by Mindy Hayes
Chapter Eight
Saturday morning I woke up and smiled to myself, realizing what day it was. I get to see Declan today. I headed to the kitchen for some breakfast before getting ready to meet him. Dad was already at the kitchen table with a newspaper and coffee in hand.
When he saw me he smiled. “Good morning, Calliope.”
“Morning, Dad,” I breathed. Things thawed out between us since we bonded over the swing. I was grateful for it since he was the only one who knew the truth. The only other person I could rely on.
“How did you sleep last night?”
“Great,” I replied as I rummaged through the fridge for breakfast.
He cleared his throat, so I turned to see what he wanted to say. “Have you noticed any…” he broke off and thought about how to phrase his question, but before he could finish Mom walked in.
“Good morning, sunshine!” she sang as she curled her arm around my waist. “You want me to make you some breakfast?”
“Uh… sure. What are you offering?”
“Well, Dad and I had some waffles earlier if you want the same I still have some batter left over.”
“Sounds good to me.”
I sat down at the kitchen table and waited until he peered at me over the newspaper. I knew he wanted to ask me if I’d noticed any changes in my appearance so without saying a word, I simply shook my head.
He nodded discreetly and gazed back at the paper.
How was I going to explain where I was going? Oh, I’m just going to go disappear into the forest for a few hours. Don’t worry about me. No, I had to be secretive about it. I could tell my dad, so at least he knew my whereabouts, but I had to do it when Mom wasn’t in earshot.
“No work today?” I asked as I finished my plate and Mom did the dishes.
“I have a few things I need to do from home, but I don’t have to go into the office today.”
“Well, that’s nice,” I said. And I did feel that was nice for her, but it was going to make it that much more difficult to get out of the house.
She nodded and smiled. Once she finished the dishes she headed back to their bedroom to work, I presumed.
“I’m going to go see Declan today,” I said quietly, wiping my mouth. “I wanted to let you know, so you don’t worry about me.”
“I don’t like it, Calliope.” He kept his eyes on his newspaper.
Well, I didn’t like that he had kept this gigantic secret for years. Tough. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t like it. After all this time, I deserve more information.”
His eyes peeked above the edge of the gray paper. “If you want, I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
I shook my head. “It’s not the same.” I knew he would leave stuff out. Declan and Kai were the only ones who had been honest without being haggled. Well, without needing much haggling anyway.
He folded the paper and placed it down on the table while giving me the eye—
that eye parents give when they don’t like what they’ve heard or seen. “So, that’s it. You’re just going to go hide in the trees all day long? What are those boys even doing so close to here?”
I shrugged. “How am I supposed to know? Are they not allowed to be?”
My dad sighed. “There is no ruling against it if that is what you are asking. I just don’t like it. They might have been around all this time, but I never knew and it felt better that way. Ignorance is bliss. I believe that’s the human saying. I liked it that way.”
I thought I was the one who had to come to terms with all of this. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Dad. You were the one who was basically telling me I needed to embrace the whole faery thing and now you want to hide it from me all over again.”
My dad heaved a sigh as he leaned back in his chair. What did he honestly expect? He knew I couldn’t hide from them either. Not anymore.
“It’s not that I want to hide it from you. It would simply be easier if you didn’t get so involved with them.”
“Dad, I’ve talked to them like once. I’m not running off and marrying one of them today, just having a simple conversation.” I decided to make nice. “Can I go? Please?”
“Do as you wish. I won’t stop you.”
I kissed him on the cheek and rinsed off my dish. “I’ll be back later. Just tell Mom I went out for some fresh air or something. You’ve had plenty of practice omitting the truth over the years.”
He rolled his eyes, but mustered up a smile to let me know he knew I was only giving him a hard time.
I tried to follow the same trail I took the last couple of times. There was no manmade trail, so I had to follow landmarks that stood out to me before: a moss covered log that looked like an alligator, the tree that looked like it was dancing. The sound of the stream needed to stay at my right.
“Calliope.” When I heard my name I spun around to see Declan smiling at me. “You came.” He sounded relieved as if he hadn’t believed I would actually come.
“Of course I came. I don’t back out of promises.”
