One week later, Marie-Fey blew out of her carriage before her servants could even approach the door. They scrambled to get the stairs into place then ducked out of the way as she snapped her fan open and blazed across the courtyard.

Maanah and Gharam were both there to meet her. Maanah looked so much better, though they both looked rather sick with worry which didn't fade when they saw her expression.

"My Lady," Gharam started and she strode past them.

"Come along," she ordered.

The women of the palace who had come out to see her return stumbled out of the way as she swept up the stairs of the main palace, stormed right through it and drove out the other side, heading for her own palace.

"My Lady, you need to know—" Maanah called as she and Gharam hurried after her.

"We have a lot to discuss, someone call for Zaafira. What an awful return from a trip, having her as my first meeting," Marie-Fey said with a despairing sigh as the doors to her palace were quickly pulled open and she froze.

She was still for a moment, then looked around her to just to double check that she was in fact in her desert home and not somehow magically transported to her home country.

But no. This was her private palace, in the compound of her husband's main home, in his controlled state.

Which made the appearance of Constantine stepping out of one of the parlour rooms all the more confusing.

"Well you're in a chipper mood," he observed, folding his arms.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she replied, and he snorted.

"Charming! Your dear big brother comes all the way across the sea to visit you and that's how you respond?" he said, walking over and holding out his arms.

Marie-Fey glided forwards and wrapped her arms around her brother, more confused than ever.

"I don't understand, why are you here though?"

"I'll explain later, when we're alone," Constantine replied, drawing back, "For now... why the thunderous mood?"

Marie-Fey grimaced. While she was happy to see Constantine, the man did have a way of throwing wrenches in people's plans – whether they be martial engagements or the stopping of a murderous immortal.

"How is it you have come back in one piece and yet Zaydan has not?" Zaafira snapped as she burst into the grand entrance hall.

"Because Zahir tried to stab me and he got in the way," Marie-Fey replied and Zaafira scoffed.

"And you didn't think to move his hand in time?" she cried, storming forwards, glowering at her.

"And take the knife to the throat? That's a damn fine plan now, why ever didn't I think of!"

"You always were a tad slow."

"I see you missed me terribly."

"I'm sorry to interrupt," Constantine said, and they looked at him so see a darkness settle in his eyes as he looked between them. "Did you just say Zahir – which I believe is the name of your husband – attempted to stab you?"

Marie-Fey released an exhausted sigh. "I haven't even had time to bathe yet and things have already become tiresome," she muttered. "Gharam, call for tea. Maanah, good to see you looking so much better, call for Zaydan. Zaafira, Con, go wait in the parlour. I am going to change out of this outfit because I am quite fed up with the damn sand. I shall be with you soon and... well since you're here, I suppose I have to explain everything now. Which is most inconvenient."

"Marie!" Constantine started but she was already passing him. She needed to take a moment to gather her thoughts before she launched into yet another stressful day. She needed to think and breathe and compose herself. Her brother's presence threw her. She couldn't think why he'd drag himself all the way across the sea to visit her when they'd seen each other recently and he really wasn't a fan of the heat. His Grand Tour had been a series of letter complaining about the heat and Valentine's corresponding letters explaining that Constantine was a menace to travel with.

She brushed as much of the sand out of her hair as she was able, though she could have done with a proper bath that evening, then changed into a fresh new gown and drew a breath.

"Alright," she muttered, then turned and walked back out of her rooms, returning back down the ground floor and sweeping into the main parlour.

Constantine was glowering at her.

She looked back at him for a moment, then glared at Zaafira.

"What did you tell him?" she snapped.

"Everything up to your departure to the capital," Zaafira replied with a snake-smirk. "I thought it might save us some time."

"That was not yours to tell!"

"We're going home!"

Zaafira and Marie-Fey looked at Constantine as he shot to his feet, glaring between her and Zaafira.

"Excuse me?" Marie-Fey asked.

"We're going home! We're leaving and returning home right now and you are not returning to this lunacy of a palace. We are going!"

