by Devyn Dawson
“Amber, what in bloody hell is wrong with you?” Thorne growls at me.
A berserk mini-faerie screaming something that sounds like, die, die, die, slides into me. Before Jessie turns around and jabs him with her sword. His eyes grow wide and blood seeps onto his gold and blue sweater. He seems shocked that she hurt him, hell, I was shocked too.
The rest of the fae begin to back off but not without making a lot of noise. They obviously don’t care about disturbing the silence of the woods.
Something leaps from one of the trees and lands on Caleb’s back. Caleb reaches over his head and grabs the furry animal and tosses it to the ground. Jessie and I scoot in to see what happened.
“What the hell are you looking at? Back off, give a raccoon some room. Hell, you’re something else. Why have you brought the likes of the Jaquard Clan to my forest?” The raccoon is talking like he’s human. He’s standing on his rear legs and his front legs are moving around as he fusses.
Zohr clears his throat as he stomps over to us. The other fae have run off since they realized we would fight back.
Prince Jack glimpses up in the trees, looking around for any other attackers.
“Sabastian,” Jack says and gives him a head nod.
“Prince Jack,” Sabastian the raccoon replied.
I turn to Jessie and we don’t have to read each other’s minds to know that we both are freaked out by the talking raccoon.
“Why did you bring those vermin faeries into my woods?” Sabastian asks haughtily
His furry ass better not be talking about us. I can’t get over the fact that a raccoon and a giant are standing in front of me and I’m still sane. Maybe I’m not sane.
“Jess, is there a talking raccoon in your world?” I turn and whisper to Jessie.
“Yup, seems like it,” Jessie replies.
“Are we hallucinating?”
“God I hope so,” Jessie says but she doesn’t turn away from Sabastian.
“We need an invisibility cloak, do you know where I can get one?” Jack asks.
“Perhaps, what are you willing to pay?” Sabastian says. He waddles in place when he talks.
Jack studies the raccoon before answering him. “I’m prepared to pay twenty-five diamonds.”
The raccoon shakes his head back and forth as if the Prince just insulted him.
Jack reaches in his pocket and pulls out his pouch of cubic zirconia. “I’m prepared to give you fifty colored diamonds.” He holds his hand out and Sabastian waddles over and observes them up close.
“Add a favor and I’ll try to get you one,” Sabastian says.
“Try? I’ll give you a gentleman’s favor, only if you come through with the cloak,” Prince Jack says as he puts his sword away.
“What’s a gentleman’s favor?” I whisper to Thorne.
“I’m not exactly sure,” he replies.
“A G.F. consists of helping out or loaning an object for a couple of hours. They aren’t allowed to ask for help doing anything illegal or loaning out another person or money. They’re not recommended,” Prince Jack replies.
The raccoon takes his creepy little hands and rub them together with excitement. “Oh goody, a favor in my pocket from a prince.” Sabastian’s enthusiasm is almost infectious.
It can’t be too dangerous to offer a favor since the Prince offered one.
“Wait here, I’ll be back before the sun sets. Whoever used magic, you might want to hide the fact you’re blessed or you’ll be kidnapped for sure. By the way, I’m equally impressed you’re faerie royalty that grew up on the other side of the Shimmer. Get over the fact I’m a raccoon.” Sabastian turns away and scurries off.
“Don’t be late!” Jack snaps.
Great, now what? This is like a dumb joke grown-ups say.
“I’m a raccoon, I’m never late!” Sabastian yells out behind him.
*****
Chapter 5. Starlight
“SO, now what? We sit around a campfire and tell ghost stories? I don’t understand why we can’t keep going, am I missing something?” I ask the obvious.
“There will be no fires in my woods. In answer to your question, no, we can’t keep going forward. Already being ambushed, it’s a greater chance of being attacked by another gang. The giants will force us out of the forest, making us walk along the river’s path. That would bring more attention than we want to gain. You’re a novelty and the dark fae will seek you out to auction you off to the highest bidder.” Jack is frustrated. His hands keep running through his headful of curls nervously.
Zohr is gathering large boulders and laying them around in a big circle for us to sit down. His grunting is the only hint that they are heavy. He’s not attractive, but he isn’t repulsive either. He’s a little hairy…a lot hairy and I can smell his breath every time he talks.
We all sit down facing each other.
“What’s the Seelie Court like? I’ve tried to research on Google but nothing is spelled out about the different courts,” I ask.
Jack lays down on his boulder, which is flatter than the other ones. “You’re right, we monitor the information that the humans have about us. It is for both their and our protection. The Seelie Court is filled with joy and beautiful things. There are large lush gardens filled with vegetables and flowers. Every night, there’s a party and dance into the wee hours of the morning. Those of us who are royalty will eat inside the castle, some of us go out into the common areas and party with our people once my parents are in bed.”
“That sounds like fun. Do you work? Why are you so afraid of the forest?” Jessie asks as she grips onto Caleb’s hand.
