Faery Kissed

Untitled Part 6

Chapter Five

I didn't know why, but the thought both excited and terrified me. My emotions suddenly jumbled all together, and I had a difficult time sorting them.

"Is there a reason you want to rush into this right away? We have all the time in the world to start a family. Why not just get to know each other better first?"

She smiled slightly. "It is the custom of my people. Getting with child immediately shows the value of the relationship. It marks it as good and healthy. If a Fae does not conceive early on, she will be shunned by her people, and even her husband can leave her for not producing his heir."

I frowned. "Well, that seems a little harsh. Sometimes things are out of a woman's control. Why shun her for something that is not her fault?"

Eirian shrugged nonchalantly, and I could tell she agreed with the custom. "Reproduction is necessary for the survival of my people. We must each contribute—do our share. It's been done this way for thousands of years."

I kept frowning. It didn't seem like a very good thing.

She laughed. "If it helps you feel any better, it doesn't happen very often. My race is extremely fertile. So much in fact, I would wager only one person doesn't conceive every few hundred years."

"Hmm." I pondered her statement, still not feeling comfortable with it. "And what if you turn out to be that one? How fair will you find it then?"

Her face clouded over, and I wondered if she'd ever even considered the idea. "That would be horrible since I am the daughter of the royal house. My king would not be pleased. I am needed to continue the bloodline. My inability to have a baby could cause me to be completely ostracized by my people."

"Your father should love you regardless of what you do, and whether he is king or not." I felt myself growing angrier.

Eirian smiled even wider. "And this is why I wanted you, Bran. Your heart is so good, so willing to help others less fortunate than yourself. You don't stand for injustice. I wanted that strength to run in the veins of my child as well." She stood and came to me, wrapping her arms around my neck.

I slipped my hands around her waist, pulling her graceful form against me. If I had to give up everything for her, I was determined to enjoy it. She was very beautiful. "And here I thought it was my dashing good looks that had drawn you." I chuckled.

"Oh, trust me when I tell you that your appearance had a lot to do with my decision as well." She stroked the tip of her fingers over my face. "Why settle for ugly children?"

I laughed heartily at this remark, even though it showed her Fae-ish vanity. "I bet you could mate with a troll and still have handsome children from the union."

She scrunched her nose. "Don't even joke about things like that. That would surely be a distasteful mating."

My eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Are you saying that trolls really exist?"

"Of course I am! They can be a downright nuisance at times. We're constantly herding them out of the far pastures lest they eat all our food. I don't know how they manage to keep breaching the barriers, but they always seem to be able to, eventually."

I sighed. "It seems there will be a lot I need to learn about this new world if I'm to live here."

She looked sad when I spoke these words. "There is a lot you don't know, and I'll be happy to show you everything I can."

I lifted her chin. "You mean there is more to Faery than this tree and river?" I couldn't help teasing her.

She looked perplexed for a moment. "How did you end up here anyway? You took the opposite path earlier. I was sure I'd have to send guards out to find you before the day was over."