*GRIN* I know, I know….it has been over seven *cringe* months since I wrote chapter the last chapter. I'm not even going to give any excuses. To those of you who are still reading (I hope someone is…lol), I am still going to finish the story. Not finishing has never even entered my mind. I really enjoy writing this story. I will be sad when it's over, actually. Well, anyways…let us continue…

x- Lakota –x: Yeah...that was pretty weird. Hopefully this chapter will clear things up. Thanks for reviewing!

FaylinnNorse: You're right. The fairies do have something to do with "that one lady" as you so eloquently put! You were also right in assuming a few other things (as usual), but I'll just let you read on…

Bingo7: Thanks for your thoughts! I always love reading that you have to say about my chapters. Your comments bring a smile to my face. Unfortunately, you'll have to wait until next chapter to learn about what's going on with Lilly and Lord Dominic.

Rita-Bernadette: I'm glad that you like Lord Dominic's character. I do as well. It's funny how you pair up the characters =) Ah, you make me laugh. Thanks for reading!

Celestial Seraphim: My friend! I hope all is well with you. Sorry it took me so long to update. As always, I appreciate your insight =) ! You're awesome.

Quibbler149: I'm glad you liked the scene with Marybeth, Lilly, and Aida in the garden. That was fun to write. I try to keep my chapter simple. I find that they are easier to read, and I don't get so confused myself. Thank you for your comments. They help very much! Sorry to keep you hanging for so long…argh.

MJ: I'm glad you love it =)

Orangehotchocolate: Yes, I am starting to finish up the story. I predict three more chapters. If any of them take as long as this one took to write, you have permission to kidnap me until I finish the story. Good heavens, I am horrible. "So Belle won't kill him"...lol I love you!

Caoimhe: Oh no! I'm sorry you're confused. I don't like confusing my readers. Did this chapter clear everything up?

Crae: I like them twisty.

Jyska: I have no idea what "fairy pseudo swan princess deal" means, but I hope I didn't do that in my story! Thanks for reading and reviewing, as always =)

Perlas: I've been working on writing better transitions. I'm glad that you noticed. Thanks for all your help with the story!

Bradley Femrite: No that's not it, silly. Of course the story will have an ending! =)

Secret Countess: I'm glad you like the story. Yes, I am going to finish it! Most definitely.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Plague

"That is not Lilly." Edwin turned to his youngest sister, who was pressed against his side, her arms wrapped around his lean stomach. The two stood unnoticed in the grand entryway, their gaze transfixed on an odd young woman speaking with their eldest brother, Edmund.

Mora strained her neck to look up at Edwin and cocked her adorable, curly blond head to the side. "Are you sure?"

"Positive," he snapped, annoyed that he'd been deceived. "It doesn't even look like her, Mora. She's a child. Lilly is much older than that now."

"Well, she has golden hair and blue eyes!" Mora said in her defense.

"Lilly has green eyes."

"You said that Edmund wasn't coming back without Lilly."

Lilly's pretty face came into the Prince's mind, and his heart sunk. "Apparently I was wrong."

"Let's go find out who she is," Mora prompted.

Edwin did not feel like meeting Eland's newest guest. Instead, he callously shrugged off Mora and treaded towards his room. In the corridor beyond his chamber, his mother met him in his tracks, and since she looked like she had something to say, he grudgingly stopped.

"Edmund's home," she said with a content smile and a sparkle in her brown eyes. "Isn't it wonderful?"

The corner of Edwin's mouth twitched to smile for a second, then went right back to an impatient frown

"Noel is in her bedroom, resting. She doesn't know yet." Queen Charity paused and her wrinkly forehead creased in concern. "Edwin, are you all right? Mora told me that you tried to talk Noel out of riding in the fields today. Don't worry; it's not your fault that she fainted. I know how strong willed she can be. Everything will be fine."

Until now, Edwin had completely forgotten about Noel's fainting in the forest and the secrets Mora had shared with them there. His mind was so preoccupied with his brother's unexpected return that he could hardly think about anything else.

Edwin did not want to see his brother, nor did he care about the girl he had brought home with him. In the privacy of his quiet chambers, he sprawled out on his sofa and let his disappointment turn into anger.

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Noel opened her eyes to see the silhouette of a man bending over her. She squinted and waited for his face to come into focus. At first, she thought it was it was Edwin. Yet he looked so different! As she continued to stare, she began to doubt it was him. This man's black hair was longer than Edwin's, his skin was darker, and his face had grown thin. Their eyes met.

"Edmund," she murmured, gazing confusedly at him, "what are you doing here?"

