"Sit. Close your eyes. Think about what makes you walk, breathe, feel, love, weep. Find it. Bring it forth. It helps to have a focal point for the energy. Experiment. Use your hand or the center of your belly."
"Yes, Master."
Coal sat on the floor and closed his eyes, deciding to focus on his hand. He tried to recreate that small burst of energy he'd felt when he'd used Chalcedony's portal.
As time passed, his muscles ached with the desire to move, but he forced himself to remain still and concentrate. After what seemed like a lifetime, doubt outweighed his hope.
He opened his eyes. "I'm human. What if I don't have it?"
"If you didn't have it, you wouldn't be able to feel the sword or use it so well. You have it. You just don't know how to recognize it. Yet. That is enough for today. We'll practice more tomorrow. By the way, your room is ready. When do you plan to move out of Legacy?"
He hadn't thought about moving out. It made the change so official. "I'll start bringing my things tomorrow."
Grigory narrowed his brown eye. "Have you told Chalcedony that you've accepted my apprenticeship?"
"No." Telling her would really cement the decision. Once he told Chalcedony, there could be no turning back. "I'll tell her today."
"I'll see you tomorrow," Grigory said. "In the meantime, continue to nurture your apple seed."
Coal found Chalcedony in her room. Two blue tailored dresses lay on her bed. One dress was much smaller than the other. Chalcedony sat in front of her vanity mirror while Elizabeth ran a comb through Chalcedony's brown, wavy hair.
"What's going on? What are the dresses for?" Coal asked.
"Tell him, Lizzy," Chalcedony said, her voice full of anticipation.
"We're having a party." Elizabeth began jumping and clapping her hands.
"Why?" Coal asked. The child made the most ordinary things into monumental events.
"It was Lizzy's idea." Chalcedony had a smile just as wide as Elizabeth's. "Princesses are supposed to have lots of parties. I agreed because it'll give the staff practice for the coronation ceremony. Until then, we're keeping her in Legacy so everyone can meet her at the same time."
"And no boys allowed," Elizabeth added, wagging her finger at Coal.
"There will be boys. We can't have a party without Coal."
"Chaley, can I talk to you alone for a moment?" Coal asked, motioning to the hall with a nod of his head.
"Of course. Lizzy, I'll be right back." Chalcedony followed Coal into the hall.
"Grigory asked me to be his apprentice," Coal said, abruptly. "And I accepted."
"You're already there most of the time. I thought you were his apprentice already."
"He wants me full-time. I'm moving most of my things over there tomorrow."
She placed her hands on her hips. "You're leaving Legacy?"
"I've never heard of an apprenticeship being any other way."
"You can live here and do it. I'll talk to Grigory and work something out." She moved to leave, but he grabbed her arm.
"It's time for me to go, Chaley. Most fey my age have already left home for their apprenticeships. There are royal guards my age that have been on their own for years."
"They are not human. You are." Chalcedony clenched her jaw.
"I don't understand what the problem is, Chaley. You know I can't be here much longer. Madoc has threatened to kill me if I stay. The apprenticeship will keep me alive and in Everleaf," Coal said with frustration. The apprenticeship was a perfect solution. Why didn't she understand?
"But you will be leaving Legacy. You would be leaving me." She sounded wounded as if he wanted to hurt her.
"I'll be here. We'll still see each other," Coal whispered, his eyes darting around to make sure Madoc wasn't listening in.
"How can you be Grigory's full-time apprentice? You're human. You don't have magic. Sword making requires magic." Her eyes furrowed, the pain in her voice replaced with curiosity and doubt.
"He wouldn't have asked me if he didn't think I was able to do it."
"Maybe he feels sorry for you. Maybe he's just like Madoc and only wants you out of Legacy."
"Madoc wants me out of the fey realm, not just out of Legacy." If Grigory believed he had magic, that would have to be good enough.
Chalcedony stood straighter, her face expressionless. He'd seen her do that so many times over the years. It meant something had hurt her. He hated to see her hurt.
