"Don't sit down yet, there's work to do, girls," Nina said near the door. She carried a tote bag and closed the immense, carved wooden door behind her.
The thud of the door had a finality to it that sent a chill down Jade's spine. After today, everything would be different, she realized. She swallowed hard. She pulled Nyx to a corner and said, “Things are about to get weird.”
“Are you going to show off a tattoo or something? Geesh – lighten up. You’re so doomsday,” Nyx said with a laugh.
“Did you ever wonder who our mom was?”
“Of course, like, every day.”
“There’s a pretty good chance that Soraya’s our mom.”
“Shut the front door,” Nyx said. “That’s impos—”
“We’re talking fairies, here. Things are different than with normals.”
“Is this a joke?”
“I’m being serious. She may be under some Forget Sorrows spell. It can last for decades.”
Nyx shook her head and exhaled. “Wow. I don’t know what to say.”
“Well, we have to confirm it and then we figure it out together.” Jade shrugged her shoulders. “Just be normal until I’m ready to bring it up.”
“I’ll try my best,” Nyx said and frowned.
***
"You're not having second thoughts, are you, Jade?" Nyx asked. Her brows were drawn together. "I think it's kind of bad-ass. I mean, being a shapeshifter is cool, but a fairy has no limits, in a way. I can't wait to learn soon."
"Hey, one Delacourt at a time," Nina said. "Soraya thought it would be good for you to observe, though, so that's something."
“Yes, soon, Nyx. You, too, will learn the art of being a fairy. We will discover who you truly are,” Soraya said.
Nyx’s eyebrow arched and she cleared her throat.
Jade shot a look at Nyx. She imagined her sister wanted to say, “Or, who you truly are.”
“Spoiler alert. I’m half Cloyn, so I’ll probably be walking on the dark side a bit,” Nyx said.
“Well, a full Cloyn and a half Cloyn are a world apart. That is why I think it’s best we wait. You may be full Cloyn, since you don’t know who your mother is,” Soraya said.
Nyx rolled her eyes and fell back into the couch. “I can’t.” She looked at Jade. “Please, Jade.”
“What’s going on?” Soraya asked.
Jade stood up from the couch and looked first at Soraya, then at her sister.
“Is this some announcement? Are you thinking of running against Bex after all?” Soraya asked.
Nina sat down near Nyx and held her hand.
“No. But this is reminder, I guess.” Jade turned to her backpack and pulled out the blanket.
Soraya frowned. “Why do you have a blanket?”
Jade leaned towards Soraya and placed the blanket on Soraya’s lap.
Jade watched with tears streaming down her face as Soraya’s Forget Sorrows spell was slowly broken. Nyx stood up and held Jade’s hand.
Soraya dropped her head. She was silent and then stroked the fairy blanket made of silk spun by the ancient silkworms. She closed her eyes and hummed a tune, smiling. Her tears fell onto the blanket, which made sparkles rise from the cloth and disintegrate into the air. She raised her head, revealing her tear-soaked cheeks. She shook her head and said, “I had to protect you both.” Her breath hitched as she wept into the blanket.
Jade’s emotions warred inside of her as she felt a combination of love, sorrow, happiness and anger, all aimed at Soraya.
Soraya looked at both of them and then ran to the bathroom and wretched.
Several minutes later, she was seated back in the living room. She held a warm cup of tea cradled in her palms. Her cheeks were soaked with tears. “Girls, can you forgive me?” she finally asked through her sobs.
Jade and Nyx sat perched on the sofa in front of Soraya. Nina wisely said, “I’ll go make some more tea.”
Jade, Nyx and Soraya were alone in the room.
Soraya said, “I am responsible for everything that occurred. I was Fairy Enthrall and didn’t realize I had enemies. Your father tricked me, posing as a fairy. Had I known who he was, I would have been forbidden to be with him, especially because we were in the middle of a long dispute with shapeshifters over attacks on normals. We thought it was them, and vice-versa.”
“I heard from the lady who ran the adoption place in Florida that my father loved you,” Jade said.