He smiled, disrupting my heartbeat. Very few people had ever caught my attention. Maybe I was oblivious or maybe they simply weren’t that interesting. Declan was definitely interesting. Today rather than the bow and arrows slung across his shoulder, he had a thin belt with a sharp off-white dagger attached to his hip. It looked like the tooth of a large animal. The cream top was gone, baring his tanned skin once again. I don’t think the fae men knew the kind of effect a topless man could have on a girl. Or maybe the fae women were so used to it that it had little or no affect at all on them.
I noticed a certain body wasn’t lingering around and I hated myself for not feeling relief, but disappointment. “You alone today?”
He raised his hands to his hips and scanned the branches above us. “I don’t know where Kai is. We don’t always have the same schedule. I was getting so used to it only being me until he found his way over a few months back. I’m sure he’ll show up when he feels like it.”
I nodded, not really sure where to go from here. There were so many questions I wanted to ask, but it felt strange to just dive in.
“Come,” he said, pointing to a gigantic rooted tree. “Have a seat.” He perched himself on one side, folding his legs under him and offered me the other root for a chair.
I chuckled. He was so nimble, which amused me because it wasn’t as if he had the body of a skinny dancer. He was tall and burly. But, I suppose if they lived in trees they would have to learn to adapt to their surroundings. Did they live in the trees?
“What?” he asked, perplexed by my amusement.
“Nothing.” I bit back a smile.
His pitch-black lashes fluttered, contrasting with the vibrant green-blue in his eyes that still captivated me. “So, you seem to be adjusting a little better than the first time we met,” he observed.
“I’m definitely not completely adjusted, but being the daughter of a faery isn’t something you can hide from. I guess you could say I’ve… come to terms with it.”
“So, you are happy to be a faery?” Declan tilted his head, hopeful.
“I wouldn’t go that far. I’m… learning to adapt,” I said.
He nodded, but didn’t speak. His eyes didn’t shy away from me. They stayed focused and inquisitive as if I was the only thing that mattered.
I decided to start with the questions. We had sat awkwardly for long enough. “Why are you here? Why aren’t you in Faylinn all the time?”
Declan blew air from his lips. “Faylinn is ruled by a faery that isn’t the most… pleasant faery.” He chose his words carefully. “Not that many faeries are pleasant, but he’s brought a whole new level to faery cruelty. Quite honestly, Faylinn is falling apart and he doesn’t care. He doesn’t realize it’s his fault it’s falling apart.”
I resituated on the root, getting more comfortable. “What’s happening to Faylinn?”
“A lot of Faylinn’s faeries are slowly dwindling away. Some
just disappear without a trace and others are dying, younger than they should. The longer Favner rules the fewer there are of us.” He scratched his head. “No one wants to live under a malicious king, but most don’t want to live in the human world. To have to wear such confining clothes and speak as you speak. To have to learn the ways of money and your human jobs. It terrifies us. Some try to leave, but if they don’t truly want to be human… they don’t survive. And no faery can live in the human world unharmed.” The angst in Declan’s voice was apparent. “And those that do survive… the ones that come crawling back to Faylinn aren’t forgiven.” He paused as if not wanting to continue. “They are tortured and do not survive.”
I cringed at that morbid thought. What kind of a place did my father come from? “What does he do to make them want to leave in the first place?”
Declan looked sorely thoughtful, trying to decide where to start. “We used to be equals. No matter the season we were born. No matter where we lived. No matter the gender or outward appearance. There was a time when we got to be with our families and thrive in the jobs we were born to do. We were able to pick when we wanted to reproduce, where we wanted to live. We had freedom. But Favner,” he said, taking a breath. “Favner split us up. He tore apart our families and divided us into separate colonies. Now, we are told what to do and when. We are required to do as he commands. Eat, sleep, work, and reproduce.”
“What do you mean by colony?”
“We were each born into a colony: Sowers, Craftsmen, Keepers or Weavers. We were raised in those colonies and taught the ways of each trade. When he became king he created a new colony: The Nesters.”
