Amanda, Harvey, Mariano and Kat waited for us in Arthur's suit, a wing that Venus had graciously granted for Arthur's use. A spacious private apartment on the third floor with a couple of bedrooms, a sitting room and a sprawling terrace.

Conversation immediately ceased when Charles and I walked in. Sitting around the opulent sitting room, the immortals stared. Amanda rose and ushered me to the terrace, where she had breakfast laid out for me. A table was set with all kinds of savory and sweet foods. My stomach growled embarrassingly loud.

She closed the french doors behind her, leaving the men with Kat inside while she kept me company and made sure I ate as much as I could. She was quite the mother hen, as I had already known. But her attention was heartwarming.

"You have lost a great deal of blood, you know." she said, pushing back her hair. She was dressed in an airy, white blouse that kept slipping down one shoulder, jeans and, of course, a pair of high heels.

The early morning air felt wonderful on my skin. The sun had just risen and the world was waking up. The gardens below were perfectly green and trimmed, but what caught my attention was the amount of people walking around and going in and out of the woods a small distance away. The same woods where all the fun took place yesterday.

I wondered what would have happened if I hadn't decided to take a long stroll in the woods the night before. A disaster.

"We had some of our clothes brought here," Amanda chatted away, "Arthur is going to be quite busy today here, and he wants you close by since your identity has been revealed. You will be under threats and the object of gossip and unwanted curiosity in all of Europe, or dare I say the entire world. Word travels very fast, nowadays, you know."

"I can take care of myself," I said sullenly after swallowing a bite of a buttery and flaky croissant.

"Of course you can, dear," Amanda said, refilling my glass of juice, "no one doubts that. Although you somehow manage to get chunks of your flesh cut off each time. But you don't have to. Take care of yourself on your own, I mean. Not when there are people who are perfectly willing and eager to offer protection and guidance. You are not alone anymore."

I sighed, but accepted her affectionate scolding words. If there was anyone who could convince me of doing something I was not comfortable with, it would be Amanda.

I looked at the glass separating us from the others. They were discussing something, but their voices were not heard. The glass was hopefully sound proof.

"Amanda?"

"Yes, dear."

I bit my lip, hesitating. But there was no one better than her to answer my questions.

"How does the mating bond work?" I asked. Her eyes widened, a grin slowly splitting her face.

"Oh, dear. He is making a move, then, is he not!" she clasped her hands together, "oh, how lovely! Finally!"

"Amanda," I groaned. Was I the only one who didn't know about this?

"Oh, I'm sorry," she grinned, not looking sorry at all, "but I really am glad!"

She looked through the french doors. Harvey was looking her way with a puzzled smile. They shared a long look before he turned back to his own conversation and Amanda turned back to me.

"You and Harvey have a mating bond, right?"

"Yes, we do." She said, "we are lucky in that regard. Not all immortal partners share a mating bond, you know."

I leaned forward. This was new territory to me. Uncle Robert had never ventured anywhere near the subject, which was understandable considering I was only fourteen when he'd died. Though I didn't know if he would have ever broached the topic should he have lived.

After his death, there was no one to explain things to me. Immortals were very secretive about some aspects of their lives, and there was nothing to be found about this particular subject despite my thorough research over the years.

I set aside my breakfast and focused on Amanda. "So how does it work then?"

She leaned forward on the table, her eyes bright, "Well, like I said, not every immortal is lucky enough to have a mating bond. Some people may settle down with a partner for a long time, and the mating bond would slowly start blossoming to life. Though that does not always happen.

"Other people, the lucky ones, can feel glimpses of a potential bond even before starting an intimate relationship with their partner. That is how Harvey and I came to be together."

"What do you mean, they feel the bond?"

"Your magic, of course," she smiled, "your magic will react to them after some time in their company. It may be a week or a month. It differs depending on the person. But your magic will always know. It feels as if it wants to reach out to that person."

Understanding slowly dawned on me. So that was why my magic was going crazy these days. Interesting...