He smiled. He still had the same boyish grin. "This is my home, you know."

Slowly, Noel lifted her head and took in her surroundings. She was lying on the plush sofa in the center of her dimly lit room. The drapes were drawn back, but there was no sunlight on the floor. The sun had already set. A small flame flickered in the hearth, serving as the only source of light in the chamber.

The glow in the fireplace brought Mora and the fairies to her thoughts.

"Where is Mora?" she asked urgently and sat up, scooting herself against the sofa cushions.

"I-I don't know."

"I have to find her."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you're in no condition to be running around."

Noel tried to get up, but Edmund's hands on her arms stilled her efforts. Her skin was clammy beneath his cool fingers. She flinched in pain though his touch was gentle. That his contact would hurt her never occurred to him until now.

"Noel-"

"You can't come back and start ordering me around," she hissed, shrugging his hands off of her arms.

"Please, Noel. Lay back down. I'll get Mora if it's that important."

"Nooo," she groaned suddenly, clutching her stomach with one hand and her forehead with the other. Her head dropped back onto the pillows, and her face turned so pale that Edmund was afraid she was going to be sick. Her eyes slid closed and her forehead creased in pain. Then, after a few seconds, she opened her eyes and licked her parched lips.

Edmund did nothing to hide the remorse in his face as he gazed at her. "If I would have known that your condition was so serious, I would have come home weeks, ago," he admitted quietly.

She swallowed. "Tell me you did not come back to Eland on my behalf," she demanded, feeling a rapid surge of energy. "Because if Edwin encouraged you to leave Albanthea because I haven't been feeling well, I swear I'll wring that boy's neck so hard that-"

"Edwin had nothing to do with my decision to return," he cut in softly.

"You found Lilly," she gasped.

He grimaced. "Unfortunately, no. And at this time, I'm afraid some…complications have made it virtually impossible to search for her."

"What complications?"

"Nothing that you need to know of right now."

"Does this mean that you're home for good?"

"As far as I know." He paused. "Did you miss me?"

She wrinkled her nose. "Not a bit."

Edmund snickered and touched a stray wisp of her strawberry hair. "At least the feeling is mutual."

Dinner that evening with the royal Elandian family was an awkward one. Edwin had avoided his family until he was summoned to the dining hall. He said next to nothing the entire night and kept his eyes on his untouched plate. If he would have looked up just once, he would have seen that he was not the only one without an appetite. Mora, complaining of a stomachache, pushed her greens and pork around on her plate and refused to eat. But Edwin was much too busy sulking to notice anything or anyone around him, save for the fact that Edmund's mysterious guest was not present. He ignored most of the conversation around the table until the topic shifted to rumors of a plague in Eland.

"Albanthea has stopped all trade on the northern borders of Eland," Edmund said to his father, "and I'm afraid foreign business is only going to get worse in the months to come."

The King looked grieved. "The count of those killed by the plague came in a few days ago: nearly six hundred."

"I haven't heard anything about a plague," Edwin put in.

The eyes of his entire family were on him then, blinking silently in astonishment.

"Edwin," Edmund breathed, "you can't be serious."

"What did you think Noel was sick with all this time?" Lilac, his thirteen-year-old sister, wanted to know.

Again, the table was hushed for some time. This time, it was Queen Charity to break the silence.

"Where have you been, Edwin?"

"In his bedroom, pining away for Lilly," Eric mumbled.

Edwin whipped his head around. "Shut up, Eric."

"Boys, stop it," their mother scolded.

Edwin's chair legs screeched against the marble floor as he pushed back from the table and marched out of the dining hall. His feet carried him to the courtyard where he retrieved his sword and began to swing at the air.

Suddenly, his sword clashed against another, and he stepped back, startled.

His eyes traveled from the sword that had collided with his own to its owner: the young woman he had seen talking with Edmund in the entryway earlier that afternoon, the girl Mora had foolishly mistaken for his Lilly.

Edwin's irritation burned inside him.

The stranger did not look as young as he thought, but he could not get a good look at her face. Though the night was warm, she wore the hood of her dark red cloak. Her skin was tan, like an Elandian, and her blue eyes shone like gems beneath her hood. That this girl was foreign was not apparent until she spoke. Her accent was so thick that he could hardly make out her words.

"Don't tell me the Prince is too poor to afford a proper fencing partner," she said, her voice low and breathy, like a moaning wind.

"I came out here to be alone."

The girl smiled, and her white teeth practically glowed with health. "I came out here to be alone first."

"Who are you?"

