Ever After (Unfinished Fairy Tales #3)(73)
“The only ridiculous thing is you, a newlywed woman, asking me to consider you as a consort.”
She looks stricken, as though I have slapped her on the face. Immediately I feel contrite; after all, she is not much older than the young girl I used to teach lessons on gardening. I open my mouth to apologize, but she holds up her hand.
“Very well, then. If that is what you insist, then I will honor your choice. Goodbye, Your Highness.”
She quits the greenhouse, and while I have a certain sense of relief, my heart aches for Kat. I have not yet announced my attention to marry her, and already everyone is treating her with such hostility. But I cannot change the fact that people have deeply-rooted beliefs of endogamy. How am I able to convince others of Kat’s merits, when her ideals differ so much from theirs? How am I to explain she did not seduce me while I was married to another? How am I to convince everyone that a princess need not have a title to her name?
35
Kat
I close my book, stretch my arms and yawn. Tonight Edward isn’t home. He usually dines with me every evening, and we always make the most of it, since we have to retire to our own rooms afterwards (he’s still adamant we can’t sleep together before re-marriage. Grr.). But as he has to attend Lillie’s wedding, I have to face an empty table. I had considered inviting Amelie and Bertram to dine with me, but to be honest, they cannot view me in the same way as Elle and Poppy. Even if I prefer that they see me as a friend, rather than a mistress, it doesn’t work that ideally.
Besides, Bertram would be much more at ease in the kitchen than in the dining room. It is for that reason that sometimes I order them not to prepare dinner. Instead, I roll up my sleeves and ask Amelie to help me in the kitchen. Dinner doesn’t have to be a fancy, elaborate affair. And it’s much more fun chatting and laughing with them, rather than sitting and waiting in my room. To be honest, I would prefer to live here with Edward, even after we’re married. Here I can enjoy a sense of freedom that is not afforded at the palace.
I sigh and head to the dresser. There is no sense in waiting for Edward, since we don’t share the same bedroom. I loosen the ribbons and fluff out my hair with a brush. There is one advantage of being single: I’m not required to wear my hair up, so I don’t have to worry about hair pins sticking into my scalp.
While life is far from unpleasant, there’s a sense of uneasiness in it. Like, the future remains uncertain. High Court is unlikely to grant Edward a divorce, and there's also the problem of the Royal Marriages Act. I am yet uncertain how the king and queen will think about me. Maybe the queen will be more understanding, but I’m sure that the king isn’t happy because Edward behaved in a scandalous manner, moving out and deserting his lawful wife. And I’m uneasy about what I saw in the city square that day, about Liam and his impassioned speech. Life in Athelia is more turbulent than the stability I enjoy in my own world. But it is a choice I would make every time. Being with Edward is worth everything.
There is a popping sound in the room. A sound that I haven’t heard of for a very long time. Krev hovers in the air, his wings flapping, and his large yellow eyes fixed on me with a solemn expression that is a stark contrast from when I first met him. Can this be the mischievous, fun-loving goblin I once knew?
“Hello, girlie,” he says, flying closer. “How are you doing now?”
“Way better since I got out of prison.”
His voice rises in a shriek. “You ended up in jail? What for?”
I tell him how I got caught by Bianca, and he shakes his head. “Glad that Eddie got you out in the end. Good thing he fell in love with you, or your life in this world would be much tougher.”
I can’t agree more. “How is Pippi doing? Is she okay?”
“She’s doing penance.” Krev lets out a sigh. “That’s part of the reason I came to check up on you. You see, Barthelius has decided that your coming here was a complete disaster that should be avoided in the future. Therefore, Pippi is trying to find all the remaining books in your world and destroy them, so that no one will come to Athelia again.”
Mom. Paige. This means I won’t be able to see them again. Okay, so I knew this was going to happen, but still...to hear that it’s absolute and irreversible, sadness overwhelms me all the same.
“So basically what you’re saying is that I can never return.”
He shrugs. “We did warn you, girlie, before you decided to leave your own world. You chose Edward.”
I look down on the ground. “I know. Besides, even if you didn’t think it necessary to destroy the passages and books, I won’t be able to survive in my own world, since I can’t breathe oxygen anymore.”
“Let’s just say that you’re like a mermaid from that weird story you humans created.” Krev sits cross-legged on the blanket. “You cannot survive on land. Just like you cannot live in both worlds.”
I prefer not to talk about this depressing subject anymore. He’s right. I have only one option; it must be either Edward or my family.
“How is it going on in your world ? How is the rebuilding process progressing so far?”
This time Krev gives me a toothy grin. “We’re recovering faster than expected. The fairies have been a great help. Without them, we couldn’t have improved so quickly. When our world is completely rebuilt, I’ll come and see you again.”