Flashback

Chapter 3

"What?" The shorter girl stepped forward. As she leaned in closer to me I noticed that on the back of her necklace was inscribed Cove in a flowing script. "I don't believe it! Since Coral and I have been here, we have seen a drenched phoenix, a psychotic daffodil, and even an extremely hairy dwarf lady." The group shuddered as one. "But I had no idea that a faerie could get amnesia!"

This scared me. I hadn't even known I was a faerie, so how had they? I asked, and the tall man stepped forward and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Well little birdie, it's actually very simple. you don't have a plant with you so you aren't a green, you aren't wearing one of the merfolks' magical necklaces, so you aren't a mermaid, and if you're a dwarf then I'm a gorilla!" He burst out laughing, but actually, he was pretty close. Coral spoke up. "Actually, we just saw your wings."

The man pouted, upset that his fun had been ruined. Then he perked up as he said, "You know, we haven't even introduced ourselves yet!"

He cleared his throat and assumed a stance like a stage performer. "My name is Foof. Warrior tulip extraordinaire!" I stared at him blankly. Could this be a joke? "Oh! Oops! I forgot that you had amnesia!" He guffawed. "Good one!"

Once his laughing fit was over, he composed himself. "I'm a green. A.K.A a plant that can think for itself, and created a sort of 'avatar' to protect it. I'm that avatar, and my plant-self is the amazing Fakia!" He gestured toward the porch, where a large flowerpot sat with a huge pink tulip popping out of the soil. At least that explained the tattoo.

Foof then shifted his attention to the two girls. "Meet Coral and Cove!" They smiled at me warmly. "Sister mermaids, aged 25 and 19. Couriers to their queen." He then whispered to me on a side note, "You know, for people who spend the majority of their lives underwater, they have some pretty fiery personalities!" He laughed good-naturely as the sisters' smiles turned to glares.

Coral spoke up. "We'll take the introductions from here, warrior tulip." She nodded over to where the dwarf was standing. "That's Vendic." He grunted in response, not looking up from his carving. "He won't tell anyone anything, but on the bright side, he's amazing with metal."

Cove spoke next. "The idiot who ran off on us was Jey. He's been here about a month now, searching for a way out. I think he was looking for someone. He finally stopped a few days ago, when his eyes turned silver. There's something about him that just seems..." She sighed and let her sentence trail into the air, leaving a path of unanswered questions trailing behind it.

Coral stepped in to fill the uncomfortable silence. "Come on honey, let's make you a mirror. If you can't remember anything, you don't even know what you look like!" She led me over to the pool, shooing away Foof, claiming that 'girl time' was needed right now, and that no matter how tulip-like Foof was, he couldn't be included.

Standing by the water, I wondered how I was supposed to see anything, as the schools of fish swimming around churned the water considerably. Then Cove, who had caught up after disappearing into the house for a while, produced some weapons from a cloth bag.

First, an elegantly curved black bow, along with a quiver full of silver fletched arrows were slung over my shoulder. Next came twin daggers, placed in the empty sheaths on either sides of my belt, where they fit perfectly. Finally, six golden armbands. They weren't decorative. I knew that if I pulled at them a certain way, they would flatten out into razor sharp throwing stars. I slid three of them up each arm, knowing where each one belonged.

There was one thing missing. I untied the cloth knotted uncomfortably tight around my midsection. My back then left bare except for the straps around my neck and waist, my wings unfolded. I felt the air shimmer behind me as they displace the light shining on them. Then I felt their pull, as they were attached to my back, just between the shoulder blades. They wanted to fly, to stretch, to be free in the air. But I knew that if i flew right then, I would never be free. The dome would keep me in.

Then a long, low whistle sounded behind me and a voice appraised "Impressive..." I turned around, and there was Foof, the warrior tulip.

"FOOF! GET OUT OF HERE!" Coral screamed at him from across the pond. The green smiled wickedly. "That's the warden. Better run before she goes crazy mermaid on me!" He ran laughing into the woods while trying to dodge imaginary arrows. Crazy as he was, I kind of liked this guy.

Then Coral came around the side of the small lake and I asked her the question I had wanted answered since she first led me away. "How do you plan to make a mirror?"

She smiled. "Wow, you really don't remember anything do you?" I shook my head. The mer raised her eyebrows and went back to doing, well, whatever she was doing.

She had dipped her finger into the pool, which rolled and rippled at her touch. She pulled out her hand, and on the tip of ther index finger was a perfect drop of silver liquid. She blew on it and it dropped toward the ground, where it landed with a splash.

I was about to ask if that was it, when the droplet shot out of the ground and hovered at eye level. At a twirl of Coral's hand, the drop grew. It flattened out and spread, forming a wall of water that was as thin as paper. Then Cove came up and flicked her wrist. With a sharp crack, the water hardened to a consistency where it was as reflective as a mirror.

And in the mirror was me.

What I saw surprised me. Staring back into my face was someone I didn't expect, but knew I would find. I was wearing a tank top the color of sunset, with leggings to match. Over the leggings was a translucent gold skirt, obviously modeled after the petals of a lotus blossom. On my feet were small brown slippers. Comfortable to wear, yet suitable for running.

I move on to my wings. They have the shape of a ullysses swallowtail's, but are made up of a collage of gold. They almost seem like they aren't even there, yet they are still solid.

Then my face. It's round, surrounded by long brown locks, straight until the ends, where they develop a small curl. I am not what one would call a great beauty, except for my eyes.

They're the eyes that can peer into your soul with just one look, and you could spend hours trying to look back. Around the pupil, they are the brown of bird's feathers. Dark, but pleasant; innocent. Yet as the irises spread, they are penetrated by veins of gold, until they are the color that of the sun rising over desert sand. Rich. Powerful. The eyes that have seen the world.

All together, I'm poised, yet dangerous. Small, but I'm someone who knows what she's doing. I'm me, and it's good to be back.