Court of Nightmares and Ruin

Chapter 12

Icelyn

I snuggled deeper into the soft sheets. I knew I needed to get up, but my body refused to budge. After yesterday's hectic ordeal, I had the unyielding desire to stay in bed all day. I heard the door quietly open and sat upright, half expecting it to be Kohl. Disappointment invaded me unbidden as a small female with dark chocolate-colored hair poked her head in.

She smiled at me when she saw me and walked into the room. My nostrils flared as I tried to decipher what kind of creature she was.

"Good day. My name is Jen," she said with a smile and stopped at the end of the bed.

"What are you?" I finally asked. She was definitely not fae.

"I am a woman, of course."

My eyebrows raise as I look over her smaller, more delicate form.

"A changeling?" I asked in astonishment, and she nodded her head in confirmation.

Changelings are relatively common in Gregorian. For centuries, the fae have switched their children with that of a human children, but I personally had never seen one. Changelings would not be able to survive in the harsh elements of the Winter Realm.

"Kohl sent me to fetch you. He said you are already late for your first training," she said with a smile and sat on the edge of my bed.

I threw my sheets back and hurried from the bed.

"Where are my bags? I have to change," I asked her, and she shrugged her shoulders.

"I'll get some clothes ready for you. Kohl said your wardrobe is full of everything you need while you sit over here and eat the food I brought you."

"I'm not hungry." I glanced at the tray piled high with meat, cheeses, and fruit.

"Kohl said you are not to leave your room unless you have eaten something. Can't train on an empty stomach." She rose from my bed, threw open the wardrobe, and shuffled through the clothes hanging there.

"How dare he tell me what to do?" I voiced the thought out loud, going through my mind.

"He is the king, and besides, what female wouldn't do anything he asks? He is so sexy; he makes a female grit her teeth until they crack." She winked at me, and a twinge of green-eyed jealousy hit me.

"You are one of his concubines?" I asked as I angrily popped a piece of cheese into my mouth.

"I wish!" Jen snorted and started pulling clothes from the wardrobe and tossing them on the bed. I liked her a little better now that I knew she was not intimate with Kohl.

"I just work here. Kohl instructed me to keep you company, said you might need a friend..." She stopped what she was doing, picked up a mug filled with a dark, steaming liquid, and handed it to me.

"I don't need a friend," I informed her and cautiously took the cup and smelled the suspicious-looking liquid.

"I bet someone like you never had many girlfriends." Jen raiseed an eyebrow at me.

"Why do you say that?" I took a sip of the concoction. My taste buds sang as the smooth, rich, sweet liquid slid over my tongue.

"One, you are a princess, and two, you are the most beautiful female I have ever seen. Females don't normally get along with other females that are prettier than them. Makes them envious, you know." She smiled again.

Come to think of it, I don't think I have ever had a female friend, but I would have never thought that was why. Done with this outlandish conversation, I changed the subject.

"What is this?" I asked as I took another swallow and continued to pick at the delicious food on my tray.

"Hot chocolate. Don't tell me you have never had any. It's to die for."

I shook my head as I finished my hot chocolate and the food on the plate. I like Jen; she was easy to talk to and distracted me from my nerves so that I could enjoy my breakfast.

"Kohl asked the chef to make it for you special. He said the princess of the Winter Realm needed something warm and sweet to ease some of your bitterness." Jen laughed again, and I quickly stood, my anger soaring again. I'll show him bitter.

"Don't blow a gasket. I think he likes you..." Jen wriggled her eyebrows in a strange motion.

My traitorous heart skipped a beat, but I ignored the stupid muscle in my chest. Once again, I changed the subject. Kohl was the last thing I wanted to speak about this morning.

"These are not my clothes?" I walked over to the bed and touched the soft black material of the clothes Jen had placed on the bed.

"I just do as I'm told; by the way, what is your name?"

"Icelyn."

"Figures the Winter Realm Princess would have an awesome name like Icelyn." She winked at me again, and I smiled back at her this time.

"See, you can smile, but be careful with that smile, Icelyn. If Kohl sees it, he will fall for you for sure."

"Then I guess I will never smile around him," I said as I inspected the clothes closer.

They were exceptionally soft and much thinner than the furlined clothes I owned from my land.

I slipped on the thin flowy pants that hit my lower waist perfectly and pulled on the blacktop made of the same material. I held still as Jen pulled the ties of the shirt tight, securing it in place. The shirt came to the smallest part of my waist, exposing my midsection between the pants and the shirt.

"I feel awkward showing so much skin. We didn't dress like this in the Winter Realm," I admitted to Jen, who gave me the once-over.

"I imagine, but it looks great on you." She motioned towards a black mirror, and I looked at my reflection.

It doesn't look so bad; I just needed to get used to it. A dark silhouette quickly moved across the mirror, catching my eye, and I gasped and stepped back. My eyes swept over the entire mirror, trying to make sense of what I saw.

"What?" Jen came alongside me and looked at our reflection in the mirror.

"I thought I saw something in the mirror move." I peered closer at the mirror and put my hand on the smooth surface.

"I don't see anything. Geez, it was probably me moving in the background. You're kinda flighty for a fae." She laughed and motioned for me to follow her out the door.

I stared at the mirror one last time but saw nothing amiss. I guess I was going crazy. I needed to get a grip on myself. This was my life now; better get used to it.