by CC Solomon
Joo-won kept his smile. “I think if I’d seen you in a crowd of a million, I would still notice you and remember. You’re mesmerizing.”
Lisa sighed and turned fully to him. “Okay, look if you are trying to flirt with me, please don’t waste your time. I have a man back home. I’m just here visiting to learn the fairy way. But, you know, thanks for the compliment.”
Joo-won nodded. “I can’t imagine any guy worth having letting you leave to another realm without him.”
“Letting me leave! I don’t need permission. He didn’t have a choice.” That was because he was dead or, hopefully, in some temporary coma but Joo-won didn’t need to know that.
“How long have you been together?”
She huffed. “A couple of months. But we are together every day, so it feels longer.” She jutted her chin out.
“So, it’s still early. He isn’t about to propose yet.”
“You never know.”
The elf’s smile widened displaying a cockiness and swagger she’d be blind to ignore. Darn it, she thought, why did he have to have the world’s more gorgeous smile?
“Then, before he proposes, would you agree to have dinner with me? It can be in the Fae realm. Just a meal shared between two new friends.”
“No can do. I realize that you’ve probably never heard the word no before because you’re super handsome but…no, thanks.”
He moved an inch closer and Lisa took in a whiff of something like spice and oak that pleased her senses. She fought the urged to move closer to him. “So, you think I’m handsome?” he asked.
“It’s irrelevant.”
“Should I beg? I’d hate to do that. It’s not very attractive.”
“Then don’t.”
He bent forward, lowering down.
Lisa’s eyes widened. “What are you doing?”
“I see I’ll have to go all the way, if I am to get your attention. I’m getting on my knees.”
Lisa grabbed his shoulders. “Please don’t. It’s embarrassing.”
He smiled up at her. “I don’t get embarrassed.” He continued to lower down.
“Stop! Just accept my answer. No shared meals. I don’t care if you are some king. It’s inappropriate. It’s going to take more than some food to win me over when I have a great guy at home. Just give up.” She flipped her hair over her shoulder and walked away quickly.
She could play confident, but something inside nagged at her. Her thoughts of Charles were strong but not strong enough to prevent her from being attracted to this man. She looked back over her shoulder and Joo-won waved at her with a cocky smile. She turned back around, feeling slightly uneasy.
Chapter 6
Lisa awoke to flowers everywhere. Not only in her room, but throughout the whole house. They were a mixture of flowers from the Human realm and those from the Fae world. It was actually Bella’s cursing that roused her from her sleep. Then she was hit with the sweet aroma of roses, violets, and orchids, as well as scents she did not know.
Lisa wiped the sleep from her eyes and got of bed. She hopped over bouquets of flowers in various vases and pots and left her room. More flowers lined up against the walls of the hallway and throughout the living room and kitchen. Between the flowers and Bella’s many plants, it looked like an indoor botanical garden.
“What?” Lisa asked, unable to put together better words.
“He did this,” Bella spat.
Lisa raised her eyebrows. “He who?”
“Joo-won!” Bella shouted, hands in the air. “I woke up to flowers everywhere.”
“How’d they get in here? How’d he know where I am?”
“Others know where you’re staying. Guess he asked. And they got here magically, I assume.”
“I told him I had a boyfriend.”
“Clearly that wasn’t enou—” Bella stopped speaking and sniffed the air. “What is that smell?”
“I can’t smell anything past these flowers,” Lisa replied.
Bella waved her over. “Come over here near the kitchen.”
Lisa walked closer, leaning forward to sniff the air. Recognition took hold and she raised her eyebrows in surprise. She hadn’t come across these smells in over a decade. She raced into the kitchen, continuing to sniff, before stopping in front of the oven. She pulled it open and squealed in surprise as she pulled out the rack containing a large platter of miniature pastries.
Down one row of the pastries were plain, round balls of cooked dough. The next row held miniature yellow custard tarts, and the final row held sugared balled donuts. “Red bean buns, egg tarts and sugared donuts! These are my favorite Chinese desserts!” Lisa exclaimed before reaching over to take a red bean bun.
