The council members started muttering among themselves.
“I don't want to keep all of those people under the star-crossing,” I huffed. “I don't even know if I can.”
“Why not?” Raza shrugged.
I glanced around the table and found several faces who looked to be in agreement with Raza.
“It's not like you'd be physically hurting them,” Tiernan joined the ranks.
“No, just stealing their free will,” I huffed and looked down at Cat. She stared up at me patiently, waiting for me to come to the right conclusion. “Et tu, Brute?” She whined and laid her face on my thigh. “Next you'll all be asking me to use them as cannon fodder when their friends show up.”
“That's damn brilliant!” Teagan sat up straight in his seat.
“What?!” I gaped at him.
“They're not going to attack their own people,” Teagan argued. “You'll simply be preventing bloodshed. At the very least, it would stop them long enough for us to speak with them.”
“And we wouldn't have to worry about guarding them at all,” Eadan nodded. “They'd be guarding us. Princess, you're a genius.”
“I wasn't serious,” I grumbled but then I thought it over.
It would be a lot easier to keep them all star-crossed instead of worrying about them escaping or being rescued. We could let them out of those cramped cells and make them more comfortable, wasn't that a good thing? And I really didn't want to lose any more of our people. We could surround the Council House with a wall of witches and if it came down to it, they'd even fight for us. There was a certain ironic justice in that.
“This can't be right,” I shook my head.
“Leaders have to make difficult decisions,” Raza was saying what I already knew. “Sometimes the wisest choice can appear to be evil but we both know that appearances are deceiving. Do we not, Princess Seren? Now, are you willing to appear evil if it will accomplish good?”
“Goddess forgive me,” I whispered as I stood. “I'm not turning into my grandmother, I'm turning into my Uncle Uisdean.”
Chapter Thirty-One
Star-crossing over sixty people was exhausting. Each one would have to be brought out of their cell and held down while I sprinkled magic in the eyes. That was the one drawback to star-crossing as opposed to good ol' fairy-striking. To strike a human, you just had to get close to them but to cross one, I had to be able to sprinkle silly sparkles in their eyes, like a damn Disney character.
We decided to remove the witches from the cells and bring them upstairs, one by one, so they wouldn't have any idea what we were doing. Of course, they all assumed that their friends were being executed because no one returned. So that started a panic and I ended up going down into the cells and using my other fey magic, the dream dusting, to put them all to sleep.
That turned out to be a really good idea because then all we had to do was lift their eyelids. It was much easier than restraining people but the magic still took its toll on me. By the time I was done, I was barely able to stand. Tiernan had to help me up to our bedroom and tuck me in. I don't even remember falling asleep, I was simply awake and then not. I didn't dream either, just sank into a blackness that was eventually pierced by the sound of shouting.
“Princess Seren!” It was Conri at my bedroom door. “They're here and we need you to command the prisoners.”
“Who's here?” I asked Tiernan sleepily.
“The witches, Love,” Tiernan helped me up and rubbed my temples until I came fully awake. “Do you feel up to this?”
“Yes, of course,” I nodded and went to put on some clothes. Blue jeans; check. T-shirt... now where is thatI got ninety-nine problems but a witch ain't oneshirt? I had to wear it, it was imperative. Maybe not moral but definitely imperative. “Aha!” I pulled it on as Tiernan gave me a beleaguered expression.
I threw on some combat boots, just in case there was combat, and we rushed across the damp back lawn, Cat racing ahead of us. The sound of battle wafted to us from the front of the main house, urging Tiernan and I along faster. I ran to the kitchen and down the stairs, where the witches were all sleeping soundly in sleeping bags, spread out around the basement. With a few shouts, I woke them and then I was leading my enchanted army up the stairs and out the front door like I was Snow White and they, my dumbly-named dwarves. Although there were nohi-hos to be heard, the witcheswere calm and even happy to follow me, showing no signs of distress. Not even when I led them out into the thick of battle.
“Surround the house and if a witch tries to get past you, stop them,” I said to the members of Flight.
They filed out and did as they were told, forming a living line of defense around the Council House. It was obvious that there was something wrong with them and they were a little hard to miss. So I wasn't surprised when the fighting stopped entirely, giving the fairies and extinguishers a chance to fall back behind the line of star-crossed witches and take up positions on the porch. Cat was already at my side but both Tiernan and Raza came forward to stand at my back and lend their menace to my look.
“My name is Princess Seren Firethorn of Twilight,” I called out, feeling a sense of deja vu.
Hadn't I just done this? Actually, I felt a little silly calling my name out into the night, like maybe I should be holding my sword aloft and shoutingFor the honor of Greyskull. I am Seren, Princess of Power!Note to self; Never tell my best friends Abby and Karmen about this or my next nickname will be She-Ra.
“I'm the Ambassador between the Human Realm and Fairy,” I continued. “And I'd like to speak with your commander.”
A man stepped forward and two more joined him, flanking him from behind. They were all dressed for combat (we had matching boots) and had the look of soldiers about them. Behind them, more witches drew forward, all of them ready for war. I walked out a few steps with my honor guard, calling three of the star-crossed witches to join us. They stood before us in a line, a human shield between us and the solemn three witches who had come forward.