And according to Amanda's words, Arthur must have felt the tug, too. Maybe even before I did considering his many years of experience allowed him to understand magic better than I could. 

"How fascinating..." I murmured.

"I take it no one has ever explained this to you?" she added without waiting for me to answer, "but of course not, you were quite young when Robert passed away. Let's see."

She tapped a well manicured finger nail on the table, "where are you and Arthur at? Can you feel the bond at all?"

I cocked my head to the side and focused on my magic. Even now, sitting still with no threat around, my magic was stirring a bit. It was as if, like Amanda said, it was reaching for something.

"I think so?" I said.

"Hmm, well, you obviously have not consummated the mating bond," she said and I flushed deeply when I realized what she meant.

"No," I cleared my throat. Definitely not. And would not be doing so anytime soon.

"Well, then, you are still in the courting phase. The bond will continue developing, the tug will get stronger with time, pulling you towards each other. As the bond gets stronger, you will be able to share each other's emotions and thoughts if you choose to. Eventually, the bond will assert itself, with only death to break it up."

Panic threatened to suffocate my lungs. That was not a commitment I was ready to make.

"Do I have a choice at all?" I asked her, "I mean, can I stop the bond from existing? or at least progressing?"

Amanda frowned but did not ask me why, I was thankful for that. There was no particular reason why I was against it. I simply was not ready.

"I don't know if that is possible. Usually people are more than overjoyed with the prospect of finding a partner. Eternity is an awful a lot of time to spend alone, you know.

"But is it possible to stop the bond? What I do know is that doing so will certainly affect your magic. A mating bond is not like marriage. We are not humans, after all. Magic is a big part of what makes us, and its needs must not be ignored.

"But it's not just the magic, Elle. Mating bonds do not suddenly spring to life between two people. There has to be a special... something.

"Whether you want to admit it or not. There's something between you and Arthur. Your magic, being a part of your very being, instinctively knows that Arthur is the right person for you."

I swirled the leftover juice in my glass and looked away. I was not ready for this. Only a few months earlier I was living as a nomad headhunter, alone with no real friends or family, my magic locked down deep inside. A human, for all intents and purposes.

Now I had friends, people who cared. I had just met my father. My magic, free, was growing stronger. I had been flung into this world of immortals. A world in which I should belong. And now I was supposed to accept a mating bond. With Arthur, one of the Five, nonetheless! Could life give me a break, already. I sighed.

Amanda's hand covered mine on the table. She was smiling in that warm, motherly way of hers.

"You know, you don't have to make a decision right now."

"But Arthur-"

"Arthur understands. He may push sometimes, but if he suspects you're overwhelmed, he'll give you space," She smirked, "although I believe he will display his interest in a public manner from now on, seeing as your identity is now out."

"What does my identity have to do with anything?" I asked, confused.

"You are the first born of a royal fae, a descendant from the direct line," she explained, "many people- men, should I say- will be interested in courting you."

I made a face, "that surely cannot be true."

She laughed, then sobered up and leaned toward me, "tell me, truly, do you not like him at all? Is the thought of having him as a mate so very disturbing to you?"

"It's not that," I mumbled, shifting on my seat, "I do like him." maybe a little too much, "there's just so much going on right now. I'm not ready to deal with something as life changing as a mating bond."

She patted my hand twice with a grin, "you'll be fine."

I lifted my face skyward with a groan. It was blue and clear and so beautiful. I looked at Amanda, "what should I do, Amanda?"

"Absolutely nothing. You can't force things like this. Just let things run their natural course, and everything will fall into its proper place. Trust me."

I did trust her.

Absolutely nothing, she said. I could work with that. I would just ignore the bond for the time being, then. Which shouldn't be so difficult considering everything going on. Yep. That is exactly what I would do.

...Right.

I shook my head and glanced at Amanda. She did not treat me any differently, still affectionate and warm. "Do you know? about my mother, I mean." I asked her.

"The fact that she was bitten by a vampire in the beginning of her pregnancy?" Amanda arched her brow, "yes, I do know. And I would guess everyone else does, now. Gossip travels very fast."