"I'm sorry, Chaley. But there's no other option."
"No," she said with a cold hard voice.
"What?" Coal asked, unable to believe what he'd just heard.
"No," she repeated, much softer. "It's too soon. Can you wait just a little longer?"
"He wants me now."
"He can't have you," she snapped, all softness gone. "You belong to me. You can't be out there walking around on your own. Anything could happen."
"Did you hear what you just said?"
That's the way she talked to strangers, to guards, or to her wait staff. That was not the way she talked to him. This should be the point where she lowered her head in shame and apologized. It never came.
Finally, Chalcedony spoke. "You can't leave yet. I still need you here."
"Sooner or later, I have to go, Chaley. It might as well be sooner." Heaviness grew in his chest.
"Tell Grigory I said no. End of discussion." To emphasize her point, she stomped away.
"You requested my presence, Princess," Madoc asked Chalcedony. She was sitting behind Legacy, playing with Lizzy. She had work to do, but she was playing as if she were a child again.
"You've been avoiding me all day."
"I didn't want to encroach on you and your new toy." He nodded towards the human child. The princess was regressing, and there was nothing he could do about it.
"Stop playing games. Say what you need to say and get it over with," Chalcedony ordered. Instead of facing him, she watched the child chase sprites. The small flying creatures had transparent wings like a dragonfly, and they darted from flower to flower.
"I said what I needed to say last night," he said.
"Coal told me you threatened to kill him if he stayed at Legacy."
Madoc chose his words carefully. "I did not threaten to kill him. I simply implied it. It's time for him to go. You know it. He knows it. The entire realm knows it. Let him go."
"He wants to move into Grigory's shop and become an official apprentice. I'm not letting him. Not yet."
"Why do you hang on to him?" Madoc asked, fighting to keep his voice steady.
She stood and faced him. "If Coal dies, I will kill you and whoever you get to do your dirty work."
She threatened his life as if she were ordering a servant to bring her a glass of water.
"Come on, Lizzy. It's getting dark, let's go inside." Chalcedony grabbed the child's hand and headed back into Legacy. Madoc was too old to fear death, but Chalcedony had never threatened his life. Good. The innocence she'd held onto so tightly was slipping out of her grasp. Perhaps there was hope for her after all.
"It's bedtime, Lizzy," Chalcedony said.
"I'm not sleepy."
Chalcedony stifled a yawn. "Well, I am. We've been playing all day."
"Will you show me some magic? Please, pretty please? Show me some magic, and I'll go to sleep."
"You promise?"
"I promise."
Chalcedony doubted she had the energy to do anything that would impress the child. She'd spent all day running around the yard, and answering endless questions Elizabeth had about the "fairy realm." The confrontations with Coal and Madoc hadn't been pleasant either. But she decided to do one of the first things she'd learned.
"Alright, watch this."
Elizabeth sat up, eyes wide. For the first time today, she was still and quiet. Chalcedony ran her fingers through Elizabeth's bone straight, black hair. A moment later, Chalcedony felt her own wavy hair straighten. She knew without looking that it was also darkening, becomi
ng jet-black.
Elizabeth's jaw dropped. She shook her head, before standing on the bed and jumping. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. You have hair just like mine."
Chalcedony sat on the side of the bed while Elizabeth's jumping shook her up and down. "You said you'd go to bed."
"I'm too excited to sleep. What else can you do? Will you change your skin color?"
Chalcedony shook her head and used the last amount of her energy to change her hair back to being wavy and brown.
Elizabeth groaned and stopped jumping.
"If you go to bed, I'll show you more magic tomorrow."
"Okay." Elizabeth yawned and lay down. "This has been so much fun."
"It has, but tomorrow you're going to sleep in your room," Chalcedony said absently. The guilt over her reaction to Coal leaving was bringing her mood down. After her mom had died, he'd been her everything. She needed to let him go, she knew that, but if he left, she would have lost everything that mattered to her.
"My room is scary. My mom always let me sneak into her bed. Daddy didn't like it, though."
