Yup, I decided to give it one more try. Updates will be slow for all my stories. I'm a mama now, after all. But lets see if we can find something wonderful together. As always yall, don't steal things.
Now that that's settled... ONWARD!
...
The overlapping sound of laughter could be heard from down the street, the woman sitting in a darkened corner within the pub concluded as she picked up her glass of water and forced herself to take a sip. She wished it was something stronger but the swell of her abdomen protested otherwise. A soft kick rippled through her with an awareness of life, and Colette struggled to house her sigh. She knew quite well how she got in this predicament, remembered how those dark eyes beheld passion as he parted the depths of the ocean's roll. How he encased her attention effortlessly with a wave of his mighty, well working hand to accomplish feats thought to be impossible to most.
The merman was of magic, pulsing deep within his veins, and from his charisma he knew it to be so. That didn't stop Colette from being drawn to the allure, and since she was his opposite… Colette naively hoped that they were evenly matched. Perhaps a bit too naive, she glared her bright orbs down at the table before her. Not even a month before they had met, Colette remembered how his toned body pressed against her own.
He had given her one passionate night, breathless in its majesty, and when she awoke from her slumber the other side of the bed was long since cold.
It was when a few weeks passed her by that she felt the fluttering of life hidden within the depth of her, how in the morning she would be vomiting over nothing and that was when she knew. Of course, her parents found out and when they had they cast her away like the forgotten and burned bread that her father tended to.
She had no support, it seemed. She had no one but Colette was certain to be someone for the child that bore from her mistakes. She fought for it, to be something and have achieved what her parents doubted of her. To provide. So far, she was failing to get a single place for herself and now in her third trimester, Colette wondered if the doubt her parents had once regarded her with was due justly.
She sighed again, finished the rest of her water quickly due to the dryness that clawed at her throat before Colette threw a coin down at the table and left. Her ears caught a catcall hidden underneath the laughter, making them burn with a semblance of shame as she remembered the scars that were erratically designed on her stomach but another twitch of movement from her babe told her to keep moving.
The cool night air swarmed her as she stepped out, and a frown curved her lips. Where will they stay tonight and be safe? She was once again exhausted just thinking about it and forced herself to slowly ease down upon the cobblestone curb.
Her eyes cast upward, gazing upon the ancestors of old that time itself forgot and wondered if anything she had done in her life had made even one of hers proud. The lids of her eyes slid over, and Colette hoped then that her child was dreaming big things from where it lay within.
A moment of silence past over her when a soft voice interrupted it, as if the person was hesitant to speak, "Hello there." It was a nice voice, almost too pleasant in its nurturing.
With the hard thumping of her heart once again pushing more blood to her child, Colette forced herself not to jump as she leveled her head to the fae that hovered before her. Magic, was the first word that Colette thought as she eyed the one that was as big as her hand; clad in a poofy but achingly beautiful blue dress of many shades. Her brown hair curled and styled in a way that shone in contrast to her fair skin.
"Hello." Colette forced herself to respond back, though she winced of how her voice cracked.
The fae clad in blue moved as she hovered, leveling out with grace that the human dared to only dream of, and then tilted her head gently to the right. "I felt a strong magical sequence from this part… It comes from you."
Dread filled her at those words… for Colette now knew who the child would take after. Her mind waywardly thought of the hardships that the child would undoubtedly face from others, how they would both be regarded. No doubt the father would understand that hardship all too well. ...What would become of her babe? Her fear must've been etched upon her because the woman immediately continued, "It's okay. No one is going to be hurt. I am the Blue Fairy, but you can call me Blue. I see that you are pregnant so I want to offer you shelter until your child is born. Afterwards you'll have to find a home for yourselves."
Colette was beyond herself at the thought and she started to thank the woman profusely but Blue just smiled at her. There, Colette noticed, were secrets hidden away within that softness. Blue knew of something and yet Colette didn't know how to ask, didn't know if she wanted to know. There must have been something though, Colette was sure of it. Not every magikal helped another and here this little one was, offering shelter to a woman she knew naught of.
Colette kept quiet despite the thoughts that pounded at her temples and stood to follow the fae into the night; holding no doubt that the future held both mystery and wonder.
Hidden away in a little cottage in the woods, Colette breathed deeply as her heart sped up within her chest and her babe lurched forward with impatience. It was nothing like the first trimester, where she vomited over nothing and only could eat fruits and vegetables. Nor was it like the second, where she ached deep within her womb as the babe learned to kick to develop her awareness. This was different. Blood and ooze came and went, the blood lingering longer than the other and Colette could feel it deep within her bones… It was going to happen soon.
