Friend of the Fae (a Tharica short story)

Friend of the Fae

by Amberlyn Pryor

(revised 2017)

 

The chill air cut through my nightgown, making me shiver as I tossed my bag out the window. It fell two stories and rattled when Birch caught it. I held my breath, ready to dive back into bed if my parents awoke. The house remained quiet. Leaning out the window, I checked to see if Birch was ready for me to come down.

 

Clouds hid the moonlight, limiting my view of the backyard, but I could see him motioning for me to get ready. I hiked up my nightgown and climbed onto the windowsill.

 

Perched with knees bent and half my body hanging over the thirty-foot drop, I wished my bedroom was at ground level. Even better would be if my parents supported my decisions, then I could use the front door.

 

The oak tree outside my window looked black and twisted against the lighter backdrop of the wheat fields. The tree creaked as a limb swung towards me, leaves and rough bark pressing into my side. Though I knew Birch’s magic would keep the tree from dropping me, it wasn’t easy letting go of the window sill.

 

I wrapped both arms around the tree branch, took a deep breath, and fell forward out the window. The branch dipped as it took my weight. Thinner branches wrapped around my waist tying me in place. The painted moon came out just in time to reveal how far away the ground was. I squeezed my eyes shut as the branch dropped straight down. Thankfully, my rapid descent lasted only a heartbeat before the tree branch quivered and slowed to a halt.

 

Birch grabbed my foot, then my calf. The tight bands around my waist loosened, and the tree gave a quick shake. I lost my grip and fell into his arms.

 

Birch had grown by bounds this past year, quickly surpassing me in height. He’d also grown in strength and had no trouble catching me. He wasn’t in a rush to put me down, either.

 

Birch hugged me close. His bright eyes were so full of love it made me wonder if he had a good reason for waking me, or if he’d only wished to steal me away from my father’s watchful gaze. I turned my head to the side so he wouldn’t see my smile. I didn’t want to encourage his feelings needlessly. My parents would never permit me to marry someone with fae blood, no matter how much I cared for him.

 

Birch looked human but his mother was a dryad. Dryads are tree spirits, born from the magic of old trees. Of all the fae, they are the friendliest, so long as you don’t try to chop down their trees.

 

Birch lived with his mother and the other dryads in the forest and had been visiting my farm since we were little. Father let me play with him because whenever Birch crossed the fields, the plants grew taller and healthier.

 

When I was fourteen, my father caught me kissing Birch and was on the verge of sending me to the city to stay with Grandmother. I promised Father that it wasn’t serious and avoided Birch for a while. When Father finally stopped watching my every move, I went looking for Birch to apologize, but I couldn’t find him.

 

I searched all our favorite places: the swing by the pond, the berry patch, our hideout in the thicket. I feared I’d have to go deeper into the forest.

 

I finally found Birch in the back meadow, near our picnic spot. He was leaning against a young oak, his sandy blonde hair growing thick with leaves, his tanned skin turning to bark. He was becoming a true dryad, suppressing his human half and bonding with the tree.

 

I don’t like to remember that day. If I’d been any slower I would have lost him. Luckily, he was able to reverse the bond without harming himself or the tree. I learned then that the only thing keeping him human was me.

 

Birch put me down, but I didn’t want to let go yet. I ran my hands through his hair. Not a leaf in sight.

 

He kissed me and then whispered in my ear, “Hurry and get into your boots. We’ve work to do.”

 

So much for thinking he woke me for a tryst. Must be another ghost in the forest. Third one this month . . . not a good sign. I put a hand to the talisman around my neck and prayed that we could handle this one without a problem.

 

Birch crouched beside me as I retrieved my boots and cloak from the bag. Neither of us wanted to risk waking my parents, so I didn’t dare ask him for details. I’d barely tied my cloak when Birch grabbed my bag.

 

“Let’s go,” he whispered, pulling me along behind him.

 

Birch cut directly across the fallow western field. My boots sank into the soft ground, leaving an obvious trail. Although this route was faster, we normally crossed the spirit ward by the back meadow, where the thick grass hid our footprints. If Father realized I’d crossed the ward, he’d send me to the city for sure.

