10: Darken, DarkHeart

Chapter eighteen: Astraea

Soon, there was a knock at the door, and Aranea opened it to reveal Oberon standing there. He was dressed in simple brown trousers and a white shirt with minimal frill.He also donned a black cloak tailored to accommodate his wings. He had changed his hair from pitch-black to a sandy brown color and transformed his black feathered wings to resemble the leathery ones of dragons.

"Your going as a dragon?" i asked with a laugh, "your missing horns."

"those are a bit harder to make, ill have to be a half dragon." he chuckled. "your going as a human?"

"i am," i answered. 

"you look..." his face went red. "lovely." 

"you dont look too bad yourself." i said as i walked to the door, looking back at my father and servants, their faces all looking worried. "ill be safe, you dont have to worry about me. Robin wont hurt me."

Oberon pulled something from inside his cloak, a small wrapped gift. "this is for you."

"you remembered?" i asked, taking the gift from him. 

"i figured i would be the only one who did." he chuckled nervously. "i know it was normally your mother who reminded your family."

"Alex would always remember on his own." i laughed. "though, that may just be because he shared the day with me."

"open it." Oberon said. 

i opened the small gift wrapped in golden colored paper with a green ribbon. i first tied the ribbon around my wrist as it was a lovely color, and i collected them from my husband every year, they became a tradition after the first year. i then opened the small box to see a simple necklace with a violet gem pendant in a tear shape. 

"Robin...." i lifted it up, "its lovely." 

"not as lovely as you." he took it and put it around my neck. he then held out a hand for me, "shall we?"

i nodded, taking his hand and following his lead. 

As we strolled through the palace halls, we chatted briefly. "Althaeon is bringing Carlisle tonight," I informed him. "He would also like permission to stay for a while. I know he's not a fairy, and you prefer their company, but..."

"I will allow it," he told me. "Once everything is over, the palace will be returned to you. Plus, who am I to deny the birthday girl?"

"thank you." i looked away from his piercing gaze. "is there really no way to change your mind?"

"there is not." he answered. "can we forget about those matters for today and just enjoy ourselves?" 

"hey now." i playfully scolded him. "we are going on some errands you know."

"i am aware." he smiled, pulling my hand up to kiss it, "but i would also like to take this day to spend with my wife, if you will allow it."

"i suppose i can allow it." i said as we entered the courtyard. 

"Good," we halted at the gate where two bee guards bowed and swung it open without halting us. He lifted my chin to meet his gaze. "Besides your errands, I have some plans for us."

"do you?" i asked as we went through the gate and onto the busy streets, heading to the shopping district of the massive city. 

"what is first on your list?" he asked me. 

I drew a list from my sleeve; he knew me all too well—I always had one. "I need some herbs that can help with pregnancy," I said. I noticed the look on his face and quickly added, "Do you really think I would bring you along to purchase something that could harm my child?"

"i suppose your right." he sighed, "lead the way."

as we walked i realized something, "shit." 

"what is the matter dear?" he asked, looking down at me. 

"i left so fast," i explained, "i forgot my wallet, i dont come out often and dont normally carry it."

"its fine." he smiled sweetly at me, making my heart skip a beat. "i will pay for everything today, since its your birthday."

I could feel my face turning red as we walked along, entering the shopping district. The tall stone buildings towered over us, their thatched roofs always kept clean and perfect. We dodged people and carts as we moved along.

we got to a red stone building with a sign saying, Hilda's Herbs. 

"this should be it." i said as he moved forward to open the door for me. 

As we entered, the aroma of herbs and potions wafted through the air, complemented by the scent of a crackling fire from the far wall. Lined along the walls, labeled jars and bottles brimming with an assortment of items caught our attention.

Standing at the counter to the right of the door was a young lady with frizzy brown hair and stunning brown eyes. She asked, "How can I help you today?"

I looked at my list, "im looking for some herbs that are supposed to help a tricky pregnancy go smoothly." i told her. "lemongrass leaf, red raspberry leaf, rose hips, oh and fennel seed. i think that is all i need, unless you can recommend anything?"

"ginger and cranberry will help you as well," she said with a smile, "i have some dried that would make a lovely tea. but the raspberry leaf is your best bet, it has a lot of benefits to it. i would suggest drinking it in tea at least twice a day."

"so ill need quite a bit of that." i said. 

"depending on the creature you are pregnant with, there are other herbs that can help." she said, eyeing Oberon. "half dragon baby?" 

"um...not exactly." i muttered looking at Oberon who was scanning the shelves, but i knew he was listening in. 

"you can trust me." she said, "i take my customers privacy very seriously."

i could feel her emotions, she was being truthful. "honestly, im actually queen Astraea." i showed her my ring that showed i was a royal. 

"oh my, your majesty." she bowed to me.

"please, dont make a fuss." i smiled. "today i just want to be a normal girl for a change." i motioned to Oberon, "thats Oberon."

"so a fairy baby?" she asked. 

I nodded. "This child may not survive birth, nor might I, but if taking herbs can help, then I will. As you know, I'm part human, elf, and dragon, and he's a fairy. If born, I really don't know what this child will be."

"okay," she walked around the counter and looked at a few jars, pulling one from the shelf and coming back to me, "this is the best thing for any species." 

i looked at the jar, bright yellow flowers, "dandelion?" i asked, looking at the familiar flower. 

"yup." she smiled. "this here is already dried out, but it is simple enough to harvest yourself."

"we will get it here." Oberon said as he approached the counter, "as well as all the other herbs mentioned."

"A...absolutely." she got to work gathering all the different herbs and placing them in small paper bags, then those bags into a larger one.

"how much do we owe you?" Oberon asked as she finished up. 

"for the heir to the kingdom?" she smiled, "nothing."

"the child wont be the heir." i cut in, Oberon looked at me concerned, "please, take my husbands money."

"um.... six gold should do it." she muttered. i could feel her emotions, she was starting to feel uneasy. 

i took Oberons coin bag and reached in, pulling out ten gold and setting it on the counter. then picked up the bag full of herbs. "thank you very much. we will be going now."

"take care." she yelled after us.