“If he loved me, he never would have put me in that dangerous position. To him it was a game, but for me and you, my daughter, it was our lives.” Soraya shook her head and wrung her hands.
“Oh,” Jade said. She leaned back against the sofa, lost in thought and trying to imagine what her mother felt all those years ago.
“My plan was to go back for you both,” Soraya said.
“But what about me?” Nyx asked quietly. “What happened with my father?”
“After I gave Jade away to protect her life, I was set up with your father, who was a powerful Cloyn fairy. He wasn’t a kind man, but that didn’t matter to your grandfather. I had to protect myself and my newborn child, when he came at me, I fought back, and—” Soraya’s voice trailed off. She shook her head and looked down.
Nyx was silent.
“After he died, I had to flee his family’s vengeance. They threatened to have me put in Cheltan, me and Nyx.”
“What’s Cheltan?”Jade asked.
“It is a fortress made of stone on a remote island near Bermuda that Fairies use as a prison to this day
“Even though I was Fairy Enthrall, they were powerful as well. So, I bore him a child and had to flee for my life and my child’s life. I know it was foolish, but I aligned myself with a motley crew that vowed to protect me. They were a radical group of fairies bent on annihilating shapeshifters.”
Jade looked up from her reverie and frowned.
“I now know how wrong I was. I was young, hurt and desperate, but above all, I was a coward,” Soraya said through the falling tears which streaked her face.
“This group scared me, but protected me. I found a way to get Nyx taken out and brought to a safe place for adoption.”
Soraya’s eyes were swollen from crying. She appeared ten years older.
“Bex fought to be Fairy Enthrall and wanted to keep that title, with me out of the way. And she wanted to make sure I stayed out of the way. She hunted me down, found me and cast a spell on me, the ‘Forget Sorrows’ spell. That’s the only reason I didn’t go back and find you both.”
“I got the short end of the stick,” Nyx said, getting up. She turned to Jade. “You got to forget all this crap. And you got adopted by perfect parents. What did I get? I got stuck in foster home after foster home.”
Jade stood up and said, “Nyx—“
“You don’t get to tell me how to feel. Your life is perfect.” She paced back and forth. “Just when everything was getting to be normal for me, all this is thrown in my face. I’m glad I’m half Cloyn so I never have to be as weak and pathetic as you,” she said, pointing to Soraya.
Nyx walked to the back patio, and paced.
Jade leaned towards Soraya and put a hand on hers. “She just needs time.”
“I feel I’ve ruined her life.”
“You most likely saved her life all those years ago. Between her dad and the crazy shapeshifter killers, something could have happened to her.”
Jade was furious that Bex had once again found a way to infiltrate her life. She was responsible for so much damage. Jade made a silent vow to herself to rip the title of Fairy Enthrall from Bex and have her sent to the one place she deserved: Cheltan.
Two
“Okay, okay. We’re not here about me. We’ve got a deadline for Jade to officially be part of this Fairy Beauty Contest, right?” Nyx asked.
“It’s not a beauty contest; it’s a serious election to once and for all put a stop to the evil that Bex has wrought for the fae world.” Soraya frowned and cro
ssed her arms. She paced in her living room as she talked. “She has misused her power for her own gain and to exact vengeance on her foes.”
"Let’s stop that crazy b—," Nyx said. Her hair was now a compilation of white and black with a shaved side, revealing stripes.
“Okay, okay,” Jade said, raising her hands. “I’m going to do this, not because I think I have a chance at winning, but because it would kill me if I didn’t try to stop her.”
Jade smiled at her sister.
“I’ve got your back, sis. I can’t help it if I get so worked up about her,” Nyx said.
Jade understood why Soraya was pacing, but it was driving her crazy. She didn’t dare ask her to stop. Her thoughts turned to Bex. Jade now had a responsibility to her family and others to stop Bex from killing and ruling with fear. She wouldn’t let Bex terrorize any longer.
The one rule that kept normals from knowing supernaturals existed was precariously close to being broken with the amount of attention Bex was calling to her crimes. Not only was she hurting innocent people, but she was threatening the existence of all supernaturals.
