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“Are we trusting our future to this slip of a girl who only recently rejoined our community?” Zephirin asks

“Well, you made certain it wouldn’t be your lot once you opened your mouth, didn’t you?” Mémé snaps

An older witch rises in the back Her gray hair is slicked back and wound tightly in a bun that h cheekbones are dusted with blush, her thin lips have a touch of color, and her wide-set brown eyes are full of intensity “She’s proven herself capable of navigating choppy waters Howto hold her to that forever?”

I finally place her Tangela Bishop

“I will question anyone who’s in charge of representing us as a whole This entire thing should’ve been vetted through the council We decide who’s worthy of such monumental tasks”

“Here! Here!” The cry rises a his cronies

Is that what this is about? His pride is wounded because the council was skipped over?

“May I remind everyone that this is Sebile’s call to make?” Meadow says

I stand “If you plan to insult my character and capabilities, you’ll da to do If you expectfor eternity I questioned what I believed in and why I hope I’oing through the motions simply for the sake of it We ress That’s what my time away did for me I returned because I was one-hundred percent sure it here I belonged I am dedicated to my family, our people, and ical coeneration” How quickly people forget all we’ve sacrificed, and how hard we fought beside them

“Soon we’ll see if all of this is more than lip service” Zephirin sneers

I stare hi toyou’ve spewed here With titles come the need to save face, be treated with respect, and stand your ground I can no longer afford to live a turn-the-other-cheek lifestyle If I’er want to

Chapter Twelve

Silence falls over our group as the final sand falls in the hourglass Larkin, Marcellus, Percival, and Ada form a semi-protective circle around Sacha and I as ait our fate With Fel acting as our eyes and ears with the council, we’re free to try to tackle the task at hand The wards scream as Sebile demands entrance I lower them Snowfall announces her arrival I watch, amazed as snowflakes form into a silhouette that becomes the Unseelie-born Faerie Dressed in a white fur cape with a h to coht hair stand out against the blinding white of her outfit

She re a part of her face and surveys our group “Proood to keep a queen waiting” She eyes us critically It’s a struggle not to squirh inspection Unsure what to take on a visit for an undetermined as will never do where we’re going” Clucking her tongue, she waves her hands in the air, becos as my chic black dress pants and blouse are transfors my body, nips in at the waist, and bells down over old-fashioned, button-up, black boots with a slight heel A dark brown fur cloak with a hood is wrapped around me

Sacha has been dressed siown and a sable fur cape, and Ada in a soft rose-colored dress with a light brown cape Theout of a British period piece with dark pants, vests of various gray tones, th coats, capes, and cravats Their Victorian style reance, and you’ve got dead ringers for Mr Darcy