Embers of the Lost

The village was not as quiet and motionless as they had hoped for the middle of the night. Thankfully, this was hardly her first time sneaking around. Lily did as she knew well, stayed in the shadows and made them deeper and darker so that no one saw her coming. Oscar took the lead, following the scent of the distressed child he had watched earlier until they found the house they resided in.

It was on the outskirts of the village. Run down, smelling of damp, and creaking under the light wind.

“Well, that can’t be helping…” Lily mumbled. Damp wouldn’t be helping anyone’s health, and she was surprised to find that magic hadn’t been used to get rid of it.

Pushing the door open, Lily glanced around the darkness. The downstairs was practically bare. This family had next to nothing. Her eyebrows knitted together as she frowned. With magic in the world, how could there be such a difference between the rich city or marble and colour, and this empty home.

“Who’s there?!”

A scared voice sounded from the stairs, trembling legs descending them. Lily sighed and placed her scythe against the wall beside the front door.

“Your door was unlocked, I just came to drop off some flowers.” Lily spoke, holding up her hands to show one empty and the other holding a small bouquet of flowers. “I heard someone needed flowers from the mountains.”

The man was on the ground floor properly now, a lamp ignited to show the image of the intruder which he aimed a long bat at. No wand? Lily noted with mild confusion.

“You!” He exclaimed in fear. “You’re that fairy!”

“Yes.” Lily confirmed, having not bothered to hide her hair, ears, eyes or shimmer of her skin. “But I’m just here to give you these.”

His brown eyes flicked to the flowers and the tension in his arms loosened, the bat lowering in his surprise.

“Lanuvi flowers…” he whispered in disbelief.

“I didn’t know which they were, so I got every plant I could find.” Lily explained, edging towards the table which sat central to the room and laid the flowers down on them.

“Why?” The man breathed. “You want us dead…” He sounded hesitant about the fact he thought he knew. Lily shook her head softly and smiled sadly.

“I don’t want anyone dead.” She whispered back to him. “I want to save people from this war, people just don’t want to hear that.” Nodding her head to him again, she moved towards the door before pausing, curiosity getting the better of her. “Why haven’t you used magic to capture me?”

Her silver eyes focused on the man who seemed to flush in embarrassment.

“I, erm… I’m not very good at magic…”

Blink. Blink.

Well that wasn’t the answer Lily was expecting.

“But you’re a witch?” Kiki piped up.

“Yes.” He averted his gaze almost in shame. Lily reached down to nudge Kiki and scold her for the judgment in her voice. Who were they to judge others when they didn’t fit the mold? Speaking of, that must be why there was so much dampness in the building.

“Well, allow me to do something else while I’m here then,” despite the look of distrust on his face, Lily placed her left hand against the wooden wall and pulled the mould and the water to that spot and drew it out of the wall until there was a ball of it hovering over her hand. “That will help all of your health.”

Without another word, she took hold of the scythe with her spare hand and left the house. It didn’t seem like he was going to sound an alarm and let everyone know Lily was here, but she also didn’t want to risk it when she didn’t need to. She had done what she had come into the village to do, and now she and the cats fled the settlement in the silent darkness, each second passing as quiet as the next.

“He’s not alerting anyone,” Oscar noted obviously.

“Perhaps he won’t tell anyone; he’ll get into trouble if they find out he did nothing.” Kiki murmured, hoping that her prediction was right. If he hadn’t called for help back when Lily stood in front of him, he shouldn’t be doing so once she was gone.

“Either way, his wife should hopefully recover. Maybe he will start thinking about whether the war is worth it too…” Lily commented as she glanced up to the stars to figure out the direction they were supposed to be going.

“I don’t think one low-magic witch is going to turn the tides.” Kiki huffed.

“Maybe. But it’s something.” Lily motioned to the set of stars they needed to be following and started walking, her coat left open to allow the cool air of the evening to get beneath to stop her overheating. “And if enough people start questioning it, then maybe we stand a chance of convincing people to stop.”

It still seemed like a too tall order, so silence fell over the three as they travelled.

One foot in front of the other foot.

The mantra was back in her mind as tundra turned to grassland. There was a silent emptiness to the world. Did the witches still think they were up in the mountains? Were more tribes being punished for Lily’s very existence? Lily would just have to help them when they found wherever they were all being taken to.

