Part 5

Kyto survived on fish that came close with the tide and carrion birds that thought he was dead. Most of his body lay within the sea cave, constantly washed by the cold waves, and his head and wings lay on the sand, now melted into smooth glass anywhere his fiery breath could reach.

Vidia was careful not to get closer than the edge of the glass.

Her wings were still torn and curled. Bethesda and Salvia had both warned her against flying so soon, but Vidia lived in the air. The best she could do was slow down and fly low to the ground so she wouldn't break something when her wings gave out. And they always did. Her shoulders would grow sore, her back would ache, and she would drop to the dirt, continuing on foot.

At least she had Prilla's gift of a pair of purple slippers to match her skirt. Vidia didn't usually wear shoes, and this journey would have been harder without them.

It would have been a lot easier without the gold coin in her hands, too, even with the fairy dust to make the coin lighter.

Finally she reached the sea cliff and looked over the edge. Kyto still lay beneath, pinned by heavy stones. Vidia took a deep breath and jumped off the cliff, slowing her fall with her weary wings. She landed on her feet just outside the circle of glass, and she kept a close eye on the dragon.

He already had his eyes on her. His gaze was murderous but that didn't surprise her. Of course he would stare at her. He noticed everything on the beach, and she held one of the coins of his hoard. In anticipation, he panted a little heavier, but not much. He couldn't breathe too deeply with the stones pressing on him.

She waited to make sure he wouldn't breathe fire, then put the coin on the glass.

"I came to return this," she said.

Pushing as hard as she could, she shoved the coin across the glass. It slid easily to his snout, and to her surprise, his right front claws came from out of sight, curled around the coin, and dragged it back into the darkness of the smashed cave. So he could move a little, if only to snatch prey.

Her look flitted to his wings. They looked like two tents smashed into flat angles, like cloth stretched across broken wire. Even if he ever escaped again, she didn't think he would fly. The thought made her sick in sympathy. If he had died, that would have been all right, but to have him trapped here, miserable and knowing he would never get off the ground again...

If their positions were changed, if she was the one buried under rock, Vidia knew she would have hoped at least one more clumsy child in the world stopped believing in fairies.

Now that he had his coin back, Kyto no longer bothered to look at her. He stared at the sea and waited for another fish to come near.

She watched him for a moment, then looked around the beach. The waves were calm, the sand gleamed like gold scattered with rubies. It was almost a substitute for Kyto's treasure hoard.

Vidia looked again. Rubies? Glittery red dots lined the beach as far as she could see, and she fluttered to the closest one. It was half her size, shaped like a crescent moon, with a faint sheen on one side. She hefted it up so she could take a close look at it, then glanced at Kyto. Sure enough, if she studied his sides and back, she noticed spots missing in his hide.

The crash against the cave wall had knocked hundreds of scales loose so that they littered the beach like sea shells.

A thought struck her. The idea was mad, she told herself--it would never work. But she looked down at the scale again and wondered. Magic helped Kyto fly despite his weight. And magic helped fairies to fly. As tiny as they were, their flimsy wings still needed pixie dust to carry them.

"Vidia! What are you doing down there?"

Tucking the scale under one arm, Vidia looked up and waved once at Prilla, who carefully flew along the edge of the cliff face. Before Prilla could land, though, Vidia extended her hand to her.

"Help me up to the top," Vidia said. "I have an idea I have to test."

"With that scale?"

Prilla reached down and grasped Vidia's hand, then began flying up. Vidia helped, but her wings could only counteract her weight, making her float. Prilla gently took her to the top of the cliff, and from there they alternated between flying and walking.

"If I'm right," Vidia said, "then I may not have to demand those feathers from Clarion."

"Queen Ree already gave you lots of dust, right?" Prilla asked, noticing the bulging bag at Vidia's belt. "She kept her promise so far."

"They'll never pluck Mother Dove for me," Vidia said. "She just made those promises when she thought I'd be dead."

"Vidia..." Prilla murmured.

"At least I have endless dust, though," Vidia said. "My wings will be back to normal in no time."

Prilla looked at the curled and ragged edges of her wings and nodded once. They were much better than they had been when she first found her on the beach. After a week of sleeping and healing, they had regained most of their firmness and shine. All that remained was reminding them that they were strong and that their edges shouldn't look like a burnt leaf.

When they reached the sour plum tree, Prilla took her usual seat on the foot of the bed while Vidia knelt and pulled out her mortar and pestle from under the mattress. The mortar was just a flat stone with a dent in the middle, while the pestle was only a smooth pebble Vidia could hold to roll against the mortar. The last time she had used it was to grind Mother Dove's feathers into dust.

This time she lay the scale on the stone.

The stone screeched and scraped, and tiny bits of the scale flaked off at a time. With her hands pressed firmly over her ears, Prilla watched with interest as Vidia worked. The process took a long time, especially with something as hard as a scale. Vidia had to scatter a handful of pixie dust over the stone to make it easier to wear the scale down.

