She could only see vague shapes and colours. Each step sent jarring pain through her body. She felt too hot, but her mouth was too dry to pant, and her paws were painfully cracked. Worst of all was her neck. It felt like it was burning up. She wasn't sure where she was going. Something was prodding her on, and she was too tired to argue. She could hear noises around her, like people speaking, but she couldn't make out the words. All she could do was put one paw in front of another, until she dropped.

Finally, she could go no more. Her legs folded inwards, and she collapsed onto the ground. Her nose was so dry that the scents of the forest floor meant nothing to her. There was no moisture in her mouth to lick it clean. Something about her could still feel the forest around her though. A dull sense that she had never really thought about before. An instinct that told her that she wasn't alone. There was the one who had hurt her neck. She wasn't too cross about that. She was too tired for that. There were others, though. Ones she didn't know. The one who hurt her was yowling at them. Shadows and movement flickered over her closed eyes. There were many. All around her. She tried to pull her lips back to snarl, but it was too much. She felt ashamed, but all she could do was lie there.

Something cool touched her fevered side. It sent her skin tingling. It ran up her spine, and over her damp fur. She stopped trying to snarl, until it reached her sore neck. A needle of pain shot through her body, and she lost it. She couldn't move, but her fevered mind reached into some reserve she didn't know she had. She felt something changing in the world around her, as she threw her energy behind her anger, frustration and fear.

She heard alarmed yelping around her, and could make out frantic noises from the one who had bitten her neck. The one who was supposed to be her friend. Her delirious mind directed the energies at that one, determined to at least get revenge, before the others got to her.

The yelping got more and more frantic, until, suddenly, a black void seeped into her mind. It smothered her connection to the energy. Her magic. The blackness swallowed her thoughts, her anger. It leaked into the recesses of her mind. She couldn't feel herself. Her pain. All that was left was that strange instinct. Her connection to the earth. Until the void swallowed that too. Before it swallowed her whole, she could feel the other. The one on the other side of the void. The one who had done this to her. Her friend.


There was bird song. Soft and cheerful. It sounded so normal and peaceful. For a moment, May felt as if she were back in her own bed. Any moment, she would open her eyes and step to the window. She would pull back the curtain to let in the intoxicating air of the city; the crisp, cloying scent of the fragrant blossoms, that clung to the vines that ran down the side of the palace; the salty, succulent juices of her favourite sausage stand in the bazaar, that abutted the palace walls; and the best scent of all, the sweet, smoky fragrance of the magic that hung over the city, like a veil.

May opened her eyes, and was completely disorientated. She was not in Doranelle. The space around her was dark and shaded, like a woodland grove. She could see sunlight streaming in through the canvas walls. She looked for a moment, searching for her window, for where the smell of spiced sausages was still wafting into the room. Instead, she saw a canvas flap, loosely tied. She was lying on a cot inside a tent.

Alarmed, May sat up, wincing in pain. The small movement made sent a sharp stab of pain through her neck. She fumbled, feeling a soft linen cloth. For a moment, she paused, trying to remember how she had hurt herself. Slowly, it came back to her. Darting through the woods. Watching the faeries. She had been a cat. She had never been a cat for that long before.

May held up her hands, turning them over in the warm light coming from the tent flap. She wasn't a cat anymore, but she didn't remember turning back. That hadn't happened before. Even when she had been asleep or tired or hurt, she had had to make herself turn back. Sometimes, it had been too much, and she had been stuck. Like when Aelix had hurt her.

May started again, sending more pain shooting through her neck. Aelix had hurt her. Aelix had bitten her neck. May remembered those big black eyes staring into her own. May had been a panther, but Aelix had been an animal. That hadn't been her friend staring at her. That had been something else. Feral.

A noise from the back of the tent made May's ears prick. She could hear breathing coming from just below the bottom of the cot. Tentatively, May crawled forward on her knees, one hand holding the dressing on her neck in place. The other held tightly onto the duvet, ready to throw it over whatever she found. Images flitted through her head; the Jabbernack, with its long claws and scaly body, that liked to hide under rocks in the darkest parts of the woods. The fearsome Sand Dragon, that scurried through the dirt, with only it's fin above the ground, until it erupted around its victim and swallowed them whole, or the Snatchnymph, that lurked in pools and lakes, haunting its victim through any reflective surface. You could never see them, except out of the corner of your eye, until, eventually, they would grab you and drag you down to the netherworld.

May felt a shiver of excitement and slinked forward, until she was right over the slow breathing creature. Letting go of her dressing, she grasped the duvet firmly in both hands. Pausing, just to catch her breath, she leapt off the bed and smothered the beast under the blanket.

The beast gave a startled squawk, and thrashed. May's blood pumped, and she felt a rush of adrenaline. She managed to pin the creature's hands to its side, and pulled the duvet tight around its head. Grunting with exertion, she straddled its body and ground it into the woven rug floor of the tent.

Muffled protest sounded from the rug. It didn't sound like a Sand Dragon. May pulled the creatures arms behind its back. The creature groaned in pain. They weren't long and scaly. The nails were sharp though. Like a fae, or … or a Snatchnymph! May's nostrils flared in triumph. She had caught a Snatchnymph! No one had caught a Snatchnymph before!

The Snatchnymph groaned again, "Mmmrhy…"

It sounded like it was trying to talk.

