Free To Love a King (Court of Annwyn) by Shona Husk

possibly Sulia—for a private meeting. His to-do list was getting longer and yet his time was getting shorter.
    He checked his watch, well aware Taryn was by the doorway alone, then looked at the gathered fairies—one was little more than a child. Felan pressed his teeth together and wished he had better news for them.
    “I’m here to take you back to Annwyn.”
    “No, I can’t. The Queen.” The woman in white placed her hand over her stomach and Felan knew immediately what her perceived crime was. His mother had refused to allow her ladies to take lovers or get pregnant after she had been denied the chance to have a second child. As a result, the numbers at Court had been slowly dwindling. The Court of Annwyn had been in decline for longer than he’d realized—or maybe he just hadn’t wanted to see it because he wasn’t ready to take over. He still didn’t feel ready.
    “Annwyn is in winter.” He let his word settle like icy flakes of snow.
    A few blinked, as if not understanding; others shuddered, as if feeling the chill in their blood. He could feel it in his, an ever-present chill that couldn’t be warmed away.
    “The Queen is imprisoned for treason, and while there is the possibility of war, if you remain here, you will face certain death when the power shifts.”
    The man in the purple-and-gold robe with sleeves that dragged on the ground folded his arms. “And who are you? Which side are you on?”
    “Side?” Felan didn’t want to be standing here discussing a war he wanted to avoid.
    “For war there has to be two,” the man insisted. A whisper rustled through the grove as the fairies started talking for the first time in many years. The man caught the edge of the conversation and stiffened as he realized his mistake. “Prince Felan?”
    Felan inclined his head.
    The man bowed. “I’m sorry, my Prince, I didn’t recognize you. You were knee-high last I saw you.”
    That was longer than Felan had expected. Had there been others trapped over the years? If so, what had happened to them?
    “Come on. There is a fair walk back to the doorway.” He started moving, then stopped. “I would recommend that you go to a village or the outskirts of Annwyn if you wish to avoid the Queen and her supporters.”
    “You don’t want us at Court?” one of the freed fairies asked.
    “I don’t want retaliation. I have freed you, but if it were known, I suspect there would be trouble, and not just for me.”
    A few fairies exchanged nervous glances, and that was the first time Felan considered that he might have also freed a spy, someone who would report back to his mother. But who? They’d all met his gaze and smiled gratefully. Was he overreacting and being overly suspicious? He’d like to think he was, but given his mother’s record and Sulia’s conniving, he suspected his concern was justified.
    After noting each of their faces, he led them back to the doorway. When they arrived, Taryn was wiping her sword clean on the clothes of a Grey. The Grey looked like a cloth-wrapped bundle of sticks, his limbs gnarled and twisted, his face caught in a wizened grimace.
    Felan reached for his sword and the freed fairies stepped back. “Just the one?”
    “Yes.” She sheathed her sword and looked at the fairies who had followed him to the doorway. Was she also noting who they were in case of later trouble? “Let’s not wait around to see if more follow.”
    He nodded and led them back through the doorway to Annwyn while Taryn followed behind. Seeing Annwyn after so long would be a shock, even though he’d told them it was winter. They stumbled through the doorway, and some gasped in horror at the ice and bare trees. He was used to it, but it still cut to see Annwyn in such a condition. He was sure it got worse every time he came back.
    A few glanced at him with blame in their pale eyes.
    It was his fault. He should have acted years ago. He should be doing something now. The time for stalling and delicate