“What are the colonies for?” I leaned forward now, immersed in the world of Faylinn. Declan looked too upset to talk about it, so I stopped him before he started. “I mean… you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s okay. You’ll need to learn about it sooner or later.” He paused before continuing as if debating how to reveal the information. “The Sowers are the gardeners and hunters so to speak. They produce all of our food by hunting or farming. But instead of farming when it’s time, they are forced to harvest from dawn until dusk so there is always an abundance of produce. Not that an abundance of food is a bad thing, but a lot of it goes to waste. To a faery, being wasteful of nutrition is almost sacrilege.”
Being wasteful of nutrition should be sacrilege to anyone.
“The Craftsmen build the dwellings and repair them. They construct whatever the king wants. And it must be done rapidly. If the king wants a new tower on his castle, the Craftsmen are commanded to build it in a day. Granted faeries are swifter than humans, but they aren’t that swift. Which causes more issues.”
“So, the Craftsmen are basically the manual labor.” I grew tired at the thought of physically working constantly. “They must be exhausted all the time.”
He nodded. “They are. They are worked to death. That is the only way we are allowed to stop. We serve until death takes us.”
I had to lean back against the tree now for support. “What about the rest of the faeries?”
“The Weavers provide clothing, blankets, curtains, all things that require material. They weave the fabric and create anything you might need. They always supply things like jewelry, wreaths and baskets. They are very good with their hands.”
“Like a seamstress.”
He nodded. “The Keepers are the protectors. They keep the boundaries of Faylinn guarded to ensure no one intrudes and they keep the peace inside the kingdom. The Keepers have the most leniencies with their job. They are allowed to have the most rest because Favner wants his guards alert at all times. They can rotate more often and have a little more flexibility for free time. He really wants his guards well taken care of. Apparently, we have something important to protect. I think Favner is just worried someone will come and overthrow his reign as king.” Declan bowed his head and focused on the ground. He shook his head and blew out a huff of air.
“What about the Nesters? The new group Favner formed,” I prompted.
“Nesters.” I could tell this was the one that bothered him the most. “The Nesters bear seedlings. No other colony is allowed to reproduce because apparently the other jobs are too important to be put on hold for reproduction. But as a result the Nester fae are dwindling away. Bearing a new seedling is tiring. It takes only a month not nine months like humans. And as soon as one seedling is born, another must be created. The process is repeated until the faery can no longer handle carrying another. They don’t survive long. Nesters are never not expecting.”
“So not every woman gets the opportunity to have children?” That thought churned knots in my stomach. Declan shook his head without meeting my eyes. “How did Favner decide who was meant for each colony?”
“He needed to keep our kingdom populated so there was one Nester selected from every family. They were the first to be picked. And then he divided us up from there as he saw fit.”
Divide them, as if they were game pieces to be dispersed among players.
Another thought twisted my insides as I thought of the possibilities. “How are... seedlings…?” I didn’t know how to phrase this. Did faeries procreate the same way we did? And if so, did that mean they were forced to create with one they didn’t love?
“How are seedlings created?” Declan let me off the hook.
I nodded, trying to keep the blush from my cheeks.
“How is anything reproduced?” Did he really want me to answer that question? “The fae are made the same way that a human is,” he simplified.
“So they have to… with others that they don’t…” I couldn’t bring myself to follow-through with my questions.
Declan merely gave me a look, affirming my now deepest fear. “They do get to choose who they create with, but I suppose that doesn’t really make it any better. There were many couples who were separated, forced to create with another.”
I shook my head. I was specifically stuck on the Nesters now because unless I had a sibling I didn’t know existed, which was highly unlikely, I was the last in my family. The only one who could… create.
“Each colony used to bond within their own colony, but since Favner forbids bonding…”
“Bonding?” I questioned.
“Marrying,” he clarified. “I believe that’s what humans refer to it as.”
“You have to marry within your own colony? You don’t get to choose from anyone in the kingdom.”
He shook his head. “But there is no bonding anymore. Bonds have been torn apart.”
I didn’t like the sound of any of this. “Do they create seedlings with the same faery every time?”
“Yes.”
I sighed, feeling a small weight pulled off my chest.
“But those who created before were separated from their partners and have to create with someone else now.”
He nodded. “Those that were chosen as Nesters, yes.”
My stomach was churning, sick for the people of Faylinn. “And how old do you have to be to begin having seedlings?”
