*A little while earlier.*

  “Thanks again for coming with me, Hyacinth.” I smiled at Arden’s aunt.

  Despite it being her day off, she’d been the one who’d brought in my breakfast, and we’d decided to leave for the palace by eight, which we’d done easily, given neither of us took very long to get ready.

  “It’s no problem!” she assured me.

  “I know it’s your day off, there were probably a whole slew of other things you could do, but I’m grateful you were willing to keep me company.”

  “Nonsense! You’re my niece. Or all but my niece.” The pretty faun smiled beamed at me from across the library. “I can’t imagine a better way to spend my day off than with you. Have you found anything that looks good?”

  “Yeah!” I lifted the two books I’d put in my lap.

  “Ooh! What are they about?” she came over to see my choices.”

  “This one is about a detective who has a close friend that’s a doctor that helps him solve cases, which sounds fun, and this one is about a bunch of talking animals that live in a stone abbey.”

  “They’re very different from one another, but both sound good.” She nodded approvingly.

  “What did you find?” I asked, nodding at the book she held.

  Hyacinth giggled like a school girl, “A sappy romance!”

  “Let me read it after you!” I grinned at her.

  “We can just swap off books!” she nodded.

  “Well, when we both have such good taste in them, why not?”

  “Exactly!” Hyacinth smiled. Or she would have, but exactly at that moment, the door to the library burst open, and several people pushed their way in, looking around wildly.

  “Is he in here? Do you see him?” one of the group looked around. He was an elf of some kind.

  There was a redcap and a centaur in the group as well.

  “Can we help you?” I asked, staring at them. Not that I could have helped at all, since I had no clue what was going on, but this was a library, and libraries were for reading, not being loud and demanding if someone was there.

  “Hey…You’re one of them sisters who run that inn!” the redcap advanced towards us, smiling in a way I didn’t like the looks of.

  “Yes, I am.” Hyacinth said slowly, watching them warily as well.

  “Then you’re one of the filthy bitches who spied and put a stop to our cause last time!” the elf, a woman, shrieked.

  “Oh gods…” Hyacinth whispered.

  “That’s right! Say your prayers!” the third, the centaur, laughed cruelly. “We didn’t find the king, but we found someone else worth putting an end to!”

  “Cause you’ll be paying for what you did!” The redcap lunged at Hyacinth, a knife flashing in his hand.

  I wasn’t a fighter, and neither was Arden’s sweet-natured aunt. My tail was strong, but practically speaking, it was useless, at least at that moment.

  But my voice wasn’t, and these rebels, that had to be who these intruders were, just based on what they’d said, weren’t Bellows. They didn’t know what I could do, and certainly wouldn't have any means of protecting themselves against that.

  As Hyacinth struggled with her attacker, I filled my voice with magic and started to sing, wrapping it quickly around the three rebels who’d intruded on us. I sang of the same thing I’d sung to the boys who’d jeered at me back before I’d met Arden. Terror. Misery. Everything they feared the most flooded their minds and trapped them there.

  Soon, they were writhing and whimpering on the floor.

  “Oh gods!” Hyacinth gasped, picking herself up off the floor.

  “Are you alright?” I asked, wheeling myself over to her and helped her up. The poor faun was visibly trembling from the shock of being attacked so suddenly.

  “I-I am, luckily. I’m not much of a fighter, but I know a little.” Hyacinth put a hand to her forehead. Looking out at the incapacitated attackers, she muttered, “Arden wasn’t lying when he said your voice was powerful.”

  “No, I guess he wasn’t.” I shrugged, then told her, “We should get the hell out of here.” I told her, wheeling myself towards the door.

  “Wait!” my companion exclaimed, and I paused, “They were looking for someone. I…suspect they’re trying to find Asher, to…well, y’know. Do what rebels always want to do to the leader they don’t like.”

  “Damn. You’re right.” I sighed, chewing my lip, trying to fight the anxiety that was starting to fill me. Up until that moment, I'd been more preoccupied with saving our skins rather than what the rebels would be after. “I guess we should try to find Arden, huh? If we find him, maybe there’ll be some way we can help keep Asher safe. I know you can’t fight, but anything we can do is better than nothing, and between you and my voice, we might be able to do a lot.”

  “And there’s every chance that Asher is already with him. An attack on the palace wouldn't be a secret for very long, and I’m sure he’d seek out Arden, since Lear’s squad is the best at what they do. Reinforcements are probably already on the way as well, but if Asher dies before that happens…it’ll be bad. Very bad.” Hyacinth shuddered at the thought.