“It’s fun, but it’s also dangerous. There are fae from the Unseelie Court who will sneak in and pretend to be one of us. They’ll wear make-up to fake a tan and will spread rumors about the clans who live in the forest. It’s exhausting trying to make heads or tails out of the stories. I’m over the Fifth Regiment Twenty-Second Bravo field team. We’re the equivalent to your Navy Seals. As their leader, I must decipher what is the truth and what is a rumor. I would have brought my team with me if I felt we were in any real danger. They’re out rescuing a Seer who was abducted three nights ago.” Jack’s voice is mesmerizing when he isn’t using his fake American accent.
“What’s a Seer? Is that a fortune teller?” I ask as I twist the top off my bottle of water.
Jack stands up and dusts off his jacket. “We don’t use the phrase fortune teller, she’s a person who can foretell an event. The future is subjective and can be changed if we interrupt it correctly. Every court has their own Seer, she will live in the castle and live as a royal for all of her days. All Seers are blind in our world, they go blind at the age of ten, that’s how we know who the next Seer will be in a family. When she turns eighteen her abilities kick in and she begins her journey as a clairvoyant. During that time, the elder Seer will guide the younger one and fine tune her ability. Once the younger Seer is ready, the elder Seer will decide if they want to live in the human world, or be killed. Once she crosses into the human world, her memories as a fae will be erased. Most of them will live as psychics and many are quite successful. One of the strange things that happens, is her ability to see again. Everything will appear the same except the humans. All men over the age of fifteen will look exactly the same and all women over fifteen will too. They’re more attuned to the inner beauty, which will erase the physical differences. They’re also able to detect the darker side of a person and tell if goodness is in their soul. Humans have a lot of hang-ups about race and status, fae don’t stress over those things.” Every now and then, he would cock his head to the side as though he were deep in thought.
“Are all Seers women? You keep saying she and her,” I ask while I dig around in the bag hopeful to find a bag of Skittles.
“Yes, all Seers are female.” Jack pauses and looks up into the trees. I follow his gaze and see leaves are moving as though something is passing through them but the person is invisible. “Do you
see them Amber?”
I focus in on the tree and soon it becomes clear. What looked like nothing was actually small translucent faeries with iridescent wings and beautiful faces. “Wow, they’re beautiful,” I exclaim.
Jessie is squinting as she looks up in the direction we’re staring at, “I don’t see anything,” she admits.
“That’s because Amber is an element-worker, she’s able to see the fae who are brought forth through the elements. The fae she is seeing right now are Sylphs. An element-worker can call out to them to help in different situations. They’re here because they heard the storm-walkers appeared because someone used element-magic. They wanted to see Amber with their own eyes,” Jack whispers.
“How can you see them?” I ask.
“Because he’s an element-user too,” Thorne answers for him.
“Yes, I’m an element-user. As a Prince, I can call upon them to show themselves if I wasn’t already able to see them. They’re beautiful with their angular face and high eyebrows that give off a thousand expressions as they talk. Their wings glimmer in the sunlight as they float along on the slightest of breezes. I’ll show you, I’m going to ask Starlight to show herself. She’s the leader of this particular clan of fae.” Jack stands up tall and calls on Starlight to meet us.
She flutters down, hovering in front of Jack as though she’s trying to communicate with him but he isn’t paying that much attention.
A swirl of air and sparks spin in front of him until a beautiful girl is suddenly standing on her bare tip-toes. Her corseted bodice is cinched so tight her breasts are threatening to escape. I’d laugh at the absurdity of her outfit if I weren’t dressed like a clown flunky. Her long skirt is as though someone has taken pedals from exotic plants and made them into a skirt.
“It is pleasurable to meet you, my new friend. The name they call me is Starlight, but my real name isn’t pronounceable by people who speak with human tongue. What is the name they call you my friend?” Starlight asks. She’s interesting as she tries to stand still but fidgets from foot to foot.
“They call me Amber and I don’t have an unpronounceable name, although they do call me bad names at times,” I admit.
Starlight’s head tilts to her right as she studies my face.
“Pull your hair back, I want to see your ears,” Starlight demands of Jessie.
Her ears? What the hell? Jessie watches me, I can tell she’s holding back from laughing out loud. I’m not sure what Jessie’s ears have to do with anything. Oh, but they might be getting pointy. I’ve noticed my ears are elf-like these days. My left side is all out fae while my right side isn’t that way. It didn’t happen until we came here for Jessie’s wedding. Next weekend, Jessie and I are going to go to the mall so I can get it pierced.
Jessie reaches up and tucks her hair behind her ears. Starlight started clapping and squealing in delight.
“What’s wrong?” Jessie asks Jack.
“You possess the mark of the Kingdom of Everlasting Light. You wouldn’t see it because it’s right behind the left ear. If you look closely, you’ll see an E with an L weaved through it. Human tattoos don’t show up on this side of the Shimmer, so we know it’s real. Caleb has the same mark, I noticed it earlier today.” Jack places his hand on Starlight and she calms down. “Starlight has been waiting a long time for you to come and claim the Kingdom of Everlasting Light.”
“Hi Starlight, I’m Jessie and this is Caleb; I’m so happy to meet you,” Jessie holds out her hand for Starlight to shake. Starlight enthusiastically grabs her hand and shakes it up and down.