At first Prilla thought the mortar was glowing red, but when she looked closer, she found fine grains of dust beneath Vidia's pebble.

"You think it'll work like pixie dust?" Prilla asked over the grating noise.

Vidia grinned and ran her finger over the stone, coating her fingertip in dust that glittered gold and red, gold for the pixie, red for the dragon. She lightly touched it to her tongue.

"Not pixie dust," Vidia said. "Dragon dust."

Prilla wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but if it meant Vidia didn't try to pluck Mother Dove's feathers again, then it was at least worth trying.

The rest of the afternoon passed with Prilla fetching two more scales and then flying to the Home Tree and the dining hall to fetch dinner. Prilla piled a plate high with the last of the plum tarts and quince tarts and cupcakes of raspberry and chocolate. A kettle of tea was already waiting for her, along with two cups that easily fit over the kettle's spout. Usually taking dishes from the dining hall was simply not done, but Prilla had special approval to take anything she needed.

Prilla wondered if she could take an entire tray of tarts, but she didn't want to push it.

"Prilla!" Tinkerbell yelled.

Startled, Prilla jerked the plate up, and several tarts went into the air. She gasped--out went her hand and one, two, three--she caught them back on the plate. She sighed in relief.

"Wow," Tinkerbell said as she flew closer. "Vidia's speed is rubbing off on you."

Prilla smiled despite blushing pink. "Um, not really. I just--"

"So tell us," Rosetta said, coming up beside her. "Are her wings still melted?"

"Can she really fly at all?" Iridessa asked. She looked around with a big smile at the crowd of fairies growing around Prilla. "I heard from Silvermist that heard from Fira that heard from Lily that Vidia was flying under the flowers. Under, just think!"

That set the fairies nodded and commenting that Vidia never flew under the flowers, preferring to soar over them, and what must be going through the proud fairy's mind. Did she try to float when she stood still, or was she stuck walking? Was she avoiding everyone because she was ashamed she couldn't fly anymore? Did she sit in bed all day and order Prilla around?

With all the talking, Prilla made a weak "she's getting better" comment and flew backwards out of the throng. They continued gossiping without her, and Prilla zipped out of the Home Tree and back into the night.

Light talent fairies kept the branches aglow and scout talents kept a watch out for owls that occasionally preyed on fairies, but the farther Prilla flew, the darker and lonelier Neverland became. The moon was just a crescent, barely giving any light at all, and her own pixie dust made her stand out. She flew under the flowers to give her some cover, but all the blossoms were closed up for the night.

Vidia's home looked welcoming when she couldn't see the sprinting thistles or tangleweed. She darted through the swinging doors just as she heard feathers rustling close by, and she leaned against the wall and breathed out in relief. Owls and hawks were too slow to catch Vidia, but the local birds were starting to notice Prilla's slower flying near the tree.

When she heard Prilla come in, Vidia sighed and leaned back from her work. She'd nearly finished half of a second scale, and the pile on the stone was red with flecks of gold here and there. Breathing deep, Vidia caught the strands of hair that had come out of her ponytail and tucked them back in place.

"You should've left the tea," Vidia scolded her, but there was no anger in her voice. "It slows you down."

"The other fairies said I'm getting faster," Prilla said, setting the dishes down on the floor. She served the tea and then stretched out on the leaf rug and started devouring the quince tarts.

"The other fairies couldn't outfly a moth," Vidia said, picking up her own plum tart.

Deciding a subject change was in order, Prilla nodded her head at the dragon dust, taking her off acorn hat as it slipped sideways on her head.

"How long does it take to grind dust like that?" Prilla asked. "The pile's so small."

Vidia glanced at the stone and sighed again.

"Scales are harder than feathers. I'll probably have to work all day to get enough to replace my fresh dust."

Prilla looked at the chest at the foot of Vidia's bed. "Enough to fill that?"

"Mm-hmm."

Thinking that Vidia was wasting her time, Prilla frowned at the red and gold pile.

"Is it okay to get pixie dust in it? It looks like there's pixie dust all mixed in."

"Can't help it," Vidia said. "I have to use pixie dust to make the mortar work. Otherwise I'd just make scratches on the scale."

Vidia noticed Prilla's skeptical look and shook her head with a smile.

"You just didn't notice the regular stuff in my fresh dust. I had to mix it with the feathers, too."

But the fresh dust and pixie dust came from the same source, Prilla thought. She didn't say it out loud. If the dragon dust worked, it didn't matter, and if the dragon dust didn't work, Vidia would stop gathering scales.

They ate in silence. Prilla disappeared once when she felt a tug to the mainland, doing a cartwheel in the air for a clumsy child that clapped his hands when he saw her. She popped back after a moment, and Vidia gave her a wry smile and continued finishing dinner.

The quiet evening was a nice change, Prilla thought. No questions about where she went or what she saw. The mainland was a rush of sounds and darker colors and strange things she didn't understand, and returning in the middle of a bunch of fairies left her head spinning with their excited curiosity.

