The Faerie Prince (Creepy Hollow, #2) (21 page)

No. I do not want to kiss Ryn.

I carefully make my way off the other side of the stage and back to my chair. After two more trainees have received their markings, Councilor Starkweather calls Ryn’s name. He saunters down the aisle as though it’s completely acceptable for him to have shown up late to one of the most important occasions of his life. I realize then that my earlier frustration with him has
definitely
not disappeared.

By the time he takes his seat, I’ve surreptitiously removed my amber and stylus from the straps around my ankles. I write a quick message and send it to him.
You suck as a date.

From the corner of my eye, I see him slip his hand inside his jacket. A moment later my amber vibrates.
I thought this wasn’t a date.

Oh, so that gives him the right to just leave me waiting for ages at Tora’s house? Pressing my lips together, I write another message.
You still have to be on time, jerk-face! I looked like an idiot walking in here alone.

He leans forward and looks past the two trainees between us. His eyes travel from my face down to my shoes before he sits back and writes another message.
An idiot is one thing I’m sure you did NOT look like.

I don’t know how to respond to that, so I put my amber and stylus away. I keep my eyes directed forward as the last few trainees in our class go up to receive their markings. As the program inches closer to the biggest announcement of the evening, my heart beats out an erratic pattern and I start to feel sick. I want this so badly, I don’t know what I’ll do if that top position is mine. I’ll have to suck it up and take it like a big girl, of course, but my heart will be so many kinds of broken I don’t know how I’ll handle it.

“The competition amongst certain members of this year’s graduating class has been fierce from the very first day of their training five years ago,” Councilor Starkweather says. I’m not quite sure how she knows that, since she wasn’t present for a single day of our training. I suppose she must have heard stories from the mentors. “They have worked remarkably hard, and I’m sure they’re desperate to know the recipient of the coveted first place position.”

I clench my hands together in my lap.
Oh please let it be me.

“So, without further delay—” she unrolls a scroll in her hand, which must be for show, because
surely
she already knows who the winner is “—the top graduate for this year is—”

Pleasepleaseplease.

“Oryn Larkenwood.”

Disbelief.
WHAT THE—

“And Violet Fairdale.”

Pause.
Okay, what?

“As was the case with only one other graduating class in the history of this Guild, we have two trainees whose stellar performances have managed to earn them the same number of points. Congratulations to Miss Fairdale and Mr. Larkenwood.”

The scroll in her hand vanishes with a puff of smoke, and applause erupts around me. I feel a hand on mine and see Ryn reaching over the two people between us to pull me to my feet. He lets me walk in front of him up to the stage where we both kneel once more in front of the markings artist and receive the tiny extra flourish on each of our wrists.

The final few minutes of the ceremony pass in a giddy blur. Before I know it, everyone is standing up, and Flint is lifting me off the ground to twirl me around while Raven and Tora jump up and down like Calla on a sugar high. I laugh. Properly. More than I’ve laughed in years. And my smile is so wide it threatens to hurt my face.

Everything is perfect.

*

The ballroom is part of the Guild, but the décor makes it look like it’s outside. The walls are draped with silver ivy, flowers and tiny glow-bugs, and enchanted stars twinkle in the darkened ceiling. Snowflakes float toward the floor but disappear before touching anything. I think it’s supposed to look like some kind of winter wonderland. Interesting, since in reality we’re entering summer.

Round tables form an outer ring around the room, while the center is occupied by a dance floor. In the middle of each table is a tree carved from non-melting ice with various edible treats dangling from each branch. Pieces of glass that gleam when they catch the light are scattered across each table.

It’s beautiful, but instead of admiring the room with Tora, Raven and Flint, I’m searching it for Ryn. Our ‘punishment’ for coming first is that we have to open the dance floor—another horrifying requirement I’d forgotten all about in the build-up to graduation.

I’ve almost done a complete circle around the room when I hear a voice behind me. A voice that manages to make my insides curl up with happiness one second and burn with annoyance the next. “Hey, Sexy Pixie.” I turn around. Ryn looks amused as he asks, “Looking for someone?”

Definitely burning with annoyance.

Without a word, I grab his arm and drag him beneath a curtained archway into one of the many small rooms leading off the ballroom. I don’t know what people are supposed to do in here—powder their noses, or make out, perhaps—but it’ll do just fine for the confrontation Ryn and I are about to have.

“Where have you been?” I demand. “Did you forget you were supposed to meet me at Tora’s house? Did you forget you were
graduating
?”

“Violet, there is no way
anyone
who’s spent the past few days around you could possibly have forgotten about graduation. I didn’t forget anything, I just got held up Underground.”

“Underground?”

“Yes, I had to fetch something.”

“You had to
fetch something
?” I can’t believe how unconcerned he is. “
Underground
?”

Ryn nods. “I’m pretty sure that’s what I said.”

I shake my head. “What could possibly be so important that you would risk losing your life and—more importantly—missing graduation for?”

Ryn holds his fist up and opens his fingers. A gold chain slips down and dangles from between his thumb and forefinger. Hanging from the end of the chain is a gold key. A gold key with tiny outspread wings.

The tokehari my mother left me.