 

Up ahead I could see the white rope of the spirit ward as it snaked from tree to tree. The cord encircled all of Clan Sunrise’s lands— every house, pasture, and field. The wards woven into the rope and carved onto the trees, created a magical barrier that kept spirits and a few of the nastier magical beasts away.

 

When we reached the edge, Birch followed alongside the barrier, using the footprints left behind by the patrol to mask our tracks. Where the grass grew thickest, we ducked under the rope. I felt the tingle of magic on my skin as we passed the wards, but the magic had no effect on humans.

 

Birch’s pace was fine for moonlit fields, but he didn’t slow down as we entered the forest.

 

The thick canopy of trees blocked out the moonlight. The painted moon was an illusion, part of the magic that made the cavern ceiling look like a real sky. The peak of the cavern was over a mile up, so it never felt like we lived underground, but on nights like this I wished the painted moon were brighter.

 

A tree limb hit my shoulder, narrowly missing my face. Shielding my head with an upraised arm, I planted my feet.

 

“Hold on, I need to light the lantern.”

 

“You won’t need it.” He whistled sharply, and a faint glow appeared between the trees, coming closer. It looked like a white horse, but without a rider.

 

Then I noticed the horn.

 

I’d never met the local unicorn, but I’d heard about her. She was taller than I expected, not the deer variety of unicorn, but a horse-type like those common on the surface. Her coat was a pale, dapple gray, and she moved like a dancer, silent and graceful. Light emanated from the spiral horn on her head.

 

Eve trotted up to me and stopped so close I could have reached out and touched her. Speechless, I squeezed Birch’s hand, wanting to share the moment. He squeezed back, but his expression remained serious. I took a deep breath, reminding myself to act natural.

 

The unicorn’s nostrils flared as she took in my scent. “I’m sorry to wake you, Renna, but Birch said that your ancestor is willing to fight ghosts for us.”

 

I nodded. “My great uncle, Tristan, fought for the fae when he was alive, and his dedication remains. That’s why I picked him as my mentor.”

 

“Tristan?” The mare cocked her head to the side. “His name sounds familiar. May I see your ancestor’s talisman?”

 

I held out Tristan’s talisman by its chain, and she sniffed the stone disk. “Your ancestor is strong, but the ghost invading our home isn’t a haunt . . . it’s a soul eater. Your life and the soul of your ancestor will be at risk if you join us in trying to defeat it. If you wish to go home, we’ll understand.”

 

“A soul eater? How is that possible?”

 

“It isn’t,” Eve said, her ears going back, “not unless someone’s opened a door into Fifris Don. But that’s a problem for Death to clean up. What we need is to kill this thing before it grows too powerful to stop. The soul eater’s already penetrated Heartwood and killed some dryads.”

 

“Heartwood!” I turned to Birch. “What about your mother?”

 

“I . . . I don’t know.” He ran to a nearby oak. “It wasn’t so close when I left to fetch you.” He put his hand on the tree and closed his eyes.

 

I couldn’t hear what the trees said, but it felt as though the forest held its breath. Not a branch stirred as Birch stood there, feet apart, braced for bad news.

 

Most ghosts avoided the Heartwood. Dryad trees naturally absorbed the magic of any ghost that got too close, leaving the ghost weakened. For this soul eater to resist being drained and actually kill a dryad. . . . My mouth ran dry. Could Tristan defeat it?

 

Not for the first time, I wished I could give the talisman to someone else. I could probably teach Birch how to summon Tristan, but I didn’t know how to recreate the bonding ceremony. Only the temple priests knew that secret. With the right magic, a talisman was a door to the afterworld, and it couldn’t be left lying around for just anyone to pick up. Without a proper bond, the talisman would vanish and return to the temple. Even my own bond would fail if I didn’t wear it constantly.

 

I clutched the talisman and decided that I’d just have to learn to be brave. I’d picked Tristan as my mentor because he alone cared enough for the fae to help me protect them. I’d known there would be risks. What kind of person would I be if I backed down now?

 

Glancing at Birch, I knew he was worth the risk. I’d let him down before, but not today. I’d keep his mother and his forest safe. The other clansmen refused to help the fae. They hid behind their wards, believing that the ghosts couldn’t touch them, but if the ghosts managed to steal the magic of the fae, they might be strong enough to break the spirit barrier.

 

I suppressed a shudder— no point in scaring myself. Even a soul eater couldn’t be that powerful, right?

