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“I think we should go with her. Listen to what her mom says,” Inigo said to Beverley.
“All right. Let’s face it, the day’s ruined anyway,” agreed Beverley.
****
The three rode together in Inigo’s truck, a morose silence surrounding them. No one spoke except when Hyacinthe told Inigo which street to turn down. Beverley had insisted on sitting in back by herself instead of joining them in front. Hyacinthe was struggling not to cry, her chest a tight ball of misery on what should have been the happiest day of her life. All she could think of was that she was on the brink of losing both Inigo and Beverley. Bev’s self-esteem was so fragile she was likely to be hurt beyond redemption by the assumption that the woman she loved was lying to her, or worse, playing her for a fool. And even gentle, loving Inigo was cold and distant.
For the first time in her life, Hyacinthe wished she believed in the Earth Goddess, or Allah, or God, or someone, anyone she could pray to who might restore the relationship between the three of them. Someone who would make Inigo and Beverley understand she was telling the truth and had been just as surprised as they were when her wings had sprouted. How was she supposed to know double penetration sex would make them grow? Her mom had definitely not mentioned that when she’d told Cinthe about sex!
Melusine lived in a small bungalow on the outskirts of town. She was just a few minutes’ walk from a huge lake and park and her little house was surrounded by willow trees. The three stood on her stoop as Inigo knocked. Only seconds passed before light footsteps approached the door and it was opened wide.
“Cinthe, darling! And you two must be Beverley and Inigo! I’ve heard so much about you both, it’s so wonderful to meet you at last. Come in, come in. Was I expecting you today, darling? There wasn’t a pop-up reminder on my electronic calendar. Oh well, I’ve just baked a loaf of honey-oatmeal bread. We’ll all have that with some tea.”
Melusine ushered them all into the hallway as she spoke. Hyacinthe couldn’t have gotten a word in between her mother’s chatter anyway, but her throat had totally closed up with misery and it was all she could do not to burst into tears.
Melusine led them through the house to the kitchen, promising to put water on to heat for tea, while Hyacinthe, Beverley, and Inigo followed after her.
Cinthe couldn’t help but notice how the three of them stood in the kitchen, none of them touching each other or even looking at each other. So different from that morning sitting on the couch, laughing at the movies. It seemed like a million years ago, yet it was only a few hours. Her life had gone from heaven to hell in half a day.
Hyacinthe pulled her dress over her head and dropped it on the floor. Her shoulders were itching with the need to release her wings. Traveling in the truck had been painful as she hadn’t been able to lean back against the seat. Standing in her pink lace underwear, she turned her back on her mom and flexed her shoulders. Instantly her wings sprouted, stretching quickly to their full size, sparkling in the prettiest rainbow of pinks and blues and lilacs.
“Oh, Cinthe, at last! That’s so wonderful! I’m so pleased for you!” Her mom ran across the room and hugged Hyacinthe. They were the same height, their faces level with each other and identical blue eyes gazed into hers. “But you aren’t happy. Something has gone wrong.”
“They think it’s a movie stunt or a magic trick. They don’t believe I’m part fairy.” Hyacinthe threw herself into her mother’s arms and the tears she’d been struggling to control broke out with harsh sobs.
Melusine looked from Inigo to Beverley. Both of them were standing poker-faced, Beverley also looking like she was about to cry, Inigo with his face closed but his eyes tragic.
“She hadn’t told you, had she?”
Beverley remained unmoving.
Inigo replied in a husky, tone. “No.”
Melusine patted Hyacinthe then went to turn off the boiling water. She handed the warm, honey-oatmeal bread to Inigo, plates, cups and cutlery to Beverley, got cream and butter out of the refrigerator, and then waved at the table. “Sit down, everyone. I’ve always found confessions go better with food.”
Melusine turned her back to them all, pulled her shirt over her head so it covered her breasts but bared her back, then spread her own wings. They were a glowing green with a swirly pattern of amber through them. Melusine flapped them a few times, folded them then pulled her shirt back on.
“No one is to say anything until you’ve all had a cup of tea and a slice of bread. Then Beverley and Inigo may ask me any questions they wish,” she ordered, passing the plates around.
Hyacinthe knew she’d never be able to eat, but obediently took a slice of bread and sipped her tea. For some strange reason just sitting around her mother’s kitchen table with the three people she loved the most in the whole world helped soothe her. Her life was still in a total mess, but now she felt there might be some hope to sort things out, that a pathway might appear to straighten out the mistrust and despair.
“This would never have been such a disaster if you’d told them about your fairy blood,” Melusine said gently.
“I know, Mom, but I never thought it’d happen. Since my wings hadn’t released at puberty, I’d accepted that I’d never fly. Now I’d be happy if they disappeared forever just as long as I could have the love of Inigo and Beverley once again.”
“Your wings have released so you need to move on. I’ll teach you all about flying and diminishing in a little while and Inigo and Beverley will see how it works. But right now Beverley and Inigo likely have questions they want to ask.”
Beverley just shook her head. Hyacinthe noticed she hadn’t eaten anything and had taken only a few sips of her tea. Inigo was either hungrier or coping better. He’d finished his tea and was munching on his second slice of bread.
Inigo swallowed then said, “Maybe you could give us some background on this whole fairy thing. I haven’t believed in fairies since I was six and my sister was four and the tooth fairy forgot to leave her money when she lost her first tooth. She was pretty much broken-hearted and Mom was apologizing all over the place and it was mighty easy to work out what had happened, even for a six-year-old.”
“As with so many other myths and legends, fairies are based in truth. Maybe at some distant past time there even was a tooth fairy. But over the centuries fairies have interbred with humans so that now it’s rare to find a full-blood fairy. When my mother was a child, her parents searched everywhere to find a fairy mate for her, even traveling to Europe. But there was no single, male fairy of a similar age to her and they only found one other full-blood, young female. But my parents were a perfect example of happy mixed marriage.”
The soothing sounds of her mother’s voice telling a story she’d heard many times and knew by heart helped Hyacinthe relax somewhat. She managed to eat her bread and drink her tea, even pouring a second cup for Inigo. She was starting to look forward to her very first flight. But she would still give up her wings in an instant to have Bev and Inigo reconciled to her.
The conversation wound down and Melusine jumped up from the table.
“Let me change this top and then we’ll fly,” she said, leaving the room.
