Page 115 of Of Curses and Courtship

“There is no need for pleasantries, is there?” Minetta swirls wine around her glass. Now that she’s closer, I realize she looks unwell. Her eyes are sunken, her hair is frazzled, and her lips are pale. The end of her betrothal isn’t treating her well. “I am only here to congratulate you.”

“You do not have to…” I shake my head. “Who invited you, Princess?”

“The royal family, of course. We are allies. I will always receive an invitation.” There is a vague threat behind her softly spoken words.

I laugh nervously and tuck a piece of hair behind my ear. “Of course. I would expect nothing less.”

I’ll simply have to grow accustomed to her presence.

Seeing the former betrothed of my betrothed is not the most terrible part. I don’t think of myself as jealous, and what makes me sick isn’t that she once wished to marry Emyr—it’s that she deceived him. I suppose I kept my secrets as well, but that was different. I never kept a secret to force him to be with me, and I wouldn’t.

“I wanted to let you know that I have no ill will toward you.” Her voice drops. “I can see that you make him happier than I ever could, no matter how hard I tried.”

“I—”

“What is strange,” she says, “is that you and I are from the same palace, yet I have never heard of you. No one has. What is your name in its entirety?”

I hold my head higher. “Ophelia Fellowes.”

She squints. “Hm. No. It doesn’t ring even the faintest of bells. Where were you raised, Ophelia Fellowes?”

My hometown is nothing to boast about.

“Far Water,” I mumble.

“No!” She lets out a bark of laughter. “That’s a mortal town. No fae can possibly live there. You are not… heavens, you cannot be…”

Helena tugs on my arm, attempting to free me. “We are needed elsewhere.”

“Apologies.” Minetta’s smile becomes severe. “You must forgive my shock. I was not aware the prince was marrying a halfling.”

My jaw drops. “He’s not?—”

“I hope you do not bring this kingdom more ruin than it has already seen. Ta-ta!”

My ears ring. She’s right. I have been hiding the truth,even from myself, for days and weeks. It’s so easy to forget what I truly am. The ruin of this kingdom.

Am I making a terrible mistake?

“I am—” I start.

Minetta leaves before I can get the lie past my lips. I can barely look at Helena, with her eyes wide—fear, I realize. My dearest friend is afraid of me.

“Are you… really a halfling?” Helena whispers. “That can’t be. You told me mortals brought you up, but I never imagined…”

The words are caught in my tight throat. How much longer can I lie to her? To the rest of the palace?

She nods, closing her eyes. “This is fine. I can accept this.”

Helena believes Minetta—and am I any better than the princess if I continue hiding such important matters from my friend?

Yet, it doesn’t appear as if she can accept it, as she claims she will. I worry she will be sick, and I worry the same for myself as fear twists knots in my stomach.

“Helena,” I whisper urgently, “you mustn’t fear me. I’m still me.”

“I know. I have no ill will for halflings, it’s just that in this land?—”

“Do you think I’m unaware of the prophecy? Do you think I’ve lived a day without thinking of it?”