Chapter 29

  I was up well before dawn the next morning, beyond nervous about my meeting with Oberon. The only reason I'd gotten any sleep at all was entirely down to Ken using his gift to help me get to sleep, and a joint effort between him and Sparkle to keep me that way. I was quite certain I'd've been too wound up to sleep otherwise.

  Freshly showered and with my hair wrapped up in a towel, I emerged from the bathroom wrapped in my green silk robe and looked at Ken and Sparkle (human-sized) waiting patiently for me (Penny was sprawled in front of my bedroom's little fireplace, to all appearances still asleep).

  "Okay," I said, blowing out a breath and trying to settle my stomach, "what do I wear?"

  Ken smiled and gestured toward my closet. "I think you'll find the Hall has ideas toward that end."

  I turned…and saw a gorgeous Regency evening dress hanging on the closet door. It was made of white silk, with a thin layer of translucent pine green muslin atop it. The muslin was decorated - and appeared to be connected to the silk dress - with black and gold embroidery, in the form of winding ivy and oak leaves, of course. The embroidery wound around the scooped neckline, the Empire waist, around the capped sleeves, around the hem, and in two diagonal lines creating a partial V-shape between the neckline and waist in the front.

  A pair of ballet flats with ankle ribbons, in the same colors and with matching embroidery, sat on the floor at the foot of the dress. Atop the chest of drawers beside the closet door sat a few pieces of jewelry…a pair of small gold and green earrings in the shape of oak leaves, and a pair of delicate gold and green bracelets made of interlocking oak and ivy leaves. Finally, there was a circlet of gold and green oak and ivy leaves that was clearly meant to be woven into my hair.

  "Oh my," I said softly, running my fingers over the silk and muslin of the dress. Then I looked at Ken. "It's not an evening meeting though. Isn't this a bit much?"

  Sparkle giggled. "The Fae folk love to dress up," she said, coming to stand beside me and taking my hand in hers. "We'll take any opportunity to do so." She sighed dreamily. "This dress is so beautiful."

  Ken shrugged. "She's the expert, not me. But I think it'll help set the tone of the meeting. You're showing him respect by dressing up to meet with him and…as uncomfortable as I feel saying it…by making yourself beautiful for him."

  I made a face. "That sounds gross."

  "It's not!" Sparkle said, squeezing my hand to draw my attention. When I met her eyes, she looked and sounded very serious. "Nothing pleases the Fae more than beauty, and being as beautiful - and regal! - as possible for the King of Faerie will please him to no end."

  "You're saying it'll make him more receptive to the changes I want to make to our deal," I said.

  Sparkle smiled whimsically and shrugged. "People are suckers for a pretty face, right? Your father always said so, anyway."

  I looked back at the dress and sighed. "I don't suppose there's underwear to go with this, is there?"

  "Top drawer!" Sparkle said.

  "All right…Ken, would you give us a bit?"

  Ken smiled and bowed slightly and turned to leave. "Of course. Just holler when you're ready for me to take care of your hair."

  With Sparkle's help it only took me a few minutes to get dressed. Ken returned when called and worked his magic on my hair, quickly drying it and piling it in an elegant bun at the back of my head, all while weaving the circlet into my hair so that it wrapped around my forehead and disappeared into the bun. He somehow contrived to leave a few little ringlets of silver-white hair dangling attractively from the bun, and one long strand of ringlets dangling to the left of my face.

  Looking at myself in the mirror, I whistled softly. "I look like a fairy princess."

  "You really do," Sparkle said dreamily, looking at me with stars in her eyes.

  Ken chuckled softly. "It is a magnificent look for you," he agreed. "But not what I'd call practical for daily wear."

  "No," I said, feeling my cheeks flushing. "But…for special occasions…"

  Both Ken and Sparkle nodded.

  "The sun is rising," Penny said from the bathroom door. "Since you are the host, it would be best if you were out there waiting when Oberon arrives."

  "Agreed," Ken said firmly, stepping back from the door so I could pass. "Time to make your appearance."

  "I will collect the tea service," Penny said, trotting for the bedroom door, "and bring it out."

  "Thank you, Penny!" I called after her.

  In the blink of an eye, Sparkle shrank down and took up her usual perch on my right shoulder. I took a deep breath to settle my stomach, letting it out slowly. Then I walked to the windows, lifted the skirts of my dress so I could step up onto the window seat, and exited my bedroom into the clearing without.

  A new door into the clearing definitely needed to go on my To Do list.

  Spice and Sparkle were already hovering close to the windows waiting for me when I emerged, dressed in their best little fairy dresses, red and silver respectively. Their eyes went wide in astonished awe when they saw me, and after a moment's pause - to my intense discomfort - they swirled down to the grass at my feet and sank to one knee, lowering their heads.

  "My Lady," Spice said breathlessly, "all is in readiness for your meeting with the Lord of the Seelie Court."

  "Please don't do that," I said softly. "You're my friends, not my servants."

  "We can be both," Spice said as they rose and swirled up to eye-level. Shine nodded in eager agreement.

