Diego was laying out in the sun on a rock overlooking Glass Lake. The beautiful Aquatic fairiette leaned over him and fed him delicious underwater fruits. The Blue Isle had almost lost it's grip but not enough for him to remember Tamera.
"You are a goddess," he smiled at her.
"Only worthy of your worship," she said smoothly and stuck a piece of fruit in his mouth. He gladly took it and swallowed.
He'd never had it so good. The last time he was this happy was with...Tia Larque. His mind clicked and he remembered how sadly she looked at him when he told her he was just another Royal.
"Is something wrong?" The beautiful aquatic asked seeing the worry flood into his face.
"I'm such a loser!" he groaned as the alcohol drained into a headache. He covered his head and rolled over.
"WHY!" she asked startled.
"I lied to my friend!"
She smirked like he was over-reacting. "Did they know of your lie?"
He thought...no, she still thought he was 'Heath'. He shook his head.
"Well, then it's not your fault," she ran her fingers through his wispy hair. She was a genuine seductress, much more talented at it that Tamera...TAMERA?
Diego shot up and finally remembered that he had left Tamera at the grotto!
"Now what?" she sighed exasperated.
"I left my...other friend at the grotto!" he said holding his head in drunken frustration.
An owl cry sounded from above, he watched it as it flew over head and to the forested area of the lake. It was snowy white.
"Was your 'friend' perchance Tamera Almengod?" The Aquatic asked suspiciously.
"Yeah," he said.
She sighed disappointedly. "I should have known better than to take one of her men."
"I am not her man," Diego declared.
"Are you telling me you can resist her charms?" she asked with a grin.
"Most of the time," Diego shrugged.
A mighty gyr falcon's cry pierced the air, they looked up to see it land over where the snow owl landed.
"What the hell is going on?" Diego wondered.
"I have no clue. What you Earthies do is none of our business. Well love, I'm expected somewhere else soon. Good luck and farewell," She kissed him for the last time and dove gracefully into the blue lake.
He was alone again.
He decided to casually fly to where the birds had landed. As he entered the forested edge of the lake he saw Tamera flying his direction and she looked pissed.
He quickly hid. She must have been searching all day. They were near Jarrow Grove. He looked up and way above him was perched the snow owl who was preening itself, it's rider absent. It was strange, it wasn't even near the club's bird branch.
"Dallas Ferra, you stay away!" he heard a fairiette's piercing scream echo through the woods.
"Hey look a mushroom!" came a guy's voice.
"I'm going to beat you 'till your black and blue!" a different guy's voice shouted.
"AHHH!" the high fairiette voice called again.
"For sakes Dallas, I'm going to sit down and rest!" came a familiar fairiette's voice.
"DIEGO!" Tamera's tinkling voice called.
Then the fairy that had been his next door cell-mate popped out of the bushes. "DUDE! Where's that nice piece of ass that saved you?"
"Dakota?" Diego asked shocked that he was out of the dungeons.
"The one and only! Hey want a mushroom?" Dakota asked holding out a piece. Diego shrugged and took it.
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Shylie was busy running from the insane Dallas Ferra, he totally went psycho and started chasing her and wouldn't stop. She had lost track of her prisoner, Dakota and he was the only one who knew how to get rid of her wing disability!
Then she ran smack into Tamera.
"Shylie?" Tamera asked helping her up.
"Tamera?" Shylie asked confused.
"What are you doing here?" Tamera asked in puzzlement.
"Oh Tamera!" Shylie wailed and hugged her friend, "The guy that fell on me has taken away my flying ability and he's escaped! Plus Dallas Ferra is trying to kill me!"
"Oh Shylie, the one boyfriend I can remember the name of has been seduced by an Aquatic and left me and I can't find him!" Tamera explained her dilemma.
They both hugged each other and cried in frustration.
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" SHYLIE! WHERE ARE YOU? YOU BIMBO?" Dallas shouted angrily. He had left Tia awhile back because she didn't prefer flying after him in his chase.
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Shylie stopped wailing and squeaked in fright, hearing Dallas' voice. "Tamera, I got to go. I'll see you tonight, maybe if I'm still alive!"
Then she ran off on foot. Her only hope was to find Dakota and her wings to work again.
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" Whoa! Dude that cloud looks like a bird!" Diego said in a slurred voice.
"Your mom," Dakota answered and cracked up. They were so totally tripping out on the mushroom he found.
They were laying on the forest floor without care that a snake could come along an swallow them.
Shylie ran past, backed up, and stared at them.
"Hey Shylie, come have a mushroom," Dakota said very stoned-like.
"This is no time to be tripping out with your little Underclass friends, now get up!" she yanked his ear.
"See ya later dude!" Dakota waved while Shylie dragged him off.
Diego smiled happily and laid back down on the ground.
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Tamera was pacing around, trying to figure out how to find her beloved when the Dallas guy ran up to her, she had her back turned on him.
"Excuse me Miss..." he tapped her on her shoulder. She yelped in surprise, grabbed his hand and flipped him over her shoulder so he slammed into the ground.
"Owww..." he moaned and looked up to see Tamera glaring over him.
"Why are you threatening to kill Shylie!" she demanded and put her foot on his stomach.
