When the council members were assembled, we set out making a plan to find Sergei. No one had heard from him for 24 hours now, and everyone was getting worried, especially me. I thought briefly about the amazing kiss we had shared but brushed it from my head. It had been wonderful but that was not the main reason I was so worried about Sergei. He had protected me before he even knew a thing about me, and the loyal part of me felt that I needed to return his protection. I think that the element of Danu that was a protector was growing in me, without me even nurturing it. It was strange feeling such a need to protect someone I hardly knew but that feeling was there and strong.
Esmerelda took the lead, as usual, and said, "So far no one has been able to sense his presence. We have been using our second sight network and there has been no hint of him, or his thoughts since yesterday. We do know one good thing--he's still alive-- our kind know when one of us dies, especially through violence--much the same way we knew when something tragic had befallen your mother so many years ago. We have honed this skill and our techniques in using it since then and we can now sense one another even at great distance."
"So why can't he be felt or seen with your improved second sight?" I asked cautiously--afraid of the answer.
"Likely he has been placed somewhere warded. The only people who would be able to do such a thing would be those using dark magic, and thus they are potentially dangerous," she replied without sugar coating.
"Well. That sucks. What can we do about it though. There has to be some way to find him and get him away from whoever has kidnapped him," I looked around the room at the interesting assortment of character. Surely some of these strange folk had some idea of what can be done.
"For now, we wait and see if there is any word from him, or anyone who might hear through the rumor mill about him. One thing about the Fae is that we are known for our grapevine," she said the last bit with a twinkle in her eye.
I rubbed my fingers on my temples, this whole situation was giving me a headache and I didn't feel like I could just wait for some news about Sergei. At the same time, I felt helpless. I didn't know what to do.
Just then, the front door opened and Olivier and Charlotte walked through. They both had a look of utter shock on their faces, which was mirrored on my own. They were holding hands! "When did that happen?" I thought to myself, and felt a twinge of what felt strangely like jealousy. I didn't understand why seeing them holding hands was making me feel like this. I quickly forgot about that, though and quickly realized that I had some serious explaining to do.
"Olivier, Charlotte, I guess I have to tell you something," I said warily.
"What on Earth is going on? It looks like you're having the weirdest party I've ever seen," Charlotte exclaimed in confusion.
"Well, there is something I need to tell you, about myself and about my friends here," I explained. At that moment, I proceeded to tell Olivier and Charlotte everything that had happened to me since I'd arrived in Ireland and hoped that they didn't call a psychiatrist.
"Well, that's a lot to take in," Olivier said, "But, if you can handle it, we are your friends and we can handle it. I don't know about Charlotte, but let me know how I can help," he said, looking to Charlotte expectantly.
Charlotte sighed and said, "I knew there was something about you that was different. This is going to sound a bit crazy, but it sounds like you've been taking crazy in stride. I come from a lineage of Fae folk. I'm actually only half human myself." Charlotte was actually beaming at me, and rushed to hug me a bit roughly.
"I knew we had some kind of strange connection when we first started talking, but I had no idea that you were one of us," Charlotte continued.
I looked over at Olivier and smiled at him and he came over to hug us both.
"I guess we all have a little strangeness to us, it's why we got on so well from the start," Olivier quipped. At that moment, I had never felt so accepted in my life, especially not friends, and I was so relieved that I didn't have to hide who I was from them anymore.
"Now, we have to get back to the Sergei issue," I announced to the room after pulling away from the happy group hug and situating myself back on the cozy couch.