"Mmmmrhy!"

May thought for a moment. Snatchnymph's weren't supposed to talk. They couldn't, unless you were in the netherworld. That was their curse. They didn't exist properly, unless you didn't exist either. She always got a bit lost whenever the stories started trying to explain the principles of magic.

"Wrt my yp, Mmhy!"

Frowning, May pinned the Snatchnymph's arms tightly to its back with one hand, and rested her knees on its legs and neck, forcing it to stop thrashing. With her free hand, she pulled the duvet off the creature's head.

"Will you please let me up, May?" the Snatchnymph said, grumpily in a familiar voice.

"Aelix?"

"Who else? You numpty."

"What are you doing lurking under my bed?"

"I wasn't lurking! I was sleeping! I've been really worried about you, and I didn't want to leave you! Now will you please let me up!"

May paused a moment, rubbing her nose whilst she thought.

"How do I know you're not a Snatchnymph?"

Aelix's incredulous voice sounded from under her knee.

"A … what?! A Snatchnymph? Why would you think I'm a Snatchnymph?"

"Just answer the question."

"Because, May, If you let me up for a second, you would see that I am an actual person."

"That sounds like something a Snatchnymph would say, to trick me into freeing it."

"Myste's sake, May! Just let me up!"

"If I do, next thing I know, I'm stuck in the netherworld."

"May, If I were a Snatchnymph, you would already be in the netherworld. You're touching my skin, you numpty."

May's hands sprang away from the Snatchnymphs hands and grasped its arms on the brown cloth of its robe.

"Nice try, Snatchnymph. Nearly got me."

May heard angry mumbling coming from the rug.

"I can't believe this. This is what I get for trying to be a good friend and … ACTUALLY CARING!"

May turned her head away, wincing slightly at the shouted words.

Suddenly, the tent flap burst open, and sunlight flooded into the space. May sprang away from Aelix in surprise, and landed half behind the cot on her bum.

A stout, slightly stooped woman in a brown robe was standing at the entrance, with a clean dressing in her hand. She raised an eyebrow and May and her face cracked into a half smile.

"I take it our patient is on the mend then?"

"Yes," came the grumpy voice of the Snatchnymph, rubbing its sore arms, and pulling the duvet off its face. Aelix glared at May in exasperation. "Did you have to pull my arms so hard, May?"

May felt a slight twinge of disappointment that she hadn't actually caught a Snatchnymph, before turning to meet the gaze of the stranger. She looked old. She must have been for her face to have wrinkled. It took a very long time for a fae's skin to wrinkle. Maybe thousands of years. Her mouth was thin, and her smile crooked, though she looked kindly. May couldn't see her fangs. May bared her own in surprise; the stranger's ears appeared to be rounded.

"Who are you? Where am I?"

The strange woman opened her arms wide in supplication and entered the tent.

"I'm the one who's been fixing you up, dearie. You were in a right old state when we found you two."

She bustled forward surprisingly quickly, and bent over May, lifting her head firmly, but gently to one side, and began changing her dressing.

"As for where you are, you're somewhere safe." She clucked slightly. "Wounds have opened again. Probably all that jumping around you were doing. Best not to do that for now."

"Yes, please don't," Aelix piped up from the rug.

May squirmed a bit in embarrassment.

"As for names," the old woman continued, pretending she hadn't been interrupted. "Some call me Hag, others call me Wise. But I prefer Trudana."

She stepped back from adjusting the dressing, and smiled a wide smile at May. "Trudy, for short."

"Trudy…" The name felt foreign on May's tongue. All fae names had a meaning to them. Words in the Old Tongue. Trudana wasn't a fae name. It meant nothing to her. Like a secret name.

"Are you a human?"

Laughter crinkled in Trudy's eyes.

"Why yes dearie. I would have thought that was obvious." She gave a bark of laughter, throwing her head back slightly. "We're all humans around here, 'cepting you two Aelfkyn, of course." She raised her eyebrow at May again, "Though we do prefer to be called Wendlkyn, strictly speaking. That being our tribe and all."

May felt a bit lost. "Tribe?"

"Yes, dearie. The Wood Folk. We keep to our forests and hills. Our neighbours prefer their rivers and streams, and those silly Ashryven wallow around on the sea in their silly boats for some reason. Don't ask me why." Trudy tutted, clicking her tongue. "No good ever came from messing around in the sea. You mark my words."

None of this sounded familiar to May.

"Then … where are we?"

"You're in the Forest of Wendlyn, my dear. Though, strictly speaking, you're in my tent, hiding behind my bed."

"I'm … I'm not in Doranelle?"

Trudy's second eyebrow joined her first.

"No dearie. Not for some time. It's at least two days walk back to Aelflyn."

"I would have told you this earlier, if you hadn't nearly murdered me," Aelix grumbled. "Last time I sleep by your death bed."

May groaned inwardly. Her mother was going to kill her. She had never been so far from home. Or for so long. The one unbreakable rule had always been not to leave Doranelle. Running away was one thing. They always caught her in the end. She was honestly surprised that she and Aelix hadn't been caught already. To leave the fae lands … May felt a sudden rush, and a swelling of excitement.

This was it. This was a proper adventure. Not like before, hiding in villages and farmsteads, or playing pretend monsters and demons with Aelix; this was a real adventure, and the wide world beckoned.


