Just planning on leaving it at that? There was no way Prin was standing for it. “Excuse me? Did you say actual fairies killed your parents?”

  Dru rolled back over to face them. “I guess I could tell you what happened. If you insist.”

  “I do.” Prin said.

  “Na-aah, I don’t want to disturb your rest.” Dru waved her hand dismissively. “You might never sleep again.”

  “My parents were turned into werewolves and carried off by a dragon to feed its young. And I won’t elaborate further.” Prin said. “So there.”

  “It’s not a competition.” Dru giggled despite herself. “Besides . . . you can’t compare something like werewolves to the fae. Which are very real, and all around us.”

  “I’m sorry.” Prin said, contrite.

  “There can’t be that many of them.” Elwin said. “To be all around us, as you say. If it’s still something most people have never seen. . .” He thought of Aster’s little “bug” and how they didn’t know what it was exactly, but because of it there was no way for him to dismiss the notion of fairies. They obviously were real. Right?

  “Okay, they are pretty rare, over all. But their influence, their foul touch is all around us. And they are more common some places than others. But yeah, you aren’t wrong entirely.” Dru said. “In fact, they’re a dying breed, so they say. But not soon enough.”

  “So cryptic.” Prin said. “The way you talk.”

  “I wouldn’t have pegged you for that.” Elwin said.

  “Alright, I’ll cut to the good stuff. The story.” Dru said. “About what happened to my parents. Is it okay if there’s a little set up? Yeah, it needs a little set up.”

  Prin sighed.

  “My family was part of a group of wanderers. They traveled from place to place and put on shows, played music, sold little trinkets and food. That kind of thing. Similar to a traveling carnival, I guess? Well, business had dried up lately, or the locals had become unfriendly. That happens sometimes . . . And they were traveling a bit farther afield than they had ever gone before. Children and the elderly road in the caravans or on horses, but able bodied adults typically spent some time walking, to give the horses a break.

  I was a baby, so I was riding. But my ma and pa were walking along. It was a beautiful picture perfect early fall day, and all of a sudden, the path they were on led them through a forest, and the fog drifted in like a damp blanket, covering everything in soft shadows. Even the sounds took on an eerie quality, the horses hooves echoing strangely as though they were standing in the middle of a dome.

  There was a sign, crudely hand drawn, that said “Stay on The Path.”

  “Nice that someone thought to put a warning there.” Elwin said dryly. He wasn’t sure why she would make up such an elaborate story, but already didn’t believe a word of it.

  Dru, already absorbed in her own drama, ignored him. “Before they knew it, they were in too deep to retreat. My parents were among the young adults that were leading the procession, which is likely why they were the first approached by the strangers.

  They were a pair that appeared about the same age as my parents, but dressed as faded aristocrats. You know, the type who were once very monied but now are wearing patched and outdated clothing, although they still have that air about them? The hallowed air, as though they had been in the grand ballrooms, had supper with kings and emperors, that sort of thing.”

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  Elwin couldn’t help a sidelong glance at his prince, who he was sure was wondering if he had his own hallowed air, right this very moment.

  It was true, he was looking at his own ringed hands with the dirt under the nails, the patch on his embroidered shirt, mismatching the color of green but skillfully applied by Mrs. Frances. But Prin looked back up and smiled, somehow satisfied or reassured by what he saw. He was Prin no matter what. Prince or not.

  Elwin smiled back at him.

  “And they lived in the woods now?” Prin wondered to prompt her along.

  “So they said. They were looking for help getting a cow free of a muddy irrigation ditch it had gotten itself stuck in. They said they could provide a hot meal for the entire lot of them in return for their help. Although, based on their appearance, I don’t think anyone was holding out much hope the meal would be anything beyond basic.

  Still though, they were brought up to help your neighbors when in need, and I’m sure the training kicked in. Also, it’s said that the pair from the forest were very beautiful, with long light hair and willowy graceful limbs almost as pale. Both the woman and the man were said to be quite short, which I’m sure drew everyone to the conclusion they could never pull the cow out of the ditch on their own. People felt sorry for them.

  You see, it wasn’t just my parents who followed the strangers into the woods, it was nearly every young healthy person in the group, around a dozen people, I believe.

  The sound of strange singing drifted out of the woods, as they disappeared between the trees and the dense fog.”

  “I feel like I’ve heard this story before, or maybe read it in a book.” Elwin said.

  “It’s a tale as old as time.” Prin said.

  “Exactly!” Dru said. “Because this is just the kind of thing they do. Its probably happened ten thousand times.”

  “So they were never seen again?” Prin asked. “Forgive me for asking, but how do you even know they’re dead?”

  “How does she know any of this?” Elwin asked. “Being a baby and all.”

  “Don’t worry about it, wiseguy.” Dru sneered. “I’ll tell you the rest if you shut up a minute.”

  Prin looked at her eagerly. Even if it was all bullshit. He at least seemed to be enjoying the story.

  “A lot of time passed. Finally, an old man went into the woods to look for the missing people, the farm, the strangers, the cow. Anything.” Dru said. “When he didn’t come back, they sent an old lady in after him. When she didn’t come back, a young boy of twelve or so reluctantly went after them. It was that, or just go? Get out of the woods leaving the parents and other relatives behind? Almost everyone who produced the communities livelihood? You and I might think it was pretty stupid but, we aren’t in his shoes, if we were we might use them to run into danger just like he did.”

  Prin nodded sagely like he agreed with all of this.

  “The boy went deep into the woods, following a narrow foot path. After what felt like miles of walking, he saw blood on the ground. He followed the trail of blood for a while and began to see discarded clothes in the brush and even more blood, a lot more blood. Finally he came out into a small clearing, with a shack more so than the grand, if fallen into disrepair farmhouse one might have expected.

  He called out, but there was no answer. It was so quiet, even the absence of bird song and small animals shifting around in the forest was almost a noise of its own. The silence was loud.

  The door to the cabin was smeared with blood. But he knocked anyway. He was afraid that someone was injured inside, maybe even his own mother, who disappeared with the others.

  The knock went unanswered but the door shifted inwards under his fist, opening almost of its own accord.

  There was no one inside. Just a pile of bloody bones in the center of the floor, stripped of their flesh. Three skulls set atop the pile, and the bones looked like about enough for that many people.

  No one ever found out what became of the others. I don’t think they were sticking around to do a thorough search, do you?”

  “Wow.” Prin said. “Now I understand why you are like that about fairies. But, there can also be human people who look like that. I still think you were being very unfair to Aster and hurt her feelings.”

  “Single minded aren’t ya?” Dru asked.

  “Is this . . . Is it typical for fae to . . . have a taste for human meat?” Elwin asked, trying, and failing to put it tactfully. He had heard of them luring people away, of course, but it was always said that the people were brought to the fairy kingdom, or possibly just tricked into a bad situation. However, he had never heard of the fae eating people. It wasn’t in any of the reading, that he could recall. Prin seemed to be accepting of the idea, but then he would be. Or maybe he was just humoring Dru.

  Dru shrugged. “I suppose they were hungry.”