Danny squealed. “Pretty please let me go, and I’ll do all of your bitch work for aweek.”
Eva smirked. “Even collecting the skunkurine?”
Skunk urine. She said skunkurine.
He grimaced. “Yes. For a weekonly.”
Eva looked to me and I nodded. Fine by me. I just wanted to get therealready.
Logan’s energy pulled my gaze up; he was concerned, eyeing me withworry.
‘I’ll be fine. Be right back,’I told him, andwinked.
He nodded, arms crossed, and watched me through those piercing green eyes. Something told me that if I didn’t come right back, Logan Sharp would somehow come and getme.
“Okay,” Eva explained, “I won’t take you to the time of war because that’s too dark. We’ll try to see your mother in a gentler time inFaery.”
I nodded. I didn’t care what timeframe it was so long as I sawher.
“Just focus on your mother’s energy. Think of memories of her, and I’ll tap into that, trying to find her in thepast.”
I bobbed my head, my mind going to a memory of her humming in the kitchen while snipping the ends of off green beans. The way the sunlight hit her hair always reminded me of fire. She wasn’t weak or timid, my mother, but she was gentle. Maybe at one time she’d been some fierce warrior to the queen, but she’d become a mom, a teacher, and she was so soft. She never raised her voice to me. Grounded me plenty of times, or took away my drawing pencils, but she was never angry. Something must have doused that fire that Griddish claimed was inher.
Eva breathed in and out slowly beside me, as Danny came to sit on the other side of her. She was rolling the copper ball in that rhythmic circular motion as I let the memories go to mymother.
Finally, Eva froze. “I’ve got her!” She seemed shocked as if she didn’t expect it to work. Without another word, I reached out and touched the ball—and then I was falling, then flying, then drowning. This was different than the last time I’d used this ball to travel to the Griddish memory. This was Faery, which was God knows where, and just when I thought I couldn’t breathe, I was slammed to my feet—in the middle of a grand throne room. Dizziness washed over me for amoment.
“Sorry, dears, Faery is long gone, so traveling to these memories is a bit harder,” she said, from besideme.
“It’s fine.” Danny waved his hand, taking in the great hall. Above was a domed ceiling with paintings of elfin warriors in battle with their queen. A queen who stood not ten feet from me, with white silken hair cascading to her waist. She was perched on her golden throne, reading a book. As she flipped the pages I realized I couldhear!
“I can hear!” I guess it was the ear afterall.
Eva looked confused until her eyes roamed over the queen. “Of course. It’s her magic after all, looking back on her own memories, there will besound.”
Fascinating.
“Where’s my—?” The door opened, cutting off my question, and a sob escaped me as my mother glided into the room. She looked like she was wearing a costume—breast plates, arm cuffs, and two large swords crossed behind herback.
“Mom!” I shouted, and started running. I didn’t care that this was a memory, or my mother looked like a Dungeons and Dragons character, this all felt so real. I wanted to hug her. But she didn’t turn to my voice, or my approaching feet. Instead, she walked right to her queen, who set her book down and dismissed herguards.
I reached my mom, hoping for a smell, a touch, but I went right through her like aghost.
“So? What did you think of them? The humans?” the queen asked, with glittering eyes as my heart crushed. I couldn’t talk to mymom.
Danny ran up behind me and slipped his hand in mine. I squeezed it, hard, and stared at my beautiful mother. Her fiery red hair was pleated into a large braid that hung down herback.
“I admit I was taken with them. They’re … so innocent in a way.” The way she spoke so casually with the queen, and gave no bow or curtsy proved they were good friends. “But I especially loved the children. Such sweet children who don’t grow up learning battle or magic skills. They’re all thrust into academia.It’s…”
The queen leaned forward with lips curled into a grin. “Fascinating?”
My mother laughed then, and it punched me in the gut to hear that sound. Danny’s grip on my handtightened.
“Yes, they are fascinating,” shesaid.
The queen bounced up and down a little and clapped her hands. “I knew you would love them! I think we should invite some of them to comehere.”
My mother’s face darkened, then. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Word of your fascination with the humans has gotten out. The druids are rumored to befurious.”