  "You're not going to win that argument," Sparkle murmured in my ear. "Let it go."

  I sighed a little and nodded. "Thank you. I guess now we wait."

  Spice and Shine fluttered over to land on my left shoulder. "Shouldn't be long now," Spice said. "The sun is almost risen."

  I walked to a spot halfway between the edge of the clearing and the small table and two chairs I'd made for Oberon's last visit, and set myself to wait, clasping my hands in front of me just to give them something to do. Fortunately, as Spice had said, It wasn't a long wait.

  As soon as the sun was well and truly up, not more than another ten minutes, Oberon arrived. As with his last visit, he emerged from the woods without any particular fanfare, except for the strange impression that the trees were moving out of his way and closing up behind him again. And as before, I immediately felt that sense of magical pressure from his presence, the sense that he was not merely another living being, but a person-shaped force of nature. He wore the same understated but obviously fine clothing, and his mismatched green and gold eyes looked me up and down without any sense that he was leering.

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  Puck emerged from the woods behind him, also looking the same as before. He gave me a small, polite nod and a little smile.

  "Lady Reid," Oberon said in his melodious tenor voice, "I do believe your beauty rivals that of my Titania. You do me great honor." He bowed deeply to me.

  I curtseyed in return. "As you honor me with your visit, Lord Oberon. Will you join me for tea?"

  "Gladly, Lady Reid." Only then, having been invited, did he cross the boundary of my wards and the fairy ring within to join me. Before I could do anything, he took my hand, lifting it and kissing the air barely above my knuckles. Then he released my hand just as quickly, smiling. "I must say, I was very pleased to receive word of your call yesterday eve. I was beginning to worry that I would need to remind you of my offer."

  Blushing a little, I turned and gestured toward the table. Penny was already sitting beside it in her natural form, with an elegant silver tea service with china cups sitting on the table. "Believe me, Lord Oberon, when I tell you that it has constantly been on my mind since."

  We sat at the table and I poured tea for us both. Oberon took a polite sip. "I imagine you have been carefully dissecting the wording of my offer, looking for unfavorable loopholes," he said dryly but without rancor. "For what it's worth, you have my word that I make the offer in good faith."

  "I believe you," I said without hesitation. "However, as this is my first true encounter with the Sidhe…I hope you'll forgive me if I act with what might appear to be excessive caution."

  To my relief, that made him laugh. A genuine, from the belly laugh that made him throw his head back for a moment. When he met my eyes again, he was smiling, but there was a bit of tension to him and a hint of an edge in his voice. "Ah, Lady Reid…there is no such thing as 'excessive caution' when dealing even with lesser Fae, let alone the King of the Seelie Court."

  It wasn't a warning, not really, and didn't sound like a rebuke. But I thought he was…annoyed? Yes, that was it. But by what?

  Then it clicked, and I replied, "Regardless, I do apologize for the delay in contacting you. It was rather impolite of me."

  The little bit of tension I saw drained out of him and he nodded graciously. "I accept your apology. Shall we proceed, then?"

  "Actually," I said carefully, "I would like to make two changes to the wording of our deal, for my protection and yours alike."

  A hint of steel returned to his expression as he nodded, but it wasn't a cold look…it was a shrewd and curious one. "I'm listening."

  "When you made your offer," I said, still speaking carefully, "You said, 'I vow that I will take nothing physically from the library, nor will I remove anything from it in any way, so long as no one is there to observe what I seek and hope to find. Nor will your or any of your household, any beholden to you, or any in your confidence seek yourselves after the fact to learn what I sought.'"

  He blinked twice, then looked impressed. "Those were indeed my exact words. Few mortals have so precise a memory."

  I nodded polite appreciation for his praise. "I think it would be better if the letter of our deal was instead that you take nothing from my library, but retain the knowledge you gain."

  Oberon sipped his tea slowly, then sat back in his chair and ran a hand over his chin. "Yes…yes, I see, and appreciate the distinction. It's a small thing, but I can understand you not wanting to chance even the slightest damage to the integrity of your library. This change is agreeable to me."

  "I would also like to add," I continued, "a stipulation that you promise to leave nothing behind, physical or magical, intentionally or unintentionally."

  His eyebrows rose, and behind him Puck looked shocked. After a moment, a small smile graced Oberon's lips. "It's a bit paranoid, but I respect the stipulation. I am, after all, friendly, but not yet a friend, and you are wise to treat with me in that mind. I had no intention of leaving anything, be it benign or nefarious, but I cannot resent the request that I not."

  The knot in my stomach relaxed a little. "Thank you, Lord Oberon. And out of respect for your station, anything found to be left accidentally will be returned to Puck, for you to dispose of as you please." I gave him a polite smile. "Hairs shed, leaves fall, but I have been taught that connections often remain. I would hate for anything to be left behind unintentionally that could be used as a conduit to do you harm."

