Damien shook his head as his mate's mind left his. Angelica and Rebecca were currently standing in front of him, a hand on each of his shoulders, keeping him upright. Which when his mind had left his and gone to his mate, they were several feet away from him, so he was assuming that he had been about to drop. He smiled weakly at them as the after math of the connection subsided. Nathan and Ryan were standing several feet from him looking concerned.
"Are you alright?" Angelica soft voice asked as she released him and took a step back. Rebecca held onto him for just two more seconds before she also released him and retreated.
"I'm more than alright," Damien spoke his voice full of spirit as he looked around at his scouts. "I saw Jake; he was standing directly in front of her. I can't believe he found her! He found her. We have to hurry; I can't wait to finally meet her." His mind fluttered to the image that he had created since he was small of his mate.
A fragile dainty little thing with vibrant red hair and eyes full of life, her face smiling and soft when she saw him and gave a small curtsy muttering 'my beloved you have finally found me. I can now return to my homeland and take my rightful place.' before she stood and giggled shyly. Then she would throw her arms around him in an embrace and whisper in his ear. 'I've waited so long to meet you; this is like a dream come true!'
"Damien!" Damien jolted out his mind to see Rebecca standing next to him her face hard. "What do you mean you saw Jake? What's going on?"
"Our minds connected for a second," Damien spoke his excitement making his voice shake. "Jake was standing right in front of her. He must have found her." Damien started off but Ryan grabbed his arm.
"I know you're excited but please remember where we are," He spoke softly his eyes darting around the surrounding forest. The forest not only held dangerous animals, but they could never be sure if someone that didn't agree with the crown had followed him. This sort of thing had happened since he was young, so it wasn't really anything new.
"Sorry," Damien laughed, "I just got ahead of myself. I'm just so excited. Our efforts might finally bear fruit." Damien grinned at his scouts as they started back off down the path.
After what felt like far too long to Damien, they came to several trees that seemed to bend inwards towards their top making an entrance. After several feet of the enclosed entrance the trees opened up into a lager enclosure. There was a small pond that was sitting next to a modest wooden cabin. Standing directly and slightly over the cabin was a large oak tree, its leaves brushing the very top of the black slated roof. Damien looked around the clearing and saw that the pond was surrounded by large grey circular rocks with large purple and pink water lilies rocking slightly from an invisible ripple. The grass around the clearing had been cut short by a hand blade making it look neat but uneven. The trees encircled the clearing several feet away from the pond but mirroring the shape.
"The witch that controls the portal lives here," Angelica spoke in her soft calm voice. "I will go speak with her…alone." Damien pulled his eyes away from the water lilies and looked at her.
"Are you sure? I've heard many stories about the witch that lives here and none of them are good." At this point Angelica giggled softly.
"I will be perfectly fine. Do not worry my prince." Damien looked at her for a long moment. The second use of his title in such a short span made his ears prick. His scouts knew that he didn't not like them using his title, so when one of them used it was always weird. However, in this moment, there was more going on than he understood, and he knew that. She turned without another word and headed towards the cabin.
"Be careful." Damien cautioned his voice hard. He understood that Angelica seemed to know what she was doing but that did not make him feel any better. He detested sending his scouts into a dangerous situation without knowing what the situation would entail. However, Angelic seemed unfazed as she paused and looked at him.
"There is nothing to worry about," Finishing her short walk to the cabin. Before she could knock the door opened slightly and without a backwards glance, she walked inside. The door closing behind her.
They all waited, and waited, and waited. Damien wasn't sure if it was taking a long time or if it was just him being impatient. The rest of his scouts however had retreated towards the tree line with him where they were making use of the natural shade. Damien felt as though he was going to jump out of his skin as he stood there bouncing on the balls of his heels.
Finally, Angelica returned with a woman that made Damien do a double take. She had Angelica's ice blue eyes and white blond hair only her face had more lines showing that she had laughed often in her life. He tore his eyes away from her and looked at Angelica who was smiling softly at him. Damien stood and walked out meeting them halfway as they approached, his scouts on his heels
"My Prince, if I may I would like to introduce you. This is my mother's sister, Olivia. The woman on the other side of the gate is her twin." Angelica took a second to smile up at her aunt before she looked back at Damien.
"It is an honor to meet you, Damien, Prince of Dunhule," The woman spoke as she inclined her head. Damien took note that she did not bow or curtsy. This made him think. Technically the fairy gate was not located on any Kingdom's land, therefore it would make since that she did not have loyalty to anyone. So, whereas she would show respect she did not bow her head to any king, queen, or prince for that matter.
