Page 99 of Exiled Heir

The scent of dark forest entered the room, old trees with roots plunging deep into the earth. Kulsa’s eyes flicked behind me, his eyes widening.

I turned to the dryads. All five of them had entered, their wooden skin shining, their green hair rustling in an invisible breeze. Their clothing was carved into their skin, patterns and markings that covered every inch of skin except their faces.

“Isn’t that how it happened, Elder?” I asked.

“You give yourself and Prince Bartlett far too little credit,” the elder said. “He managed to turn one of the gargoyles to molten stone, and you tore the wings off another.”

Cade finally seemed to come back to life, the windup boy given a direction to march in. He offered his arm to the dryad. “Would you care for a plate of food?”

She placed her arm on top of his and allowed herself to be led into the crowd of mages.

The dryads stood a foot taller than any of the humans in the room. Even I had to look up to see the face of the nearest one when I offered over my arm.

“Can I, uh, take you to dinner?” I asked the dryad.

I had missed most of the important parts of being a teenager. I had definitely missed prom and junior prom, any of the dances that would have given me some context for how to formally invite someone to an expensive buffet and awkward slow dancing.

Luckily for me, the dryad didn’t seem well versed in formalities either. He took my arm, placing his own on top of it, elbow to hand. To my surprise, the wood felt warm.

He leaned down so that he was speaking quietly. “Yes, despite appearances, weareflesh and blood.”

“But is that comfortable for you? Doesn’t your wood dry out?” I led him through the path that Cade and the elder carved through the groups of mages, meeting the gaze of anyone whose eyes caught mine. They always looked away first.

I could hear soft footfalls behind me, barely audible. The other dryads were following us. Conversation began quietly, rising in volume only after the dryads passed.

“It is how it is. Is it comfortable for you to wear a collar?” the dryad asked.

Self-consciously, I raised a hand to my throat, even though I knew I wasn’t actually wearing the collar, just a high-necked shirt that guarded where Basil was looped around my neck.

“I’m sorry, I overstep. We dryads do not believe in ownership. So, the mages’ habit of claiming another as their property is one we find difficult to bear.”

We stopped where Cade and the elder had turned to face each other, near the table, but not lingering over the food.

“Oak,” the elder said sharply. “We have spoken about this.”

The dryad’s face was blank, nothing except a vague curve in the corners of his lips, but he bowed his head. “I apologize in earnest.”

“Do you really?” Sonja asked, approaching.

Her robes were long, the blue color trailing behind her, leaving sparkles on the polished floor that disappeared after a few moments. On her brow, something silver glowed. It wasn’t quite a crown, but the hint of one, the indication that one should be there.

“I do. We have come in friendship and been accepted in friendship,” Oak said. “It is in poor taste to be so critical openly.”

“You’re apologizing for the words but not for the sentiment,” Sonja noted.

“Sonja, have you met the elder tree?” Cade interrupted. He gestured to the dryad next to him.

“The last time I met you, you were but a child, no bigger than my knee,” the elder said.

“I don’t remember meeting you,” Sonja said, frowning.

“But I remember meeting you, Sonja Harvey. Just as I remember meeting your father, your grandfather, and his father before him. Your great-grandfather was the one who planted the tree we hold in the heart of our lands, the one symbolizing the peace that was offered.” The dryad nodded her head. “The Harvey family has been friends of ours for generations.”

“Friends for generations, yet you are so critical of something integral to House Bartlett,” Sonja said.

“Although he should not have spoken, Oak is correct. We abhor ownership.” The dryad looked at the buffet table. “Oak, would you make us a plate?”

“You’ll find that everything available is edible for you. No meats should be on the table,” Cade said.