by Julia Crane
“What?” I peeked my head out from under the covers.
“It’s almost lunch time. Why don’t you get ready, and we can go out for lunch and do some shopping?”
My first thought was NO WAY! I didn’t want to be out in public knowing what I really looked like. But then I thought how nice a normal day with my mom would be. I threw the blanket to the side. “Okay,” I told her with a timid smile. “That sounds great.”
“Come on down when you’re ready,” she told me with a smile, and then quietly slipped back out the door.
I took a few minutes more to lie in bed before I stood up and let my wings out. They fluttered a couple times, enjoying the space. I grinned as I remembered the lovely feeling of the shower beating down on them. I was looking forward to it again.
After my shower, I stood in front of the mirror. Without having to put on makeup, it took far less time for me to get ready. My hair seemed to fall into place on its own after I brushed it.
The first shirt I tried on made my wings ache, so I had to rummage through my closet to find a shirt with a low enough back for my wings to be free. It was a good thing we were going shopping, because those kinds of shirts in my wardrobe were few and far between.
I descended the stairs and found Mom in the kitchen, sitting at the table. Her face was partially covered by a vase filled with wild flowers. She looked up from the book she was reading.
“I’m ready,” I announced.
“Well, that was quick.” She placed a page holder in her book and put it on the counter. “Let’s go.”
“Where’s Dad?” I looked into the den.
“He went into work for a couple of hours.” My mother grabbed her sweater from the coat rack.
“It’s Sunday.”
She shrugged. “He said it was important. You know how he is.”
We walked out to the car, a red sports coupe that my mom loved, and climbed in. Mom drove downtown to a café we visited often. It had the appearance of a cute French bistro—the walls were dark yellow, hung with classic French artwork, and the booths and tables were mahogany. The hostess seated us at a small table near the windows, where I ordered a house salad and club sandwich. It was odd—I could see my reflection in the glass beside me. I had to keep reminding myself that nobody else could see the real me.
“How are you holding up?” Mom asked, pushing her lettuce around her plate. She seemed subdued.
I blew out a long breath. “Still in shock, I think. Better than yesterday, though. I keep hoping I’m going to wake up and find that it was all just a bad dream.”
“What do you think should happen now? Do you want to get to know Azura better?” My mother didn’t look at me as she took a bite of her salad.
I glanced out the window; there was what was really bothering her. “I suppose I should talk to her at some point. Maybe tonight. I don’t know what else there is that I need to know. But…” I paused. “I don’t really want to talk to her either. I won’t have to go live with her? Right?”
Mom’s eyes widened. “No. You’ll never have to do anything you don’t want to. We’re not letting you go that easy. We still have you for two more years before you’re off on your own. If she thinks she can just waltz in and take you from us, she has another think coming.”
“What if she calls the cops or something?” I suddenly lost my appetite. Just talking about it made me nauseated.
“And says what? That she’s a faery? That we stole you? We have proof we had a baby. We would counter with that and say she switched babies. It would be a nasty battle. I don’t think she’d want that. But I do think she should be part of your life. Maybe if you were…human, it would be different. You’re not, though. And we need her to help you deal with this.” Mom was always the voice of reason.
“I guess.” I picked at my lunch silently, unsure of what else to say.
“What do you want to shop for?” Mom asked as we walked through the large glass doors into the mall. It was the weekend, so the mall was annoyingly crowded.
“Shirts,” I said quickly, “and maybe a couple of spring dresses.”
We headed towards my favorite clothing store. I loved our mall, even if it was pretty small compared to the malls in big cities, like DC. It had been renovated a few years ago, so the old, dim building had changed into an airy place with skylights and fresh paint.
We stopped at a café so Mom could grab a coffee, and then made our way to the end of the mall, to a trendy clothing store that was a favorite amongst teens. I found a few low-back shirts, but no luck with the dresses, so we walked down the hall to a large department store.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something odd coming the other way. A fuzzy light of sorts. A person—no, a faery. I blinked a few times as she got closer. Pointy ears and wings, definitely a faery. Her long blonde hair was almost white in color. Our eyes met as we passed each other, and she gave a small, almost imperceptible nod.
I gasped and grabbed my mother’s arm. “Mom? Did you see her?”
“See who?” She turned to look.
I had forgotten that she couldn’t see faeries. I couldn’t believe there was another faery at the mall. I guess faeries really were everywhere. I had just never known because I didn’t have my faery sight then, nor did I look like a faery. Now…I did.
“There was another faery,” I told Mom.
“Oh?” She seemed a bit surprised. “Well, isn’t that interesting. You’ll have to keep your eyes out for more. I guess I thought Azura was exaggerating about faeries being everywhere.”
“Me too,” I muttered under my breath and glanced back, but the woman was out of sight.
I couldn’t stop thinking about the other faery, even after we reached the department store and went inside.
“Dresses are in the back,” Mom told me, and led the way.
I wasn’t really into it as we browsed. Seeing that other faery had really kind of shaken me. Azura had said that other faeries would recognize me for what I was—and they would know what my birthmark meant. I touched the mark, wondering how such a small thing could bring so much danger.
