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Evelyn rolled her large, green eyes as she shifted the weight of the massive basket of flowers from one hip to the other. For thirteen years, she and her twin, Ewan, had been bound to the Seelie Queen, but that would all change soon. The binding was set to dissolve in twelve days, on their eighteenth birthday, but she had no clue what she would do at that point. She couldn’t very well go back to Ireland… Time passed differently in the mortal realm and there wasn’t an Irish home in a hundred miles that would let her cross the threshold after she’d spent so long in Faerie.
Her options were so limited. She couldn’t remain here in service of the Seelie Court and no mortal in a good state of mind would run to Unseelie Territory.
As bad as the Seelie Fae are, the Unseelie Fae make them pale in comparison. Perhaps I can find a place to settle on the outskirts of Seelie Territory?
Thoughts raced through her mind as the panic began to rise again. She didn’t like her home here, but thanks to the binding, it had been safe for her. As she stepped into the main hallway of the Seelie Queen’s castle a long, platinum strand blew across her face, tangling in her eyelashes. Ignoring the offending strands, Evelyn continued down the hallway with her delivery. She had almost reached her destination when a deep, commanding yell caught her attention.
“Evelyn! Hold up!” boomed the voice of her least favorite Fae. Oakland, the Lord of Wind, glided toward her in unnaturally smooth movements. Oakland’s power radiated from him, electrifying the air in the hallways as he drew nearer.
Being around powerful Sidhe had always been more uncomfortable for Evelyn than it had for her brother, Ewan. Although they had been abducted together, Evelyn had never embraced her role in the Seelie Court like Ewan had. Within weeks of arriving at the castle, Ewan had become a favorite of the Seelie Queen. She doted on him and considered him part of the royal family. Evelyn, on the other hand, had always been treated as a servant. The opinions of the lesser courtiers seemed to mimic those of the Seelie Queen, leaving Evelyn on the outskirts of court life.
Evelyn lowered the basket of flowers to the floor as Oakland circled her to block her path to the doorway.
Evelyn sighed deeply, and prayed to any god who would listen for a bit of patience this morning. “Yes, Lord Skyfall?” she queried suspiciously.
Evelyn never knew whether he was approaching on official business or if he was approaching as Ewan’s best friend, but he always made her nervous. Today, Oakland’s eyes had a dangerous gleam, and Evelyn was quite sure she was in trouble the moment he approached.
“Oak, Evie, not Lord Skyfall. There’s no need for your hostility today, darling. I’ve just a simple question for you,” drawled Oakland, continuing to circle Evelyn. Her spine stiffened, and she wished he’d just leave her alone. Stopping directly in front of her, Oakland slowly and purposefully reached a hand to clear the hair from Evelyn’s eyes. She knew better than to flinch.
“Just ask your question then, Oak,” sneered Evelyn. Of all of Oakland’s moods, this was Evelyn’s least favorite. He was here to cause trouble.
“So be it, Evie. I’ve come for a specific purpose. The Seelie Queen has made an arrangement with her advisors,” began Oakland. “They’ve decided that you can’t remain in Seelie Territory once you are unbound.”
Evelyn’s breath hitched, and the room seemed to be growing darker around her. I have nowhere to go! Ewan won’t even disobey an order from the Queen!
She steadied herself on the cold, stone wall and took a deep breath, narrowing her eyes on Oakland.
“Why did they send you to tell me this? Why not my brother? What’s the catch here?” asked Evelyn, scanning Oakland’s sun-kissed face for signs of deceit. The Seelie couldn’t lie, but that didn’t mean they specifically told the truth, either. They found ways to deceive without lying. Oakland cocked his head to the side and flashed a painfully white smile at Evelyn. He reached down and selected a large, pink Chrysanthemum from Evelyn’s flower basket before answering.
“The catch, Evie, is that you can stay in Seelie Territory on one condition; a high power Fae must bind you in marriage,” Oakland announce triumphantly.
Yep, that’s the catch.
“You know as well as I do that no Fae in his right mind would marry a changeling!” protested Evelyn. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, angling her head toward the vaulted ceiling high above them.
“You’re quite right. No Fae would bind himself to a mortal who will live only a fraction of his immortal existence for your sake alone. Luckily for you, there’s one Fae who acquiesced to Ewan’s pleas to keep you here,” offered Oakland. Evelyn lowered her eyes from the ceiling to the tall Fae in front of her and observed his skeptically.
“And who, exactly, might you be referring to?” enquired Evelyn, her stomach flipping. Oakland stepped into her personal space, settling his hand behind her back and drawing her closer. He leaned in, tickling her ear with his cool breath.
“Me,” he whispered so softly that she thought she might have misheard him. He stepped back and bowed fluidly, extending the chrysanthemum to her. When Evelyn ignored the gesture and moved to turn away, he caught her by the elbow.
“It’s you and me now, darling. Don’t be going too far, our ceremony will take place as soon as your binding to the Queen has been lifted,” demanded Oakland. As he released her and turned on his heel, Evelyn leaned back against the wall.
What could I possibly have done to deserve this? I have to find a way to escape Seelie Territory before the binding.
I began with a Celtic Fairy Tale called, “Brewery of Eggshells,” and really branched out. The original story is a bit shorter, and actually tells the story from the mortal realm, where a mother discovers that her twins are not her children and are instead dwarfs. Instead of re-telling or focusing on what the story gave us, I went a completely different direction. I told the story of one of the twins, Evelyn, and a short snippet of her time in the Faerie Realm in the Seelie Court. In this story, Ewan and Evelyn really lucked out by being taken by Seelie Fae instead of Unseelie Fae. Seelie Fae reside in the spring and summer realm of Faerie and although they are manipulative and deadly, the Seelie Fae tend to be more sympathetic to the human plight. Unseelie Fae, however, are torturous and known to be dark and twisted. Humans finding themselves in the Unseelie Court are much more likely to come to an early, horrendous demise. I thought it would be cool to write about Evelyn’s time in the Seelie Court as it should be coming to a close. She, obviously, experiences a twist though, and you see some classic Faerie manipulation. I’d love to expand this story and see where Evelyn’s journey with Oakland takes her. I think I’d like them to go on some wild adventures and maybe fall in love, but I could also see Oakland wanting to escape the Seelie Court as much as Evelyn wants to. He’ll have a great back story one day and I’d love to see where it takes them.
"Brewery of Eggshells" Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).