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The youngsters inclined their heads before they rose, reflecting on the lesson among each other as they strolled away. My father found my gaze and grinned. I grinned back, dipping my head in greeting before I went to sit beside him on the soft grass.
“What was today’s lesson?” I teased, feeling Keia land on my head, her tiny feet threading through my blue hair.
My father gave my companion a warm smile before meeting my gaze again. “An introduction to body language and non-verbal communication for the wolves.”
I nodded, fiddling with my fingers as I glanced around.
“Speak your mind, my love.”
I bit the inside of my cheeks. How could I voice my questions without prompting suspicion? There were so many things I wanted to know, but I couldn’t be too explicit.
Start small.
“I’m not confident with my knowledge about the Spiders,” I started, giving my father a fleeting glance. He blinked but nodded, so I continued, “They have strange eyes, don’t they? Well, seeing their strange eyes in the books for so long made them become an expectation. But what if… can their eyes look different? Like ours? Like the Fairies? As in have colour?”
My father’s face twisted into a frown. “Your question is worryingly specific.”
I grimaced, trying to give a nonchalant shrug. “I think I saw one when I went to the Market. Only from a distance! But I think he had coloured eyes.”
My father’s worry blew, his eyes widening. “At the Market? Why didn’t you say!”
“Only from a distance!” I repeated, rushing to calm him. “He was attending a different stall and didn’t come near me!” The lies burned my tongue as they stumbled through my lips, and every word stained my father’s expression with horror.
“Kenia,” he gasped, then pulled me into him, his arms trembling around me as they gripped me tight. “Blessed Blue Moon, you are safe. Why didn’t you mention this?”
Guilt pinched my chest. “Forgive me, father. I didn’t see the need. But I’m safe. I’m here. I wasn’t harmed.”
“No.” His body deflated with a heavy breath, his arms squeezing me tighter. “No, blessed be the Blue Moon you weren’t.” He withdrew his head and placed his lips on my forehead in a warm, lingering touch. “You cannot leave something like that out again. You must tell us.”
I nodded, biting the inside of my cheek again. The pressure in my chest grew, expanded, stung and ached as my father tenderly brushed my hair.
He worried this much over meseeinga Spider from a distance. How could I ever tell him I was meeting one?
He sighed, slowly unwinding his arms from around me. “I have no answer to your earlier question,” he said, eyes still bright with worry as he watched me. “Spiders possess eyes based on their breed and powers. There have never been any records or mentions of them having otherwise, so I imagine what you saw must have been a trick of the light.”
11
When I visited the Fairies’ world the third time, I was not alone, and I was not there to trade things or prove my capability.
The company of my people—other female Elves who accompanied Pyria to answer to her potential mate—heightened my excitement. Each step had a bounce, and my grin couldn’t get any wider as I listened to the slightly older females giggle and talk about what Pyria’s potential mate’s reaction would be once he realised she would be answering to him.
“Stop it!” One of the females gasped with a scandalised grin. “We have yet to see the male, and you are all plotting to see his fall!”
“Well, why not? If Pyria has decided to answer to him, it can only mean he is a delight. And heisa Fairy.” Another wiggled her purple brows. “Those creatures are like honey on your tongue.”
I gasped, my face burning when I interpreted her words, and some of the females shrieked their laughter.
“No, not in front of her! She’s too young to hear this!” One of the nearly mature females, Relia, pulled me into her arms, laughing herself as she smoothed my hair back.
Their shrieks of laughter and gossip lessened as we neared the Market. All sorts of eyes landed on our slightly large group of females, Werewolves and Fairies alike looking at us. There were collective breaths of relief from the other females, and it took a while for me to realise it was due to the absence of another top predator species. Vampires didn’t move during the daytime, and the Werewolves respected boundaries unless provoked, but the Spiders…
Indeed, it was a good day.
We walked through the bustling Market, and like me, the other females mostly gazed at the Fairies present, some who fluttered their beautiful wings at us in greeting.
I stayed close to my group with Keia resting on my left shoulder, and I observed how our surroundings changed once we exited the Market from the other side. My curiosity melted into awe as the trees became larger and more abundant the further we ambled. Shimmery lights hung from branches and drooping vines; arching windows curved within tree trunks, and sheer, glittery curtains fluttered with a gentle breeze that carried the delicate scent of blooming flowers and something that made my nose tickle.
Fairies livedinsidetree trunks, unlike us who built our homes on flattened treetops. But like us, their trees were enormous—enough to form dwellings for them. And I wondered just how big these dwellings were on the inside, if they were enough for a large family, and what sort of rooms one would find inside.
