Page 31 of Finding Closure

Shit.

“Tams, it’s just fireworks,” Neldor hissed as he got my attention and pointed up. “I’m sorry I didn’t warn you. The fireworks go off when the kids are done.”

I glanced all around. “I’m so sorry. I thought…”

“Thank you for wanting to protect all of us, Your Highness,” a dark fairy who people clearly deferred to said as he bowed. “But none of us saw anything. Please go back to enjoying your first festival with whichever of your mates is clearly glamoured with you.”

“Aye, if anyone deserves a night off and to see the joy you’ve allowed us all to have again, it’s you, Princess,” the woman next to him said.

I smiled when I saw people all around us nodding. I glanced at the kids and beamed at them. “You guys were great. Really, I’m so proud of you for working so hard. Thanks for making my first festival memorable.”

They thanked me and then I cloaked my wings and changed into my glamour before we slipped away and I changed it again.

When we were alone, Neldor just looked at me and burst out laughing. I ignored him and walked away, watching the fireworks now that I knew it wasn’t a bomb or something going on to destroy peace in the realms.

Because that was a very,veryreal worry for me.

Constantly.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, baby doll,” he whispered as he hugged me from behind. “For all of our many,manyflaws, fairies don’tever behave like terrorists like you’re used to hearing about on Earth. The ends don’t justify the means. We do care about the collateral damage, and it’s not all okay in the name of the cause.

“There’s never been an attack or something like a festival hit. I swear it. We don’t believe in that. We declare war fairly and with notice to noncombatants so they can get to safety. Are there accidents and casualties? Yes. It’s war, but you saw how all the children were gathered in safe places and none of them were remotely hit. None of our hospitals were close to—”

“I know,” I interrupted, turning to face him. “But desperate people act desperately. There are people in Faerie desperate for us not to be at peace. Some of the thoughts of the last people I woke that lied out their asses that—some people would rather blow Faerie up than see the realms combine.”

He studied me and nodded. “Okay, then we take steps. We talk with Stefanie and make sure all the festivals and celebrations have extra security with telepathy runes. You’re right, and we can’t just go back to the way things were and assume people will behave as they did. If we’re going to do something so drastic like combine the realms, others might be drastic in return.”

“Thanks, Nel.”

“I’m sorry we didn’t listen sooner.”

I forgave him—all of them even. There was so,somuch always and constantly that it wasn’t ignoring me but a matter of constantly prioritizing the crazy. And there was a lot of it.

We went back to our fun and of course eating. I honestly didn’t know there were so many ways to eat a nut and use them in cooking and baking. I guess I did if I thought about how diverse peanuts were from peanut sauce to peanut butter cups, but that was all over the world, and this was just in one city of the dark realm.

Then I realized it wasn’t.

Some of the stalls told the story of how the nut that was originally given to this city was traded to the light realm and how they had incorporated it into their cooking. How someone had invented something new with it and shared the recipe and idea.

Had given back andshared, experiencing it all together.

“We’ll have that again now because of you, Tams,” Neldor whispered as he hugged me to him, clearly knowing where my head was.

“Because of us. Because our mothers—our parents.” I turned in his arms when he went stiff. “No matter how things went off the rails for Elora, none of this happened without what she did, especially freeing me. I still had doubts taking the job and we both knew that. I was seconds from still bailing and saving myself—my future kids. So it took all of us.”

He nodded. “One day I’ll see it. Right now, I’m just trying to grieve and come to terms with that she didn’t think I would die. I… She always seemed to love Faerie more than me. It like doesn’t work in my mind that she would ever hurt the people of Faerie or this planet because of me.”

I simply nodded. I didn’t believe that for a second with even the glimpse of her love for him, but I’d never met the woman. He’d lived his life, and—everything was too complicated.

So instead, we enjoyed the night. We ate and ate. I checked out every stall and learned the stories and legends. I tried every dish and treat.

“Not going to lie, I feel pretty guilty we’re the only ones enjoying this,” I mumbled. “I would be so upset if they got all of this nummy food and didn’t invite me.” I glanced around. “This is too cool not to share.”

“They’ll understand and agree that your first festival undercover as a normal fairy with a fairy who knows about it all is exactly what you needed,” he argued. He grabbed my handand pulled me along. “And we’ll all have many years to come see it all again and again.”

“Fine, but we better get jars and treats to bring to them,” I agreed.

He simply chuckled and shook his head. “You want more for second and third dinner.”

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