by Talia Jager
“Who else comes?” I asked, looking at all the chairs.
“The leaders, the advisors, and the second, third, and fourth in command.”
“I have no idea who any of those are.”
“You know some. I am the high leader of the dark faeries.”
“Who is the high leader of the light ones?”
“Brigid, but you are the high faery of both.”
“Wait. What?”
“The Aurorian is the highest-ranking faery of all faeries.”
My lips curled up. “So I’m like your boss?”
He nodded. “Yup.”
“I could tell you what to do? Hmm,” I said with a joking smile.
Kallan smiled too but then turned serious. “That’s right, but Rylie, with that authority comes great responsibility. Your decisions affect every faery and sometimes humans and nature.”
My shoulders felt like a huge boulder had been placed on them just as the door opened and faeries began filing in.
Chapter Five
“Welcome, Oleander,” a faery that I would consider older said to me. Her hair was a platinum blonde and although she still looked incredibly young, I could tell she was very old. She, too, wore a long dress—a copper color that matched her wings. “We haven’t had a chance to meet yet. I’m Brigid.”
I smiled and nodded, not sure the proper way to respond. My eyes scanned the long, oval table the elders sat at. The faeries on the right side of the table all had light-colored wings; the faeries on the left had dark. The invisible line ran lengthwise down the middle of the table, dividing the two.
“Please sit down,” Brigid said.
Kallan pulled out the chair at the head of the table where that line would intersect. I sent him a confused look, but he just gestured to the chair. Slowly I sat and after pushing it in, he took a seat to the left of me. I felt like half of me was in the light world and half in the dark. I was the one holding them together.
I observed Kyro whisper something to Kallan as he sat down next to him. His hair was as black as it had been the day I was thrown in front of him by the dark faeries that had captured me. I had always thought of the fey as attractive, but Kyro was the opposite. He gave me a cold, hard stare before turning his attention elsewhere. Drake pulled out the chair next to Kyro. I smiled, seeing a friendly face, but I noticed the surprise on the light side of the table when Drake sat on Kallan’s side.
As each faery sat down, Kallan whispered their names to me. “Zanna and Sebille,” he said as two female dark faeries took their seats. On the light side of the table, Brigid sat next to me and then the others began taking their places. “Sheridan, Alston, you know your grandmother, and Rosa.” My eyes traveled from one person to the next as Kallan softly spoke their names. When they rested on Móraí, she winked at me. I realized both sides sat in order of importance.
“Shall we commence?” Brigid raised her hand.
The faeries responded, “Aye.”
Brigid began, “It has been a long, long time since our council has convened. We’ve been at odds for years. Today we hope to begin healing our relationship. The dark and light used to live together in peace. Let’s make that happen again. In fact, I think it’s imperative we have a united front. There’s something coming, something that will tear us apart if we’re not unified.”
I opened my mouth to ask questions, but Kallan shook his head slightly, so I closed my lips.
“Before we get into that, we need to figure out how to get our people to trust each other again.” Brigid looked around the table, her eyes landing on each faery.
“The light faeries don’t like us on their territory,” Zanna said.
Sheridan leaned forward. “Your kind destroyed our land and you just want us to welcome you back?”
The dark faery retorted, “Just because one was a bad seed doesn’t make us all that way.”
“It was more than just one—”
Kallan cleared his throat. “My father was an evil ruler. He made you hate each other. He did things to keep it that way. He’s gone! Let that black cloud of hate dissipate. We can fix this.”
“Maybe a party?” I suggested. All eyes turned to me. I had forgotten I wasn’t supposed to speak out of turn, but how did I know when it was my turn? I might as well keep going since I was already in the spotlight. “Ya know, a big get-together with both the light and dark so we can all get to know each other. Is there somewhere that would be possible? Someplace in neutral territory?”
A few murmurs traveled around the table. Rosa, the faery next to my grandmother, answered first. “By the waterfalls in the eastern fields.”
Kallan nodded. “That would be a good spot. Let’s plan to do it this weekend.”
“Very well.” Brigid didn’t look thrilled at my idea.
“What’s next on the agenda?” he asked all businesslike.
“There’s something going on in the southeastern corner. A toxin of some sort is killing plants and animals. We’ve sent out scouts, but they can’t figure out what it is. Do you have some fey who could go with us and see if they might be of assistance?” Brigid asked Kallan.
Kallan nodded. “Of course. I’ll send you some at dawn.”
“Thank you.” Brigid smiled—it was a little on the forced side, but it was something. “Do you have anything you’d like to discuss?”
Kyro whispered to Kallan and he nodded. “A couple of our fey have gone missing—”
“Missing?” Sheridan raised his voice.
“Yes, Sheridan. Two fey including my second in command who I have replaced with Drake. No trace of where they went.”
