“Hello, Gareth,” she said brightly, the slight tension in her shoulders and wings giving away the discomfort that her voice did not. “I have a letter to post, please.” She placed the folded paper on the counter and slid it forward. “It needs to go to Lady Elsa of the Summer Court.”
Gareth picked up the letter and looked it over. “Lady Elsa, you say?” Then, while making eye contact with Celesta, he slowly crumpled it in his fist and dropped it on the counter. The paper bounced off the top and onto the floor. “Take it yourself. We don’t servebrumikshere.”
Alex wasn’t sure what the word meant, but from the expression on the elf’s face and the venom in his voice, he was fairly certain it was something nasty. He felt his blood start to boil.
Celesta bent down and picked up the letter, smoothing it out against her leg. “Please, Gareth,” she repeated, placing it on the counter again. Alex was amazed at her ability to keep her voice and expression so pleasant. “It’s important.”
The elf scoffed. “From you, Ce-less-than? I doubt it. Take it elsewhere.”
“There is nowhere else.” Frustration was beginning to show on the little ballerina’s face. Alex curled his hands into fists.
“Not my problem.” Gareth flicked the letter off the counter.
Alex swooped down to scoop it up before Celesta could react, and he slammed it down in front of the elf, with a glare. “I don’t know about here,” he growled, “but where I’m from, we’re taught better than to treat a lady that way. Post the letter.”
Gareth looked him up and down with disdain. “And I’m supposed to care about you because…?”
He rested both palms on the counter and leaned forward. Gareth might have an inch or two on him, but he was the broader of the two. “Because I happen to know at least six ways to knock a man unconscious with just my bare hands. Would you like me to show you?”
He felt Celesta’s hand on his arm. “Alexander, I don’t really think that’s necessary. I’m sure he doesn’t need to be threatened.”
Alex kept his eyes trained on Gareth. “Post. The. Letter.”
The elf’s face twisted as if he were tasting something particularly nasty, but as Alex watched he took the letter. “That will be eight piks for the paper,” he said imperiously.
“That’s more than twice the listed price,” Celesta protested calmly. “I used the smallest size. It should only be three.”
“If you would rather not send it…” Gareth’s voice trailed off and he pushed the letter back across the counter towards her.
“No,” Celesta sighed and reached into the hidden pocket at her waist. The movement drew Gareth’s eyes to her torso, and it was all Alex could do not to punch him in his perfectly formed face for the elf’s blatant perusal of her figure.
She pulled out her small pouch of coins and counted them out onto the counter, and Alex made sure to watch closely as Gareth added them to the till and placed the letter into a large pile of out-going mail.
He held the door open as they left and let it slam behind them a little harder than necessary, letting out a long breath as they stepped out into the street. “That guy was a jerk,” he growled.
Celesta gave half a shrug and tilted her head back to catch a few rays of the setting sunlight. “It’s just Gareth. He’s always been that way.”
“That doesn’t make it right.”
“I’m used to it by now.” She wrapped her arms around herself. The spring air was growing chillier now that the sun was going down. “There’s not a lot of love for half-elves.”
She said the words simply, as if dealing with blatant ridicule and prejudice were a matter of course. Alex narrowed his eyes. “That happens often?”
“Not all the time.” Celesta shivered slightly and started walking. Alex quickly shrugged out of his jacket and offered it to her.
“Thank you.” She looked up at him with bright eyes and a brilliant smile that caused his breath to catch. He was grateful when she looked away and shrugged her arms into the sleeves of the coat, as it gave him a moment to collect himself.
He shouldn’t be distracted by pretty smiles.Get a hold of yourself, Monde. You’re a soldier. She’s practically a princess. Blazes, she’s afairy. Or fae or pixie or whatever the right word is. The whole point of this mission is to find a way to get home. You are a wooden soldier. Keep your head on straight and your eyes on the goal.
“And thank you for what you did back there with Gareth,” Celesta’s voice interrupted his thoughts, and he turned to look at her. The red jacket sleeves hung down past the ends of her fingers, even with her wings tenting the back so that the collar was at a level with the middle of her head. “I appreciate you standing up for me.”
“I don’t know how you were able to stay so calm and pleasant the whole time,” Alex answered, the memory of the elf’s harsh treatment of her causing his blood pressure to rise again. “I almost wanted him to keep arguing so that I could punch him in the nose.”
Celesta laughed lightly. “That would have caused far more trouble than he’s worth. I learned a long time ago that even if I can’t control how other people treat me, I can control how I respond. Anger might be easier in the moment, but kindness will always pay off better in the long run. How can I ask them to treat me with courtesy and respect if I don’t do the same?”
Alex shook his head. “You’re a better person than me.”
“No,” she shook her head and looked at him with an arch tilt of her eyebrow. “I just like being happy more than I like being grumpy. You should try it sometime. I think a smile would suit your handsome face better than a frown.”