“Your beauty is within your soul. I’m honored to meet such a beautiful heart. Blessed you are with your man, he is good too.” Starlight stumbles over the English language but I understand what she’s trying to say.
“I’m happy to meet you, too.”
Starlight half skips, half jumps around us and talks in a language I don’t understand. Once she’s made two complete circles she throws her hands in the air and hundreds of butterflies appear and flitter around us. They’re beautiful with their delicate wings and jittery pattern as they fly away.
“Time to go I must. Nice meeting you amazing people. I’m honored to serve your court when you take over. Amber, blessed you are and Lila will be your spirit guide for the rest of your human life.” In a split-second, she’s small again.
“Bye,” I say and give a little wave. “You,” I point to Jack, “what in the hell is a spirit guide?”
“Don’t worry about your guide just yet. When you come to live here forever is when your guide will be with you. On times like this, she might follow you around. Remember one thing, Lila is just like you, only better informed.”
“What’s the point?” I walk over and stand face to face with him. Well, it was more like face to his chest, but he looked down at me.
“I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but you’re a sarcastic little fae.” He glances down at me with a twinkle in his eye.
“Sarcastic? Ha! I laugh in the face of sarcasm!” I announce.
“If you say so. Anyway, Lila will basically be your shadow, someone who’ll help you make decisions. She’ll be similar to a best friend, only you can’t make her go away. I have to bribe mine to disappear, he doesn’t always listen though. Most guides will accept a bribe, they like food. Humans make a cookie that’s black and has a white cream between two black discs.” Jack taps his chin with his index finger as he thinks about the cookie.
“Oreos?” We all say in unison.
“Yeah, that’s what they’re called. I buy them almost every time I go into the human world. If I need private time, I give him a cookie and he leaves me alone for however long he chooses.”
Jack has loosened up a little since we’ve all had a few minutes to talk and bond.
“Tell me, is there any way for us to call home to explain our absence?” Jessie asks.
“You don’t need to worry about that, as far as school is concerned, you’re on a field trip. We can make a deal with a time-clan, they can manipulate your time spent here to being a mere few hours in the human world. They’re inexpensive too, so you should have plenty of diamonds to pay.” Jack pauses and looks around suspiciously.
“What’s wrong?” Thorne stands up and looks around too.
“Did you hear someone singing?” Jack glances up in the trees.
I turn to check on the horses, but they’re bored with us and have turned to face the other direction.
“No singing, but if you’d like, I can sing a song or two. You want me to sing the Bieber’s song, Boyfriend?” I ask and wink at Thorne.
Jack isn’t paying any attention to us as he takes a few steps into the trees.
“Take arm! You’ll be safer with your weapons close to you. I must say, all of you impressed me with your fighting skills. I understand the guardian knowing how to fight, but the Queen, that’s impressive.” Jack takes a sip from his water bottle.
Thorne moves closer to where Jessie and Caleb are sitting and Jack eases over to me. I’m not sure what’s about to happen, but something has them spooked.
“Don’t make any sudden movements, the giants are coming. Be calm and stand tall,” Jack whispers to me.
Stand tall, right!
The ground is rumbling and the trees shiver with every thud. Oh shit, this can’t be good. My heart starts to pound in my ears as I mentally check for my weapons. This is ridiculously stupid. Who’s idea was it to go see the Seelie Queen? If she knows the woods are so dangerous, why didn’t she send us an armored car?
Jessie lets out a gasp and I follow her eyes into the woods. Holy crap! They aren’t kidding when they say giant around here. Five thirty-foot tall giants are walking one in front of the other through the trees. The tall pines with their slender trunk accommodate the giants by bending over sideways. In front of them are five fae, at least I think they’re fae. They’re similar to us, minus their outfits, which aren’t anything like what we’re wearing. Each of them are
dressed like ninjas, two girls, three men.
Oh hell no. I’m not going to fight a ninja, they’ll kill me.
“Prince Jack, how unpleasurable to see you again,” The leader of the ninjas says.
“Kolop, the feeling is mutual,” Jack replies. His shoulders are squared off as he stands up tall.
“Hand over the Queen and we’ll let you live.” Kolop’s eyes are intensely dark, so dark, in fact, his pupil blends in. Jack’s laugh is deep and fake. “You’ll be beheaded by my mother if you touch the Queen or myself.”
I catch a glimpse of Thorne out of the corner of my eye, he’s directly in front of Jessie now.
“Oh for the love of the Goddess of the Lake, stop threatening me with your mama. The Unseelie Court wants her and the king. Tell your Mama they escaped and ran for help from the Unseelies that will make her day.”
Suddenly, a small voice is close to my ear and I don’t catch what Kolop’s saying to Jack. “Don’t say anything, the Ring of Virtue is on their finger, no one can take them against their will.”
I try to turn my head towards the voice, but no one’s there.
“Stop looking around, it makes you look paranoid. I’m Lila, in the flesh. I just stopped by to say hello and check up on you. Good thing, you’re about to be trampled by those giants. Call on the elements with Jack and draw them in to help you. If you die, I have to wait around until I’m assigned to another fae, so stay alive. It could take a hundred years to find someone else, so don’t leave me an orphan.”