The Elf Girl (11 page)

“My parents’ room,” I guessed, hugging myself to prevent any further chills.

Addison nodded. “It hasn’t been used since they left. The fireplace hasn’t been lit. Their clothes are still in the wardrobe, and your mother’s jewelry is in the vanity drawer. Zora wouldn’t get rid of anything. She wouldn’t move even one thing in this room. She never set foot in it after your parents left.”

“It must have been hard for her.”

“Indeed it was. That is why she moved in with us.”

I nodded, feeling pity for my sister, who was left behind.

“I would like to see the other room now,” I said quietly. I didn’t like being in this room. I didn’t feel like I belonged.

“Yes, follow me.” This time Addison didn’t take my hand, so I just followed her. I could tell being in this room had saddened her, too.

As we passed through the main room, I could see Stellan sitting by the fireplace adding more wood. The glow of the firelight made him appear even more handsome. I blushed, glad that he wasn’t looking, and continued to follow Addison to the next room.

I was somewhat surprised to find myself standing in a bathroom. I hadn’t expected flush toilets in a world that shunned technology. The bathroom was simple and pretty, with a sink decorated with floral designs and a circular mirror above. In the corner was a small shower.

“Flush toilets and showers?” I asked.

“We are somewhat modern here, although our bathroom facilities are not as advanced as you would find in the Human Realm. We are still very basic, but we aren’t cave people.”

“I’m glad.”

Addison laughed and took my hand again. “Our Realm has become more modern in the last hundred years. Some secrets from the Human Realm just couldn’t be kept secret from us. Even though elves left the Human Realm because they didn’t like the humans, we never disliked
all
of their culture.”

“Well, I’m glad the secret to personal hygiene was leaked into the Elf Realm, but I
am
noticing quite a lot of iron in here,” I remarked.

Actually, every piece of bathroom equipment was fashioned out of iron. I was used to porcelain sinks and toilets. The scene struck me as sort of odd.

“Yes, well, iron keeps the fairies at bay. Or at least we wish it would…,” Addison said, trailing off.

“What do you mean?”

“Have you ever read in your fantasy books about a fairy’s greatest weakness?” she wondered.

“Yes, iron. But I thought it was just a myth,” I admitted.

Addison shook her head. “Iron burns or poisons fairies, depending on the amount they come in contact with and the strength of the fairy. In the Elf Realm, we furnish as many structures as we can out of iron.”

“Then I’m guessing not too many fairies stop by to use the bathroom facilities,” I said, hoping she would appreciate the joke.

Addison laughed, and led me to another room.

“This was yours and Zora’s room,” she told me as we walked in the last room.

This room was a bit more cheery, with two twin-sized beds, each with a floral comforter. Much larger than the first bedroom, it held two wardrobes and two vanities, and had a wide, oval green rug covering the floor. A large wooden trunk with an old-fashioned padlock rested between the two beds, separating them from each other. The trunk seemed old and important, like some kind of rare antique. I peered at Addison with a questioning glance.

“We tried to open the trunk…because we wanted to know if anything important was inside, maybe a clue to where your sister is or where your parents went when they disappeared,” she explained with a sympathetic glance. “Only…we couldn’t.”

“Have you tried using a hammer or something? Or tried to find a key?”

Addison nodded. “Unfortunately, the lock is protected by a spell. Only a Spell Master can open it, because they are the only ones who can work with locks and keys here in the Elf Realm. We believe your father, Carlow, was the one who locked it. He was a Spell Master.”

“Spell Master? What’s that?” I asked

“Sit down and I’ll explain,” she told me.

I obeyed and sat down on one of the beds. Its comforter was a green floral print. The base was a dark forest green and decorated with lighter green flowers. The bed next to it was the same but in brown.

“Every elf and elfen has a magic ability,” she began.

“Yes, I read that in the book. We are gifted in magic, right?”

Addison nodded. “I see you at least read
some
of the book.” She smiled and then went back to explaining. “At sixteen, elves receive their ability. Once their individual ability is identified, they go to a special school for one year to learn about controlling their power. An elf’s power can be almost anything. It ranges from shape-shifting, to healing, to even using the four elements.”