  “Right. We should go.” I nodded. If that was the case, then time was of the essence.

  “But where? We don't know where anyone is…”

  “Well…maybe back to his office? We should at least check there and see, and it’s not far from here. If he’s not there, we can figure something else out.”

  “Alright.” the lovely faun nodded as we left the library. “Here, let me push you, we can go faster, that way.”

  “Good point.” I nodded, letting her take over.

  Hyacinth was soon pushing me down the hallway as quickly as the wheels of my chair would allow.

  We hadn’t gone very far when we rounded a corner, and Hyacinth stopped short.

  It was a somewhat grisly, frightening scene. Bodies littered the floor, and a group of fey folk were still on their feet and fighting.

  I saw a familiar flash of white hair, and gasped, “Arden!”

  His golden eyes flickered to me. Another pair of eyes that looked almost identical to his turned to me as well. His opponent looked a good deal like him, but was slightly shorter, and had blonde hair.

  “Kirven.” Hyacinth hissed, taking a step back, expression full of hatred and fear.

  Arden’s father paused in his onslaught of Arden to cackle, “Looking good, Hyacinth! Once I’m done with this pitiful weakling and his stupid king, I’ll deal with you!”

  Asher was slumped on the ground, unconscious, given Kirven’s words, just a pace or so away. A guard I didn’t recognize was doing his best to defend the king’s other side as Arden did the same, despite blood spilling down from a cut on his face as he tried to fend off his own father, who had a knife, while he was desperately wielding a broken piece of metal.

  “Marri!” Arden gasped, “Sing!”

  Kirven cackled, “Siren song can’t stop this!” his blade was flashing through the air, down towards Arden’s exposed neck.

  Suddenly, the full power of my magic was in my voice, as I screamed “STOP!” at the top of my lungs, directly at Kirven. The elf froze.

  Arden didn’t waste a moment to see how long my command would hold. The soldier’s hands shot up, grasped his attacker’s head, and twisted neatly to the side.

  There was a sharp, snapping noise, and Kirven fell to the ground, dead.

  The rest of the rebels paused for a moment, allowing the guard to get better footing, and toss some of them back.

  Seeing that Kirven was now dead, the remaining rebels roared in fury and threw themselves back into the fight with a renewed frenzy.

  “Marri, sing and don’t stop!” Arden screamed as they converged on him at once, but I was already ahead of him, weaving the same terrifying song that I’d used in the library to trap the attackers with their greatest fears as quickly as I could manage.

  I’d never used it on so many people though, so it took a little while longer than I’d have liked to take effect. But one by one, the rebels started to fall, writhing in fear and terror, leaving only Arden, the guard, and Hyacinth still standing.

  “Bloody hell.” the guard murmured, staring at me, seeming a little stunned as I let my voice fade.

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  Now that the rebels were all out, Arden spun and rolled Asher over to check on him. Hyacinth darted forward to help him.

  “Is he okay?”

  “Yes, just knocked out. Took a hard blow to the head, but he’ll be okay. Probably just a nasty concussion.” Arden muttered as they propped the king up against the wall.

  “We should get him out of here. We could go to the inn, at least for a little while. Do you think it’d be safe there?” Hyacinth asked, voice full of concern.

  “I don't know. It’s well-known that you three helped bring them down last time.” Arden sighed, rubbing his face, and was quiet for a few moments. “No, it’s better to keep him with us, I think. Marri can sing again whenever, need be, and as long as me and Pirva and you are still alright, Hyacinth, I think we’d be able to keep them away long enough for Marri’s magic to take effect.”

  “I’m happy to sing at need.” I nodded.

  “There you are!” a voice gasped, and Meadowbell flew up. “Oh gods! Is Asher okay?”

  “Yes, thanks to Marri.” Arden rubbed his eyes, looking exhausted. He motioned between me and the pixie, “Marri, Meadowbell, Meadowbell, Marri.”

  “Nice to meet you.” the pixie said as we nodded briefly in greeting, then looked back to Arden, “What’s the plan?”

  “I think it’s best if we use Marri’s voice and end this rebellion as quickly as we can. The more of the rebels that she can incapacitate while they’re still here, the better.”

  I thought for a moment. “I…I think I can project my voice for quite a distance.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes, I can make it louder magically. I did it for my performances, so everyone could hear. I know I can go louder and make my voice carry further than I did for the big-top. I’ve just never needed to try it before.”