 

“She’s safe,” Birch said, opening his eyes. “The ghost hasn’t reached her tree yet, but . . .” He swallowed, his voice unsteady, “It’s close.”

 

Since his human father wanted nothing to do with him, Birch’s mother was all the family he had. I took his hand, to remind him that he wasn’t alone.

 

Turning back to Eve, I said, “A soul eater isn’t just a threat to the fae. We’re all in danger. Tristan knows a few more ancestors we can ask for help. As long as you can share the burden of summoning them, they should be able to handle one soul eater.”

 

Eve pivoted. “Then let’s get going!” she said, bumping her shoulder against Birch.

 

Birch jumped onto her back, then pulled me up behind him.

 

I didn’t have time to properly appreciate my first unicorn ride. As it was, I barely managed to grab Birch’s waist before Eve whipped around on her heels and leaped into a canter.

 

“Renna!” Birch yelled over his shoulder as we weaved through the trees. “The soul eater is too dangerous for you to fight. As soon as you complete the summons, I want you to retreat to Heart’s Grove.”

 

“Fine with me.”

 

Soul eaters weren’t the kinds of spirits you could reason with, and the few ghost deterrents in my bag would be useless against a spirit of that caliber. The only way to beat a strong ghost was with magic, which we didn’t have, or with another ghost, such as my ancestor.

 

Birch struggled with his next words, then insisted, “If we can’t stop the soul eater, try to convince the dryads to leave the forest.”

 

“I will.”

 

I’d said what he wanted to hear, but we both knew I wouldn’t succeed. Dryads, especially old ones like his mother, wouldn’t leave their trees even to save themselves. I closed my eyes, buried my face against his back and let his familiar earthy smell remind me of happier days.

 

Normally, when I called my ancestor, I followed the formal summoning taught at the temples, but there just wasn’t time. Trying to calm my mind, I built a mental image of Great Uncle Tristan. He had died long before I was born, but I’d memorized the way his statue in the temple looked. Both statue and talisman were infused with Tristan’s life force while he was alive, creating a link between his spirit in the afterworld and those objects in the living world.

 

Mentally I called to Uncle Tristan, begging him to enter the talisman and hear my plea. A minute passed and I feared he’d gone too far into the afterworld to hear my call. Normally, Tristan remained in Fifris Don, the outer region of the afterworld, but Fifris Don was full of rogue ghosts, and if Death’s soldiers failed to keep the area safe, Tristan would have to retreat.

 

I’d just about given up hope when the talisman grew warmer, and a voice whispered, “I’m here. What do you need, Renna?”

 

“Tristan,” I clutched the talisman close to my mouth hoping he could hear me over Eve’s pounding hooves. “The fae are being attacked again, but this time the ghost is a soul eater.”

 

“That’s more than I can handle. You would need Death or a squad of his soldiers.”

 

“You won’t help?” I ducked to the side to avoid a low branch.

 

“I didn’t say that. Let me think.”

 

As the pause grew longer, my unease grew too. Finally, Tristan said, “I doubt the other ancestors will help us. I’ll ask, but they won’t leave the afterworld unless their own families are threatened. They certainly won’t risk their souls for the fae.”

 

“What about Death’s soldiers?”

 

“Oh, they’d be willing to help, but they can’t leave Fifris Don without special orders. Most don’t even know how to make portals. Death keeps that magic a secret to avoid just this kind of situation. The dead are supposed to stay safely locked up in Fifris Don or the afterworld, unless invited back by the living. I’ll tell the soldiers, but I wouldn’t count on their help. Keep me in your thoughts. I’ll be back soon, whether I find help or not.”

 

The warmth leeched out of the talisman and Tristan’s voice faded. I looked up, unsure what to do, when I felt a change in Eve’s gait. We slowed to a trot, then stopped.

 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. We weren’t in the Heartwood yet. The trees around us were too young to host dryads. A luminous wayfore tree nearby gave off an eerie green light reminding me how far I was from home.

 

“Quiet,” the unicorn whispered, her ears twitching to the right and then forward again.

 

A crow cawed. Eve turned sharply and bolted. We would have fallen off if she hadn’t shifted her weight and bumped us back into place. I was too busy hanging on to ask questions, but Eve didn’t need prompting.

