“Hello. I’m Detective Solano. I’ll only be a minute.”
"Uh-ok. Please come up," Jade said through the intercom. She turned and met each of their eyes. She hoped her sister's latest shouting didn't cause this, but she knew it did. The building was small, with only half a dozen apartments. Nyx's outbursts had been loud, lately, trying the nerves of even the most patient neighbors.
The loud knock on the door startled them.
Jade went to the door to open it, but Seven beat her there.
“It’s my apartment, let me open the door,” she said.
“I want to protect you, Jade,” Seven squeezed her hand. “You’ve got a lot to deal with right now.”
“I’ve got it,” she said. She didn’t need him to save her. She couldn’t believe she still trusted him after he had kissed his co-star.”
"I'm Detective Solano. Do you all live here?”
Jade’s mind was thrown back into reality with that question. She knew she’d have to stay focused.
“This is our apartment,” Jade said, pointing to herself and Nyx. “Is there a problem, officer?” Jade asked.
“There have been complaints of excessive noise from this apartment unit,” the man said, as he looked around the apartment. He looked at each of the teens and then rested his eyes on Jade.
Jade didn't know what to say, so kept silent.
"You are—?"
"I'm Jade Delacourt and this is my sister, Nyx."
"We live in the building and have no complaints," Alejandro said with a wave and a smile.
"Are there any problems I should know about—domestic issues or of any other sort?”
“We are guilty of Netflixing a little too loud,” Seven said with a chuckle.
Solano shook his head, “Okay guys. Listen, if we receive any more complaints, we will have to take this further." He tapped his pen on his notepad.
"Yes, sir. We understand," Seven said, stepping closer and smiling his winning smile that usually worked wonders with his fans.
"Hey, are you that guy on that show," Det. Solano said with a grin, "Shadow Spell, or Shadow Magic? I love that show—I mean, my daughter loves it."
"That's me," Seven said. His smile widened and he placed a hand on his chest. "Guilty as charged."
Jade laughed in spite of herself. She gauged the room, and felt the threat was over. She watched as Seven commanded the stage and told a couple of go-to stories about the show.
Jade finally relaxed fully when she closed the door behind the detective, after Seven offered to give him a signed t-shirt for his daughter.
After he left, Nyx covered her face and slumped down onto the couch, "Guys, I'm so sorry, I—"
“We need to get you help, Nyx. I know you’re still mad at Soraya.”
“You mean our long-lost mother who conveniently forgot she had us? We were torn in two trying to find her, and she was right there, happy as can be. How is that fair?”
“I know. It doesn’t make sense, any of it. But she may help.”
“She’s not Cloyn.”
“What about David? He’s not Cloyn, either, but he’s worked with them and knows how they think. He’s bound to be able to help,” said Seven
“No, this is my problem, I don’t want you doing your superhero thing,” Nyx told Seven.
Jade was cautious but continued, “I know for my awakening, I couldn't have done it alone. It was scary. You've heard my awakening story, but yours will be different."
"Don't remind me. I'm half Cloyn, I don't even know what that means." Nyx pulled a face that was a combination of fear and frustration.
Jade’s eyes darted to their apartment door when she heard the loud knocking.
"Sorry, I meant to tell you, but with the cops and all..." Seven said, opening the door wide.
David stood on the threshold.
He nodded with a tight smile. "Can I come in?"
Jade looked between the two brothers, realizing they must have been in contact lately. Their lack of communication had been a sore spot, so she dropped it and let Seven deal with it in his own time.
Jade let out a sigh and led David toward their couch. They had run out of seats so she grabbed a velvet pillow and sat on the floor near Seven.
"I asked David to come and help out. We both gave Jade advice before her awakening. I've told him everything I know about what you're going through, Nyx."
Nyx was furious. “This has nothing to do with you two. Jade can help, but you guys always try and show up like you’re heroes.”
“It’s not like that.”
“I shouldn’t have confided in you, Jade. I trusted you!”
Nyx slammed the door on her way out.