  “Do you have to see the people you need to sing to?”

  “I don't think so.” I said slowly, turning the question over in my mind, “It’s magic still, right? It’ll follow what rules I give it. If I want it to target the rebels, it’ll do that. They just have to be able to hear it.”

  “Then do it.” Arden nodded.

  “Alright, plug your ears, folks, it’s gonna get loud.” I said, smiling a little grimly, pushing more magic into my voice.

  -

  “I think that’s the last of them.” Arden sighed, tightening the enchanted bindings around the rebel in question’s wrists and ankles. They’d had to bust into the palace guards’ supplies to get those enchanted restraints, but Marri’s magic had done its job very well, and as of yet, still hadn’t worn off.

  “I can’t believe she was able to blanket the entire palace with her voice.” Pirva shook his head, still somewhat in disbelief.

  “Well, it was a task, and we did have to move her around a little to make sure we got everywhere. And she did wind up straining her vocal chords, so she’ll not be able to do it again soon, but she shouldn’t have to.” the half-elf muttered.

  “I can’t believe it was Draka who was the informant. I know we didn't see eye-to-eye on some things, but I did trust him.” Asher muttered. He was a bit dizzy, but had still insisted on helping restrain the rebels once he’d woken.

  The palace was littered with the writhing rebels, and once their reinforcements had arrived, thanks to Meadowbell’s messengers, it had gone much more swiftly.

  Indeed, most of the rebels had passed out from the fear and terror by the time they’d gotten around to them, which made it easier because it meant they weren’t jerking and writhing in fear.

  They’d stumbled upon Draka, included in Marri’s magically-induced visions of terror, since, as an important informant, he was a rebel too. That had been an unexpected, but not unwelcome, side effect of her singing, that the mole within the palace had been unmasked.

  Once the craziness was over, and they could start interrogating the captured rebels, they’d need to figure out if Draka had been involved with the first rebellion. There was every chance he had been.

  “You should give that girl a title, Asher.” Meadowbell told the king as they started to make their way back through the palace, heading for the squad’s office, where Marri and Hyacinth were now resting.

  “I absolutely will. And a big promotion for you, Pirva. You kept your cool admirably, despite the danger.”

  Pirva grimaced. “I only kept my head because you two did.”

  “You still did well though.”

  “Thank you, sire.” the guard bobbed his head humbly.

  “I’d offer you a title, Arden, but you’ve said no to one several times now.” Asher smiled wryly, “But you can have one, if you like, Meadowbell.”

  “Oh, I don’t deserve one.” the pixie shook her head. “I didn’t fight dozens of rebels, then take down one of the main leaders. I just kept out of the way until I found you, and it was basically too late for me to do much, by then.”

  “The only reason I was able to kill Kirven was because of Marri. I was about to die, he had a knife practically to my throat.” Arden sighed.

  A military squad hustled by, dragging as many restrained rebels as they could manage with them.

  They walked the rest of the way to the office in relative silence.

  “Did you get them all?” Hyacinth asked eagerly as they entered.

  “Yeah.”

  “Good.” Marri rasped, then grimaced and took a sip of tea.

  The kitchens had been left mostly untouched by the rebels, as they’d found out. Apparently the kitchen staff were pretty skilled in wielding their skillet, rolling pins, and various knives. Indeed, they had successfully driven the rebels back, and were holding them off without too much effort when Marri’s song had dropped the attackers like flies.

  Asher would probably give them significant raises, which would be well-deserved.

  All that to say, when they’d sent for tea for Marri and Hyacinth, they’d been able to get it as quickly as ever, such was the efficiency and skill of the royal kitchens, pride of the palace.

  Arden went over and sat beside the hoarse mermaid, slipping an arm around her and pulling her against him, leaning down to set his forehead on her shoulder for a minute. “You saved all of our lives.”

  “Well, you’ve saved my life a couple times now. We’ll call it even.” Marri snorted, her poor voice tired. She grimaced and drank more tea.

  “Is your throat okay?”

  “Yeah. Just resting.” she nodded.

  “Alright. We can see a doctor if you need to.”

  “Should be fine. Will let you know if not.” she shook her head slightly.

  “Okay.”

  Asher sat down in an armchair, and Meadowbell settled on his armrest. Pirva remained standing, looking uncertain.

  “Have a seat. You’ve deserved it.” Meadowbell told him, smiling kindly.

  “Thank you.”

  Arden lifted his head, but kept his Marri close, offering, “I’ll see if Lear is interested in having you trained for our squad, if you like.”

