Queen of the Fae: Book Two in the Fae Unbound Series (Fae Unbound Teen Young Adult Fantasy Series) (9 page)

"But you're Myrddin. They won't turn against you."

"They will if they learn how I got my magic. You better hope they don't, because Myrddin and I are all that stand between you and death. And again, Thomas, you need to hear me...if you continue along this path, you risk everything, including the respect the fae have for Myrddin. I've extended you my protection. If you continue to behave in ways the fae wouldn't accept, they'll start to question my judgment. If they decide I've extended my protection unwisely, they'll come for you, and they may also come for me. That's not an outcome I can get behind, so are you listening? If you can't agree to look for interests outside of this single-minded obsession with impressing the fae, I'll leave you here when I go home. You'll be on your own, then, without Myrddin's protection."

"No, James, I don't want that. I can try, if you show me how. But I can't give up the magic."

"I haven't asked you to. I just want you to realize that you need to be human as well as fae—have interests, make friends, read a book or watch a movie once in a while. Playing a fracking video game! I understand now that I did this wrong when I started in training your abilities right away. That was Myrddin, the teacher side of me, kicking in. I should have started with just helping you to be a guy. Because I, James, am really good at just being a guy."

"Well, then I guess I could use some lessons in being a guy. How do I start?"

James held a hand up, palm out, "A high five would be a good first step."

Lizbet was feeling down when she first woke up, but she broke into a wide grin when the phone on her nightstand vibrated, signaling the arrival of a text from James.

"we r @ heathrow. flt out soon. cle-hopkns @ 9:30 pm"

She quickly texted back.

"do u want 2 b picked up"

"can u?"

"chking w/ tanj"

Lizbet fired off a text to Tanji asking if she would be available to pick James up that evening and got the response she was hoping for. 

"we cn get u - send flt #"

She realized she hadn't asked her mother if it would be okay to go. She ran down to the kitchen, fearing she would take off flying as she went down the stairs. She was so light, so happy, even though she felt like she had barely slept.

She grabbed her mother, who was making a stack of pancakes for breakfast, and gave her a big hug. "James is coming home tonight! Can I go with Tanji to pick him up? Say yes, say yes, say yes!"

Lizbet's mother smiled, "It's been a while since I've seen you this happy, kiddo. So, okay, I'm saying yes."

"Woohoo!"

"But...and this is a big 'but', you've only just turned 16 and James is 19. And, let's not forget a little something about a trip to Scotland he involved himself in without mentioning to your mother where the two of you would be. So...I need to get to know James better before you two start running around town together. You can pick him up, but then you come straight home. Understand?"

"Yes! You are the best mother in the world."

Lizbet continued to beam as she ate her breakfast. There was no way she was going to be able to focus at school. James was coming home. Having him back where she could hold his hand wouldn't fix everything, but she was confident it couldn't make things worse.

Lizbet racked her bike and locked it up. Behind her, from the loose group of boys loitering on the school steps, she heard catcalling, and then one of them called out, "Nice rack."

She chuckled to herself. Tanji sure knows her jerks.

As she walked up the steps, Tanji came clattering up the stairs behind her and fell into step with her as she entered the school hallway. "Are you so excited you can barely stand it? Your geeky hottie is coming home!"

"Like I need to be reminded! I don't know how I'm going to stay focused in school today. This morning over breakfast, I was trying to review everything I studied last night for Physics, and I kept blanking out, grinning to myself like a big goober and thinking about James instead."

Tanji opened her eyes wide and nodded her head with big, exaggerated movements, "I'm sure that will go away once he's here. Focusing on school will be much easier."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't care. I'm walking on clouds today. I can hardly wait to see him."

"Don't forget, Langoureth gets to see her brother again for the first time in over a thousand years, so I’m a little excited myself now that James and I are kind of related. I've been Little Miss Envy for years because you get to have a cool brother. So, maybe I've got me one now, too."

"I hadn't thought about that. It's weird, but what isn't anymore?"

Tanji put on a more serious face and said, "'But chica, it's not just James arriving on that plane tonight..." as Lizbet opened her locker and chucked in some books she didn't need until after lunch, "...how do you feel about James bringing company?"

"You had to mention that when I was trying so hard to forget it. It's going to be uncomfortable, what else? I have all these conflicting memories and thoughts about him—a lot of them from Morgan, but some of them mine. At one point a month ago, he was stalking me, James, and Eamon around Scotland, probably completely willing to kill all of us, so it's hard for me to see Thomas as someone safe, no matter what James says about him. James actually
likes
him even though he's the reincarnation of the guy who murdered Myrddin...and the whole 'he's my grandson' factor is more than a little weird, too. My ancient Morgan has all these memories of him as this sweet-faced, serious little boy that she adored."

The crowd in the hall was rapidly thinning, so they did their quick BFF hug and took off in opposite directions down the hall to class. As they parted, Tanji said, “I need to talk to you about something soon, but I want to wait until after you can think about something other than James, so be ready for a big, serious talk tomorrow.”

