Page 2 of The Pixies' Chosen

“This forest is full of pixies. I do not know why you are surprised,” the male replied with a sigh. “I’ve caught my fair share in these woods, so I do not understand your fascination.”

I watch as the female rolls her eyes momentarily before refocusing on me with an intrigued smile. “Look at this, Dorian. It’s a male, I believe. Do you think his colony is near here.”

“What does it matter, Zora? You will not find it anyway. Pixie colonies are as difficult to locate as fairy hills,” he replied drolly.

She casts an annoyed look over her shoulder at the male. “You misunderstand me as usual, brother. I am curious how far he has traveled since I was clumsy enough to accidentally knockhim out of the air. It was merely to assuage my guilt. I have no interest in locating the colony.”

My wings stir with surprise. That is unexpected. I slowly lift my upper torso from its defensive curl, the action allowing me to scrutinize more carefully. Her smile spread across her face in apparent delight. Despite the needle-sharp teeth filling her mouth, my cock irrationally twitches in response to her smile. It catches me by surprise since I have not even entertained the idea of mating in some time. And yet, with the way her eyes drift over me in a lingering way, I wonder for a moment if she would use her fairy magic to make it possible for us to lie together and be bound together. Tryst would abhor the very thought of it, and I feel a little guilty for even entertaining the possibility of mating with the fairy without him, but a pleasant heat rises and begins to curl within me as my light suddenly winks to life in my abdomen. My chitin shifts to chime playfully, and a small laugh drops from her lips.

“You are charming,” she purrs. “And an unmated specimen if I am not mistaken, given all of your current displaying.”

Her male companion groans and swipes a hand over his face. “You cannot possibly wish to breed withthat. Be serious, Zora.”

I glare at him indignantly, my wings flaring defensively. Despite my unfortunate coloring and wing shape, I am not lacking in any way. In fact, my build is considered admirable among many females who glance my way even if they would not dare take me into their bed unaltered. My ego takes a nosedive, however, when she suddenly laughs.

“Do not be ridiculous. I merely have thought of the perfect way to make amends. An unmated pixie in his prime surely hopes to locate a female for his nest, so I will just offer him the best chance in finding the perfect one.”

My eyes snap to her in surprise as she lifts a pouch from her belt. She turns it in her hand and there is a flare of magicthat leaves a small pixie-sized sack in the center of her other palm. My wings flutter with excitement, and I hop quickly from her one hand to her other. I waste no time in picking it up and allowing the weight of the magic contained within it to run over me. Potent fairy magic, indeed.

“Now be careful with this gift,” the fairy murmurs. “It is permanent, so you will only have one chance to use it. Dust the eyes of the female you desire and its magic will make her perfectly pixie-sized.” Her lips pinch thoughtfully for a moment, and my wings rustle with interest at what she might say next. “I would recommend a human. Pixies of the Dark Forest have the advantage of moving effortlessly between worlds so you will have no trouble finding good hunting ground. A human female will be much more accepting of whatever issues have prevented you from mating up until this point. I have heard of a hive in the troll forest who gained a human mate with great success.”

I nod slowly in agreement. I have not heard of this development, but news travels slowly between the isolated colonies. In any case, what the fairy says makes sense.

“There is one tiny little thing, however,” she interjects so hesitantly that it brings a concerned frown to my face. “No, no, it is nothing for you to worry about,” she hastens to reassure me with a flicker of a smile. “Considering that this gift far outweighs my error, there is to be a small condition upon accepting it.”

A condition? My heart sinks. What can I possibly offer a bone fairy outside of one of my own bones, which is a bit extreme, even for me.

“It really is just a small thing,” she explains. “Just a tiny favor once you have secured your queen. You see, I lost someone dear to me, but fairies, like many fae races, have restricted parameters for our movement. The night elves rule this forest, and they are even stingier and more suspicious with their portal than most and possess a particular grudge against bone fairies.If you could help me enter the mortal world to find my loved one, I would consider any remaining debt between us paid.”

My eyes drop to the sack as I consider her offer. It is not an unreasonable request, and she is being considerate enough to not demand payment immediately. In truth, it is a very small thing in exchange for what she’s offering. She is, in every sense of the word, offering us our future. Tryst will be ecstatic once he hears since he has been moping ever since his sister’s mating flight. It is finally our turn. We finally have the opportunity to accomplish what so many within our colony have managed.

A mate. A queen of our own!

I nod my head, my chiton trembling with exuberant chiming as I hug the sack to my chest, eager to depart with it. I’m eager to not only show this treasure to Tryst but to jump between worlds immediately and begin our hunt.

The bone fairy’s lips tip slowly, her eyes glowing with her own satisfaction at our bargain. “Excellent,” she purrs, her hand flattening as she lifts it into the air. “Go then, pixie, but remember your word. Just summon me by name and I will come.”

Giving her another nod, I hum my wings and rise from her hand. I barely allow myself to gain any height into the air before I am zipping away with my prize, leaving the bone fairies watching after me in my wake.

I won’t forget my oath. A pixie portal to find a loved one is a small price for what I am about to gain. My hunger for a mate consumes my every thought as I fly through the woods and back to my nest.

CHAPTER 2

TRYST

“It is the answer to everything we have ever wanted,” Havoc purrs, his wings humming with excitement that only echoes the emotion overflowing through the hive bond as he holds the sack aloft in front of my nose.

I give it a skeptical look, my nose wrinkling slightly with distaste. “And a bone fairy gave this to you. Whom you trust explicitly in this matter.” I arch an eyebrow to emphasize my point.

Havoc’s good mood shifts as quickly as the mid-spring weather with an incoming snowstorm as he picks up on my reluctance, his dark brows drawing down into a thunderous scowl. “I have explained it. It was compensation.”

“Oh yes. You explained,” I agree airily with a flick of my wings as I turn away from him and bring my flute back to my lips, uninterested and unconcerned about the peevish turn in his temper.

I start to play a note only for it to go sharp as Havoc bats my instrument down, away from my mouth. I lower it the rest of the way to my lap and give my hive brother a flat stare.

At length I sigh and drop into my hammock—my sole solace as I have watched the countless seasons pass. My wings flutter lightly as I make contact, and the hammock dips into a rocking swing that sweeps my feet from beneath me. I turn to bring them onto the hammock, crossing my legs at the ankles as I regard him.

For the life of me, I cannot fathom his excitement. Any time I get even remotely wistful regarding mating and queens, he locks up tighter than a valve in the colony’s hot bathing pools. Now he has a change of heart all because a scary horror fairy decided to present him with a questionable gift. I shake my head, utterly perplexed.

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