Aidan spent several days lying low in the servants’ quarters, sneaking food from the kitchen when he was hungry, and filling his time reading books he smuggled from the Queen’s library. As far as he could tell, the Queen wasn’t looking for him. She hadn’t set the Hunt on him either, which was a good sign. There might be hope of salvaging the situation. Perhaps if he wrote a suitably romantic poem coupled with a custom piece of silver jewelry, he might ease her anger.
Resolved, he made his way into town and visited the silversmith. Together they designed an elegant pin with intertwining hearts that the craftsman promised he would have ready the next day. Aidan then went to the local tavern where he imbibed mead freely and applied pen to paper, struggling to write a suitable testament to the Lady’s beauty. The only problem was, for every verse he wrote, it was Marion he pictured.
By the next day, he'd downed enough mead to fill a pond and had something he thought would pass muster, even if he’d written it with another woman in mind. Stopping at the silversmith’s, he picked up the pin and made his way back to the Queen’s Court where his discreet inquiries revealed she was abed with a sickness.
Concerned that he might’ve caused her harm with his heart’s betrayal, Aidan rushed to her chamber where the Lady lay, peacefully, sleeping under thick covers.
Aidan watched over her while she slept, working out in his head what he would say when she woke. They had parted on bad terms and he didn’t want to raise her anger again. He noticed the mirror they had used was gone. Perhaps destroyed by the Lady in a fit of rage, or simply taken somewhere else until she could bear to look at it again.
He sat by her side through the night. She lay so still, so silent, he once leaned over her, listening for her breath. At dawn, she finally stirred. She yawned and looked at him with bleary eyes.
“Aidan, is that you?”
“Yes, Lady.” He kneeled before her.”Lady, I must beg—” he began, but she shushed him.
“Not now, Aidan. It’s too early for the conversation we need to have. Leave me to bathe and we’ll meet later this afternoon in the garden.”
“Yes, my Lady.” Aidan bowed, but before he left, he set the box with the pin next to her pillow.
***
In the garden she bid him walk with her, two of her guard trailing after them. They stayed far enough behind that they couldn’t overhear their conversation, but close enough to watch the Queen’s back.
“So, you fell in love with a mortal witch.” She plucked a purple rose from a nearby bush and held it to her nose, inhaling deeply.
“Yes, Lady,” Aidan said.
“Yet you came back to me.”
“I am honor-bound to do so.”
“But I do not hold your heart.” She tossed the rose onto the lawn, the petals scattering in the wind.
“No,” he said, unable to bring himself to lie.
Her hand went to the pin he'd given her, fingers tracing its delicate design. She'd fastened it right over her heart. Closing her eyes, she retreated into herself for a long moment. Then, with a sigh, she said, “I free you of your obligation to me.”
“Lady?”
“I do not want the body without the heart. I have to be able to trust my honor guard. There must be no chink in my armor. If you are not wholly mine, you are a weakness my enemies can use.”
Aidan bowed his head. “I have failed you.” And Marion, he added to himself silently.
She laid a hand on his arm. “No, Aidan. Don’t think that. It’s true I’ve always preferred you to some of the other guard, but this is where our paths part. There is no honor guard without heart.” She gestured to the end of the stone path they’d been following where the air shimmered with magic, a portal to the human realm. “I will miss you.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him gently on the cheek. “Now go.”
“Lady, I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”
She smiled at him and fumbled to unfasten the pin. “Here, take this.”
“It’s yours.”
“No, it’s not. It’s hers. Take it with my blessing. Be happy, be well.” She pressed the pin into his hand and wrapped his fingers around it.
Aidan’s throat clogged with emotion and he struggled to find the words to express his gratitude. The Lady had taught him everything he knew about women and the guard had made him a man. He would’ve never met Marion or captured her heart without them. Unable to find the right words, he settled on a hug instead, sweeping the startled queen into his arms.
She laughed and kissed him on the cheek again. “Go, before my selfish nature reasserts itself.” With a gentle push, she shoved him toward the portal.
Aidan stepped through the portal and blinked in the dim light of the dance club he had first met Marion in. Sun streamed in from windows set high on the walls, illuminating the scuffed dance floor. Aidan barely noticed his surroundings as he made a beeline for the front door. All he could think about was finding Marion.