The Wingless Fairy

Chapter 11

~Peri's Past~

   I never dreamed that I wasn't my mother's daughter, although it was completely obvious. My mother was somewhat beautiful. Time handled her roughly. Maturity lines around her eyes grew deeper each day I saw her. I've seen what she looked like in high school. Perfectly shaped pink lips, and a smile to math. Her eyes were always bright, a bright blue. Her high cheek bones almost looked as if an artist took the time, before she was born, to shape them perfectly. Her dark blonde hair was always so long, worn down to her back. Now, it's different, she chopped off her hair to neck length, and always wears a tight bun.

   On the other hand, I, with a little rounder cheeks and green eyes, could never compare to her. I was average height, and both my parents are short. My eyes are almond shaped, not round and big like hers. I'm pretty, but not as beautiful as she was.

   God, I missed her.

   I remember the time I met a woman so strange, so beautiful...

   I ran up the hill as fast as my little legs could carry me. Finally, exhausted, I flopped onto my tummy and rolled down the hill once again. The long uncut grass were like tiny needles in my arms, but I didn't care.

   When I finally came to a stop, I closed my eyes, the sun melting into me, making my arm throb, my wet arm. I opened my eyes to the clear blue sky, not a cloud in sight. My hand made its way to my arm. It was warm to the touch, clearly aggrivated from me rolling down the hill as many times as I wanted. It hurt, stung and burned as though I touched a burning pot.

   "You're hurt," a women's voice jingled in my ears.

   I sat up, alarmed by this stranger's presence. Opening my mouth, ready to scream for my mom if I had to.

   "Let me help you." The strange woman look a bandage and placed it on my arm, gently rubbing it with her long, soft fingers. "You should be careful where you roll," she mused, tilting her head to the side, like she was getting a better look at me. I was almost shocked to see her. The woman looked almost exactly like me. The only difference was that her hair was cropped off, only a tiny bit lower than her chin.

   In that awkward moment, I looked back to where I rolled. Broken glass was scattered down the hill. It caught the light like glitter. It shined ever so brightly.

   Just then, my mom came out looking for me.

   "Come here, Peri," she called as she got closer. I could only hear her voice faintly. My ears, eyes, nose... everything, was focused on the strange woman, sitting in front of me on her knees, rubbing my arm gently.

   Finally my mom got close enough for me to snap back into reality. "Mommy, this woman..." I pointed my chubby little finger to the women who just helped me. She was gone.

   "Peri, I don't see a woman. Come on, it's time for dinner."

    Mom told me it was the heat getting in my head. She was there... I knew it. I was only five at the time, so what did I know? When I hopped into bed in my snowman pj's, I could hear the faint whistling of the wind, almost like the sound of tiny bells.

   ~Emory's Past~

   I never doubted I would become king. I knew my duties. I would marry the garden fairy, Rose. I knew that ever since I was a little child. I would join the garden and water fairies together. It would be perfect, my father would say. At that time, other fairies of other talents would call us useless, there was no need for pulling water out of thin air, or moving it to make twisted shapes.

   The only other talent that needed us was garden. Their roses wilted, and they couldn't get enough water. My father got together with the father of Rose to plan out our lives.

   Everyone knew how it would work out. We would make more talents. We would make a fairy that could bend water, as well as plants.

   I never agreed to this, but knowing what I must do, I couldn't argue. I never wanted to bend water. I wanted to be a spark. Start forrest fires and have a new forrest grow from its ashes.

   Water and fire can never get along, they cancel each other out. Too much water, and the fire goes out, too much fire, and the water evaporates.

   I first met rose when I was thirteen. She was thirteen, only a month younger than me. She was dressed in a floral dress. Clearly, her parents were trying to show off their talent with pride.

   Her eyes were glued forward. She didn't look down, or up, or anywhere. Her stare was blank, she wasn't seeing anything at all. She was there because she had to be. I had to, too. But she could pretend like she was interested in the place. I was pretending to actually be interested in the ideas her parents were coming up with. My ears were locked on the hushed voices as our parents discussed the arrangements. My eyes were locked on Rose with curiousity. She was standing there, staring at me too, but not seeing a thing.

   She's the exact opposite from the day I met her. With a firey temper of a spark fairy, she wasn't at all a precious petal her parents claimed for her to be.

   As I spent more and more time with her, the more and more I was starting to like the idea that we were engaged.

   Until, one day, we were sitting by the pond, our toes against the top of the cold water. We just sat there without a word. I finally had the courage to stand on the water, a trick I learned from my tutor. I held my hand out to her.

    With a surprised look on her face, she took my hand. "I can't stand... I'll slip through."

   "Don't worry, I think I can carry our weight." She jumped into my arms. I was surprised by her sudden weight, and I slipp through the water, but only sunk down to our ankles. I had pushed myself back up before we could go totally underneath.

   We were now a year older, her back was pressed to my stomach. "I don't know how to swim!" she grasped my arm. I turned her to face me, already exhausted from standing on water and now carrying her. It takes a lot of energy for me to stand on water and a lot more to hold her up.

   I set her back on the edge of the ground.

   "I can't believe this," she said, frowning.

   "Well, it takes a lot of work, but..."

   "I didn't mean that. I meant that my parents basically gave me away to you, a guy who lives in a castle surrounded by water. I can't even swim. How stupid are my parents?" she smiled, laughing, making a joke out of it. I knew that she was serious.

   "I didn't agree to it either," I snapped. "Your parents have way too much pride in their gardens. I'm not a huge fan of gardens! Whats so special about yours?"

   She gasped, shocked at my sudden outburst. I didn't really mean it. Before I could apologize, she frowned, "I hate you. I never want to see you again. Don't come by my house... ever," she flew away.

   To this day, I still hate what I said. I was so mean to her. And I said she had too much pride, look at me, bragging about living on water.

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Hope you liked it. I think I might upload another chapter now.