“Good. Willow taught me some new tricks this morning to pass down to the younger ones. I’ve been grateful to have an elder healer to teach me her ways.”
My father pulled my mother into another tight hug. She rested her head on his chest as he left a gentle kiss against her temple.
“I missed you.” My mother’s voice was quiet. "Both of you.” She tugged my father aside to pull me into her arms. I squeezed her and took in her calming scent. Lavender and minty sage. She always centered me, giving me a moment of serenity in a world that was no longer peaceful.
“I missed you too, Ima,” I said, drawing away with a faint smile, “but I really need a bath.” She laughed as my father lifted an arm to smell himself. His brows pinched as he got a whiff.
“I’m next after you, so hurry up,” he said as he walked over to the table, throwing some of the chopped bits of food into his mouth and pulling out the chair to take a seat while filling his plate.
“Are you sure you don’t want to eat first? I made supper.” My mother eyed me, knowing we were gone a whole day without her cooking.
“I’ll eat when I get back, Ima. It shouldn’t take long,” I said while walking over to the ladder that led to my loft. On either side of the main room, we each had our own small loft bedroom. Mine was on the right and my parents’ was on the left. The wood creaked under my weight as I climbed into my small space to grab some fresh clothes and soap before leaping down to head toward the front door.
“Stay alert,” my father said, nodding to me before ripping into a bite of bread.
“I know, Pada.” I rolled my eyes at his constant coaching and he threw a fresh piece of bread at me. Catching it, I smirked athim and walked out the door with a mouth full of the buttery roll.
I chucked my boots off to the side. The warm soil and soft foliage crunched under my bare feet as the evening sat in. I glanced around, making sure there weren’t any others at the river where we bathed before I pulled my clothes off, letting them pool at my feet. I stepped out of them. The cool breeze pebbled my skin as I approached the water. I dipped my toe in, feeling its warmth before walking out into the slow, coursing river.
My head fell back, and I soaked my hair as I ran my fingers through it, gently pulling out the braids. I grabbed my soap and scrubbed my skin before washing my hair and face. Something tugged at one of my legs, making me jump. I stopped, glancing around the water circling me before I peered up at the tree line, but when I saw them, it was too late.
Four boys from the village bent the water around my ankles from where they stood on the shoreline, dragging me under the watery depths of the river. I wielded the surrounding water the best I could, but it wasn’t enough against four others commanding it to do something else.
It swirled around me, trapping me. My nose burned as my lungs screamed for air. I gathered all my strength and tried again, creating a divide between me and the belly of the river. I gasped for breath and pulled my legs into the small pocket I had created for myself. The water surrounding me raged like the caps at sea, barreling its white horses into me as I struggled to keep it divided from me and the stream’s graveled ground. And then it halted. The waters calmed. I released the barrier around meas I kicked off the river’s bottom and broke through the surface, gasping for air.
The boys that had always bullied me were gone. Being a girl and the future leader of our village often got me terrorized by the men that felt intimidated by a woman in power. And it didn’t help that I looked different. My father and mother constantly told me I was a gift from the Mother and we had ancestors who had silver hair, so it ran in the family line, but it certainly didn’t stop people from taking notice of my different appearance.
I circled quickly, looking for them, but found nothing. Wings met with dark shoulder-length hair and a big ego were standing on the shoreline waving me over to him.Ace.
I swam over from the deep but didn’t go any farther as the water lapped at my breasts.
“What all did you see?” I asked, and he signed something, but when I gave him a look of confusion, he shook his head and pointed to the tall trees. The four guys dangled in the distance as they tried to get untangled from the branches. I huffed out a laugh, and when I looked back at Ace, he was smiling at his accomplishment as he waved me over to the shore again.
“Turn around. I’m not getting out with you looking at me.” He rolled his eyes with a smirk and turned away from me, leaving me with the sight of his folded wings like those on the back of a bird. I felt my cheeks heat. My tormentors would see me bare if I rose any farther out of the water.
Ace noticed my hesitation and peeked over his shoulder, seeing me looking in that direction. He turned toward me, walking into the river fully clothed until he stood next to me. He gave me his back as he faced the men he blasted into the trees. Water trickled off his smokey black feathers as he stretched out his wings, using them to cover my nudity from their view.
Once I was fully covered, he nodded for me to walk to the shoreline. He matched my stride as he side-stepped until wewere on the bank. He never peeked over his shoulder. I gathered my clothes and dressed quickly.
When I was finished, I reached up and grazed my hand down one of his wings to tell him I was done. He shuddered from the touch as he draped his wings back down his back and turned to me.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” I paused. “They’re beautiful.” I could’ve sworn I saw him blush as he pulled me along to walk back up to the village. “Wait.” I stopped him. “Thank you.” I shook my head and tried to wield my hands with what little knowledge I had of his language and signed it to him, regardless if he could hear me. I wanted him to see my gratitude and my respect for him.
“Anytime,” he signed as he urged us along again. His muscles shifted under the wet fabric clinging to them as he walked in front of me. All Sky Elves were built like the mountains they dwelled on. They had to be to wield the wings on their backs. I cleared my throat, not letting my thoughts wander that way about Ace. He was a friend, nothing more, but I couldn’t deny he was attractive.
I followed him through the array of trees until we were weaving through the small cottage homes of my village. He approached my door and walked in, not cleaning up. He trudged in muddy water and dirt and I could see my mother’s scowl through the window. I laughed as he apologized and sauntered back out with a notepad and quill to write with.
“What are you doing?”
He didn’t respond to my prodding. Instead, he handed me the notepad a moment after he had scribbled something on it. It was letters, the alphabet. I looked over at him as he held up his hand with one sign and then pointed to the first letter on the page. I mimicked him as we kept walking. He was teaching me the basics of signs first before moving on to more advanced things.It made sense. If I knew the letters, I could tell him anything I needed to by spelling it out.
I tapped his shoulder and tried my best to recall some signs my mother had taught me as he kept walking.
“Where are we going?” I signed, and his lips tugged on their sides as he nodded his approval for getting the words right. He pointed beyond the trees in the distance, between the mountains and the waters of Draynua. I couldn’t place what he was pointing at until his arm wrapped around my waist and he launched us into the skies in that direction.
I squealed as my feet dangled far from the ground below. He bobbed and weaved around the tops of the trees. The powerful breeze dried my wet hair and his clothes as he flew toward the mountainside. I clung to him as I glanced down below, seeing some of the fae scurry around our village like ants from this distance. He gave me a gentle squeeze as if to tell me everything was okay, but that didn’t stop the terror of falling to my death if he dropped me.
After a few moments, he gently sailed through the skies. The adrenaline subsided, and I took in the flight's beauty. The ocean in the distance flowed against the sands of Esora, the last of the sun’s rays graced me with their warmth over the jutted peaks of Heavensreach, and the nightoak trees stretched their rising crowns, drinking in the last of the sunshine as we braided through them. I fanned out my arms and embraced the summer’s wind through my hair. I peered over my shoulder at Ace, who was taking in my reaction to my first time flying with him. A grin planted on his face.
