Page 14 of A Hint of Delirium

His smirk was as sinister as ever.

“Brother.”

7

ANSEL

FLASHBACK

Iadjusted his long dress coat, buttoning the gold buttons and brushing down the supple fabric. Alec brushed his dark hair back and looked in the mirror.

“How do I look?” he asked nervously.

“You look great.” I stepped away to allow him to look at himself in the mirror. “If you’re nervous, don’t be. Everything will go smoothly. This is what you’ve been waiting for all your life,” I said confidently.

He snorted and peered over at me with a grin. “It’ll be your turn in two years, so be ready.”

“I’ll be following in your footsteps, brother,” I said as I patted him on the shoulders. “It’s an easy choice; I don’t know why we have these pointless ceremonies. We were born and raised in the Seelie Court. Of course we’re going to choose Seelie over Unseelie.”

Alec rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. “All right, I’m ready.”

We exited Alec’s chambers and walked down the hallway that led to the sitting room, where representatives for both the Seelie and Unseelie Courts awaited us with our parents.

Our father was a high ranking fae within the Seelie Court who expected big things from us, especially Alec. As the first born, he was the favored child. In looks and coloring, we resembled our father. Though he was obviously older, our father still had raven dark hair and green eyes. The only thing that set Alec apart was a condition called heterochromia, which caused him to have two different colored eyes. One eye was green, the other hazel. Other than that, we looked exactly like our father.

Our father approached Alec and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, hugging him tightly. “Are you ready, son?” he asked animatedly, his excitement palpable.

Alec nodded and smiled shyly. “Yes, Father.”

“That’s my son,” my father said proudly. He patted him on the head and pushed him forward. “We’ll see you at the ceremony.”

Our mother floated over to Alec, giving him a gentle hug and kissing him on both cheeks. With the parental blessings complete, Alec walked over to me.

“See you on the other side, brother,” I said as we shook hands.

He smirked and nodded. “On the other side.” He was escorted out of the house without looking back.

* * *

The Seelie Queen’scastle was a strongly fortified stronghold made of glass that appeared cold at first sight, and the feeling only intensified when one crossed its threshold. It always gave me chills when I entered. The floors were white marble, sterile and austere. The ceilings were so high, they seemed to disappear into the sky.

My parents and I were escorted to the throne room to a cluster of seats on the front row that were reserved for family. We sat and waited impatiently for the ceremony to begin. Now that he had received his elemental powers, today was the day Alec would choose his allegiance.

After an interminable thirty-minute wait, everyone quieted and the room darkened then dimmed as the Seelie Queen and Unseelie King promenaded down the aisle and took their thrones at the front of the room. The Queen had long blonde hair that nearly touched the floor and icy, crystalline blue eyes that matched the feel of the castle. The King was equally pale, with silver hair and light gray eyes. The two of them were quite a pair.

Shortly after they arrived, Alec was escorted down the aisle by two guards, but something was off.

Alec walked stiffly, his eyes zoned out and unfocused as if he wasn’t fully there with us. He swallowed a couple times and dried his hands on his dress coat, a nervous tick of his.

Alec flicked a nervous glance at us before turning his back and facing the Queen and King. The Queen stood from her throne and approached Alec with a calm, knowing look. Our father had worked most of his life for the Queen, and she’d watched us grow from stumbling toddlers to the teenagers we were today. She fully expected us to pledge our allegiance to the Seelie Court, as did everyone else.

“Have you made a decision?” she asked Alec.

He nodded. “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Please, tell us what you have decided,” she said confidently.

There was a long pause and I watched nervously as Alec tightened his hands into fists at his sides.

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