Finding Fae

We had landed on a large balcony on the third story of what I could only assume was Mal’s house. I took a quick look around the outside and decided this was a bit upscale, even after seeing the twins’ house, which was pretty fancy in my opinion. I shivered and followed Mal inside to a room that looked like it was taken from a House and Home magazine.

“I’m sorry you didn’t get any of your clothes,” he said, opening a closet and walking in.

“I’m not attached to any- Oh no. My sketch book,” I said sadly. “I hope it’s not taken or ruined.”

“That’s it? Just a sketchbook?” he asked as he came back with some clothes in his hands. “If it’s gone or ruined, I will replace it a hundred times and get you all the pencils and whatever you want. I’m just glad you’re not hurt.”

He took my hand and pulled me out of the room we were in and down the hall way to the door next to it. He didn’t stop as he took me through the room, also looking like a magazine picture, and into the bathroom.

He dug under the sink and pulled up a small first aid kit and sat it on the counter before turning me to face the sink so he could look at the cuts on my neck.

“Mal,” I said as he got a clothe wet in the sink. “I’m not the one dripping blood on the floor.”

I took the cloth from him and turned around, crossing my arms and looking at him, expecting him to say something stupid like, “I’m fine. I’ll heal.” Instead he looks over my shoulder at the mirror and sighed as his wings spread out for me to reach easier.

“Should I be worried if there’s a hole or tearing?” I asked before I even moved.

“As long as the main arteries are intact, they’ll regrow,” he said.

In the light, I couldn’t really tell that his wings were glowing, although I did see the occasional shimmery color shift. I wanted to say they were supposed to be a light shade of green, but it was hard to tell.

I carefully touched the surface and the glow grew a little stronger and the shimmer sped up a bit. It was odd, feeling them. They felt like silk yet firm, like the material was pulled tight over a frame and laid on something solid. They were rigid, but it felt like it was that way because Mal had the tops lifted to make it easier for me to clean the wounds.

I was as careful as I could be as I inspected for any shards of glass and cleaning the handful of cuts on each wing. I did notice that the wings came out of his shirt via small slits in the fabric that you wouldn’t notice unless you were looking for them. That and I’m sure if fae can disguise how they look, then it would be next to nothing to change how their clothes looked or blur the lines a bit.

Once I was finished, I handed the cloth back to Mal. I could feel the beginnings of another breakdown coming as we stared at each other for a few moments and I pushed that crap down as I shuffled my feet and looked away.

“We both need showers to get rid of any smaller pieces of glass,” I said and he nodded once.

“Those are for you,” he said, pointing at the clothes he had brought with him. “You’ll be staying here from now on, so you can think of this room as yours. Mine is right next door if you need anything.”

He left quietly and I locked the bathroom door behind him. I quickly turned on the water in the massive shower and stepped in. The moment the spray hit my skin, my knees gave out and I sank to the floor as the reality of what just happened struck.

My house had been broken into, while I was there. The one guy I saw had a weapon and every intent to use it on me, regardless of my cooperation. But he had called out, meaning that there were more than one. I mean, that place wasn’t a home by any means, but it was as close to one as I have ever had. I never could understand the shows and movies where the people who went through a home invasion would be so upset. Sure, things were broken or stolen, sometimes people got hurt. But it never really sank in for me until now.

It wasn’t about the junk and the damages done that would cost money to repair. It was about that little bubble that surrounded the place. The one that made you feel safe. The one that said that, out of all the places in the world, you could let your guard down here. It was about the idea that someone you didn’t want there could so easily waltz in and it was about how, once that happened, everything you once felt there became tainted. It was pain from a blow delivered at your most vulnerable. It was the fear that it could just as easily happen again.

I cried. Again. It couldn’t be stopped. Tears mixed with the water as I sobbed as quietly as I could. The one thing I had wanted my whole life was right there within my grasp. I wanted a normal life. A home. Friends. Family. Stability. I was as close as I could get considering that I wasn’t human. It was right there!

Sadness turned to anger as I cleaned up and turned the water off. Who the hell do those clowns think they are? Breaking into my house? Waving around a metal rod like it was a baseball bat, threatening me and my safety? No sir. That was not going to fly with me. It was a crappy, dump of a house, but it was as much mine as a minor could have after being abandoned by their kidnapper/substitute father. Screw that. It was time to get even.

I got dressed in the slightly large t shirt and baggy basketball shorts before going to the bedroom and flopping on the edge of the bed. I don’t have any idea why I decided to do anything after this point, but it felt like it was the thing to do.

