The officiate was a statue. A glance to the left, said that Cara and Sammy had gone into the twilight zone of zombiehood, too. But not Judy and Simone. The latter even winked at me, although they were both in a kneeling position, showing homage to the queen or whatever she was.
I felt Timothy breathing heartily. He was awake and aware, but why was I? I wasn’t supernatural. I should be one of the seated frozen. Why wasn’t I a zombie?
The woman smiled at me as she turned her head to glance at me again. “You, Penelope, sweetest of human children, are in the becoming,” she said. “You will soon be as Andrew is — and more.”
I glanced in Andrew’s direction. Both he and Chef Ben were looking at me. Neither seemed overly alarmed by all this craziness. I guess Andrew had seen a lot of odd stuff in his time. And Chef Ben. Oh, yes, he was Fae. No wonder he was taking it in so calmly.
“Yes, Penelope Sweetness. I will make sure of that. The prince deserves a partner fitting to his worth and position, and I am quite pleased with you. Your verbal attack on the Human, and the way you stood up to the prince in spite of his strength and his manly cunning shows me that you not only have a brain, but courage. Yes, you are pleasingly well rounded and suitable.”
It was nice to receive compliments, but I still had no idea what was happening and why this strange woman was standing in the middle of the room, delivering her speech. It was supposed to be a wedding event. How had everything gone bonkers?
“Cadarone,” she continued, apparently ignoring my thoughts this time, “you will bring your bride to us so we can become better acquainted. I command it. I give you my bond that there will be no attempted seduction on my part or punishment for past offences. So, do not flee from me again. I give you my word now that you and she will be free to come and go. And no, I will not harm a lovely hair on this darling one’s head. I mean her to restore the pooka race. She will bear you many sons.
“Meanwhile, you two will prosper in your happiness for three months. Then you will return to us at Beltane. I shall rename her, of course, Cadarone, although I rather like the name Penelope Sweetness.”
The woman chuckled to herself, then twirled about, casting sparkles of diamond twinkles and changing the hue of her dress. It darkened from yellow into a lovely shade of pastel green, as if she had noted the colors of my brides maids and wanted to join in.
She nodded her head, then continued speaking. “Cadarone, you have waited too long. I can feel your imbalance. Your magic needs recharging. Oh, and bring this one, Andrew Sturns. I have a mate for him, I believe. His loneliness is sending out an atmosphere of disquiet that disturbs my peace. Several of the maidens have begun weeping at random times. I believe that may be his fault.
wish you all the best