“You should ask them sometime,” Rigel said.
“Who, the other monarchs?”
“Yes.”
“Icky—no thanks.”
“You may find it educational,” Rigel said.
“Or it will fill me with an evenbiggerdesire to knock out Fell’s front teeth. Which, by the way—do you get that feeling around him? That you justneedto punch him in the nose, or is that just me?”
“Fell has a very punchable face.”
“Yes! Thank you!”
By the end of our exchange, the meadow had returned to normal. The sky was still more of a dark, dusty blue than its typical bright shade at this time of day, and Skye was looking at it very ponderously, but as far as I was concerned, things had returned to normal.
That was my mistake.
* * *
About a week later,I was finishing my magic lesson with Lord Linus when Skye found us.
“Hey Skye.” I glanced at her just long enough to smile before I went back to focusing on my prism. “Is something up? I have just a few more minutes I want to practice—dang it!”
I sighed and stood up when I hit the proverbial wall, and the rate I was channeling my magic through my prism slowed to a crawl. “What is up with this thing?” I shook the prism for emphasis.
Lord Linus narrowed his eyes and scratched his chin. “The prism is definitely the problem,” he said. “You were fine on the dozen other artifacts we tried.”
“I’m not resonating with it like I need to—even though it was the only one that responded when I was supposed to choose my artifact,” I gloomily said.
“Nonsense!” Lord Linus scowled. “My amazing daughter, not resonate? You resonate with the whole world! No, the problem is the prism. It’s defective. We ought to throw it out.”
“It’s a royal artifact, you can’t just junk it!” I groaned. “But I’m going to officially switch to a different artifact. I might have been able to better power the barrier if I had an artifact that worked with me. We can’t risk losing another huge chunk of land. Next time Ihaveto be ready,” I said.
Skye frowned. “You’re having problems with your royal artifact?”
“Yeah. When I channel magic through it, it eventually slows down. Just my luck, huh?”
“No matter. I’ll find a worthwhile secondary artifact for you,” Lord Linus said. “I shall consult with Indigo on the matter.”
“Indigo?” I frowned. “Why? You’re not going to buy it off Amazon or something, are you?”
“No!” Lord Linus scoffed. “If you want cheap artifacts, eBay would be the way to go—most people have no idea what they’re posting, and you can get it for a real bargain.”
“Lord Linus, we are not buying rando artifacts off eBay!” I said.
He rolled his eyes. “Obviously! When I said I needed to consult with Indigo I meant I needed to discuss yourwardrobewith her! I need to find an artifact that will best fit your general style. It’s all about the aesthetic.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. “I’m more concerned about getting an artifact that actuallyworks.”
“Believe me, I know,” Lord Linus said. “It’s why I’m the concerned party on your behalf—I will make sure your image is not tarnished!”
I pinched my prism between my fingers. “Are we done, then?”
“Yes, yes. I’ll be off so you two youngsters can go exchange secrets and chat.” He winked, as if he was an eighty-year-old grandpa rather than thebarelymid-thirties-looking fae that he was.
I bit back my sarcasm. “Thank you for the lesson, Lord Linus,” I genuinely said. “You’ve been a big help.”
