Kendra awoke still dressed in her gown from the night before. Early morning light whispered in through her bedroom. The flowers beside her windowsill rose up in excitement. It had taken years to finally earn the rest she deserved.

It still came as a shock.

it was simply surreal.

That she was here in the Fairy Realm, celebrating her choice.

That she was betrothed to her Fairy Prince.

She sat up, taking in her room. The Fairy Queen had been all too ready to dress the room from top to bottom in flowers and precious stones. Two weeks had passed since she'd seen her family, but Kendra wasn't a child anymore. She didn't need to be under their constant watch.

After all, she'd simply passed from one expectant family to another. Kendra was cherished among fairies. They watched her every move and kept her from ever having to endure something less than delightful. Her schedule was perfected to a T, just as it was back home at Fablehaven.

A flower had grown onto her dress, Kendra had expected that to happen. Most of the clothes she'd worn were all carefully crafted as to appear to be living. And sometimes that meant continuing to grow after they'd been worn. The particular gown she wore was woven with lilac and lavender buds, and draped over her shoulders.

Needless to say, she looked the part, but she didn't feel it.

Doubt was one of her least favorite feelings. With doubt came nervousness, and where nervousness was, anxiety followed. Kendra pushed her self doubt aside. She couldn't appear weak in front of the fairies. Not when she was engaged to their prince.

A new set of clothing had appeared on her vanity. This one was thankfully more casual than the gown she'd worn the night before. Kendra changed, and pulled her hair into a braid.

If her perfected schedule was correct, she'd be spending the majority of the day learning history with a fairy named Theala. Bracken would join her in the afternoon for a quick meal and a stroll around the Fairy Queen's castle gardens. There'd be more celebrations in the evening. Fairy culture required extreme celebrations when a member of high status was getting married. Kendra was eternally grateful that most smaller fairies hadn't been permitted to join in the celebrating.

Sometimes she began to regret her impending wedding to Bracken, and her choice to become an eternal.

The regret never lasted wrong.

Bracken was a perfect choice. He was safe and reliable. A match for her heart.

Knowing she'd outlive her family still stung.

But she'd live her perfect happily ever after with Bracken.

Kendra left her room before she could do something stupid like try to return home and back out of the things she'd been told to do.

The Fairy Queen's castle was a masterpiece. The architecture rivaled that of the most splendid castle on earth. Flowers grew around pillars, and the ceiling always looked like the night sky. At every corner, water spilled from the ceiling like a controlled waterfall. It could have been mistaken for heaven.

As Kendra quietly made her way to the grand library, fairies of all forms stopped to bow in respect. She always gave a smile in return. Though she was surrounded by people ready to serve her, she'd never felt more alone.

The grand library was empty, save for a single fairy with hair as red as a rose. Her flower petal wings sat neatly on her shoulders. Theala had been one of the first fairies to genuinely converse with Kendra. They often shared books and discussed things from the mortal world. Theala loved the mortal world.

"Dear princess, thank you for coming today," Theala's smile spread across her merry face.

"I'm no princess," Kendra insisted. She bowed her head in respect, "Thank you for agreeing to see me."

"It's an honor," Theala retorted. She gestured to a table stacked with large novels. "Shall we begin?"

The last time Kendra had met with Theala, they'd managed to cover 1,000 years worth of history. Most of that history revolved around the current Fairy Queen's rise to power after her predecessor was unable to continue her reign. Kendra had always enjoyed history, but she'd never had to learn so much in such a short time. However, she was quick to learn and eager to please. Kendra wasn't afraid of a challenge.

"Tensions have always been high between the fairies and demons," Theala began, plopping a fat book right in front of Kendra. "Especially during the Dragon Age, something you mortals refer to as the Dark Ages."

Kendra fisher best to pay attention as Theala recounted major battles with demons and the effect that came because of those battles.

She was surprised to learn of the fairies' involvement in the 12th century crusades. And the fact that a race of peaceful dragons had been obliterated because of that. Theala didn't dwell on the subject.

