Faire Eve

by Catherine Stovall

  “I am dying of thirst and the ride is making me tired. Do you think we could rest for a few moments?” She had no difficulty looking exhausted. She felt as if she had not slept since coming to Evalon. The prophetic dreams and constant danger wore on her body as much as her mind.

  Jaryn rode ahead and consulted with Eldon. She saw Vandel shake his head in disapproval but Eldon gave the signal they would be stopping. Eve was thankful for the respite and a small part of her fluttered at the idea of getting Eldon alone. Reminiscence of his lips on hers crept through her mind.

  The troop made their way across the grassy plain to rest by the pond. They ate a meager meal of bread and cheese. While they dined, Eve listened to the others chatting among their selves. The strangeness of her new lifestyle did not escape Eve. She could hardly remember a life of iPods and high school. Her life consisted of monsters and magic. The things of fairytales and movies made up her existence. She wondered if she would get a happily ever after. Finishing her meal, she drifted away from the group.

  Eve sat at the water’s edge. Her reflection shocked and embarrassed her. She resembled a zombie. Mirrors were a rare luxury in her new life. Her eyes still glowed like bright amber but the dark circles beneath them made her skin pale and her cheeks look hollow. She bent forward to splash some cool water on her face.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Eldon’s voice startled her. “This isn’t just a pond.” He came to sit beside her. “Look, at the water closely and watch.”

  Confused, Eve did as Eldon told her. She flushed with embarrassment when she saw her reflection again but she peered into the water as he instructed. Eldon whistled in a low mournful tune that seemed to bounce back to them from the water. Eve gasped as she saw lights begin to whirl and turn beneath the surface. The pond remained calm without a single ripple but the activity in the shallows was frenzied and beautiful.

  Tiny creatures swam and played in the water. Trails of gloriously colored light left comet tails behind them as they twisted and turned in their play. They reminded Eve of the cyclones and the women within them. Her heart skipped as her memories flooded her. She could almost feel the small grains of dirt stinging her flesh as the force of the wind physically took her breath away.

  Eldon leaned towards her and his lips were a whisper away from her ear. His voice caused a stirring similar to the tumult inside the windstorms. “These are the Niamh. They are beautiful, but if disturbed, they can be vicious. Their bite is actually quite painful.”

  Eve continued to stare at the water, her face serious. Tears fell silently in rapid succession on her smooth cheeks. Eldon raked his hand through his hair in frustration. He had meant the moment to be a good one. He had hoped the Niamh’s beauty would help Eve escape the sadness clinging to her. She looked tired. Instead, he had bumbled the moment horribly and she was crying.

  With his voice gruff from emotion, Eldon tried to comfort her, “Eve, I’m sorry. Damn it! I don’t know what I did.” He often forgot the powerful fairy princess was still half-human.

  Eve threw herself into his chest and wrapped her small arms around his neck with such ferocity that Eldon struggled to keep himself upright. Through choked sobs, Eve tried to explain, “Why Eldon? Why does everything in this place have to be dark and dangerous? Can’t something in this world be just beautiful?”

  Eldon held her close, loving the warmth of her against him. His work-hardened hands brushed a stray lock of hair from Eve’s face and smoothed away the wetness of tears. “That is life everywhere, Eve. The equality between dark and light is what holds the worlds together. Without one and another, the universe would lose its balance and we would all perish.”

  Eve rested a little easier against him and sighed heavily. “It’s all too much, Eldon.”

  “I know it’s hard but you are a fairy queen in the making. You can handle it. Remember your strengths. You have so much inside you. So many things you have yet to discover.” He sounded much older than she did and Eve stifled a giggle. “What’s so funny?”

  Eve’s cheeks flamed bright red. “You sound like my dad. How did you get to be so grown up and wise?”

  Eldon pretended her words wounded him, “Oh, I sound like your da, do I? Well, we will see about that.” With one powerful movement, Eldon flipped Eve onto the grass and pinned her.