The land they walked through was beautiful, full of wild flowers and the breeze was fresh and freeing. However, after the fourth day of walking in the same direction without a sign of settlement, it was beginning to get tedious.

“How big do you reckon this island is?” Lily sighed as they stopped for lunch, it being much easier to grow enough food now there were plants aplenty.

“I have a feeling we’re the only ones that even have a taste of the size, so who knows.” Oscar chortled, keeping an eye on Lucretia who had been taken out of the satchel so Lily could put food in for her in her mouse form.

A crunch sounded nearby to where they were seated hidden in long grass making them all freeze.

“Someone’s here!” Kiki hissed urgently, Lily unceremoniously stuffing Lucretia’s cage back into the satchel. Lily lowered herself to the ground, though froze upon the sound of a familiar feminine voice.

“Lily? You out here?”

Without thought, Lily stood and found herself looking across the grass and flowers at the auburn curly hair she knew so well.

“Dia?” She breathed, not daring to believe her eyes. Why was Dia here? Worse, why was she pointing her wand at Lily? Did she really believe that Lily was a villain who had used her? Leaving the scythe on the floor, Lily raised her hands in front of her just like she had done at the ill witch’s house. She didn’t want to fight Dia.

As she had stood, heartache shone in Dia’s eyes as though she hadn’t believed that Lily would really be there. “So, it’s true?”

“What’s true?”

“Everything you told me was a lie.” Dia motioned at all of Lily, finally seeing her in her true colours. Her eyes even flicked to the pointed ends of Lily’s ears that were visible with her hair behind them.

“Not everything…” Lily sighed.

“Oh yeah? So, you weren’t in the school to get information on us witches and you didn’t befriend me to make it easier?” Dia spat angrily. Lily faltered, because initially that was exactly what happened.

“It’s true that you were my first ever friend.” Lily started. “And that you made me rethink everything I have ever been taught! This whole war is pointless, Dia. Please, you have to believe me!”

“Oh, I do, do I?” Dia rolled her eyes. “You’ve done nothing but lie. I suppose you aren’t currently travelling through our lands looking for weaknesses for your armies either?”

“I was banished from my home!” Lily yelled over Dia’s accusations, cutting off her voice and glaring at the auburn-haired girl with both frustration and desperation. “I have nowhere left to go. I can never see my parents again. I lost you and Tanith. Finnigan broke my heart. I’m traipsing across this whole land because, even though I lost you all, I don’t want you to die. I want to stop this stupid war! Both sides are wrong in their reasons to be defensive. Fairies don’t want your land. And witches don’t want to collect wings from dead fairies! This war doesn’t need to happen! But no one will listen!”

Her hands had fallen to her sides and balled up into fists as she let the frustration flow from her lips. Why was everyone so blind?! At her feet, Oscar and Kiki moved in closer to give her some emotional support if they could. Lily hadn’t lost them, they wouldn’t let her forget that. She was never alone with them around.

As her breath slowed, Lily’s silver eyebrows drew together at a sudden thought.

“Dia… why are you here?” This was a long way from the school and the town next door where Dia lived with her father.

The distrust on Dia’s face had already been waning, but now a flicker of fear shot across her eyes. “I have to make up for my mistake.” Her hand trembled a little as she pointed her wand at Lily once more. “I fell for all your lies and now I need to make up for it.”

Lily frowned, edging a little closer to the one she still called her best friend. “Dia? What happened after the alarm was put out for me?”

Dia’s eyes widened a little as they began to water. As she stepped closer, Lily could see there was bruising on Dia’s arms and a couple of scars by her lip where it had been split. What told most, however, was the raised red tattoo on the side of her neck spelling out ‘failure’. Without care, Lily closed the space between them and threw her arms around Dia in a tight hug, ignoring the wand that jabbed into her chest. Lily had had her suspicions that Dia’s father didn’t always give her a choice in tattoos and wasn’t the most pleasant of people. Anytime he had been spoken off was short and distant from Dia, or filled with an excuse and nervous laughter.

As soon as arms were around her, Dia burst into tears. Lily wasn’t sure if Dia believed her, but right now, that didn’t actually matter.

