Of Fae And Fire [#Wattys2016] √

(|] 8: fighting [|)

My smile widens across my face. "Really?" They all say yes, and my smile turns to a grin. Finally, something for me to be proud of other than surviving a day of my parent's arguing.

I sheath my weapons and face them. "So, what next?"

The three of them share a glance. "Well, rumor has it that the Chaos Fae will be waiting for us at the battlefield tomorrow," Ferin says. "If that is the case, I believe we should be there to greet them." Here she gives a pointed glance to my sword.

I nod curtly. "I'm ready. The sooner I fight, the sooner we can figure this all out. Hopefully," I say on a final note. Then, I head back to my bedroom. But before collapsing in my bed from exhaustion, I decide to revisit a mystery I discovered a day ago.

I open the door to the room right next to Faas'. I stare into the swirling silver on the mirror's surface and ponder. What could it be? What's it's purpose?

I hear the door open behind me and whirl around, hand going instinctively to the hilt of my sword. But it's just Farland, and his mouth quirks up when he sees my reaction. "Meree? Wondering about our mirror?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I...I guess so." I look at the mirror again. "What does it say? Around the edges, I mean."

He takes a minute to read it, then recites, "Into here, you can see, all of opportunity. Your closest friends, your enemies, all the way across the sea."

I cock my head to the side like a dog. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He laughs. "This mirror is used to call anyone else who has one. Their image appears in it and you can talk through it to them. They can see you, as well." He waves his hand at the mirror.

"Oh, like a video chat," I say.

Now it's his turn to tilt his head. "Huh?"

I snicker. "Never mind. Sorry. I'll go now, I just saw it yesterday or whenever and was wondering what the purpose of it was." He follows me out of the room and to mine.

"Get some rest for tomorrow," he says as he closes the door.

I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.

···

Sunlight slips in through the curtains and gives me a soft kiss on the cheek. I am reminded of that morning so long ago, when Farland first rang my doorbell...

I open my eyes to see that it wasn't the sunlight giving me a gentle kiss, it was Faas. He stands over me, casting a dark shadow. "Morning, beautiful," he murmers. I rub my eyes and sit up, seeing that all three Few are standing in my room. They are wearing matching silver bodysuits and boots, and all have masks that cover half of their faces in the form of a wolf. "We have an outfit for you." Faas gestures to the suit and mask laying on my bed.

"We'll leave you to dress," Farland says, and they file out, shutting the door.

I slip into the clingy suit and clip on my sheath. After sliding my weapons in, I fasten the wolf mask over my face. When I look in the mirror on the wardrobe door, I'm astonished. I look fierce...wild. And I love it.

I stride with confidence to the kitchen, where the Few are waiting. I can just make out Ferin's mouth beneath her mask, and it's smiling. "You look great," she says as she passes with breakfast.

Faas wraps his arms around my waist and plants a kiss on the top of my head. I twist around to give him a kiss on the mouth. "You're like my little warrior," he says, and I bark out a laugh at his affectionate tone.

"Like? Or am?" He smiles and kisses me again.

"So, you guys are like a thing now?" Ferin asks, arms folded over her chest. "Because I feel like I should know if my best friend is having an affair with the Golden One. Also known as my other best friend." She winks an eye the color of her outfit.

"I guess we are," Faas says, glancing at me. I jerk my shoulders up and down, but kiss him again to assure him that we most certainly are.

Ferin claps her hands twice. "That's adorable, but you really need to eat, Meree. We have to leave soon."

I sit at my place and scarf down a plate filled to the edges with normal human food. While I find fae delicacies delicious, I still prefer food like we have at home.

"Ready to go?" Farland asks from where he's waiting by the door, poised to leave.

"Yeah." I push the chair back and rest a hand on my sword. After taking a deep breath, "I am."

···

We walk to the battlefield, and as we do, other Fire Fae soon join us along the way. They all wear the same outfits as us, don the same masks. By the time we reach the clearing, we have a full army marching behind us. Just the thought fills me with confidence.

We stand on one half of the field, the half on the side of the King of Fire's castle. At first, I'm thinking that the rumors, as most are, were untrue. But soon, more fae come from the other side. And they don't look friendly.

These fae are wearing outfits similar to ours, but their suits and boots are fully black. They all have masks on, too, and they are in the form of crows, the most evil of birds. Dark, protruding eyes glare at us from under the masks and send shivers up and down my spine.

"Are those the...Chaos Fae?" I whisper to Faas, who is standing tall beside me. He gives a miniscule nod, not tearing his eyes off of our enemies.

I shiver again, but face the army. Soon, more of them come until they have about as much in their army as we do in ours. I swallow, which is unnecessary because of how dry my mouth is. I place a hand on my sword and grip it hard, prepared to yank it out and leap into battle. The Chaos Fae lift huge black bows and flash quivers full of dark arrows.

After a slight face off, the Few take an identical breath. "Go!" they all yell at the same time that the Chaos Fae call "charge!"

And we're racing into battle.