Faebound Rhapsody

by Amy J. Wenglar

  “No, it’s…” Alexander answers, guilt flashing across his face. “I thought that… with this attack… that perhaps…”

  His voice trails off as the car door opens. A woman who looks to be around Esmeralda’s age steps out of the car and straightens. She stares at me through stern, no-nonsense eyes, her flaming red hair pulled back into a slick librarian’s bun. “No need to beat around the bush, Auberon. It’s mine, of course.”

  Of course.

  The angle at which she stands under the streetlight coupled with the severe hairstyle gives the woman a sort of noir effect, like she’s the star in some gritty crime drama, and I can’t tear my eyes off her witchy, pointed face. She’s not someone I want to mess with, yet I am fascinated by her. So fascinated, in fact, that I hardly notice the other person climbing out of the passenger side door until his familiar Irish lilt catches my attention.

  “Hey, Sophe.”

  “Colin?” I squint at him. “What… are you doing here with this… scary woman?”

  I point my thumb at said scary woman who winces at being called “scary”.

  “She’s dropping me off,” Colin explains. “I had a tea delivery to make in Nevermoor, and when Fiona told me she was headed this way anyway, I hitched a ride back.” He looks at Alexander. “What happened?”

  “Nevermoor? You were in Nevermoor? At the witch school?” I glance between Colin and this Fiona-woman. “I haven’t signed anything yet. The invitation said Friday. I still have six days. I don’t have to do anything until—“

  “She’s been compelled,” Alexander interrupts as he gently sets me on my feet. I lean against him as I try to find my equilibrium. “I’ve killed the vampire who compelled her. She’s under a calming enchantment right now. But as you can see, she’s still a bit panicked.”

  “And we don’t have much time before she goes completely mad,” Colin interrupts. “Is that it?” He glares at Alexander.

  I really hate it when people talk about me like I’m not even here when I’m standing right in front of them.

  “Right,” Alexander laughs nervously. “Do you have something that might—“

  “Fix your screw up?” Colin growls. “Yes. We Druids like to be prepared.”

  Colin glares at Alexander before leaning down to rummage through the glove box. “Good thing I always carry one of these on me,” he says, eyeing Alexander again. He flashes a mischievous smile as he turns toward me, an enormous syringe in his hand.

  I don’t think I’ve ever seen Colin carrying such a syringe with him in all the time I’ve known him, and I don’t like the look in his eyes as he barrels toward me with it.

  “What is that?” I ask, pointing to the syringe. “Why are you running at me with a needle, Colin?” I take a step back but find myself blocked by Alexander. “And you people wonder why I’m panicking?”

  “Turn to the side and stick your hip out,” Colin orders.

  “My hip? Why do I—“

  “Just do it, Sophe,” he orders.

  Alexander places his hands on my waist and turns me, lifting the hem of my blood-splattered t-shirt to reveal the bare skin beneath it.

  “Wait, but is that thing sterile? No, hold old on—ow!”

  Colin shoves the needle into my skin like he’s some javelin-throwing Olympian. He presses the plunger down with such force, the blood drains from my face and almost pass out as whatever he’s injected me with flows through my veins.

  Alexander wraps his arms around my waist as my knees buckle, and I sag into his arms.

  “Woah,” I say, my voice, disembodied from the rest of me as thoughts of Nevermoor and Cadillacs drift away.

  My entire body feels floaty and light. I turn to face Alexander, feeling a grin pulling across my tingling face.

  “Hey, you’re really cute,” I say, booping his nose with my finger and puckering my lips as I attempt to kiss him. “God, I feel fantastic right now,” I announce, throwing my arms up in the air, knocking Alexander in the chin. “Which means we should go back to the diner and save Greg.”

  I punch my fist in the air above me as I turn on my heel to face a very bewildered druid. And then, I can’t help myself. I laugh uncontrollably. Which then prompts me to sing.

  I pull away from Alexander, who stares at me with as much confusion as Colin. Marching up and down the driveway, I sing a bawdy song about busty women and ale. It’s a song I didn’t even realize I knew, and I have no idea where it came from.

