Kaisa

Breakfast is a hurried affair. Everyone is getting ready for the bonfire later tonight. And immediately after breakfast I have to go and start getting ready so that I can be ready to go at noon which is when the festivities start. Noon being an hour or so before sun set.

"Can I speak with you privately?" I ask Prince Eero, moving directly next to him as he piles scones on his plate.

"Yes, ah—come to my quarters after breakfast," he says, nodding when he sees the concern on my face. "Are you all right?"

"I just need to talk to you. Alone."

Alone means with Rax and Essie standing outside the door probably listening. They might bicker, but they're probably listening.

"Yes?" Prince Eero asks, once he closes the door. Both Rax and Essie thought they were coming in it. We both told them no then they tried to walk in anyway. Prince Eero herded them out like puppies.

"About last night----has that ever happened before?" I ask, taking a deep breath.

"What?" he asks.

"The ghost."

"What? What ghost?" he asks, frowning.

"The lady in white---who attacked Liala last night," I say.

"What---? What do you mean---- why didn't you tell anyone? Did you tell anyone? Is she all right?---?" he's about to rush past me to leave. I stop him.

"You were there---you attacked the ghost and it went away---don't you remember?" I ask.

"I was not there—I assure you must have me confused with someone else," Prince Eero says, frowning.

"You are my fiancé I am well aware it was you---go ask your daughters," I say.

"I intend to," he says.

Essie and Rax immediately follow us and get closed in a door again. Then one more time when they try to casually enter while we kick out the nannies.

"Angels, did something happen last night?" Prince Eero asks, coming into their little play room. They're getting a few hours of fun before bonfire night, which they apparently get to participate in.

"No," both girls say, quickly.

"Liala, then how did you get those marks on your arms?" I ask. Cuts, mostly healed now, but the scratches are still there. "Identical to mine?" I hold up my arm.

"I didn't," she mumbles, tears on her face.

"You're not in trouble, tell me," Prince Eero says, kneeling down to examine her arm.

"You told us not to tell," Leena says. "Mummy came back again."

"I told you what?" he asks.

"Again?" I ask.

"She wants to take us away with her she says. Someplace nice. But you said never ever to go," Laila says, "And she hurt me."

"And then what happened?" I ask.

"Daddy saved me," Liala says.

"And he stayed with us all night to make sure that mummy didn't come back."

"Yes that's good we don't go anywhere----let me talk to my fiancé a minute---?" he takes my arm and guides me to the corner of the room. His hand is sweating. "I swear to you I told them no such thing and nothing happened last night."

"Yes it did—"

"I believe you---what I'm saying is I wasn't there," he hisses.

"Yes you were---are you right handed?" he took my arm with his right. And he approached me from the front he could have used either hand.

"Yes," he says, completely confused, "Why?"

"Not in front of the girls---let's go back to my room." This time we let Essie and Rax come to their mutual delight.

"The girls were what??" Rax is exactly as upset as Eero, "Why am I just learning this now? What do you mean the ghost came?"

"She was trying to take Liala—who remembers all this as well by the way—but he doesn't," I say, pointing at Eero.

"Where were you all night then?" Essie asks him.

"I was in the kennels---and then---"

"I'm extremely over the fact that you were with him I'm very concerned that you weren't the person who was up here fighting a ghost last night," I growl, pointing at Rax for the 'him'.

They are men, so they both say "what?"

"You heard me---just tell me where you were because I'm not staying in this castle another minute if I don't get a full story right now about what's going on," I say, angrily.

"I was in the kennels after dinner until after midnight---then yes Rax can account for my movements, he met me after his patrol," Prince Eero stutters, not directly looking at me, his face going odd shades of green.

"But when you were in the kennels nobody knows where you were?" I ask.

"It's conceivable you came up here, fought the ghost, and put the girls to sleep then went back?" Essie asks.

"Yeah, except I did not do that," Prince Eero says.

"You did if something was possessing you," Rax says, quietly, looking directly at him.

"No—no—nothing was possessing me I'm not possessed---what the—what the hell was with the girls last night because it wasn't me?" I think he's having a panic attack he's not breathing well.

"We're gonna find out," Rax says, rubbing his back in a supportive but masculine way. "Deep breaths. The girls are fine."

"Someone healed them," I say.

"Things are less fine," Rax says, equally calmly.

"I'll say," Essie says.

"Not at all fine—what---what if—why did you ask me if I'm right handed?" Prince Eero asks.

"Is he right handed?" I ask Rax.

"Is he always right handed?" Essie asks Rax.

"Yes and yes and why?" Rax asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Last night you held your sword in your left hand," I say, considering bringing out the letter but deciding not to complicate things. He's confused enough.