“I have to catch you, Lil.” Dia sobbed into Lily’s shoulder, the sound of fearful defeat breaking Lily’s heart even more than Finnigan had managed. “He’ll do worse if he finds out I found you and didn’t catch you.”

Lily tightened her arms around Dia, trying to give her support and safety while she let out the pain she had likely hidden from everyone but the silence of the night with nothing but a pillow for comfort. The cats had hopped up to hover close to try and offer their own support, Kiki nuzzled at Dia’s visible cheek to wipe away the tears while Oscar settled near her back and began to purr soothingly.

“I should have known these two were too smart to be normal witch companions.” Dia laughed pitifully.

Lily pulled back from the hug and tenderly lifted her right hand to place her fingers to the vicious tattoo. Closing her eyes, she focused on the water molecules used in the ink. It was early enough that the skin wasn’t stained with the pigment yet, and so, she was able to move the ink and change the shape to a majestic wing with a few feathers falling from it.

“You can take me in,” She said as she lowered her hand.

“What?!” Oscar and Kiki yelped, though Lily raised a hand to quiet them. Lily would escape… or she wouldn’t. Either way, she couldn’t let Dia suffer if she could help it.

“It’s ok,” Lily brushed the tears off Dia’s confused face. “I’m not going to fight you. And I’m not going to run knowing you’ll be hurt if I do.”

“Lil…”

“I just want you to consider that maybe I’m telling you the truth; fairies aren’t your enemy; the whole thing is a lie.” Leaning forward to press a kiss to Dia’s forehead, a comforting gesture that Lily’s mother used to give her when she was having a rough day. Stepping back to pick up the scythe from the floor, Lily handed it over to Dia. “I’m now disarmed.”

“You can use magic without a wand and you know it.” Dia half chuckled as she shook her head. Lily smiled lightly and shrugged. “Are you sure…?” Dia hesitated, raising her wand once more.

“I’m surer of this than I’ve been of anything else I’ve done in months.” There wasn’t a single doubt in her mind about this choice.

“Thank you,” Dia whispered before muttering the sleeping spell at firing it straight at Lily’s head rendering her asleep before her body even hit the floor.

An uncomfortable strain pulled on her shoulder joints, dragging her back to consciousness after the spell had worn off. There was no force on any part of her body apart from her wrists which felt like they were being dragged skyward.

Opening her eyes, Lily realised that it was the rest of her being pulled down by gravity, but rope bound around her wrists stopped her from falling. Narrowing her eyes lethargically, she attempted to focus on what was happening. The rope holding her was tied to the front of a broomstick under the hands of the rider. In front of them were a few more broomsticks, each carrying their own bound captive. Lily could see Kiki and Oscar bound by their paws under a broom two places in front of her. She couldn’t reach them from here, and from their lack of movement, they were still asleep. Other captives were draconian and witch by the looks of things. She must be on her way to the place they were locking everyone up.

Not that she would be able to do much if she was a bound captive herself.

Wait… bound…

Her head snapped upwards to focus on her wrists. They were encased in the magic-inhibiting metal she had experienced before, except these weren’t burning her skin. Glancing at the rider of the broomstick to make sure they hadn’t realised she was conscious, Lily pulled herself up with effort to gain a closer look at her wrists. No matter which way her body was shifted with the movements of the broom, the metal never touched her skin. There was a gap that never got crossed. Had Dia cast a protection spell around Lily’s wrists? Could she be hopeful that maybe her friend wasn’t completely against her?

Whether Dia was on her side or just had a moment of doubt didn’t matter; she had given Lily an opportunity.

“Agora!” She cupped her hands around the rope and set the fibres alight.

“Hey! What?!” The witch above yelled, but it was already too late. The rope snapped and Lily dropped to the ground, creating steps of ice to jump from in stages so she didn’t just crash to the floor and do more damage to her ankle.

The ground she landed on was a deserted field that spanned as far as the eye could see. It was filled with cracks and crevices, and it appeared that not a single plant aside from orange hued grass grew there. Stranger still, despite the cursing and yelling of the witches above, none of them chased her to the ground.

“You are an absolute failure.”

Lily spun around at the voice to find her face-to-face with herself.