Lizbet nodded, not really registering her friend’s serious expression. She almost passed right by the door to her classroom, distracted by the happy cloud of bliss that surrounded her. It was a strong day. No headache. Lizbet had faith now that whatever had been hurting her since Fae Day was going to be easier to handle with James around. They'd already been through so much together, and he always had her back.

Lizbet lingered at the coach's office door after PE class. Since she was feeling confident and strong that day, she might as well say to Mrs. Armstrong what she'd wanted to say to her the first day of school.

"Moore, you waiting for me for a reason?" the teacher said as she passed Lizbet in the hall and continued in to her office. She tossed volleyball into a large wire container as she walked past it on the way to her desk, "If you are, better take a seat."

Lizbet followed her into the office but stood next to the chair instead of sitting. This kept her at eye level with the woman who was eyeballing her back while sitting on the edge of her sturdy metal desk. "I just wanted to tell you that it isn't right I can't run with the team. I didn't grow an extra set of legs or get super strength. I've just got wings—useless ones, too. Mostly, they just get in the way. They are definitely not going to make me a better athlete. There's no reason I shouldn't be allowed on the team."

Lizbet kept eye contact with Mrs. Armstrong. The teacher's tough expression softened a little as she did.

"Moore, I didn't make the rule. I didn't even say I like the rule. I've got a nephew in California who never learned how to swim, but since Fae Day he dives right in at the beach and stays under water for hours at a time. The gills he grows when he hits the water really help. So, I get it. But I also wouldn't let him compete on the swim team. It wouldn't be fair to the other kids."

"That's kind of different, isn't it?"

"Truthfully, I don't know. Can you really say for sure that there's nothing about you that won't affect your running abilities, even things you don't know about yet? According to my sister, Jared keeps finding out new things about himself every day."

"No, I can't say for sure...but I'm really going to miss being on the team."

The teacher looked thoughtful for a moment. "Okay, kid...here’s what I can do. No one said you couldn't work out with us. You can compete with us during practice and be water girl at the meets. Would that help?"

"Mrs. Armstrong, thank you! That would help. I wish I could participate all the way, but being able to compete during practice will be great, if that’s the only way I can be on the team."

"Sure—it'll probably help a couple of your team-mates if they've got somebody else at their level to go up against. Might even give us a stronger team. And if anyone on the school board has a problem with it, I don't think they're going to be able to come up with any good reason you can't participate as a non-competitor."

As Lizbet walked to her next class, she not only felt like she'd won a worthwhile victory, she felt pretty grown-up about it. Two days ago, she'd gone off like a scolded puppy with its tail tucked between its legs when the coach told her she couldn't be on the team. Today, she'd faced down what had been hurting her, and she realized her teacher probably hadn't even meant to make her feel so bad. She thought that if she could get back that level of confidence all the time, things would definitely be a few more steps toward normal. Even the headaches seemed to stay away when she was acting like the old Lizbet, the wingless Lizbet.

"Hey runt," Lizbet called out when she heard Bobby's voice as he entered from the garage with Mom.

"Hi Lizzie-tizzie," her brother called back.

Lizbet walked over to hug him as he entered the kitchen, and he pulled back just the slightest before he stopped himself, smiled, put his arms around her neck, and hugged her tight.

"Dad says I can't go flying with you, so don't try to make me."

"I wasn't thinking of taking off right this minute anyway." Lizbet got him in a gentle headlock and rubbed the top of his head with her knuckles. "How about noogies? Are noogies okay?"

Bobby shouted, "Stop, stop! Mom! Make her stop," but he was laughing, and Lizbet loved hearing it. Maybe things really were going to go back to normal.

She let her brother go, and he bounced over to the sliding glass door to the backyard, then turned back to her, "Hey, the gnomes are all coming back now, too. I'm glad, because Daddy wanted to have Mr. Ross take them away. I wouldn't like it if anybody hurt the gnomes. That just wouldn't be right." Then he was out the door, laughing, as a group of gnomes ran up to him, begging him to play.

As she watched her children roughhouse, Sheila realized that this could be any day like it had been before Fae Day. Inside her, something relaxed that had been full of fear for too long. Lizbet was acting like her old self, and Bobby seemed none the worse for wear after two days listening to his father's anti-fae talk.

Steve had tried to convince her that Bobby shouldn't be exposed to Lizbet until Lizbet gave up magic. Sheila wasn't having it. She'd bundled up Bobby's things and then sent him to the car, telling him she'd be out in just a minute. She watched him all the way there, making sure that he was safe as he crossed the small parking lot, and then she let Steve have it.

"Don't ever, and I mean
ever
talk about our daughter that way around our son. Lizbet didn't choose to be half-fae, and although I don't like that she lied to us to help the fae, I think what she did to save them was brave and honorable. She has more guts and strength of conviction than anyone I know.  And don't try to convince the little boy who worships her that she is anything less than a fantastic big sister, do you understand me?"

"Sheila, magic is dangerous. You've seen it yourself."