Bella raced to her side and slapped her hand, forcing Lisa to drop the dessert back on the tray.
“Why?” Lisa cried, pouting.
“Can’t you see what he’s doing? He’s wooing you!” Bella said crossly.
“If he’s going to bring me treats like these, then let him!”
“He could have put a spell on them. You eat it and instantly fall in love with him.”
“Well, I don’t want that.” She looked down at the food longingly. She’d made magical food before but it’d never tasted fresh. She could tell by the way the pastries smelled that they would be good. She wasn’t sure if Joo-won had made them by magic or not, but she was this close to risking it all for a bite. “It doesn’t look like it has a spell. My grandmother used to make the best red bean buns for me when I visited. Never had any as good as hers…”
Bella sighed. “All right, let me taste first. If it’s spelled, we are both going down.” Bella reached down and picked up a sugared donut. She sniffed it and closed her eyes before biting into it. She chewed slowly, as if analyzing each taste of the pastry with her mouth. Her eyes popped open. “This is so good.”
Lisa sighed. “But is it okay to eat?”
Bella took another bite and then another.
Lisa crossed her arms. “Come on!”
Bella looked over to her and gave a slight shrug. “Oh, yeah, I think it’s fine.”
Lisa shook her head before grabbing a bun. She bit into it and memories of family flooded her mind as the familiar taste took hold. Her grandmother singing to her and her siblings as she baked. Her brother getting his hand smacked by her mother when he went to steal another bun, then her grandfather sneaking the treat back to him behind their parents back.
“Are you crying?” Bella asked.
Lisa frowned and touched her cheek. She felt a dampness against her skin and wiped it away. “It’s been a while since I’ve eaten anything like this,” she said in a soft voice.
“Don’t you do it. Don’t you fall for him over some food.”
“Seriously?” Lisa rolled her eyes.
Bella clapped her hands together. “Oh, I have good news for you. We found out that Charles made it through. He’s living as a vampire now, but he’s okay. Everyone’s okay.”
Lisa nodded absentmindedly as she continued to eat. “That’s good to know.”
Bella frowned. “That’s all you got to say?”
Lisa shrugged. “He’s safe and alive. What more could I ask for?” She was happy for him, but the desserts were currently holding all of her attention.
“I thought you would want to rush to see him.”
“I can go back when I’m done here. There’s no rush,” Lisa replied.
Bella looked down at the pastries. “Right,” she said in a soft voice.
Lisa looked over to her with suspicion in her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Bella sucked in a breath and perked up. “Nothing! Let’s go practice!”
The day after Lisa arrived in the Fae Realm, Bella had put her to work practicing her fairy magic. Bella and Arwa believed Lisa possessed strong Fae powers. It was the only reason she could have been chosen as one of The Six.
“Ugh, do I have to?” Lisa whined. “Can’t I take a break today?”
B
ella rolled her eyes. “Are you serious? You haven’t been training that long and it’s not like you have to physically do anything.”
“So? Using fairy magic can still be draining. You might as well have me run a 5K.”
Bella put her hands on her hips. “I can make you do that as well. Now, drop the treats and let’s get some practice in. Then you can go in for round two of the goodies.”
Lisa stuffed a donut in her mouth and then gave a salute with chipmunk cheeks before rushing off to get changed.
When she came back to the living room, Bella stood in the center, all windows open in her tree home. The weather was absolutely perfect. Lisa felt neither hot nor cold.
Bella clapped her hands together. “Okay, we’ve tried getting your wings to sprout and having you teleport unnoticed. Those might take a bit more time to do, but you have to learn how to have a good offense and defense. You can put up a protective barrier and you can teleport. That’s defense. For offense, you have electrical hands, which every fairy has. Also, you have telekinetic wind and a water ability but I still can’t figure out the type of fairy you are. What’s your element? Water is my thing. I can manipulate it all day. But so can you.” Bella rubbed her chin. “I thought, at first, that you were seasonal. Maybe a Spring fairy. Seasonal Fae are very rare. And each one is relegated to a continent. So I thought maybe you were a Spring fairy for Northern America.”