  The tavern song soon gives way to another song, though. A song with foreign works that make no sense to me.

  “Oh dear. That’s an enchantment,” Fiona says, wringing her hands. “Sophia, stop that chanting at once!”

  “What… did you give her, druid?” Alexander growls.

  “Oh, someone’s grumpy.” I stop singing and face Alexander and give him the most serious look I can muster. “Turn that frown upside down, or I will— “

  “How was I supposed to know it would do that?” Colin snaps as I return to my song. “You should’ve brought her straight to me before doing all that Fae calming crap to her. Now she’s singing enchantments in… is that Middle English? I didn’t even know she knew Middle English.”

  “What is she saying?” Alexander asks, panicking. “She’s going to send this whole town up in flames.”

  “Well, they’ve been defeated. For now.” Chris appears at the end of the driveway, blood splattered and dirty. “We have taken the surviving vampires to the Council for further questioning.” He pauses, watching me through weary eyes, but I’m still living my witchy fantasy, not quite ready to return to reality. “What did you give her, druid?”

  “Why does everyone blame me?” Colin shouts.

  “Because you’re an idiot, that’s why,” Chris shouts back.

  “You guys are ruining my song with your stupid… accents,” I wail.

  But before I can find my groove again, and before I can even register what’s happening, Fiona rushes toward me, her palm meeting the side of my face, resulting in a slap so loud, it echoes through the deserted streets.

  “Snap out of it, Sophia!” she hisses. “I did not want to resort to such measures, but you must stop.” She mutters something about those girls being the death of her, whatever that means.

  I open my mouth, ready to belt out another chorus as she chants in an unrecognizable language, shutting me up before I can even start again. Whatever she’s doing seems to bring me back down to earth. I start to feel less off-broadway and more like myself again. Or as close to myself as I could possibly feel while under the spell of three different supernaturals.

  “Do you always go around slapping people you’ve never met? Who in the hell are you, anyway?” I growl, straightening and raising my chin so my face is level with hers.

  “Someone who refuses to stand by while you throw incantations out into the universe.”

  She glares toward the three dumbfounded men standing at the foot of the driveway.

  Incantations?

  I’m still little out-of-it, but there is a sudden ferocity inside of me that claws its way to the surface. I’m tired of enchantments being lobbed at me, one after the other, in some lame attempt to placate me. And I’m tired to being made the fool in every single situation simply because I’m human (ish).

  “Look, lady, I don’t know any incantations except what The Chosen Four are telling me right inside my little ol’ brain here.” I thunk the side of my head with my fingers. “But I will not be disrespected. I don’t care how cool you think that damned Cadillac is. It’s a piece of junk.” I stop, and just to emphasize my point, I kick the tire. Of course nothing happens, aside from the jolt of pain that shoots through my foot.

  The woman’s face-slapping hand drops to her side as she staggers backward. Yeah! Burn! Colin, Chris, and Alexander stop their heated bickering at the edge of the driveway and turn to stare at me, their faces frozen with disbelief. I hold up my hands in a sign of surrender. I’m not sure what I’ve just said
, but I probably didn’t need to involve the innocent Cadillac.

  “Okay, okay, I take back what I said about the car. I’m sorry I kicked it. Jeez.”

  “What? Why is everyone looking at me like I’ve just grown another head?” I gasp. “Wait, have I grown another head?” I reach up to touch my neck and head, pleased to find them both intact and right where they should be. One never knows with supernaturals. “So I made a stupid comment about the Cadillac, I said I didn’t mean it.”

  “Chosen Four?” Colin says with a slight bark of laughter. “Is that what they’re calling themselves now?”

  “No. It’s not possible,” Chris whispers with a quick shake of his head. “It’s impossible. She, of all people, is not...”

  Alexander chuckles, clapping Chris on the shoulder, while I stand there, as usual wondering what I am incapable of doing because it’s “impossible”.

  “It’s more than possible,” says Fiona, turning to me. “Listen, Sophia, I know I wasn’t supposed to arrive until the end of the week, but after this attack today, I think it’s safe to say you’re in a bit of danger. And between the vampire attacks and the link you’ve opened up with the Four? It’s time.” She offers me a warm, friendly smile. “Besides, they’re so eager to see you. And it sounds like you are more than ready to see them, too, whether or not you realize it. Hearing their call is the next step, naturally.”