"I'm not a mom," Chalcedony said, trying to push aside thoughts of Coal.
"My mom always reads to me. Will you please read me a story?"
"You said you'd go to sleep if I showed you some magic."
Elizabeth stuck out her bottom lip and pleaded with her eyes. Despite Chalcedony's tiredness, she said, "Okay. I'll tell you one story and then, have to go to bed."
Tomorrow, she would apologize to Coal because she couldn't replace him. No one could. But he needed to give her time to get used to the idea. She'd apologize, and he'd accept, just like always.
The muscles in his back and arms strained as he lifted the hammer and brought it down on the misshapen piece of metal.
Chalcedony almost forgot why she'd come as she watched his muscles ripple and contract with each swing.
In the middle of his fifth stroke, he stopped, and his shoulders tensed. He knew she was there. But he lifted his hammer anyway, beating the metal with renewed urgency. The previous slow, rhythmic strokes were now chaotic and angry.
"Coal, I'm sorry!" Chalcedony shouted above the clang of the metal.
He put down his hammer, turned, and folded his arms across his chest. For a long moment, he stared at her. His intense gaze made her feel even guiltier.
"Did you hear me? I said I was sorry." She tried her best not to roll her eyes, or let any sign of impatience show on her face because she knew he'd drag her apology out longer if she did. He'd never given Chalcedony a free pass for being rude. Not even as children. She hadn't expected he would give her a pass now, but damn, did he have to draw it out? She'd said sorry.
He still remained silent. Was he really not going to forgive her?
Just as she was about to walk away, he spoke. "As long as we've known each other, you've never treated me like I didn't belong." The disappointment in his voice broke her heart.
"I didn't mean those words. I was shocked. I had no idea you were planning on leaving." She knew how other fey had treated him when he first arrived in the fey realm, so she'd tried everything she could to punish anyone who treated him badly.
"I don't know who you are anymore," he said as if he'd completely given up on her. "You're acting more like Madoc every day. I guess it was only a matter of time before you started treating me as if I didn't matter."
She stepped closer, fighting the urge to touch him. "You do matter. That's why I reacted so terribly. You've been a part of my life for so long that I don't know how to give you up." She bowed her head, too ashamed to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry. I was only trying to make you stay."
"I can do what I want and go anyplace I want, as long I have your permission?" he said calmly. "So I'm like one of your horses. Free to roam the fields, but that's it?"
"No, it's not like that. I've been selfish. I assumed you would be here forever." A shameful part of her wished she could keep him fenced, but then he really would hate her, and that would be worse than him leaving.
"What about when you have to find a mate?" he probed, sounding like he already knew the answer.
"Do you think I would let a pesky thing like a mate interfere with our friendship?" She tried to laugh, but it came out weak and desperate.
He closed the space between them, forcing her to stare into his eyes. How could something so dark emit so much light? "I've dreamed about our kiss every night since we got back." Coal said. He was so close she felt the heat emanating from his body, but he didn't touch her. It was an unwritten rule now.
He walked back to his anvil. "Madoc is right to separate us," Coal said with his back to her. He began to beat the metal again.
Dammit, her heart was about to burst out of her chest. But he stood steady and unapproachable. Damn him.
"How is my sword coming?" she hoped her voice was just as calm as his.
"You tell me."
He stopped working and walked into Grigory's shop. A moment later, he returned and handed her the sword. She had helped with the sword's initial design, but this was the first time she'd held it. The black leather hilt complemented the sleek double-edged steel. The pommel and the guard were golden and bright.
"It's beautiful!"
"Beauty is meaningless without a soul." His words were modest, but there was pride in his voice. "How does it feel?"
She'd never seen him like this. Bold enough to approach her about the kiss and now prideful. He wasn't only beginning to look like a man, but he was also growing into one.
"What do you mean by soul? How am I supposed to feel its soul?"
He picked up a sword lying next to the hearth. "Your sword loves to fight. Let's try it out."
