“We were next-door neighbors and their house only had one bathroom,” Maye told the group that had gathered. Half of the people looked confused as to why Maye would be talking about the bathroom, but Elle and I started to erupt into giggles.
Maye dramatically puts her hands out. “It’s midnight! I’m just dozing off thinking how lovely the ceremony was and I hear …bang,bang,bang, on my door.”
All of the Fae gathered around looking serious. It only served to make Elle and I laugh harder.
Maye walked around the center of the circle that had broken out around her. “I rush downstairs, thinking my roof must be on fire, and there’s Violet!”
Silence. She had everyone’s attention. “I looked down at her and realize she’s red faced and holding her bum. She says three words to me. ‘One. Bathroom. Looseberries.’”
Elle and I burst into laughter with the rest of the surrounding Fae, and tears leaked from my eyes. My mom spent her wedding night on Maye’s toilet. The baker was still learning, and made gooseberry pie with looseberries instead, known to have a laxative effect. The entire town had diarrhea that night except Maye, who never cared for gooseberry pie.
I was glad she told the story. It made me miss my mom in a good way. “You think she’s up there with my dad?” I asked Maye suddenly, looking up at the stars. My dad died during the Dark War when I was two and I didn’t remember him. I only had a few pictures.
Maye walked over and cupped my face in her hands. “If there’s one thing I know, it’s that those two are together, watching over you.”
The tears were back as she pulled me into a hug and I let her hold me. Maye had been like a grandmother to me. She would rock me to sleep many nights when my mom was off working. As she gave me a huge tight hug, I just felt like everything was going to be alright. I would never be alone. Not in Faerie. Not with Maye, Elle, Trissa, Tomas, and everyone else looking out for me.
I suddenly felt guilty that I’d let the crystal go so easily, that I hadn’t fought for it. Clearly that dude wasn’t my soulmate, it was some weird … magic trick or something. Either way, Faerie needed that crystal and I wouldn’t let them down.
Maye released me and I squeezed her hand, spinning to find Trissa and Elle and tell them I wanted to go back in and find that crystal. But instead I slammed right into Indra.
“Oh, I’m so sorry.” I reeled back, cheeks pink.
You weren’t supposed to touch the elders. Not without being invited to. They were the closest thing we had to a holy person or queen.
She smiled down at me, forgiving. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I hoped we could have a word?”
Her face pinched with anxiety and I nodded, following her as she led me away from the group. When we were well away from the people of Faerie and had reached Summerset Park, she took a seat on the willow bench.
I sat next to her, waiting for her to speak. She just breathed slowly, watching the celebration of life for my mother in the distance.
“Is everything okay?” I finally asked. “I mean … if this is about the crystal. I’ll do better next time it’s just that—” She put up a hand and stopped me from speaking.
“There is something I was vague about before and I would like to be more clear on now.” Her voice cracked a little with emotion.
My heart hammered in my chest as I prepared myself for her to say something crazy. I wasn’t sure I could take anymore truth bombs. “What … is it?”
I was racking my brain, trying to think what this could be about.
“You asked me where the Sons of Darkness came from and I didn’t answer.”
My whole body stiffened.Liam.He popped into my mind and my chest ached, but I promptly shook it off.
“One of them had … Faerie wings. Like mine … but black, oily,” I told her.
Liam.That name was seared into my brain.
She nodded, taking a deep breath. “The Sons of Darkness are halflings. They are the product of our mistakes during the Dark War.”
The lower part of my jaw unhinged at her words. Halflings? I didn’t know what that was, but I could guess…
“Productof the Dark War?” I needed to hear her say it.
She sighed. “Our people … took human lovers and the Sons of Darkness are the result.”
I knew it! I burst up from the bench, unable to keep still any longer. “They’re half Fae!” I hissed.
Her lips turned in a frown. “Sort of yes. At first we thought it would be okay. We could let the halflings with human mothers stay on Earth, and the halflings with Fae mothers stay here. The human mothers wouldn’t see past the illusion and so no harm would be done. They wouldn’t even know they had magical children.”