  Naturally.

  “But…” Chris looks confused. “She’s a Changeling. She’s not—”

  “I’d say she’s capable of much more than you’ve ever given her credit for,” Alexander says with a bright smile.

  A face-splitting grin lights up his dirty, battle-worn face as he creeps toward me, which is surprising considering he just ripped the head off a vampire with his bare hands.

  “I just don’t see how it’s possible.”

  Chris, in all his stubbornness, isn’t about to let this go.

  “She’s coming into her power, Bloodsucker,” Alexander explains. “Don’t you see? If they are calling for her, and she can hear them, then it’s time for her to go.”

  “Who are they? This Chosen Four?” I ask dumbly. “And what makes them so sure I’m the one they want?”

  “Precisely my question,” grumbles Chris.

  Alexander opens his mouth to answer, but Fiona holds up her hand, signaling her desire to speak.

  “If I may?” She gives me a polite smile. “I suppose I should’ve gotten the introductions out of the way first—“

  “Yeah, like before you slapped me.” I roll my eyes.

  She tightens her mouth as she pushes her tortoiseshell cat-eye glasses up the bridge of nose and tosses her shoulders back. “Fiona Flatley. Student Services Director for Nevermoor Academy.”

  “Ah, yes. How could I forget?” I snap. “Nevermoor. The school for witches.”

  “The very one.” Fiona grins before placing a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “My dear, you are in a state of consciousness that’s allowing your mind to open. That is where your awareness of The Four comes from. It proves you are ready, and so are they. And based on all that’s happened since you return from Berlin, I’d say we are just in time.”

  “You must go at once, Sophia.” Alexander places his hand on the small of my back, ushering me toward the Cadillac.

  “Woah, woah, woah. Are you kidding me?” I shout, taking a few steps back and glaring at my supernatural companions. “What is this? What is with all of you? Greg, my best friend, has been kidnapped. Taken. Along with a bunch of other people in that diner. We need to find him. All of them. I can’t just leave six days early because you all want to get rid of me. We have to find Greg. We have to go. Now.”

  They all stare back at me as if they’re afraid of me. I’m actually kind of afraid of me, too.

  “The Council is handling it, Miss Kelly,” Chris says. “I promise.

  “You promise,” I scoff. “Like you promised to compel Greg into not worrying about me while I was in Berlin? That kind of promise?”

  Chris opens his mouth and then closes it again as he rubs the back of his neck with his hand.

  “She does have a point,” Alexander mumbles, snickering to himself.

  “You shut up.” I elbow him in the ribs. “I’m not going anywhere or doing anything until we find Greg.”

  “Vampires took him, Sophia. Vampires who probably had him under their compulsion when I tried to compel him,” Chris argues, releasing a slow breath of air. “And these aren’t just any vampires either. They are a different breed. Stronger. More bloodthirsty than anything I’ve ever seen before.” He shakes his head. “Not to underestimate your power, Miss Kelly, but you wouldn’t stand a chance. You saw what happened in that diner. Your cuff couldn’t even protect you against compulsion.” He glances between all of us. “This is something we’ve never dealt with before. And it’s best left to me and to the Council.”

  “So, I’m just supposed to leave? And trust that you all will handle everything?”

  “Miss Kelly, I was with the Knight’s Templar. I’ve led armies into battle. I’m certain we can handle this.”

  “Knight’s Templar.” Alexander makes a face. “Please. I’ve been leading Fae armies longer than you’ve been alive, Bloodsucker.”

  “Not to be dramatic, Sophe,” Colin says, talking over Alexander and Chris. “But there is nothing left for you here.”

  “No. We certainly wouldn’t want to be dramatic.” I scowl at Chris and Alexander who continue to argue over their military qualifications and supernatural accomplishments.

  “If you stay, you’ll only be the target of future attacks.” His face relaxes into a simple grin. “Plus, if you say, you’ll have to put up with the two of them, and I’m not sure which is worse.”