“What about this one?” My mom’s voice pulled me from my reverie, and she held out a floral-patterned maxi dress with spaghetti straps.
“That’s pretty. Let me see the back,” I responded, aware once more of my wings.
My mom raised an eyebrow and flipped it around. It looked like it might be just low enough.
“That will work—I think.”
“Work for what? Are you going somewhere special?”
I lowered my voice. “It’s uncomfortable if my wings don’t have room.”
“Oh, goodness. I never would have thought of that.” She giggled, a sweet, light sound that made her look ten years younger. “I have so much to learn about all of this.”
“You’re not the only one.” Her mirth made me feel better.
We found a few more things before heading home, where we collected all my bags and Mom helped me carry them upstairs to my room. We deposited the bags on the floor by my closet—I’d take care of them tomorrow.
“Thanks, Mom, for a normal day. I needed it,” I told her softly.
She hugged me tightly. “You’re welcome. I’m glad we found some things you like.”
“Me too.”
She closed my door behind her, and I was alone. I sat at my desk beneath the window and opened my laptop to check Facebook. Suddenly, I felt like I was being watched. I rubbed the back of my neck and scanned the tree line outside my window, looking for Azura—assuming that’s who it was. But I didn’t see her—or anyone.
Facebook only held my attention for so long. I pulled on a sleeveless nightgown and began to climb in bed.
There was a note on my bedside stand. I unfolded the paper and read the words. “I am unable to see you tonight. I will come to you tomorrow. There are many things to discuss.”
Fine by me. I had no desire to deal with her. I tossed the note in the garbage next to m
y desk and crawled beneath the covers. My last thought before I fell asleep was, If that hadn’t been Azura I felt watching…who was watching me?
My alarm went off in the morning, waking me from a wonderful dream—a flying dream, my favorite kind. I hated waking from it. They were even more real now that I had wings and knew what they felt like.
After my shower, I dressed in one of my new dresses, happy to find it fit perfectly. I threw my binder in my backpack and hurried down the stairs.
Dad and Mom were both standing in the kitchen, which took me by surprise. “Is everything okay?” I asked. It was rare that Dad was home in the mornings.
“Everything is fine,” Dad reassured me. “I figured I’d go in a little later today because I was there yesterday.”
“Oh, okay.” My shoulders relaxed, even though I wasn’t quite sure I believed him. I poured a bowl of cereal and sat at the table to eat it.
“I’m going to go,” Dad said, kissing Mom and walking over to me. “You look beautiful. Make sure to keep your phone on you at all times in case something happens.” He kissed my forehead and vanished out the door.
Once I shoveled the last spoonful of cereal into my mouth, I looked at my mom where she was still perusing the newspaper at the counter. “You’re gonna be late.”
“I’m going.” She smiled. “You okay? It’s your first day at school since…” Her voice trailed off.
Since I became a faery. I wanted to lie and tried to say I was fine, but the words wouldn’t come out. I really couldn’t lie. Sighing, I finally answered, “I’m a wreck. But I’ll be fine, Mom. I just have to keep telling myself that nobody else can see me like I do.”
Standing up, I put my bowl in the sink and gave her a hug. There was tension in her, taut like a string. I wasn’t sure which one of us was more worried.
“Have a good day.” She squeezed me tighter. “If you’re uncomfortable, call me.”
“I will. Don’t worry.”
She gave me a last searching glance, her fingers resting on my shoulders. “Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you to school? I have time.”
“No, I want to pretend I’m normal. I always ride with Sierra. It would look odd if I didn’t. And you don’t have time, you’re already running late.” I looked pointedly at the clock.
“If you’re sure…”
“I’ll be fine, Mom. Just get to work.”
She was out the door a minute later. Sierra would be there to pick me up in a few minutes, so I needed to hurry. I washed my bowl and picked up my bag, then looked around the house to make sure I wasn’t forgetting anything. I realized I left my phone in my room and ran up the stairs to get it.
Once I was back downstairs, I decided to wait for her on the porch. It was a beautiful day, the sun already high and strong, casting light through the branches of the trees. I locked the door behind me and sat down on the stairs to enjoy the breeze.
Almost immediately, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I got the feeling that someone was watching me—yet again. I stood up and looked around, but still didn’t see anything. When the feeling didn’t go away, I wished Sierra would hurry up, because the sensation was starting to freak me out. I should have just gone with my mother.
Oh, well. I’ll wait inside.
I turned and walked up the stairs, digging into my bag for my keys.
Suddenly, I was grabbed from behind, one strong arm wrapping around my chest and a palm slapping to my mouth. I tried to scream and spin around, but their grip was too strong and my yell was lost. This couldn’t be happening. Where the hell was Azura when I needed her?
“Stop struggling,” a harsh male voice ordered. He struggled to hang on as I bucked against him, but his hand slipped from my mouth.
“Let go of me!” I yelled and slammed my head back at my attacker. It felt as if I hit foam instead of a body. I wished I could see what the attacker looked like.
“Try that again, and I’ll break off your pretty little wings,” a raspy voice threatened. “Move it!”
If he could see my wings, he wasn’t human.
