Discovering Fae
That Which Lurks

“I hate Raiz,” I grumbled.

Mal sat next to me and looked at the scroll in front of me and the book of translation and the reference book of linguistic syntax next to it.

“This is giving me a headache just looking at it,” he grimaced. “Is there anything helpful that’s already been translated?”

“Not really. General stuff that we can pretty much assume already with what we know,” I sighed in frustration. “In general, the royal family has an array of magic powers that come from one or both of the origin lines. Healing, destruction, the connection to the fifth core element, spirit, that makes them more powerful and more dangerous than anyone else. There were also a few theories about how the two opposing lines control each other, keeping them at moderate strengths, considering their potential.”

“What are those?”

“Well, the one I agree with the most, being one of the subjects of choice, says that the demon and Celestial blood weakens the powers we have, however it goes on to state that there could be an anomaly that triggers a shift in which the two lines actually strengthen each other.”

“Okay, that makes sense, I guess,” he said slowly.

“Then it lists possible differences in the normal offspring and the anomaly offspring,” I shifted through the books and scrolls and loose pages of my notes until I found the document I was looking for. “The powers we have, since we can use all four of the elements, are kind of like separate wells inside of us. Our will keeps them from mixing and causing mayhem. But then spirit comes into play and, well, havoc ensues. That’s why the children in my family are taught to control their emotions. It’s not the emotions that are the problem, it’s spirit.”

“That explains the uncontrollable parts,” he nodded. “Spirit gives the elements a mind of their own.”

“Basically. At least, that’s what this whole theory is based on,” I smiled. “It goes on and says that, once Awakened, the individual is granted only a few out of a vast number of abilities and they are only a tiny fraction of the strength that they could be.”

“Your mom being a one-woman army?” he tilted his head.

“One of the only things in a language I can read is the family tree,” I pointed to a large book that I had pulled off a shelf in the library and nearly ended up on the floor, it was so dense. “It only follows the bloodline, not those that come in, since it all pretty much is moot anyhow. There are people who could heal a vast number of people with just the wave of a hand, grow entire fields of crops in just a few days, control the weather with a blink. Yes, they did other amazing things with other parts of their abilities, but they were best in one area and only one.”

“Luck of the draw?” he pulled a book towards him and scanned the pages.

“When I told you about my Awakening and how I had to wait afterwards to be judged, you looked confused. So did Ben and Blaine,” I propped my elbow on the table and rested the side of my head on my fist. “That’s not supposed to happen, is it?”

“The Trials are supposed to be it,” he admitted and looked at me. “I didn’t want to tell you because you were so upset and sick.”

“I know,” I smiled at him. “If you did tell me, it would likely only have made things worse. Well, I have my own theory.”

“Hm. Okay.”

“The Judgment is Fate deciding which powers you can handle. Which ones suit you,” I said with a grin. “Mom is good with battle and death. She’s best at that, but she can heal and grow things. But not as easily or as... large scale.”

“How would one measure that kind of thing?” he frowned.

“We can’t, but Fate? It’s kind of her thing, right?” I asked and he shrugged. “Anyhow, the original theory about the anomalies states that there is potential for an individual to have access to more. More powers. More strength. Just more.”

“I thought you were looking into why you were growing wings or had these markings. Did you get sidetracked?” Mal smirked.

“I did, but it loops in,” I waved my hand at him and sat up grabbing a different book and opened it to the slip of paper I had torn off and slipped into the corner of its pages. “Here, he hypothesizes that if such an anomaly occurs, it is also likely that the individual could also inherit physical aspects of one or both of the origin lines. Horns, tails, what the humans call a heavenly glow... Wings.”

“Okay, so we got the science to explain the how,” he nodded as he skimmed over the words. “You understand this?”

“It was confusing for a while, but I started to get the way this guy writes and it’s not that odd sounding to me now,” I smirked. “I’m adaptable.”

“No, that’s not what I mean,” he frowned and laid the book down and pointed to the words. “I mean, you can read these markings?”

“You mean letters, put together to form words? Yes, Mal I can read. I’ve been doing it since I was four,” I scowled.

“Fae, my love, this isn’t English,” he frowned harder. “I’m not sure, but it looks almost like High Elvish.”

“So, I can read Elvish? Without studying? I mean, cool, but kind of lame,” I frowned at the book.

“No one alive can read High Elvish, Fae. The last ones that could were executed nearly seven hundred years ago,” he shook his head. “I guess, maybe, someone in Phoenix Hollow might, but they aren’t sharing if they can. And this one? This is in Vulcani, language of the Lava elves, which is hard as nails to learn.”

“Lava elves?!” I felt my mouth fall open.

“Not actual elves, Fae. They’re humanoid and have pointy ears, but that’s as far as the similarities go,” he explained. “It’s a big sore spot for both parties, trust me.”

“Just when I think I’m making headway, you remind me I know nothing at all,” I huffed.

“I’m not a good subject for comparison,” he chuckled and took my hands to pull me out of my chair and into his lap, holding me to him gently. “I either trained or studied because I wasn’t allowed to do anything else. Not typical or normal.”

“But I apparently can read things I’ve never seen before and never studied. Yet other languages are... what? Too difficult? I can’t read Latin, but I can read something that only exists in the Sidhe? Why can’t one thing about me make sense?” I complained.

“Everything about you makes sense, Fae. We just can’t see how yet,” he chuckled.

“Glad someone is taking this in stride,” I muttered.

