Chapter 18

  With an afternoon of exercise and practice ahead of me, I retired to my closet to change while briefing Ken on my meeting with Ms. Rhodes. I briefly described our lunch as I changed, telling Ken everything she'd told me about herself and the UNSDI.

  When I emerged, now wearing a pair of black spandex leggings and a matching short-sleeved spandex shirt, he said, "I agree that all sounds very encouraging. Ms. Rhodes sounds like an interesting young woman, and the modern UNSDI sounds like a good organization to be aligned with. I would encourage you to foster both relationships."

  Penny, sprawled on the end of my bed in her natural form, said, "I have some concerns about the amount of influence the Sidhe might have over her. It sounds like she was raised by one."

  "Who she always spoke of in the past tense," Sparkle said quietly, human-sized and perched on the edge of the bed. She kicked her feet a little as she spoke, displaying her usual mix of innocence and uncommon perceptiveness as she continued, "I don't think we have much to worry about there. She said her godmother was a powerful Wyldfae…there aren't a lot of Sidhe who fit that bill. I bet some discrete questions in Faerie could find out who she was, especially if she died in the last few years. Sidhe who aren't aligned with one court or the other are rare…ones who've died recently are even more rare."

  "A worthwhile line of inquiry," Ken agreed. "But one to be pursued with caution. Information like that usually has a cost."

  "Duly noted," I said, sitting on the window bench to pull on ankle socks and a pair of trailers. "Anyway, I invited Jessie to visit Oakwood, to have dinner at the Oak & Ivy. I can introduce her to D.T., show her around town a little, and get to know her a bit better."

  Ken nodded. "A very good idea."

  "What do you think of the UNSDI's idea," I asked as I tied the laces on my trainers, "about resettling…how did she put it…'People of a supernatural persuasion' here in Oakwood?"

  "I don't think it's a terrible idea," Ken said thoughtfully. "Though it goes without saying that you and Ms. Rhodes will need to discuss the matter with the Oakwood town council first. It's only polite." He hesitated, then smiled wryly and added, "Or at least the members who are savvy to the supernatural world, since I don't know that all of them are these days."

  "Add that to the to do list," I said. "It's turning into a tome. So, what do we do with the rest of the day?" I rose and bounced on my toes a little.

  "We," Ken said, "are going to work on your fencing for an hour. Then you need to have a meeting with Spice and Shine. They were in a little while ago, fretting about running out of space in the clearing."

  "Oh my," I said, wondering what I could possibly do about that. "Well, let's get to it then."

  After the stated hour of fencing practice - during which Ken only usually had me on my heels, which was an improvement - I hit the shower and disappeared into my closet. For someone who'd spent most of my school years dressed in what could generally be referred to as "drab business casual," I now found my closet equally populated with both dressier and more relaxed clothing. I took that as a good sign as well…I was growing as a person, and that pleased me.

  I'd quite liked the way D.T. had looked at me when dressed casually the day before…

  Had it really only been the day before? I was having a very busy week.

  …So I wriggled back into a pair of comfortable black leggings, pulled a pair of tight denim shorts on over them, and tucked a pale green short-sleeved henley into the shorts. It was, I thought, I step up from a t-shirt, while still being casual and comfortable.

  And, I had to admit, looking at my reflection in the full-length mirror on the back of the closet door, it was kind of sexy.

  I blinked a couple of times. That was nearly an alien thought to me…not just wanting to look attractive, but also feeling attractive.

  Which was, I thought wryly, probably something I should talk to a therapist about. Or, rather, Dara, since she was the closest thing to a therapist who wouldn't just lock me up. Alternately, Jessie had mentioned having a therapist a couple of times…perhaps the UNSDI would be willing to let me use one of theirs.

  I made a mental note to ask her, once I knew her and the UNSDI a bit better. Then I gave my head a shake to clear it, pulled on a pair of white ankle socks and my green trainers, and stepped out of the closet.

  Sparkle and Penny were already sitting on the long padded bench that ran below my bedroom windows, looking out into the beautiful sun-drenched field. As I approached, Sparkle stopped petting Penny and shrank back down to her normal size, and they both shifted aside so I could step up on the bench, open the tall door-like window pane, and step out into the field beyond.

  It was, as always, a lovely summer day out there, and I took a moment to bask in the warm sunlight. Then I turned right, walked the few steps to the end of my bedroom windows where they floated, unsupported by anything, in the middle of the clearing, and sank to my knees in front of Spice and Shine's home.

