I stared back down at my plate.
“Look, Xander is a great guy,” Ode said softly, “And I’m sure he’ll do everything he can to get you home, but until you came along we hadn’t seen a human for a very long time, so I think you’d best get used to eating our food, because the reality is…”
“I could be stuck here,” I finished quietly.
She darted her gaze around, double-checking that no one was close enough to hear us, and her expression was sympathetic. “Just for now. My point is, eat up or Xander will think I’m doing a crappy job at getting you settled.”
Deciding that I had no choice but to trust the pixie, I piled a honey cake and two of the more familiar-looking fruits onto my plate. Ode smiled approvingly and led me to a small unoccupied wooden table with two chairs.
Fae stared at me as I passed, but no one approached us, and I took that as a good sign. Trying to act like I belonged, I bit into the blue fruit that was shaped almost like a peach.
“Yeah, you might want to be careful with that one, it can be a bit…messy,” Ode commented with a laugh as sugary syrup dribbled down my chin. I rushed to swipe it away and had only finished swallowing my mouthful when Ellis strode toward us, a yellow orb in his hand.
Ode followed my gaze to the male fae, and she lowered the honey cake she’d been about to pop into her mouth. “We don’t want any of that here, Ellis,” she said tightly.
“Well that’s good, cause this one’s mine,” he replied with a grin. As he walked, he lifted the ball to his face, his lips parting as he prepared to suck the gas into his lungs, but he stepped on a pebble, upsetting his balance.
“Watch it!” Ode cried out, but it was too late. The orb fell from his hands, landing right on my head. An audiblepop!sounded in my ears, and then all I could see was a haze of yellow as a rancid, sour smell filled my senses. I coughed and spluttered, waving my hand in front of me, but the gas disappeared quickly.
“Shit, sorry,” Ellis said before bursting into hysterical laughter.
That’s not good.
“Cara, are you all right?” Ode squeaked, coming closer to me.
“I, uh…yeah?” I replied uncertainly as her face began to stretch, her cheeks growing so wide she looked like a chipmunk. “Did you eat something fun-ny?” I asked, my words beginning to slur.
She shook her head in alarm. “It wasn’t me. You inhaled the gas of the Piti toadstools. How do you feel?”
I thought hard, though it was difficult to focus when the colors of my surroundings began blurring together into a swirly, strange pattern.So…pretty.I smiled wide, feeling my head spin.
“Great. This is just great!” Ode paced beside me, her wings looking like streaming pink clouds.
“She’s fine,” I heard Ellis say. “It was only a small dose. I’m sure she’ll be back to normal soon.”
“Fine?” Ode squeaked, then lowered her voice to whisper in a hushed tone. “We have no idea was that stuff does to humans. And oh. Oh crap! Xander’s coming this way withCorak!”
Ellis laughed again, but this was followed by an “Oof!” as Ode jabbed her elbow into his side.
“This is serious!” she hissed.
Ellis shook his head and blinked a few times. “Calm down. It’ll be fine.”
Grabbing one of my arms, he lifted me to my feet and grinned. “We really need you to pull it together for a moment. Just nod and smile, all right?”
I swayed, and Ode grabbed my other arm.
“Uh, can we help you with something?” Ode said smoothly as Xander approached with an older female by his side.
I stared at Xander. The colors had mostly returned to normal around us, but I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing at his abnormally elongated chin.
Xander eyed Ellis and Ode, and his gaze lingered on me. “Corak would like to speak with Cara.”
“Are you sure it has to be now?” Ellis asked sheepishly, and I blinked, happiness swirling inside me and making me want to flop onto one of those cushy mushrooms I’d seen earlier.
“Time is not something that should be squandered,” replied a crisp, feminine voice, and I peered at the female beside Xander. She was a foot shorter than him, with her silky black hair pulled into a high bun, and inquisitive blue eyes rimmed with thick black lashes. I remembered what Ode had said about their leader, Corak, being Xander’s and Ellis’s mother, but this female only appeared to be a decade older than Xander.Maybe Ode meant to say she was their older sister?
“So, this is the fae you’ve been telling me about,” the female mused, emphasizing the word ‘fae’ as she looked me over. Amusement glinted in her eyes as she looked at how Ode and Ellis were holding me. “I’m not sure your brother was the right one to task with helping her settle in.”
