Walking calmly, she smiled as she felt absolutely invincible, high on the magic and wanting more. She understood then why Faerie needed more magic, her pulling on it so hard was making things waver and she wanted more, she wanted Faerie to be bigger even though her drawing on the magic didn't actually deplete it, only moved it to where she needed it to be. In that case, she was drawing it from the water below and changing it, but it was not spent.
Stepping inside the palace, she smiled at the familiar place with its mass of colour that the outside didn't hint at. Illia liked greens and purples and so the decorations were those colours, long strips of fabric and cushions.
People had scattered at the sight of her, and she paused at a mirror, frowning at the sight of the crown on her head that was spiked ice, glowing a soft white and looking like a weapon in and of itself.
Her eyes were lined in kohl and decorated with violet powder, merging into little crystals stuck to her skin and her lips were a deep mauve.
She looked very odd with silver hair, but it worked.
Turning from the mirror, she saw the flash of the queen as she fled. Etani hitched up her skirt, her bare feet adorned with silvery chain like her hair.
Rounding the corner, she cut Illia off, and the woman screamed, skidding to a stop and almost crashing into her.
Etani smiled as she curled her long fingers around the woman's throat and for the first time, realised she was taller than the Queen. It was unusual, given the Celestrials were all tall with the shortest being just over six feet, but this woman was shorter.
"Oh Illia, I'll bet you never imagined this happening," she purred, delighted at the sight of the terrified woman in her grasp. "For decades you punished me for being born, you had your soldiers torture my sister and me. And likely you were responsible for the death of my mother, if not directly, than as a result of your choices. You punished us for being different, but that wasn't why you actually did it, is it? You were punishing us for what we could possibly become."
As she spoke, she pressed down on the woman, forcing her down to her knees and the queen was whimpering.
"No, never," Illia whispered and Etani grinned.
"You shouldn't lie, Illia," she purred, squeezing that delicate throat. "I'll make a deal with you, Illia, give me your magic, and I will consider sparing your life," she said, her nails cutting easily through the delicate skin and leaving rivulets of blood to roll down her pale skin.
"Yes, anything you want," she gasped and Etani grinned.
"Do you promise?" she pressed, and Illia nodded.
"Yes, yes, yes!"
Etani leant forward and pressed her lips gently against that of the Queen's, knowing full well the promise meant the woman wasn't capable of trying to consume her soul until after.
The magic that slid into her was all barbs and she let go of Illia as she gasped, pain ripping through every inch of her as her heart slowed and her body changed.
Her skin paled and the scars she had accumulated smoothed over, her teeth sharpening into fine, razor points and her mind roiled, revolting against the change in the various parts of her.
Her eyes watered and she touched them, finding the black of tears she had always known.
She had done it, she was herself again and her body vibrated with the remembered feeling of being what she was.
Looking up, her eyes focused on the fleeing form of Illia, and she laughed softly, going after her but someone reached her first and Jagum slammed into her, smashing her small frame into the wall.
He turned to look at Etani as she approached and his eyes widened at the sight of her, her liquid movements calling to the primitive parts of his mind and that magic pull that had him wanting to go to her and make her his.
She trailed her fingers gently down his spine and he shivered under the touch, her lips a gentle brush against his cheek before her eyes turned to Illia.
Pressing Jagum away from the queen, she stared down at her with hungry eyes, her slender fingers curling around the slender throat she had always dreamt of crushing.
"You promised to let me go!" she gasped, terrified.
"No Illia, I only promised to consider it," she said with a satisfied grin.
Clutching the woman by the jaw, she kissed her and delved into her mind with ferocious abandon, ripping through all of the defences and ripping her soul free.
Sucking it into herself, she shivered and groaned at the rush of energy, and she felt something colliding with the side of her mind and then an internal scream as she felt the presence of Letari and she was flooded with relief.
Letting go of the corpse, she frowned as she looked down at her hand, finding guards had formed over the fingertip of her middle fingers and crept up her finger to form gauntlets around her wrists in a lace pattern that she recognised with a moment of panic.
"Well shit… I shouldn't have done that" she said slowly as the body of Illia disintegrated into dust before their eyes.
She had murdered the Queen of Ceress and that meant that she was now the Queen.
She had become the first dual Court Queen of Faerie.
Turning to see Daemon and Uzo staring at her, she could only shake her head in frustration, unsure what that meant. There had never been a time when one Queen ruled over two parts of Faerie, and she didn't want to know what was going to happen to it if that lasted.
"What are you going to do?" Uzo asked in a low voice, something in his face telling her their relationship had changed in some way, but she didn't want to deal with that at the moment.
"I'll deal with it after. Probably make Megara Queen regent," she said and the two nodded slowly.
"You are incredible," Daemon whispered and then blushed, realising he had spoken aloud.
She grinned, curling her fingers in the front of his shirt and pulling him against her.
Her lips found his in an instant and he melted into her, revelling in the possessive gesture.
She pulled back from him after a moment and her teeth caught his lower lip, pulling it slowly to leave a small cut that had his eyes flashing to golden yellow in an instant.
Amused by the sight, she pressed him back and she knew she was teasing him, getting him worked up only to make him wait, but it was fun.
"When we get there, we have to make sure Epharis and the twins are willing to help. We can't take no for an answer this time," she said.
"Did we ever?" Uzo asked and he grinned at her glare.
"You're so pretty when you're angry," he said as he wiped at her lower eyelid, removing the dark lines that had formed with her tears.
"Don't look at me like that, you're still my uncle," she said, and he caught the slight sadness in his expression.
"Yes, but now you're my Queen," he said.
"I'm your niece first and always," she said, and he seemed to brighten at that.
She didn't care that they didn't share blood, he was her uncle and that was all that mattered.
"I acknowledge all pre-existing deals," she said gently and shivered at the sudden feeling of those promises and deals she had made, knowing she wouldn't be able to ignore the ones she had with Alaric and Epharis.
"We have to go," she said, and Daemon nodded, but when he was about to take her hand, he grinned and bowed to her.
"After you," he said playfully, and she shook her head.
Biting on the tip of her finger, she drew the line in the air and the door opened, revealing the throne room of Ayathian.
They stepped through and the door closed behind them with a soft pop.