There was a small chance that Kendra and Bracken would ascend the throne, but she was to receive an education in fairy history just in case she became queen.

The thought of becoming queen was not a welcomed one.

Oblivious to Kendra's lack of enthusiasm Theala continued discussing the fairies assistance in putting dragons into sanctuaries. Kendra began to skim over the book in front of her, searching for anything that seemed out of the ordinary. The fairies' history was squeaky clean. It seemed as if the fairies always fought the good fight. They spread spring and music throughout the world, and hid away from humans.

Though it was suspicious that books on fairy history were so rare.

A picture's remains sat square in the middle of a page. The image, which appeared to have been hand painted, had been scrubbed away to nothingness. No explanation was given in the text for the image. The words were worn away too. The next page discussed fairy influence in the 1400s, leaving a 200 year gap between the washed away picture and what came next.

"Theala?" Kendra asked, turning the book around as to give her teacher a glance at the information. "What's missing?"

Theala squinted at the pages, "I'm not sure anything is missing at all, dear."

"But there is," she gestured to a date on a previous page. "It jumps from 1192 to 1407."

"I suppose it does."

"You're not concerned at all?"

"No," Theala said, "If you'll allow me a moment to think I believe I'd be able to remember what happened between those years."

Those missing years were surely terrible if they hadn't been included in a history book. 1192. Crusades. Eastern countries.

"Did it have something to do with the Living Mirage sanctuary?" Her voice was no louder than a whisper.

Theala nodded, "We fairies pick our favorite humans. There was a king once, an empire. He was much like you, always looking to help. There was unrest in Anatolia, where the Living Mirage preserve was. Dragon unrest."

"And what happened?"

"I can't recall. That was centuries ago."

"Are there others who would know?"

"I suppose, though not many," Theala shifted on her seat, her wings folding nicely on her back. "We should return to our studies."

"But what is there to learn from the missing pages?" Kendra asked, her curiosity had been piqued.

"If there was something to learn from the pages, they would be there," her tone was stricter than it ever had been before. "We must return to our studies if you are to be ready for your coronation and marriage."

Kendra kept quiet for the rest of the lesson, though Theala's lack of concern did not settle down well in her head. Had that been the year Bracken fell prey to the Sphinx? Was that why it had remained such a secret? Why did she feel the desire to find out what was being hidden? When had she become so much like Seth?

Seth would callher a nerd for looking through books first, and then he'd help her search for clues.

There were no additional clues. Only missing pages and forgotten memories. Theala didn't bring up the missing pages for the duration of their meeting. Kendra helped her put away the books, and took a special note of where each one went. She'd read them later. It would give her something else so so other than party and wear fancy gowns.

An astrid waited outside of the library to accompany her to the next event on her schedule. Her outing with Bracken. The astrid stood tall and silent. Good. The silence gave Kendra a moment to herself. Somehow she'd be able to find out what was on those missing pages, even if the history was marred by bloodshed. She had the right to know.

The gardens were far more stunning than the inside of the castle, which Kendra hadn't thought to be possible. Everything in the garden grew in a specific shape. The roses held up their high arches on their own. Cypress trees always remained in perfect order. It was truly perfect.

A special part of the garden had been sectioned off simply for these meetings. Two additional astrids stood outside of a clearing guarded by tall hedges. A spiraling white gazebo wound itself into the blue sky. There was a medium sized table adorned with all sorts of tiny pieces of food. Bracken and Mizelle sat at one side of the table. Two empty chairs sat at the head, while Bracken's other sisters all sat with their backs to Kendra. Though she had met them before, Kendra couldn't deny how much they intimidated her.

"But can you imagine? Willingly deciding to turn your sister into a formless being?" Asked Elena, another one of Bracken's sisters. She had a loud laugh and a face of a master prankster. Elena was easy to get along with.

"Sometimes I am tempted to turn Mizelle into a toad," Bracken joked, his laugh as clear as a brook.

"That's not true," Mizelle retorted. "You are far too sympathetic. You'd feel guilty."