When the last tart was finished, Prilla moved to pick up the dishes. Instead Vidia touched her hand, stopping her.

"You shouldn't go back tonight," Vidia said. "The owls'll be looking for you this time. You won't make it."

"Oh." Prilla didn't try to argue. "Then where should I sleep?"

"My bed's more than big enough," Vidia said. "Just shove the dishes in a corner. We can clean up in the morning."

"I guess it is kind of late," Prilla said. "You aren't going to keep making dust, are you? I don't think I can sleep through that."

"Like you said, it's late." Vidia climbed into bed, claiming her scented pillow and her favorite side, and kicked her shoes off the side onto the floor. She carefully positioned herself, laying her head on the small pillow and curling up with just the right amount of the mossy blanket, and closed her eyes.

Prilla followed a moment later, leaving her acorn hat on the rug and adding her own shoes and belt to the pile. The bed really was wide enough, and Prilla stared at the dripping petals of the canopy and the stars outside the door. She supposed living out here had its risks, but it was quiet and the moon and stars weren't drowned out by the light talents constantly keeping the tree glowing.

Best of all, she was glad that Vidia had taken the scented pillow. Prilla couldn't stand putting her head on those things for very long. The darn thing was too small. But the huge, fluffy pillow in the back was perfect.

Epilogue

A month had passed since Kyto's escape and imprisonment, and the queen had a duty to visit his cage every year, to inspect it and make sure everyone was safe. Queen Clarion didn't feel too confident of these inspections, not after the dragon had escaped his old cage, but it was one of her royal duties and she had no choice.

"We'll need a team of six mice," Rhia said, making a note of it on her leafpad. "Cinda, could you go ask the animal talents to bring us some? And Liesel, we'll need enough dust for all those mice and the carriage."

The two fairies nodded and added the errands to their growing list of things to do. Clarion turned from their planning and went to the mirror, straightening her crown. There was no need for her to help. They had done this every year for more years than she could count. It seemed so silly to arrange the carriage and mice and entourage when Kyto was no more than a few fields away, but it was tradition.

The startled gasps and cries of her helper-talents made Clarion turn from her reflection, following their looks to the balcony. She didn't gasp, but she froze for a moment.

Vidia sat on the balcony rail, smiling at their discomfort. Her pixie glow was not golden but faint red. She held a gold coin in both hands.

"Vidia?" Clarion whispered. "What happened to you?"

"I came to tell you that I won't need those feathers you promised me," Vidia said sweetly. "And that I won't be carrying messages for you for awhile."

"You're glowing red," Clarion said, moving close enough to touch Vidia's hand and surprised to find it cool.

"Dragon scales," Vidia said. "I ground them up for dust."

"What? Oh no..." Clarion breathed, shaking her head. "You don't know what those might do to you. The magic's different--"

"It's stronger," Vidia nodded.

Clarion's worry didn't fade, and Vidia sighed and gave an impatient toss of her head.

"I'll be fine." Vidia adjusted the coin in her grip before it slid from her fingers. "I don't have scales or breathe fire. It's just like fresh dust."

"Vidia," Clarion tried one more time. "You don't need more dust or different dust. Why can't you be happy being as fast as you are already?"

A question that Vidia had heard more than once. She always wondered why everyone kept asking her, especially when it felt so obvious to her. She understood it on the day she watched her best friend step away from the group of fast flying talents to the center of the Home Tree, accepting the crown and the immense power that the Home Tree gave to its queen, making her outshine the rest of the fairies.

"The same reason you accepted the crown," Vidia said. "You wanted it."

"The crown chose me," Clarion said softly.

"You could have refused," Vidia said. "If you really wanted, you could put it down now, right now, and let it choose someone else."

Clarion sighed and turned slightly away. Although years had passed since the last time they had this argument, too many years to count, she knew it would always end in stalemate. She decided not to go through it again.

"Why do you have a gold coin?" she asked, changing the subject.

Vidia hesitated before dropping the old argument. She always lost it anyway, but she kept holding out hope that one day Clarion would actually take off the crown.

"...I'm taking it to Kyto."

"One coin? Or his whole hoard?"

"All of it," Vidia said.

When Clarion didn't ask why, Vidia didn't explain. She didn't have to. Although they hadn't spoken as friends for a long time, they still understood each other. The hoard would at least ease the dragon's pain. After all, Kyto couldn't even hope to fly, and Vidia felt that pain as if it were her own. It was the same reason she couldn't stand being near Rani, who had willingly sacrificed her wings.

There was nothing else to say. Vidia flitted away again, carrying the coin to Kyto in a few heartbeats, then racing back to his old cave for another one. Moving the meager hoard would take her weeks if not months, but after enough trips, Kyto looked less miserable as he lay on a pile of soft gold instead of cold stone.

And every night when the sun set and Vidia returned to her sour plum tree, she settled beside Prilla on one of the branches and shared tea and pastries as they watched the moon drift across the sky.

End