Solar Reign

X V

NOHX STARED at Chariclo. For a brief moment, he considered going and finding Roseria immediately to slaughter her. Anger pulsed deep in his gut at the news his cat had delivered.

"You're sure?" Nohx's voice was lethal.

"She plans on resurrecting."

"Well, now we know who traveled to Averotho. That bitch." Nohx ran his hand through his hair. He considered for a moment going to the Royal Court to tell Andorra. He considered a whole slew of things, starting and ending with the death of Roseria by his own hand.

He would have. He would have left the Snow Clan immediately, if not for the knock on his office door. Three short raps against the thick wood, and the slow pulse of a headache began to spread across his temples.

He waved his hand to the door, magic singeing through the air as the door swept open. He wasn't surprised to see Prince Puck standing on the threshold, hands in his own pockets. He was, however, surprised to see Aihfie behind her father, head bent almost awkwardly in shame.

A new look for her. Nohx tilted his head at the sight. "If you're here, you must know about King Kaeberon."

Puck swept into the room without a thought. He eyed Chariclo on the leather seat by the bookshelf, but the cat only blinked at the man, weary eyed. When Chariclo caught Aihfie following her father, a soft hiss escaped his mouth, lips pulled back to reveal sharp teeth.

"It seems your Rali caught my daughter and Roseria together discussing the matter at hand." Puck's voice didn't betray surprise at the knowledge, but it was clear to Nohx that a discussion had been had before arriving at the Snow Clan. "We should probably discuss next steps."

"I believe any next steps should probably be discussed in the presence of our Queen." Not a suggestion. Nohx's tone of voice was final.

"I agree with you, however my daughter seems to have more to share on the topic. Aihfie, how about you start with the resurrection bit."

Aihfie didn't take her eyes off of Chariclo. "Roseria believes that Anders should be on the throne. She went to see King Kaeberon to seek help about our Queen. She seems to think King Kaeberon will step in to destroy the throne."

Nohx's face betrayed none of the anger he felt. "Did she say what her plan was once he was resurrected?"

"She's in love with him. I half believe she thinks that he'll make her queen," Aihfie admitted. She crossed her arms stiffly, perhaps annoyed with having to discuss this with Nohx. Perhaps annoyed that her father forced her there. "Roseria can create gates, as you know."

"Yeah, why is that?" Nohx tried not to show interest in that topic. But it had been bothering him for months now, after knowing Roseria had killed that Snow Clan seeker in the human realm. Knowing that Roseria had been the one to send the daemonium into the human realm to attack Andorra. He wondered what else the pink haired fae had in the human realm. What pieces of her own puzzle had she moved? Nohx felt a tick in his jaw at the realization that Roseria was not the demure fae he thought she was.

"Who knows why Cornomous gives us the gifts we possess?" At last, Aihfie's tone sounded a little more like herself, a bite in her tone that hadn't been there before. "For all I know, she was born with it."

Nohx shook his head, mind whirling. "No, there has to be a reason why. Cornomous doesn't do things without reason."

"Now is not really the time to play detective," Puck reminded. "Aihfie, return home."

Shocked, and a little peeved she was being dismissed, Aihfie let her mouth drop open. "But you made me come. And now you're just sending me home like some dog?"

"You have nothing else to add." Puck didn't even look at Aihfie as he stepped closer to Nohx. A clear dismissal. He waited until his daughter stomped from the office, and then a few moments longer to assure that Aihfie was on her way before he turned to face Nohx.

"I have eyes in Averotho."

"What?" Nohx stiffened. What he knew of Averotho was very little. His knowledge came from what little history books had been in his family home, back in the human realm. And Averotho had made a few appearances, but not many. Not enough.

"One of us should be prepared. The rest of the Court Leaders are busy dealing with the ins and outs of their own Courts. Some spend entirely too much time posturing and playing court politics. But, even if Cornomous did not wish for me to be King, I am still very much prepared to protect Anlithamy from enemies. And Averotho is one of them."

Nohx held Puck's gaze. "This is definitely a conversation to have with our Queen."

"I trust Queen Andorra. But she is a child playing in a grown up world. I will admit that she has come a long way. She has changed from the naive child who arrived all those months ago. But this is beyond her understanding, you have to know that."

"This isn't beyond her understanding." Nohx's voice was calm, but there was an edge to it. "She deserves to know what is happening with Averotho. She deserves to be prepared."

"I agree. But we should discuss first before you give it to her in bite sized chunks. She has only been a fae for-"

"Her entire life." Nohx cut in. "It's not her fault it was hidden from her."

"Her entire life is still entirely too short, Nohx. She's a child. She needs guidance."

"I am almost as young as she is, Puck. If you deem me fit to be a confidant, despite my age, then you can certainly consider her the same. It is not up for debate. We will have this discussion for the first time, with her here. She is our Queen."

Puck rolled his eyes. Nohx could tell Puck was resisting the urge to tell him off, but Nohx didn't care. He would never back down on this stance, and he wasn't afraid to tell Puck that.

"This infatuation you have with her will pass. And you'll realize that our Queen needs someone running the show behind the scenes to keep her and Anlithamy safe until she is ready to handle it. She's not ready."

Nohx felt the ice against his skin before he saw it creeping up his neck. His eyes were nearly black when he hissed out, "It is not an infatuation. And you will not talk about her that way."

A pitying smile touched Puck's lips. "You are not like your father at all. In so many ways, I always expected you to be just like Bazile. But you surprise me, Nohx." Puck let his shadows begin to pool around his feet, slowly climbing up his legs. "One day, you will understand what I mean. I trust our Queen, and I care for our Queen. But, when you're as old as I am, you will realize that what Anlithamy needs is for its people to care about the survival of our world. And that means protecting from behind the scenes. What I want is the same as what you want."

Nohx bit his tongue to keep from spitting at Puck. It didn't matter how angry he was anyway; by the time Puck's shadows reached his neck, Puck gave one more sad smile. "I will see you at the Royal Court to discuss this with Queen Andorra in a day's time."

And then, as the shadows devoured him and dissipated, Prince Puck was gone.