“It depends on the physical maturity of the faery, but sixteen is the average age.” My stomach sank. I felt like I might puke. “Favner wants them creating life as soon as they are capable.”
I swallowed. “And before that age… what do the Nesters do?”
“They assist those carrying. They learn how to nurture a new seedling and prepare their bodies to be ready to carry when it is time.”
I cringed. The thought of living in Faylinn petrified me. If I had been born in Faylinn I would have had to start reproducing seedlings almost two years ago. It was decided. I was never going to Faylinn. My body belonged to me, not Favner. He wasn’t about to start making those decisions for me.
“I’m sorry, Calliope. I should have been more considerate.” He reached out to me, but his hand never quite touched mine before he pulled it back. “I know you’re the last of your family.”
I could only nod, and then paused. “How did you know that?”
He looked at me for a moment before answering and then said, “Like I told you earlier. I’ve been around. I hear things. I know more than you probably think I do.”
A chill ran through me. His words were not comforting.
He reached out hesitantly. “Oh, I… uhh… Pixies… I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. I’m sorry. I’ve never invaded your personal space. I’ve only been here as a protector. A Keeper. My job.”
“You’re a Keeper.”
He nodded and plucked at a piece of bark he picked up from the ground.
It made sense as to why he was able to come so frequently. “So, when you’re not here chilling in the trees, you’re protecting Faylinn?”
He nodded again. “I take my shift and then I escape away to make sure you’re still okay.”
I turned my face away to hide my blushing cheeks. When I peered back at him he looked helpless, idly fidgeting with his hands. I gave him a sympathetic look.
“You’ve all become slaves. You’re treated like machines. But everyone has a breaking point. So, what’s being done to stop him? I mean… he can’t reign forever.”
Declan gazed at me unblinking. “Unfortunately, he could be king for several hundred more years. We don’t live forever, but we age very slowly. About a day to every month a human lives.”
“So that means I have to live… what…” I was trying to do the math in my head, but it was hurting my brain to try and calculate it without a calculator.
“A human would have to live for about thirty years before I became a year older. But even then we don’t die at the normal human age. We live to be hundreds of years old. Some of the fae even thousands of years.”
“How old are you?”
“In fae or human years?”
I chuckled. “Both.”
“In fae I’m nineteen. In human years I guess I’m about… 150 years old.”
My thoughts stopped, trying to grasp the concept. “But I thought that…”
“The aging process starts to take effect when our fae features come, as soon as our features are fully matured.”
“So what… you aged normally until you hit puberty and then it slowed down?”
“Basically. But time is different in Faylinn. It also doesn’t exist the same way it does here.”
“This is all too complicated to wrap my head around.”
He chuckled and smiled coolly. “The fae aren’t supposed to make sense. There is a reason why humans don’t believe we exist. Nothing about us could scientifically be proven or be logical to the human brain. The makeup of our bodies is completely different. Our blood is different. Our organs are different.” He shrugged. “We don’t have to make sense. We just are.”
“How many of you… of us are there?”
“Thousands. But like I said, we are fewer than before. Before it was tens of thousands.”
How could a colony of faeries that large go undetected? How could they live freely in the woods without being disturbed? That had to cover a lot of forest.
I watched Declan. He spoke with an ease that calmed me. Even though he spoke about something I couldn’t grasp and was still forming its own place in my mind, I felt content being here with him, listening to him explain the fae ways. “Then what about me? Since I’m half, will I age half as slowly?”
“You…” He sighed and looked puzzled. “We will only know your aging process with time as your other faery features show themselves and as the years pass us by. As I’m sure your dad mentioned, there aren’t many like you, if any. You’re the first half-fae that I’ve ever known.”
I took a deep breath. “The first?” I asked. “How could I be the first?”
He chuckled, amused by my disbelief. “I didn’t say you were the first, simply the only one I’ve ever come in contact with. I’m sure you’re not the first in all the centuries of faeries to exist.”
That was only semi-comforting to know I wasn’t just some mutant, but I still wished I had someone else to learn from. To have somewhat of an idea about how I would grow and exist throughout the years. The uncertainty left me unsettled. I would constantly be in search of what I should expect.