"You don't feel that I shouldn't have been allowed to live?" I asked with a rueful smile.

"Why? Because there's a potential you would go insane from blood lust?" Amanda shook her head, "fae blood doesn't react well with vampire venom, but you weren't bitten directly. Even if you were, you haven't displayed the slightest hint of going crazy. You don't even crave blood, do you?"

I shook my head. She shrugged, "well, then. Why should I worry? Besides, your mother has survived with her sanity for months after being bitten if the rumors were to be believed. And you are her daughter. You're as strong and as determined, if not more, I'm sure. You wouldn't succumb to a little urge of blood hunger."

Well, I hoped Amanda's faith in me was not misplaced. I yawned rather obnoxiously, a wave of tiredness washing over me. My stomach was full and the throbbing in my side had subsided a little. My eyelids grew heavy.

"You should take a nap, your body needs as much fuel and rest as possible to heal," Amanda said, standing up, "come, my dear."

***

The bed was amazingly soft and comfy and warm. The cool breeze coming through the open window felt heavenly. My eyes fluttered open.

Amanda had showed me to one of the bedrooms in the private apartment. I was asleep even before my face hit the pillow. A deep, wholesome sleep.

I felt well rested now, more awake. My magic stirred, pulling me up. Arthur was in the room, I knew even before I saw him. This bond thing was trippy.

He was sitting on an armchair beside the bed, a leather bound book in hand. He closed it with a snap, then the book floated to the bedside table. Arthur linked his fingers beneath his chin and regarded me through dark, heavy eyes for several silent seconds. The silence around us was a peaceful spell that I was loathe to break. I could stare into his eyes all day long and forget all about the world and my father and the stressful future ahead of me.

"Let us go for a walk."

I rubbed my eyes awake, "where to?"

"To see the birds."

I sprang up in bed with eyes wide open, my heart thumping wildly, "the phoenix birds?"

"Mhm."

I grinned, pushing away the covers and scrambling to my feet. Arthur watched, an amused smile springing to life on his face, as I donned my boots and strapped on my blades and sword in record time. I looked at him with impatient expectancy. "Well, come on, then!"

Minutes later I was walking with Arthur outside the castle, a spring in my steps. I was too excited by the prospect of seeing the birds. My magic was buzzing, almost jumping out of my skin.

A phoenix!

The legendary birds had seemed so ordinary and faint the night before. Most likely, it was a result of the deplorable condition they had been kept in.

But thoughts of the birds were soon forgotten when Arthur and I ventured outside. If I had thought that I attracted attention yesterday...

It was late in the morning, and a good number of people were up and about. Every single person we passed by stared. For a moment I thought that maybe I had something on my face. But no. They were staring because of who I turned out to be.

"Does everyone know about my mother?" I asked Arthur when there were no people close by. He had led the way through a less traveled path in the gardens, and we were now strolling to our destination.

"About the fact she was attacked by a vampire while pregnant with you? Yes, everyone knows."

"What do your siblings think about it?"

"It does not matter what they think, you will be treated with the respect you deserve. You will be safe."

"You're not saying that they're okay with it."

"As I said, it doesn't matter. You're under my protection, and to your father's credit, he made it clear that you are under his protection as well."

Well. No one would risk both Arthur and Orion's wrath unless they're stupid, suicidal or stupid. Tension leached out of my body.

The sun was bright and warm, the breeze barely existent, the lush verdure easy on the eye. It was a peaceful walk. One could hardly imagine that the gory scene of the night before had taken place close by.

"The humans I found yesterday, how will you deal with them?" I asked Arthur.

"They will live," he said, "Venus is very skilled on the mental plane. They will have new memories by the time she's done with them. And she will set them up in better conditions compared to how they lived before they were kidnapped; they were homeless. People no one would miss or look for."

"Hmm." I pursed my lips to the side in thought. Arthur gazed at my profile.

"You do not like it." he stated.

"That they have their memories tampered with? I don't know, it doesn't feel right."

"Ah, but they have very little choice in the matter."