"My name, in your language, is Narin, and unless you want to experience excruciating tongue cramps, you will call me that."

"Are you threatening me?" His voice was angry.

She laughed, and when she did, the leaves on the trees seemed to jingle along in her merriment. "No, that was not a threat; that was a fact. In my limited experience with foreigners, I have found that my language is a difficult one to learn and causes a severe pain to the tongue and neck muscles, a self-inflicted injury that I have yet to find a remedy for."

Scowling, Edwin glanced at the sword she was twirling in her hand. "Do you always carry that around with you, or were you expecting to find some kind of monster in the castle gardens?"

"Well, a dragon or two would have been nice, but crossing blades with a Prince almost makes up for the lack of excitement."

Edwin frowned and turned to leave when she spoke.

"Have I offended you in some way?"

"No," he answered harshly. "Like I said, I came here to be alone."

"Like I said, I was here first."

Edwin's eyes narrowed. Because she was not Lilly, he had disliked this woman from the moment he laid eyes on her. Since then, his opinion of her had only deteriorated.

"I propose a duel," she said. "We shall fight over the solitude of the courtyard. Winner stays; loser has to leave."

"I'm not fighting a woman."

"Afraid of a challenge, hmmm?"

"You aren't a challenge."

She laughed and her chuckles seemed to ring from every corner of the courtyard.

Edwin rolled his eyes and slowly turned to face her, lifting his sword toward his opponent as she did the same.

Much like before, a loud clank sang as their swords met. Again, and again, their swords collided, filling the courtyard with rhythmic bells of clashing steel. Edwin was much stronger than his opponent, but Narin was swift, and her feet moved around the short grass like a snake darting for its prey. Their dance went on for countless minutes.

Panting heavily, Edwin started to swing harder. Soon, he was swinging with all his strength. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead and into his eyes, but he did not bother to wipe them away. Lunging forward, he backed her into the wall. It wasn't until her back pressed hard against the rough stone that he noticed a transformation in her eyes. They turned from a lovely blue to a luminous shade of violet.

"What the…" he muttered under his breath, and with a mighty swing, knocked the sword out of her hand.

The moment the hilt of her weapon left her fingertips, a strong gust of wind pulsed through the air, rippling away from her body. Her hood flew back and her blond hair tumbled around her shoulders. A blinding light illuminated the courtyard for a moment and was gone in the next. On instinct, Edwin swung at her again. She moved just in time to evade most of his blow, but not fast enough to keep the sharp blade from carving a long gash in her forearm. She gave a small cry and slumped to the ground.

Fear filling him, his sword dropped to his feet, and he rushed to her side.

"Are you all right?" he asked in a panic.

"I…was…unarmed."

"I know you were. I don't know what came over me. Y-your face changed, a-and…I'm sorry." He lifted the hand that was clutching her arm and grimaced when he saw the dark stain in her palm. Blood.

Edwin wrapped his arm around her shoulders and looked into her face, noting that her eyes had turned back to crystal blue. "Let me take you to your room. I will get the physician."

She cringed. "I am the physician."

"What?"

"Your brother brought me here to care for his wife." Narin struggled to stand, but when Edwin tried to help her, she shoved his arm away.

"I said I was sorry."

"Don't worry about it. You won. The courtyard is all yours, Highness." With that, she bowed mockingly and strode away.

Edmund, who had been standing in the shadows for some time, stepped out of the archway and joined his brother.

"She's charming," Edwin scoffed. "Where did you find her?"

"The mountain regions of Albanthea. She's an apprentice of medicine, and knows something of the supernatural."

"I should have guessed she was a witch."

"What's the matter with you? First, you claim complete ignorance of the plague that is sweeping your country, you throw a fit at the dinner table like a little child, and then you attack Narin without any restraint."

"She asked for it!"

"Edwin, this isn't like you."

The younger Prince crouched to wipe his sword on the grass. "Mora came into the courtyard screaming that you had found Lilly. Those minutes – the few moments that I actually believed her – were the happiest I've been in years. Then, when I saw that the woman with you was not Lilly..."

Edmund stared at his brother. "I couldn't stay away any longer, Ed. I'm sorry."

"What happened?"

"In one of the homes I was living in, their eldest daughter became very ill. I watched her die from the plague. I couldn't stop thinking about Noel after that. Ed, listen, I'm sorry I couldn't find Lilly. I know I told you I wouldn't come back without her, but…"

"No, it's all right. You should be with your wife. It would be selfish of me to ask you to go back."

Edmund blinked. "We'll see. Right now, no one can leave the country, even if they wanted to."