Jade stood silently, looking from Seven to David. “What do I do now? I don’t know what she’s going through, even though I love her. I can’t help her, really. I’m her family, that’s it. I have no idea what else I can do.”
“Sometimes, being there is all you can do,” David said.
“I’ll be back, hopefully with Nyx,” Jade said, grabbing Nyx’s phone from the table. Her sister was never without her phone. Jade could use it as an excuse to find her.
Once she was out on the sidewalk, she realized how difficult it would be to find Nyx. She had learned a tracking technique from shapeshifters, but the fairy tracking technique seemed like it would be more helpful right now. Jade rubbed her hands together in the warm summer morning and blew on them.
The headlights from the passing cabs cast a white light on Jade as she stood near the street. People walking by couldn’t see the image that appeared in Jade’s palms.
To passersby, they were empty. But for Jade, she saw a miniature Nyx walking along a street, an image that quickly vanished. Fortunately, Jade was able to gather enough details to know exactly where her sister was headed.
She had to run. If Nyx was going where Jade thought she was going, she could lose her younger sister to the Cloyn side forever.
Jade watched as Nyx walked down the busy street. Her sister’s black and white hair blended into the sea of people.
“Crap.” She sprinted after her sister, but couldn’t find her down Tenth Street. “But I thought she turned the corner on Second Avenue?”
Jade gave up on finding Nyx and decided she’d giver her phone back to her later that day. She tried her fairy tracking projection technique, but couldn’t find Nyx with that, either. It was like she was being blocked.
Jade had been walking for almost an hour. On her way back home, she walked past a café and saw a flash of bright yellow. Nyx sat with her back to the window talking with a hooded figure. Jade stepped closer and then stepped back. Why did she lie to me? Jade thought.
She couldn’t help but feel betrayed. She moved to enter the café, but then stopped, realizing she should give Nyx her privacy. Maybe this person was helping Nyx with her upcoming awakening, or whatever Cloyn fairies dealt with.
Jade frowned, hoping her sister wasn’t getting herself into trouble.
***
“I thought your sister didn’t want you talking to me,” Bex said to Nyx.
“She doesn’t, but she’s not the boss of me. Besides, she’s not a full fairy like me, so she doesn’t get everything like I do. And she’s keeping a secret from me. We made a sister pact and to me, secrets count as lies.”
“I took it upon myself to order you the most delicious tea brew. It should also help with the Cloyn madness you’ve been experiencing lately.”
Nyx’s eyes flashed up to Bex as she unwrapped her scarf and draped it on the back of the wooden café chair. “You know what that’s like? Finally. No one else can relate. How long do I have left?”
“It varies from fairy to fairy,” Bex‘s yellow gown looked rather ostentatious in the small hippie café in the East Village.
A brown bird flitted into the café door and pecked at crumbs on the tiled floor. Bex hissed at the bird.
Nyx chuckled, “Why do you do that?”
“Do what?
” Bex asked, raising her eyebrows and shoulders.
“Always act like the typical bad queen? I mean, you’re hissing at a helpless, hungry bird.”
“I don’t like those birds. They’re the worst messengers. They almost caused a war once because they mangled the message, with their tiny brains. I never should have trusted them.”
“Okay, whatever.” Nyx sniffed the tea, suspiciously, and sipped it. “Delicious.”
“Believe me, if your father was a full Cloyn, you’re going to need it. Here’s more. It wasn’t easy to get, so if you don’t want it, I can sell it and make a ton of money.”
Bex plopped a clear plastic bag of purple leaves on the table. Her yellow nail polish reflected the afternoon sun. She kept her hand on the bag. “Is this going to be wasted, or will you drink it?”
“I’ll use it, relax. Let go of it already, this looks like some creepy drug deal or something.”
As she tossed the bag of herbs into her messenger bag, Nix said, “What’s it called, anyway?”
“Don’t you trust me?”
“Yes, but can’t I know what it’s called?”
Bex scoffed and added, “Sure, but it will mean nothing to you. It’s called Caspera Cloves.”
