Hidden Magic

by Melinda Kucsera

  “He’s just inside,” Pip said. “Go on, naught to be troubled by. This is quite exciting! The first time anyone meets him, there’s always that twinkle in their eyes. Go on now. Don’t be frightened…”

  Fallon walked up to the red door of the stone building—extending her fist to knock, but instead reached down for the latch and popped it open. She pushed inward, and she slipped inside.

  It was a smoky, dark interior with not a single candle lit.

  “Hello?” She took slow steps into the room while Pip remained outside in the sunlight.

  As she entered there was a musty, damp smell that reminded her of a mossy thicket.

  I don’t want to be here. I don’t feel as if this is a safe place, but Pip seems so sweet… so trustworthy. I’ll push through my worries. It will be alright.

  “So…” a raspy male voice said. Fallon traced the word to the corner of the room, where a shadowy man sat in a rocking chair with his back to her as he looked out the foggy window. “What can I do for you, dark-worlder?” His shoulders were broad and powerful beneath the tapestry wrapped over them.

  “I suppose I am,” Fallon said, with her hands folded behind her back.

  Am I the odd one here in this world? It feels so strange to me here, like I’m the one who doesn’t belong…

  “Been an age since someone came to visit,” the man said in a clear, calm voice that made him sound like a younger man, not old like she’d envisioned by the slow rocking in the chair.

  “I was brought here,” she said. “The fairy brought me… My name’s Fallon. What’s yours?”

  The man snapped around in his seat. “I knew there was something different about you.” His eyes were a dark ebony like a winter shadow. “I’ve waited so long. I don’t even know how many years, but Princess Fallon, I feel as if I’ve known you the entirety of my being.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, itching her pants on her right hip. “Who are you?”

  “Antolin,” he said, his auburn hair hanging over his brow, and two small, white horns poking out on both sides of his head. “Shadine didn’t tell you about me? Figures. You must be famished.” He stood up from his rocking chair, letting a dark cloth fall to the wooden floor. “What will you have? We don’t have much time after all, so eat whatever you like. I’ve got soft cheese, fresh bread, cured salami…”

  “I’m not hungry after all,” she said. “Perhaps later. And what… Antolin… did you mean by we don’t have much time?”

  “My dear, you’ve already been in the Fae for over two years.” He laughed. “We’ve got much to discuss! And I’ve got to get you ready for your trip home when the time comes.”

  “I—” she gasped with a hand over her mouth as she took quick steps backward. “That’s not possible. I’ve just arrived. There was a battle, and—”

  Two years? I feel as if its been two weeks. How long were we walking over those mountains to get here? I’ve lost two years with my mother? She must be so worried about me… And how I miss her. I just want to be wrapped up in her arms right now.

  “My love,” Antolin said calmly and with a wry smile. “Let’s get you something in that tiny tummy, then we’ll have a chat about what’s to come.”

  They ate, even though she wasn’t hungry, and they made their way out to a small, round stone table out of the backside of the villa, and Pip joined in, dangling her legs over the side of it.

  “I didn’t want to come here,” Fallon said. “I’m worried for my parents; I don’t know what happened to them. I never wanted to come to the Fae, it was just something that my father beckoned Shadine to do. He was always so worried that I’d disappear on him, or someone would come for me.”

  “Was he wrong?” Antolin asked with a mouthful of bread.

  “I suppose they came for me after all…”

  There was a long silence then. It was like a mother shushing her child while she’s sewing, but they’re forced to sit in the room without toy or doll. Things grew strange for her during that long time devoid of voice. The trees around them shifted colors gradually, as if they’d gone through seasons…

  This all can’t be real. Even though I know I’m in the Fae, this is more like a dream than reality. Maybe it is just all a dream. Perhaps it’s all just a terrible dream. Wake up, Fallon, please wake up!

  , The stream behind the house seemed to freeze if for only a fleeting minute… and the sky overhead flashed dark and light…

  Why is this happening to me? I just want to go home. But pretend. Just pretend everything is fine for the time being. Just keep a fine conversation going…

  “That food was splendid,” she said. “Thanks so much. I should be off to bed soon, though.”