"I will go when I am good and ready," Marie-Fey replied, "I have been managing just fine these last two years and I do not need you swooping in at the last second and playing knight in shining armour."

"I am not playing knight in shining armour! I AM your older brother who just discovered people have been trying to kill you! And you want to stay? Are you crazy?"

"I am quite sane," Marie-Fey replied as Gharam walked in ahead of staff bringing the tea and Maanah reappearing with Zaydan.

Constantine whirled on Zaydan, storming to him and grabbing the front of his jacket, almost knocking him off his feet.

"You!" he snarled, "I thought you cared about Marie!"

"I'd say you thought correctly," Zaydan offered, holding up his hands as his eyes darkened.

"You clearly don't or you would have sent her out of this madhouse! You would have left her behind when you returned here!"

"I don't command her," Zaydan snapped, twisting his grip off his collar, "We talked about it. We discussed it. Marie-Fey decided to come back."

"You should have convinced her otherwise!" Constantine shouted.

"She's capable of knowing her own mind!" Zaydan shouted back.

"She's capable of fighting her own battles as well. Constantine, sit down before I throw the tea at you," Marie-Fey snapped as she sat down.

Constantine fell quiet, still glaring at Zaydan, then yanked his first from Zaydan's grip. They both sharply adjusted their clothing, still watching each other before parting. Constantine threw himself into an armchair as Zaydan dropped onto the other side of Marie-Fey's sofa.

"Lords save us from high maintenance men," Marie-Fey muttered as Gharam offered her a teacup.

"I think it's reasonable that I'd be a little distressed to discover that my sister has almost been killed on more than one occasion!"

"Well I wasn't killed and right now I'm more interested in figuring out how to not be killed in the future than worrying about how I was almost killed in the past. Near death experiences are par for the course in this family, in case you hadn't noticed."

"No. They're not!"

"I shall inform Rosalia and Beldon that they have been disowned from the family then."

"Marie-Fey!"

"I'm going to ask you to leave if you don't calm down and listen like everyone else," Marie-Fey cut through, her eyes darkening. "You're upset, I understand that. I assume you have some dramatic reason that has caused you to arrive here so I would deduce that something back home outside of the family has caused you more upset. And we will discuss all that tonight over a private dinner. But right this second, I need to talk about what I learnt while at the capital and what I know of my husband and explain what my plan is before I'm forced to send Zaafira and Gharam to their deaths."

There was a crash, and everyone looked around to see the teapot shattered on the ground, boiling tea soaking into the carpets as Gharam stood frozen, her body trembling as she stared at Marie-Fey. Her skin was visibly draining of colour as Maanah rushed over to her, wrapping her arms around her.

"Gharam, take a seat. Maanah, call the servants to prepare more tea. They can tidy that later," Marie-Fey ordered. Maanah eased Gharam into another seat, gently stroking her hair, then swept away.

Marie-Fey waited until Maanah returned and was standing at Gharam's shoulder, before she let out a breath, rubbing her eyes.

Zaydan's hand gently touched her back, rubbing warm fingers back and forth across her spine. "An early night, perhaps," he suggested softly.

"An early night," she agreed before straightening. "Alright, let us start from the top. If anyone interrupts me during my explanation, I am throwing them out of the palace and they can sleep in the city tonight. Understood."

Silence met her command. Even Zaafira silently watched and she nodded before starting from the beginning, from her arrival at the capital, to her introduction to The Sultan and Zahir, to meeting the Sultana, to seeing Kilan and his advice and deductions that helped her prepare for her dinner with her husband which resulted in her witnessing half a dozen former lives, learning the origins of the character Blue Beard and informing Zahir that she would not back down. To Zaydan's interception of the knife that could have killed her, to the quiet week that followed, to their deal and what she had to give up to get Zaydan back to finally being forced to agree to sending Zaafira and Gharam to him in exchange that he would not just kill them then and there.

The silence continued long after she finished her explanation, broken only by the servants arriving with fresh tea. They quickly gathered the broken china then hurried out again.

