by Blythe Baker
Lady Yurl’s glare in Delilah’s direction was priceless, and enough to make me somewhat joyful.
Lady Rue gave Delilah an apologetic look before lifting her own half heartedly.
Delilah looked like she was ready to spit as she reluctantly raised her hand in the air as if she were in pain.
“Very good,” Lady Yurl said. “And you have our thanks, Marianne Huffler. If it were not for you, I fear we would be facing something so insurmountable that we would have no hope of surviving.”
Yeah, well…I thought. Don’t thank me yet.
So I bowed my head instead.
“We shall meet on the next full moon,” Lady Yurl said. “If we all gather together, surely the monster will come.”
I blinked up at her. “Wait…how do you know we should meet then?”
She pointed up at the image above her. “See the halo around the monster? The magic is potent during a full moon, and it’s clear the magic surging through it, and the rest of us, is at its peak. It’s either now…or wait another thirty days.”
My throat grew tight.
Two nights? I asked Athena. …Am I even ready for this?
You will be, Athena said. You’re standing there in that image, aren’t you?
I looked back up at the ceiling.
I was there. I wouldn’t have been able to see everyone else if I wasn’t.
I looked at Lady Yurl.
“Alright. Two days from now at the full moon it is.”
11
It was almost midnight by the time I got home. Athena and I were both exhausted from it; who knew it would take so much out of a person to have to project an image of the future for all to see for as long as I did?
Lady Margaret ensured me that I’d be welcome back at the Hollow now, and that they would do all they could to prepare for the fight. She promised she’d be bringing salves and elixirs for us all, including the vampires and werewolves.
“We will win this fight,” she said, gripping my arm tight. “We’re too strong not to.”
I hoped more than anything that she was right.
And it was easy to agree with her…until I was home, in my cabin, faced with the reality of what we were planning.
It’s not good to stress over it, Athena said.
“How can I not?” I asked. “In two nights, I’m going to be seeing that image I’ve seen in my head for real, and then I’m going to have to…what…fight? How? I don’t even know the first thing about fighting, let alone using magic to do so.”
The book Zara gave you, Athena said. That’s your best bet, I think. You’ll learn the most from that.
I chewed on my lip. “I don’t know.”
You have the help of so many others, she said. You aren’t going into this alone.
She was right. I had the support of the shape shifters and the vampires, both of whom I’d texted to let them in on our plans to meet at the full moon.
“…I’m still worried it won’t be enough,” I said.
Suddenly, the whole cabin began to tremble as if we were caught in an earthquake. I fell against the wall, my balance completely thrown off.
A painting slid down my wall; one of the chairs toppled over backward.
And then a sudden darkness filled the center of the cabin, flickering shadows like white noise on an old television screen.
My heart sank to my feet.
A pair of round, white eyes in a shapeless head turned toward me. Even with no pupils, I could feel the intensity of the gaze upon me.
I groped the wall behind me for something to protect myself with. My wand was lying on my bed, several feet away. It was separating me from Athena. All my knives and other sharp kitchen utensils were out of reach.
I was empty handed. Careless.
Foolish.
A low chuckle like churning gravel grated against my ears. “I’ve been watching you, little Light…” it said. “I’ve seen you trying to build an army to fight me.”
Blood surged in my veins, pounding in my head. I was like a fly trapped in a spider’s web, just waiting for the inevitable.
The monster took a step toward me, the whole cabin shaking.
A hum of something akin to thousands of bugs skittering met my ears the closer it got.
“It doesn’t matter, though…” it said. “You’ll never be able to defeat me.”
I tried to swallow, but my throat felt like it was closing up. Sweat trickled down my back, and my chest was so tight I thought I might’ve been having a heart attack.
It chuckled again. “I will kill you,” it said. “And that will be the end of it.”
“Then why don’t you just kill me now?” I asked, the anger in my voice surprising me. “If that’s all you want.”
The monster seemed to tilt its head to the side, as if it were considering me. “Now?” It asked. “And take the fun out of it? I know of the image you’ve seen, as I’ve seen it too. Except you don’t know how it ends…do you?”
It was like I’d swallowed a rock. It wasn’t possible. The monster couldn’t have a piece of the orb, too…could it?
There were no such things as coincidences.
It’s bluffing!
Athena’s thoughts, that were normally so loud inside my mind, drifted across my mental landscape like a gentle stream.
It’s trying to frighten you! Don’t let it!
She was right. Just like always, Athena was exactly right.
“…You’re bluffing,” I said. “No one knows how that battle is going to end.”
The monster laughed low again. “So you do have some fight in you…”
“I do,” I said. “And I will defeat you.”
“Big talk for someone so weak…” it said. “I’ve never met a Light as undeveloped as you are. In all the times I’ve challenged the magic of this forest, I’ve faced formidable opponents who were worthy of their titles. You? You’re nothing.”
The adrenaline was pumping through me, making my knees weak.
“I don’t have to listen to you,” I said.
Another chuckle. “Very well. Let us see how you perform when next we meet,” it said.
