Page 131 of Blood of the Fairest

I shake my head. "She can drink as much as she needs from me."

"If only your stubborn valiance would make that enough. You would be dead long before sating her fully. Even Reinhilde, with all her practice, occasionally drained some of her Favored dry when she lost control of her voracious thirst."

Knowing that same hellish need taunts Verena now, I look over at her again.

Despite the fever bothering her, she dotes on the girl as usual. They do not realize how keen my hearing is and speak as if I am too far to catch their words.

"I cannot believe I am allowed to go to the festival!" Princess Snow White is in the midst of raving. "In all my life, I have never been this excited for anything."

Verena wipes her brow beneath the veil again. "Just remember: we're there to have fun, not get you married off."

The princess wrinkles her nose. "After that very blunt talk you gave me, I am not certain I shall ever want to marry. How strange and sordid the full truth of romantic relations seems to me now."

"Yeah, the birds and the bees sounds like a bad joke to everyone the first time they hear about it. Then when you meet someone sexy later on, and chemistry kicks in, you realize it's sordid but fun."

"And…have you and the Huntsman had that kind of fun together, Vera?" Snow White asks, bouncing her eyebrows.

As always, the girl is far more confident around Verena, especially with her teasing.

"Wouldn't you like to know? A lady doesn't kiss and tell. Anyway, back to the subject at hand. You'll find sex way less weird one day, but like I told you, now is the time⁠—"

"For me to discover myself, and love will come later," the princess finishes Verena's sentence. She nods earnestly, but fidgets. "Um, but if I do meet someone sweet and kind, and I start to get those butterflies you mentioned…what then?"

Verena sounds as if she's grinning beneath the veil. "Then I guess you keep sneaking treats to that someone in between all his squire training."

The princess gasps and shoots a suspicious look at me. She must think I told Verena of the many times we've crossed paths when I went to visit Hagen during his squire training and found her there, distracting him with treats and shy smiles.

Thanks to Verena's and Merrick's stern efforts with the captain of Isenmere's knights, Gunar's son has begun training to become a knight one day.

I wonder if Hagen yet realizes how fortunate he is that Verena is here, for the true Reinhilde surely would have put an end to any flirtation with the kingdom's heir at once.

Instead, Verena seems to find the youths' budding romance adorable.

"Don't blame Wulf," my vantaði laughs. "He didn't say a thing. He didn't need to, when you keep blushing and twirling and writing Hagen's name all over in your diary with a bunch of hearts."

"I have done no such thing!"

Verena goes on teasing. "I can picture you now, drooling over Hagen while he trains, hiding whenever he looks in your direction. You probably swoon whenever you daydream about the two of you sitting in a tree, K.I.S.S.I.N⁠—"

"Stop," the princess hisses, trying to cover Verena's mouth through the veil.

Their banter makes Merrick laugh as he approaches. He gestures down the hill.

"The coaches are ready. Ingrid is already waiting to journey with you, my dear Snow White."

The princess thanks Merrick, embraces him, straightens the ribbon in her black hair, and hurries off to join her lady's maid. I move closer to Verena's side, adjusting the travel bag slung over my shoulder.

Merrick smiles at us. "Your coach is in the middle, with the Bellevyrs leading the convoy and the princess and Ingrid behind you. Normally royalty rides in the back, but the princess was quite insistent that you be able to ride with the Huntsman."

Verena sounds amused. "Why am I not surprised? That's fine."

"Of course, many other nobles will be traveling Thornpass Road—but we have procured the swiftest horses, so your convoy will arrive before everyone else and you may have time to greet the king and queen of Aurefeld. It's always safer to travel in groups along the Thornpass, as dangerous highwaymen and bandits often ambush travelers. And that's not even to mention what horrors may have wandered out of the Loomdark, which you shall be quite near at times. Ogres and wights and goblins…"

"And lions and tigers and bears, oh my!" Verena says lyrically, playfully elbowing me on the word bears.

"Elbow her back for using another reference we don't get," Eris suggests.

I ignore him. Sooner or later, he'll come to terms with her penchant for otherworldly references.