Chapter 1. Nym
I felt like weights had been glued onto my eyelids as I sat up from my bed. In a daze, I swung my feet to the right side of the plush bed, anchoring them to the floor. The soft sheets slid off my nightgown like a waterfall. I glanced across the small, cottagey room and winced as I saw my hair in the mirror. Many of the long, dark brown strands were knotted together making my hair look like a bird's nest above a barbershop. My long, pointy ears stuck up between several clumps of hair showing that I was obviously fey. And there was no missing my large amber eyes (also a fey trait) that stared right back at me in the mirror. Glancing towards one of the windows in my bedroom, I noticed that the sun was shining brightly above the Seelie skies. My eyes bulged even wider as I realized I was late for work again. "Oh no, Nym, you've really done it this time!" I told myself as I quickly rose up off the bed and charged to bathroom.
I shuffled through all the cabinets till I finally found my hairbrush in one of the bottom drawers. I snatched it up, and quickly raked it through my hair, making the strands straighten out. When I was finished yanking at the knots, I slammed the comb's drawer shut. I brushed my teeth and ran back to my bedroom to change into a fine dress. As I slipped the smooth, plain, and pastel green dress on, I hunted down my leather boots.
I pulled the coffee colored shoes on and rushed out the door to hurry through the summer streets. I charged down the cobblestone paths that were lined with numerous shops, navigating through crowds that had probably slept in as well. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a young faerie trying to sell some newspapers. The young boy shouted "Seelie News! Updated every day! Iron Queen's 7th Elysium visit!". I snatched up a handwritten newspaper at the Seelie Court News Stand that titled "When Will Titania's Next Summer Storm Hit? Oberon is Gone Hunting Again!". I rolled my eyes and tried to enjoy every moment I could be away from Titania. I worked a full time job for that witch and it was pure torture. And now that Oberon is gone, she will probably be in the mood for making brownies into rosebushes. Day after day, I cater to her every needs (which isn't my job but I did it anyway) and make her daily schedule for her (which is my real job). The only thing I liked was that I got to work with Vi, my best friend. She wasn't fey but she was as pretty and well featured as one. She had curly, red hair that went about two inches past her shoulder. Her eyes were a bright green. Her thin frame made her almost as agile as I. She was a really good violinist, in fact so good that apparently Leanansidhe herself stole her when she was younger and then Titania stole her from Leanansidhe. In the end somehow she got home but then was later brought back by Titania to make Leanansidhe jealous again. I really don't know if that was 100% true but that's what she said.
I was getting closer to the court now to where I could at least see the knights standing by the front gates. I finally got through the guarded gate, into the magnificent courtyard. A large water fountain stood in the middle of the massive garden, water glisten brightly as it cascaded down into a large, clear pool below it. Since the Seelie court was currently holding the Scepter of Seasons you could feel the extra glamour in the air. A gravel path, that had many other paths branch out of it, went around the fountain towards the large, hedge labyrinth that led to where Titania's throne was perched. I sprinted past the fountain and headed into the maze to find the Summer Queen.
The garden would have been lovely to stroll through if I wasn't so late. Long vines with enormous hot pink flowers sprouted out of the bushes made an arch overhead the paths in the maze. Soft music played and the summer air. I've been in and out of the maze for decades but each time it always amazed me. Finally, I spun around the last turn of the maze to find Titania perched on her throne. Smiling.
I quickly bowed at the sight of her, worried about that smile. Smiling was not a good sign with Titania. When she smiles it usually means she is about to turn you into a rabbit. I wiped away any emotion from my face so she would have a harder time seeing I was nervous. I spotted Vi sitting down in the corner of the hedge walls, her violin in a case next to her.
"Nym, dear, please come closer." Her velvety voice drifted towards me almost making me wince.
"Yes milady." I forced my feet to go closer to the queen. Her diamond blue eyes sliced through me like knives. Titania leaned back in her throne eyeing me.
"You, Vi, and a few of my close servants are going to have a week off starting today. Please don't come back to the Court until a few days. If you return before a week, you will become a deer. Now, Leave." She pointed towards the exit. "Vi, you are dismissed as well."
Vi nodded and exited the maze by my side. As we walked farther away from Titania, Vi slowed to a halt. We hadn't talked the entire walk back to the front gates. Vi turned to me.
"We need to go on an adventure this week." She stated. I looked right back at her. Where had that come from?
"Okay, where?" I replied, trying not to look too surprised at her odd comment.
"It's not where; it's more of a….quest. Is there something that you want to do? Anything you'd want to find out?" she questioned, her emerald eyes sparkling. I pondered that for a moment. I had always wondered who my parents were. I don't remember them. I always lived by myself. Even when I was young I would sleep on the Seelie streets. I wanted to find my parents, to at least know who they are.
I immediately looked back at Vi again. "I want to find my parents. That will be our quest."
"Then we should find a guide." Vi said, and we continued to walk through the gates. Until Robin Goodfellow stopped us in our tracks.
"A quest? I'm in!" he stood in front of us, smirking. He took a bite out of an apple that appeared in his hand.
I glanced at Vi, and she nodded. I had never really met him but I heard that he was quite a prankster. He seemed to know his way around the Never Never and he was a much older faerie than I.
"All right. You can come with us."
"Come with you? No way! I'm leading! Now what are we searching for? Pies? Cotton Candy?" He asked smugly.
Vi giggled at his guessing. "No, Puck, we are searching for Nym's parents." Vi said to puck.
"Come one, wouldn't you rather have Candy?" He joked back. "I'm guessing by the way that Nym is glaring at me, that would be a no. Oh well, we will just have to stop and get Cotton Candy on the way." he snorted. He looked at me with a slight smirk. "I bet you don't know where to start do you?"
"That's kinda why we need a guide." I replied back to the Summer Jester.
He looked at his apple for a second and then bit a chunk out of it. He looked back up at me and grinned.
"I have a friend who can help us get started. To the mortal world we shall go!" He said pointing towards a shop lined on the Street.