"I don't ever feel guilty- Kendra! You came!"

"Hello," Kendra offered her best smile as she sat beside Bracken. Elena and the other sisters waved at her. She wrung her hands in her lap, "Did I interrupt something?"

"No, no, not at all," Elena held up her hands. "We were discussing the Dreammaker, and then we were teasing Bracken. He's quite easy to tease."

Elena was a trickster, Kendra knew that much. She found it hard to believe that immortals could have such a sense of humor. Not that she was complaining.

"What's a dreammaker?" Kendra eyed a plate of tiny pastries. The fairies had an impossible way of making desserts from thin air. The ones that had caught her eye looked like tiny lace doilies.

"I'm surprised you've never heard of him," Bracken scratched the back of his head. "He's a prominent figure in fairy lore."

"We were always told to behave or the Dreammaker would suck away all of our emotions," added another sister, Raniye.

"There's a legend about the Dreammaker. That he sacrificed his sister to a dark force to gain power. May we eat now?" Elena has already begun to pile delicacies on her plate.

Bracken chuckled, and gestured to some of the pastries, "Which one do you want?"

"You choose, I'm not accustomed to fairyfood," Kendra shrugged. "Can I ask a question?"

"Yes, but you've already asked one. Choose wisely," Elena snickered. She earned a hard stare from everyone at the table.

"Do any of you recall the years between 1192 and 1407?"

"Plague. Disrespect for magic. Fairy hunts," Mizelle was crisp and to the point. "Why do you ask?"

"Today as I studied, I found a history book missing several pages," Kendra said quietly. Bracken set her plate down in front of her.

"Curious," Elena frowned, though she shoved a macaron in her mouth before she could say anything.

"That's when Living Mirage was abusing power," Raniye nodded. "I can recall those days with ease."

"Can you tell me what happened?" The eagerness in Kendra's voice made her cringe.

Raniye paused for a moment. She stared off into space. Out of all of Bracken's sisters, Raniye was easily the oddest. Sometimes she stopped talking in the middle of a sentence. Other times she spewed random tidbits of information. The look on Elena's face said it all: Raniye was about to spew some random bits of knowledge.

"In 1192 the mortals were searching for war," Raniye began. "Many kings came to the desert lands searching for something, but only one knew what the true goal was. A fountain of ever lasting life. A gift from Bracken."

A smile spread on her little pale face. Raniye was easily as dainty as a glass doll, and twice as fragile. Bracken took her hand, his voice soft, "Don't strain yourself."

"I'll try not to. As I was saying, many searched for a way to live forever, and one man found it. An emperor. But he drowned. Devastation plowed through the reserve. I know that it was very sad what happened there.

"See, there were good people and they did not get very lucky. Bad things happen to good people from time to time, but there is nothing to be done about that. People make bad choices when they are very upset. Living Mirage didn't last very long. Somebody else took over. I found myself very sorrowful. It was very sad."

The Sphinx probably had a hand in that, Kendra realized. Raniye froze. Her eyes had gone misty, "It's so very sad."

"Don't be upset, Rani," Bracken whispered. "There's nothing you could've done."

"But you could've done something," she mumbled. "May I please have a tart? I love tarts."

The sudden change from cryptic messages to asking for a tart brought a new unsettling feeling to the table.

"Strawberry or blueberry?" Bracken asked, seemingly unposed by Raniye's sudden transition.

"I will take strawberry. Pink is a very nice color. I have an eye for color."

Everyone else at the table remained silent.

"That's very true," Bracken agreed. "Kendra has an eye for color too, did you know that?"

"Yes, because she listens to me."

"My brother likes to paint," Kendra said weakly.

Nothing phased Raniye, "Is that so? I like to make flowers. They grow when I ask them. They are shy around my sisters."

"I think they're shy because Mizelle has a heavy gait," Elena teased, once again breaking up the awkward tension.

"Or maybe they're shy because you tell the same jokes," Mizelle retorted.

"My jokes are funny."