  Oberon laughed, another deep, rich belly laugh. "You are alarmingly paranoid, Lady Reid, but I cannot blame you for being so. A heavy burden has been laid on you, and some of your initial encounters with the supernatural world have, by all accounts, been difficult. You are quite correct, and your concern for my wellbeing is, of course, deeply appreciated. May I take it that you have some boon in mind as well, since you seem to have given this a great deal of thought indeed?"

  "Yes, sir," I said politely. "In exchange, I would request full ownership of this clearing," I gestured around us, "plus an amount of additional land, equal to the distance my fastest fairy can travel in five minutes, in all directions."

  He looked impressed again, nodding slowly. "This is a fair request," he said, "and one which will do both of us political good within Faerie, a fact which I appreciate. However, I have three provisos."

  The knot in my stomach clenched again, but I smiled and nodded. I couldn't ask for changes to his offer without expecting him to do the same with my request, after all. "And those are?"

  "First," he said, "that the flight of your fairy last only three minutes, not five." He winked at me. "We don't want the little darling losing focus and wandering off, instead of completing their task, do we?"

  I didn't think for an instant that Shine would…but I suspected that this was more about Oberon not wanting to cede more land to me than necessary. And I honestly wasn't sure how I'd handle more land in Faerie anyway, so I nodded politely. "That is agreeable to me."

  "Excellent," he looked pleased. "Second, this is a great boon you ask. You will be making yourself a minor power in Faerie, and I will be trading away a bit of my own power and influence, however small. So I would make this boon contingent on me finding the information I need. If I do, the land is yours. If I do not, you will come up with a less valuable boon to ask of me."

  I smiled a little. "That seems very fair to me," I said. It also told me that the information he sought was very valuable to him indeed. "Agreed."

  "Finally," he said, giving me a somewhat predatory little grin, "the fairy who runs the race must belong to you, the way your Sparkle does. If this is to be done properly, the fairy you choose cannot merely a resident of your charming little colony here, but truly in your service…they must give their allegiance to you, and no other."

  Which ruled out having Shine make the run, I thought. But the stipulation made sense to me, both politically and magically. I'd just have to have Sparkle do it. "Very well," I nodded. "Agreed."

  "Excellent," Oberon said, setting down his tea cup and rubbing his hands together. "I have pressing business to attend to, so if it is agreeable to you, I shall meet you at Oakwood Hall's front gates immediately after dawn tomorrow morning. You will give me access to your library for one day - or less, should I find what I seek quickly - from which I will take nothing but retain the information I seek should I find it, nor shall I leave anything behind. In return - should I find said information - I will in turn grant you a proper demense within Faerie equal to this clearing plus the distance your fairy flies in three minutes, in all directions, and you will give to Puck anything you find which I leave behind unintentionally. Otherwise, you will think of some lesser boon for me to grant, and we will part ways amicably, until we meet again."

  "Agreed," I said firmly.

  "Wonderful," he said approvingly, rising. "You are a most delightful person with whom to deal. Clever, creative, and reasonable. I look forward to a friendly and profitable association with you in the future."

  I rose as well, shaking his hand when he offered it. "Likewise, Lord Oberon. I hope for a long and friendly relationship with the Seelie Court."

  "I should hope so," he said cheerfully. "I take my leave for now, and will see you early tomorrow morning."

  "Good day, Lord Oberon," I said with a curtsy as he turned to depart.

  Behind his back, Puck gave me a quick grin and a thumbs-up before hurrying to follow his master.

  As soon as they were gone, I practically collapsed into my chair and blew out a long breath, much of the knot in my stomach finally dissolving. The relief actually left me shaking a little. "That was so hard," I said.

  Sparkle, Spice and Shine fluttered from my shoulders to land on the table facing me. "You did so well, Caley," Sparkle said firmly.

  "I'm afraid you'll have to run that race for me, Sparkle," I said. "Sorry, Shine."

  Spice shook her head. "There's no fairy in the world faster than Shine. It should be her who runs the race."

  "But Sparkle is the only fairy truly called to my service," I said gently, "the only one I own, however uncomfortable I am with the idea of owning another being."

  Sparkle pouted. "But I love being yours. You know that."

  I held up my hands defensively. "I know, I know, and I really wouldn't have it any other way. It's just an alien thing to me."

  Shine stepped forward promptly, dropped to one knee at the edge of the table, and lowered her head. Spice blinked a few times, then nodded. "Shine says she would be proud if you called her to your service, Caley…if you made her yours, the way Sparkle is."

  "Shine…" I began uneasily.

  "Honestly," Spice said quickly, "I'd like that as well, Caley." She was looking at Sparkle as she said it. "We see the way Sparkle has blossomed. It would be wonderful for us, and where Shine goes, so go I."

  I looked back and forth between them, then rose slowly. "I greatly appreciate the offer, both of you. Please give me a bit of time to consider it, and to talk to Sparkle about it. I think I need to understand what you're truly asking of me."

  Shine rose and nodded, looking up at me with a hopeful - but understanding - expression. "She says that's very wise," Spice said for her. "What we're asking is no small thing."

  "Thank you," I said softly. "Thank you both. I'll be back in a few hours."