It didn't take Trudy long to declare May fit and able to leave the tent.

"You Aelfkyn are a silly lot, but there's no denying that you're of sturdy stuff. You were near at Skadrhalle when we found you!" she said, as she bustled her and Aelix out the tent flap. "Anyhow, I can't deny that it will do me some good to get some shuteye, with you two out of the way. Kept me up near three nights now!"

She rested her hand on May's shoulder for a moment. "Mind you don't go too far, dearie." She nodded at May's neck. "That poultice will need changing in a couple of hours. You may feel as fit as a fiddle right now, but that'll be the blisterbloom. Keeps the wound fresh and staunches the flow, but it'll dry out quickly." She clucked sympathetically. "It's a nasty bite you've got there, dearie, there's no mistake. A few more hours and you'd have snuffed it, skin-walker or no."

May blinked in surprise. "Skin-walker?"

"You were still a panther when the Wendlkyn found us," pipe up Aelix.

Trudy waved her arm impatiently, "Yes, dearie. Some of the others were none too pleased to bring you back to camp. But you don't let them bother you. Or they'll answer to me."

With that, she pulled the flap firmly closed, leaving the two fae by themselves. Very soon, they could hear loud snoring coming from the tent.

For the first time, May took in her surroundings. They were in a beautiful woodland glade, surrounded by tall oaks and ash. There was a babbling brook meandering through the middle of the grove, until it cascaded over a cliff several hundred meters away, in a spectacular rainbow of colour. Far below, May could see a red and brown forest, in all it's autumn colour. Further still, she could make out a smudge of white and blue. A lake, or perhaps even the sea. From the perpetually green lands of Doranelle, to May, it was awe-inspiring.

Dotted amongst the tree were canvas tents and cook fires, from which, the alluring scent of spiced sausage was setting May's mouth watering.

"Is there anything to eat around here," she said to Aelix, also noting for the first time how angular and thin her friend was, and the dark circles around her eyes.

Aelix nodded. "Each family cooks their own food. But there's a community cook-fire in the middle of the camp, I think. Trudy tried to take me, but I didn't want to leave you."

Something about Aelix's tone made May forget about being hungry for a moment and look at her. "What happened?"

Aelix's lip wobbled a bit. "I really thought you were going to die. I did think you were dead at one point. And … and I couldn't stand it. I felt so alone. Like I was lost all over again." Her shoulders shook. "I don't think I could lose you too."

May grabbed Aelix's hand and gave it a quick squeeze. "Well I didn't die, so that's fine."

Aelix gave her a slightly watery smile in return, before it quickly faded. "You mean a lot to me, May. I'm glad you're my friend. I … I need to tell you something."

"Well, I hope it's wherever those sausages are cooking, because I'm starving." May meant it too. She didn't when she had ever been this hungry before.

"No … it's about before … when the Wendlkyn found us. Something happened … and I … I did something … Something bad."

The smell of sausages was too much. "Look, Aelix, I know this seems important, and everything; but, right now, I'm REALLY HUNGRY. Can this wait? Please?"

Aelix looked slightly hurt, before smiling a wry smile, "Alright. I'm a bit hungry too."

"A bit? You look like a scrawny chicken leg. A scrawny chicken leg that's been chewed on by a starving wolf."

"A panther," said Aelix, still smiling.

"Yes," said May, returning the smile. "And this panther needs FOOD. FOOD NOW."

Aelix led May through the trees, and past rows of tents. At first, May had thought the tents to be randomly spread out throughout the grove, but as she walked, she could see wide avenues, like the edges of a spiral. Aelix seemed to be picking a path towards the spirals centre.

Here and there, May could see small children running through the rows of tents. They seemed to be playing some sort of game, prodding at each other with sticks. At their approach, however, the game stopped, and the children fled. A number of adults stepped away from their camps and stared at May and Aelix, with open hostility in their eyes. Aelix seemed to shrink under their gaze, and held her arms tightly around her chest, letting her long blonde hair hang over her face and covering her pointed ears. May snorted loudly and strode confidently forward, tossing her own hair carelessly over her shoulder. After too long being told what to do by her mother, she wasn't about to let a few petty humans bully her out of some sausages.

"Come on," she said nonchalantly to Aelix, taking her friend's hand gently and pulling her forward. "I'm hungry, if you hadn't forgotten. So are you. If I don't find something soon, I'm going to have to eat one of these humans."

She shot a particularly toothy grin at a large and brutish human male, baring her fangs and letting a little of the cat into her gaze. He met her gaze stonily, but made no further effort to impede her way, as May pulled Aelix forward.

The tents became more densely packed, the closer to the centre that they got. There also seemed to be more humans, eating, laughing, dancing and playing music. In such a boisterous atmosphere, very few seemed to notice the two fae, though those that did swiftly stepped away, or yammered at each other in their harsh human tongue. May couldn't understand a word they were saying to one another. She liked the music, though. Like the strings of a harp, except free and gay, instead of mournful and stately. She even liked the human voices. Though they weren't a patch on even the coarsest fae, there was a merriment to them that May felt the fae must have forgotten. In spite of not knowing the words, she found herself humming absently, whilst she pulled the reluctant Aelix towards a huge bonfire. It was from here that the alluring smell of spiced meat seemed to be drawing May forward.