"She's got a point," Kendra pointed out with smile, unable to remain shrouded by the uncertain awkward air.

"Clearly I'm Kendra's favorite."

Mizelle roller her eyes.

"Can I be Kendra's favorite?" Raniye had folded her hands in her lap. Though she held out one to Kendra.

"Absolutely," Kendra beamed, and she took Raniye's hand. "You are my most favorite."

"I've never been somebody's most favorite," Raniye beamed. "I like being a favorite."

An astrid, stocky and hard faced, marched into the clearing. He held a scroll under his arm, "Princess Mizelle, news from-"

"Not in front of my family," Mizelle hissed, her eyes flashing. The astrid took a step back.

"That bad?" Bracken asked, his eyebrow arched.

"Yes."

"It is terrible news to some. Good news to others," Raniye tilted her head. She squeezed Kendra's hand.

"I must go," Mizelle announced, standing from her place at the table. "We will discuss this later."

"It won't be good if the lid opens."

"Thank you for the observation, Raniye."

Mizelle held out her hand to the astrid, who gave her the scroll without second thought. Her face fell into a scowl. The scroll snapped shut. Together, Mizelle and the astrid left the clearing.

"Do I get to know what that was about?" Kendra asked.

"In time, yes. Mizelle will handle her duties and we must handle ours."

A pair of butterflies soared through the gazebo. Raniye smiled. Her joy didn't do much to save away Kendra's new surge in anxiety. Too many what ifs had begun to flood her head. She didn't know what she'd do if there was a disaster that drew her away from Bracken so close to their wedding.

"You've gone all tense," Bracken set his hand on her knee. His clear eyes had begun to swim with doubt.

Kendra wondered what the meaning behind Raniye's words were.

"Sorry, haven't had many chances to take a break. Maybe for one of our celebration activities, we could all take a nap."

"I find that notion incredibly appealing. Could we make blanket forts?"

"Blanket forts. Slippers. Onesies. The whole nine yards," Kendra smiled at the thought of such a relaxed activity. No hoops to jump through. Just a slumber party with her best friend.

"If Mizelle has no need for my assistance, we should make a fort tonight in the library," Bracken mused. "We could read and stay far away from the high emotions of court."

Books. Blankets. Bracken.

It was the perfect way to spend an evening. Kendra had come to love privacy after having so many fairies try to shove themselves into her life. Libraries were perfectly private.

Still, she made sure not to get her hopes up. There was still a chance that Bracken would be called away to assist Mizelle, and she'd have to read in her blanket fort alone.

And there was nothing wrong with that.


She wasn't disappointed when the note arrived, baring Bracken's perfect handwriting declaring that he was unable to meet her at the library. She waited for several hours working up the courage to go talk to him. Instead she shrugged on a pair of gossamer pants and her Kit-Kat shirt she'd brought with her from the mortal world. With the help of a glowing butterfly, she made her way to the library.

No one she passed in the hallway questioned where she was going, and for that, Kendra was grateful. She didn't want somebody accompanying her to the library. The glowing butterfly fluttered to rest on her wrist. Hardly a sound rang through the halls as Kendra opened the door and entered the library.

The splendor of the library was easily her favorite. Shelves and shelves decorated with ivy leaves lined the walls. The ceiling was a perpetual shade of purple, and held the quiet glow of dusk. Perfect for reading.

But where to start?

There were many things she wanted to know. Enough to keep her in the library for a week. Perhaps as long as an entire month. That would've been heaven on earth.

"Can you help me find a book or two?" Kendra asked the butterfly at her wrist. A sigh left her lips as the butterfly flew away. "Right. Thanks."

"I can help you," called a voice. Kendra jumped. The voice continued, "Over here. At the podium. Yeah, yeah, right here."

Kendra did as she was told. The podium sat next to a balcony, a perfect view of the grand library. And to her surprise...

"Hey, how's it?"

... Found herself face to face with a talking book.