"Exactly," I glanced at him, "it's the fact that you're taking their choice away that's bothering me. But I guess I understand why it's necessary. You can't have the humans aware of what's happening in our world. And in a way, it's probably better that they don't remember the horrible things they must have gone through."

Still, it didn't feel right. They should at least have a choice. But there was no better option. At least they hadn't decided on killing the humans, which was what some immortals would have preferred.

"What about the others?" I asked instead of dwelling on something I had no say in, "Did you find out anything? Who is behind all this?"

Arthur clicked his tongue, "unfortunately, we will have to do this one by the book. They will have to stand in trial in front of the council, and any proding Venus might do will have to be with the council's presence. It would have been much easier and faster if the incident hadn't happened yesterday with all races present. But the laws must be observed, this time."

"Even if it happened in Venus' territory?"

"Yes, the matter does not simply concern her. Unlike her earlier findings, this time a number of immortals outside of her territory were involved in yesterday's debacle," he sighed, "it will be a long, strenuous process."

Which was an understatement. Not all immortals see eye to eye, and different races will surely disagree on how to deal with the issue long before coming up with a common solution.

"How long will it take?" I asked.

"The rest of the council will arrive tomorrow, and Venus will extract the information we need from the culprits then, on that much we are in agreement. What we do with the information will be decided according to what we find. As to their punishment, it is another matter altogether." Arthur said, "meanwhile, a number of people have been working on deciphering the spell underground. It is quite unique."

I remembered something from the night before. The spell. The bloody glyphs on the walls.

"Some of the words are in the First Tongue." I said. Arthur nodded, looking at me for a long spell of time.

"What is it?" he asked.

I bit my lip and looked around, the closest person was quite a distance away. Something was bothering me about those glyphs. About the words written. How my magic was enthralled by them. Arthur stopped, took my elbow and guided me away from the path and into the trees.

"Something weird happened yesterday," I said with a low voice, "the glyphs on the wall. I could read some of them, which is normal since I can speak the First Tongue, but....something was pulling me towards them, I had my hand a hair's breadth away from the wall before I knew what was happening. My magic reacted very strongly to it."

"You didn't touch it?"

I shook my head, "no. I managed to stop myself in time. Barely."

"Hmm," he scratched his bearded jaw, "That spell was written in blood. Once the blood leaves the body, it still holds onto some of its magic. That's actually why blood magic is very powerful. Dangerous and risky, but powerful.

"Your magic either reacted to the blood or to the spell itself." Arthur said, "it is difficult to tell now. However, it may mean that the person who cast the spell or the blood used to draw it has some sort of connection with you."

"Connection?" my blood turned cold. "As in...family?'

"Not necessarily," he sighed and tugged on a wisp of hair that escaped my ponytail, "maybe it was simply the fact that a fae was involved in the spell, which we know has happened since a few fae were captured yesterday. As I said, we cannot know. However, I would take you down there again and see if your magic reacts once more. Maybe I will be able to see the reason why."

We moved on after that. 

Minutes later, we reached a wide clearing almost on the border between the gardens and the woods. The clearing held a giant outdoor aviary cage. Over one hundred feet in height, the cage was sprawled on a surface the size of half a football field. It was massive. Full grown trees were scattered inside, offering branches on which birds may perch.

Those trees were now occupied by the most breathtaking creatures I'd ever seen, only the dragon we'd spotted on the flight to France could possibly compare.

It was amazing that the phoenixes had recovered so quickly. Overnight, the empty patches of their bodies were filled with lush, brightly colored feathers, shades of red and orange and light purple and blue that danced in the slight breeze like wildfire. A wide and long tail flowed behind the birds like flames as they flew from one branch to another, the span of their wings considerably large.

"They are normally more magnificent than this," Arthur said as we stopped near the cage, "it will take some time for them to recover fully."

"Oh, but they're breathtaking just as they are now." I stepped closer to get a better look, ignoring the people around. The place was buzzing with activity and conversation. Most immortals were curious about the phoenixes, apparently. The birds were elusive creatures.