 

“The soul eater’s changed course,” she said. “It’s found the fairy nursery. If we don’t stop it now, it will be so drunk on fairy magic that even your ancestors won’t be able to save us.”

 

Tristan, please hurry, I prayed.

 

Eve charged into a clearing. Without warning she leaped over a fallen tree and stopped beside an old red cedar. Fairies flew in and out of the branches, their high-pitched voices combining into a panicked screeching as they rushed to gather up all the babies from their cocoon nests. At the tree’s base, elves and deer waited to carry the baby fairies away.

 

On the far side of the clearing, a large brown bear faced off with the ghost.

 

The soul eater’s body was translucent, like all ghosts, but it retained enough characteristics to identify it as human and male.

 

The soul eater hovered over the ground, watching with contempt as the bear swiped its claws through his energy body.

 

As insubstantial as mist, the ghost didn’t bother to dodge the useless attacks. Then, without warning the ghost solidified and grabbed the bear around its neck and in one swift movement, bent the bear’s head sharply to the side. Bones snapped and the bear fell.

 

My jaw dropped. This soul eater could make himself solid instantly!

 

“Tristan, we need you,” I whispered.

 

The soul eater straightened. He didn’t bother taking the bear’s soul but instead stalked across the clearing, his eyes fixed on us. Remembering the stories about a soul eater’s gaze freezing victims in place, I turned my head, watching the creature from the corner of my eye.

 

Eve backed up.

 

At first, I thought that fear alone had made her retreat. As the soul eater followed, I realized that Eve was acting as bait to lure the ghost away from the baby fairies. Unicorns had enough magic in their bodies to rival that of a hundred fairies, which made their souls much more tempting.

 

With the soul eater’s attention diverted, the elves leaped onto the backs of their deer and fled with the last of the baby fairies. Now it was just the soul eater and us.

 

I yelled for Tristan in my mind, my hand clutching the talisman so tightly it dug into my skin.

 

Heat seared my palm as my great uncle passed through the talisman and hovered in front of us. Tristan’s ghost body was even more indistinct than the soul eater’s. He needed energy, or he’d be too weak to fight.

 

If I had been a great magic user, I would have shared my magic with Tristan, but as things stood, all I had to give was my life energy. I took a deep breath, focused on the energy within me, and directed it into the talisman. Nothing happened at first.

 

With the soul eater getting closer, I started to panic. Biting my lip, I forced myself to look away from the approaching monster and focus.

 

I gasped as a sharp pain shot up my arms. A growing feeling of lethargy spread through my body, a clear signal that the talisman was pulling in my energy and feeding it to Tristan. Birch reached back to touch the talisman, as well, and his energy soon joined mine.

 

Tristan’s body glowed with the borrowed strength. He charged the soul eater and a sword made of blazing energy appeared in his hand as he attacked. I thought Tristan’s sword would quickly cut the soul eater to pieces, but the ghost blocked the magical blade with his bare arm. The soul eater knew how to fight, and his body was flush with stolen magic and life energy. Tristan was barely holding his own.

 

Eve told us to dismount. She pressed her nose briefly against the talisman and gave Tristan a burst of magic. Then, not content merely to strengthen my ancestor, she galloped to the soul eater and struck at him. The magic in the unicorn’s hooves sparked as she hit the creature. The soul eater met her attacks blow for blow and pushed her back, throwing her off balance.

 

Birch and I continued to give more and more of our strength to Tristan. My knees shook, and I sank to the ground, my vision blurring. I had to stop feeding the talisman then or risk falling unconscious.

 

Birch had already let go of the talisman and was standing over me protectively when Eve cried out. I blinked, trying to focus on the fight. Eve lay on her side, struggling to get up. The soul eater had both hands around Tristan’s neck. Tristan had lost his sword, and the glow from his body was fading.

 

With no weapon save his fists, Birch rushed forward. The soul eater batted him aside without even taking his attention off Tristan. I cried out as Birch skid across the ground. He was alive but unconscious.

 

I tried to stand. When that failed, I picked up a stick and threw it at the soul eater. The stick passed through his body.

 

I watched helplessly as Tristan’s body began to fail. The soul eater wrapped itself around Tristan, absorbing his soul even as his fading body struggled to get away.