  Pirva flushed, “Thank you, sir, but I’ve a family and I’d rather stay close to home.”

  “Of course.” Arden nodded.

  Silence fell for a little while.

  Asher finally sighed, leaning forward and helping himself to some tea and treats from the lavish tea tray the kitchens had sent for their conquering mermaid hero. As he settled back in his seat, he muttered, “Damn it all to hell, what am I gonna tell my husband? And Lear? He’s not gonna be happy.”

  “Neither of them are going to be.” Hyacinth giggled a little hysterically.

  “I’d say Lear only has himself to blame, but he had a good reason for wanting to go. Up until yesterday, we couldn't turn anything up. There were vague whisperings here and there, but nothing more.” Meadowbell shook her head.

  “I don’t blame him for wanting to go, either. As much as I wanted him to stay.” Asher told them, “Given that my butler proved to be a traitor, I suspect he told them to hold off on anything while Lear was here, given Lear’s combat abilities, so things quieted down. Then Lear left suddenly, and they had to scramble to get it together, but by then Arden was back.”

  “I’m not nearly as much of a threat as Lear, either.” Arden snorted, “So they went ahead.”

  “I don't know…given your role in stopping the last rebellion, I think they’d have held off longer, but Draka didn’t know you’d come back.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, he never saw you. He was in the breakfast room at first, but you didn’t come in with us. I don't think he ever saw you.”

  “And I know I never saw him.” Arden frowned, then said slowly. “So…there’s a chance that we were only able to put a stop to this due to a fluke? Draka didn’t know I was there, and certainly didn’t know about Marri’s singing magic.”

  “Sometimes that’s just how things work out.”

  “I guess..thank the goddess it did…Meadowbell, had you not called me away to ask about Lear and Winna, the assault might have been paused again, and I’d have not found out anything, probably, and after a little while, Marri and I would have gone on to search for her family. Then they’d have staged their attack and I don’t know what would have happened, without Marri here to stop them.”

  “It’s a moot point, now.” Asher sighed. “Oh, Marri, do you want a title? After what you did here today, you more than deserve it. It’ll come with money and property and stuff too.”

  Marri blinked, then burst into wheezing giggles, but shakes her head.

  “For real? Neither Meadowbell or Arden will accept one either!” Asher was starting to seem a little put-out. “And it’s not the first time either have turned it down!”

  “Arden, sweetie, I think you should do it.” Hyacinth murmured.

  Arden glanced over at his aunt. “What for? I have everything I need already.”

  “First of all, you deserve it. You’ve more than earned it, as has Marri. But secondly, there aren’t many half-fey folks with titles. It would be good for there to be another.”

  Arden blinked, “I…hadn’t thought of that before. I’ll…I’ll think it over.”

  “I don’t want one of my own.” Marri said in her poor, hoarse voice. “But if Arden accepts his, I’ll happily take whatever title that comes with being his wife, if we ever get married.”

  The white-haired half-elf felt his face heat as he studied the woman he loved for a few moments. “You know what? I’ll do it. Marri deserves a title.”

  “Someday.” Marri smiled at him.

  “We could…get…married sooner, I guess.” he stammered, “You…were extremely cool-headed throughout all of this. I…I don’t worry that you’re rushed into this with me, anymore. And I…I’m not my father, you and my aunts are right, and I need to have more faith in myself. But if you kept your head when you were tossed into battle like that, not only do you have nerves of steel, but you also have a good deal of common sense, and make sound judgment calls.”

  Marri brightened. “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.” he murmured, reaching out to brush her hair back, the flush fading from his face. “You’re impressive, Marrina. And I love you.”

  “I love you too.” she nestled her head against his shoulder.

  “So, I guess we’ll be hearing wedding bells soon?” Asher snickered.

  Marri raised her head. “I…I think I’d like to at least try to find my family first.” she looked up at him, “Is that okay?”

  “Of course!”

  “I’d like them to be able to be there when we get married.”

  “I totally understand.” Arden nodded.

  “I wonder if that expert tried to stop by.” Marri said, frowning a little.

  “From what I understand, some rebels had set up a barricade. I’m sure the expert saw that the way was blocked and just went back to wherever they’d come from.”

  “Oh right. Maybe next time I should just try to meet them at the inn.”

  “Gods forbid we don’t get attacked there too.” Hyacinth said in a somewhat dry tone, but was smiling.

  They all burst into slightly hysterical laughter.