“That is disturbing.” Sheridan sat back and stroked his chin. “How can we help?”
“I’m not sure. Just be aware. Something tells me they didn’t just go to the human realm to play.”
“You have our word.” Sheridan turned his attention to me. “Oleander, there are a few who didn’t think you should be here today.”
How was I supposed to respond to that? “Why not?”
“A couple of reasons. One, you have much to learn. Two, you haven’t shown a real interest in returning to our world. There are some that are concerned that you won’t be able to lead, make good decisions, and so on. We had hoped you’d come home and accept your fate; however, it seems that not only have you chosen to stay in the human realm another year, but two faeries are leaving on a daily basis because of that choice.”
I was dumbfounded for a minute. I wanted to rip into him for talking to me like that, but that would just prove I was immature. “I understand your concerns, Sheridan. It was a hard decision for me to make and ultimately I chose to stay there to fulfill obligations I had. My involvement with the human world does not interfere with my role here. I will learn what I need to. I will be who I’m supposed to be. I ask that you give me a chance.” I impressed myself with that speech.
“An Aurorian has great power, knowledge, and strength. You will be needed here often. Are you prepared for that?” he asked.
Did I have a choice? “I am.”
“Perhaps your first task should be to help the forest that was damaged in the fires last month.” Sheridan held my gaze.
“I don’t understand.” I leaned forward.
“We protect and heal nature, so when we learn of some things that go on, it is our duty to stop them or repair the damage,” Sheridan explained.
I nodded, although I was still unsure of what I was supposed to do.
“Maybe Azura can show you the way.” Brigid turned to the rest of the table. “Back to what I was saying in the beginning. There’s something brewing and we’re going to need to be together on our defense. Let’s meet again in ten suns.”
All the elder faeries rose and exited, leaving Kallan and me. “
Well, that was something,” I said.
“You okay?”
“Confused. What is it they want me to do?”
“Basically heal the earth.”
“How do I do that?”
A smile spread across Kallan’s face. “We’ll show you.”
“When?”
He looked at me apprehensively. “Now.”
“Now? I have to go home.”
“It hasn’t been that long since you left. You have time to do this.”
I sighed and thought about the time difference. I was going to be tired for school tomorrow. “Fine. Let’s go.”
“I think your mother might want to go with you.”
“Oh. Okay. Does that mean I won’t see you for a while?”
“If you consider a few hours a while, then yeah.”
“Bummer.”
“I’ll get all my work done so I can see you as soon as you’re done.” He stood up, took my hands, and pulled me out of the chair and close to him. He placed his hands on my waist and touched his lips to mine. As our lips moved together, his hands traveled up my back to my wings. He ran his fingers along them, causing ripples to shoot through my body. It felt so good when he touched my wings. They fluttered furiously. I had no control over them. They had a mind of their own. The intensity of the kiss grew stronger until Kallan finally pulled away, leaving us both gasping for air.
I ran just one finger up one of his soft wings and headed toward the door. I paused and blew him a kiss. He looked completely dumbfounded and I loved it. I liked shocking him.
Azura was waiting outside. “I hear we have a little journey to make.”
“Yes. Is that okay?”
“Of course! I would love to teach you about your heritage.” She looked back toward the house. “Is Kallan joining us?”
“No. He has some work to do.”
“Very well. Let’s go.” She led the way down a path. The sweet smell of the pastel flowers tickled my nose. Faery fruit sprouted on lush green bushes. Butterflies fluttered by me and animals poked their heads out of the bushes and tall grass.
“Is it okay if I talk about the meeting? It’s not secret or anything, is it?” I asked unsure.
“No. You’re fine.”
I told her what was talked about. “What do you think it means by something is coming?” I asked.
“I’m not sure. I think I’ll visit Lorella and ask her what she sees in the future.” Azura turned her head toward the right. “We’re almost there.”
Chapter Six
There was a distinct burnt smell in the air that made my nose crinkle. The land below my feet was no longer soft and green. It turned darker and darker until it was black and barren. I sucked in a deep breath as my eyes scanned the horizon. There was nothing but charred remains. A great sadness filled me—almost to the point of tears.
I shrank to my knees and put my hands on the ground. So many things had died here. This was not a place of happiness. Sorrow and gloom overwhelmed me and I took some deep breaths to steady my body.
“You can feel it, can’t you?” Azura asked in a voice slightly above a whisper.
“Yes,” I whispered. My chest was heavy. “What…what is it?”
“You’re a faery. Nature is a part of you. You feel its pain. And you can heal the hurt.” Azura’s voice was low and full of love.
“How?” I looked up into her eyes.
She squatted down next to me and put her hands on top of mine. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, so I did the same. “Dig your fingers in and feel the earth.”