A thought formed in my mind. There were only five colonies. “No two family members could be a part of the same colony, could they?”
“No,” he said quietly and shook his head, pressing his lips together in frustration.
“Were there any families with more than five members?”
Declan nodded stiffly and spoke quietly. “Those that were left were not allowed to live.”
I felt sick. I swiped my hand across my ears and through my hair as if I could wipe away his words.
I was afraid to ask. “How many were in your family?”
He grew solemn and I realized I should have been more sensitive. I shouldn’t have pried.
“Thankfully, only four.” Declan looked to the moss beneath his legs.
I thought about comforting him, but he looked more uncomfortable then I could have imagined him ever being and it made me angry. Angry for him. Angry for Faylinn.
“Why did he separate you? If Faylinn already had a good system, what was the point of reassigning and forcing everyone into a job they weren’t familiar with? And then disposing of extra fae.” Like they were garbage. As if their lives meant nothing.
“He wants our loyalty,” he said without inflexion. “Families create unity and loyalty to one another. He wanted to destroy that. We are no longer allowed to bond because it creates ties of loyalty to someone else other than him. He wanted to weaken our influences and diminish any possibility of retaliation against him.”
“Did he say that?”
Declan shook his head. “No, he gave some speech about the importance of learning new trades and expanding our knowledge of other colonies which makes sense, but no one believed that was his goal. As soon as he separated us we were no longer allowed to live with our families. He said it was important for us to connect with our new fellow colony members to create stronger colonies.”
“But wouldn’t the division of families cause a rebellion to begin with? Why hasn’t Favner ever been overthrown? Why doesn’t everyone create a rebellion and retaliate?” It made perfect sense to me.
“Ahh… that would be nice,” he agreed. “But unfortunately that’s impossible.”
“Why? Nobody likes him. Everyone obviously agrees on that. Just get together and fight back.”
“No, I literally mean it’s impossible. Royalty have a special ability, an extra special ability.” Declan stopped and sighed, lifting his gaze toward the sky.
“And what’s that?” I prompted.
“Giving away our faery secrets now are we, Declan?”
My ears perked up. I heard his voice coming from up high. When I gazed above us Kai was perched on a limb several feet up. One leg was pulled to his chest while the other dangled over, bobbing up and down. He was shaving the tip of a twig into a point, making an arrow. How long had he been there?
Declan lifted his head to Kai. “They aren’t secrets to her, Kai. And I’m only answering what she asks. I’m not going to throw out information that doesn’t concern her or worse—frightens her. I’m not you.”
“Can you blame me for wanting to live on the edge?”
After Declan’s explanation of Faylinn’s troubles and our aging process, I didn’t have the energy for their bickering.
“Thanks for telling me about Faylinn, Declan.” I got up from the roots to leave.
“Leaving so soon, Princess?” Kai dropped from the branches, agilely landing on his feet in front of me, keeping me in place.
I glared at his attempt to perturb me. “Not everyone can laze around in the trees all day long, Kai. There’s important work to be done in the world.”
“Oh, I think I do very important work,” he contended.
I put one hand on my hip, observing him, hoping to intimidate him at leas
t half as much as he intimidated me. “It’s true, you do keep the peace in Faylinn. Speaking of which, shouldn’t you be doing that now? The precious king couldn’t possibly last another minute without you, I’m sure.”
He didn’t answer, but a momentary look of pain flickered in his eyes before his mask was back up. He scoffed and began walking away, disappearing into the trees.
“What’s his problem?” I asked Declan.
Declan shrugged and shook his head as if he never knew what was going on in Kai’s head. When I turned back to Kai, he was gone. “I wouldn’t worry about him. He gets his feelings hurt easily.”
I heard a distant offended noise coming from where Kai had gone.
Declan and I laughed quietly. “Apparently,” I said, but I may have taken it too far considering what I just learned about Faylinn. Life wasn’t easy for any of them and I practically rubbed it in his face.
I grabbed Declan’s hand resting on his knee and squeezed it. “Thank you for talking with me today. It really means a lot that you trust me with all this information.”
He shrugged as if it were no big deal. “You deserve to know.”
“Thank you anyway.”