"The pleasure is all mine," Damien gave a slight head nod before he glanced at Angelica. How much of her personal life did he actually know? He did not know about her having an aunt nor that she was in charge of the fairy gate. This pause made him think more deeply about all of his scouts. He had never really taken the time to get to know their families. He had met each of their parents on more than one occasion but apart from that he was pretty dark about anything else. He made a mental note that he needed to fix this as Angelica started speaking and pulled him from his musings.
"She says that she'll open the portal for us," Her soft voice spoke with a hint of excitement. Damien smiled at her, the wonderment still in the back of his mind of what exactly she paid to allow them all passage. Then he wondered if because Oliva was her aunt if they were simply getting a free pass. Later, he would have to ask her about it, then repay her for whatever she had paid.
"That is fantastic!" Damien spoke his voice full of emotion as he refocused. He looked up at Oliva who was waiting calmly for their conversation to end but stepped forward at this point.
"Are you children sure that you wish to go through the portal?" Oliva smiled as she spoke. Damien cocked his head at her word choice, calling them children was a little odd. Whereas it was true that they were only in their teens however, they were certainly not children. Damien decided that he would not comment on this.
"We are sure. We must go through. We seek a princess that is currently on the other side." Oliva looked him up and down before a smile, that didn't reach her eyes, spread across her mouth.
"He said that you would be following him. However, I do not believe that he was expecting you all so soon." Damien's eyebrows knit together as he glanced from Angelica to Oliva.
"Aunt Oliva said that Jake has only recently gone through the gate. She also mentioned that she is unsure that he has found our target in such as short amount of time."
"However, I knew that you would eventually show up even without your scout passing though here." She turned and started towards the pond. Damien felt his body jolt at this knowledge as he walked briskly after her.
"What do you mean?" He asked his voice wavering slightly.
"A very long time ago a scout came through here with a very small baby," Oliva spoke and even though her back was to him, he could tell that she was still smiling.
"Are you saying that you knew where the princess of Thaul has been this entire time?" Damien couldn't keep the spite from his words as the woman turned to him and looked him up and down, her features calm.
"Yes, when the scout came to use the fairy gate, he had me make an oath. An oath that I would not seek out any prince from any kingdom and tell them where the princess was located. Since I am bound to this clearing making this oath was simple and a part of our agreement of the scout's payment." Damien felt dumb founded at her words making him falter in his breathing.
"Why would other princes be looking for her," The first words that crossed his mind burst from Damien's mouth. Oliva suddenly looked rather uncomfortable before her face fell slightly and she let out a soft sigh.
"How much do you actually know of the princess that you are searching for?" She spoke her voice so soft that he was certain that the words were for his ears only. He was also certain that his scouts had heard, no matter how soft she whispered they all had exceptional hearing.
"To tell you the truth," Damien spoke after several minutes of considering the question. "I do not know much. All we were given was a summary of the attack, the knowledge that one of her father's scouts took her away from the carnage, and a picture of her mother." Damien ticked them off on his fingers before he looked back up at Oliva.
"Have you connected mentally with her? Have you asked her what her opinion is about the entire situation?" Oliva prompted as Damien instantly thought the question was odd; then he felt the hairs on the back of his neck prick.
"I have connected with her, though it has not been enough time to actually speak. I simply see through her eyes. I don't think I understand the second part of the question." Oliva's eyes darted to his scouts before they returned to his face.
"I will impose on you some information. Sophia is my twin that is in charge of the fairy gate on the human side. Despite being in different worlds we are able to speak to each other like mates do, mind to mind. She often tells me about the Princess, who comes to visit her often and just to talk. She never asks about anything specific; she simply likes to hear about what our world looks and smells like, what types of food there is to eat and even sometimes the weather." Damien felt his back straighten at her words but before he could speak Rebecca beat him to it.
"If she knows of her world and where the fairy gate is located, why does she simply not come home?" Rebecca had taken two steps forward as she spoke her eyes seemed to have a fire lit inside of them. "Wouldn't she be just as pressed to meet her mate as Damien is? It doesn't make much since." Oliva's eyes seemed to shine at Rebecca as her mouth curled into a small weird smile.
"Why indeed," Is all she said before she turned back to Damien, "I greatly advise you to use caution with your decision in crossing over. Prince of Dunhule, I am not saying that you should not go seek her out. I am simply expressing that you might have a surprise when you arrive." She raised a hand palm out as she spoke signaling him to calm
"What do you mean?" Damien breathed.
"By crossing the Fairy Gate you are creating an opening for anyone else that is searching for her. So, you are putting her in danger simply by being in the same world as her. Also, you would also be opening her mind to connect to other's." Damien gaped at her. Her calm voice was starting to really try him. He didn't understand how she could be so composed when he was raging inside. He felt Rebecca take another step forward, but he placed a hand up making her halt in her tracks.