I pressed my fingers hard into the ground. The pain seemed to creep up through my hands into my arms. I wanted to pull them back and run far from here to somewhere green and sweet smelling, but I couldn’t…this place needed me.
“Push back with happiness, with love, with good.”
I wasn’t really sure how to do that.
“Just feel it, daughter. Breathe deep and feel the goodness flow out of your body into the ground.”
I took another deep breath and felt a warmness leave my heart and push down my arms into my hands until my fingers tingled. I thought of the good things in nature. Beautiful flowers, tall trees, green grass, fruit-filled plants.
“Rylie, look.”
I opened my eyes and saw new grass all around my hands. A smile tugged on my lips. The green spread outward farther and farther.
“Keep going.”
Before long I couldn’t see any more black. Everything was a beautiful bright green. There were small flowers starting to sprout up and I was pretty sure saplings were growing too.
“Very good,” Azura said and stood up.
After another minute watching life grow, I stood up too. “This is amazing!”
“This is what you’re meant to do. Part of it anyway.” She took my hands. “Healing the earth is one of the things faeries are needed for. You created life just by believing and feeling.”
I looked into her eyes and saw the love she had for me. I knew she loved me, but at this very second, I felt it strongly. “I’m sorry I’ve been so distant. You’ve been so patient with me and I appreciate it.”
“You’re my daughter and I love you. I gave you away to protect you and I’d do it again, but I missed you every single moment. I’m just so glad for the time I get with you. My heart swells when I see you like this, so beautiful, so natural, and I can’t wait to see the wonderful things in store for you.”
I wrapped my arms around her as a tear slid down my cheek. The words “I love you” slipped out softly, but I knew she heard me because she squeezed tighter. It was the first time I had ever felt like saying those words. The first time I really meant them. She didn’t replace my human mother. I would always love her. I felt special that I had two moms now.
“Faeries seem to call their relatives by different names than humans do—”
“They stem from the Irish language.”
“What would a faery call her mother?”
“Mamaí.”
I repeated that a few times in my head, but I didn’t say it out loud. “Are we done here?”
“Yes. The area will continue to grow now.” She put her hand on my back and led me back the way we came.
“Do faeries go to the human realm to heal the earth?” I asked curiously.
“Yes, faeries hold many jobs.”
Kallan appeared next to me. “Hi. How did it go?”
I looked around, wondering how he snuck up on us so quietly.
“She did wonderfully,” Azura answered proudly.
I flushed. “It was amazing.”
“I figured you’d like it. Ready to go?”
I nodded. “Yes.” Turning to Azura, I said, “I’ll see you this weekend.”
“I look forward to it.”
“Thank you for today.”
She smiled. “Thanks isn’t necessary.”
I slipped my hand into Kallan’s and together we walked off. “So you did your first piece of faery work.”
“I loved it. Healing the earth like that…was awesome. I could get used to it.”
Kallan dramatically clutched his heart. “I’m shocked. You? You liked it?”
I slugged him on the shoulder. “I know. I never thought I’d enjoy being in this realm, doing what I was supposed to do, but you were all right. I do. I guess I really was born for it. Did you get everything you needed to do finished?”
“Yes.”
“Anything interesting?”
“Just trying to figure out what’s going on with the missing fey.”
“Yeah, what’s that about?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t like it.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I sent Olwydd and Glyn to gather information.” His hand played with mine. “Enough of that. Are you okay? I know you had an intense evening.”
“I hope I can prove myself to the council.”
“You will.”
“I felt…stupid and unprepared. It was like they wanted me to fail. Sheridan made me so mad, yet I knew he was right. I don’t know enough of the faery world to make good decisions.”
“Maybe it’s the other way around.”
“What does that mean?”
“Maybe your experience as a human will help you to lead.”
“Hmmm.” I hadn’t thought of that.
“Watch this!” Kallan climbed onto a low branch of a tree and pulled me up. “Sit here.”
I sat on the thick branch that was a few feet off the ground. Kallan walked over to the trunk of the tree and put one hand on the trunk and the other on the branch. Suddenly the branch started growing upwards. I wobbled and gripped tighter before I lost my balance. Kallan had made the limb grow high in the air. He stood up, balanced himself on the branch, and walked back to me.
He extended his hand. I grabbed it and he pulled me up. He had one arm around me and held the next highest branch with the other to keep us steady.
“This is quite something.”
“You just have to be one with nature.”
We stood there silently gazing into the horizon at the sunset, which filled the sky with deep reds and oranges. Once the big ball of fire had slipped below where we could see, Kallan grabbed hold of a vine and with his arm still around me, he swung us to the ground.
“I can see how you wouldn’t get bored here,” I commented.
Kallan smiled. “There’s always something to do and fun to have.”
“Even for the leaders.”