A Fox in Fairyland: Novella 2 of the Kinstone series

The wind blows softly through the trees as the summer sun filters through the branches. I smile softly as I turn yet another page of the book I’m reading. I peer up for a moment to glimpse up at the sky through the branches of the willow tree. I sigh softly, relaxing within my Glen.

I feel something shifting in my lap, peering down to see a small, twin-tailed silver wolf pup sleeping on my legs. I smile softly, stroking the little one’s body. I pan over to see his sister curled up against my right side. They’re half of the pups Athena gave birth to just other a month ago.

I can never help but be reminded of Leto and Nelly, another pair of wolves who became by little brother and sister during my time in Dewloura. While now fully grown, both are still the same little rascals I fell in love with. When the quartet was born, they instantly imprinted onto me as their older sister.

This pair snuck out from the den we made for the pack about a month after we returned home from Dewloura. I was heading for my glen when they followed me in. I grinned as they practically begged to be with me. So… it’s early afternoon and I have two little pups with me. Heh, no doubt their siblings are gonna be upset with them later on. I should be grateful I stopped by the stable and grabbed some milk from the holtsaurs, as they’re still too young for solid food.

I wrap them within my tails, letting them know that their big sister has them. I giggle to myself, remembering when Fenris arrived to meet his pups for first time. While he’s been my father since we first bonded, he now has children born to him. So to say he was shocked and nervous was a massive understatement. Yet… I know he’ll be amazing.

My nose is then filled with the smell of fresh-made Earl Grey tea and sweet flowers, causing me to grin softly. My ears then pick up the sound of fluttering wings, soft yet with youth and mischief mixed into them.

“Little Fox…Little Fox,” I hear a child softly cry out.

I look up to see a young girl with pink hair, teal eyes, and with teal-pink dragon wings, tail, and small horns. I grin to her, “Hey there, Fleur.” To human eyes, she’s no bigger than a four-year-old girl.

The girl giggles, landing on my knees, feeling lighter than a pillow. Fleur is a faerie dragon, a race of dragons whose ancestors slipped in the fae realms and was altered to become a part of them. Fleur is also one of a messengers Titania would task with bringing me treats, notes, and other items from Titania. We’ve since become friends, with Fleur actually coming to view me as an older sister.

She looks up at me with her eyes, swishing her tail softly. “I missed you so much, Little Fox. I’ve been lonely without you.”

I smile, reaching over and softly stroking her head. “Missed you too, Fleur.”

She giggles softly, loving the attention. She then becomes a little sad. “I’m sorry I haven’t been able to come see you as much as I used to. Her Majesty has been really, really busy lately and hasn’t had any chance to send anything to you.”

I smirk, shaking my head. “It’s okay. I’ve been busy as well.” I lean back, resting against the trunk of my tree. “Between recovering and dealing with the reconstruction efforts in Dewloura, I’ve been a little occupied.”

Fleur nods. She then leans over and starts petting the little pup in my lap. He stirs softly, opening his eyes and looking at her. He gives a little yap, sniffing her before wagging his tails. This caused his sister to wake up and stare at the young faerie dragon. Both pups then reach over and start licking the girl, making her laugh as she hugs and pets them.

I grin softly. “So…how’ve you been, Fleur?”

The girl, while being drowned in puppy licks and giggles, looks up at me. “I’ve been good, Little Fox, or…Aria. I’ve been staying close to the King and Queen. But when not with them, I’m with my momma, helping her guard the portal.”

My glen acts as a bridge between the fae and mortal realms. It in fact was actually created in response to me as the veil between the worlds had weakened when I was depressed after my falling out with my original family. It’s a guarded secret by the Seelie fae, with only a small number allowed to cross over.

She settles down, holding the pups to her, letting out a sigh. “I’ve been missing you every day since mid-spring.” She strokes the pups, which have also calmed down. “I wish I could’ve crossed over more often. I miss playing with you, Micha, and Luna.” Her eyes then lower as her tail, curls behind her. “I…I’m really sorry from pranking Silvi.” She looks away, “I…I think I went a little overboard.”