"He holds his sword in his right hand---are you sure it was him?" Rax asks, weakly. "Most illusion spells are so weak it's easy to spot the difference. And you can detect magic."

"I didn't try; we were being attacked by a ghost—but it was him the girls both recognized him and they know him better than I do to see through an illusion," I point out.

"Okay, something healed them---their mother who is a ghost is trying to get them---and something else saved them, this isn't adding up," Rax says.

"Why be left handed though? That's a dumb omission," I say, "No—it looked like him. He wasn't afraid of me seeing him either, he knew who I was."

"No I didn't, I don't know what's going on," Prince Eero says, barely regaining proper breathing.

"You must have been possessed somehow," I say.

"Spirits can do that---let's calm down, spirits can and do infect people sometimes to act out their will—maybe it was a friendly spirit that wanted to save the girls," Rax points out. We all stare at him. "What? I'm a faerie I know these things, like I said the spirit clearly had good intentions let's take a step back for a minute. It just possessed him to go save the kids."

"He's got a point," I say, taking a deep breath, "Spirits can do odd things, and maybe it just was trying to stop the woman in white. This all leads back to her. And how she died."

We girls look at the two of them.

"No it wasn't the plague; I think you've figured that out," Prince Eero sighs.

"Yes, duh," I say, raising my eyebrows, "Well?"

"As I told you---her body was found outside the grounds," Rax says, tiredly.

"And what was the cause of death?" I ask.

"She froze—she died from the cold," Eero says, quietly, "They said she was sick because they didn't want it getting out she killed herself."

"She killed herself?" Essie asks.

"Going outside without a coat is suicide---except it's arguable she didn't go of her own free will," Rax says, shrugging a little, "Especially since she's trying to come back."

"Dear gods," Eero has his face in his hands, "I don't know---I don't know what to do I'm sorry that happened last night------wait what did I say to you last night?"

"You told me not to call a doctor and to go to my room," I say, "That was it."

"Nothing else?" Rax asks.

"He comforted the girls---that's all. I insisted I could call a doctor he said 'if you want to live go to your room', I took that to mean he thought the ghost might come back," I say, charitably.

"Okay, if I ever say anything ever vaguely authoritative or threatening you can almost definitely assume it wasn't me," Eero says.

"That's partly true," Rax says.

"So nobody knows why the Princess was outside the palace?" Essie's still solving the murder.

"No," Rax says, "It was the middle of then night----we found her the next morning."

"What was she wearing?" I ask.

"Her night robe—she was barefoot---she'd have succumbed within an hour, it was forty degrees below zero that night. Nobody thought to look for her until morning, when Mistress Huta found her room empty," Rax says, "We combed the palace of course, then the grounds, it was snowing it---the dogs found her, almost to the ocean."

"Why on earth would she have gone outside without a coat? That's horrible," I say.

"The general consensus was that she'd done it intentionally---that's all we could fathom, it isn't as though she was near the doors to get back in," Eero says, resignedly, "My father decided not to release the real cause of death, just say illness—for her family's sake."

"When did you last see her?" Essie asks.

"Leena was actually sick---nothing bad but she had a fever. Throwing up that sort of thing. She'd had it the night before as well and Maija had stayed up with her. I told her I would that night. She said goodnight to the girls and to me, and for all I knew went to bed," Eero says, sadness in his face.

"And you?" I ask Rax.

"Dinner, or shortly after. Once everyone was up in their rooms I was with the other Guard most of the night," Rax says, coolly, knowing fully well I'm sure we suspect him.

"So someone tricked her into going outside? And then went back themselves?" I ask.

"She could have been drugged and carried out there—but it would have been awfully suspicious for someone to walk around carrying her. It didn't make sense," Eero says.

"What happened last night doesn't make sense either," I point out.

"Yes—I agree—there's every possibility she was murdered but that isn't solving things right now nor is it solving what we do today!? Both of us are expected downstairs in an hour---"

"I have to get dressed before that—"

"I don't."

"You completely do; there's an entire new suit your mother explained it to me I pretended to listen—"

"Can't you call off the bonfire since there was a break in?" Essie asks, practically.

"Which I have no evidence of other than your and the girls' testimony which is confounded by the fact that people can place me elsewhere when you say I was up here and I completely believe you except it didn't happen I wasn't here but clearly something happened which can't happen again because I can't have that happen!"

"Okay I've known him his whole life so that made sense --did anybody else understand that?" Rax asks.

"Basically---you're saying we're going through with today," I say, "Your parents won't take your opinion that we need to postpone things and not have hundreds of guests in the castle when we have too many unwanted things in to begin with?"

"No, no they won't, no offense what so ever but if my parents respected my opinion neither of you would be here," Eero says, nicely.

"Who would be here?" Essie asks.

