Finding Fae

Blaine and I ended up playing a handful of games before he went for a shower and I was left staring at yet another one of my defeats, trying to figure out where the heck it all went wrong. Fifteen games and I hadn’t won a single one. I never even got close.

“You really suck at checkers.”

I shouted and jumped up, sending the table, board, checkers and my chair flying as I whipped around and aimed the reflexively balled fist at the source of the voice. The only contact I made was my wrist getting caught as Malachi leaned out of the way.

“Not bad,” he smirked.

“What is your problem?!” I yelled and shoved his chest. He didn’t move much and I couldn’t help but notice just how fit he was. It was like he was sculpted of living stone.

“I think we need to try that talk over again,” he said.

“Are you insane? What in the world could possibly be left to say, because we both know that, unless Hell has frozen over and flying pigs are suddenly a thing, you’ll never not hate me for some reason only you seem to know,” I shook my head in complete disbelief. “Were you dropped on your head as a baby or something?”

“I never said I hated you,” Malachi stepped back like he had been stung.

“You didn’t need to,” I glared. “Blaine! Where’s my Algebra book?!”

“He won’t hear you,” Malachi said, righting my chair before going to the one Blaine had been in a little while ago. “Not until I let him.”

“There’s always an exception,” I glared harder at him.

“Trust me, it would take a lot more than just him to get past my shields,” he said with a smug smirk on his face.

“I am not doing this right now,” I shook my head and went to the kitchen only to end up walking back into the living room from a different door. “Are you kidding me!?”

“I can do this all night, but I would prefer to get the ball rolling sooner than later,” he smiled, so full of himself. He motioned to the chair across from him. “Whenever you’re ready.”

“Fine. If it’ll get you to leave me alone,” I sat in the chair and crossed my arms. “Talk.”

“You didn’t know, did you?” he asked. “About the fae being real.”

“What was your first clue?” I rolled my eyes.

“Cut the sarcasm, okay? I’m just trying to figure out what’s going on,” he huffed.

“Join the club,” I rolled my eyes again. I swear, I’ve been doing that a lot the past few days.

“And you really don’t know what fae you are?” he asked.

“Not a clue. Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you of all people. Last thing I need is to have a bigger target on my back,” I answered.

“It looks to me like it’s already pretty big,” he snorted.

“No thanks to you. Or you greatest admirer,” I shot back. “Get to the point.”

“That Call you made,” his forehead pinched together. “You really had no idea what you did or what it meant?”

“Obviously not,” I snorted. “You are really slow, aren’t you? I literally found out about all of this yesterday.”

“Do you know what you did Saturday? Has anyone explained it?” he asked.

“Some, but it’s one of the things that I’m currently not dealing with right now. My plate is full as it is, let’s not add a second helping of WTF, shall we?” I shrugged.

“Did anyone mention Life Bonds?” he asked.

“No, it didn’t come up. Are you done?” I asked.

“No, we aren’t. Not by a very, very long shot,” he shook his head. “I can’t believe they didn’t tell you about the bonds.”

“I’ll be sure to ask that as soon as you let me out of whatever hell you’ve put me in,” I said flatly. “This living room isn’t the most entertaining place and that couch, I’m told, is not fit for sleeping on.”

“By who, exactly?” he narrowed his eyes.

“Zac Efron. Are we done now?” I asked.

“I’ll see you at school,” he shook his head, got up and left the room. Not even five seconds later, Blaine walks back in and looks at the mess of checkers on the floor.

“I didn’t take you for the sore loser type,” he tilted his head to the side.

I told him about Malachi’s visit and he was not happy. He started cussing as he helped my pick up the mess then he dragged me up the stairs and sat on my bedroom floor.

“Pretend I’m not here,” he said, seething.

“You are not sitting on the floor all night,” I said. “Lord knows what kinds of bugs or rats are running around at night. Probably both. And I might have heard bats at some point.”

“It’s too cold of most bugs and I’m not worried about rats, they should be worried about me. Same thing for bats, though they seem to have bigger balls, since they can fly.”

“Okay, I’m super curious now,” I sat on the edge of the cot.

“About tomorrow? That’s what that phone call was about, actually,” he smirked at my frustrated sigh. “Since you’re suspended, and none of us can really afford to miss school for the next few days, you’ll stay with my parents tomorrow. Zane will try to convince you to stay there instead of here.”

“It’s not that difficult, actually. Have you looked around?” I asked.

“That’s not the point,” he chuckled. “It’s about old magic. Really old. This is your home. You’ll have a bit of protection here that you won’t get elsewhere.”

“I haven’t had a home in years, Blaine. This is just another house on the long list of houses I’ve taken shelter in,” I shook my head.

