Ever Shade (A Dark Faerie Tale #1) by Alexia Purdy (complete)

Chapter Six

The Teleen hills were like large swells of waves, flowing with the greenest of emerald grasses. The blades of grass rolled and swayed lightly, caressed by the wind. The air flew in constant rushes, whipping everyone's long tresses about them like tangled dancing ribbons. Shade's own wavy brown hair looked to be the shortest of the entourage's, except for Ewan's. All the women's hair seemed to be almost waist length, many with ornate braids, ties, or thin ropes wrapped through like extensions. Most of the colors were unnatural; nothing a human man or woman would ever possess naturally. Waves of golden brown, reds deep as rubies, blacks as dark as midnight, and browns like tiger's eyes flowed in the breezes. It was quite a dance of flashing colors.

Shade felt a twinge of jealousy. Nothing but human light brown hair danced on her head, nothing fey-like about it. It made her wonder what she had that resembled the fey at all. Maybe she had turned out to be more human than fey. Maybe they had the wrong girl after all. It could be she had no magic besides her spirit guides. She couldn't perform glamour or heal anything, let alone fight or enchant like the Dryad Queen.

Shade shivered, recalling the queen's cold stare and the ice-cold prison of air which kept her tightly within its grasp. It made her want to faint from a lack of oxygen. It was not something she cared to remember.

Her legs burned with the constant strain of hiking up and down the hills. The hills appeared smooth with grass but were rocky and uneven. Her tennis shoes weren't made for such rigorous hiking. She paused, leaned over, and placed her hands on her knees. Her lungs ached with the effort, and breathing felt like a burning torture. A faint metallic taste clung to her mouth as she coughed up spit. She was not a fan of the physically gifted. Her idea of a good time was curling up on her bed with a thick book. There was no way she would've voluntarily done anything that resembled hiking before this. Her idea of camping was a campsite where you could walk to your car and a public restroom. It was as close as she got to be outdoorsy.

This sucks.

"You all right?" Soap paused just ahead of her, craning his neck to see her face.

Shade's cheeks were pink with heat from the strain. She swallowed her blood-tainted saliva and nodded. I can do this, no problem. Just breathe, Shade, breathe. The problem was that she didn't quite believe herself. Turning toward Braelynn, who also had come to a stop by her, she attempted a weak smile for the Sorceress when she gave Shade a gentle pat on the back.

"The trail will be hard, not just for you, but for all of us. In time, you'll grow accustomed to the rigorous terrain. Are you having trouble catching your breath? I have a potion you can take for that. It's kind of like asthma medicine. Most faeries don't have that kind of trouble, but I prepare treatments for all kinds of people." Shade grinned, feeling at ease with the kind warrior. "I knew it was a possibility with a human coming along. Let me know if you need it," Braelynn offered. She grinned back and moved to continue to trek in the direction of the others.

Shade sighed and closed her eyes. She knew Braelynn was kind, but her words made her feel a twinge of inferiority, being human and all. She wondered how all of the fey felt about humans in general. Stereotyping was probably not just a human trait, and she wondered if the group thought she was weak. She hoped not.

She straightened up, took a deep breath in, and attempted the hill again. The afternoon sun burned down on her, and her hair felt afire. Peeking into her backpack, she remembered her baseball cap, which she'd stuffed into it earlier. It came to her fingers as quickly as she thought it. She was never going to get used to how cool that was. Shade zipped up her backpack and pulled the cap over the wavy strands that now fell away from her ponytail. She was glad she'd remembered to bring it; her head was thanking her for it.