae team had kept driving, parking at different locations on campus. Even though the campus was relatively empty since it was still fall break, they wanted to watch the area to ensure I remained safe.

“So,” Dallas started, reluctantly handing me my suitcase.

She had tried to carry it, but I refused to let anyone do that. I could carry my own freaking stuff.

“You probably won’t need a lot from here,” Dallas continued as we made our way into the silent dorms. “Your textbooks, school supplies, a lot of your clothes. It can pretty much all stay. The stuff that you’ll need from now on will be at the palace.”

We reached our room, and I turned to face her with my hand on the doorknob. “I don’t want the stuff at the palace. I want my stuff. I want my bedding, my books, my clothes, my art supplies.”

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I was letting everything get to me. I thought after sleeping it off in the car, I’d feel levelheaded and ready. Knowing that my life was no longer just mine was hard to stomach. Everything was changing so quickly.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, shaking my head. “I didn’t mean to snap like that.”

Dallas placed her hand on my back. “This is a lot, huh?”

I nodded, leaning my head against the door. “What if I can’t do this, Dallas? What if I can’t be who you guys need? What if I really do lead everyone to their demise?”

“Bria,” Dallas said softly as she pulled me tightly into her arms. “Don’t think that way. It’s new and scary right now, but you can do this. You’re an absolutely amazing fucking person, and I know you are going to be the greatest Queen Water Fae have ever seen.”

“How do you know?”

She pulled back, and when she did, her mouth was curved in an encouraging grin. “Because I know you. I know the kind of heart you have. I know how courageous you are. I know how fierce, loyal, and determined you can be. That’s what makes a good Queen. You will be an amazing leader.”

Tears threatened to make an escape, but I sniffled them back. While it would take time for me to truly believe in myself, Dallas’s words made a spark of hope flicker in my chest. She made me want to believe I was capable of doing this, and I guessed that was the first step. Wanting to succeed. Wanting to become the leader Dallas believed me to be.

“Thanks, Dallas,” I said as I squeezed her one more time.

“Don’t thank me for telling the truth. Now then,” she said, placing her hands on her hips. “Are you ready to pack up your things? We can bring as much as you want.”

“It’s fine. If you say I’ll have plenty of clothes and whatnot at the palace, I–I can use that stuff. My things can stay here until I come back.”

I left the last part hanging in the air, waiting to see if she’d confirm or deny that I’d be coming back. Instead of doing either, she just followed me into our room.

The space was as it had been the night Dallas and I came clean about who I was, who she was, and the truth about my origins. Her bed was unmade, and mine was rumpled from where we’d lounged on top of it. Dirty clothes were piled in the hamper. Forgotten school assignments littered our desks. Unfinished paintings leaned against the foot of my bed. It was all the same. The only things different in the room were Dallas and me.

---