“Did you know about this?” Burke asked Adda, whom Bina reported to down in the kitchens.
Ceadda shook his head, eyes wide and looking delighted as he studied the pixie.
The information was astonishing, but Georgie wasn’t surprised they’d kept their dust, and their healers, private for as long as they had. Pixies and elves were more than entitled to their secrets. They weren’t hers to share, nor would she demand to learn them all. She could ask, though.
“What are you able to infuse it with?” she ventured, her voice soft, though excitement colored her tone.
Bina shared a smile with Ean, then turned back to George. “We can discuss more in the weeks to come. As wonderful as your friends may be, I’m not permitted to speak on the finer details at this time. I can say, your gift will empower you to glide.”
“Wait, like... flight? Can Georgie fly?”
“Burke!” Hildy snapped.
“Not fly, just glide.” Bina let out an adorable twinkle of laughter. “Try it,” she said to George. “You’ll sparkle and glow. It’ll mark you as accepted by the pixies, by all the fae.” She glanced at Ean, who bobbed his head in agreement.
For once, his shaggy curls didn’t bounce with his motion. The elf had cut them short. “To look more mature,” he’d said. Hewanted to be a viceroy, badly, and was not happy that George was making him wait a few years. It was the opposite of Adda’s situation. He’d rejected the offer, preferring to continue on as the palace’s head pastry chef, a position she happily bestowed upon him in lieu of the political title.
“Try the pixie dust,” Wynnie urged with barely contained excitement.
“All right. What do I do?”
“Uncork it, pour a sprinkle into your hand, and dust your hair with it. Or anywhere. You could leave it in your palm,” Bina amended. “But I think it would look pretty on your head.”
“Definitely do the hair,” Wynnie agreed as George opened the bottle.
“She’s got loads. Can we use it too?” Burke inquired.
“No. Only the intended recipient can access the magic; otherwise, it’s just sparkly dust.”
Burke pouted, as did the rest of them.
The moment the pixie dust touched her skin, she felt lighter, and it made her shimmer, as promised.
“Move. Please? If you don’t mind?” Bina walked her demand back to a squeaky question upon remembering she was speaking to the queen.
George laughed.
“Walk! Let’s see!” Hildy encouraged from her spot by Wynnie’s side.
Georgetta crossed the room like it was her coronation ceremony.
“Ooh,” Wynnie breathed.
“Her arse doesn’t sway,” Isahn lamented, voice full of humor.
“Aye, but ye have to admit she’s looking right regal,” Ean countered.
“Very much so,” Dunstan agreed.
“Yes, regal. Where can I get some pixie dust?” Burke stared down Bina, who tossed back her purple hair and laughed.
Looking around at her people, her family, her Selwassan love, warmth gushed from Georgetta’s soul. Even in her darkest hours, she’d never been alone, and she never would be.
A steady arm came around her shoulder, followed by a kiss to the top of her sparkling head. Isahn’s lips came away dusted in gold, and he smirked. “Now, let’s go get your crown.”
Epilogue
Five months later.