The heat from the bonfire was intense. The inferno was wider than the greatest oak in the forest; and spanning the flames was an oxen impaled upon a spit. May had never before seen such a great beast. The aurochs were the greatest beasts in the forest. A party of fae hunters knew better than to try to take down the king of beasts. Even the forest cats; puma, sabre-tooth and green lynx, would only attack in overwhelming numbers. For these humans to have brought one down must have taken immense skill.

Below the carcass of the huge beast were dancers, twirling in intricate shapes, their masks depicting forest animals. In front of the dancers was a handsome youth, chanting mesmerizingly in the strange human tongue. His staccato words were almost like a lullaby in their rhythm and delivery. They drew May forward, forgetting her grumbling tummy for a moment. Though the words were meaningless to her, she found that the youth's passionate delivery, and the powerful movements of the dancers behind were telling a story. The story of a great hunt over many days, and past many dangers (gesticulating dramatically, the 'lion' and 'bear' attacked the youth). Much to the delight of the crowd, the youth 'slew' the beasts and skinned them. Now wearing the pelt of the lion, the muscular youth pursued the Aurochs.

A spit of fat from the fire sent a gush of flame shooting upwards, much to the shock and delight of the crowd, who clapped enthusiastically at the exploits of the youth. May found herself clapping along with them.

"They aren't bad, for humans," she said to Aelix. "Still, not a patch on a mummer show in Doranelle. It could use more bangs, and a wizard. All the best stories have a wizard. What do you think?"

When Aelix didn't reply, May turned to see her friend still staring at the half-naked dancers and muscular youth, with eyes as round as saucers, her mouth half agape. Half amused, half exasperated, May elbowed Aelix in the ribs, startling the girl from her reverie.

"Whaa…?"

"Keep those eyes in your head, you perv," said May, causing Aelix to turn red. She pointed to the human spectators. They seemed to be sitting down in a circle around the fire, sharing food and drink amongst one another. "I think that's where we get food."

She smiled slyly at Aelix, "Although maybe that's not what you're thinking of snacking on." Aelix turned a beetroot colour.

"Shut up," she said, striding towards a table where a smiling young woman was handing out skewers of spiced sausages and charred vegetables. The woman said something to May, as she handed Aelix a skewer, but it made no sense, so May flashed her fangs back at her instead. The woman's smile wavered slightly, and her eyes flickered briefly to Aelix's ears, just poking out from under her long, pale hair. The woman paled slightly, but she handed May a second skewer and a pitcher of some frothy amber liquid. She said something softly in the human language. Though the woman's quiet and lilting voice buzzed strangely over harsh words of the language, May felt that she was trying to be friendly.

At her words, the other humans nearby stopped what they were doing and starred at May and Aelix. An angry muttering started up. Several men started forward, ugly expressions on their faces. May felt a tug on the sleeve of her ill-fitting brown robe.

"Come on, May, we don't want to cause a scene," said Aelix, timidly, pulling again at her sleeve. Reluctantly, May allowed herself to be led away, staring down the men as she did so. She recognised one of them as the brutish man she had seen before. She flashed her fangs at him, causing him to snarl back in reply.

"Let's just go back to Trudy's tent."

May wasn't listening. She was hungry. Very hungry. And these men were going to chase her away from food. She gave a low growl.

"May, stop it! It's not worth it!"

The panther growled with her, and May felt some satisfaction seeing the man stop. She would show him. She would show him what a real hunter looked like. She drew the panther up, feeling its strength, its power entering her.

Suddenly, something smacked the back of her head, giving her a stinging blow. May stumbled confused. She looked around for her assailant, only to find Aelix's huge green eyes staring furiously into her own. May stared at her, confused. Inside, she felt the panther sigh and fall asleep, wrapped in a blanket of shadow.

"We're guests here. Do NOT make a scene."

Slightly dazed, May felt herself being dragged away from the fire, and she heard several men laughing behind her. Soon, the music and merriment faded to murmur.

Once they were a good distance away, Aelix dropped May's hand, and slumped next to the canvas of a darkened tent. Feeling slightly numb, May sat down next to her.

"What was that about?" she asked, chewing absently on her skewer of meat. It had gone slightly cold, but the spiced sausage was still good. Almost as good as those she remembered from Doranelle. The gnawing hunger seemed to fade a bit. She quickly set to work with gusto, biting and chewing ferociously, and smearing grease and juice from the meat all over herself and her robe. Aelix looked at May with mild horror, before delicately picking at her own skewer.

"I mean," said May, chomping loudly, and spraying bits of food. "They were the ones who had a problem. Why'd you hit me?"

She drank deeply from the pitcher of amber liquid. It burnt her mouth. "Arrrgh!", she cried, spitting it all over Aelix. It felt like liquid fire, with a sweet honey after-taste. Aelix looked at May disgustedly, her face and robe now drenched in the contents of the pitcher. She put aside her half-eaten skewer, which was now covered in May's spit.

"You absolutely did that on purpose, didn't you?" she said, accusingly.

May grabbed the abandoned skewer of meat and carried on eating. "Sssgood," she mumbled around her food. In fact, the meat tasted even better with the ale. Almost like glazed pork. She took another swig from the pitcher. It wasn't half bad. Once you got used to the burning sensation, it was actually pretty good. She felt warm and fuzzy.

