Chapter 1

"I hate you, Amara! I have never liked you from the moment Father brought you home. I do not know why you are still here. Nobody likes you. I do not understand why our late Father would want you in the family. You cannot do anything right. You are so useless." Callisto, my elder sister, also known as the Crown Princess of Everlight, paused. Then, she added in a low voice that shattered my heart, "You do not belong here."

My throat felt dry and a witty retort was blocked and my stomach felt like it was being flushed down the toilet. I wanted to float away with my wings and go back to my room and weep, but I could not. I stood there stupidly, staring and holding back tears and looking up at Callisto like a sick puppy.

"What are you staring at, you little useless fairy? I want you to clean this place up, and then you could go back to your tiny room and sulk for all I care. You have done many stupid things, and this by far, has crossed the line." She snarled and bared her teeth at me, her sapphire blue wings flapping angrily.

I had spilled some water on a pile of Callisto's clothes in accident and she made it seemed as though I did it on purpose. And it was just a minor problem, but she made it huge. I waved a hand over the clothes and a gush of wind escaped my hands and dried the clothes. The wind carried the clothes above my head, and then, without thinking, I threw it at Callisto, who screamed. I flapped my violet wings vigorously and with a kick, I was flying out of my sister's bedchamber and down into the basement, where my bedchamber was located.

My bedchamber was small, as what Callisto emphasized, and was plain. It belonged to one of the servants before late Father died, and before Callisto snatched my room away for herself and Mother pushed me to the basement.

Before Father died, I was his favorite Princess, even though I was not his real daughter. I might have been a daughter of just another fairy family, but somehow, Father had spotted me alone somewhere, and because of my magnificent beauty, even as a child, he decided to adopt me. Well, that was what he told me anyway. He named me 'Amara', which meant beauty. I was loved and blessed with all the riches in the world and I even almost became the Crown Princess. I was so happy and lucky.

Until my 16th birthday, a week ago, when my beloved Father died of old age. All was convinced I murdered him, because of Callisto's lies as she was the future Queen. We believe that every Queen's word, future or not, was the truth. But, there was no evidence against me, so I was innocent, but it did not clear me of any suspicion.

The only thing that I could remember my Father by was the Amethyst necklace around my neck. The Amethyst was shaped into a delicate purple moon, and nestled perfectly against my pale skin. Amethyst was my favorite gem, and I was glad that he remembered it and gave it to me for my 16th birthday.

Well, then, Callisto was right, I really do not belong here.

Without thinking, I sat cross-legged on the floor, ripped the necklace from my neck, placed it on the floor in front of me, and closed my eyes. I focused all my energy on the gem and imagined my wings disappearing slowly. I concentrated really hard and wished so much that it would work. I heard other regular fairies do it before, using other gems but failed. But, I was not a regular fairy, I was special. I could control all the elements: Fire, Water, Air, Earth and Magic. No other fairy could control more than one element, not even a Royalty known as Callisto, she could only control Air.

When I opened my eyes, everything felt the same. I knew something was different, but I could not turn back to check. I could not bear to. What had I done? What I did was extremely bizarre and so very wrong.

With a deep breath, I turned and saw…nothing! It worked. My fairy wings were gone. I was a human now, a mere mortal. I was no longer a fairy. Was this what I wanted? I grabbed the necklace and stuffed it into the pocket of my fluffy, short white dress. Would I be happy like this? I stood up and felt the feel of my body. I felt like I was being pulled down and my feet were stuck to the floor. I could not float as usual. I smiled.

I grabbed a grey robe, draped it around my lithe shape and turned to the mirror. I looked the same – violet eyes, dark hair, pale skin, petite body – but there was something missing, of course. My magnificent violet wings had disappeared, just like I envisioned it. I covered my face completely and was careful to make sure that I had my hair covered as well. I put on a pair of black cloth on my feet and quickly left the room.

I escaped. Now what?