I could feel an echo of their magic, like the pleasant heat of a fireplace on a cool winter evening.

My own magic was stirring in exhilaration. I wanted to get closer still to the birds, I wanted to touch their velvety feathers and feel the heat of their bodies. I wanted to know if they would light up like the flames of my magic if they let their own magic pour out.

"Elle."

The voice cut through the haze of my reveries. I turned back to find Orion- my father- just stopping close by. He'd shed the cloak and was now dressed in a black suit, no weapon in sight.

His hair looked lighter than mine under the sunlight, and his skin a shade darker. "I've been looking for you."

"Oh?" I glanced briefly at Arthur who was staring straight ahead at the birds with a slightly bemused expression.

"Yes, I would like to have a word."

We were the center of attention of every individual around. Arthur strolled away along the cage without a word. I glared at his back. Traitor. I did not want to be alone with Orion. Cowardly, I knew, but true. As if feeling the burn of my scowl, Arthur glanced over his shoulder at me and winked, a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. Asshole.

Orion stepped closer, I turned so we both looked at the birds in the cage side by side.

"They are majestic creatures," he said, his accent a perfect british english, no sign of an irish lilt in it. Most immortals, I knew, were quite adept in languages and accents. It came with being alive for long periods of time when a human spoken language might change drastically. Some immortals preferred to communicate with long forgotten languages. But most adapted their tongues to the spoken human language of the current time they lived in.

Because immortals, for all they liked to feel superior to humans, cannot live without them.

"Yes." I said, there wasn't much to say. He was, for all intents and purposes, a stranger. The silence that ensued was uncomfortable. He was the first to break it.

"She wanted to name you Brielle," he said, referring to my mother. The soft smile on his face and the look in his eyes gave rise to a deep ache in my chest. He still stared straight ahead, but I had the impression he was seeing another reality. "She was always irritated when I called you Elle." he glanced at me with a sheepish smile, "we used to have entire conversations with you, or rather with Orla's belly since I'm not sure you were aware of it. It was one of the few ways we spent time when she was struggling to keep her sanity."

"Was it difficult?"

"Yes," he drew a sharp breath then let it go raggedly. I couldn't begin to imagine the extent of suffering they had endured. Both of them.

"I was always Elle," I said, "uncle Robert said that she had told him the name before she passed. Elle. Not Brielle."

"So she remembered," he said, "in her last moments, she remembered. Her last gift to me."

His eyes were unnaturally bright, and he was clenching his jaw so hard I thought it would shatter. He was fighting tears.

I looked away, swallowing past the lump in my throat. My heart broke a little, for the mother I would never know, and for my father who'd lost both his mate and child. My magic fluttered, maybe in a reaction to my emotions.

It was a long time before he spoke again. "She remembered. Which means she wasn't out of her mind then."

"You never thought to look for me?" I asked. I wished I could take back the words as soon as they left my mouth. I had always wondered about that, though.

He sighed, "I didn't even know you were alive. The little cottage where we stayed was burnt to the ground when I arrived. All there was were bodies of a few rogue vampires, your mother's and a babe's. I assumed the babe was you. There was no life in it, there was no blood. Looking back now, I couldn't even tell if the infant's body was a female or a male. But at the time I assumed it was you. Your mother was gone, her body was still recognizable, but the baby's body was completely charred. I-I almost went insane myself.

"After investigations, everyone, including me, assumed the rogue vampires had somehow stumbled upon your mother. She killed them, was fatally injured in the process, gave birth under trauma and died. It was a long time before I was sane enough to really think about the incident. There were a lot of things that didn't add up, like the fire. So I started digging. But it was all in vain."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," he shook his head, "you were right earlier, you know. Robert was right. I have faith in my people, I would never have believed someone from the court would have done something like that. I would've endangered you. But now, after so many years....I don't know, seeing you has made me doubt everything I ever knew."

One of the birds flew from one branch to another, getting closer, its brilliant feathers rustled as the phoenix settled its wings. My magic quivered again.

Something Amanda said about the bond came to mind, "you were bonded? You and my mother?"