She welcomed the opportunity to defeat him and regain some of the power she'd lost by admitting she'd been wrong. Coal may be her best friend--she'd die for him--but she still hated to apologize.
"You've never been able to beat me in a fight. I don't want to embarrass you, in case your master returns."
Coal took a defensive stance and grinned. "We haven't sparred in a while, I may surprise you. Although you do have an unfair advantage because of your expertly forged sword."
Chalcedony mimicked his stance. "You may make the first move. I'll be gentle with you, I promise."
"No, ladies first. I pride myself on being chivalrous." Once again, he was the teasing, fun-loving boy she'd brought back from the human realm. "I'm waiting, Princess."
With each assault and counter already calculated, she attacked, releasing her frustration, embarrassment, and disappointment with every thrust and parry. She almost forgot--almost--that she was fighting against a friend, not a foe.
After a few attacks and counterattacks, she was breathing heavily and sweating. "You've gotten better. But ..." she paused, "you're not good enough to defeat me." She quickened her thrusts, closing the distance between them and forcing him to retreat.
"How is the blade?" he asked after he successfully parried an advance.
"It's excellent. Well-balanced. It's a little heavier than my other sword, but I can get used to it. It's a perfect sword, but I don't feel its soul." Her voice was filled with disappointment.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"It doesn't feel much different to the one I'm using now." She had hoped to feel the sensation she'd felt when she'd touched Mayhem as a child.
Coal stood still, looking confused. Chalcedony finally found the opening she had been looking for. She twisted away and hit him in the nose with her elbow. He fell onto the ground with a loud gasp.
"I win," she said, more tired than she wanted to admit.
"You are better with a sword than I remembered," he said as she helped him stand. "Are you sure you didn't feel anything from the sword?"
"It's a good sword, but I know what a sentient sword feels like. I held my mother's sword, remember?"
"Maybe you should name it."
Her eyes widened. "Yeah, like Mayhem." She tried to think of a name just as g
ood as Mayhem. "How about Mischief?"
"I like it," he said, nodding his head in agreement. "Now you should carry it for a couple of days to make sure it handles right. The true bonding process may not take effect until the coronation, but I think having a name for it will help, too."
"Coal..." Chalcedony felt like a child. "Are we okay?"
He smiled as he stared into her eyes. "Of course, we're okay."
"Will you wait until after the coronation to leave Legacy? It won't be the same without you."
Coal exhaled deeply. "When have I ever told you no?"
She wanted to touch him. "I'll see you back at home. And before I forget, the tailor has your clothes for the party. He needs you to come to his shop to make sure they fit."
"I already have something to wear."
Chalcedony placed a hand on her hip and tilted her head, mimicking Elizabeth. "I ordered something special for you."
He rolled his eyes. He hated dressing up, and he hated tailored clothes even more. "Yes, Princess."
She walked away both relieved and excited. He was staying at Legacy, and that was the first step in making sure he stayed permanently. Madoc and everyone else be damned.
Chapter Seven
The attic of Grigory's shop was small, cold, and drafty. It was nothing compared to his spacious room at Legacy.
He'd promised Chalcedony he wouldn't leave Legacy until after her coronation, but after spending most of the night trying to find his seed of magic, he'd decided to stay the night at the forge.
Sleep eluded him. The thought--and the hope--he could do magic had kept him up most of the night.
Despite last night's failure, Coal was anxious to try again. He sat cross-legged on the lumpy old bed, wrapped himself in a blanket to fight against the morning chill, and concentrated on nurturing his magic seed.
It was much easier to concentrate since Chalcedony had apologized. This argument had been worse than any of their other fights, and it had left him depressed and saddened. Now, everything was right in his world.
After spending hours trying to find his magic seed, Coal only managed to fall asleep and not wake up until morning. Giving up, he went to Legacy to deliver Djamel's repaired sword. He could've gone directly to the barracks, but he'd gone through the entrance, hoping to see Chalcedony.
Coal: Book One of the Everleaf Series Page 6