  “The beginnings of an epic bro-mance, it looks like.”

  “I hate that vampire,” says Alexander, stepping up beside me and threading his arm around my waist. He throws Chris a narrow-eyed glare as he once again pulls me to him. “You must go with Fiona now, Sophia. You will learn to hone your magic in Nevermoor.”

  “So, I’m more useful there. That’s what you’re trying to say, isn’t it?” Alexander doesn’t respond, but I know that’s what he’s thinking. “But, the date on the invitation… I still have six days,” I remind them.

  Stalling won’t help me. But I’m terrified. I have no idea what awaits me at this strange witch school. And if I’m part of some Chosen Four, who’s to say they’ll even like me once they meet me? What if they toss me to someone else, deciding I have no place among them either?

  “As much as I love babysitting you while you defy orders, you can’t stay here, Sophia,” Chris says. “You know you can’t.”

  “But I’m not ready,” I blurt, realizing at once how weak and afraid I sound. “I need more time. Even if it’s just a day. I need to prepare. This is a big journey, and… Maybe… maybe I could use some more training. Oh! What about fencing? Colin, remember those fencing lessons? I will probably need to know how to do that, right? Witches love fencing. I’ve heard that.”

  Colin stares at me, shaking his head, and I can’t help but notice the strange lines of worry etched on his face that seem to age him.

  “Sorry, Sophe. I’m headed out on a mission of my own.” He presses his lips together. “Back to Berlin, it would seem.”

  “Back through the portal?” I shout. “Are you insane? The portals aren’t even open. And even if you get through, the city is overrun with Unseelie.”

  “It’s a chance I have to take.” He shrugs. “I’m following a lead, and I have to see it through.”

  His face falls, and he says nothing further about it.

  “Sophia,” Alexander breathes.

  “I know, I know,” I snap, pulling my hand from his. “Can I at least have a few minutes to pack?”

  “No need,” Alexander says, grinning as a suitcase appears in his outstretched hand. “I’ve packed for you.”

  Man, they are eager t
o get rid of me.

  “I need to change first. I can’t go anywhere like this.”

  With a wave of his finger, I am surrounded by a swirling gust of air like something out of a fairy tale. And in a matter of seconds, I am primped, polished, and ready to go. I look down at myself, the amount of razzle-dazzle covering my body almost blinding me. Jo Stanford would be proud.

  “Seriously?” I ask, gesturing toward the ornate, beaded flapper gown that adorns my body. “What, were my fancy clothes dirty or something?”

  Alexander nods and flashes an approving smile. “You look beautiful,” he says, oblivious to my sarcasm.

  “Yes, quite a lovely gown,” observes Fiona with a flicker of a smile. “But you needn’t be so formal.”

  I roll my eyes.

  “I wanted you to look nice. You’re going to Nevermoor, my love. You can’t go looking tacky,” Alexander says.

  “Can’t you pop me into something a little more modern and a little less… cat’s meow?”

  “God no.” Alexander says, frowning with disgust. “I’ve seen what you modern people wear, Sophia. It’s atrocious.”

  “You sound like Horace,” I mutter.

  “I hate to break all this up,” Fiona says. “But we really must be going.”

  This is all happening so fast. And Alexander and I still haven’t had a proper wedding night.

  “Can you come with me?” I ask him, my voice small, afraid. “At least for a little while? Until I get settled?”

  “I can’t, my love.” He pulls me to him, the beads on my dress clinking together as I fall into his arms. “I have to go back to Faerie,” he murmurs, leaning down to kiss me. “The Unseelie Army is growing more powerful every day. My people need me.”

  “Well, I need you, too,” I admit. “This sucks.”

  “I know.” Alexander tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “Promise you’ll send word once you arrive.” He kisses away the tears that fall down my cheeks. “I’ll come to you as soon as I can.”

  “Oh, for the love of… I’ve seen about enough of this,” Chris growls. “Miss Kelly.” He taps my shoulder before turning me to face him. “You will accomplish great things in Nevermoor.” I frown, unsure if he’s serious or not. “So long as you listen to orders and don’t do anything stupid like you tend to do.”