  Antolin looked over at her with a handsome gaze and a thin smile. “Off to bed? You’ve just gotten here, let’s share in song. What do you know?”

  “I really am tired. I feel as if I should—”

  He began to sing, and his dark, charcoal eyes pierced into hers, and she was enamored by his rugged looks. He sang a song she didn’t understand the words to, but as his velvety voice rolled into her ears like silk, she swayed to the tune.

  I want to stay in the moment, but I can’t seem to focus on anything but him… and his voice. It’s as if I don’t know where I am all of a sudden— and I feel so… tired.

  Night stalked in, and Pip closed her eyes to enjoy the tune.

  “Fallon,” he said, stirring her back awake. “I’m so pleased Shadine the wizard trusted me to care for you in your time here. I’ve enjoyed our time together.”

  “Yes, it’s been rather pleasant,” she said, running her fingers through her wavy hair. “It’s been a good day. Although I’m quite tired.”

  “It has been a good day,” he said, looking up to the full, beaming moon. “I’ve enjoyed these years together.”

  “Years?” Fallon croaked. “What do you mean? I’ve only been here the better of a half day…”

  “My love,” he said with a kind smile. “You jest, and you look just as lovely as the day you first strolled into my house.”

  A shrill anxiousness blistered within her. I’ve been in this house for years? I’ve got to get out of here. He’s not keeping me safe… He’s keeping me… This can’t be. How have I been here for years? This place isn’t magical, it’s a bad dream. I’ve got to get out, I’ve got to get home.

  “You want me to teach you the ways of the Fae?” he said.

  “No…” she said as warm exhaustion rolled over her as if she hadn’t slept in days.

  “You should let him show you things,” Pip said. “You don’t want to eat the wrong sort of elderberry or drink the wrong type of lavender tea!” She winked as her nude body sat at the corner of the table.

  “I suppose I should,” Fallon said with a heavy fog sitting in her mind.

  I want to doubt her, but she’s so loving. I feel as if she’s the only one here who truly cares for me.

  Antolin reached his hand out, and she took it slowly.

  “Let me show you our world,” he said in a welcoming voice. “Let me show you the perfection that your world could never achieve. For here, in the Fae, anything you want and desire is within your grasp if you’re only brave enough, and loving enough to embrace what your deepest desires are.” He moved his handsome face inches from hers. “That’s what the wizard charged me with—I’m going to teach you what true happiness can be while you’re here. I’m going to show you why this is the world you always imagined in your deepest dreams, but you always had to awaken from. Follow me, lass, I’m going to show you what true happiness is…”

  Chapter Three

  As if in a dream, she saw their surroundings had changed drastically. They were in a deep forest where the sky sparkled through the treetops like shimmering diamonds. A warm breeze washed through, letting her soft blond hair rustle at her shoulder. She could smell the cool moss as the stream rolled along elegantly next to her ankles.

  “Look!” Antolin said, pointing ou
t into the forest with his hand on her hip.

  Fallon couldn’t believe what she was gazing upon. Wild, enchanting, powerful and serene—she was looking at a grazing unicorn. She was all alone out in the woods, and Fallon felt herself holding her breath at the majestic sight.

  “It can’t be…”

  “It is,” he said with a smile. “A once in a lifetime sight, even in our world…”

  “Have you seen one before?” she whispered to not scare it off.

  “Once,” he said in a soft voice. “Actually, it was before Pip brought you to me. It’s incredibly lucky, supposed to give you long health and age if you get to see one in your life.”

  “Well,” she said. “You must have two long lifetimes now.”

  He didn’t respond, yet Fallon could feel tension in his demeanor. Antolin pulled his hand away and stood solemnly, as the white unicorn turned to look at him with brilliantly piercing eyes.

  “What’s the matter?” the princess asked. “Did I say something?”