As expected, the Faction was retaliating with violence. They had attacked a group of fairies in Central Park and had attempted to murder a shapeshifter who was sleeping in his home.
Jade vowed she would do whatever she could to help end the violence that was plaguing the city and threatening to erupt in a nationwide supernatural war.
The late morning light lit the room like a cathedral. Shafts of light torpedoed through the room, like rays of hope and truth. The group of women continued planning until it was lunchtime.
An hour later, the four women stood outside. Jade was ten feet off the ground, climbing a wall.
"You have to dig your fingernails into the stone. Find that space for your fingers, and if you can’t find it, make it. Focus your mind," Soraya said.
"Why can't I turn into a bird and fly up this stupid wall?" A rivulet of sweat ran into Jade’s eyes and stung like battery acid.
"Because when you shapeshift, you have no other power except your strength. When you retain your natural form, you retain your fairy power. You need both, but your fairy powers must be strengthened. Your shapeshifting ability is a wonderful bonus, but shouldn’t be relied on always,” Soraya said from below. She paced and rubbed her hands together as she watched Jade.
It had been almost a month of Jade learning the ways of the fairies. Her main teachers were Soraya and Nina but she had a new helper joining her any minute. He was supposed to be steeped in the ways of combat.
The ground was muddy from the week-long rain. Jade fell again, this time on her back. "Okay, I give up for now."
"Here, let me get you some ice," Nyx began.
"I'm okay.” She struggled to get out of the muddy muck, but couldn’t. “Can you pull me up?” She held her hand out for Soraya to pull.
"What’s the spell you need to say?"
Jade's mind scrambled but couldn't find the right word. Was it a guttural-sounding word or more of a sneezing-sounding word? “I don’t remember.”
"Jade, it's like you're not even trying." Soraya leaned down towards her and yanked her hand, pulling her out of the mud.
Jade stood up and stretched, "Crap, that hurt."
"During the competition, remember that words have power."
Jade scrunched her nose up and looked to the side, "Um, I'm sure Bex has said much worse than me." She shook her head. Soraya had been acting over-protective since she’d learned she was Jade and Nyx’s biological mother.
Nina arched an eyebrow, “Don't hang your wash on someone else's line. Be yourself, Jade."
Jade couldn't wait for her mom, Rosa, to show up with the new trainer. He had to be easier to work with than Soraya. She appreciated Nina's attempt at lightening up the mood, but only managed a half smile.
Soraya arched an eyebrow, "Well, you're not Bex, now, are you?"
"Okay, how about we end training. Besides, your official trainer should be here any moment." Nina cut in.
"That sounds good to me," Jade said, darting her eyes over to Soraya. It was like she had changed in this home. Her relaxed hippie persona dissolved into a stoic and regal pain in the ass.
Nina sat on the couch near Nyx and looked up to Jade and Soraya and asked, "So, do you think we've got a shot?"
"Well, with the other fairies competing for Fairy Enthrall, we need more work," Soraya said.
“Some fairies have trained for this for years. I don’t know if all this is even worth it,” groaned Jade.
Nyx ran up to her sister. "You can do this. Everything will be where you need it when you're ready."
"This isn't a beauty pageant, Jade," Soraya said. "Lives are at stake. From what I've seen on the news, it's not supernatural lives now. Bex has moved to harming normals."
"I miss Seven."
"I know you do, Jade. He should be back by tomorrow. I miss Alejandro.”
The doorbell rang.
Soraya let Rosa in with the new trainer. “Malik is a Glancel Fairy. He sees things others don’t,” Soraya said.
“He sees the future, you mean?”
“No, he’s more of a problem solver, or a puzzle solver. Glancels are sought after for projects, campaigns, and detection. Each type of Fairy has his or her pros and cons. What’s important in life is to find the positive in others.”
"Your dad is watching your baby brother. And I was more than happy to drive your new trainer here."
Rosa smiled at Soraya and then at Jade. She embraced Jade and held on for a few seconds longer.
“It’s okay, Mom. I’m fine,” Jade said.
"I know you are, honey" Rosa’s face was serious and then she shot a look at Soraya, smiling extra wide and said, "Hello."