I’m certain my heart comes to a complete stop before jumping into furious action. Goose bumps rush across my skin and breathing suddenly becomes difficult. “Where did you get that?” I whisper.

“Underground.”

Moisture coats my eyes and distorts my vision. “But . . . when . . . how did you find it?”

“It took a little while.” Ryn steps behind me and loops the necklace over my head. The metal is cool against my skin. “I went back to the singing well I threw the necklace down all those years ago and started there. A beautiful piece of jewelry like this always leaves a trail, especially Underground.” His fingers brush my neck, lingering for a moment as he attaches the clasp. “It wasn’t easy to track, but I figured it was worth the effort.”

My head spins as Ryn comes to stand in front of me. “So . . . every time you’ve had a bruised eye or bleeding lip in the past few weeks, it’s because you’ve been Underground searching for my necklace?”

He lifts a shoulder, smiles in a way that does weird things to my stomach, and says simply, “I thought it was time I got it back for you.”

My chest rises and falls unnaturally fast. Oh crap oh crap oh crap, why do I feel like doing something completely, utterly crazy like pressing Ryn against the wall and running my lips along—

Friend, friend, friend,
blares the sensible part of my brain like an internal security alarm. I squeeze my eyes shut and give my head a small shake. That’s right. Ryn is just my
friend
. Anything more than that would almost definitely end in disaster, a broken heart, and yet
another
person leaving me.

So instead of embarrassing myself, I open my eyes and say, “Thank you.”

Ryn gestures toward the archway. “Well, now that you’ve forgiven me for being such a terrible date-but-not-really-a-date, shall we do this dancing thing?”

We head back out to the ballroom and find the table with our names on it. Honey and her Seer boyfriend are at the same table, and Honey jumps up to throw her arms around my neck while telling me she always knew I’d be the top graduate. I go rigid before awkwardly patting her back; I’m pretty sure we’ve never hugged before.

After Honey lets go of me, Dale and a girl not from the Guild join our table. Dale gapes at me before saying to Ryn, “Dude, I thought you were joking.”

Ryn wraps his fingers loosely, but somehow
protectively
, around my wrist. Honey looks between the two of us, apparently as confused as Dale. “Obviously not,” Ryn says. “I told you I’d be here with Violet, and I meant it.”

“But . . .” Dale’s eyes slide to me, then back to Ryn. “You don’t even like her. You’re the one who’s always telling everyone else all the things that are wrong with her.”

“Well, I guess I need to tell you something else now,” Ryn says before I can remind Doofus Dale that I’m
standing right here
. “I . . . was wrong. I shouldn’t have said any of those things.”

Everyone at the table stares at Ryn, including me. Did Oryn Larkenwood just admit to being
wrong
about something? His hand still clasps my wrist, and his thumb moves slightly against my skin. It’s almost imperceptible, barely a movement at all, and I’m sure he doesn’t even know he did it, but it sends a shiver racing up my arm.

I look down at our joined hands just as Councilor Starkweather appears next to us and says, “I won’t be making any announcement about the first dance. When the music changes, that’s your signal.” And with that she sweeps away, the simple black dress she had on earlier replaced now by a flowing red gown. Everyone else in the ballroom seems to be taking their seats, as though they know something is about to happen. Not wanting to be the last one left standing, I pull my arm out of Ryn’s grasp and reach for the back of my chair.

Ryn stops me. “Music’s changing,” he says. “You don’t get to sit down until you’ve performed your dancing duty.”

Oh crap oh crap oh crap. Okay, I can do this. Move forward. Don’t trip. Just relax and allow the spell of the music to guide your feet through the dance. It’s as easy as that.

“Interesting,” Ryn murmurs as we head slowly to our doom.

The way he says it, I know he wants me to ask. “What?”

“You’re actually nervous.”

“Am not,” I respond immediately.

“Your pulse is jumping in your neck. Your hands are sweaty.”

I move to wipe my hands against my skirt. “Don’t.” Ryn catches one of my hands. “You don’t want everyone to know you’re nervous, do you?” He loops my arm through his and leads me to the center of the ballroom. He holds his head high, and I can just about feel the confidence oozing from him.

“You’re enjoying this,” I whisper.

“What, being the center of attention, or knowing that you’re nervous?”

“Both.”

After a pause, he says, “Maybe just a little.”

We reach the center of the horrifyingly huge room, and I turn to face Ryn. I certainly can’t wipe my sweaty hands dry now, but I don’t want Ryn to have to touch them either. I hurriedly mutter the spell that Aria and Jasmine always use to dry themselves off after training. The music changes once more, and I can sense from the magic that we’re just moments away from having to start the dance. Panic rises in my chest and threatens to claw its way out of my throat.

I. Don’t. Dance.

“I don’t know what you’re panicking about,” Ryn says, putting my left hand on his shoulder and holding up my right hand. “You danced perfectly well at Zell’s masquerade.”

“If I remember correctly, you pulled me onto the dance floor without my consent.” I swallow, trying to push the panic down. “And I didn’t have an entire ballroom of people watching me.”

Oh dear Seelie Queen I’m going to trip in these heels and land on my butt and my dress will tear right down the middle and everyone will see my ridiculous enchanted underwear and—

“V, you have to stand a little closer to me if this is going to work,” Ryn says, interrupting my panicked thoughts.