Wings of my Enemy

The Darkness between Trees

The Darkness between Trees

For as long as I could remember, faeries had danced at Stone Meadow. I loved dancing and the night was perfect, like a dream. Raising my arms, I leaned my head back to absorb glowing blue rays on my face and hands. I closed my eyes and caressed the cold tips of grass with my feet, repeating the familiar sway of my steps. As a frosty wisp of air stirred me from my trance, I swept my gown in a circle and spun to kneel where my young sister, Leila, sat watching.

She reached up and parted a long strand of hair from my face. “That was wonderful,” she said. “Are you nervous for tomorrow?”

“Oh, yes.” I fell to the grass. “I can’t believe this is happening.” I covered my face with both hands and cried out with joy. “My Day of Promise, at last.”

Leila rolled onto her stomach and leaned on her elbows, propping her chin with her palms. “What is it like to be in love?”

I grinned at her curiosity and stretched my arms straight. “It’s like dancing barefoot in the meadow under moonlight,” I told her. “Love tickles your toes and then climbs to your heart.” I rolled on the grass. “It spirals toward your fingertips as you spin and spin. Then it reaches up to the moon, grabs its rays, and pulls them down like a warm blanket.”

Leila sighed. My sister’s wide eyes revealed their wanting.

“What will you do when I move away?” I asked. “We won’t get to talk like this anymore.”

Her face fell. “You won’t go far—will you?”

Someone spoke from behind me. “I’ll never let you leave us.”

I turned to look. I knew that voice; I had known it since childhood. “Nia,” I called out, “where are you?”

My best friend peered out from behind a tall stone. “It’s a late night,” she said, teasing me with a grin as she walked toward us. “Don’t you ever sleep?”

Still startled by her interruption, I held my breath before answering. “I’m practicing,” I told her. “Dancing clears my thoughts. How did you know we were here?”

Nia laughed. “I know you, Rhia. You’re too much like the moon: devoted and perfect. After one look into the sky tonight, I knew where to find you.”

I smiled at her answer. Hearing my secret name always made me happy. A flash of memory carried my mind to the day, so many years ago, when Nia gave it to me. She had plucked a wide leaf from a maple tree and announced, “Nia and Rhia—we’ll be best friends forever.” Nia had been right. She was always right. I still had the leaf.

She leaned low and offered me a warm hug before flopping to the grass.

“What are you doing at the meadow, Nia?” asked my sister. “Were you trying to frighten us?”

“I came to see my friend before she forgets about me and starts her new life.” Nia’s answer was plain and honest. She never covered her thoughts.

“I won’t forget you—” I told her, then turned to my sister, “—or my family.”

Leila rolled to me and grabbed me tight around the waist. “Will you promise me something?”

I accepted her embrace and watched a tear trickle down her cheek. “Of course,” I answered. “Anything.”

Leila moved back and stood. In the moonlight, stone pillars loomed behind her with sacred dominance. There were twenty-seven of them, all equal distance from a single rounded rock. That one had a hole the size of a person cut through its center. Our village called it the Season Stone. Beyond the circle, the grass stretched far into the distance until it abruptly met the forest trees.