When the carriage arrived in the long u-shaped drive of the Merryweather Manor night was beginning to fall. Ellie was half asleep when the carriage jolted to a stop. The sound of the horses brought her into full focus. Rebekah was looking out the window and Seraphina was asleep with her head beside the window.
A few seconds later after the carriage stopped the driver opened the door and held out his hand to help Ellie out. She thanked the driver and he curtsied as a show of his respect. Ellie's cheeks went red in his show of support. Her grip on the basket was beginning to become slick. Rebekah and Seraphina lifted the passed out faerie up and dragged him toward the door.
Ellie waited before walking in and opened the door for them. Seraphina took the boy from Rebekah and laid in an armchair by the front door. "We brought presents!" Ellie shouted, putting her basket on the floor. When no one replied she stepped into the hallway. She placed her non weaponized hand toward the bottom of her dress and with her thumb on the latch of her gauntlet. She sighed with relief when she heard yelling coming from the drawing room.
"I don't understand how you let her leave!"
"She can take care of herself. Stop acting like she's a child. She's nineteen."
"Alexi, we know she isn't a child and she can take care of herself just fine."
"The girls are always get into some type of trouble when they are together."
Ellie turned the knob of the door and stepped inside. They stopped arguing when she stepped inside. Duncan was leaning on a wall with his arms crossed. Cornelia was laying on a green and gold loveseat. She was rubbing her temples as if she had a headache. Alexi stood with his arms crossed looking at the unlight fireplace. He turned towards the door. He gave a half hearted smile. "We bought your things, Cornelia. However, there were a few complications." Ellie told her.
Cornelia eyes widened, concern painted her face. "How so?" She asked. Ellie replayed the details of the day to them. She recounted when they split up, then she told them about meeting Kai and Duncan looked like he wanted strangle me and pat me on the back at the same time. At the mention of Kai however Alexi rolled his eyes. She waited lastly to tell them about the faerie and that he was currently sleeping in a chair inside the manor.
Cornelia sat all the way up. "So let me get this straight. You bought the supplies, confronted Kai and his guards, then shot down a faerie who is a criminal?"
"His only crimes are crossing Onerian territory and having common witchcraft supplies that aren't even illegal in the Cedar Woods." Ellie argued.
"It doesn't matter his crimes. He should have been delivered back to the courts to hold council in front of the King. None of the four kingdoms have the right to punish a faerie of any crime." Alexi justified.
"My point exactly," Ellie said giving Alexi a smile. "I will write a letter to my Uncle in the morning. Hopefully this is all just a misunderstanding."
The others gave a small nod and Ellie walked toward the door. She paused around about a foot away from the door. "Is there dinner ready?" Ellie asked. Cornelia nodded and followed her out of the drawing room.
♛
Rebekah and Ellie prepared the food on the table while Seraphina took the boy up to a spare room upstairs until the morning. Then we would find out what really happened and why Ellie's uncle had been so desperate to punish him enough to break laws himself.
Rebekah ate three boiled beech bird eggs, a green apple - she didn't like red apples, and a bowl full of roast. She claimed her goblet only held water but water didn't make her so talkative. Ellie had a boiled egg, roast without carrots, and a rather large piece of vanilla cake. Seraphina just ate off a dark red apple. She claimed she wasn't hungry. They sat in silence as they ate.
