Final Answer?

Queen Shalia smiled at her son as she poured tea in his cup. "You have lost a lot of weight, Auril," she said in a lilting voice. Her hair was a deep amber mop of waves that cascaded to her waist and her eyes were just as blue as his.

Her son had inherited those features, except the looks. His father's portrait in his mother's room was the only portrait in the villa and sometimes Auril marveled the uncanny resemblance he had with his father. Other than his black hair and green eyes, he got his straight nose and high cheekbones, which were so jagged that they seemed to cut the air around him. Auril's gaze traveled from the portrait to the mantle under which the fire was burning giving a soft buttery glow to the room. And right there over the mantle, he looked at two new stuffed heads of stags. He clenched his fists.

Shalia's gaze tracked every breath he took. She chuckled and said, "Those are the latest gifts from Orla." She passed the cup to him.

Auril took the cup and sipped his tea. He took a deep breath and said, "Yes, I trekked right up the Talv Falls. It's a tough climb." His gaze slid past her to the gifts that were sprawled on her bed and a flush of anger rose.

"Those too are from Orla," Shalia said, noticing his gaze.

Every muscle in his body tensed as Shalia's gaze returned to him. She tilted her head and stared at him intensely. The expressions on her face became tight. "I feel that now is the time you take up your responsibility."

So, his mother was still pushing him to get married to Orla, despite the fact that he had refused her a number of times, walked out of the house after insane arguments and even threatened to leave the crown. "I feel that things haven't changed here at all, including your interest in Orla."

A faint smile came on her lips. "Orla. She is a nice girl, and so ready for you. Do you know how her mother had groomed her all these years? That girl is tailor-made for you. She has been trained to entice, to seduce and to be a warrior if needed. She is trained to be submissive and to be fierce when needed. Where will you find a bride like her?"

"She is not what I want, Mother," Auril replied and Shalia clamped her lips tight.

"Then what is it that you want?" She lashed at him in a low growl. "Orla's mother, Fenir, had helped me combat the blight that had spread throughout the kingdom of Zelena, just after your father passed away. Her only condition was that her daughter weds you. And I didn't think twice before I signed the negotiation treaty with her. If you won't marry Orla, she is going to withdraw her support and it will bring the blight back to our kingdom. I can't afford that!"

"Being the queen of nymphs, she had her strong hold on the lower nymphs and even the pixies. Do you realize that even though her species is lower than ours in many respects, she holds a lot of authority amongst those individuals? Not only that, some of the women under her have very influential men in the human realm wrapped around their fingers. Do you realize how important that can be?" Her eyes became cold and flinty. "This is your destiny and it is high time you accept it!"

A muscle feathered in Auril's jaw. He placed the cup on the table and said, "I think I have done enough talking. You and I will never ever come to an agreement on this topic." Pressure clamped like a vise on his mind. "I can't ruin the life of a girl whom I think I can never love." He hated the very idea of how his mother was selling the nymph bride to him, and the way she was talking about destinies.

"Love?" Shalia snapped. "The royal children cannot have the luxury of love. Your marriages are not made in heaven, they are written by the kingdoms, by the demand of the kingdoms."

A shaky breath left his lips. He felt a deep pain in his chest and was absolutely helpless. Today his helplessness turned into desperation—desperation to get out of the clutches of his mother. He wanted to go out and roar and yell. His eyes went to the stuffed heads of the stags. And he made the decision. "I can't marry her and this is the last time I am telling you. I will not lead a life in a loveless marriage and will never mislead the girl. She should marry someone she deserves!" Saying that Auril got up from his place and started walking towards the door, his chest heavy. He didn't bother looking at his mother, but he knew that she would not let this go so easily.

"Should I believe that this is your final answer?" Shalia called him, her voice stern.

"Yes Mother," he replied in an equally stern voice.

"And what about the kingdom, its duties towards you?" she asked, her voice laced with blame so toxic that it sliced his chest.

"My duty towards my kingdom has nothing to do with marrying Orla. I suggest that you deliver my message to them." Auril reached the door and turned the knob. Before opening the door, he said, "And please return those gifts to her. Ask them never to hunt in our territory again, for if I see one more stag getting killed, I will not be gentle." The stags were sacred to druids and used to carry them instead of horses. He opened the door and exited, closing it silently.

Angered as hell, Shalia picked up her cup and smashed it on the floor. "I will teach you a lesson!" she shouted.

Auril heard the glass shattering, but that was his least botheration. He knew that his mother would not stop pursuing her. It was highly likely that she might sedate him and get him married to Orla. Such was her determination. The level of desperation went a notch high in his heart. He had to leave, and he had to leave this place as soon as possible. He would come back the moment his mother would understand him.

That evening, just after the nightfall, Auril packed his satchel all over again and under the thick blanket of night, walked out of the villa. The dozen guards who were stationed to watch him, couldn't detect him leaving because he had used his magic to conceal himself. The moment he stepped out, he heard a faint scream—same as he had heard just before dawn.