• Over the course of the next couple days Silanis watched the smaller things in life that she had never paid much attention to. Things she had once seen as insignificant - little tone fluctuations, and minute attitudes that people took on when other people said or did things… The sound of real laughter versus the fake laughter she heard in even some of her own friends; the bloom of a flower in morning light, the backstabbing that was so open, but so friendly… It was painful for her to see how many people drank alcohol from small bottles and flasks, which they kept on their person. This wasn’t her place, she couldn’t be meant to stay here until death, or marry one of these drunken men, or run her fathers little shop and deal with all these people, all the time. Whatever was in her future, it was almost guaranteed to be more significant than being a wife and running a store in a city of drunks and fake people. But how would she convince her parents to let her go?

    That was where Wolfe came in. Wolfe had magic, and knew how to use it. She would be able to find a way to get Silanis’ parents to agree to her leaving, because she refused to just leave them with no explanation. So it was decided, as she sat in a small park at the edge of the market place, that she would go with the little faerie to see the elders and learn her fate. They had already lost two days of travel time.

    ------------

    “How, then, are we to convince my parents that I am supposed to go now?” Silanis asked, after explaining her feelings to Wolfe.

    The little faerie sat on her bed, thinking, for what seemed like ages. It was quite a conundrum, Silanis wanted to go, but did not want to hurt her parents at all in going. The only way they would let her go would be if she were getting married, or if royalty called her away. Or especially if she were marrying royalty, but setting up something so elaborate would take more than just her own magic.

    Although she supposed Dian would be willing to play the part of a suitor, if she could get a hold of him somehow. He had been looking for an excuse to visit the human cities, and this would be a good enough reason indeed. He had been helping her follow the box, to an extent. Logic stood to reason that if he were her friend, he would help her with this.

    Looking to Silanis, the faerie began to smile. “I think I have a solution.” Her voice was soft and lilting. “I know someone who could be useful in getting you out of here, without hurting your parents.”

    “Who?” Silanis asked, looking suspiciously at the faerie.

    “His name is Dian.” She replied. “He lives in the elvish city Athlone. He’s been looking for an excuse for nearly two-hundred years to visit a human city.”

    “An Elve?” Silanis asked, feeling small and insignificant in the large world that had been opened to her a couple of day’s prior.

    “He could be a suitor come to whisk you away for marriage.” Wolfe continued. “He’s handsome, smart, and well-to-do. It would be a cinch to convince your parents.”

    “Whoa, whoa, wait.” Silanis said, holding up her hands. “You want me to lie?”

    “Only in the name of the greater good, dear.” Wolfe explained. “That ring is special, and your fate is just as special, being tied to the ring. You may save a city, a country, or the world, with that ring. You don’t know for sure, and neither do I. So it makes sense that you would go to the elders, and if you have to lie in order to get there, I know the Gods forgive if the ends justifies the means.”

    “I get that much, but why does it have to be marriage?” She didn’t much like the idea of marriage, and being lovey-dovey with someone she did not know. “Couldn’t it be something else? Couldn’t he be from the ByTalnan government, come to whisk me away to be… I don’t know, a courtier? The Reid’s may not be anything special here, but I’m sure we’ve got something in our lineage we could use, instead of marriage.”

    “If you want to take the time to look everything up, by all means, go right ahead.” Wolfe said. “But every day you take is a day less in the rest of your life, so use the time before you leave very carefully.”

    “I will.” She would, and she would go right away to check her family lineage. There was a book on it in her fathers study, and he was working the storefront right now. She could look through it uninterrupted for a while. She grabbed some of his paper and a small dove quill to take notes. By the end of that day, she had a list four pages long and showed it to the faerie.

    “Are there any names here that look familiar to you in any way?” She asked.

    “Heyail Reid.” Wolfe said. “He was in the court of the Nylian kingdom many years ago. He also had strong ties as an ambassador of Nylia to ByTalna. I had no idea there was any actual relation, though, or I would have mentioned him earlier.”

    “So then my suggestion of this Dian being a courtier from ByTalna would work, right?” Silanis would try anything to avoid lying about marriage to her parents.

    “Theoretically, yes.” Wolfe replied. “Its worth a try, at any rate. I’ll go get him tonight, then, and in the morning he will come to get you, yes?”

    “Alright, that sounds good.” Silanis replied. “Give me a heads up before he gets here, ok?”
    “Of course.” Wolfe replied, and opened her window. “I’ll return really soon, Silanis. Get a good nights rest, and I’ll be back come morning.”

    Silanis nodded, and Wolfe took off out the window. She closed the window behind the faerie, and prepared herself for bed. Tomorrow would be an interesting day.