"Consider it pay back for hitting me," said May, finishing her mouthful and offered the pitcher to Aelix. Her friend sighed and accepted it. She wiped the mouth of the jug with the sleeve of her robe and drank gingerly. Her green eyes bulged slightly, but she swallowed in a lady-like manner.

"Sorry about that," said Aelix, gasping slightly from the strong alcohol. She handed the jug back to May "I don't know what came over me."

"There's been a bit of that recently, hasn't there?" May took another swig and rubbed her neck. The poultice was itching a bit.

"Hmmm."

May was feeling a bit light headed. The warmth from the ale had spread to the rest of her body, which now felt very heavy. "What actually happened back in the forest? I don't remember much. Just that I felt really ill. I remember falling over. I wasn't fae at the time." She took another small gulp, savouring the taste of honey on her tongue. "When I woke up, I wasn't a cat anymore. That's never happened before."

Aelix was silent. The moment seemed to stretch out, until May didn't think she was going to say anything at all. Finally, she let out a long breath and replied, her voice hardly more than a whisper.

"There's something wrong with me. There's something inside of me that does things to other people." May turned to look at her friend. Aelix was staring ahead into nothingness, her knees against her chest, with her arms wrapped tightly around herself. "It's like a door inside of me. Normally it's closed, but sometimes… Sometimes when I get angry, or … or scared … it seems to open. Sometimes I remember things. Bad things that I don't understand. I remember doing horrible things to people. And S-" Aelix cut off for a moment, before continuing deliberately, "People doing horrible things to me. Hurting me. Making me hurt other people. It all sits there. Until I get angry. Then it comes out."

May sat there, staring at Aelix open mouthed, the jug forgotten in her lap. Aelix stole a quick look at May, before flinching and letting her long hair fall over her face.

"What –" May's tongue felt like it was too big for her mouth. "What sort of things?" She couldn't think of anything else to say.

"I … I can feel people's thoughts," stuttered Aelix. Her voice seemed to be getting quieter and quieter. "I … just … I can feel what they're thinking. Sometimes … s-sometimes I can ch-change them. Or m-make them do something."

May felt like she had fallen out of her body. Everything was so heavy. Even putting two words together felt like a supreme effort.

"Like what?"

"Like … Like when we were at the faerie dance. I could feel the Queen's Bloodsworn."

"Wha-" May's brain trudged through her memories. Her mind felt like soup. She wondered if it was just the alcohol. "You mean Jorsin?"

"Yes." Aelix's voice was so quiet, that May was struggling to hear her. "He was looking for you. Your mother sent him. I – I was scared we would get in trouble. I … I made him fly away."

"You … you…" May could barely think straight. None of this made any sense. "Have you done this before?"

The blonde lump next to her nodded, it's face buried in its knees. May was so lightheaded. She wondered if she was going to be sick. Her stomach felt very queasy, and there was a bitterness in her mouth.

"Have… have you done this to me?"

There was a long and horrible pause. The lump nodded again. May felt a lead-weight drop into her stomach. The bitterness in May's mouth intensified. Nope. She was DEFINITELY going to be sick. She turned and gagged, the jar rolling off her knees and spilling sticky ale everywhere. May fell forward onto her hands, her hair spilling forward whilst she retched. The blonde lump sprang up next to her, and Aelix tried to hold May's hair back. May waved her off with a forceful hand. Aelix fell back, her face slightly crumpled.

"When?" May spluttered, when her convulsions had stopped.

Aelix sat back down some distance away, ignoring the puddle of ale that was now staining the grass. Her eyes were heavy with tears, misery etched upon her face.

"When we first met." A couple of tears fell from those green eyes. "I felt you. I – I wanted to meet you. I was alone for so long."

May couldn't seem to understand anything Aelix was saying. She felt no small sense of betrayal. All this time, her friend had been lying to her? Hiding herself from May? "So .. So when the humans found us …" She spat on the grass. "That was you? I thought I felt … But that energy? That magic … you did that?" Aelix looked up at May sharply. "Because I felt that. I couldn't see, but I felt it. It was huge."

The tears were frozen on Aelix's face, replaced by a quizzical look. May spat again. Her stomach felt steadier, but now everything else felt a whole lot worse.

"But that wasn't me, May. You did that. Don't you remember?"

May felt lost. "But … I don't do that. I'm not powerful, or magical. I just turn into a cat."

Aelix shook her head vehemently. "No. You can – "

She broke off and put her head to one side, cocking her ear. For a moment, May felt like Aelix was the cat and not her. She fought the urge to let out a hysterical laugh. Nothing made sense anymore.

"There's people coming," she heard Aelix say. "We should go see Trudana."


As they crept away into the undergrowth, May heard a twig snapping. She grabbed Aelix's shoulder, holding her still. She motioned her to be quiet. May tensed, feeling the power of the panther rush in her muscles. In spite of her still weakened body, she felt strong. She dampened it down, though. If she changed now, she would be weak again. Instead, she gave a silent roar and pounced, her fae body feeling almost as lithe and graceful as her other form.

She landed on something small and squishy. She felt the creature crumple and pinned it to the dirt. Her arms found small hands, which she twisted away.

"Hah!" May felt a rush of triumph for a moment, before finding herself starring into a pair of huge, round lilac eyes.

The human girl seemed utterly terrified. She couldn't be older than eight or nine.