Lisa nodded. “That sounds good.”
Bella shook her head. “But then you also can control the cold-related powers and the heat powers. Could you be the ever elusive All Seasons fairy?”
Lisa widened her eyes. “That’s a thing?”
“Arwa thinks so. That would explain why you’re so special. I didn’t believe it, but so far our training is making it seem so.”
“I can make it rain!” Lisa exclaimed, giving a little shimmy.
Bella put her hand out. “Well, hold up, partner. Let’s see if that’s true first. Come on. Let’s go to my balcony.”
She moved to the front door to the balcony and Lisa followed. Once outside, Lisa put her back firmly to the door, as she had no wings to help her if she fell over the wooden railing. The space ran the length of the front of the home and was wide enough to fit a small table and two chairs.
Bella turned to her. “Okay, let’s test each season out. Fall. The Fall fairy can usually kill off plant life, make it cooler and some other shit I can’t remember.”
Lisa gave a fake yawn. “Cool, test me.”
Bella opened her arms and her translucent wings sprouted out of her back.
“Show off,” Lisa muttered.
“Hater. Now, I hope this still works because we’re in the Fae Realm, but if you can do the basics here, you can definitely do it in the Human realm.” Bella then flew up to a tree branch and tore off several blue leaves. She flew back down to the balcony and put them on the floor of the deck. “Do your superhero thing.”
Lisa shrugged and bent down, touching the leaves. She squinted her eyes and poured cool magic through her body into her fingers. Seconds later the leaves shriveled and blackened.
Bella nodded. “Now, make it snow.”
Lisa stood up. “What does snow look like here?”
“Well, in one of the lands, the snow is pink.”
Lisa’s eyes lit up. “Oooh!” She then lifted her hands in the air and her body buzzed with her tingling cool magic. Moments later, small, pastel pink flecks fell over the pair, covering only Bella’s tree house.
“Cute!” Lisa cried.
“Okay, okay. Impressive. Now, Spring. I need to see some lightning,” Bella ordered.
Lisa rolled her shoulders. “No problem.” She balled her fist and then…nothing happened. She put up one finger. “Hold up.” She closed her eyes this time. Still, no lightning.
“When one of the Spring fairies calls on lightning, she claps her hands.”
Lisa opened one eye. “You didn’t want to tell me that to begin with?”
Bella smiled.
Lisa gave an exaggerated sigh before clapping her hands together, forcing her cool magic out of her hands. Thunder rumbled loudly, causing Bella to jump but no lightning appeared.
“Maybe I’m just a Fall and Winter fairy,” Lisa whispered.
Bella put a hand to her cheek. “You made it thunder. That’s no small thing. We can work on more later. Okay, one more season. Give me a summer hurricane.”
Lisa twisted her lips. “Is there a special hand gesture I should do with that?”
“Yes, wiggle your hands in the air like you’re giving jazz hands.”
Lisa nodded and moved her hands about, but nothing happened.
Bella smirked and Lisa stopped. “What? Hey, were you lying?”
Bella chuckled. “I couldn’t help myself. No, seriously, the Summer fairy I met just rubbed the palms of her hands together.”
Lisa eyed her suspiciously but still proceeded to rub her hands together. Bella’s hair rose off of her shoulders and began to whip around her face. However, the wind did not increase.
Lisa dropped her shoulders. “That’s all I got.”
“Hey, it’s not bad for a first go. You have potential here to still be an All Seasons Fairy!” Bella said. “Now, let’s strengthen what we know you can do so you can get your magic to kick someone’s ass.”
Joo-won lay down on the couch in his suite, staring up at the ceiling. He was thinking of her, again. How had that happened? For her it had been only a few days in the Fae realm but for him, she’d been on his mind for a week in the Human realm.