The door softly clicked behind them and Constantine shoved to his feet.

"Con," Marie-Fey started but he walked out, slamming the door behind him. She clicked her tongue and Gharam spun to her.

"Y— you won't send us away, will you?" she gasped, "We'll die. Isn't there anything... can you not..."

"She can't stop this, we have to go," Zaafira said, her voice emotionless and hard, her gazed locked on the vibrant garden outside.

"But... but we'll..."

"Yes, we will," Zaafira confirmed, "Lord Zahir has chosen us for a reason. You mean something to Marie-Fey. I mean something to Zaydan. He is reminding them what he can do if they disobey him. He can slowly weaken them, one trauma at a time."

Gharam's hand locked around Maanah's wrist, squeezing the colour from the skin and the door reopened.

Constantine walked back in holding a long, thin case. He dropped it on Marie-Fey lap and took his seat again.

She raised an eyebrow at him, then unlocked the clasp and opened the lid.

Her eyebrow raised at the sight before, mixed with confusion and admiration.

Inside the velvet pillowed case was a single arrow.

Long and slender, the fletching was a flowing, icy blue and white, the body a perfect, shimmering black. The arrowhead was simple carved black stone with a single, small diamond set into the middle of it.

She and Zaydan stared at the arrow for a long, long moment, then looked at Constantine.

"Beldon gave it to me to give to you," he said, folding his arms like a sulking child.

"What?" Marie-Fey breathed.

"Before I left, Beldon gave me that arrow and told me to give it to you. He said he didn't know why you needed it, but he had been given it by the stars. And the stars wanted you to have it."

He tapped his heel several times against the ground before glaring at Marie-Fey.

"Apparently the gods want you to fix their stupidity."

Marie-Fey continued to stare at him for a moment, then looked towards the ceiling. "You lot can really be rather useless, I hope you know that," she said, pointing before slamming the lid closed.

"Bel said much the same thing," Constantine replied before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small letter, tossing it to her. "Here. He wrote you something."

Marie-Fey caught it and pulled the seal free, tugging out and unfollowing the letter to reveal her brother's neat, elegant script.

Dear Marie,

I don't know what you're involved with – and I wish you would have told us while you were here – but I have just taken tea with a god who is asking for a favour of us. From me, it is to get that arrow to you. I'm assuming Constantine has handed it over by now, but if not, tell him to hurry up.

From you, he refused to explain any details to me. Gods are disgustingly cryptic at times and it limits how much I can help you. I'm sorry I cannot investigate more and give you some sort of proper assistance seeing as my job is to handle such things. But my mortal career is demanding my presence on the field again and I'm having to depart.

All I know is the god told me to get you that arrow, and to inform you that, 'You must remove the source of power from the darkness'. I have no idea what that refers to but I'm hoping you do.

Best of luck, sister.

I hope you make it through.

Beldon

P.S. He is coming and shall not wait. He is right behind you.

A chill shot up Marie-Fey's spine and she whirled around to look behind her as if Zahir would be stood right there. There was nothing but the patterned wall of course. Zaydan looked back as well then looked at her in confusion.

"What?" he asked.

"What? What is it?" Constantine snapped, frowning at her.

Marie-Fey turned to stare at him but didn't see him. Instead, she snapped a command for her brother to remain behind, startling him into staying put, before she shot to her feet and swept out of the room, the others stumbling to follow as she threw open the front doors of her palace and raced through the gardens until she was out, staring up at the main women's palace.

"What's the matter?" Zaafira asked, frowning at her.

Marie-Fey reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing tightly, making Zaafira hiss and try to shake her off before Marie-Fey looked at her.

"You're going to go," she said.

"Excuse me?" Zaafira spat.

"I have a plan, of some description, it will be rushed but I have an idea," Marie-Fey continued, looking back at the palace. The others stared at her.

"What?" Zaydan asked, frowning in confusion.

"I can't tell you," Marie-Fey replied, turning to him.