“What is your power?” I asked.

“I have a special way of communicating,” she told me.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Here, let me show you,” she said.

Addison got up and crossed the room to one of the vanities. She opened a drawer, took out a piece of paper, and handed it to me.

“Watch the paper closely,” she instructed.

I set my eyes upon the paper and waited, sifting through the countless possibilities concerning what Addison’s power could be. I heard her take a few deep, even breaths. I looked up for a split second to see her eyes closed, her face expressionless.

What happened next was truly magical, awe-inspiring.

Words began appearing before me on the paper, as if someone was writing them with an invisible pen:

This is my power. Using my mind, I can send messages to anyone I desire. The message can appear on any surface: paper, furniture, and even your very skin.

“That is incredible, Addison…but also a bit unsettling. I don’t know how I would feel about words on my skin.” I rubbed my arm self-consciously. Then I remembered something. “Did you use your power to send me the message in the book, about the page number?”

Addison smiled and nodded. “Yes, very good. I also used it to contact Stellan when he was late.”

I remembered Stellan and my eyes widened. “What’s Stellan’s ability?” I asked.

Suddenly Stellan was by my side. My hand was in his again. I didn’t know how he had gotten here so quickly.

“I can go anywhere I want to in an instant,” he said.

“So you can teleport or something?” I guessed.

“Is that what the humans call it?” he wondered.

I shrugged. “I think so,” I said.

“Then I guess I can teleport. Interesting word, though.” He smiled and closed his eyes tightly.

Before I could ask what he was doing, it suddenly felt like a huge wave of air crashed over me, and when I blinked, Stellan and I were in the main room again.

“Holy crap, we just teleported into a different room!” I cried with delight, staring at Stellan in wonder.

“Nice choice of words,” he said.

“What do you mean?” I asked, a little dizzy. I put a hand against my forehead.

“I don’t believe any elf in this Realm has ever heard of them before,” he told me.

“What? You mean the word
crap
?”

“Yes, that word.”

“Oh, well it’s kind of like slang,” I tried to explain.

He looked at me blankly, obviously confused. “What’s that?”

“Never mind, it’s complicated. They are just human words, I guess,” I said.

Still puzzled, he muttered, “Oh, okay.”

“So what do we do now?” I asked.

Air crashed over us again.

I had to sit back on the bed to steady myself. Teleporting, or whatever the elves called it, made me very dizzy.

“That was so cool,” I said breathlessly.

“Stop showing off, Stellan! Can’t you see she’s tired?” Addison scolded her brother.

“Wait, one more question. If you can, um, teleport, why did we walk a million miles to get here?” I asked.

Stellan laughed and so did Addison. Apparently, my confusion was very funny to them.

“For one, I wanted you to see the beauty of the Realm; and two, I can use my ability with only one creature. I couldn’t have just left my sister all alone, could I?” He winked at Addison.

“I guess not. That’s too bad you can’t teleport with more than one elf.” I sighed.

“Yes, all elfin abilities have certain limitations, like how Addison has to close her eyes when she writes to someone.”

“Really, Addison, is that true?” I asked.

“Yes,” Addison confirmed. “But the limitations are worse with other powers and especially worse for Spell Masters…”

“How is it so for them?” I asked.

“It’s complicated to explain. Let’s save that conversation for another time. Like, for instance, if you were to become a Spell Master,” Addison said, smiling.

“Okay,” I gave in, already wondering what my power would be. “Even though there are limitations, I still think your powers are incredibly cool.”

“Cool.…” Stellan looked confused again.

“That means great,” I informed him.

“Oh, okay,” he replied.

“Now you must go, Stellan. Ramsey needs some rest. I will come along shortly after she is situated,” Addison told her older brother.

Stellan gave a loud sigh and nodded. “All right, I’ll leave.” He walked over to me and reached for my hand. I gave it to him and he kissed it lightly.

“See you in the morning, Ramsey.” His smile almost made me melt to the floor, and then he disappeared into thin air. I couldn’t breathe again for a moment.

