A Court of Water and Shadow

1

—
Evelyn
—

My legs swung back and forth, dangling over the edge of cliff overlooking the vast ocean. I gently swayed my hand back and forth, playing with the tide as it moved with my hand. Gently, I lifted a bubble of water and formed it into a pegasus, then watched with a smile as it flew through the sky with my guidance.

"Evelyn, dinner!" My mother called from our house on the outskirts of Adriata.

I quickly stood, the pegasus deforming and dropping back into the ocean, then ran over to my house. I skidded through the entryway of our small home and greeted my mother with a kiss on the cheek before sitting at the dining table.

My father brought in three plates with seasoned salmon and asparagus, setting them down in our respective seats. My mother brought out the wine, and poured three generous glasses for each of us.

"Are you looking forward to tomorrow?" My father asked me as we dug into our dinner.

Tomorrow my mother and I would travel into the city to see her brand new classroom. They had been building a new school since the old one had poor support beams, so I was excited to see what our High Lord had created for us.

"I am! I hope there's a water pool big enough to create a whole horse." I giggled as I took a sip of wine.

"I heard there's an opening for a new water manipulation teacher. You should apply." My mother smiled at me with a raised eyebrow.

I hummed in interest. Water manipulation has always been something I was good at. I spent most of my days at the cliff playing with the ocean and forming countless animals to my liking. Other days, when my mother needed help in her classroom, I would entertain the children with my creations.

The dinner went by quickly, then I found myself in my room brushing my long, white, hair—my mother's hair. She was born here in Adriata, whereas my father was born somewhere in the Night Court. I've asked them countless times to tell me their stories, but all they've been willing to share was that they fell in love and their mating bond snapped into place.

I had always dreamed of who my mate would be. Maybe he'd be from a different court too. That would be difficult for me, seeing as the Summer Court is my home, but maybe my mate would make that exception for me. Sometimes I would manipulate the water to look like him, but I had no idea what to expect, so I gave up and released the water.

That was my hope. A simple and happy life with my mate.

—

My mother and I strode through the city eagerly, smiling at the Fae we passed as we approached the new building. They hadn't built it very far from the old one, but it stood taller and had a nice shine to it. A bubble of excitement formed in my chest as we entered the wide sea glass doors and cut through the crowd of children to reach my mother's new classroom.

The room was situated on the third floor, giving us a perfect view of the ocean and the buildings surrounding us.

My mother snorted, drawing my attention away from the shining blue waters. "I never noticed how awful the old school looked. It's basically crumbling."

"I'm surprised it's still standing." I laughed as I stepped closer to my mother.

"High Lord Nostrus should just knock it down to get it over with." She placed her elbow on my head, utilizing me as an armrest.