Dream Magic by B. V. Larson

ask.”
    Brand’s brow furrowed into a storm. “Why must I so swear? What has he done to wrong me?”
    The two looked surprised. “Not hing, by our account. But humans are so picky. Perhaps, in your eyes, he has performed a crime. We are not sure.”
    Brand sighed loudly.
    “All right,” he said, waving his hands in defeat. “I do so swear, for this one day, I will not arrest Trev unless both your people and mine agree I should.”
    “Excellent!” said Aden, turning around and bounding away. “Then follow us!”
    They traveled through the village to the far side, where they came to a hut. There before it sat Kaavi. She was alone.
    “Kaavi?”
    “Brand!” she cried, springing up and running to him.
    Brand could not believe it. She had not aged a day. She was still as young and nubile as ever. Had she truly squatted here for years, doing nothing of note, while he sought to build a kingdom around her? He wasn’t sure how long she’d been here, but he was glad to see her.
    Telyn had made him swear not to seek her out, as there had been certain moments of unexpected contact between the two of them in the past. Brand had followed his wife’s wishes for years—but he still dreamt of Kaavi from time to time.
    “Have you come to visit me?” Kaavi asked. “It’s been so long. Is Telyn…still around?”
    Brand opened his mouth then closed it again. “She’s abroad right now, visiting Riverton I should think.”
    “Oh. Would it be…an extended visit?”
    Brand didn’t know quite what to say. Kaavi was wasting no time in embarrassing him. Already, his guardsmen out in the lane were whispering among themselves. If this conversation should get back to Telyn, even a hint of such talk…
    “Kaavi, I’m looking for Trev.”
    Her eyes narrowed. “Not for me?”
    “I’ m always happy to see you, but—”
    “But you haven’t found time to come down here for years and do just that. How long is a girl supposed to wait?”
    There was a guffaw out upon the roadway behind him. Brand reddened.
    “Is Trev here or not, good lady?”
    Kaavi made a show of looking around her tiny camp. “I don’t see him.”
    Brand sighed. Kaavi stirred her tea and poured two tiny cups.
    “Here, sip with me for a moment. Perhaps we can help one another.”
    “All right,” he said.
    Brand turned and ordered his guardsmen back to their barracks. Darkness was falling at last, and since he’d agreed not to arrest Trev, he thought it would be easier to get to the bottom of things if he sent his troops away. They left with a mixture of relief and disappointment. Then he sat with Kaavi and sipped her tea.
    “Why are you hiding Trev from me?” he asked her.
    “Why did you bring soldiers with you from your castle?”
    They looked at one another, and finally Brand nodded. “You’re protecting him. In my experience, a man who needs protection is not an innocent man.”
    “That depends on who is pursuing him, and why.”
    Brand rolled his eyes. “I’ve sworn not to arrest him today unless both you and I think it should be done. Is that not guarantee enough? Bring him forward so I may speak with him.
    Kaavi furrowed her pretty eyebrows together, and Brand thought she was going to continue evading him. But at that moment, Trev produced himself and joined the other two at the fire.
    “May I have another cup of your tea, Auntie? I like it very much.”
    “Only half,” she said, pouring it out and handing it to him.
    Brand looked at Trev in surprise. He’d grown so much. He’d been a child the last time he’d seen him, and now he was taller than Puck had been.
    “You look like your father and mother both,” Brand said.
    “That’s not uncommon in such situations,” Trev said seriously.
    Brand laughed. This broke some of the tension between the three, and the two Fae joined him, laughing with him.
    Brand paused to look at the cup in his hand. The walnut husk was empty. What had that tiny draught been? Could it have cooled his mind?