“Show off.” Addison sighed and came to sit next to me on the bed.

“He certainly is,” I agreed.

“Enough about him. You need to change out of those clothes and get some sleep. I had Blaire stock your wardrobe with proper clothing. I hope everything fits. I used Zora’s measurements from when she was your age.”

Addison walked over to the wardrobe closest to us.

“This is your wardrobe. The bed you are sitting on was supposed to be yours after you grew out of your crib. The one next to it was Zora’s. I had all of her clothes moved here from my house, as well as her jewelry and other belongings. I thought it would make you feel closer to her.”

“Thank you. That’s very considerate of you,” I remarked.

“You’re welcome,” she replied. “And our house needed some space anyway.” She opened the wardrobe door and pulled out a white nightgown. “Here, put this on. You’ll be more comfortable. I’ll leave you now to get some rest. I still have to change and go to bed myself.”

I noticed then that she was still wearing her gown from the ball. I couldn’t imagine having to walk in that for so long.

Seeing her dress made me think of Carmen and my family, and I had to struggle not to cry. I didn’t want Addison thinking I was a baby or reconsidering coming to the Elf Realm.

“See you in the morning. Try and get some sleep.” Addison gave me a quick hug and then started to leave.

That’s when the events from the bridge came rushing to the surface, and I couldn’t let Addison leave without speaking to her. I had forgotten all about my near-death experience because of all the excitement, but now I couldn’t seem to get the images out of my head.

“Addison, wait!” I protested.

The elfen stopped mid-step and turned to face me.

“Yes?”

“We need to talk.”

“Can it wait until morning?” she asked.

I shook my head. “No, we need to talk now.”

She sighed and then sat down across from me on Zora’s bed.

“Go ahead,” she told me.

“Something happened to me the night I met you at the bookstore. I think it had something to do with my secret, or something to do with Zora. It had to be connected somehow.”

I could tell my words had sparked Addison’s interest. She leaned forward.

“What happened on the bridge, Ramsey?”

“Wait, how did you know something happened at the bridge?” I asked.

Addison realized her mistake and covered her mouth with her hands.

“Forget that I said that!” she pleaded.

“Too late,” I replied.

She sighed. “Fine, you tell me what happened, and I will tell you how I knew it took place on the bridge, deal?”

“Deal,” I agreed.

I told her everything. I told her about the weird water coiling around my ankles, how I nearly drowned in the lake, and the strange man who could make earth with his hands and his strange words of warning afterward. When I was finished, Addison looked at me, her eyes grave, and nodded.

“What you experienced was an attack from a highly trained assassin.”

“What?” I asked. “I’m confused,” I admitted.

“The water wasn’t just water. It was a being, a creature, called a water fairy.”

“A water fairy? What’s that?”

“It’s a type of Element fairy. These fairies have an element they use as their power. Water fairies can create water as well as control it.”

“Why would a water fairy want to kill me?”

“Our Realm is at war with theirs. We are fighting the Element fairies, the ones who took your sister. They want you dead because of your secret. I already told you I didn’t know much about it, and I don’t. Whatever it is, it affects the Element fairies somehow, or it affects the war.”

“And the Earth Man, what was he?” I asked.

“He was probably an earth fairy, one who can create earth, use earth, and master earth.”

“Do Element fairies have wings?” I asked.

“Yes, they do, why?”

“The Earth Man didn’t have wings,” I told Addison.

Addison nodded, as though she knew the appropriate response to my statement before I even finished. “He was probably using Glamour. It’s a magical skin that hides a fairy’s true nature to other creatures, like humans, as a way to blend in. It covers up their true form. Every fairy can do it.”

“All right,” I said, satisfied with her explanation. “But if the Element fairies want me dead, why would an earth fairy save me and then tell me to be careful?” I asked.

Addison was about to speak and then looked down. “Honestly?”

“Yes,” I urged.

She sighed deeply. “I have no idea.” When my face fell, she added, “I’m sorry, Ramsey, but I don’t know much about the war or your secret. All I know is that your sister believed you could find her, so I brought you here. The rest you will have to figure out on your own, or from someone else.”