"Why would she be connecting with anyone else but me?" His words felt raw inside this throat as he spoke them. The smile that had been on her face for most of the conversation turned into a small sad one.
"Why indeed… this is not my story to tell, I simply want you to know that your wishes may not be the same as the princess'. I encourage you to think about this before you cross over. I'll give you time to think about this before you make your final decision." Oliva looked down at Angelica, who looked up at her with understanding eyes.
"I don't need time, this is what I want, and I am sure that she will want the same." Damien felt as though he was about to crawl out of his skin. Rebecca stepped forward and he looked over at her as she started speaking.
"Damien, send me through first and let me meet up with Jake, get a progress report, and then we can make our decision from there." Damien looked sideways at her. How could she even be saying to leave him behind to wait, again, when they were so close?
"I don't want to wait; we are so close to finding her. I have already seen that Jake has made contact. It will be a simple walking through the gate and finding her." His emotions bled through his words as Rebecca held back her next words and instead looked at Nathan. He could tell that they were using their mate link to speak which only made him angrier. That was what he wanted; to finally have someone to communicate with and connect with on a spiritual level.
"Is that your final answer Prince of Dunhule," Oliva's face was smiling but it wasn't warm; it was somewhere between spite and amusement.
"Yes." Damien spoke shortly. He was growing impatient with how long this was taking. He could almost taste him finding his mate and this witch was holding him up. Well, he was done waiting and wanted to get a move on with it.
Oliva' sighed softly, "If that is your wish Prince of Dunhule, I have a few more words that you need to hear before you cross over." Damien felt his patience stretch even further as he knew that the information that she had was worth listening too, but he still didn't want to spend more time hearing it. Still, he inclined his head for her to continue, his foot tapping on the ground impatiently.
"The last thing that I have to tell you young prince, The Queen of Thaul, cast an extremely strong spell on her daughter in order to protect her. Not only does it mask her aether, but it alters her in other ways as well," Oliva grew silent as she closed her eyes for a few seconds. Oliva took another second to press two fingers to her lips, then to her forehead, and then she pressed them skyward.
Damien instantly knew that she was honoring the dead queen, which surprised him. Since she held no loyalty to any one kingdom, her showing respect it was only something else that made him wonder if there was more going on that he didn't know or understand. His ears pricked at that and his foot slowed before it completely stopped tapping all together.
Would Jake have found her if her features had been altered? He shook his head, of course he would. Jake was an amazing scout and would be able to see through something like that and be able to find her. He already had.
"In what ways?" Damien pressed as he looked at Oliva his eyes wide.
"That is for you to find out," Her words were short and decisive as if she wasn't going to elaborate.
"Prince Damien, please send me though first so I can get you a report." Rebecca spoke again, Damien turned his gaze to her. She looked a little panicked at the information of the spell that had been cast on his princess. He looked into her eyes for a long moment before he turned back to Oliva.
"No, we will all go through," He spoke the words hard, using his princely tone making it known that there was going to be no more arguments.
"Yes," Rebecca spoke softly as she took a step back, so she was standing next to Nathan, her mouth was in a thin line but he didn't care. He wanted to finally meet her, learn her name and everything that came with it. He knew that she was on the other side now, not only with the fact that he had seen Jake in her eyes but because the witch had said so.
"Do you still want to go Prince of Dunhule?" Oliva's voice was strong and matched his princely one.
"Yes."
"Scouts will you follow him?" Four 'yes' rang out instantly. "Then it is time for you to use the fairy gate and cross over." Oliva stepped over the grey stones and waded into the pond up to her knees. "Enter the pond and dive down to its depths, when you resurface you will have reached the other side. When you wish to return, speak with Sophia on the other side and she will send you back. Angelica, I wish you and yours a safe trip, young one." Angelia took a minute to look up at her aunt and give her a warm smile.
Then Damien started into the pond and everyone followed him. There was a pause as Damien watched Rebecca and Angelica's heads go under, and he swallowed, his nerves finally catching up to him. A hand landed on his shoulder and he turned to look up into the ice blue ones of Oliva.
"Happy early Birthday Prince of Dunhule."
"Thank you," He breathed before he took a real breath in and dived into the pond. It was much deeper than any pond he had ever going swimming in before. Then without warning a current swept him up and pulled him further down into the depths.
Damien's lungs contracted as his body demanded air, but he focused and held it longer as he imaged the girl with flaming red hair, bright green eyes, a cute small nose, beautiful, smiling, and happy to see him.