And with another shudder that went through the whole cabin, the monster was gone.
I collapsed onto the floor, my heart slamming against my ribs.
Athena rushed over to me, skidding to a halt. Are you alright? she asked. It didn’t hurt you or anything, did it?
I shook my head. “No, I’m alright. Just a little shaken is all…”
I can’t believe it just showed up like that…Athena said. Out of the blue.
I gritted my teeth. “It just came here to taunt me, just like it did when I saw it near Mitch’s truck.”
I slammed my fist into the floor, my eyes stinging with angry tears.
“I can’t let this happen…” I said. “I’m so weak. I don’t have the power to – ”
Stop it, Athena said, clamping down with her teeth around my ankle.
“Ouch!” I said, yanking my leg back from near her. “What was that for?”
To snap you out of it, she said. If you think like that, then yes, the darkness has already won. But how do we know it wasn’t just saying these things, lying just to upset you?
I tried to calm my frantic breathing, and wanted nothing more than for my mind to clear so I could just think clearly. The fear was holding on too tightly. I couldn’t shake it.
“You’re right,” I said. “If it is the opposite of me, then it would be lying. So I shouldn’t listen to it.”
Good, Athena said, relief coloring her words. At least you’re seeing sense now.
“There has to be something I can do…” I said, scratching my cheek. “I need to be prepared myself. Everyone else is doing what they can. There’s got to be something else I can – ”
Then it hit me.
“…And my best tool is my ability to steal gifts,” I said. “That’s it! I just need more abilities. More ways to win. That’s exactly how I’ll
– ”
My heart skipped about three beats as a knock at the front door broke the otherwise dead silence in the cabin.
Who could that be? Athena asked.
I staggered to my feet, using every piece of furniture I could reach on the way to the door to keep myself upright.
I was surprised to see Dante on the other side.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, trying to brush some of my sweaty hair out of my eyes.
“Have you seen the beast anywhere?” he asked, looking all around outside.
I nodded, my stomach churning and threatening to empty itself right where I stood. “Y – yeah. It was just inside my cabin here.”
Dante’s face paled. “It what?”
“Come inside,” I said, grabbing his arm and yanking him across the threshold. “It’s freezing out there.”
He seemed as stunned as I was about finding himself indoors.
“Yes, I’ve seen the monster,” I said, stooping to pick up the fallen chair off the floor. “It was in here a minute or two ago. You just missed it.”
“In here?” Dante asked. “I’ve only ever seen it in the forest…”
“Yeah, well, it’s decided it wants to harass me inside and outside now,” I said, walking across the cabin to the fallen picture. I was sad to see the glass had shattered. It was a picture of my mom and me from three summers ago in Missouri. A much simpler time in my life.
“Why does this beast keep chasing you?” he asked. “I know it told you as much the last time you ran into it…”
I looked at him, and realized for the first time that he was truly not my enemy. I’d been frightened of him discovering the truth about me for as long as I’d known him, but as things stood, I was facing a much bigger, much more dangerous enemy than Dante Fain ever would be.
Besides…I’d learned a thing or two since I’d met him.
“Dante…” I said heavily, hands on my hips. “I think it’s time I told you the truth about me.”
His eyes narrowed, and I saw his hands move unconsciously toward the bow strapped across his back. “You mean you’ve been lying to me?”
“Lying might be a strong word,” I said. “I’ve definitely avoided certain topics with you. But I’ve realized that this monster has sort of changed the way things work here in Faerywood Falls, and I need all the allies I can get at this point. People I never would have thought of sharing my secret with are suddenly at the top of my list, and I’m willing to break an ancient creed in order to ensure the safety of everyone in this town.”
Dante’s face hardened as he adjusted his hat. “Secret?” he asked. “What sort of secret?”
I folded my arms. “Are you sure you’re ready?” I asked. “I want your word that you won’t jump off the deep end.”
High spots of color appeared in his face. “How can you expect me to promise that when I have no idea what I’m getting myself into?”
“I want your word that you’ll hear me out,” I said. “And you should give it to me, because we really don’t have a whole lot of time left.”
Dante’s eyes fell down to his heavy boots, and I could see the gears turning in his head. “I’m not going to like what I’m about to hear, am I?”
“Probably not, no,” I said, shaking my head. “But really, you may not be all that surprised.”
He took a deep breath and his face became blank. “Alright. You have my word to hear you out.”
“Good,” I said.
I glanced over at Athena, who was still sitting on the floor near the couch. She watched me steadily, her eyes never leaving me.
This is something I wish I never had to do, I said to her with my thoughts. I wish I didn’t have to involve him.
You still don’t have to, Athena said. He’s Ungifted, isn’t he? Are you sure this is the best idea?
Am I sure it’s the best idea? No, definitely not. But it’s an idea that will likely help me get to where I need to be, which is prepared. So…I guess I’m going for it.
I steeled my nerves, unsure of how to protect myself if it came to it, and spoke.
“Dante…I’m a faery.”
Dante gaped at me. “A…faery?” he asked.
