The bad smell diminished as the creature trudged on, its stench replaced by delicious smells that wafted from a cafe-one very similar to the Crystal Cup in Big Nugget. Red-checked gingham tablecloths covered the wooden tables (rather than wrought iron tables, since most fae found iron toxic), and the cafe chairs had twisty backs, the wood embellished with crystals. It looked like the furniture Keelie's father made. A woman with fuzzy ear tips, like a cat's, sticking up through her dark hair exited from the restaurant. She carried a tray loaded with glistening pastries, and when she turned around, Keelie saw that she had a cat tail, too. She felt her mouth drop open, and closed it.

The cat-tailed girl turned around and smiled at them mischievously. "Would you like to eat a bite of me cakes? One bite, and you'll never want for food, again."

Knot hopped on the table and glared at the girl, tail whipping back and forth.

"You." The girl's smile vanished and her own tail started to swish angrily.

"Yeow," he replied. They glared at one another.

"You never returned after Beltane. Is she the one?" the cat-tailed girl almost shrieked, pointing at Keelie.

"Let's leave them to work this out." Coyote herded Keelie, Sean, and Elia away from the cafe and down the path.

"But those pastries looked good. I'm hungry." Elia rubbed her stomach. "I love faire food. Maybe we can find turkey legs like the ones at the mundane faire."

Coyote motioned toward the pastry shop. "My lady, I must remind you once more that if you eat fairy food, you will hunger for it always, as will your child. No human or elven food will nourish your body or your soul, and eventually you will die of hunger."

"Oh." Elia protectively placed her hand over her belly.

Even though she was a major pain in the b.u.t.t, one thing Keelie knew for sure was that Elia would be a good mother.

"Let's get this meeting over with," Sean said. "I've had enough of this world already."

"Why elf, you've just entered our realm. Is that any way to treat your hosts?" A tall, slender fae wearing a long black robe had appeared before them. His hair gleamed silver and his eyes glowed with an alien tint.

Despite his unusual looks, Keelie felt drawn to the fairy-an immediate physical attraction that made her feel warm and fuzzy on the inside, as if she'd had several cups of mead.

He bowed elegantly. "My Lady Keliel."

She knew she was falling under a spell of enchantment, but she didn't care. It felt so good. "Who are you?"

He rose from his graceful bow. "I am Fala. Your guide to the queen."

The whispers of beware floated to the forefront of her mind until Coyote's wet nose nudged her hand. The enchantment lifted.

Fala frowned, as if he knew that the glamour magic he'd spun to entrap Keelie had been broken.

Another fairy laughed as he appeared next to Fala. He turned toward Keelie. His skin was eggplant purple and his gorgeous, long white hair was woven through with strands of silver, which glinted in the light of the lanterns. He carried a quiver of arrows and a crossbow on his back. He reached for Keelie's hand and kissed it. "My Lady Keliel. I am Salaca, your escort."

A frisson of delight skipped up her spine and she had to repress a silly giggle. The drunk feeling returned, but this time she called upon her magic to create a shield. It pushed Salaca's magic away.

His lips formed a predatory smile. "I'm a hunter, my lady, and I've always enjoyed a good chase."

Sean stepped in between Keelie and the elves.

Fala laughed. "She is safe, elf. For now."

"Speak for yourself. I find her quite intriguing for a human hybrid." Salaca eyed her like she was a used car.

"I'm here to see the queen," Keelie said, in her grandmother's "obey me" voice. She doubted it would work on the fae, but it helped bolster her courage as she faced these dangerous and beautiful fairies.

"We ask safe pa.s.sage to and from your lands." Sean forced the words out past clenched teeth. Keelie could see that it was an effort for him to remain polite.

Knot ran toward them, meowing loudly, covered in icing with bits of cake clinging to his fur. His meeting with the cat girl apparently hadn't ended well.

Coyote stepped in front of Keelie and confronted Fala and Salaca. "Lady Keliel is under my protection as well."

The two fae laughed in unison, and Keelie lost a little confidence in her furry guards.

Salaca stopped his laughter, then lifted his head as if he caught the scent of something, his eyes narrowed. "The Dark Hunt. We need to alert the guard."

Through the door they'd entered, which was still open a ways behind them, Keelie heard the baying of hounds once more. She remembered the horned figure on the horse. Herne. Salaca gestured, and Keelie heard the door slam shut.

Fala grinned at Keelie. "The queen will find this most intriguing. Is it a coincidence that the Wild Hunt rides when the little elf comes to call?"

"Mayhaps Keliel Treetalker has secret surprises for us, and I'm sure the queen wants to know each and every one," Salaca said as he circled Keelie.

She felt the buzzing of magic against her skin.

Knot stood on hind legs and reached up with his forepaws, as if snagging a thread, and Salaca drew back with a curse.

Keelie had thought her diplomatic status would protect her, but the fairies didn't seem to obey any rules at all. She was suddenly afraid-not for herself, but for her friends. What had she gotten them into?

