My jaw dropped open as Mom’s face became unreadable, and she responded, “I’m quite well, Bianka. Thank you for asking.”
Holy flying fucks, my mom and this ladyknew each other? This was just getting better and better.
Mom walked forward. She poured herself some of the tea in the kitchen before she went to the liquor cabinet and tipped some whiskey inside of it. She handed the bottle to the old lady, who took it gratefully and poured a significant amount into her own cup. Mom sat down on the armchair next to the woman’s purse and threw a hand over her eyes, as if she was extremely tired.
“Sit down, Emma,” Mom said. “It’s finally time to tell you.”
Tell me? Tell me what?My movements felt robotic as I slowly sank to the other end of the couch, opposite the old lady. The mysterious woman put her tea down and turned to me, keeping her knees closed and her upper body tilted slightly forward.
“Now. Down to business,” she said, like we were in a meeting. “I’m pleased to introduce myself. I am Bianka Magdalina, though you may call me Lady Magdalina. I am Headmistress at the prestigious Arcanea University in Malovia.”
Mal-what-now? What was this lady talking about?
“Show me the mark on your hand, dear.” Lady Magdalina’s tone was pleasant, but firm. She gazed at my right hand like she knew what I was hiding.
I was aware that I was gaping like a fish. That had to look appropriate. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Lady Magdalina made a skeptical noise. “Come now, Emmaline. Let’s not lie to each other. Show me your hand.”
It was clear that the best liar in the world wouldn’t be able to pull the wool over her eyes. I extended my right hand, and Lady Magdalina grasped my wrist. She pulled it up to her eyes to observe the mark. Mom watched, looking at the mark on my palm like it was her worst nightmare.
“Ah. A wolven. As I expected,” Lady Magdalina said fairly, placing my hand back on my knee. “Like your mother, although a griffin would’ve also been unsurprising.”
She might as well been speaking a foreign language. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Mom took a deep breath. “The truth is, Emma, you’re not human. You’re an Arcanea.”
Reality crashed into me so hard it sucked the air out of my lungs and almost knocked me off the couch. Inside, I’d always known I’d been different. There was something about me that other kids could sense, and I knew it, too. I’d always been a loner, because I didn’t feel like I belonged. Mom always seemed like the only person who could truly get me.
But I didn’t expect to bethisdifferent. I wasn’t even human? Where did I come from, Mars?
“What the fuck is that?” I belted out. Lady Magdalina made a face at my language, and I cringed. Even now, I wanted to earn her approval, and that I had offended her made me self-conscious.
Mom remained unmoved. “The Arcanea are a magical race. There are many supernatural cultures spread throughout the world, Emma, but you’re part of one of the oldest. Other magical peoples call us the Arcane. Our ancestors came from another realm, another dimension that isn’t part of this world, and settled in Malovia halfway across the world. You’re one of us… a fae.”
“Fae?”
“The correct term for fairy.” Magdalina spoke lightly. “Orfaery, as some call it. The legends about us are true, Emmaline. We do exist.”
I already had so many questions. I didn’t know where to start, so I asked the easiest one first. “Where’s Malovia?”
“In Eastern Europe,” Lady Magdalina answered. “The country is run by a monarchy that is formed completely of the Arcanea. No one, save for our own kind and the magical races scattered throughout the globe, knows we exist. We’re a hidden, secret society, and we mean to keep it that way.”
I swallowed down a large lump in my throat. “Magic? Magic is real?”
Mom nodded. “Yes, Emma. I have it. You have it. We all do. The Arcanea specialize in spells and illusions. Female Arcanea become sorceresses— they’re known as the Marked. Male Arcanea are known as Companions, and change into shifters.”
“Huh? What’s a shifter?” I felt really dumb.
“A shifter is a person that can transform into an animal,” Lady Magdalina said. She cast a disapproving glance at my mother, obviously displeased she’d failed to teach me anything about this world for eighteen years. “Our Companions have four different Factions— wolvens, which are winged wolves, dragons, griffins, and alicorns. Each Companion belongs to one Faction and can only change into their born animal. Unlike Marked, Companions belong to their birth Faction for life.”
“You can switch Factions?” There were so many rules to this thing already. I had to be on my toes if I wanted to keep up.
Mom nodded. “Females can. I came from a griffin father. Your uncle, my brother, was a griffin, but when I came of age, the mark on my hand showed I belonged to the wolvens. A sorceress of any blood can bond with any shifter Companion, no matter where they’ve come from. The mark on their hand designates who they truly align with.”
I tried to process the information. But my mind wouldn’t let me. It rebelled against the idea that this was real, that any of this was real. I was just a kid from Michigan. Fricking Detroit, even. Fairy tales didn’t happen around here.
“I don’t believe you,” I said harshly. My mom wouldn’t lie to me about something this important my entire life. It had to be some kind of a cruel prank. “Prove this is real. Do magic right now.”