I went dead weight, letting my body droop towards the ground. If I could stall, maybe Sierra would show up in enough time to call the cops. But instead of letting go, my attacker only held tighter and began to drag me towards the woods near my house where another figure was waiting.
The gravel scraped across my legs and lower back, sending pain soaring through my body. I wanted to cry, but I was too scared. I tried to clear my mind and think. My father had spent countless hours teaching me how to escape a stranger abduction. The closer and closer I got to the woods, the harder I struggled, and the more I forgot everything he’d ever taught me.
Finally, he stopped and dropped me to the ground with a jarring thud. I rolled over and leapt to my feet, turning to face my abductors, but there wasn’t anybody there.
“What the—?” What was going on? I spun around a few more times, but couldn’t see anyone. I couldn’t fight something I couldn’t see, so getting the hell out of there sounded like a good plan. I took off in a full out sprint towards my house.
I didn’t get very far before I was grabbed again. I let out a scream before something covered my mouth.
“Shut up!” the voice said again. Someone—or something—had me by my hands and someone else grabbed my feet. For an instant, I was weightless, and then we were moving. They hurried back towards the woods. For the first time in my life, I wished we lived on a busy street or had closer neighbors.
As soon as we crossed into the woods, it was like everything changed. The trees were greener than I ever thought possible and they towered over us, much taller than they’d ever seemed from my bedroom window. The forest was lush and thriving, filled with bird song and the chirp of insects. It would have been beautiful if I hadn’t been scared for my life.
I was tossed on the ground again and two people materialized in front of me. No—not people—faeries. Their hair and eyes were dark, and their wings were thinner and pointier than mine. They were closely similar in looks, and they had a dark aura around them, unlike Azura with her aura of light.
Dark faeries. My breath hitched. How could they have found me so quickly? I’d only been a faery for a day and half.
“This is an Aurorian faery?” one of them snarled.
“Pathetic,” the other agreed.
“Let’s get her back to the palace.”
They stepped towards me, and I let out a scream. I scooted backwards as I yelled, “Don’t touch me!”
“Feisty,” the shorter faery with beady eyes said.
“Pretty, too,” the other one commented with an evil grin.
“I’m not sure who you are or who you think I am, but I am not going anywhere with you.” My voice shook. I realized how ridiculous I sounded since they were clearly in control.
“I think you misunderstood.” The first man cackled. “You don’t have a choice.”
They leaned over me, grabbed my arms, and lifted me up as if I weighed nothing. They carried me deeper into the woods.
As scared as I was, I couldn’t help but be struck by the beauty of the forest. It was amazing how different things looked with my faery sight.
“Where are you taking me?” I asked through gritted teeth, my body bouncing between them.
“To your owner, where you rightfully belong.” The taller faery sneered at me.
“That’s absurd! I don’t belong to anyone!” I thrashed again, causing them to pause and readjust my weight. When we were moving again, I said, “My father is going to kill you. I hope you know that.”
Apparently, they thought that was hilarious. Their laughter echoed through the woods.
The reality of the situation crashed down on me. I had been kidnapped and was on my way to an evil faery. I might never see my family and friends again. Tears spilled down my face. “Please,” I begged. “Just let me go.”
“No. We’re under strict orders to bring you in. If we don’t, we’re as
good as dead.” I don’t know which man answered me; I was getting dizzy from being bounced around.
“They’ll never know. I won’t tell anyone, I promise.”
“They already know and are expecting our arrival. It’s not much further. Just do as you’re told, and it won’t be too bad.”
“Put her down!” Azura’s voice echoed through the forest.
My heart stuttered in my chest. Could she really save me?
The faeries stopped cold, and I struggled to turn my head and see my faery mother.
“Move out of the way,” the shorter one ordered.
Azura laughed. “Not a chance.”
A strong wind kicked up around us. Leaves were blown around, tangling into my hair as it flew around my head. I could hear the creak and groan of the trees bowing to Azura’s power.
“Air manipulator—really?” Both men laughed. “Go ahead. Cause a storm. You’ll only hurt the girl.” They pushed me forward towards the mini twister, and I wondered if it had enough power to suck me in and kill me.
“Please help me!” I begged.
Azura narrowed her eyes and the twister grew larger. One of my captors sighed and held out his hand, allowing a surge of some sort to emerge from it and strike Azura. Her twister died out, debris sinking to the ground.
“Did you really think Varwik wouldn’t see you coming? He didn’t send someone with boring abilities. You’ll have to whisk us away in your twister to stop us, and that means she goes too.”
“They’re right. My gift could only hurt you,” my faery mother said through clenched teeth. “I’m going to go for help. I will do everything I can to make sure you are returned safely. I love you, my daughter.”
Then my only hope of escaping vanished.
The faeries came to an abrupt stop.
“Honey, we’re home,” one sneered, pushing me forward so that I fell to my knees.
My palms hit the ground hard, sticks and leaves digging into my skin, and pain shot up my legs. I breathed through the pain, my teeth gritted. I snapped my head to the right and left, but all I saw was forest, a pile of stones, and a bushy-tailed red fox disappearing into the underbrush. There wasn’t another person or habitable structure in sight. What were they talking about?
