Page 26 of Of Curses and Courtship

“No.” She turns to me smoothly. “You are to leave at once. I will no longer risk you corrupting my daughters. Theywere fine young ladies before they had the misfortune of living with you.”

“They’re still lovely. Why must you be so cruel? Not only to me, but to your daughters.”

“Silence! You have no say in how I speak to them.” She turns her back once more. “Pack your things. I expect you to be gone by teatime.”

EMYR

How am I supposed to eat breakfast when my head is pounding?

The Moon Fae left. She abandoned me in the garden, and I drank myself into a stupor. The rest of the night twisted and blurred into nothing. Such nights usually mean I had a pleasant time, but that is not true now. I would have had more fun if she had stayed, even if I hadn’t drunk a drop of liquor.

I slump in my seat and bite into a fluffy, yellow pastry. The sweet bread and cheese do little to soothe the illness from drinking, or the strange hole in the center of my chest.

“Why are you so glum?” my father asks. “It seems you finally found someone worthy of your attention.”

“That is true. We have never seen you so smitten.” My mother smiles knowingly—but she knows nothing.

Without meaning to, my parents rub salt in the wound.

“Because she was not so smitten with me.” I glower. “She disappeared, as Moon Fae so often do.” A part of the illusory nature of the moon, I imagine. I’ll need to conduct further research. “Perhaps I should not set my sights on one again.”

They exchange a look.

“Perhaps not,” Mother says. “We cannot continue delaying the wedding.”

“Understood,” I mumble.

They lean close and whisper, likely plotting against me. I no longer care. We finish breakfast in silence.

Before I can leave the table, as I intend to, my father speaks. “You must make your decision. We received word from the palace last night.”

I sit upright. “I take it the news was not good?”

“A group of corrupt beast fae attacked yet another group of younglings.” My mother shudders. “All dead. The curse is worsening, and our land will not last. We will fade into oblivion.”

It will be my fault—or else, it’ll be the fault of my fickle heart, which feels as if it is not attached to me at all.

Fae procreation is no easy task. Most fae will have just one child in their long life—perhaps two, if they are lucky. Before the curse, this was favorable due to our long lifespans. Now, hordes of Sun Fae are dying and disappearing.

It’s my fault. Even if it’s not, I must do something about it. I’m the only one who can break the curse. If I can’t do it out of affection for another being, surely I can do it from the love of my people.

I rub my aching chest.

“You must choose a mate,” my mother says. “It is the only way. We have gathered the most eligible from the recent balls?—”

“Mother!” My eyes fling open. “You jest. That’s horrendous. All my potential suitors in one room. Can you imagine?”

My father’s gaze settles on me, apologetic and affectionate, but all I can feel for him is pure hatred. “It is what must be done. We can waste no more time.”

He’s given me the responsibility of freeing our land fromthis curse, but he is the reason for it. Why must I suffer for his horrendous decisions? Why must a choice he made so long ago haunt me?

If only he could have been an honest man. If only he could have chosen love—if it truly existed between them. If it truly exists at all.

“Fine.” I push my plate away, no longer having an appetite. “I will choose. Bring me to my suitors.”

Pressure pushes me into the marble floor with each step. I sink, deeper and deeper.

My parents lead me to a room full of suitors: fae, mortals, witches, and an attractive orc man. I vaguely remember him from another ball. We drank whiskey and slipped away, and I’ve already been on my knees for him.