  They were, as usual, lounging on their rooftop platform, dressed in their usual color-coded clothes, though the outfits were ones I hadn't seen before…Spice in bright red shorts and a cropped top, and Shine in a frilly silver dress similar to what Sparkle usually wore. As I knelt, they rose and buzzed around me cheerfully once before alighting on their deck again and curtsying. Penny sat down beside me, and Sparkle fluttered over to land by Spice and Shine.

  "We welcome you, Lady Reid," Spice said graciously, then smiled. "That's enough formalities. Ken told you we needed to talk to you?"

  I nodded, resting my hands on my knees and smiling back at them. "Yes indeed. What can I do for you?"

  Spice sighed and sat down on the edge of one of their chaise lounges. After a moment, Shine sat down beside her and took one of her hands.

  "Honestly, we're not really sure," Spice said. "That's part of the problem. See, we're running out of room."

  Shine nodded and gestured behind them, at the fairy village that had, in the past four months, energetically sprung up to fill most of the half of the clearing that was behind my bedroom windows. It was really quite impressive, and very beautiful, if wildly eclectic in design, shape, and intent. Even now, out at the edges of it, I saw a new row of mushroom houses - literally, houses carved into giant mushrooms - that hadn't been there just the day before.

  "I can see that," I said with a nod. "I assume you've approved them all?"

  Spice nodded quickly. "Of course, Caley! Shine and I have personally spoken to and gotten oaths of loyalty from each and every one of them. But recently, we've been getting more than just fairies." She threw her hands in the air. "Just this morning, four gnome families who are kin to those you helped out in Oakwood yesterday showed up looking for sanctuary. Those're the mushroom houses that've just gone up. We took in a family of brownies, three Will O' Wisps, a couple of salamanders…" she pointed away towards the edge of the clearing, where I saw a small bonfire burning cheerily, "and are going to be listening to a petition for sanctuary from a nymph, of all beings, this evening."

  Shine put a hand over her eyes and shook her head.

  Penny groaned a little. "I've watched wizards try to treat with nymphs. Be cautious. They can be powerful allies, but tricky to deal with."

  Spice nodded tiredly. "Thank you, Penny, we know. I don't think we're going to take her in either way. She was a little too eager during our initial conversation, if you know what I mean."

  "You think she's a spy?" Penny asked, ears perking straight up and the fur on her tails bristling.

  Spice shrugged. Shine nodded. Spice sighed gustily. "We're not sure yet. But even if she's not, she's still a nymph. They're fun to have around, but they can be very disruptive of a community."

  "But you said you were having them swear allegiance to the Hall?" Sparkle asked, very seriously.

  Spice bounced to her feet, nodding. "Oh yes, of course. We wouldn't allow them to live within the wards if they didn't do that. Everyone who comes to live in the clearing must be part of the Fairies of Oakwood Hall clan."

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  Shine tugged on Spice's shorts. Spice nodded. "Which is the other other problem." She started pacing, gesturing wildly with her hands as she spoke. "We're the Fairies of Oakwood Hall, as you named us when we became your vassals. But the gnomes and brownies and especially the salamanders and a nymph…they're not fairies!" She stopped and looked up at me. "And of course they don't want to be called fairies." She spread her hands. "You see the problem!"

  I smiled and nodded. "I do. What do you suggest?"

  "Claim this land," Spice said firmly. "Not just as a gift to your family for some service rendered that nobody remembers now, but as your family land." She pointed straight down. "Claim it as yours, and name it."

  Penny huffed a little sound that was half laugh, half snort. "If it was that easy to form a demense in the Spirit World, mortal spellcasters would have been doing it for centuries."

  Sparkle had her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide, staring at Spice. Something had obviously clicked for her that hadn't for me and Penny.

  Shine bounced to her feet and caught one of Spice's hands in hers, tugging on it. Spice met her eyes, and after a moment she nodded. "Shine's right, I'm saying this wrong." She looked up at me again. "The Lord of the Seelie Court has made you an open offer, a boon for a service." She gestured around her with her free hand. "Make this your boon. Find a way to claim more land than you have now, give it a proper name, and then all the clans that come to live here in peace together under your banner can be properly named."

  Shock rolled over me, and when I looked at Penny, I found her looking back at me, a matching expression of surprise on her vulpine face. I looked at Sparkle, who looked a little dazed. "Can I even do that?"

