The Isle of Fairies

The Harbors - Eleanor

"Eleanor,"

The sound of my name being uttered by the most familiar soft voice jolted my mind from its haze. I found myself staring out the window that nearly met my ankles in length. Although closed, I could still hear the crash of the waves through the window against the dock below the hill upon which my family had presided for many years. My eyes glued to the ships that were settled at the dock, and I finally parted my lips to speak.

"I wish the clouds would flee Llydran. The darkness makes me so heavy-eyed." I yawned quietly, putting the back of my hand to my lips to cover the motion as I brought my gaze to the woman I've always admired the most: my dear sister.

She shook her head, presumably at my drowsiness as she picked up her skirts and came closer to me, out of the doorway. Her approach made me grin before she placed her gentle hands on my shoulders which were covered in the finest cloth Father could afford. Her smile brought warmth into my soul as my eyes wandered across her familiar dark eyes that always reminded me of the way Amber looked in the sunlight. Her presence had always been one of that of a mother to me in comfort.

"Mother would be positively stricken by the sight of you so late in the morning. You should thank the heavens that I found you before she did." she chuckled as I tsked my tongue by habit. The lingering clouds outside that refused to produce rainfall caught my eyes again as if they were demanding attention. Although it was unspoken, we both silently agreed it was dark enough outside to signal sleep again.

"You need to awake, Nell" The coddling of my nickname given to me by my sister at a young age sparked interest in my mind as my eyebrows were brought into a furrow, "And why is it so important that I do this particular day?" I asked in wonder, searching her eyes for meaning as her grin began to fade.

With a sigh, her hands fell from my shoulders and slid down to my hands which she held in between us. "Father calls upon you this morning." She admitted wearily, biting her lip in soft suspense.

I could feel my eyes grow wide to expose the sudden uncertainty that fell upon my features. "Father wishes to speak with me?" I reinstated as if my ears were failing me and I had not heard correctly.

"I would sooner say demands." She muttered under her breath in a decrescendo.

Pursing my lips in absolution, I stood up straight and gave a gentle grip to her hands. "Fine then. Tell him I am getting ready and shall meet with him in haste. Thank you Mrismah." I hurriedly let go of her hands to move to my wardrobe. My feet carried me hurriedly over, and before I knew it, my hands were grasping the wooden handles of the wardrobe and flinging open the doors to reveal several items of clothing. "Be quick, you know Father is not a patient man." Mrismah carried herself towards the open door from their shared bedroom with light feet.

I paused before she completely left the room and raised my hand as I called out in frenzy, "Wait!" The growing quiet of the room broke with the question I had nearly forgotten to ask, "What does he want to speak about?"

Mrismah promptly stopped at the doorway of the room with a slight jump at the excitement, placing her hand on the cold golden handle. "He did not mention anything specific... However, he did have a rather... serious look about him." She gave a weak, encouraging grin as I blinked in thought. I gave her a weak grin in tandem with a short nod, watching her close the door behind her for my privacy.

Looking about the dark, candle-lit room, I reached for a dress that matched the expression of the weather. Dark green is an appropriate color.

The velvety material was soft under my fingertips but did not console the clouds in my mind that brought a shadow of growing unease.