  “I just…” He sighed. “I just think I’m going to miss you is all when you’re gone… You’re leaving so soon…”

  “I am?” She raised her eyebrows. “I—I feel as if I’ve only been here a week.”

  “It’s been eight long years,” he said. “You don’t remember all we’ve been through, do you?”

  She took a long look of disbelief at him as the mighty unicorn trotted off slowly. He looked deeply distraught, his eyes had dark bags under them, his lips quivered, and his auburn hair slightly covered his face. Fallon did cock her head as his white horns had seemed to have grown to the length of daggers.

  What does he mean, ‘all that we’ve been through’? Does he see this place differently than me? Is it because he knows the Fae because he’s from it? Or is there something else going on here? I feel as if I’ve only had a handful of moments where I’m in the moment…

  “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’ll still be here another two whole years before I leave, and after all I must get home to my family…”

  A shock of worry came to her as her hands shot up to cover her mouth and her eyes were wide.

  “My parents,” she said. “It’s been eight years. Are they still alive? They’ve aged all the time I’ve been away here… I have to get back home. I have to get back to my—”

  “I understand!” he shot at her as his ebony eyes grew a shadowy black. “I just… I have so many things to show you still… The Epiphony Tree, the Larks of Büewn, even the Colossus of Parth! Shadine will be disappointed with me if I don’t show you how wonderful it is in our world…”

  “It’s been so wonderful here,” she said. “Really, it’s exquisite, but I’ve only come to escape from those who seek to harm me. This isn’t my home, and I’ve got to reach the castle and my family when my time here is over.”

  He sniffled, wiping a tear from his eye, standing back up, straight and tall. He seemed to be towering over her by a full two heads. “You’re right,” he said. “Let’s enjoy our time together while we can. Come, let’s go find more adventures to partake in…”

  He reached for her hand, but she nodded and walked deeper into the woods with her hands at her sides. He followed.

  They were soon walking along a long path with swooping trees on both sides that overhung with heavy branches, and fireflies glowing upon them. The road was suddenly a smooth, cobblestone path with violet butterflies flapping their wings as they floated by.

  “Are we still in the forest?” she asked.

  He only smiled, staring deeply into her eyes. Pip then flew by between them.

  “Pip!” Fallon said in excitement. “Where have you—?”

  But the princess’ demeanor changed as Pip darted past, snatching one of the butterflies out of the air, crushing it in her tiny hands, and chomping down onto it. Fallon’s stomach turned.

  “What’s the matter?” Antolin asked.

  “Um, its nothing…” She shook her head, as Pip flew off after another.

  “Fairies have to eat too,” he said.

  Fallon covered her face in disgust as Pip continued her hunt.

  “Look, there.” He pointed out into the trees. “You see that there?”

  Fallon removed her hand from over her eyes to look.

  “The red… You see it?”

  “It’s faint… What is it?”

  “It’s a Bloodlark. A red bird as rare as the phoenix itself. Said to have a call that would soothe any broken heart.”

  Fallon squinted to see; the faint bird was perched upon a hanging branch. It resembled a great owl, only it had red feathers and streaks of black on its wings, which contrasted against its white underbelly. “It’s majestic.”

  Pip flew over and landed on Antolin’s shoulder then. “A unicorn and a Bloodlark… Quite a lucky lass you are!”

  They walked upon that road for what felt like an age. Antolin hummed a melodic—entrancing—tune. Fallon felt herself swaying her head from side to side, walking in a deep, deep daze. The world was lit in a soft blur of vivid light and she could hear nothing but his soothing song.

  The fireflies glinted overhead, turning to long streaks of slow light as she walked by. The butterflies landed and rested upon her shoulders and arms as she walked, step after step.

  The sky faded to a blue blur passed the dancing trees.

  But then, as if waking from a deep dream, she looked up to see Antolin standing right in front of her, with his dark eyes opened so wide it startled her and she let out a quick scream. His mouth opened wide, exposing what she saw for the first time as pointy, sharp teeth.

  “You can’t go that way!” he said.

  “What?” she asked, breathing quickly. “What way?”