“Still, it’s where you come every night, where you eat your meals, where you lay your head at night. It’s home enough for the time being,” he said. “Get some sleep. It’ll be a very long day tomorrow.”

-------

The house Blaine pulled up at the next morning looked like some duke’s estate in Europe. It was all gray stone and fancy rich people stuff. Marble fountain in the middle of a grossly over sized roundabout driveway, marble statues, giant hedges trimmed to the sharpest precision, immaculate lawns that were vibrant green despite the frigid temperatures outside.

“I’m not even going to ask about all of this,” I waved my hand around as he cut the engine and laughed.

I was quickly introduced to Blaine and Zane’s parents before the twins rushed off for school. Kent and Milly were an odd couple by any standards. They loved each other, obviously, but they were very different.

Kent, the twins father, was a lot like Zane. Serious, but not one to shy away from a joke or light teasing. He knew what needed to be done and he did it, or got someone who could do it better. As far as looks went, it was clear where the boys got most of their features. Zane got the lighter and complexion from Kent but all three of them had the same structure.

Milly, or Mildred, was a lot like Blaine. They were quiet a lot of the time, but it was because they were more thoughtful than their counterparts. It was all strategy and tactics for everything. What was the best way to handle the task at hand and very military-like. Blaine got her darker hair and skin tone as well.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Fae,” Milly smiled at me.

“The boys said that you only recently found out a lot of things that are probably not making a lot of sense to you right now,” Kent said as he cleaned up the dishes from breakfast.

“You could say that,” I snorted. “It’s more overwhelming at the moment. I don’t even know where to start.”

“How about we start at the beginning?” Milly smiled. “Kent and I are pretty well versed in many cultures of fae, plus the library, so I’m sure we can help you, at least a little bit.”

“Actually, I did mention something last night to Blaine that he seemed pretty keen to avoid,” I said. “What’s a Life Bond?”

They shared a look and I felt dread and anxiety mixing in this weird and messed up tango going on in my head. I just knew that whatever answer they had wasn’t going to bode well for my fragile mental health.

“That’s... Well, it’s exactly what it sounds like,” Kent said slowly. “Two people are joined at the soul. Separation is almost painful and, should one die... Well, one can’t function without the other.”

“It’s a literal joining of lives,” Milly said. “It’s rare these days. Most Bonds come from a Call, like the one we were told about. Many are simple, like the Spirit Bond you have with the boys. A missing piece. Even when Calls were more frequent, Life Bonds were rare. I think I’ve only heard of one in the last five hundred years.”

“Justine and Quinn,” Kent nodded sadly. “Queen Justine made a Call when she was young, much like you, and she was Spirit Bonded to three great warriors, but it was Quinn that truly made her whole. He was, and still is, her Life Bond.”

“Still is?” I asked.

“Yes, they are only in their fifties, I think, which is still quite young for them,” Milly nodded. “Some time ago, Justine was pregnant with their first born. No one ever heard anything about the child being born or something happening to it, but they’ve been pretty reclusive since. My guess, along with many others, is that something happened and the baby didn’t make it. It’s a terrible tragedy to lose a child, but Justine was so looking forward to being a mother. Even Quinn was over the moon and he was pretty reserved about his emotions.”

“That’s got to suck,” I muttered and picked at my nails.

“You’ll never know how much it hurts until you become a mother,” Milly patted my hands. “When two people share a Life Bond, they share everything. No one will know you better and no one will make you stronger than you are with them near you.”

“But you’re also their greatest weakness. If one is hurt, the other feels the pain like it’s their own. One dies, the other follows,” Kent said, drying his hands and leaning against the counter. “I think that’s why the practice of performing the Call faded. That and fewer people are strong enough to do it. It’s amazing you were able to without having been through the Awakening.”

“So, I did a Call. Does that mean I might have a Life Bond out there looking for me now?” I asked.

“Only if he, or she, was within the radius of your Call,” Kent said. “No one would have felt it unless they had what you’re missing. It’s different with Life Bonded.”

“How different?” I asked.

“Well, from what has been told, which is very little, the Spirit Bonded feel the Call, like a vibration when thunder rolls in the sky. Only it’s just feeling. Nothing else. Life Bonded experience it differently, that’s how they know one another,” Milly screwed up her face in concentration.

“Like a flash of light?” I asked, getting a very bad feeling.

“No one knows but the Bonded,” Kent shrugged. “There are records going back hundreds of thousands of years and none of the accounts of Life Bonds say what it was like, only that it wasn’t like a Spirit Bond.”

Well, that’s just freaking dandy. I’m just willing to bet my crappy luck would have it that I just so happened to have a Life Bonded partner walking around somewhere. Could this week get any freaking worse?!