Shadows and Light

Fae? Would they really be upset about having another visitor if the Small Folk weren’t bothered?”

    How was she supposed to answer when she could see anticipation instead of unhappiness in his eyes?
    “I think if approached cautiously, and respectfully, it might be possible to become acquainted with them.”
    He smiled at her. “I’ll be careful, Lyrra. I promise.”
    She pictured a careful Falco—or as careful as Falco ever was—meeting Breanna. If the Lord of the Hawks expected every witch to be like Ari... Poor Falco. She couldn’t turn down what he was offering since she and Aiden had gotten so little help from the Fae, but at least she could send him down to the human world with one important piece of advice.
    Placing a hand on one side of his face, she said, “Falco, if you do decide to make the acquaintance of the witches in this Old Place, don’t let Breanna talk you into taking the dog.”
    Well, Lyrra thought a few minutes later as she left the common room and made her way back to the room she and Aiden shared, at least I’ve made one man I care about happier. Let’s see what I can do for the one who is dearest to me.
    When she slipped into the- room, she saw Aiden on the bed, one arm flung over his face to hide his eyes.
    He gave no indication he knew she was there until she lay on her side next to him.
    “Perhaps...,” Aiden said. He swallowed hard. “Perhaps it would be better if you went back to your home Clan for a while.”
    She wanted to ask him if he’d tired of her already, but the sharp tease would only bruise them both. So she said, quietly but firmly, “We’re in this together, husband.”
    He moved his arm so that it rested behind his head. His blue eyes didn’t hold the passionate anger they would have at another time. Instead, she saw determination and ... fear?
    “What are we going to do?” she asked.
    “We’ve been forbidden to do anything useful in Tir Alainn, and nothing we’ve done in the human world has made any difference.”
    “You’re backing down because Lu— the Lightbringer demands it? You’re giving up?” She couldn’t believe that of him. Wouldn‘t believe that. But when he turned his head and stared up at the ceiling instead of continuing to look at her, she felt a ball of sickness grow inside her.
    “The Lightbringer has managed to silence the Bard,” Aiden said. “There’s no point in wasting time or words here, so I’m not going to waste either of them.”
    “Then what are we going to do?”
    He took a deep breath. Let it out slowly. “How did the Lord of the Sun and the Lady of the Moon become the leaders of the Fae? He doesn’t command the sun; she doesn’t command the moon. How did they become the ones to whom the rest of us yield?”
    Lyrra frowned, wondering where he was going with this. “The Lord of the Sun is also the Lord of Fire, which is a powerful thing to command.”
    “An elemental thing, you could say.”

    “And the Lady of the Moon commands the Wild Hunt.”
    “Which must have had more of a purpose at one time than simply riding over the countryside with a pack of shadow hounds.”
    She sighed in frustration, still unable to follow his thinking.
    “Fire is a branch of the Great Mother. If it burns long enough and hot enough, it can sweep away anything on land, which is good reason to yield to the one who wields that power. And no living creature can stand against the Wild Hunt if it’s the chosen prey.”
    “Which brings us where?” Lyrra asked, frustration making her voice sharp.
    “Which brings us to finding the only one among the Fae who commands enough power to defy the Lightbringer and the Huntress and walk away from the encounter intact.”
    Lyrra stared at him for several seconds. An odd chill went through her, a shiver of fear that she had no rational reason to feel. “You want to find the Lord of the Woods? The Lord of the Woods?”
    “The Hunter,” Aiden said quietly. “Yes.”
    “But... Aiden ... no one has seen the Hunter in years. No one’s even heard anything about him in years.”
    “I know.”
    “Then why do you think he would help us protect the witches, even if we can find him?”
    Aiden said nothing for a long moment. Then, “The day came when the old Lord of the Woods felt his power waning and knew the time had come for another to ascend to the full power of the gift and become the Green Lord and the Hunter. And so it was, at the full moon nearest Harvest’s Eve, that he went to