"Please don't kill anyone, I just bought this carpet."
Selene focused her attention on the two of them in particular. Brooke raised her hands in defense.
"If there's no one worth killing, we have a deal," Brooke remarked casually, shrugging.
Valerie nodded.
Selene sighed but turned to her desk and began fiddling with her papers. She turned to them and opened her mouth to speak.
"Get back here you little runt!"
Brooke blinked as a silver-haired girl wearing a pink and purple dress, a sword hanging from the ribbon at her waist, comes charging in after a small, young black-haired beauty, who was giggling incessantly.
Selene frowned and clearly thought that this behavior wasn't going to help Shimmer deal with grumpy court members. Brooke could think of many different occasions when Shimmer had done something worse, which, honestly, probably wasn't reassuring to anyone, most definitely not Selene.
Valerie nudged her and Brooke looked over. Val held up three fingers.
One fell down.
Then the next.
And as the last finger curled back into her fist, the door to the study flew open again.
"Shimmer!" Emma came charging through the door, tossing a strand of hair over her shoulder.
She shot an apologetic glance at Selene before stalking towards Shimmer and the girl.
"Rebecca, you ought to be training! You want to be a warrior, so stop fooling around and put the effort in! Shimmer, you aren't supposed to be running around while you're supposed to be rehearsing for the Gathering!" Emma put her hands on her hips, her wolf tail swishing behind her.
Rebecca bowed her head and muttered an apology before scurrying off.
"Sorry Em, you know I hate this," Shimmer said, frowning and tugging at the dress.
Emma laughed and her wolf ears twitched in amusement. "Come on then, lets get it over with."
Emma inclined her head to Brooke and Valerie.
Brooke smiled. She loved how different Shimmer and Emma were, but they were, as Eris called them, 'Partners in Crime'.
The wolf shifters slipped outside and shut the door softly.
Brook shifted her weight and tugged her dress down. It was pastel blue and pale pink, and it stopped just above her knees. She wore a necklace of gold and sapphire around her neck, the cold biting her skin.
She glanced at Valerie, who looked a lot less comfortable. She wore green and silver, her outfit accented with a silver ribbon in her short, platinum blonde hair, and soft, green eyeshadow on her eyes. She had dark red lipstick and cheeks painted in pink.
Selene wore a shirt and jeans, her hair in a messy bun. She hadn't been able to get a hold of her outfit for today so she got off lucky, in Brooke's opinion.
"Queen Halen asks you whether or not to terminate a guard for stealing from when at his or her post," Selene questioned, tucking a loose strand of raven-black hair behind her ear.
Brooke pauses. This isn't really about the answer, it's about how you phrase it. Apparently, telling a royal their outfit was 'bomb' wasn't appropriate.
"I think the answer ranges from the object that was stolen, Majesty. However, it is still a crime and any offense should be punished," Brooke stated, praying to Queen that she got it right.
Selene smiled at her before turning her silver eyes on Valerie.
Valerie shrugged. "Yes."
Brooke buried her face in her hands and Selene sighed, frowning and fiddling with her bracelet.
Brooke smacked Valerie upside the head.
Valerie hissed a curse at her and Selene choked.
"Do not use that language in the presence of any royal, thank you," Selene snapped.
"But I use it in front of you, Gem and Eris?" Valerie remarked, raising a brow.
"Yes but we're different," Selene sighed, exasperation in her tone and expression.
Different as in Eris, who hadn't grown up in any sort of royal environment and didn't often bother with fancy manners and outfits, who preferred a weapon to a rule book. Who was vicious and cold but got away with it because of her sass and smarts. Who put people in their place, with or without using inappropriate language. Who flipped off anyone, whether or not they held more power than her.
Different as in Gem, who wasn't next in line to rule, and was perfectly fine with that. Who wielded dragon fire and her spirit matched the flames to a T. Who trained day in day out no matter the conditions. Who spat in the faces of people she disliked. Who used her dragon heritage to strike fear into and intimidate others.