"What the …?" May pushed herself off the stricken girl and stood up. The girl made no move to get up, her eyes fixed upon May's face, her mouth agape with fear.

"For Gods' sake, May, why did you do that?" Aelix puffed, rushing over and checking the girl for injury. "Do you want the humans to hate us?" The girl shrank away from Aelix's touch.

"I'm pretty sure they do already," said May, sullenly. "Couldn't hardly get anything to eat before they chased us off."

There was something familiar about the girl. May felt like she had seen her before. "Anyway, she was following us. It's her fault."

"She's a little girl, May. Little girls are always too curious for their own good." She gave May a pointed look. May stuck her tongue out in reply.

"Anyway, what do we do with her? Can she get up.?"

"I think she's alright," said Aelix, stepping away. "Let's just give her some space."

They both took several steps away from the girl. She still didn't move.

"Maybe we should turn our backs?" Aelix suggested. "That way she doesn't think us a threat?"

Feeling more than a bit foolish, May turned away from the girl. "Why don't we just leave her? It's not like she can't find her way home."

"Because, May, I want to make sure she's alright, after you nearly killed her."

"I just knocked her over. I do that to you all the time."

"Yes. And I don't like it when it happens to me either. Besides, she's human. She's probably more breakable."

"Whatever." May heard another rustling in the bushes. "Has she gone yet?" Aelix peered behind them.

"Yeah, I think so."

"Alright. Let's go. Still, If anyone complains to us, it was her fault. She shouldn't have been sneaking." May blew her hair out of her eyes. "Anyway, do you have any idea how to get back?"

"I think so."

It took a while for Aelix to lead May back through the jungle of trees and tents. She seemed to be purposely leading them away from any sounds of voices and merriment. May felt a slight pang of loneliness. For some reason, seeing the little girl made her think of Mab. Her sister had tried to follow her around too. May had hated it and told her off. In that moment, she regretted doing so. She couldn't fathom why.

The sounds of people laughing and singing made her think of home. The home she had had in Doranelle. The city was so full of life and colour. She had loved to hide in the parks, clambering up the trees to watch people go by. They had never seen her. She had liked to watch the pretty lights the peddling magicians had made, or the matrons walking their pet drakes, some so small that the lizards could fit inside a female's stole. Sometimes, she had crept down from the trees to steal spiced sausages from the vendors. Down, away from the palace, she had been easily mistaken for just another urchin. Even the city guard hadn't recognised her, chasing her away from the vendor's stalls. She had always enjoyed that the most. Once she got in the trees, no one had been able to follow her.

Sometimes, she had stayed there for hours, watching the twin suns fade into the spray of stars, the bright turquoise sky fading to a deep violet. Evenfall was always a special time in the city. She would stand on the branches and watch the pyromancers paper lanterns fly up from the canals and join the stars, like a thousand comets, until they faded from sight. That was when the night music would start. A thousand twangling instruments from every piazza and bridge. Not the coarse drum and flute of that May could hear the humans playing now, but the lilting pipes and lyre of the fae; sweet melodies to lure and to soothe.

Once, May had followed the music, to see just where it would lure her. It had brought her all the way from the Royal Parks, at the top of Aronius' Seat and the boughs of the Empress Tree, to the River Gate, where the Elora's Tears cascaded down though the rainbow mist to the valley floor, far below. From there, you could see the Elora river, running like a snake all the way to the sea.

May angrily brushed away a tear. Aelix looked at her quizzically, but May just shook her head. She didn't want to think about Doranelle right now. It wasn't like she could go back anyway.

"I think that's Trudy's tent," said Aelix pointing to a canvas and hide yurt set a distance away from the other tents between a half ring or yew trees. May frowned. There was now a campfire roaring in front of the tent and a young woman stirring a boiling cauldron.

"Are you sure?"

"Pretty sure. Unlike you, I try to pay attention to where I'm going."

"Hmm." May kneaded the grass, putting off the moment that she would have to speak to another human. They all seemed to be angry with her. It was like being surrounded by an army of her mother. May squinted at the woman by the fire. She looked to be the same young woman that had given them food earlier. May frustratedly blew her errant lock of hair out of her eyes again and stood up.

"Well, no sense in hiding in a bush all night," she said strolling over, Aelix following on behind. To her surprise, when she approached the cauldron, the woman raised her hand in greeting. She murmured passively in the strange human tongue and gestured towards the tent. May narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the woman. The human spoke soothingly again, though there was an element of urgency to her words. She lifted the tent flap and gestured inside again.

Still staring suspiciously at the woman, May led Aelix into the tent. The woman said something again, pointing at May, then at Aelix and then at the floor. She said then something emphatically in her gibberish human tongue. May looked quizzically at Aelix. Her friend shrugged.

"I think she wants us to stay here."

"Well that's not a problem. I don't particularly fancy being out there." May flashed the woman a sharp-toothed grin, letting her canines show. The woman shook her head, exasperatedly, and let the flap drop again, leaving May and Aelix alone in the dark tent.


May's eyes adjusted to the gloom and she spotted an empty bed.

"I wonder where Trudy's got to," said Aelix.

May idly wandered through the tent, poking around at an assortment of strangely shaped twigs and feather headdresses. "Wherever she is, I hope she brings back some more sausages. I'm still starving."