"It's rude to stare," the book said. Kendra assumed it was a he, considering that a man's head sat in the middle of a black void on the cover. He had dark hair and blue eyes. His features were sharp, much like his wit. "Were you raised in a barn?"

"Sorry. I'm from New York."

"That explains it," the book rolled his eyes. "My name's Hestone, thanks for asking."

"My name's-"

"Kendra Sorenson. I know. I know everything. Because I'm a book."

"Why haven't I seen you when I'm here during the day?"

"For one, you're not looking. I also like to sleep during daytime hours. More people leave me alone."

Creepy. Talking book she'd never seen before new her name. Kendra rubbed her arms, "What do you do?"

Hestone laughed, "It's not that easy. You gotta do a song and a dance."

"That's all?"

"Kidding, it's okay. I'm not that much of a jerk. Just don't be annoying. Lots of these fairy types tend to bother me."

Talking to a book was one of the least craziest things Kendra had done. She fiddled with the fabric of her pants, "What makes you say that?"

"They boss me around. Can't stand that. I mean, come on, is it so hard to be grateful for some services? I bet they boss you around all the time."

"Only sometimes," Kendra nodded. "But it could be worse."

"Optimism is a virtue," Hestone smirked. "I like you. Care to humor me a moment?"

It wasn't like she had anything better to do. Kendra nodded. "I'm all ears."

"There's a page with a dog ear. It's quite painful. Could you fix it for me?"

"Of course!" Kendra exclaimed. She carefully flipped through Hestone's pages, ignoring the thought of Hestone very much being alive. The dog eared page was fixed in less than a second. "That better?"

"Very much so, I appreciate the notion. In fact, I may like you a little more than other fairies."

"Why don't you like them?"

She swore she saw Hestone shrug, "Many reasons. The most prominent being nobody asks how my day was and then they dog ear pages. It's. Horrid."

"How was your day, Hestone?" Kendra asked. She clasped her hands behind her back.

"It was good," Hestone stuck his nose up. "Thank you."

"I'm glad to hear that. I'm sorry people don't take good care of you."

"That's what I say every time they use me. I'm a special book, I'll have you know. All they use me for is look for silly flower designs. I was used in great temples once upon a time, until I was stolen."

Kendra quite liked people who spilled all of their secrets to people who listened.

"Anyways, ask me anything, and I'll show you. Go on, try it. You won't regret it," Hestone chirped. "Go on, go on!"

"Um," she paused, thinking of one person she'd happily see. Kendra smiled, "Show me Seth Sorenson."

Hestone flipped open to a random page, and rather than showing strings of words, displayed a moving image of Seth playing monopoly with Grandma and Grandpa Sorenson. It was as if Kendra were watching the scene through a camera. Seth was winning. Her heart began to warm. She could hear them all laughing.

"Ask me again."

"Show me my parents."

The image changed, showing her mother and father strolling through Walmart.

On and on the game went with Kendra asking Hestone to show her one of her loved ones, and he delivered.

"Show me Bracken."

"Aye, aye captain," Hestone declared. The image changed.

Bracken and Mizelle stood in the middle of a large, rotund room. Tapestries hung down on two of the walls. A bookcase sat on another. A round table stood in the middle of the room, a map rested on the tabletop, a large black spot spread across the bottom section of the map.

"... the gates will be opened soon," Mizelle declared to the room full of astrids and fairy commanders. "The results won't be favorable at all."

"We were only informed this morning of activity near the Gates of Nyx." Bracken gestured to the map. "What you see here is a map of the world between realms, and already somebody is trying to take control with power from the Gates."

"Thirteen fairies have gone missing. Many of you are friends with them," Mizelle continued.

"It's entirely possible that whoever is responsible for this is trying to build up an army. Do your best to find anyone who may seem to be involved."

None of the astrids appeared to be scared.

"The Gates must remain closed, at all costs. Go on your ways. All of you."

Kendra watched as the astrids left the room like a funeral procession. Neither Bracken nor Mizelle looked happy at all. They both peered over the map, gesturing to the frighteningly large spot of blackness. That had to be related to whatever the Gate of Nyx were. Kendra strained to hear the conversation, and froze. She was behaving like a bitter child. Eavesdropping. Stooping down to a new low.