Different as in Selene, who was calm and wise. Who preferred peace to war. Who kept a level-head in any situation and always found a solution. Who was grace and beauty but never bothered with romance. Who studied everything, in the sky to the deepest sea. Who loved art and painting.
Different, but most likely for the best.
A knock sounded through the office.
Selene called them in and Valerie and Brooke moved closer to the desk.
Emma walked in, yanking her brush through her tangles of magenta hair.
"They've arrived," She panted breathlessly, before darting back out.
The three girls exchanged puzzled glances before calmly dashing out after Emma.
What in King's name could've ruffled Emma up?
They walked down the marble staircase and into the large entrance room. Shimmer was there and looked unimpressed. Her silver ears twitched, and her matching tail brushed the floor. A frown graced her face, distaste written on her features. Emma had curled her magenta tail around her, her lavender eyes wide. Brooke glanced at Selene, who hadn't bothered to cover her pointed ears, meaning Brooke could shift into her magic form. Valerie, clearly, had no inclination to shift, but that was an obvious choice.
Deciding against shifting, Brooke kept her hands firmly on her hips and schooled her features into neutrality.
She blew out a breath and the large oak doors opened.
Eris was chatting happily and animatedly, waving her hands, smiling and laughing.
There was a strange figure there as well, with messy, light chocolate hair and bright dark, blue eyes that shone when he laughed. Wasn't he supposed to be the prisoner? He didn't even have handcuffs on.
Gem walked in the middle of them, and Brooke thought she'd be acting a bit hostile to the prisoner, but she was actually leaning on him for support, and laughed whenever he said something funny. Gem was limping, but had no physical injury as far as Brooke could tell.
As far as she could sense, they were happy and light-hearted, and Gem felt comfortable around the stranger. The stranger felt joyful around Eris and Gem. Brooke couldn't sense any of Eris's emotions because of her magic barriers.
Gem noticed them and grinned.
Eris turned to them and beamed. She ran and tackled Selene in a huge hug. She embraced Valerie and then Brooke. Brooke gripped her tightly. She smelled of ash and the scent was fresh. Eris hugged Emma and Shimmer and, from the looks on their faces, they smelt it too.
Gem didn't bother with hugs and instead made herself a cane of crystals and shifted her weight from the stranger to her cane. She inclined her head to the stranger and he looked at them and blinked.
Brooke had to admit, they did make a strange group. A princess with elf ears and dark blue-grey skin wearing jeans and a white shirt. A girl in a dress with an arm completely covered in inked tattoos. Two wolf shifters - both in a form with a human body and wolf fangs, ears and a tail. Then there was Brooke herself, who looked a bit like cotton candy in her pastel dress.
"Everyone, this is Archer, Prince of Pixie Trees."
"Vellatrize," Archer corrected exasperatedly.
"Yeah, okay, don't care." Eris waved him off. "He's our prisoner, and his cuffs are off due to what is simply a small accident he was attempting to help fix."
"Small? You fell asleep, had a bad dream, almost burned the carriage to smithereens and us along with it," Archer hissed at her.
Eris shrugged. "Sounds like an accident to me."
Archer looked like he might throttle her.
"I took Archer's cuffs off so he could help me contain Eris, but even with our powers combined, we could barely hold her. Whatever's happening with her magic, it's not slowing down anytime soon," Gem explained, placing if a hand on Eris's back.
"We should talk to Katharos, she'll know," Selene muttered, and everyone nodded their agreement. Except Archer, and Brooke could feel his confusion.
"Also, someone ought to go get our prince here another set of handcuffs," Brooke remarked, glancing at Archer.
Archer gaped but said nothing, opting to scowl instead of risking words.
"Shimmer will get handcuffs, and I'll get Katharos," Emma said, nodding to Selene.
In a flash of light, the two had shifted and two wolves dashed off in different directions.
"We'll go to the Yurian while we wait, see if they can figure anything out," Valerie said and Selene voiced her agreement.