He was supposed to seduce her, but now he was the one who was falling. She was beautiful. Just like Her. He couldn’t take his eyes off the young fairy. And she was stubborn, further reminding him of Her.
He wondered what Lisa thought of the flowers and desserts. He hoped she liked them.
Hoped. Did he really care? This was a means to an end. He wasn’t trying to court her. Was he?
She was a tougher shell to crack than he’d anticipated. How did one woo such a fairy? He’d thought she were just a superficial being, who would fall for words to bolster her ego. But she seemed completely unmoved by him. Sure, she had a boyfriend, but he was no stranger to wooing women away from their boyfriends and husbands.
She would be no different. He just had to find a way into her heart. And when he did, he’d use her to get what he needed so that he could be free again.
The next morning Lisa awoke to gifts of perfumes, scented oils and lotions. The day after that there were dresses. Every style, from long gowns to short cocktail dresses. On the fourth morning she was welcomed to a guitarist and vocalist who sang all of her favorite songs. How had he known?
On morning five, Lisa received gemstone jewelry. Rubies, opals, topaz. Rings, bracelets, earrings and necklaces.
“I could live off of this for a while back home!” Lisa exclaimed, flopping down on the couch.
“He’s certainly not pulling any punches,” Bella observed, arms crossed as she peered at her coffee table, which was covered in jewels.
“This has got to stop.”
“Why?” Bella asked, trying on a necklace with a teardrop-shaped emerald.
“Because it’s not right. And I’m freaked out. How does he know all of the things I like? The clothes were my style, the songs and food were my favorite and I love this style of jewelry. How could he know me so well?”
Bella shrugged. “Magic?”
Lisa shook her head. “I need to return this.”
Bella gasped. “No! Don’t do that. Tell him to stop but keep this stuff. You need the jewelry and dresses for bartering when you return.”
“How can I find him?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know where he lives but I can get word to him that you want to see him.”
“Please do,” Lisa replied, before heading to her room.
She was proud of herself for wanting to end this. She couldn’t take gifts from another man. It was inappropriate.
She would just be strong and tell Joo-won that she couldn’t keep the gifts and that she didn’t like him.
She wondered how Charles was holding up. What was he like as a vampire? Would he be the same? Would he want to bite her? What if he went blood lust? She really needed to talk to Arwa again and learn more about these soulmates and The Six so that she could return home and prepare for whatever big bad was to come.
Joo-won walked around the living room, hands behind his back, as he inspected the area. He’d never been in one of these tree houses. They were quite impressive, if not a bit showy.
“You have a nice home,” he stated to the fairy glaring at him. “Have I offended you, Bella?”
“What are you doing with my Lisa?” she asked, folding her arms.
He gave her his best smile that usually worked to disarm people. “Wooing her.”
“You don’t know her.”
“She’s beautiful. I like beautiful things.”
Bella squinted her eyes at him. “She’s—”
“Not a thing,” Lisa interrupted, walking from the back of the house. “Thank you for coming. I really needed to talk to you.”
Joo-won’s eyes lit up, looking her over. She was as beautiful as she had been last he saw her. She was tiny and he wanted to pick her up and take her away to do naughty things with her. Seducing Lisa would be a fun job.
“Butterfly, thank you for inviting me here,” he replied walking over to her. He took her hand and kissed it.
She raised an eyebrow and slowly pulled her hand away. “Why are you calling me butterfly?”
“Butterflies are beautiful and so are you.” He grinned at her, adding a magical twinkle to his eye.
He heard the other fairy make a disapproving noise behind him. “I’m going to leave you two to talk. Be good to my Lisa, Elven King,” she called behind her before leaving the house.
Lisa moved away from Joo-won and walked towards the windows in the living area. “Thank you for the gifts, but I cannot accept them. Well, scratch that, I ate the food, but the other stuff I can’t accept. You have to take it back, take it all back.”
