The Land of Stories: Rewriting the narrative

Chapter 10: Alex's Return

"Do you not trust me? Is that it?"
"Coral, I just... you're a council member."
"So you can't trust me."
"I didn't want you to get in trouble!"
"I can take care of myself, thank you very much. As you so helpfully pointed out, I am in the Fairy Council, after all."
"That's not what I meant! I didn't want you to be in trouble for what I did!"
"So you decided to sneak off on your own to the most dangerous place in the land?"
"Well, I wasn't alone." Aurelia immediately regretted those words. Coral's soft grey eyes flashed silver and she stopped putting Fisher.
"Who was with you?" She asked. Aurelia couldn't tell if she was angry, hurt, worried or all three.
"Promise they won't get in trouble?" Aurelia asked.
"I'm not a rat, Miss Bailey." Coral snapped.
"Trix and Noodle." Aurelia replied quietly.
"And where are they now?"
A tear pushed its way to the brink of Aurelia's eye, threatening to spill over the edge and down her cheek.
"I-" the words caught in her throat. "I don't know."

☆

Alex glanced out of the carriage window. The Charming countryside whizzed past: charming woods with trees straight out of a picture book, charming fields with cute little bunny rabbits, charming stand-alone cottages with thatched roofs. On the horizon lay the border to the Fairy Kingdom. The grass was emerald green, the sky cerulean and the sun a golden yellow. Alex felt sorry for those living near the border. It seemed colours were always brighter in the Fairy Kingdom, the people always more caring, the architecture more magnificent. Alex waved her hand and the enchanted carriage picked up speed, racing towards the Fairy Palace.

When it arrived, Alex was surprised but not disappointed to see no welcoming party. She stepped out of the carriage and it promptly disappeared, leaving the unicorns free to run without reigns. Sunbeams warmed Alex's skin as she walked down the white stone path to the palace's main entrance. The sight of her grandmother's statue covered in purple velvet tugged at her heart, but she did not stop. She knew exactly where she wanted to go. It occurred to her later that perhaps she should have messaged Aurelia on the mirror to let her know she was home, but nothing occupied her mind at that time except her destination. The Hall of Memories. It didn't take long; she had walked the route there many times before, and soon she was standing outside the crystal doors. She turned to the statue of Rook. Emerelda had told her it hadn't been tampered with, but she was wrong. Rook's face, rather than looking heroic, was subtley filled with pain, fear and sadness. Stone tears brimmed at the edges of his eyes, almost unnoticeable. And, worst of all, a bullet hole had appeared in his chest, exactly where he had been shot so many years ago. Alex's heart filled with shock, anger, regret and misery. She barely made a sound as she hit the floor.

☆

"Alex should be back by now." Xanthous murmured to Rosette as they ate breakfast. "She said she'd be back today. This morning. Why haven't we seen her?"
"Maybe she was delayed. Or perhaps she's somewhere else in the kingdom, sorting out other matters before she comes back. You know Alex. I'm sure she's fine."
Xanthous picked up a golden fork absentmindedly and twirled it. Tiny flames appeared on each of the prongs. Suddenly, a young fairy with golden hair and a dark blue dress rushed into the breakfast room.
"What is the meaning of this?" Xanthous roared, the fork bursting into flame. "Don't you know this is off-limits to non-Council members?"
"Calm down, for wand's sake!" Rosette rolled her eyes. "What is it?"
The young fairy eyed Xanthous warily.
"Lord Xanthous, Lady Rosette. You should come and see this. It's about the Fairy Godmother."
Xanthous and Rosette shared a look, and followed the fairy through the palace to the Hall of Memories. Xanthous kept muttering about how they hadn't been informed of her arrival, and Rosette's mind conjoured up a hundred different ways Alex could be in danger, each thought as vivid as a flower. Sometimes she hated her imagination.

"I found her here. I don't know what happened." The fairy explained, trembling. Xanthous and Rosette gazed down on the unconscious body of their beloved leader strewn across the floor.
"How...I don't..." Rosette was lost for words. Xanthous started pacing, the flames on his shoulders growing higher by the second.
"Don't tell anyone about this, understand? Rosette, get the other council members. And find some kind of healer." He instructed.
Under normal circumstances, Rosette would have said "I don't take orders from you." But she merely nodded and disappeared in a shower of red sparkles and petals. The young fairy, still trembling, took this as her cue to leave. Shimmering golden wings materialised out of her dress and she flew away.
Xanthous was left alone.

☆

Aurelia was telling Coral what had happened in the Dwarf Forest when Rosette burst in.
"There you are! Emergency council meeting!" She told Coral.
"What? Why? What's going on?" Aurelia asked. Rosette looked troubled.
"You'd better come too. Council meeting room. Come on, let's go!"
"Rosy, what's happened?" Coral asked as Rosette disappeared. Rose petals fell to the floor and Coral rolled her eyes.
"Come on, Auri. Maybe it's about Trix and Noodle!" The air shimmered salmon pink, and Coral dematerialised as well. Aurelia sighed, but a tiny part of her was happy to practice transportation, especially after what happened last night. She clicked her fingers and closed her eyes, imagining her bedroom fading into black and the council chamber appearing before her. When she opened her eyes, she was there, but the scene wasn't quite as she'd pictured. All the council members, and an old man in black robes, were gathered round something. Skylene noticed Aurelia appear and stepped away from the group, allowing Aurelia a quick glance at what looked like a dead body.
"Honey, there's something we need to tell you, ok?" Skylene's voice trembled, making Aurelia think of ripples in a river. "Don't panic, there's no need to worry." She bit her lip, and Aurelia could tell she was lying. "It's just... something's happened to your mum."