Keeping her eyes level with Fala's, Keelie called upon her magic to create a shield once again. She wouldn't let him enchant her. Emboldened by her determination, she knew she couldn't let him see fear in her eyes. Dad said that the fae liked to intimidate and force their opponent to submit to their orders and worst whims. If they detected a hint of fear, then their snare was as good as sprung and their victim caught.

Fala bowed. "We shall continue our game later, Lady Keliel."

This was just a game to them. Maybe, instead of fearing for her elven and fae friends, she should be afraid for her own big streak of mortal.

Elia sighed and rolled her eyes. "Speaking of games, what is that booth over there?" She pointed.

Salaca scowled. "You were not spoken to, elf. Do not speak unless we give you permission."

Elia raised her chin and took a step forward. "I'll have you know that I bear the child of the Unicorn Lord of the Dread Forest. He's part fae and he outranks you."

Fala and Salaca stared at her belly as if a unicorn would pop out and gore them. Then they looked at each other and shrugged.

"Look at all these people," Keelie said. "This faire is much bigger than the human ones I've been to." Crazier, too. Time to steer the conversation to a safe place.

Fala chuckled. "Brother, our guests have not seen the faire, only its sad imitation on the Earthly plane. Let us guide them."

Coyote cleared his throat. He pointed to his pocket watch. "Midnight, boys, and I don't want Keelie to be late for her appointment with the queen."

"If it's midnight, aren't we already late?" Keelie spoke loudly, but the others seemed to ignore her. Instead, Fala motioned to a curious shop across the lane. It was a twostory hourgla.s.s, with a door set into the globular bottom half.

"h.e.l.lo? We're running late. We don't have time for a side trip." Keelie was worried that the queen would be angry at them.

"The Timekeeper can stop time for us. This is an excellent move, Keelie." Coyote put up his pocket watch and led the way.

Keelie remembered her visit to Under-the-Hill. If time pa.s.sed as strangely in Fairy as it did in Under-the-Hill, then she had a new worry. How much time would pa.s.s here, and would she return to her own world a hundred years in the future?

Knot jaunted behind Coyote, tail held high, as the fairies and elves followed.

The inside of the shop smelled like new and old at once. Keelie had entered carefully, avoiding the door's wooden frame, afraid of what she would sense in a shop that was outside of time. Despite being of rounded gla.s.s outside, the inside was a normal-looking rectangular room, with a sitting area to the right where a fire burned in a gigantic fireplace. The rest of the room was lined with clocks. The walls were covered in them, and their ticking vibrated through Keelie's body.

A long gla.s.s counter ran along the length of the room, and behind it, a golden retriever wearing an ap.r.o.n bent over a counter. He wore a large magnifying gla.s.s over his head, held in place by a leather strap. He held a screwdriver in his right paw, and Keelie noticed that he had an opposable paw pad that worked like a thumb.

He was tightening a part inside a small table clock which wiggled and kicked its little peg feet, giggling at the screwdriver that was tightening its innards. "I'll be with you good folks in a moment. Time waits for no one, and everyone waits for time." The dog didn't look up from his work.

Okay, a talking dog. Knot talked occasionally, when he wanted to, with a meowy accent. Like Coyote, the dog sounded human. Maybe it was a cat-and-dog thing.

Sean and Elia were examining the clocks that hung on the wall. There were cuckoo clocks, clocks made of gold, and plain schoolhouse clocks. Grandfather clocks stood in a row like paternal guardians of time.

Knot hopped onto the counter and sat down patiently. His tail twitched in time to the beat of the clocks, which had now softened. Their tick-tock sounded like a mechanical heart, which soothed Keelie. Even Coyote's tail wagged like a fuzzy metronome.

Fala and Salaca waited, tapping their feet in time to the irresistible beat.

When the Timekeeper finished his repairs, the clock stood up and ran back to a shelf and settled itself among a collection of other table clocks. The Timekeeper looked up at them, his doggie eye magnified many times over as his golden gaze took in the room. All the clocks showed five minutes till midnight.

"I have guests," he said. "It has been a long time since a child of Sylvus and a human have entered my shop." He gestured to the fireplace, which was now flanked by cozy chairs. Where had they come from?

Keelie whipped around to stare at the Timekeeper, and he winked at her. The friendly gesture rea.s.sured her.

Knot hopped down from the counter and sauntered over to the fire, and just as he was about to settle down on the rag rug, Coyote ran over and snagged the prime spot, settling in to toast before the flames. He ignored the cat and started biting at his tail as if a flea had just had bitten him.

Knot hissed.

"Let me make us some tea." The Timekeeper bent down and rummaged underneath his work counter, and when he rose, he was no longer a dog, but a man wearing a simple red robe embroidered with silver and gold thread. His eyes were gold, and on his long brown hair he wore a quicksilver crown adorned with an hourgla.s.s emblem. He smiled benevolently at everyone. Even Elia seemed to melt under his kindness. Keelie didn't sense anything dark or sinister about the Timekeeper, but she was still wary.