  “You walked off,” he said. “It took me forever to find you again. Why’d you walk off?”

  “Walk off?” She looked around to see she was at the precipice of a wide canyon, and the sky was a deep, heavy gray, thick with clouds, obscuring the setting sun.

  “You can’t go this way,” he said. “It lives there.”

  Her brow furrowed as she scanned the area.

  “It. It!” he said, now holding onto her shoulders. “Shadine would never forgive me if you fell into its arms.”

  “What do you speak of? What’s out there? I don’t see anything but the gorge, and the desert…”

  He sighed. “I’m only happy I found you when I did. It’s just up there, it’s something everything in the Fae fears; we fear it more than the pull of the afterlife.”

  She continued looking out but saw nothing.

  “Come,” he said. “Let’s head back. I’ll show you some wonderful creatures, puzzling hedge mazes, griffins that live on the highest cliffs.”

  “I want to know about what’s there,” Fallon said. “What could someone as knowing and adventurous as you be afraid of…”

  He closed his eyes, dropping his head. He took a deep breath, and then raised his head back again to give her a cold stare. “That’s where the Centurine lives. No one goes there. No one.”

  “The Centurine?”

  He spoke rapidly: “Yes, yes, the old wizard who was cursed by a demon, and the only thing he could do to escape the horrible nightmares it created in him, was to eat the demon. Turning him into a clear lake full of fish, drinkable water in this barren wasteland, and a silver-haired goddess who swims in it, singing the most beautiful song ever written…”

  “That sounds lovely,” she said. “What’s so wrong about a beautiful thing like that? What’s to be afraid of?”

  “You cannot go there,” he said. “You can never go there. Trust me. It’s there for all time, and for those who look to the water’s edge, a dark fate grips you tightly with its shadowy talons.”

  It was then that she at last caught a glimpse of a sparkling lake in the distance as a single ray of light shone down on its glassy waters.

  Her bottom jaw dropped, and she slowly crept toward it.

  Antolin grabbed her and held he
r back with both arms squeezing her. “No, you can’t!” he said. “I swore to protect you. Don’t look at it. Close your eyes!”

  The princess heard the most enchanting tune she’d ever heard in her life— it was the beautiful singing of a woman in a voice of smooth silver. It made her feel lighter than a feather swaying in the breeze, more pleasant than a blooming red rose, and reminded her of the days with her and her family gathered around a warm fire in the cold winter months of the castle.

  “I want to see, if only for a glimpse!”

  “No, Princess Fallon!” He pulled her back with all his might, but the power of the Centurine pulled her more strongly. It was beginning to wrap itself around her like a silent spider’s web. “You can’t go, I promised. I promised.”

  A fiery rage swelled in her as she fought to break free.

  “No, let me go. I command you!”

  He pulled her back as strongly as he could muster, with heavy beads of sweat trickling down his brow. “No! You can’t. You can’t leave me like this.”

  Pip flew in and pushed her back with all her might. “Listen to Antoline! You can’t! You just can’t!”

  “Let me go!” Fallon said as the tune flowed through her like a sacred, lost love. “I just want a peek. I just have to dip my toes in. I have an unquenchable thirst. How long have I been in this barren desert?”

  Antoline leaped in front of her then, pushing her as the gravity of the lake reeled her in.

  “Listen to me,” he said feverishly. That same fury and lust for freedom was erupting in her. She could feel the sweat dripping down her arms under her dress. “Look at me!” His voice broke out like thunder. Princess Fallon then paused in surprise. “I’ve been tempted too, you know. It’s like an opioid you can’t break free from. I know. I know…” His dark eyes lightened with a calming gentleness.

  “I just wanted a quick look, that song, it’s quite enticing.”

  “Fallon,” Antoline dropped to a knee. “Our time is short. I’ve appreciated our time together so. You see… I’ve been here so long, so very long… to have a friend like you has really been a shining light to me in the cold darkness of the countless years I’ve been here. I wanted to show you more. There’s so much more to see!”