And when it did, it was noticeable indeed. Water flowed from her as Colette tried in vain to recollect herself, and as she laid upon the bed… her mind's eye dreamt of a simpler time. Darkness set around her, ever watching on the outskirts of Colette's vision and when she came to, the woman was greeted by a tinkling voice that had grown to be familiar.
"Push, Colette." Pain went from pressure, to her stomach twisting like her blood sets, and then to stabbing. And yet, Colette pushed indeed.
As her head got heavy, Colette heard Blue instruct her once more. The bell in her voice seeming louder than what it actually was, "Slowly… Breath, darling… It is coming… Push…"
Back arching, Colette's voice arose but then the pain dulled. In its place was another cry, not of her own that made tears flow from her orbs. The pain and exhaustion fled away when she got to finally see her little girl, and Colette could almost see the mirrored reflection of the father in her arms. She was interrupted from her musings by Blue's words, "Colette, the child is healthy and strong. Her magic is resounding even now. With age, it will be even stronger and I'm wary of how it might hurt her within the future... Tell me, what shall you name her?"
"Naeris," Colette answered quietly, silently thinking upon what she'd been told about the babe. Her eyes were drawn upon the child, and though Colette had seen many of beauty… there was naught one thing that could measure up in the moment to the little wonder that was in her arms.
A smile tugged at Blue's lips in response and though she said the first two words gently, she spoke quite seriously afterward, "Very well. If she ever needs me, I'll try to answer and listen to her."
"Thank you," Colette said simply; for in all these nine months of coming and going from the cottage, Blue had never once shown just why she was being so helpful. It still made Colette nervous.
As per the deal when they first met, after Colette healed, she packed up what she acquired and left the cottage hidden within the woods. Determined to do everything in her power so her daughter would have a life, Colette stepped forward with the pride she would have to earn for tomorrow.
Time seemed to slow and speed up at the same time, for the both of them. With Naeris cluster feeding, Colette feared she wouldn't make enough milk to cater to the babe. Days and nights blended because of it, the persistent cries that flowed through the space of their little homestead kept both of them up. Naeris didn't like getting cold and would cry because of it, other than when she was hungry. It didn't help Colette any that whenever she looked upon her child, all she saw was him. It was for Naeris to have his dark wavy hair, the slightly slanted shape of the eyes that were his brown instead of her blue. Sure her skin was a shade or so lighter than his own, but everything aside from Naeris's lips and nose screamed for the father that knew naught of her.
That newborn stage however didn't last forever and after the first year, Naeris would sleep well throughout the night. Growing by the day with her magic growing with her, Naeris blossomed into a beauty that radiated mischief. Who danced to her own drum, even when the others knew naught the steps. Colette still saw her lover in the child that they created, from the dark waves that bounced with her every step right down to her toes that were constantly dirty from the inability to keep her shoes on.
It had been three years since Colette had parted ways with blue, and while it all passed in almost a blink of her eye… she still remembered how hard it was in the beginning. Her Naeris had grown with intelligence that wasn't lost on anyone who crossed her path, which didn't make her much friends. Colette had even gotten a job at an inn close to their modest home. It gave her the ability and means to raise her daughter, however much she hated it.
Usually, the nights at this inn were quiet; however the rowdiness that bounced off the walls told another tale of this night. Talk was that a king was passing through this part of the realm and had decided to stay at the inn for this fortnight.
That in turn, meant more money and with gold glinting in her eyes Colette completely bypassed how displeased Naeris was with the idea. She expressed to silent ears that she thought the king would disrupt her peaceful routine and in way, she had been right. Later Colette would ponder about her loud protests and contemplate if it was some kind of development with her powers that made Naeris so sure of it.
The King was a good, albeit stupid, man named Maurice. Most would describe him as a stout looking man with graying brown hair that framed a strong squared face and bright blue orbs; Colette would have described him as 'handsome'. It seemed he only decided upon their inn to see how people were living in that part; his gaze set in a cross between distant and displeased. Displeased, maybe even disgusted at what he deemed as low standards yes; but unwilling and unmoved to really do anything about it.