“That was simple, wasn’t it?” Nyx said, shaking her head. “You know, I shouldn’t be seen with you.” She looked around.
Bex ignored her comment and leaned forward. “I want you to consider helping me run against your sister and run for Fairy Enthrall, too.”
“Jade’s already running. So, no.”
“Yes, but why, when she’s only half fairy? You said it yourself: You’re full fairy and have more right to the title than she does.”
“I was just complaining. But, I can’t go against my sister.”
“Where was she when you were alone in those foster homes? She grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta and you, well...” Bex waved her hand. “It’s unfair. I won’t stand by and watch her steal your future from you.”
“If you want it so bad, why don’t you run again?”
“There is a limit to even my power, it seems.” Bex sat back and folded her arms. “The Order wants to ban me from running again, but there’s a loophole that I’m sure I can find.”
“I don’t know if I’d even want to be Fairy Enthrall.” Nyx knitted her brow and sipped her tea. She sat back and tapped her nails against the table. She frowned and then said, “Soraya said you cast the Forget Sorrows spell on her.”
“I did. She should thank me, instead of being ungrateful. I did her a favor,” Bex said with her eyebrows raised.
Nyx was silent. She sipped her tea again and stared at the swirling liquid in the porcelain cup and then looked at Bex.
“I’ll send someone to pick you up from home. Here is some money. It’s a shame that I ruined your whole work thing. The least I can do is pay you.” She slid money on the table towards Nyx.
“I don’t need your money, but thanks.”
Bex reached up to her feather necklace and pulled out a plume. She stirred the feather into the tea, creating swirls of rainbow streaks. She released the feather and it fizzled, disappearing.
“That’s a neat trick.” Nyx said.
“Never refer to fairy magic as a ‘neat trick.’ It’s always magic, fairy magic. And as a Cloyn, that’s your biggest weapon.”
Nyx remained silent.
***
Being so close her sister, Jade knew the next step she had to take. She had to get Soraya involved, even though she was the last person Nyx would want to see.
Half of her sister was Cloyn, but the other half was Protector Fairy, like their mother, Soraya.
Jade sat at the diner, waiting to catch Soraya’s attention, hardly knowing how to start the conversation.
Should she begin with an ‘I’m sorry?’ Or maybe ‘You’re the mom I have always imagined’? She didn’t know, so she just smiled.
Soraya put the coffee pot down and walked towards Jade with a timid smile. “It’s nice to see you H—, I mean, Jade.”
Jade realized her biological mother almost called her by her birth name, “Heralina.” What would her life have been liked raised by Soraya and not her adoptive parents, Rosa and Henry? What would life had been like raised outside of the suburbs of Atlanta and instead raised in the fairy realm?
“It’s nice to see you, too. I’m still confused, but glad that I found you, finally. But that’s not why I’m here. “
“Oh,” Soraya said softly.
She looked down as she wiped the counter with a blue rag.
Soraya looked older. Gray hairs were sprinkled among her brown hair. For the first time, she wore it up in a loose bun. Her mascara seemed to accentuate the dark circles under her eyes.
“I know you were the victim here, too. Part of my anger is that you had to suffer this, too,” Jade said.
“But I didn’t suffer for years because of that Forget Sorrows spell that my Father or Bex cast on me.”
“He might have done it, thinking he was helping you somehow—helping you avoid feeling the pain of missing me and then Nyx.”
Jade looked around the diner, glad that it wasn’t busy. She leaned in close and touched Soraya’s hand.
Soraya squeezed Jade’s hand and then wiped a tear from her check with her other hand. She said, “That man only looked out for himself.” She exhaled.
Jade was realizing how evil her grandfather truly was. She squeezed her mother’s hand.
“Enough of the past that we can’t change. I’m here now.” Soraya folded the damp rag into a neat square and then added, “Let’s enjoy this nice weather and find out why you’ve come by to see me.”
Jade asked, “Is it okay if you just leave?”