I grin. During Fleur’s last visit, she managed to slip into my sister’s cave and covered my sister in fairy dust, causing her to sneeze. Silvi was in her full form at the time. So this caused her to not only sneeze but slam her head into the roof of her home. Silvi then chased after the girl, to which Fleur flew away, giggling loudly. Yeah...Silvi wasn’t that happiest as Fleur also managed mess with a dress that Tanith gifted her. Even I was upset with that one.

I smile to her, “You’re fine.” She smiles softly to me.

I stroke the fur of my little wolf brother. It’s June, and five months after the final battle in Dewloura. The majority of the time has been spent here at home with the occasional trip to Dewloura and venture into Austin. I did visit Concordia where I introduced Chris Tillman to my mother. I was grateful that the tunnel was finally restored.

Marron and Piotr stayed with us until my sister was fully healed, to which they left and moved into her house. They’ve been dating and I know Miss Annabelle has given the young knight her motherly approval.

Arcturus formally proposed to my mom, something while expected, was utterly romantic. They set the date for the end of summer and right before I start school. The Coven went ballistic when Mom announced her engagement. So it goes without question we’ve been busy with wedding plans.

I’ve also been spending time with Arcturus, getting even closer with the man who is to become my father.

I smile to Fleur, producing some cookies. She squeals as I give them to her, giggling happily as she munches on them. She then looks up to me, “Oh… I didn’t come alone,” she says with crumbs on her face.

I tilt my head.

I then feel a hand rest on my head, which softly strokes my fox ears. I coo softly, looking up to see Titania smiling to me. “Hello, my dear Little Fox.” Her voice is gentle and warm, befitting a Seelie Fae, yet is also motherly in tone.

I blush softly, smiling to her, “Hey, Titania.”

The fae queen’s smile widens, sitting beside me. The pups then turn to look at her, eyes gazing at with her curiosity. She smiles, “Well, hello there, little ones.”

They still look at her confused until the male yips at her. They then both move away from Fleur and curl up into me. I chuckle, holding them close. “It’s okay, you two. She’s someone very dear to me.”

They nod, calming down.

“Might I ask who these pups are?” asks Titania.

I smile, stroking them. “They’re a couple of my little wolf siblings. The other two are with Fenris and Athena right now.” I then smirk, “I have no doubt their siblings are going to be mad that they’ve been with me this whole time.”

She smiles, softly stroking their fur. Both calm down, nestling into me. Her eyes then turn to me. “Now, I do have a reason as to why I’m here. I’m here to bring you to the fae realms.”

I look to her, blushing and grinning, “You should know that we’re planning to head to our coven’s summer gathering soon.”

She chuckles, “Oh…right,” then smiles, “I don’t plan on keeping you for too long, and will bring you back prior to it or at the most, bring you to where your coven is meeting. I will remind you that time does flow differently in the fae realms as opposed to the mortal world.”

I nod. It’s a slight gamble at times when a mortal crosses over to the fae realms. However, fae royalty can exert a slight influence on the passage of time between realms. I know I made a promise to her. But I also realize that Titania does keep her word, even more so whenever I’m involved.

“So what do you have in mind for me?” I ask.

The fae queen smiles, “You will be arriving just in time for the solstice celebration. While there, you shall be acting as the princess of the Seelie Court.”

I blush, again being reminded of the promise I made to her while in Japan.

She smiles, leaning over and pressing her forehead against mine. “Will you come, my Little Fox?”

I blush and smile, nodding. “I’ll come, but will have to talk to my mother.”

She nods, stroking my hair. “That we shall.”

We smile, raising our heads and nod to each other. Titania and I then stand up from the ground and head out of the glen. As we stroll through the forest, the pups stay close to me, following either at my feet or slipping into my tails. Fleur hovers behind me, eventually wrapping her arms around my neck. I smile, tickling her with a tail while keeping her close.