  Sparkle nodded. "I…I think so? Land for favors is an old and respected custom among the Sidhe. A lot of lesser Sidhe lords got their start that way. We might want to ask Margrave to be certain."

  "Assuming we can reach him," I said, remembering that he'd been unavailable the other day. "At the very least, we should bring it up with Ken." Then I gave my head a little shake and smiled at Spice and Shine. "Why don't you show me how things have grown in the meantime. Maybe introduce me to a few of the new residents."

  All three fairies immediately fluttered up off the platform, Sparkle landing on my right shoulder, while Spice and Shine hovered patiently as I rose and stretched. "Lead the way, my friends," I said cheerfully.

  I was introduced to the family of brownies who had moved in, now busily building a long, low, multi-generational home out of wood and stone not far from the giant mushrooms the gnomes had raised. They were, it turned out, cobblers by trade, and promised to restore to pristine condition any damaged shoes I had, or to make any kind of footwear I could imagine.

  The gnomes next door were, conveniently, dressmakers of exceptional talent, as well as healers. They had made, I learned, the outfits that Spice and Shine were wearing now, and when I expressed my appreciation they offered to make me a fairy gown of my very own.

  "We would," the clan matriarch, a very elderly, white-haired gnome, "be honored to make any clothing you wished, Lady Reid. Your generosity in providing us sanctuary and friendly neighbors is a gift beyond our ability to repay."

  As I walked the edge of the clearing, Spice and Shine now sitting on my left shoulder opposite Sparkle, and Penny padding along beside me, I quietly asked, "Are things so bad out the Spirit World? What's driven all of these people to seek sanctuary under Oakwood Hall's protection?"

  Spice sighed from the vicinity of my left ear, and replied just as softly. "I mean…the Otherworld isn't exactly a safe place as a general rule, and Faerie - the Spirit World, whatever you want to call it - is more dangerous than some. Less dangerous than others. Some of it is the natural cycle of the year. We're approaching the Autumnal Equinox, when the Seelie and Unseelie Courts are in perfect balance for one of only two days during the year. Things always get a little tense this time of year." She was silent for a moment, then added, almost reluctantly, "But…it has been worse lately."

  "Since about two years ago, I'd warrant," Penny said.

  "Maybe?" Spice asked. "Until Caley returned to the Hall and claimed us, none of us paid much mind to the passage of time."

  That fit, I thought, and remembered what Ken had told me about how fairies experience time differently than mortals. I remembered too the way Sparkle had thought I was my mother at first, having no concept of how many years had past since she'd last seen my mom.

  "What happened two years ago?" I asked.

  "Several things," Penny said, "all at once." She growled quietly. "But the collar von Einhardt trapped me with didn't just keep me…docile and submissive to him…it also kept me from speaking, and to some extent kept me from understanding a lot of what was said around me, unless it was said directly to me. It was extremely frustrating and frightening…and as a result, I don't always know a lot about what was happening around me. But I watched. I watched very carefully indeed."

  We stopped, and Penny sat down, frowning. It wasn't a natural look for a fox, making her angular face rather unsettlingly angry. "I saw von Einhardt talking to other ICOA wizards about a number of events that had happened around the world."

  I nodded slowly. "If we showed you a map of the world, could you pinpoint the places you saw them pointing out?"

  Penny lifted her chin proudly. "I would do my best, Caley. My memory isn't quite as good as yours, of course, but it is excellent."

  "Let's do that after dinner tonight," I said. "Maybe we can learn something interesting."

  There was a rustling in the woods out beyond the fairy ring and my ward line. In an instant, Penny and all three fairies were between me and the woods, so quickly that I didn't see or feel any of them move.

  A moment later, something crashed through the brush low to the ground, and a shadowy form emerged the woods. It resolved, as it came into the bright sunlight, into a dusk fox, not unlike Penny. Its fur - visibly matted and wet in several places - was the same raven-black as hers, with dark red at the tips of its ears, paws, tails, and down its chest, instead of Penny's dark blue markings.

  Penny gasped. "Brother?"

  Squinting in the light, the dusk fox took an unsteady step to the left and peered first at the sky, then at Penny, then at me. I saw as it moved that its right hind leg was dragging limply instead of providing any support. The dark wet patches on its fur glistened redly.

  Blood. It was hurt.

  And there was a leather collar wrapped around its neck.

  It whined deep in its throat, took a stumbling, unsteady step forward, and collapsed onto its side. Its breath came raggedly, little whines escaping it as it lay there, trembling.