"Yes," his voice was thick again, "the bond would've enabled her to let me know the moment things went wrong. Unfortunately, after she was bitten, the bond started slowly disintegrating. It was a slow death, a painful thing, to lose the bond. But I still loved her. I loved your mother with all my being."

His voice trembled with the force of his emotions. If he hadn't had a consort, I would've thought that he still loved my mother. 

"Amelia and I have no bond," he said, as if he knew the direction of my thoughts. "We mated years after your mother's death. She's always been there for me. But though I've known her ever since I was a child, there was no potential bond between us. We've always been friends.

"After we mated, I thought maybe I could be one of the rare immortals who could have another bond after the death of the first, for Amelia's sake rather than mine, but it did not happen. Even after Lucius was born.

"Oftentimes, the birth of a child gives birth to a mating bond between the parents. But it still did not happen in our case," he smiled at me, "Lucius is your brother. Did you know you have a brother?"

A half brother. I nodded. He smiled fondly. "He's nine and he's a bundle of joy. I think you'll like him."

His face lit up. He adored his son. A stab of emotion startled me. Envy, I realized. I was envious of my brother. Maybe not for Orion's love, in particular, but for a family.

I shook off the ridiculous emotion. I was an adult. I did not need a family.

"Anyway, I would speak with you and Arthur about Orla's death when this is over. I need to find out what really happened, and if you're right and someone from the court had a hand in it, then there's no wonder I couldn't find anything in the past two decades. The culprit must have been aware of my efforts and thwarted them without me being the wiser," he frowned at me, "I haven't asked but, how did Robert die?"

Before I could utter a response, one of the phoenixes landed right in front of us. The bird on the other side of the cage made a sound that reminded more of a soft dauphin's whistle rather than any bird sound.

The phoenix tilted its head to the side and jumped closer until its beak was grazing the cage, then made another soft, twittering sound.

It was almost as tall as I was, and this was a baby phoenix according to Arthur. The eyes were a pure, bright red that looked lit up from within. The crest on the back of its head had long, velvety feathers the colors of deep sunset.

My magic had been stirring ever since I set eyes on the birds. Now, it erupted in a flare that took me by surprise and took my breath away. I was expecting to see myself aflames at any moment. However, that did not happen.

Instead, the flare of magic poured out of me in a wild burst of energy, a glowing flow of translucent blue. It burned through the cage and sank itself in the phoenix.

The phoenix in front of us, broke instantly into flames of red and orange and blue, spreading its wings with a cry of delight. It wasn't hurt, it was transformed. The bird looked like the phoenixes depicted in so many old paintings. A fiery bird.

The fire was alive on each and every one of its feathers.

It was a glorious sight.

I was aware of the gasps and expressions of surprise around us. Orion, next to me, had taken a step closer and was looking from me to the bird, not knowing what just happened or what to do. Well, at least I wasn't alone in that.

Arthur was next to me in a blink. A thread pulsed between us when his eyes met mine, and I could almost feel panic and concern that weren't mine. The impression disappeared as suddenly as it appeared, leaving behind it a deep knowing that the bond was growing stronger.

He gripped my chin, looked into my eyes with an intense black gaze until he was sure I was fine.

I was more than fine, actually. Usually after letting out the blue flames, I felt a bit exhausted. But now I felt exhilarated, almost giddy with energy.

It was like stretching a limb I had not been aware of until now.

"We have to get out of here," Orion said, looking behind us with a frown. Arthur, eyes still entirely black and expression thunderous, looked at him.

"I've sensed it for a while now," he said.

"What's wrong?" I looked away from the flaming bird. It was now dancing in place and batting its flaming wings as if testing them.

"Something is going on."

As soon as the words left Orion's lips, a bolt shot through the air coming from deep within the gardens.

I stepped aside, a knife in my hand right as the crossbow bolt stopped midair a few feet away. If it had kept going, if I had not moved, its trajectory would have led it right to the middle of my forehead. The bot was silver.

Someone just tried to kill me.

__________________________________

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