"That's your fault. If you hadn't tried to start a fight, we would have been able to get some more."

There was a bronze basin on a roughly hewn table in a corner of the tent that May hadn't noticed before. She wondered how it hadn't been knocked over when she and Aelix had been rough-housing earlier. There were a series of runes and swirling etchings around the edge of the basin. Some depicted animals. Others seemed to be stylised shapes of people and trees. The surface of the water seemed to shimmer slightly, like a spill of oil or soap. May casually swirled it with a finger, watching the rainbow of colour turn in the water.

"It's not my fault that everyone here seems so angry. If they're like this all the time, it's no wonder humans aren't allowed in Doranelle."

Aelix slumped on the bed with a sigh, throwing her arms out, like a squirrel falling out of a tree.

"They can't all be bad. Trudy doesn't seem angry."

May frowned at the basin. The water was still swirling, even though she had taken her finger out. She poked it cautiously. A sharp stab of pain shot through her finger.

"Owowowow!"

"What did you do?" said Aelix, barely an ounce of concern in her voice. She hadn't even stirred from the bed.

"Something bit me!"

"You probably deserved it."

May took off her shoe and threw it on the bed, eliciting an angry response. May ducked to avoid the returning shoe, and turned back to the basin. To her shock, the swirling water seemed to be lifting itself out of the bowl. The waterspout split into two, each spout forming a tiny arm. A third spout burst out from the water and a tiny head started to form, the surf slicking into a throwaway head of watery hair. With a crack, like the sound of the sea hitting a breakwater, May found herself looking at a tiny naked man, composed entirely of water, his arms and legs mercifully crossed.

"It's rude to poke people whilst they're sleeping."

"You're a sprite," said May dumbly.

"And you're a galumphing nincompoop, but you didn't see me poking you for it, did you?" The water around the sprite's cheeks seemed to fizz and spit, and his frown deepened.

There was a creek, as Aelix sat up in the bed, looking at the sprite with interest.

"What's a sprite doing here?" she asked.

The sprite twisted in the basin to face her.

"I live here. Which is more than I can say for you freeloaders."

"But …" Aelix seemed almost lost for words. "But you're outside Doranelle. I didn't think the Little Folk could leave the Kingdom."

The little man tapped his foot impatiently. "Ignorant girl. Like all the fae. Think we're just ornaments. Pretty little lights for your precious kingdom?"

Aelix turned bright red. May felt she should step in to save her friend from embarrassment.

"It's just that I heard that water sprites couldn't leave their rivers and streams."

The sprite rubbed his temples with his hands, his colour deepening from cerulean to the purple of an angry tempest.

"Such utter ignorance. It seems the fae are so eager to hide away their crimes and let them be forgotten." He fixed his slanted cat eyes upon May, his cherubic lip set petulantly. "Water sprites don't live in the rivers and streams. We are bound to them." He gave a bark, his bitter laughter ringing like a drop of water hitting the bottom of a well. "Might as well say a dog lives in his kennel. I go where I want to go."

"Don't you like the river?" asked May, slightly confused.

"Of course I do!" the sprite looked at her in puzzlement. "But why would I want to be stuck to one riverbend, or one pond, just because some fae broad with some pointy headgear says so?"

Forgetting her sore finger for a moment, May found herself warming to the sprite.

She poked a thumb at Aelix. "Us too. That's why we're here."

The sprite nodded, pursing his lips. "Figures. All outcasts end up in human lands in one way or another. Hard to follow all them rules and regulations and the like." The sprite uncrossed his arms and leant back in his bowl, much as a male spreading himself out on a couch, his hands tucked behind his head. May heard a stifled giggle from the bed. She had to suppress a snort of her own. The sprites wide legs left very little to the imagination. He gave an enormous sigh and stared off wistfully.

"It's a hard old life being an outcast. Not many make it." The sprite struck what he must have thought to be a very heroic pose. May rubbed her eye, to hide her smile. " 'Course things'll be different when the Queen comes back."

May's smile was replaced by puzzlement. "I thought you said you didn't like the Queen?"

The sprite stopped posing and gave May an incredulous look.

" 'Course I like the Queen! I'm a sprite, ain't I? All sprites are Queensfolk! Through and through!" He raised a hand, briming with water, as if in salute.

"Queen over the Water!" The sprite raised the water in his hands to his lips and drank. "To the Queen of the Faeries!"

May looked at Aelix, who looked back in bewilderment.

"Who?"

The sprite did a double take, somehow choking on his own water. For several moments, he seemed to choke, sending out little spurts of water around the tent. After a few seconds, he seemed to gather himself.

"Surely you know of the Faerie Queen? Jezibel, The Flame of Autumn? Last of the House of Lhora? Why," the sprite puffed out his chest proudly, "her lineage is almost as storied as the lost House of Tethys, the River Kings!" the sprite raised another fist of water and drank deeply. "Long may they rest in the reedbeds!"

When May and Aelix looked back blankly, the sprite was askance. He leaned forward in his bowl, his head cocked to one side, causing his flowing hair to splash about his surprisingly shapely shoulders. His cat eyes blinked curiously. "Surely, even the fae must know about Queen Nute Lhora?" When May and Aelix continued to look at him in confusion, the water sprite shook his head pityingly.