"I'm sure that's not necessary," Eris muttered, and Gem waved her hand and her cane disappeared.
Archer clapped Eris on the back. "If it makes you uncomfortable, let's do it!"
Valerie coughed and Eris elbowed him.
Nevertheless, they walked through the empty halls, the high heels belonging to Valerie and Brooke clicking on the tiles. They entered a main hallway, where carpets covered the tiles. Paintings and portraits decorated the walls, small tables with books and flowers are sprinkled along the sides of the walls. Sconces flickering with orange flame bask the halls in light. Doors are peppered here and there, leading into various rooms or other halls, most of which Brooke had never been in. They take a few twists and turns and eventually reach oak doors like the ones at the entrance, but smaller. They all slipped past and Archer's wonder emanates from him. They exit the back of the palace and are faced with a large, circular arena. Steps lead down after the palace onto a strip of grass until the arena starts, the ground dips and crumbling, stone stairs lead into a dust covered pit, where warriors and those still in training trained. The sound of swords clashing, bows groaning and cries of triumph or defeat echoed up to them. Brooke squinted but couldn't spot the dark figure that usually occupied the arena. Around the arena, there were five palaces. The biggest one was the one they had just walked out of, the Dynevi. Everyone glided down the steps outside the main palace and they stalked towards the palace closest to the Dynevi, a white and gold bricked palace that carried an air of peace. Despite the long walk ahead of them, it seemed everyone opted to walk in silence. Brooke glanced to Eris and noticed she had a rather glazed look over her eyes and her lips slightly parted. Her hands were clenched in fists that made her knuckles white. It was the look she always had when she got too lost in her own head. Brooke wanted to reach out and help her.
Archer, however, reached her first.
He nudged her and she leaped in shock and water shot everywhere. It would've doused everyone had Archer not waved a hand and contained it.
Maybe they should forget the cuffs.
Eris began apologizing profusely but everyone waved her off.
Archer began chatting to her calmly and soon the two of them were in a heated argument. Brooke was about to step in when Gem fell into step with her.
"Relax, they've been doing this the whole carriage ride," Gem laughed. Brooke glanced at them again in time to see Eris kick Archer's shin. He jumped back and she chased him, yelling threats while waving a sword - most likely summoned without Eris even knowing she'd done anything.
Gem seemed calm and relaxed, and Brooke couldn't feel any fear coming from her.
"Stop reading my emotions, B," Gem remarked, glancing at her.
Brooke gaped but said nothing.
Something inside her gave a warning.
Brooke shot out a hand.
Archer choked.
Brooke had wrapped her hand around Archer's throat.
It had been completely accidental, just defending herself.
He didn't need to know that.
Brooke gripped a little harder and, from behind Archer, Eris winced.
"Eris made me her personal bodyguard, and whether or not you want to be amusing, you hurt her, I will kill you. Slowly."
When she said the last word, Valerie came up behind her and grinned, nothing human in those sky-blue eyes.
"Hurt her, you suffer," Brooke snarled and released him.
Unfazed, he brushed himself off.
Brooke turned on heel and stalked towards the white and gold Yurian.
She wondered if her and Archer would ever get along.
As the group entered the Yurian, Archer leaned over her shoulder.
"I'm going to guess your cotton candy is only served cold, as revenge usually is."
Brooke tipped her head back and laughed.
Yes, they'd definitely get along.
The Yurian was bustling, everyone running and sprinting, trying to get somewhere.
Brooke spotted a familiar face hurrying with everyone else.
"Will!" She called out happily.
The black-haired boy spun around. When his eyes met hers he grinned and jogged over to them.
"We need your help, it's a magic thing," Brooke explained.
Will glanced at Eris, who coughed.
He nodded and led them to a private room. He gestured for Eris to sit on the white bed in the middle of the room, with mumbled complaints, she obeyed. Will gestured at the rest of them to take their seats. Everyone sat on the couches by the wall, but Valerie and Brooke grabbed chairs and sat next to Eris. When Will opened his mouth to object to their seating arrangement, Valerie snarled at him and Will said nothing.