"Coyote, how is that gold watch working for you? I don't often make one from scratch, and it's one of my fawrites.

Coyote produced the watch. "Keeps perfect time."

"As it was meant to do." The Timekeeper poured strong tea from a white porcelain Chinese teapot with a blue glazed dragon swimming around its middle. He handed the first cup to Elia. She accepted, but her face reflected the caution that Keelie felt.

"The tea is from India. Nothing fae here. It's safe for you to drink, dear."

Fala and Salaca accepted cups when they were served. Then it was Sean and Keelie's turn. The Timekeeper moved at super-fast speed, then settled into his chair. Keelie watched in quiet surprise as the clawed feet sprouted toenails.

What kind of chair was this?

"What can I do for you?" The Timekeeper asked.

"We've come to ask a favor, Old One," Fala answered. "We are late for an appointment with Her Majesty, and would beg that you stop time for us."

"I see." The Timekeeper turned to Keelie. "You are the daughter of the Lord of the Dread Forest." His intense gaze fell upon her. "The forests speak your name. You are a cherished child of Sylvus."

"Do you know Sylvus?" Keelie asked, her voice sounding squeaky.

"Our paths have crossed." The Timekeeper's lips twitched. "He finds you most entertaining."

The elves swore by Sylvus, the powerful nature G.o.d they worshipped. And apparently he truly existed, and he found her entertaining. Keelie didn't know how she felt about that, especially the entertaining aspect.

"The queen is ever angry at those who are late," the Timekeeper added, smiling.

Salaca bowed, hiding his scowl. "Keliel and her friends are guests of the queen. She would do nothing to harm them-she has need of the girl's a.s.sistance. We simply ask that you allow her guests the time to visit our faire."

So the queen did want something from her, but what? Keelie liked watching Salaca humbling himself and inadvertently revealing the truth. Bet it didn't happen a lot.

"My Lord," Coyote said, wagging his tail as the Timekeeper turned to him. "I also have a request. I ask that you give Keelie and her companions a boon to allow them to slip back to their tomorrow, not many moons from now." He bowed his head and Knot lifted his paw Keelie had never seen the cat so supplicant to anyone.

When she looked at the Timekeeper again, she saw that his appearance had changed. Now he wore a dark cloak, and his face was hidden beneath the hood. A skeletal hand came out from the cloak and put the teacup down. Keelie forced herself not to react, although she wanted to step back.

The bony hand went back into the cloak, this time emerging with a wooden hourgla.s.s carved with moons and stars, the gla.s.s filled with black sand. The sands in the hourgla.s.s started to flow backwards.

"A boon has been requested and a boon will be given," the Timekeeper said in a deep voice. "When they return from the High Court of the Shining Ones, Keliel Heartwood and her companions will return to their tomorrow, more or less." He waved his hand, and a holographic image of the solar system appeared, and then it expanded to include the entire Milky Way. Keelie recognized the image from the Elven Lore Book. Who knew? "Keliel Heartwood, Elia Heartwood and her child, Sean son of Niriel, Knot, and Coyote Moondancer will be returned to Earth from Fairy, and all will be as it is."

The image disappeared.

The sand in the hourgla.s.s had emptied. The Timekeeper pointed a skeletal finger at Fala and Salaca. "The coyote's boon has been granted, and the travelers are under my protection."

Both fae smiled-forced grimaces that didn't fool anyone.

The Timekeeper leaned forward in his chair and looked at Keelie and Sean. "Stay together, be the touchstone of the other, and you shall travel the realm of Fairy in safety." He turned his gaze to Elia. "Your child will protect you. It is time for me to go."

Then the Timekeeper lifted his hand, and his chair began walking backwards. One of the grandfather clocks opened its door and widened, and the chair galloped through the doorway. The opening disappeared, and the grandfather clock closed its door.

The Timekeeper's voice boomed in the room. "It will stay five minutes until midnight at the faire until you enter the vortex. Anyone who visits the Quicksilver Faire needs a chance to shop." Laughter tumbled all around the room like a booming waterfall, ending in a short bark.

Keelie and the others found themselves outside. She turned around, and all was dark in the Timekeeper's shop.

"What did he mean by the vortex? That doesn't sound safe." Keelie moved closer to Sean.

Fala pointed down the lane. "Let's go this way."

Keelie linked her arm with Sean's. "I think I'll stick close to you.

He smiled, and leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. It was a sweet kiss, and Keelie felt her apprehension melt. His kisses made her feel warm and bubbly inside.

"So what exactly is the Timekeeper?" Keelie asked Salaca as he marched past.

"The Timekeeper is the sovereign ruler over time. Neither fae nor elf," Salaca said. "We shall take you to a few shops of our choosing, and then we will meet the queen."

Coyote trotted up alongside Keelie. "The Timekeeper is a G.o.d like Sylvus. Queen Vania has to listen to him."

"Thanks, Coyote."

He lowered his head as if he was embarra.s.sed.