  His body did not touch Eve’s other than where his hands held her wrists above her head. It didn’t matter. She could still feel the masculine heat from his flesh. At first, she laughed and fought back but his lips came down on hers and she surrendered completely.

  The kiss was rough and playful. His lips pressed against hers and the tip of his tongue grazed her bottom lip before he gently nipped it. He freed her hands and ran his fingers lazily down her still extended arm. When Eve shivered, Eldon pressed himself closer and deepened the kiss.

  Eve lay paralyzed by nervous desire and self-consciousness. She didn’t want to stop what was happening but her world was so full of discontent that she knew she would later regret anything that happened.

  Eldon sensed her hesitation and moved to lie beside her on the cool grass. He raised himself up on his elbow and stared down into her face, “I am sorry. I always seem to be invading your personal space. I don’t know what draws me to you, but it is a powerful tow.”

  Eve’s breathing was shallow and her face flushed radiantly. “I feel it too. It’s like there’s a tether between us and the length is growing shorter.”

  They lay side by side until Eldon jumped to his feet. He held his hand out to her and a wicked smile played across his face. “Come with me. We don’t have much time but there is something I think you need to do.”

  When Eve didn’t move, Eldon scooped her up and took off across the field, cradling her like a baby in his arms. Eve threw her head back and laughed. He ran fast and the bumpy terrain nearly jostled her to pieces. The distance was short. She soon found her feet placed firmly on the ground as she stared across a deep void.

  The river below must have been large but from the distance between her and the bottom of the small canyon, it looked as if it were a tiny stream. The warm air gusted up from the deep crevice before her and Eve felt a yearning she could not understand. She turned to Eldon and the same yearning was clear on his gorgeous face. The memory of Asgaurd filled her, she longed for flight.

  Taking her by the hand, he smiled and the way his lips crooked up on one side made her heart throb with memories of his lips on hers.

  His words were a whisper, “Let your wings come out Eve. Open them to the sun and air.”

  Eve faltered. Her wings frightened her. Beyond the others who traveled with her across the strange place on the backs of unicorns, beyond the magic rising and falling inside her like a tidal wave, her wings were the true sign that she was not human. They signified her parents’ lies, her own doubts, and the fear she could never go back to Upper World and live the way she had before.

  Eve’s eyes darkened and she shook her head silently. Eldon gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and smiled encouragement before passing behind her. She felt a tug on her shirt and before she could turn, she heard the sound of a knife through fabric. Eldon cut two small slits in the back of her clothing to allow her wings free without tearing the fabric from her body.

  His voice was a whisper in her ear. “There’s nothing to fear. You have your wings and you should embrace them. They are our shield, our weapon, and our pride. You must let them out Eve and see for yourself what a beauty you are while adorned in the ebony and ivory.”

  When he came back to stand in front of her, his own wings slowly folded out from behind him. He stared into her eyes and watched Eve’s amazement as his large copper colored appendages unwrapped, stretched, and fluttered their way into full extension. Eve’s eyes grew large and wistful. She wanted to experience the weight of her wings again. The yearning inside her grew. She wanted to sail the gusts of winds like a Red-tailed hawk.

  Eve stared up at Eldon. Silhouetted by the g
laring sun, he looked exactly like any teenage girl would picture a fairy warrior. His dark hair curled on his forehead and his blue eyes sparkled with happiness and daring. His powerful muscles and flawless skin beckoned to be touched. His wings were eloquent and earthy like his personality.

  His happiness and encouragement pushed her to try. In the vision, she had released her wings with ease but she didn’t really know how to bring them out on whim. For Eldon, she would learn. For Eldon, she would do most anything. She tried to give a mental push to the place where she knew her wings would be, but nothing stirred. She struggled to remember how they had appeared before but she could not remember.

  Eldon pressed his hands to her face and tilted her head back. His lips came down on hers. The gentleness of the kiss felt like a caress from the wind itself. His blue eyes blazed and he spoke in a whisper, “Don’t try. Just let go. Let the human in you fade, if only for a moment. Close your eyes and let your magic come to the surface. Let your Sidhe blood rule over everything else inside you.”

