The Queen of Nothing

Book 2 opens with an excerpt of a poem by Philip James Bailey titled “A Fairy Tale.” The poem describes a great battle led by an unnamed woman who fought at the “Elle-King’s side” (150). The epigraph foreshadows the pivotal role Jude will play in this section to safeguard the throne of Elfhame. Like the woman who fought by the side of the Elle-King, Jude will be Cardan’s equal. This set of chapters brings Jude and Cardan together after mostly being apart up to this point in the narrative. As in a classic comedy, the misunderstanding between Jude and Cardan begins to resolve. The misunderstanding is due to a set of misplaced words and lost letters, which are common tropes in classical plays, such as those of Shakespeare. Here, the lovers are separated by a misplaced riddle and letters that have mysteriously been intercepted. Cardan’s eagerness to seem clever to Jude shows his desire to win her approval, confirming Madoc’s statement about the starving man and the banquet. Jude has always viewed Cardan as cruel and invincible; in fact, he is hungry to prove himself to her. When Cardan tells her that her injury rattled him because “you never break” (158), Jude realizes that Cardan is as much in awe of her as she once was of him.

The trick around Jude’s fake exile is an example of how important riddles are in the narrative and in the world of Faerie. Yet, the confusion caused by Cardan’s riddle shows that sometimes straightforward communication may be better. Faeries love games, adventures, and tricks, and Jude too admires such devices, but they can sometimes backfire. References to games and play abound in the text, and some of the most humorous asides are when real, mortal games enter the world of Faerie. In Chapter 17, Tatterfell plays a game of Uno with Oak; the image of the courtly imp engaged in such a human activity is heartwarming and funny. Characters like Oak and Vivienne often bring human artifacts and habits into the Faerie realm, symbolizing that the rigid boundary between the two are collapsing. Oak, as a child, inhabits both worlds with ease, foreshadowing that the path ahead lies in harmony between these realms.

Not every outsider is as charmed by Faerie as Jude, which comes across in Vivienne’s irreverent voice. Vivienne has always been more skeptical of Faerie than Jude, because she is half-fey and also because she was the oldest witness of Madoc’s murder of her mother. Since then, she hates Madoc and thwarts him at every turn. Madoc often rails that Vivienne, his only biological child, is his biggest disappointment. In the book’s narrative, Vivienne’s wry, humorous voice, with its pop-culture references, acts as a relief against the courtly proceedings in Faerie. In Chapter 17, she chides Jude for getting into danger repeatedly, acting “as though Court politics is some kind of extreme sport” (154).

With Jude back in the palace, the motif of court intrigue and power games kicks into gear again. In Chapter 19, Jude visits Lady Asha on her request. As the Bomb tells Jude, this is a power move on Asha’s part, since Asha is a courtier who should be coming to visit the injured High Queen. By calling Jude to her chambers, Lady Asha wishes to undermine Jude’s authority over Elfhame and Cardan. Jude notes that in Lady Asha’s chambers, “the courtiers remain seated far longer than they ought” before her, while Lady Asha remains on her bed (170). In the ritual- and hierarchy-sensitive society of Faerie, such gestures are highly significant. Jude rightly guesses it was Lady Asha who intercepted Cardan’s letters to drive a wedge between Jude and Cardan. To set this power imbalance right, Jude knows she must act decisively and ruthlessly: She tells Asha that she will always present her a challenge and that the next time they meet, she will “expect your curtsy” (172). Jude has been successful in her political career in Faerie because she understands that power is also performance. Though she is a kind, compassionate person, Jude understands the rules of Faerie and plays by them.

The motif of elaborate and significant attire continues in these chapters, with Vivienne dressed in a suit of bottle-green velvet and Cardan wearing pointy little gold caps over his pointed ears. The attention to fashion shows that part of the attraction of the faerie realm is play, and that extends to clothes and colour as well. Everyone in Faerie loves to play dress-up, and that is a part of the land’s charm. One of the interesting features of Faerie is that old-fashioned language and rituals coexist with forward-looking attitudes around attire, sexuality, and gender. Vivienne dresses in clothes that are fashionably masculine; Cardan experiments with his attire as well. Same-sex relationships are ubiquitous and accepted, as in the case of Val Moren and his mortal lovers.

Val Moren makes a surprise appearance in this section when Jude meets him on the way to Lady Asha’s chambers. A former seneschal himself, Val Moren is mortal, like Jude. Yet, he has never guided or protected Jude and Taryn. Now he explains why: He believes Jude can look after herself since she, unlike him, grew up in Elfhame. Jude is like a seed planted in goblin soil, whereas he was a full-grown tree when he came to Elfhame. The likening of Jude to a seed sown in magic soil recalls Jude’s link to the land. Val Moren’s pronouncement highlights the question of whether nature (inheritance) or nurture (environment) exerts the greater influence on a person. He suggests that in Jude’s case, her environment has played a huge role in who she has become. Further, Val Moren signals that all mortals do not share the same experience.

In an important development, the former members of the Court of Shadows unite. The Ghost is forgiven, and the Bomb confesses to Jude that she deliberately missed the shot at her, sparing her. The coming together of the spies signifies that the text is moving toward a resolution. Further, it highlights the motifs of forgiveness and alliances.