The war between the courts started the same reason any war does – power. Summer and Winter were the Queens of nature. Their purpose was to guide the changing of the seasons. Parts of the earth were always under the control of one. Winter felt that not enough of the surface was under her reign. Summer was not willing to give in to her demand for more. So began the constant battle and age old war between the sisters.
Summer and Winter were created at the same time –after the Seraphim but before the Archangels. They were exact opposites, to keep balance.
Winter, tall and thin, had long, straight, white hair that hung past the back of her knees. Her sharp, narrow and angular features made her intimating. Her grey eyes were cold and unforgiving. Her court feared her. She liked it that way.
Summer was shorter, but by no means short, her six foot frame was a full two feet shorter than that of her counter’s. Her skin was dark, the color of wood, and her hair was curly and jet black. Her features were rounded and soft, she had eyes that were sometimes brown, some time gold. She was, by far, the nicer of the two. Her court loved and revered her. She was a good queen.
Fae started their existence as angels. They were the architects of the earth surface. If they had joined the other angels in heaven Summer and Winter would have been Seraphim as well. The Great Creator granted their request to remain on the surface as long as they stay hidden and did not interfere with man. They were given long life; the first two – true immortality.
In their constant exchange for dominance of more territory or more time, only once had Winter won. It was the only time that the heavenly angels had intervened in the affairs of the fae. A land of only snow and ice was not what they wanted either. With their help Summer overthrew Winter. This time was what man would one day call the ice age.
Summer and Winter knew the prophecy, but neither worried. As it was proclaimed, they would not exist until needed. Surely the angels had learned their lesson. Both were shocked with the Mothers were born.
“Idiot!” Winter yelled at her sister.
The Great tree had been called a neutral meeting area by the sisters. Neither went to the others home and their paranoia refused them to allow even one guard or additional fairy; there was no way to know if they were of equal strength. The ice in the tree was melting as fast as it formed. Winter was cloaked in ice and Summer in fire. Summer didn’t think about the tree, one of the originals. She was finally mad.
“How dare you,” she yelled right back at her sister. “Do you know what you have done to us with that ridiculous plan? If the angels should ever find out…”
It had been Winter’s idea to kidnap the earth guardians, the word made her cringe but why sugarcoat it? That’s what they’d done. What had she been thinking? They had been specifically told to stay out of the affairs of humans but she’d seen nothing but determination in Winter’s eyes and so she’d reluctantly agreed.
“And whose fault is that?” You were supposed to watch them. I knew it. I knew you would fail,” Winter said through gritted teeth. “When first I heard of those silly crowns, I knew you would not see it through.”
Summer was mortified. “You’ve spies in my court!” Too flabbergasted for the statement to be a question, the temperature in the small space increased as waves of anger radiated from her.
She’d commissioned bands of gold to be made for each of the girls. Crowns to be worn with the hope that if their plan failed the act would put, at least her, in favor of the angels, who were still leery of Winter after her attempt to take over the surface. As soon as the twin girls were before she knew they’d made a mistake and the wrath of the angels would be great.
“Of course I did. Did you think I would have no eyes on them? ”
“A lot of good it did.”
The agreement had been that the twins would be raised in Fairy; spending the first half of their life in Summer’s Court, before being passed off to Winter. But the guardians, Emily and Fredrick, took the twins and disappeared. There had been scouts looking ever since but the fairy couple was doing a fine job hiding them. Now the realms had recognized the Queen Mother and their time to find the earth twins had grown short.
“I’ll have no parts in any new plan,” Summer said.
Winter turned from the other side of the tree. “Oh, someone will have to answer and your court is the only that ever had possession of the twins. I would hate for the angels to find out.”
Summer moved so quickly Winter had no line of defense before she found Summer’s hands around her neck. The Summer’s Queen pinned the Ice Queen to the old tree by the throat. Winters height advantage didn’t save her, and she couldn’t break Summer’s hold.
“If you ever go to the angels and suggest such a thing,” Summer spit in her sister’s face, her hands engulfed in flames. “I swear I will make sure that we both are taken from this world. I will not go alone.”
The weight of the promise bore down on them both, but Summer didn’t relent. Fairies could not lie and they could not break an oath. Summer’s words were no doubt, just that.
“You’re hurting me.” Winter knew she had gone too far. Her sister’s hands were burning her and she saw power in her counter she’d never seen before. Winter and Summer could not destroy each other, a safeguard to keep the balance.
Summer released her sister but was still too angry at Winter’s words and her body remained in flames as she left the great tree. In was engulfed in flames.
“No more plans. I will try to right this wrong before the angels find out.”
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