A few moments later, a wolf with magenta fur slipped her fuzzy head through the door. She then slipped in and a dark figure followed.
Archer lurched forward in his seat, unsurprisingly.
This was normally the reaction to Katharos, whose skin was pitch-black. Her hair was white and danced to the sky like a flame, her eyes were blood red. She was extremely tall and hunched over due to the fact her feet were hooves. She wore a white sleeveless top and white shorts, with matching gloves, her fingers long and sharp. Her ears were pointed and stood out stark against her hair.
Eris just beamed.
Brooke snickered.
In a flash of light, Emma had shifted to her human form. She adjusted her dress and frowned at the nuisance of a human body, even one that was part wolf.
Brooke frowned at her.
"So this is your magic problem, Eris?" Katharos questioned, tilting her head.
Eris nodded and Gem and Archer explained their situation.
"What were these nightmares exactly?" Katharos inquired.
Eris pursued her lips and said nothing.
Katharos nodded her understanding and turned to Emma. "Fetch me Ayala, if you will."
Emma nodded.
The door swung open and a silver wolf slipped in with handcuffs in her mouth. Shimmer was closely followed by a short, dark-skinned girl.
"How convenient," Katharos mused.
Shimmer shifted and tossed the handcuffs to Selene, who slipped them efficiently onto Archer's wrists.
"When I told Ayala what was happening, she said she thought it best she tag along," Shimmer replied, shrugging.
Ayala nodded, and Brooke spotted Archer staring and blinking at the deer horns sprouting from her head of dark chocolate hair that fell past her shoulders in curls.
Ayala was a pretty thing, her face was speckled with white freckles and she had eyes like that of a doe. Her smile was fair and cute. She had ears like a deer too, but they didn't stand out because it just looked right on her.
Will darted out the room and Katharos and Ayala approached the bed.
"What magic, exactly, did you use?" Ayala questioned, twirling a strand of her hair.
"All of it varied, but it mostly manifested in fire," Archer answered, calmly picking at his nails despite the handcuffs.
Katharos nodded in thanks and Ayala hummed before turning back to Eris. "That makes sense, considering that chaos magic loves to cause destruction, and what better to use than fire?"
"And how do you know about chaos magic?" Archer raised a brow.
"I'm a creature of chaos, you asshole. So shut up, and leave us be," Ayala snapped, her smile coated in sickeningly sweet poison.
Will slipped back into the room, followed closely by another girl, her black hair tied in a tight knot, her dark skin seemingly glowing under the fluorescent lights.
She approached the bed and began examining Eris and her physical wounds, a soft golden light weaving through her fingers as she searched. Will watched intently over her shoulder and Oracle whispered what she was doing.
The door slammed open and everyone jumped. Valerie had a hatchet out and gripped tightly in her hand, and Brooke had slipped two long daggers from where she'd hidden them in the sleeves of her dress.
Standing there, was a dryad.
"Alice! What's going on?" Eris leaped out of the bed and rushed to the panting girl.
"The - the Gathering, you're to prepare to leave immediately."
~
Everything was a hustle and bustle as everyone tried to prepare for the sudden shock of it all.
Whispers were sprinkled everywhere.
Why so suddenly?
We weren't warned!
The Gathering? Isn't that only tomorrow?
Selene was the only one to remain calm.
She'd expected this. Why, it happens every year.
Even the Guardian Hiraliv was in a state of panic. Oracle rushed here and there, trying to keep her healers from freaking out and calmly rushing everyone to their carriages.
"Princess Selene!"
Selene spun around.
A short, young girl with light grey skin rushed to her.
"Empress! What is it?"
The oread sprinted to her and handed her a small trunk.
"Your dress, your Highness," Empress said as Selene took the trunk from her.
"How do you think the Gathering will go this year?" Empress asked, cocking her head to the side.
Selene smiled and glanced at Eris.
"I have a feeling this particular Gathering will be very interesting."