Then he burst out laughing, a sort of laugh that echoed all through the small cabin, his belly shaking.
“A faery?” he asked. “You expect me to believe that?”
My eyes narrowed. “You have no problem believing in werewolves. What’s so hard to believe about a faery?”
His humor was wiped away. “Because a werewolf is what killed my brother. Not a sparkly, twinkly faery.”
I sighed. “I really didn’t want to have to do this…” I said.
His eyes widened. “Do what?”
The same tingling feeling that coursed through me back at the council hall of the elders came back to me, the same feeling when they all were so angry that I was who I said I was, angry that I’d kept my secret to myself.
The same green, crackling lightning appeared beneath my feet, and snaked across the floor of the cabin.
Dante leapt backward toward the door, narrowly avoiding a tendril of power as it made its way over to him. “What was that?”
“Me,” I said. “Magic.”
Dante’s eyes were as hard as steel, and he looked back and forth from me to the floor. “Magic?” he asked. “I thought you didn’t believe in any of that.”
“I was afraid if you found out the truth about me, you’d kill me like you killed Old Scar-Face,” I said. “That bear wasn’t a shape shifter. He was just an old bear that lived in these woods for a long time.”
Dante’s face fell. “Yes,” he said. “I realized this. But I couldn’t be too careful. The shape shifters – ”
“Are not what you think,” I said, finishing his thought for him. “You think they’re all just evil creatures who – ”
“That’s what they are, though,” Dante said. “I’ve never met one that wasn’t.”
“How many have you actually met?” I asked.
Dante seemed surprised at that question. “I…well, I don’t know.”
“Probably more than you’ve realized,” I said. “Especially in Faerywood Falls.”
Dante shook his head. “This isn’t happening,” he said. “It’s not possible. You’ve been on my side this whole time, fighting the monster, and now…you’re just like – ”
“Don’t you say that I’m like the monster,” I said, holding a hand up to stop him. “I’m nothing like that wretched creature. It might be magical…in fact, it’s the very manifestation of the darkness in magic. I’m the opposite. It’s my job to stop it.”
Dante’s eyes darkened. “I’ve been hunting this thing for months…and you think you can just step in, and…what? Kill it? I’ve seen you run from it. You expect me to believe you’re actually going to face it?”
“I have to,” I said. “And I want your help to stop it.”
He paused, his eyes narrowing. “…You really mean to take this thing on, don’t you?”
I shrugged. “I don’t really have a choice. Not when it keeps coming after me like it has. And it’s already started coming after people who are important to me, and I don’t want to see that happen again.”
Dante seemed to understand that. Something clicked in his mind.
“I don’t appreciate being lied to,” he said, taking his hat off and running his hand through his dark hair. “And I definitely don’t know if I can wrap my head around the fact that you’re…a faery. But I do know this monster is dangerous, and it needs to be stopped. So I will help you.”
“I need you to be aware that you’re going be fighting alongside shape shifters and vampires and psychics. Can you handle that?” I asked.
It was clear this was making him uncomfortable. He looked everywhere but at me, his hat clasped tightly in his grip.
“Yes,” he said. “I can handle it.”
“Good,” I said. “You can go back to hating them or whatever after this is
all over. But for now I need you to all get along.”
“Right,” he said.
Why did I feel more like a mother hen than someone who was preparing for battle?
12
After getting Dante to agree, it was like a small weight was lifted from my shoulders. I’d been running from him for a long time, protecting myself as best I could so he wouldn’t find out…only to have to end up telling him in the end anyway.
The reality was, though, that even with his help, along with the help of Lucan’s wolves and the vampire clan and the spell weavers, I still needed to equip myself as well as possible. And like I’d realized before Dante scared me half to death, I needed to do what I did best, and that was steal other people’s gifts.
Or rather, I hoped, borrow them.
Sleep deprivation was making it hard for me to think clearly, so I made the decision to stop trying to work out a list on my own and go ask Aunt Candace for help.
While she wasn’t thrilled that I was gearing up to fight this monster, she was a little more calm about it than I expected her to be because she knew I wasn’t doing it alone.
“Lucan will protect you,” she said over a cup of coffee the next morning. “I’m confident about that.”
“It’s going to be about three or four dozen of us up against this one creature,” I said. “Our odds are pretty good, even if the monster is really strong.”
There was a knock on the door.
“Come in, Mr. Terrance,” Aunt Candace said. “I had him make you some breakfast. You don’t look like you’ve eaten in three days.”
“That might be about right, actually,” I said.
Mr. Terrance stepped into the room, a tray of steaming hot pancakes and eggs stacked high on a plate, along with a pitcher of fresh orange juice.
My stomach rumbled.
“Here you are,” Mr. Terrance said with a smile. “I hear you haven’t been eating much.”
“Yeah…” I said, picking up a strip of bacon from the plate and nibbling on it. “I’ve been sort of stressed.”
“Well, make sure you eat up,” he said. “It’s not good to lose your strength.”
“Thanks,” I said.
He gave me a wink before leaving the room, closing the door behind him.