  I was not about to let an injured dusk fox die while I was standing less than ten yards away. But first, I had to reach down and quickly catch Penny by the scruff of her neck before she could run to her kin. "Sparkle, back to the Hall, bring a first aid kit out. Spice, Shine, organize some help and set up something for it to lie on. Penny, into your human form and help me -"

  I stopped as Shine shot off into the village, a silver streak that I could barely follow, she was moving so fast.

  "It's okay," Sparkle said, "you and Penny should stay back, we'll get him inside the wards and start treating his injuries." She turned to look at me and smiled reassuringly. "Fairy magic will work better than mortal bandages."

  I decided not to argue, just nodded and pulled Penny back a few steps. She resisted a little, but not much, instead just asking hopefully, "You're going to help him?"

  "I'm going to try, Penny," I said earnestly.

  A dozen fairies zoomed past us, gathered around the injured dusk fox, and…

  I'm just gonna say it. They started sprinkling fairy dust all over the dusk fox. Seriously…thousands of tiny glowing motes drifted down from them, landing on the dusk fox. Then he lifted slowly and gently off the ground and drifted over my ward line - since I'd ordered him brought within, that was good enough for their magic to allow him through - and across the fairy circle.

  They laid him back down within, and suddenly there were more fairies around him, two male gnomes - one elderly, one younger - hurried past me with bags and bandages, and Spice and Shine returned to hover beside Sparkle nearby. But before any of them could go to work on the poor thing, his body spasmed and he growled, snapping at a fairy who'd gotten too close to his muzzle.

  "The collar!" I said, hurrying forward. "Hold him still!"

  More fairy dust settled on the dusk fox, gently pinning him to the ground. He whined and whimpered weakly as I dropped to my knees in front of him, bending and looking into his eyes. "It's okay," I said quietly, "I'm going to get that thing off you, and then we're going to help you get better."

  I felt Penny hunker down beside me to be at eye level with the other dusk fox. "She will," she said with absolute certainty, "and they will. Focus on me, brother."

  His eyes moved to her and stayed there.

  "Good," I said softly. "This may take a minute, but it won't hurt at all, I promise."

  To be honest, I'd been half expecting to have to deal with one or more of these collars again. I was making plans to fight - through legal channels - the ICOA's enslavement of these dusk foxes. Part of that, to me, meant having a way to free them if I ran across them out in the world.

  Ice and force magic had worked on Penny's collar, but it had both hurt her a bit and completely destroyed the collar and its magic. And I wanted to learn something about both.

  So Ken and I had worked out a more surgical approach to removing one of these collars.

  I leaned in and got a good look at the thing first. It was made of supple leather covered with tiny runes, and had no visible buckle or any other closure…it appeared to be a single seamless piece of leather wrapped around the dusk fox's neck. That was interesting…it obviously had to be put on with magic, not just enchanted.

  I held my left hand out over it, spreading my fingers and closing my eyes. I stretched out with my magical senses and tried to get a feel for the collar's construction…which felt shockingly simple to me. It was just layer upon layer of compulsion spells that took me a minute to sort through and discard for later study, assuming I didn't destroy them completely removing the horrid thing, because I'd expected all of that.

  What I didn't find surprised me. I didn't find anything strengthening or reinforcing the leather. Neither did I find any traps woven into the enchantments.

  "Are they really that arrogant?" I asked nobody in particular, drawing strange looks from several of the fairies, including Sparkle, Spice, and Shine.

  The elderly gnome, in a brown coat pointed red cap, blue trousers, and brown boots, looked up at me. "My Lady?"

  I smiled and shook my head. "Thinking out loud."

  He returned my smile warmly. "I do the same thing. Can you free him so we can treat his wounds?"

  I nodded. "Without much trouble, I think. I was expecting it to be harder, to be honest." With that, I sat back on my heels, silently envisioned what I wanted my spell to do, and cast it with a quick series of sign language gestures.

  The spell did two things at once. First, it lifted the collar up just enough for the second part - a pair of shears made of invisible force - to slide in. I held my hands in front of me, palm to palm but a few inches apart, and slowly began moving them toward one another.

  The invisible shears began closing on and slowly slicing through the leather collar.

  I concentrated and didn't rush my work, cutting the leather a little bit at a time, not wanting to go too fast in case there was something I'd missed while examining the enchantments on it. Maybe that was why I didn't notice what was going on at the forest's edge until a young man's voice shouted, "Stop that right now!"