"Blooming heck. What do they teach fae these days? She's only the first bleeding Queen of the Faeries. The one what brought us all over here, like. Before all you galumphing fae turned up. Why, if it weren't for her – " Before the sprite could finish, the tent flap burst open, and a gust of wind sent ripples through the sprite's watery form. May turned around to see Trudana standing there, a dark frown on her face. A small human hand was clutching the hem of her robe and a pair of large, round lilac eyes was peering around her leg. Trudana looked at May, her mouth set firmly.

"We need to talk."


Drip, drip, drip. She hears the water fall from the caverns. So high above. It tastes of rain and promise. She remembers the rain. So long ago. Dark. Damp. And she remembers the promise. The promise of an end. So hungry. Always hungry. Searching. Searching. Tunnels dark. Delicious. On, On, On.

Water seeps into fangs. It tastes different. Sometimes sharp. Sometimes sweet Something new. Something is coming.

She smiles into the void, venom welling in her fangs. Does it taste scrumptious?

Suddenly, she hears a harsh cry; a screech of surprise that echoes from wall to wall and through the tunnels. It calls of wind and rain and aboveness. Things she had long forgotten.

She senses more than sees it fall. So far. So far down. So far that it barely seems to move. Yesyesyes. Mine. Come to me.

Minutes pass as it falls. Finally, it hits a ledge and bounces towards the deep black lake below.

The falcon gives a last forlorn cry, before hitting the water. A great plume of water spirals upwards, like a geyser. As the water splashes down, it sends out a swirl of waves, pushing the limp bundle of feathers and broken bone towards the shallows.

She clicks her teeth, venom staining her smile to blackness, and pushes out into the lake, the cool dark waters sluicing over her abdomen.

Bones, she thinks. Scatter the bones.


My mouth tasted bitter and metallic. I swallowed, retching slightly. I quickly looked towards May, hoping she hadn't noticed me gag. I swallowed again, trying to forget the taste of that foul venom. It was so much worse than I remembered. I blinked and looked at my feet so that no one would see my tears. I didn't want to explain myself right now.

I glanced through the veil of hair and tears. May was arguing with Trudy about something. They weren't even looking at me. Slowly, I turned towards the basin of water. Two crafty eyes looked back, narrowing slightly. The sprite smiled a conspiratorial smile and gently raised a finger to his lips, before nodding back towards Trudy.

I clamped down on my emotions and tuned back into what May was saying.

"…not our fault. How were we to know she was following us? We didn't mean for her to fall over…."

Trudy held up a hand. "That is not what I need to talk to you about. Although," She glanced at the human girl, who was still clutching Trudy's leg. "Ava was supposed to be looking out for you, not the other way around." Trudy rolled her eyes indulgently and pursed her lips with mild exasperation. She knelt and spoke gently in the human tongue with the little girl. The girl looked away shyly and stuck her thumb in her mouth.

Still kneeling, Trudy turned back towards May and myself, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. "My granddaughter." She ruffled the girl's hair affectionately. "Ava. She is supposed to be my assistant as well, but she is distractable, silly dear. Head in the clouds. Always dreaming. Just like her mother." Her smile turned sad for a moment, before she stood up abruptly and gestured towards the sprite.

"And I see you have met Mica." She frowned at the sprite. "You are not supposed to be out and about yet."

The sprite, Mica stuck his tongue out in reply. "I got bored and these strays seemed more interesting than the usual ones you pick up."

Trudy said something exasperatedly in the Wendelyn language and rolled her eyes again, thoughher mouth was still smiling. She turned back towards May and myself. May seemed to be about to try to speak, but Trudy held up her hand again.

"First, I must apologise, my dears. I shouldn't have sent both of you out alone. I was tired and forgot my people's fears of strangers. That is why I sent Ava to fetch you." Trudy looked at May for a moment, her eyes softening at something she saw there. Then, she looked at me. I looked away.

For all that I had been with her for the last few days, I hadn't really got to know Trudy. I couldn't.

She had tried to speak to me. To help both May and me. Although she had fixed up May and saved both of our lives, I couldn't forget what I had seen her do. What I had felt inside her when we had met. Something dead. Something rotten.

Trudy cleared her throat and clapped her hands together, trying to cover the awkward pause.

"Second of all, dearies, I need to ask you to come with me. There is something I have to show you."

May frowned at Trudy, a slightly surly look on her face. "What is it?"

There was a splashing sound behind me. I turned to see Mica jumping up excitedly in his bowl.

"Are you going to show them the story?" He jumped up and down again, like child. "Can I come?"

Trudy waved at him impatiently. "Tchah! Calm down. You are wetting the bed."

"What is the story?" I asked Trudy suspiciously.

"Why, It's the story of my people, dearie," She replied. "The Wendlkyn." She turned to May and gave a sad smile again. "It is the story of your people, too."

May frowned at Trudy, confusion on her face. "What can a human story say about the fae?"

Trudy straightened a crease in her tunic. "Human or fae. Faerie or Sprite. Really there is only one story, my dear. Some tell it one way, some tell it another. Some forget bits and others add some." She patted Ava's head again, but the girl wasn't paying attention. She looked bored. She caught me looking at her and her round, lilac eyes widened again. Something feral and predatorial flashed across them for a moment. I blinked in surprise, stepping back half a step. Then the girls eyes were human again. She flashed me a wicked grin.