“Speaking of strides, I actually came to ask you if you wanted to get out of here for a while? Go for a walk around the city. You’ve hardly got to experience a Sidhe town at all, and Nydal is so small, there’s not much to do there,” he said.

“And what is there to do here?” I put my arms around his neck, twisting sideways to look him in the eyes.

“Royal City is the capital. There’s a little bit of everything here. Some amazing food, music, shopping,” he grinned.

“And that’s where you lose me. I hate shopping, Mal,” I made a sour face.

“Yes, I know that, but you’re dangerously low on clothes and I figured I’d save you from the royal treatment so you can get things you actually like and need,” he chuckled.

“I hate it when you make sense,” I narrowed my eyes at him. “Fine, but if I see a single dress, I’m coming right back here, and you will be in big trouble.”

“You would look far too beautiful in a dress, Fae,” he said seriously. “I know there’s nothing for me to worry about with us, but I will still break someone’s neck for looking at you the wrong way.”

“It’s funny to hear you say things like that, but I can feel you actually would, so that’s a little concerning,” I tilted my head to the side. “And you are really handsome when you’re being scary protective.”

“I’m glad you think so,” he smiled softly, his hard look melting like ice in a hot pan.

“One problem though. How are we paying for this trip?” I asked him and he smirked and held up a soft leather pouch, shaking it so the contents jingled.

“Quinn dropped it off this morning. He said it was from your vault and that I should get you out of the castle because Mary was going to corner you with a fitting for gowns and shoes after lunch,” he explained.

“Oh gods,” my eyes went wide. “Why didn’t you lead with that?”

I shot up and grabbed his hand, yanking him up and out of our room with him laughing.

It was absurdly funny as we sprinted down the steps in front of the castle and into the city, that we were both laughing like maniacs by the time we got around the first street corner. We both had to stop to breathe, our hands on our knees, as we calmed the laughter before Mal pulled me under his arm and led me through the streets.

“If I look backwards, am I going to see your wings folded?” I asked him after a moment.

“Nope,” he popped the “p”.

“The light has gotten brighter and less swirly since we completed the Bond,” I remarked.

“The light will fade back to a dim kind of glow after a while,” he said and I felt his dislike of the idea, which made me laugh.

“Showy fairy,” I teased him.

“Damn right,” he nodded proudly.

-----

My feet were going to kill me when I sat down again, but I didn’t care. Mal and I went all over the city, spending the entire day, minus a break for lunch, walking from one amazing thing to the next. But the best part was dinner.

We came into a neighborhood that was having a celebration of some sort. It was clearly a poorer part of the city, but everyone came out to have fun. Food was made and shared freely, music filled the air, kids ran about laughing and shouting in glee, people shared stories and laughed loudly. No problem seemed bigger than this moment.

“Come on,” Mal grinned and grabbed my hand, pulling me into his body as he took us into the crowd of boisterous dancers.

It didn’t matter that I didn’t know how to dance, because Mal did and he would never let me stumble, trip, or fall. For the first time in... ever, really, I got to just let it all go and be. The party that had ended with me in the pool had been close, but this easily took the lead as I laughed and smiled so hard, my cheeks hurt. I didn’t want it to ever end.

But it did.

It was so late, it was nearly early when Mal and I started walking back towards the castle along the empty streets, his arm over my shoulders and mine wrapped around his waist. I couldn’t stop smiling and Mal was talking about one of the Mid-Summer Festivals he attended and got lost at as a child when I felt my wings vibrating under my skin, setting me on edge.

“Mal,” I said quietly, making him stiffen, though he kept talking like I had said nothing. He was listening, but not giving away that we thought something was wrong. “I don’t like this. It feels... wrong.”

In a second, he had us in the air, the wind ripping the air from my body as he sped to get away from whatever it was that set me off. I looked down, thinking I’d see a trap we barely missed or something. Anything but what I saw.

“Nothing,” I shook my head, frowning as I tucked my face against Mal’s neck. “There was nothing there.”

It was no time at all before our feet were on the ground again safely inside the castle walls. Dad comes running out, a sword in his hand and no shirt or shoes on with Mom right behind him, twin daggers in her hands and looking like she had been asleep until just a moment before.

“What happened? I saw you come in fast,” Dad asked Mal.

“Something felt wrong. Really bad, kind of wrong,” I frowned and rubbed the back of my neck. “But there was nothing there. No trap, no people, nothing. Dad. The feeling? It’s less now, but still there.”

He nodded and started shouting orders to have guards posted and alerted to a possible threat while Mom looked up to the sky, unseeing.

“It’s not going to come here,” she said after a moment, making everyone stop what they were doing. “That which lurks cannot enter these walls.”

“I don’t know what that means,” I huffed.

“No one does, but it’s been written into every brick of this place,” Dad narrowed his eyes at Mom for a second.

“That darkness does not belong in these walls,” Mom said, looking back at us, and I reeled back for a second, seeing her eyes completely white and glowing. “It cannot enter while two queens remain.”

“Whaaat is that?” I asked Dad slowly, not looking away from Mom.

“No idea, but it’s happened once before. Everything it said turned out to be true, so if it says it’s safe here, I’m inclined to believe it,” he said, but motioned for the guards to take up their positions anyhow.

“Death wanders the field to claim a queen, from two to choose. One to rule the light, one to conquer the darkness, both queens must rule as one should life prevail,” Mom said then her eyes faded and rolled into the back of her head.

Dad caught her just as her legs crumpled from under her and lifted her, carrying her close to his chest as he took her inside.

“Fae. Mal. You should get some rest. And don’t leave again,” he called out over his shoulder.