"No one! We'd forget about any stupid curses and I would remain unmarried and raise my daughters in poverty in the forest while I taught them to read and my body guard practiced magic for a living and the girls would breed dogs and one of them would eventually have an heir to the throne so I could die peacefully in the forest somewhere with my bodyguard to bury me in an unmarked grave avoiding all stupid curses and dinner parties," he says, folding his arms, like this is a perfectly good plan.

"Curses plural?"

"Should've written down curses when I wrote down the map—my room has black board we should be in there," Rax muses.

"Oh, my old room had a blackboard I plotted everything on it," Essie says, wistfully.

"Yeah I know useful I've even got colorful chalk—"

"Of course you do; you have colorful markers—"

"Rainbow colors help differentiate data I don't know what's wrong with people—"

"Curses plural?" I repeat.

"Curse on the castle that those who die within its walls will return---curse on the first born son of the heir to the throne-----curse on daughters of the heir to the throne to die unnatural deaths---curse of the Ravens giving the tricksters free reign within the castle walls to do their mischief--- –"

"Okay that's enough, Rax; half of those are made up."

"All curses are made up someone makes them up and then performs them that's how curses work, Highness."

"Whoa, who did you people tick off to curse you that many times?" Essie asks.

"Literally Ukko, supreme ruler of the gods," Rax says, nodding, "A few hundred years ago someone in this family---"

"It's a stupid legend and doesn't even make sense nor does it have ANYTHING to do with my daughters and how I keep them safe today," Eero says, starting to breath weirdly again.

"Fine, so we're going on with the bonfire," I sigh, tiredly.

"It's fine, I will arrange for someone I trust to watch the girls, and Ilara here and I will watch you two at the bonfire tonight, we'll keep an eye on each other---"

"Wait-- who do you trust to watch the girls?" Eero asks, "Their nannies—of which they only have two— thanks to you—"

"You're very welcome. I am indispensable yes.---- Mistress Huta can watch them," Rax says, "She will if I ask."

"Why do you only have two nannies because of him?" Essie asks.

"I really couldn't say—" Rax says.

"He puts hexes on people he thinks are mean to the children, considering everything else it really isn't important, also he's promised to stop."

"No, I haven't."

"But he realizes it's wrong."

"No, I don't."

"But we're going to talk about it again and at that point he'll see sense."

"No, I won't."

"Really? You know how much stress I'm under," Eero sighs, glaring at him.

"I'll have Mistress Huta watch the girls while we're down at the bonfire, and we'll all four be together so it shouldn't be an issue," Rax say, ignoring Eero.

"How will Mistress Huta defend them from a ghost?" Eero asks.

"Do you know anyone who is not afraid of her?" Rax asks, flatly.

"That doesn't apply to ghosts."

"I'm sure it does. Anyway I don't trust anyone else so there's that," Rax says, shrugging, "I'll go ask her to do it for me she will she won't need a reason-- though Princess Ilara here can give her one if she wants it."

"Why don't you call any of us by our names?" Essie asks.

"Oh god don't tell him your name you didn't did you?" Eero asks.

"Shouldn't that have been in my welcome letter?" I ask, dryly, because I know why he's doing it and I appreciate it.

"Names give power, when you give a faerie your name it gives them power over you. Therefore I don't use names unless I intend to invoke power over that person. If they aren't present I will if it's not hurting them, I know damn well Her Royal Second Sight here knows I could do it therefore I'm not out of courtesy," Rax says smiling not at all nicely.

"Much appreciated," I say not at all appreciatively since he doesn't have to call us sarcastic things.

"Yeah don't actually tell him your name especially if you plan on ever being cross with the kids—"

"She slapped them AND I said 'what's your name' and she answered right away with the full thing that was 1000% on her. I for one have no regrets—"

"I know in my heart you don't ---okay---yes, go ahead and get ready for the bonfire night we'll---I don't know what we'll do but Rax will think of something—"

"No, Rax won't, Rax is fresh out of plans—"

"Rax will kick the ass of any spirits who try to harm us—"

"That Rax will do. Rax adores kicking ass."

"Are you both always like this?" Essie asks as they finish completing each others sentences. It's so nice she's not intimidated by anything. Ghosts. Monsters. Dragons. Time travelers. Dinosaurs. Wizards. Ghosts. Interdimensional assassins. Ghosts. Thieves. Interdimensional thieves. My royal fiancé. Nothing. Sasses them all equally.

"Yes, basically," Rax says.

"Yes, on that note I realize this has no meaning but did you um---take my memories?" Eero asks, scratching his head.

"Yes, multiple times," I say since Rax already knows I did.

"And what did you see--- can I ask?"

"The two of you being like this all the time and kissing. You're right let's get ready for the bonfire," I say, turning to go while Eero takes a step back and dies internally.

"Keep breathing you're fine."