The brothers' conversation steered towards the plague and they spoke on the subject for over an hour. Edwin's heart was heavy with remorse over the poor condition of his kingdom by the time they made their way inside the castle. The burden on his thoughts was so heavy that he did not even notice the uneasy stillness in the air as he followed his older brother down the eerie corridor towards their rooms.

Nothing could have prepared the young men for the scene they were about to enter. Edmund spotted the trouble first as he turned the corner. He stopped dead in his tracks. Edwin's mouth was forming a question when he, too, came to a halt in the middle of the hallway. Their hearts nearly stopped beating, and their breath caught in their throat as their wide eyes took in the sight.

Subtle glows from the candle sconces on the walls cast a faint light on Narin, who was huddled on the floor just outside of Noel's room. Yet her crumpled figure was not what had stopped the men. Nor was it the small pool of blood on the marble stones. Narin was cradling something in her lap. A tiny person lay lifeless in her arms.

The physician raised her head. Her chin trembled in fear. "I'm sorry." Her low voice filled the soundless corridor. "There was nothing I cou-"

"What happened?" Edmund softly cut her off.

Neither man moved.

"I heard screaming. I saw a light – a bright violet light. I heard a sob."

"A light?" Edwin bolted in her direction, his hand going to the weapon on his belt. "A sudden flash like the one you caused in the courtyard?"

"No!" Narin gasped and cowered in fear. For the second time that night, she thought this prince was going to kill her.

"Edwin, stop," Edmund commanded fiercely.

All thoughts of anger disappeared when Edwin drew near to her. His sword plummeted to the ground, colliding with the marble with a shrilling sound. He dropped to his knees, ignoring the blood seeping into his trousers, and gathered his littlest sister in his arms. His damp eyes grazed over her pale, young face, and noted that her features were peaceful. She looked asleep, yet he knew it was not so. He buried his face into a ribbon-adorned mass of soft blond hair. The smell of the forest they had visited earlier that day drifted to his senses. It wasn't until he inhaled the fragrance of tree sap and honeysuckle that tears began to fall.

When morning came, word spread throughout the country that the plague had overtaken Mora in her sleep. Only the royal family and the physician knew the true cause of the little girl's passing: magic.

Elandians mourned the death of their youngest Princess, but none grieved more than Edwin. In the weeks that followed his sister's murder, Edwin fervently cleared the attics and towers of the castle, burning every doll, tapestry, and chair, determined to rid the rooms of the haunting presence that terrorized, and he believed, murdered his sister.

Slow footsteps, the tap of a wooden cane and linen swishing against the floor sounded from the stairway beyond the tower. Edwin did not need to turn around to know his sister-in-law had joined him in the tower.

"I'm glad to see that you're moving around easier," he said, yet his voice was not glad.

"Thank you," Noel responded anyways. Hoping to lift his spirits, she added, "Narin is an excellent physician. With her skill, I will be in full health in no time. Then Edmund can return to Albanthea and continue his search for Lilly."

Edwin shook his head. "No one is allowed to pass through the borders."

"Certainly they would make an exception for a prince. Edmund isn't even sick."

"They will make exceptions for no one. It seems our allies are only our friends when the partnership is convenient for them. Our resources are purged. Hundreds die every day. Still, Albanthea will not come to our aid."

Noel frowned. It was not like Edwin to despair.

"We have seen our share of death in the past few months. Sometimes, death can cause us to consider the reality of situations a little more carefully." Noel paused. "Do you think Lilly is dead?"

Noel had stabbed the heart of the matter, causing Edwin's throat to contract. He turned to look at her, his face reflecting the pain he felt.

"You were there the night that she disappeared. You saw the lightning and the purple sky. You heard the screaming and crying. The same…magic that ended my sister's life ripped Lilly's balcony in half. The…creatures that Mora spoke of…"

"Fairies?"

"Whatever they are. They wanted Lilly to burn to death in the fire in the guest room. Well, Lilly has been missing for nearly four years, and Mora is dead. What conclusion is left to be drawn?"

Edwin's eyebrows drew together when she could not respond. "No good comes from my useless daydreaming that I will see her again someday. Ever since I returned from Albanthea those many years ago, I have neglected my duties as Crown Prince, and put off my ambitions until the time when I would have Lilly ruling by my side. I can't wait for that; this kingdom needs a prince now, and I am ashamed for the lack of heed I have shown to my subjects."

Noel smiled a little, thinking that Edwin was probably the most humble ruler she had ever met. She told him as much as he escorted her back to her room a few minutes later. His shrug and doubtful look only confirmed her opinion.