Out of everything he gazed upon, the most striking and probably the only things noteworthy was the mother and child duo. He found them both to be extremely beautiful even with the puffiness lining underneath their orbs, which told of hardships and lack of sleep. When slyly asking the innkeeper about the pair of them, all he discovered was their names for the lean angled man didn't seem terribly interested in them to want to know anything. It seemed like they were just part of the staff; what with Colette being employed and Naeris being there so much and helping out, but the King saw more. Hidden gems overlooked by commoners who knew naught things of value.
On the very last night of his stay at the inn where he had watched them from afar, Maurice asked the woman to come with him. Colette blushed in response and graciously accepted, for she knew that it would give her daughter the best chance at happiness. Her Naeris was set for great things, things that wouldn't ever see light in a shady inn that was housed in a forgotten part of the land. And things seemed good, better than before, but Colette's now comfortable situation made her forget just how much magic Naeris was used to doing.
Inside of a year, Colette had married the King and Naeris was accepted as a young princess by the entire household. Fitted indresses of the softest fabrics however, didn't stop Naeris from running away from her tutors to play magic without eyes cast upon her. Even as the age of four, the child knew quite well just what Maurice's ideas of magic were and struggled to connect with him no matter how hard he tried. Despite of how he had been told of how she couldn't control it. He was wary of it, of course and the King could never hide the fear in the late night talks with Colette; unaware of the little ears that were hidden within the shadowy depths of the castle.
To the outside world, Naeris was a picture of happiness even if she was everything but. At four years old, the child started comprehending alot more and while she could clearly acknowledge that her mother loved the king… the woman was often forgetting about her. She didn't spend as much time with her as she did before and often passed her to the maids to take care of. It felt like Naeris was being left behind and on her fifth birthday, it was confirmed as far as she had been aware. Her mother labored for twelve hours and gave birth to another daughter she named Belle… exactly on her birthday. Not one person asked for her nor did anyone wish her a happy birthday, instead Naeris was forced to understand that she was going to be sharing a birthday with a sister that she never wanted. That too stole her mother's attention like the child's father before her. Regardless of all this, Naeris tried desperately to love her sister. However it was a slow process and didn't progress even a year later for the only birthday that was celebrated belonged solely to the precious daughter named Belle.
...Naeris was indeed forgotten.
Seeing how it was set to be this way with no concept on how to change it, Naeris tried to master the one thing she was good at. The one thing that their precious Belle wasn't and that was magic.
It was late at night, when the moon above glinted through the windows and cast upon her, did Naeris practice. It was the teal color of her magic moved in thin swirls of glitter, beautiful as it was in it's designs, that sent a thrill through her veins. It was an accomplishment to her, to be good at something. Something that didn't ask her to measure up to anyone else. The feeling chased the pain until it was long forgotten, she would later remember this feeling of comfort and pride when she saw her mother doting upon Belle. When Belle would give her a side look of triumph. When Maurice would look upon her with surprise… much alike he forgot she was even there.
The hate curled deep within her gut at this young age and slowly, Naeris started to detest the king because he was the one that originally took away her mother's love. She even started despising her mother by her eleventh birthday, for forgetting all about her and allowing her love to be swayed away so easily. No matter what happened from one year to the other, she could not find it in her being to hate her little sister. She tried to do everything in her power to have the love of at least one creature in this world, but nothing she did could measure up. At last, she had the comfort that came with magic.
Naeris had been fifteen when it happened, she would remember in later years. Details would become distant but she would always remember that it had been raining, that Belle wanted to play outside but their mother would have none of it because Belle would get wet. Naeris approached her little sister in a dress that was too poofy for her to be comfortable in, and decided to try to reveal just a little more, her words chosen carefully, "Belle… I could make it that you can get out without getting wet."
"How?" The curious ten year old asked, skeptical but slowly raising her head from the book in her lap.
"Magic, of course!" Naeris replied with grandeur, making light of the subject.
"All magic is evil and it should be only in the books! Daddy said so." Belle frowned in annoyance at Naeris before shaking her head, displeased by relying on a solution such as that before turning away once more to read.
It broke something hidden deep within Naeris, hearing that. And with a wounded heart that had crept up her throat and stayed solid there, Naeris silently left her sister to go back to her room. When she finally entered her room, she allowed the tears to slowly fall down her face.
She vowed softly then and there that she'd do whatever the duty of an older sister was, to protect Belle if need be, but that she'd never put her happiness above her own. Would never set herself up for pain just to save Belle from it.
Little did Naeris know, that just a few years later she'd break her vow.
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So, I tried my hand at this... what do ya think?
