Summer Garden

Vastras

An irritating sound cut through her dreams and Vastras opened her eyes slowly with a glare.

It took her a few minutes to place the sound, and herself.

She was lying on a couch by a fireplace, in one of the Fae realms.

And somewhere, quite close by, a baby was crying.

The queen slid off the couch and onto the floor, landing with a thump. The crying stopped, and she glanced to the side of the couch, where she saw a very small baby, staring at her in shock. It lasted for a blissful moment before it erupted into an extremely high-pitched wail.

Vastras clapped her hands over her ears, wincing, "Astrian."

The crying stopped as the child was swept up, and Vastras sighed, relaxing. She looked at the Fae cooing and rocking Astrian in her arms, "Aw, whose a hungry little girl? You are! You are!"

Vastras cocked her head, "Are you really treating her as a child?"

Summer turned, her smile vanishing as she looked over, "She is a child, Queen Vastras."

"What?"

Summer sighed, balancing the babe in the crook of an arm as she sprinkled some yellow dust from her fingers towards the baby's mouth. "Reincarnation doesn't mean you're born knowing your previous life. That's a skill, it has to be taught. Astrian has a good decade or two before her. Learning. Just like a human child."

Vastras pushed herself back onto the couch, looking at the scene in front of her in confusion. The baby grabbed Summer's finger hungrily, and began sucking the dust from her as the queen winced at the bite. So, this was what it was like for a Fae to be reborn. They lost everything, and started over from scratch. Strange. It was somewhat disturbing to look at the little child when she was so recently a rival for the heart of the same man. She couldn't imagine competing with a baby. That was... Just plain wrong. Maybe that was all gone, too... Well, at least for the next fifteen years or so.

Summer sighed heavily, and sat down on the couch, rolling her wings up behind her, "Sorry, Vastras. Astrian is really damn hungry. Rebirth and all."

"What does a Fae baby eat?" Vastras asked in confusion, "Nectar? I can't imagine their digestive tract is hardened yet for leaves."

Summer winced, "It's... A bit embarrassing. Dust, is the simple answer. But... We're mammals still."

Vastras glanced away cheeks reddening as Summer ditched her shirt, "Ah... How do you decide who... Does the feeding? Just whoever is around?"

Summer grunted painfully and shuffled, "Uh, no. Not really. Usually this can get set up in advance. Someone close to you volunteers or is asked to be your parent. If you were a loner then the Council assigns someone. Generally high ranking. You become their child. Inherit all the rights and responsibilities of their house... I think Astrian would have asked me or Luna. She's been my mother in a few cycles. I've been hers before. Not looking forward to her toddler tantrums again."

The human glanced sideways and shook her head, "Fae relationships must be... Complicated."

"I guess." Summer sighed, "But aren't human relationships complicated too? I mean... Your whole world is at war. You having magic must make your life harder."

Vastras smiled sadly, "Maybe. It certainly has made it longer."

Luna yawned walked into the room, she glanced over, "Aw. Did baby Astrian come back?"

Summer smiled at her sister, "You didn't wake up to her cry?"

The princess shrugged, snagging a small pot plant from the windowsill, "Not really."

Vastras looked at the princess as she nibbled on the herb, "Don't take this the wrong way, but you look like you haven't slept."

Luna glared, "You nearly killed me too, mortal. Rejuvenating is going to take more than one night in a cocoon."

Summer flinched as Astrian growled without detaching, threatening to cry. "Can you two keep it nice?"

Vastras stood up, stretching, and walked towards the kitchen, "Well, as much as I want to help out with Trei, I've also got a kingdom about to be invaded." She waved her hand over the table, causing a plate stacked with several round and fluffy discs to appear. The queen walked in front of the fire with them, "Your Arbiter has been busy this last year. He's flared tensions between Calis and three neighbouring nations, and they should be attacking anytime. Mostly because I used the crystal when I was out of my mind and hunting for Trei."

Luna flopped upside down onto the couch beside her sister, looking up at her, "Seriously, mortal? You have a city. They have nations. Are your people not already dead?"

"I have more magical resources than most." Vastras shrugged, snapping her fingers and pouring some tree sap over her pancakes from the air, "Much more. I've spent a century gathering it."

Summer sniffed the air, "Maple? Are you serious?"

Vastras blinked in surprise and looked down at her breakfast, "Eh... Yes?"

Luna laughed, "She's jealous."

"No, I'm hungry." Summer pouted, looking down, "This one is still going."

Vastras yawned, "Can you not summon food?"

Summer nodded, "Sure. Once Astrian is done with me. I can't interrupt the flow of magic when she's feeding. Some kids are okay with that, not Astrian. She wants your whole attention all to herself."

As if on cue a little hand reached up and hit Summer's cheek, making her stop talking.

Luna laughed, grinning, "Oh, I do not miss that."

Vastras shook her head, a fork appearing in her hand as she ate slowly, watching the strange family. They were a family. Maybe that's why Trei meant so much to each of them, and why they hadn't murdered each other over him. They weren't just a group of unlucky or powerful Fae. They all meant something to each other, they'd spent lifetimes together, forming unbreakable bonds that could survive lifetimes, and death.

She was the outsider here. Maybe it was better that she was about to die.