 

I held the talisman up and shouted, “Ancestor Tristan, I command that you return to the afterworld!”

 

Ancestors had to return to the afterworld if bidden; the talisman’s magic required it. My command should have worked . . . but it didn’t.

 

The soul eater growled as Tristan’s body jerked in his grasp. “Mine!” he yelled. He dug claw-like hands deep into Tristan’s side, making him cry out in pain.

 

I didn’t know how to stop the soul eater, but I wasn’t going to let that thing destroy my ancestor’s soul.

 

Remembering something the temple priest told me when I first inherited the talisman, I yelled, “Eve, I need you.”

 

Although upright again, Eve looked winded. She stumbled towards me. I threw the talisman at her feet.

 

“Smash it!”

 

The unicorn reared up on her hind legs and brought both front hooves down onto the talisman. The result was a little more violent than I’d expected.

 

Eve shied away as a portal to Fifris Don opened a few feet from the broken talisman. I crawled over and, placing my hand on the nearest stone fragment, shouted, “Ancestor Tristan, you are banished from the living realm.”

 

The portal grew in size and reached out tendrils of energy. Each strand wrapped securely around Tristan and pulled him towards the opening. Tristan didn’t fight the pull. He held tight to the soul eater, forcing the portal’s energy to drag them both across the ground. The soul eater screamed in rage, but his anger quickly turned to fear as they slid faster. Those terrible cries roused Birch. He rolled onto his knees ready for a fight.

 

The soul eater’s clawed hands dug into the ground in a desperate attempt to slow himself. One hand, flailing for purchase, swung towards me, and before I could back away he grabbed my foot.

 

I heard Birch cry out, but in the next moment I was dragged inside the portal, and all I could hear was a roaring in my ears.

 

I hit the ground hard. The soul eater’s hand burned me where it touched my ankle. I kicked and tried to pull away, but he growled and tightened his grip until I screamed from the pain.

 

Angry shouts made me look up. Death’s soldiers surrounded us. One raised his sword and swung down towards me. I froze in horror, but the blade wasn’t meant for me. The sword sliced into the soul eater’s arm, and suddenly I was free.

 

I scooted away from the fight, breathing hard. Something was wrong. I couldn’t catch my breath even though my lungs were working fine.

 

Tristan lay nearby. He looked battered, but he’d survived. His eyes widened when he saw me.

 

“Renna?”

 

I reached for him, but my hands passed through his arm.

 

“. . . can’t breathe . . .” I choked, my vision going dark at the edges.

 

“Help her!” Tristan yelled to the soldiers, but they were busy fighting the soul eater and didn’t hear.

 

The portal was only a few feet away. I struggled to move closer but collapsed, gasping for breath. Now I knew why the living couldn’t enter Fifris Don without becoming ghosts themselves. There was no air.

 

This is it, I thought. I’m going to die.

 

I wished I could see Birch one last time. I’d never told him how I really felt.

 

As though my thoughts had conjured him, Birch leaped through the portal and picked me up. I blacked out.

 

I woke up on the forest floor with the painted moon shining faintly through the trees. Eve was standing nearby, her horn glowing softly.

 

Next to me, Birch picked up the pieces of the talisman and tossed them into the portal. As soon as the last piece passed through, the portal snapped shut.

 

I sat up and reached for Birch. He wrapped his arms around me as if he’d never let go, and I realized that I never wanted him to. I’d been fighting my feelings for too long. Why should it matter what my parents said? I’d almost died today. I could die tomorrow. What was the point of living if I couldn’t be with the person I cared about the most?

 

“I love you,” I whispered into his shoulder. “I won’t let my parents keep us apart, even if it means never going home. I’ll marry you and stay here in the forest.”

 

Birch kissed my hair. “My love, you won’t have to choose between me and your family. I’ll talk your father around. The other dryads will help. We’ll work our magic on your farm. Your father will have the richest crop of all the clan. He’ll learn that there are advantages to befriending the fae.”

 

I looked up, wiping tears from my eyes. “Fine, we’ll talk to Father, but the elves will marry us first. I’m tried of hiding my feelings. I'm ready to start living my life with you.”

 

“As am I,” Birch said with a smile. He leaned his cheek on my shoulder and sighed, “As am I.”