"Tamera?" he asked confused.
"Why?" Tamera applied pressure.
"Aghhh! She was bragging about how it would be good if Julius were dead and how happy she was that he had got kidnapped!" he said and squirmed in pain.
Tamera gasped and lifted her foot, "Shylie wouldn't do that!"
"Well..." he said sitting up and holding his stomach and groaning, "she did."
"I don't believe you," she said crossing her arms obstinately.
"You wouldn't," Dallas growled. He'd never thought he'd be speaking to the fairiette he'd liked so long in that tone.
"What does that mean?" Tamera demanded.
"Never mind," Dallas said and got up to go find Shylie.
"OH no you don't! You're not going to hurt Shylie!" Tamera boldly swore.
Dallas was growing frustrated, he turned around and to Tamera's surprise, kicked her feet out from under her.
"You dickhead!" she cried and grabbed his foot and he fell also.
"You empty-headed hussy!" he shot back and crawled away. Tamera was too fast, she grabbed his ankle and pulled him back and hit his head where Shylie had assaulted in an half hour before.
"OW!" he screamed and grabbed a handful of copper-blonde hair from her head and yanked.
"OW!" she screeched in pain and punched him in his side.
"OW!" he yelled and grabbed her by her neck and pushed her head into the muddy ground. Her face came back up all grayish-brown.
"I hate you!" she cried.
"I don't want to hate you!" Dallas shouted back.
"I...you don't?" she asked, her anger subsiding.
"No," Dallas said letting his guard down.
With one big kick in the groin, Dallas was crunched down in pain. "That's the sweetest thing anybody has ever said to me," Tamera swooned being absolutely sincere. "But that's for getting my face dirty."
Tears formed in Dallas's eyes, he nodded most fairly and dropped to the ground in excruciating pain.
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"Dallas! Where did you go!" Tia shouted. It had been fifteen minutes since she last saw him. She huffed in annoyance and continued flying along the brush for any clues to where he might be.
She saw someone lying on the ground, it was a male fairy. She rushed up to them.
Diego felt a shadow block out the rays he was catching. He opened his eyes into ones that were surprised as his.
"Tia?" he asked without thinking.
"Heath!...How did you know my name?" she asked suspiciously. His eyes were oddly the same as Diego's. It still freaked her out.
"I'm sorry," he said sitting up and shaking his head.
"For what!" Tia asked surprised, she laid her hand on his shoulder. His whole body tingled.
She looked startled, like she had felt his skin before.
"I'm sorry because I lied," he shook his wispy chestnut hair out of his eyes.
Tia's heart beat faster. "What do you mean?"
'Heath' sighed and looked at her hopefully, "Read my face."
Every fairy had a customary tattoo that always transferred into something inspirational on their face, under their eye, and on their shoulder. Everyone always discarded them or put them out of sight when they looked at each other. Tia focused on the oval shaped line under his right honey hazel eye.
Love Spirit.
She gasped, he was Diego. The Diego that had been her friend for so many years, the Diego that was her only friend after she helped a Royal when she was an Underclass, The same Diego that she had left without so much as a goodbye...without another thought she threw her arms around him and wept.
"Tia! What's wrong?" he asked, startled by her sudden action.
Tia tried to answer but she was so happy, and relieved that only sobs came out of her mouth. It felt like her black and white world had just gotten a bucket of color poured on it. In all the years she was acting Royal she couldn't have any close friends. Royals would have found out her secret and the Underclasses disliked her lifestyle choice. Diego was the link to bring balance to her life.
Diego realized that this was Tia and finally returned her hug. It was so great to have her in his arms again.
"Diego?" she said meekly.
"Yeah?" he answered.
"I'm so deeply sorry for running off like I did," she apologized.
Diego put himself away from her, "I thought you were dead." Tia cried more in shame. "But why did you run off and what happened to you? I've been wondering this for as long as I can remember."
"That night, after the Anti-Royal mob verbally attacked me, I just couldn't take it anymore. You were asleep when I finally came back but I took my stuff and went to a solitary place where I could think. I had to do something and what that was, was to become Royal," Tia tearfully explained. "I didn't mean to leave without saying goodbye, please forgive me. It was selfish of me not to fill you in."
Diego sighed and leaned back, "Of course I forgive you Tia, you're my best friend. Hell, I can't blame you for wanting to change your life. I've been working at the palace for about a hundred years and BAM! They fire me pretty much because the most gorgeous Royal fairiette has the hots for me."
He looked bitter, she wanted so much to cheer him up. "You always did attract the most beautiful fairiettes."
Diego stared up at her, she looked a bit glum at the last remark she made. She didn't know, she never had. "Not the ones I wanted to though."
"You don't fancy a Royal? You don't want Tamera Almengod?" she asked with a sarcastic and surprised smile.
"Aye, I know someone far more beautiful and talented than any Royal but she doesn't seem to fancy me," he looked at Tia a bit sly.
"Really? Who could resist you, 'Casanova'?" she teased, giving him a friendly push.
Diego caught her hand, moved to her, and slowly brushed his lips against hers. He pulled back and to her surprised face, he whispered with an obvious tone, "You."