Forever Fae

Chapter 26 - Ryder

The night we arrived back to the Summer Court palace, the place went into an uproar. The people were happy and excited to have the princess back home safely, but were grieved with the news of Merrick. A passing ceremony would be held in his honor as well as Xylia's parents, Raisa and Foster. We explained to King Oberon and Queen Tatiana everything that had happened, even down to the violent details.

Calista sobbed when she had to explain how she killed both Warren and Avery. She apologized to me about killing Warren because she was afraid of how I'd feel about her when I found out, but I reassured her that it had to be done and she saved me from the heartache by actually doing it herself. I told her that I was extremely grateful to her and that Warren's death was going to happen no matter what.

Calista and I had decided to wait a week until the wedding. The week was almost up and I'd soon be able to have my queen.

Arriving to the Winter Court palace was humorous at best. Every single person I passed took a double take look at me. Since my skin color wasn't pale anymore, it was a shock to my people and my family. Kalen had already filled them in on the changes, but it was still a shock to see. To a Winter Fae, the change was a drastic one. I explained to my family what was going to happen when Calista and I were joined in the marriage bond, and believe me, saying they were ecstatic was an understatement. We also held a meeting asking the entire Winter Court to attend. My parents agreed that if anyone wanted to follow me to the Fall Court, they could. If the Fall Court was their true home, they'd go through the change just as Calista and I had.

The Land of the Fae claimed all owners of the land, and it appeared that the unclaimed territory by the Winter Court was where the Fall Court would begin. Calista said she felt the land calling to her and that was where we needed to be. Only the rightful owners could claim a territory. That was why the dark sorcerer wanted the power of The Four so he'd be connected to all of them, and his power would be matched with ours. Meetings were going to be held soon after the wedding to map out our plans for keeping our people safe, and Elvena was looking into the reasons why Calista's dagger had such a major impact on the dark sorcerer.

As I headed back to the Summer Court to meet Calista, I passed through the land that would soon be ours. Thanks to the magic of both courts, our palace had already been built with magic; it was pretty simple to build homes in the Land of the Fae. With Calista having an affinity for the earth she could build a whole palace in minutes. It was actually an extraordinary ability, but we ended up having many of the fae from both courts add their magic to our new home. It made the place feel more special knowing that my people and her people came together to make the place ours.

The true essence of the Fall could not be seen or felt yet since the bonding hadn't been fully completed. I'd changed the weather through my magic and made the cool crisp air that Calista and I dreamt about in our vision. It was a temporary fix until the true magic took place. Various trees and shrubberies had been provided for the landscape to make the wedding more beautiful.

Our wedding was going to be held there so that everyone could witness the magic taking place when the Fall Court formed. Then once the marriage bond was complete, Calista and I could retire to our room and complete the more anticipated part of our bond. It was going to be one hell of a night, and one that was long overdue.