Fairies of The Black Circle

18

The waves came in quick succession against the hull of the ship. Ebb and flow. Ebb and flow. The spray spattered Musa's face as she leant over the wooden railings at the bow, the salt stinging her eyes.

The water was cold, and the steady wind made each droplet feel like an icicle on her skin. But Musa didn't mind. She liked the sound, its predictable rhythm. It was almost peaceful.

Of course, she also heard other, less peaceful, sounds: the pages turning as Bloom raked through every detail of the Book of Fairies, desperate to learn all she could of the people she was about to save; the hasty scrawl of Stella's pen on parchment; and the childish bickering as Riven clutched his seasick stomach and Roxy called him a "landlubber."

The boat ride to Tír na nÓg was long, giving Musa sufficient time to wonder what Gantlos would have said to her had Bloom not been there.

He was a curious phenomenon to her. How she couldn't read him like she could everyone else. How she barely knew anything about him but still felt like she knew him.

Who was he before all this? What had happened to him? Why was there no life in those eyes?

Her eyes cast out to the grey sea; Musa sighed. Would he ever let her know the answers?

Stella sat, perched on a large crate, on the deck, her hand skilfully traversing the parchment as she drafted a letter to King Radius of Solaria.

Usually, she would have pranced about the boat, making fun of how "drab the queen's ship is. Is there no colour, no joy, where you're from, Roxy?"

Instead, her mind was filled with her anxieties, her guilts and this looming sense of utter disappointment. So, she was hunched over the fifth draft, trying to explain herself, trying to redeem herself.

If Solaria was the kingdom of the sun, moon, and stars, it would definitely be the kingdom of gossip. No doubt her father had heard that Eraklyon's king and squire had returned.

Her father had never approved of her dating a squire, and to find out he had left her, Princess of Solaria, would bring nothing but shame to the royal family.

So, she poured her heart out to him, apologising profusely for having failed him as a princess and a daughter. She begged him to tell her how she could prove herself worthy of her title. She pleaded that she would save Earth and show him that she could be Solaria's guardian fairy too.

Her tears dotted the parchment as she wrote. No matter how many times she saved the magical dimension, it was never enough.

And no amount of begging and pleading would ever get her parents back together again, she had well and truly ruined that.

Her writing looked shaky by the time she signed her name, the pen quivering in her hand. She read over this version of the letter, once, twice, thrice.

Was it good enough to send to the king?

"Oh, just send it, Stella." She cursed herself, and rolled up the scroll, letting it vanish in her hands.

She waited a moment with bated breath. The king's replies were usually instant.

But minutes passed and nothing appeared for her.

Even by the time Helia had spotted land far in the distance, her father still hadn't graced her with an answer.

She sighed. Her heart felt so heavy she wouldn't be surprised if it sank the ship. But a small, cold pressure against her chest kept her grounded. She felt the outline of Duman's pendant beneath her shirt.

At least there was someone who would answer in an instant if she pressed it.

"Everything okay, Stel?" Bloom peered down at her, having finally shut the Book of Fairies and noticing the queasy look on her best friend's face, "are you seasick?"