  Eve did as he said and soon she felt the stirring. Like nervous butterflies in her stomach, it grew with every passing second to an almost electrical buzzing. She felt the strange tingling sensation and warmth spread through her back as her wings spread out behind her. She stretched them wide and felt the gentle gusts of air pushing against them as if begging her to glide along its powerful torrents.

  Eldon pulled her close and their wings came around them to shield out the day. His lips were almost upon hers and she was hungry for the taste when, out of the distance, they heard someone cry out. Pulling apart quickly, the two fairies turned. Eldon’s body tensed and Eve’s stepped faltered, until they saw Caleb was coming to fetch them.

  Eve’s wings recoiled and her magic seemed to fade as quickly as it had come. She made a small sound of frustration as she watched Caleb’s progress. Eldon tucked his own wings back to where they belonged before the large warrior finally reached them.

  Caleb’s eyes sparkled with mischief as he approached, though his tone was respectful to his commanding chief. “Eldon, we need to move on.”

  Eldon simply nodded and began walking back the way Caleb had appeared from. Caleb waited for Eldon to gain a few paces on them before he raised a questioning eyebrow at Eve. He had the audacity to wink at her in a very knowing way. Eve tried to look as haughty as possible. She did not want to be alone with Cal and forced to deal with whatever snide comments Eldon’s second in command could scrounge up.

  The gate leading from Haven to Fidel did not take long to reach. Eldon rode beside her through the last miles. His laughter brightened the afternoon until the sun paled in comparison. She shared stories with him of her childhood and answered his questions about humans. He thought many of the customs and especially the holidays were a riot. The strangeness of Upper World entertained him.

  The first stone pillar that signaled the upcoming gate came into sight and Eldon grew serious. He leaned over and kissed Eve’s cheek before riding gallantly to the head of their convoy. The entire group filled with tension and all of them formed a tight circle around Eve. Bai raised his head high. He cautioned Eve to lean low over his neck and to make sure her grip was tight. The last time they had attempted to cross a border, Tiritchiq was lying in wait.

  At the entrance to the gate, the group halted. They decided Eldon and Caleb would enter first. Eve and Yath would follow and the rest of the group would fall in behind them two by two. The plan allowed Eldon to ensure the path on the other side was safe while not leaving Eve without him for long.

  In order to give them the maximum amount of daylight in each realm, they waited until the moment the twilight hour began before they passed through the gates. Eldon knew waiting was risky. The dragon could turn the slightest shadow into something purposeful to its gains. They could use the extra time to reach the next gate, but he preferred to be safe.

  The passage went unmolested and no nasty surprises awaited them. When they entered into Fidel, Eve instantly fell in love. She could have stayed there for the rest of her life and not cared. Everything around them seemed quaint and rustic. Where Haven reminded her of America in the fifties, Fidel was like traveling back in time and to a foreign country.

  Small stone houses spread out across the rolling green countryside. Strange animals, resembling a cross between sheep and large dogs, grazed the hills. When passing them, the animals would often raise their heads and wag their long cotton covered tails. Eve laughed with delight each time. The others shook their heads at her, puzzling over her glee. The grogles were merely animals that provided wool for clothing and meat for the dinner table to them.

  The ride through Fidel would take them half a day. Eldon decided it would be best for the group to take up lodging sooner than later. They could sleep, eat, and bathe early and still make it to the next gate before dusk set in. The problem would be finding an inn large enough to keep his group safely together.

  Eldon had traveled through the area many times but he held no ties to the place. The people of Fidel were country folk and cautious of strangers. The area was one of the hardest hit during the more recent skirmishes between the Red and Black Dwarves. The aftermath of destruction had brought carpetbaggers and other unsavory characters flocking like vultures to fresh road kill.

  As they rode, the problem seemed to solve itself. Curious faces peaked out behind curtains and shopkeepers came to stand in their doorways to gaze with blatant interest at the group of riders. The attention made the soldiers wary and they pressed into their protective formation around Eve once more.