She wasn't the type to eavesdrop. That was Seth's job. Kendra was supposed to be the good sister, an yet, there she was listening on a conversation that she wasn't invited to.

Wasn't invited to. She'd killed the Demon King when she was just 15 years old! To think that killing the Demon King has any merit. She had a right to be involved with affairs that were similar to that. Already she knew the excuse for why she'd been left out: Bracken wanted to keep her safe. It was the same every time.

"Show me the Gates of Nyx," Kendra told Hestone. "Please?"

Hestone didn't say anything as the pages shifted away from Bracken, Mizelle, and the map. The new image on the pages was a complete contrast from the orderly meeting room. At first, Kendra wasn't sure what she was looking at. There was nothing but complete darkness. A single star hung in the sky.

But a feeble blue light began to pulse from beneath a mass of something.

Bones.

A complete skeleton of a tiny dragon.

It wasn't the only one of its kind. Bones littered the obsidian earth. Human skeleton lay sprawled on the ground, their ribs lying at awkward angles. Upon further investigation, Kendra could point out several ogre bones. Kendra stiffened her lip, and stared at the pages. From the dim light, she could see a shimmering wall.

The Gates of Nyx were cruel in the way that they stood. They were an unfeeling god lurking over the bodies of the dead. But why were the bones of so many different creatures lying there in the open? What had they done to get there?

It wasn't a pleasant sight, the boneyard. Kendra stepped away from the podium; Hestone snapped himself shut. She wondered if he knew anything about the Gates and why they stood by remenants of the dead.

"You're welcome, by the way," he snipped.

"Thank you, sorry," Kendra rubbed her arm again. "Am I still allowed to ask questions?"

"I dunno. I suppose I'm still in a forgiving mood. I kinda like you. Don't know why though."

His attempts at disdain made Kendra almost smile. She shifted on her feet, "How can I learn more about the Gates of Nyx?"

She could scour through books to her hesrt's content, but the possibility of finding absolutely nothing was far too great. And what would she had to gain?

Scratch that.

Digging through books would be a reward in itself if Kendra didn't find what she was searching for.

Hestone cleared his throat, "There are very few things that I have access to. You must know that in this situation."

"Let me guess," Kendra arched an eyebrow. "Information about the Gates of Nyx is forbidden?"

The sudden silence from Hestone confirmed what Kendra was thinking. But then he laughed, "Oh there's nothing forbidden about the Gates, I just figured I'd give you a warning. The Gates do have a foggy beginning. It's been lost to history. Real tragedy when events are lost to history. But I'll tell you all that I know. Anyone who goes there is going to find only trouble."

"Is that all? So much fear simply because of that?"

"There's a series of people involved. Wizards and enchantresses. A real kind lot. But you won't get information from me so easily. You'll never come back if I tell you in one sitting."

There had to be more to it than just Hestone's vain tendencies. Kendra crossed her arms and stared at him as sternly as she could. It didn't take very long for Hestone to look uncomfortable.

He rolled his eyes with enough furiousity to rival Seth when he'd been told no, "I can't acquire all the information in one sitting. I have to have time."

"Ah, so you're not as high and mighty as you claim to be," she countered, her stern stare melting into a teasing grin. "I'm only joking. Thank you, for being willing to work with me."

"People used to tremble before my feet, but now they mock me!" Hestone snapped. "Come visit me tomorrow, I may be able to find more knowledge by then."

"Would you like a break from sitting on the podium?"

"You're taking me off the podium?! Hurry up! It's been ages since I've gone anywhere!"

Kendra hadn't expected to spend her evening with a talking book, though she certainly didn't mind it. The first thing Hestone demanded to see was the plants growing along the bookshelves. He ranted about the power that he used to have, and grew defensive when when Kendra doubted him.

The evening had easily been one of her most enjoyable moments in the Fairy Realm.