I closed my eyes and thought about my house. The strange people inside of it, the broken windows and the mess they were undoubtedly going to make while they looked through everything for a hint on where I would go. It was like I could see everything that was happening there, as it happened.

I could hear them, too, but it was like listening through water. I was distorted and unrecognizable. One was in the living room, sifting through the books that had been left behind and I made a face as they were dropped to the floor and walked over, like they were nothing. One was in the kitchen, dumping thing out and emptying cabinets of their contents. Another was doing the same in the laundry room. It looked like, so far, they hadn’t made it up the stairs. My bag had already been dumped out and the contents scattered, but the second floor was empty.

I felt a swelling in my chest, like a piece of bubble gum or a balloon was being inflated. It felt cold and hot and it made me mad. So much anger had filled me at seeing how easy it was for these people to completely disregard everything. It was like a living thing and it was volatile.

Just when I thought that it might end up breaking me, the bubble broke. Whatever the contents were escaped in a powerful wave and made all three men pause. One even shuddered. They just sat there like someone hit the remote for a potty break during a movie.

Then, there was a sudden flurry of action as all three of them jumped through themselves to run out of the house. As soon as they reached the nearest exit, they were thrown backwards and the whole house shuddered as an angry scream broke every bit of glass that was there. It continued, even as they all grabbed their heads, hoping to cover their ears as they started to bleed. Then, one by one, they fell over and the scream faded away.

“Fae!” I heard Mal shouting as I snapped back to myself.

I opened my eyes and blinked a few times, confused, as things slowly came back to me. Mal had obviously shaken me a little as his hands were still holding on to my upper arms.

“Fae? What did you just do?” he asked, looking worried as water dripped from his hair.

Having no words, I shook my head. I didn’t do anything. Did I? Surely not. Holding on to Mal’s elbows, a choked sound came from me and the need to vomit burned the back of my throat. I ran to the bathroom just in time to empty my stomach in the toilet.

I was handed a wet cloth and a small cup of mouthwash. Mal helped me stand again and made sure I was steady as I brushed my teeth with the new toothbrush he had handed me before flushing the toilet and closing it so he could sit down.

“Tell me what happened,” he said quietly as he grabbed a towel from a shelf and dried his hair some more.

He had to have just gotten out of the shower himself with how wet his hair was. At least he had shorts on, thankfully.

Slowly, I started talking. Not being sure what had actually happened in the first place didn’t help me make any sense, even to myself and I was there.

“Did I kill them?” I asked softly when I finished.

“I don’t think so,” he shook his head. “I’ll have someone go check, just in case. At the very least, having them in custody will lead to answers. I’m not sure what you did, Fae, but I can tell you that whatever it was has something to do with whichever fae you are.”

“So, this helps?” I tried.

“No,” he said quickly as he grabbed my arm and turned me to face him, holding my hands in his as fear and worry clouded his features. “No, this isn’t good, princess. You’re already manifesting, which shouldn’t be happening right now. It’s far too early by any standard.”

“What does that mean?” I whispered.

“It means that your Awakening is going to come early,” he said. “If you keep using whatever talent your race holds, you’ll end up forcing it to happen sooner than it needs to. We’re already hard pressed for getting you as prepared for it as we can manage in a few months, but there is very little chance you’ll survive it right now.”

“What do I do?” I started to panic. I didn’t want to die. My life may not have been ideal, but it was mine and I wanted to stay alive for as long as possible. My breathing picked up and my vision started to go dark around the edges.

“Deep breath,” Mal said, getting up and trading places with me so he was standing and I was sitting on the toilet lid. He pushed me to bend and put my head between my knees. “We do what we’ve been doing. We have no idea what will happen during your time, but it will be resoundingly helpful if you at least had a basic knowledge of as many fae as we can think of. Plus, strength and combat, just in case.”

He got a clean cloth and got it wet with cold water and put it on the back of my neck as my breathing started to slow a little bit and the darkness slowly began creeping back the way it had come.

“The process takes years and even then it’s not always enough,” Mal said rubbing my back. “You only have a few months, but I swear, we’re all doing everything we can to give you the greatest possible chance. The Awakening is unique to each person, so there’s no telling what you’ll face. You’re smart and think faster than anyone I know. You’ll make it, but only after a little more time.”

“Can we stop it?” I asked and peeked up at him.

“It will happen,” he shook his head. “The only thing we can do is try to keep it from happening early. That means keeping you from using anymore of those talents and gifts you seem to have popping up all over the place.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“You have no idea, do you?” he looked puzzled. “Fae, you’ve been using gifts and powers for weeks now. Since before the Call.”

I felt cold as the darkness came rushing back and the, nothing.