“Yeah, I own this place,” she said with a shrug. She walked around the counter and spoke to one of the other wait staff. Then Soraya and Jade walked out of the diner and onto the sidewalk. It was a beautiful autumn day in New York City. The gingko biloba trees were yellow and rattled in the afternoon breeze.
“The maidenhair tree is lovely this time of the year,” Soraya said as she wrapped her arm around Jade’s.
“I thought it was a ginkgo tree.”
“It goes by both names. Did you know it can live for up to three thousand years?”
“Wow,” Jade said as a leaf fell and twirled down, getting swept up in invisible tendril of the breeze.
“Before we get to why you’re here, I have to say this to clear the air. Rosa and Henry are the perfect parents and were there for you. I don’t want you to think I’m trying to replace them. I do want to be a part of your life and Nyx’s life. You’ll always be my Heralina and Mina. I know Bex was involved in all of this and once I find out, I will make her pay for hurting you and Nyx.
“Bex is crazy. Be careful. I may be a Protector Fairy, but know this, Jade. The type of fairy we are born does not always mean we will be that way. I may not be Cloyn, but I can be as cunning and fierce as them if I choose to be.” She frowned and inhaled deeply.
“That’s actually why I’m here.” Jade told Soraya about seeing Nyx talking with Bex and told her about Nyx’s recent violent episodes.
“Just because she’s Cloyn doesn’t mean she should go through this. Your awakening was vastly different because you’re half shapeshifter and half fairy. For Nyx, there shouldn’t be this much pain or violence. Something else is going on here,” Soraya said. She stopped walking and said, “This sounds like something that fairies used to do to their enemies back when I was growing up, it was called the Shade Spell. It’s a slow poisoning, causing the fairy to go mad.”
“Bex wouldn’t—“
“Bex’s first concern is power and then how to retain that power. She knew I was running for Fairy Enthrall, so she helped my father and that good for nothing? She’s behind all of this and must be stopped.” Soraya looked left and then right.
“What are you going to do?” Jade asked, not used to seeing Soraya behave like this.
�
�One of the side effects of the Forget Sorrows spell is that I forgot more than the pain of losing my two daughters. I forgot part of who I was.”
“Bex has been brainwashing Nyx into thinking she’s destined to follow the Cloyn path.”
“There is no path. We choose who we become.”
“From what I’ve seen, whether they’re Glancer, Cloyn, Field, Protector or Water Fairy, they have the ability, like shapeshifters and normals of various emotions. When pushed, we don’t have to resort to what they know. They can transcend or become much worse,” Soraya said.
Jade was glad, in a way, that her path wasn’t laid out for her. She could be who she wanted, even though she was a Protector Fairy. Her sister, too, could be who she wanted. She hoped Nyx would believe it.
“The Order is responsible for continuing these archaic stereotypes. “Soraya said, shaking her head. She continued, “I thought it was how fairies were categorized. They were categorized like that in the times when fairies where ignorant and tried to control each other. I, too, believed many of those old ways, until I saw the reality of fairies. We’re all the same, no one better than the next. My father wasn’t a Cloyn, and he was the worst man I’ve ever met.”
Jade was silent.
“I’m a Protector Fairy, yet I’m prepared to fight Bex to the death like a Cloyn, for Nyx and vengeance. We are not all what we seem. I wish you well, my child. I will be there at the election tomorrow.” Soraya started walking away.
“I will try and bring Nyx back, or at least find out more,” Soraya said, before rushing to a shadowed alley between two buildings and circling her arms together. She created a liquid-like portal in the air.
Jade ran after Soraya, “Please, be careful,” she said, close enough to hear the whirring sound created by the portal.
Soraya vanished into the portal
Jade was left alone, and hoped that Soraya didn’t get herself killed. She walked out of the alley and onto the busy sidewalk.
Her phone rang and she was glad it was Seven.
“How did Soraya take the information?” he asked.
“Not as good as I thought.”
Jade's Paradox_Becoming Fairy Queen Page 6