Rosa talked of her baby as Soraya and Nina lead the way towards the outdoor patio table.
Meanwhile, Nyx was eyeing Malik. "Wow, he's hot. Not that I'm on the market anymore, or anything, but, wow," Nyx said. She smiled and elbowed Jade.
Jade rolled her eyes, "Nyx, he's my trainer. Besides, I have Seven. I'm not looking."
Malik walked onto the patio carrying two baskets of food. "Hi, I'm Malik. I'm here to help you, Jade." He nodded and smiled.
He wore a vest and a scarf, like some century-old poet. She hoped his training would be better than his appearance. He looked like he was trying too hard. He was too perfect.
"Hi, I'm Jade and this is my sister, Nyx. Thanks for agreeing to do this. Here, let me help you with those baskets."
“This must be your mother,” he said, looking at Soraya.
“Uh—,” Jade began.
“Really, because it’s obvious—” he stopped after seeing everyone’s tense expression. He walked up to Soraya and touched her face and then touched Jade’s face. His glance swooped past Nina and landed on Nyx. “You, too.” He removed his hand from Jade’s face to touch Nyx’s face.
“Everyone, let’s sit down,” Nina said, giving Malik the evil eye. “No more out of you.” Nina returned with a pitcher of lemonade and glasses for everyone.
“I speak my truth. I apologize if it was said indelicately. It was a force that I could not ignore.
“So, now that you know a former Fairy Enthrall is your mother, Jade, do you see this as more than a crazy fantasy?” Malik asked.
“It’s still all new,” Jade said. “Just help me beat Bex.”
"I look forward to helping you along this important journey, Jade," Malik said.
Nyx stood behind Malik and made swooning faces as Jade tried to ignore her sister. Jade wondered if all male Glancel fairies looked like actors.
***
After lunch, they sat talking. It was late afternoon.
"It's been so long since your father and I have used our powers that I'm afraid we're not the best teachers," Rosa said. "It would have been nice to help my daughter."
Nina cleared her throat. "Well, it all has worked out and we have Malik here, now."
Malik ro
lled his head back and laughed. "I hate being the only guy around all these lovely ladies. I'm outnumbered."
Jade chuckled and leaned toward her sister and whispered, "Something tells me he's lying."
Malik turned to Jade, "Are you ready to master that wall exercise finally? I can show you a few tricks."
Nyx kicked her sister's foot.
"By the way, I have a boyfriend, so if this is some sort of crazy match-making, it won't work," Jade blurted out before she could stop herself.
Nyx dropped her head into her hands.
"I was under the impression that I was here to help a teen rip the position of Fairy Enthrall from Bex. If I'm being set up, I wouldn't like that either. Besides, the romance sector in my life is quite full. If I add one more, I'll probably be thrown into fairy jail."
"Is that a thing?"
“Yes." Malik added, "But not for having too many lovers. That part was a joke." He held his hands up. "I'm here to teach, nothing more. Besides, if I've heard right, your boyfriend is someone I wouldn't want to go up against. He and the other shapeshifters have become a formidable force in New York."
Jade stood up, “Okay, show me how to unleash my fairy powers. I have to put an end to Bex, once and for all.”
Jade hoped Malik was as good as everyone said. She’d need a miracle to learn so much in such little time. With the elections next week, she felt like she was in a losing battle. But, if she could stop Bex’s evil reign, it would all be worth it.
“How many hours do you usually sleep?” Malik asked.
“Six, maybe more if I’m lucky,” Jade answered.
“You’ll live with three. You can sleep when you’re Fairy Enthrall.” He reached into his bag and pulled out a book that looked identical to hers.
“Get your book, Jade, we’ve got a lot to cover,” Malik said with a smile.
Jade couldn’t bring herself to smile back. She dreaded the hours ahead. She grabbed her book from her bag and opened it to page one. She had traveled with this fairy book all across the country. She had it ever since she had her awakening and was glad someone would finally help her make sense of it.
“So, let’s begin…” Malik said.
***
Jade's Paradox_Becoming Fairy Queen Page 2