  Eve smiled politely to every new face that seemed to appear from nowhere. Little children peeked from behind a wagon that looked as if it were a prop in an old John Wayne movie. She wiggled her fingers at them and they scurried away, leaving a trail of giggles after them. The oddity of being such a spectacle was both strange and exhilarating. She felt as if she were already being held under the microscopic lens of the population’s eye and it foretold her future if she took the throne.

  The group came to a crossroads where the outlying cobblestone roads all met in a central point. Obviously, the town took the expression, Town Square, literally. A squat two-story brick building stood as a monstrosity in the middle of a geometrically correct patch of green grass, scattered stone benches, and a few trees. Above the arched doorway, a sign hung declaring they had reached the Hall of Fidel.

  On the steps of the building, a short and stout man stood dressed in dirty blue jeans and a flannel shirt. A large straw hat sat back on his mass of sandy brown hair. The man smiled down at them and eyed the Ki’Lin with a mix between amazement and disbelief before coming down to meet them. Eldon and the other men dismounted and stepped up to meet the congenial looking man. Yath, Eve, and Faya remained on the backs of their Ki’Lin steeds, ready to run or fight.

  The man’s beaming smile never faltered, “I am Roget, the overseer of Fidel.” Pressing his fist over his heart, he bowed low and addressed Eve. “We welcome our future queen to our humble landscape.”

  A collective breath of relief exhaled from the lungs of the group and the arrangements commenced. They were whisked away to an old-fashioned inn where they slept on feather beds and bathed in ornate porcelain tubs behind oriental screens. The people of the town came forward to offer food, drink, clothing, and trinkets. The Ki’Lin were given run over the lands and an order of execution would be given to any man, woman, or child who attempted to capture or harm any of the herd.

  After they rested, bathed, and filled their stomachs with a large and hardy meal, Eldon insisted they join the public in the inn’s large gathering room. Hundreds of people came to press calloused hands in to Eve’s and wept with joy when they felt Sidhe blood in her veins. Little girls oohed and awed about Eve’s golden eyes and teens spoke to her of how wonderful it would be to learn a person were a fairy princess after years of living as a human. Mother’s brought their infants to ask Eve if she would only kiss their right temple to be sure
the blessing of the Sidhe laid strong upon their child’s life.

  The whole experience was surreal and frightening. Eve could not understand the people’s gracious acceptance and immediate loyalty to a sixteen-year-old girl who was only half-fey. Eve shook every hand and kissed every baby. She felt as if she were a crooked politician back in her own world. After all, who was she to offer the blessing of the Sidhe when she was unsure she had it to offer?

  When the stream of visitors slowed and Eve had time to think, she sent a silent prayer to whatever gods and goddesses watched over the people of Evalon. She prayed she would be all that the wonderful people of the strange world needed and desired. Before she could close her prayer, a loud explosion echoed through the chamber. At the end of the hall, the large wooden doors slammed open. Eldon and the other Daoine warriors leapt to their feet and drew their swords. Even Yath, who had somehow coveted himself a small stiletto, stood ready to protect.

  An old man, skinny and decrepit, stood in the open doorway. He wore no shirt or shoes, only a pair of dirty and torn pants. His silver hair stood in terrible disarray, reminding Eve of Einstein. His eyes darted with uncertainty around the room until they locked on her. His lips curled back over broken and rotted teeth as he snarled.

  Though the man’s overall appearance was extremely disturbing, one thing shocked Eve into utter terror. The man’s wings were fully unfolded around him. They were broken and tattered with rips and tears through the fragile membranes. A dirty film seemed to cling to what had once been the soft blue of spring skies. The sight turned her stomach and her lunch threatened to reappear of its own violation.

  The man tried to advance into the room with angry determination. He did not have the strength to fight the hands that instantly held him at bay. He obviously posed a threat to the future queen and the town’s people prevented his ascent out of duty to protect their own as well as their regent. The Daoine prepared to end the stranger’s life without question if he attempted to harm Eve.