Chapter Text
Marcy woke up from another strange dream. She wasn’t sure what they were about as she would forget them as soon as she woke up. But she always felt strange afterwards. But she couldn’t get that damn tune out of her head. She wanted to rid her mind of that song. It was a lovers’ song and she would be damned if she fell in love. She wasn’t one for romance.
Marcy helped her mother with breakfast as John helped her little brother get dressed. Marcy was stirring the batter as she started to gently hum that song that haunted her dreams. She could feel her mother’s stare on her back as she continued to hum.
“I don’t think I have ever heard you sing that song before.” Marcy stopped stirring as she realized that she had been singing. “Did you have a dream about your true love?”
Marcy scoffed and rolled her eyes.
“You know I don’t really believe in that mom. It isn’t for me.” Marcy turned away to avoid her mom’s glaze. “Besides, there are more important things for me to do in my life than searching for my so-called true love.”
“After everything that happened, you don’t believe it exists?” Marcy paused.
Sasha and Anne were true loves. She remembers her sister always talking about her mysterious dance partner until it eventually turned into Sasha. It was because they were true loves that helped break Anne’s curse. Even John spoke of him dreaming about Darcy when he was little. The dreams signaled your true love. But maybe Marcy was a little miffed considering she had never really dreamt of a true love. Most of her dreams in the past were of her parents. And now, nothing.
Did she believe in true love for herself? No. She didn’t. Her dreams was never of her dancing with a stranger. She didn’t even remember them once she woke up. So therefore, it didn’t exist.
“I mean, they exist for you. But not for me. I never remember my dreams when I woke up. You and Anne both always spoke of remembering your dancing and that song. But it doesn’t matter for me if I find them or not. I just want to concentrate on the most important things right now. Luke and Elisa. I don’t need some fairy tale romance.”
Marcy continued to feel her mother’s eyes on her as she worked on the batter.
The Wu family soon headed out to the center of the forest. After Darcy’s return, many of the fairies slowly came back. The once burnt areas were now lush and green thanks to the work of the light fairies. Every clan lived in harmony and there were no disputes with land as everyone had their own space in the forest. But Darcy created a section in the middle that was meant to be a common ground for all fairies. It was where the clan heads met and where fairies who either had no clan to call home, or for the fairies who had married humans. Humans were now a common sight as well. While Marcy still was leer of many humans, she knew that were more good then bad.
“Momma! What is going on?” Luke asked as he held Darcy’s hand.
“The fair. Remember? It’s the first time the fairy forest has had something like this. Something we have adapted from humans.”
“Whoa! This is so cool. Can we go explore?”
“You and your sister will. Momma and daddy have some important business to take care of. But once we are done, we will go explore the fair together.” Darcy smoothed Luke’s hair down before kissing his forehead.
“Now be good with your sister and no transformations. Don’t want your sister to panic.” John bent down to his level.
“Got it daddy.” Luke beamed at John. John ruffled his hair. Darcy let out an annoyed huff before fixing the hair that John had messed up.
Marcy noticed a black haired man walking over to them. He had stone cold blue eyes. She had never seen him before. But by the way he dressed, he clearly was important with the symbol of a phoenix on his chest.
“Who’s that?” Marcy asked her parents. He looked awfully familiar to her.
“That’s the Phoenix Clan leader, Siegfried Amery.” John answered. “You probably don’t remember much of him and his family. You and his daughter used to play a lot when we had clan meetings.”
“But the Phoenix clan usually kept themselves out of any land disputes. They were a clan that preferred solitude and refused to interact with any other clans. The old clan leader was a stubborn fool. He caused the death of quite a few of his own clan members due to his inability to lead them to safety. It was Siegfried that worked to save his clan.” Darcy spoke. “That's why they are still here.”
Siegfried got closer before stopping in front of them and bowing.
“My dark enchantress and my dark emperor. Greetings.” He finally smiled. His smile seemed warm. He focused on Marcy and Luke. “And greetings to you too, dark princess and dark prince.”
“Hello sir.” Marcy and Luke bowed. Siegfried held his hand out towards Marcy.
“Marcy, my how you've grown. I remember when you were a little girl just running around with my daughter. You look so much like your mother. I almost can't tell you two apart.”
“I get that a lot.” Marcy chuckled. Marcy had grown her hair out, similar to her mom. It was now down to her back and tied up in a ponytail. Siegfried smiled.
“Where is your husband and daughter?” John asked.
“My daughter is selling her wares at the fair. I just came from helping her get her tent set up. David is busy with the clan at the moment. There is still some discourse from some of the older clan members over our decision to integrate back into the forest and into the clan meetings. They don’t want us to join back. But I think we should.”
“Those old fools.” Darcy clicked her tongue in annoyance.
“It’s all in the past though. We are now the heads and we are going to be working on ushering in an era of peace for our children. And we have this wonderful fair to show that peace.”
“I couldn’t agree more, Siegfried.” Darcy took his hand and cupped it in hers. “Now, let us go to the meeting and not keep the other members waiting.” Darcy turned to Marcy and Luke. She handed Marcy a bag of gold. “Here’s some money for food and if you see something you like. Enjoy yourselves and watch out for each other.”
“Don’t worry Mom, we will. Now come on squirt. Want a piggyback ride?”
Luke shook his head. Marcy clipped the money to her waist and bent down so Luke could climb on her back. Darcy smiled at the two before kissing their cheeks.
Marcy walked away as her parents joined Siegfried’s side. They wandered through the numerous stalls and stands set up. Marcy was amazed at everything. She and Anne had been to a few of the fairs back in the Waybright kingdom. But they were nothing like this.
Fairies and humans waved at them as they passed. Many fairies moved back home, many with spouses that were human and children who were born of both worlds.
“This is so cool. I wish our other sissy was here to see.”
“She will be here soon for the ball with her brute and once she arrives, we can take her here. The fair is going on until the end of the ball.”
“I can’t wait for the ball. It will be so much fun. And Anne promised me her first dance. I want one dance with you though.”
“Don’t worry. Your big sister will make sure you get a dance. You are definitely like dad. You and him love these things. Momma is getting better with them. I still don’t like them that much.”
“How come?”
“I just am…..not a people fairy if you will. I was raised to fear people so I didn’t really interact with others much. I’m trying but it’s going to take a bit.”
“Oh.”
“But I am getting better and I have you to thank as well.”
Marcy suddenly stopped at one stall. She wasn’t sure what had caught her eye but she couldn’t help but look through the stall. She could see various paintings hanging up and on the table. They were gorgeous paintings. Even Luke had his attention on the paintings as well. He carefully hopped down from her back and was looking through a bunch of them stacked in a crate.
“These are super cool.” Luke grabbed one. It was of a blue dragon fighting on a bridge, the blue flames setting the bridge and forest ahead on fire. It was eerily beautiful. But Marcy was brought back to the fight on the bridge and the day that they thought they had lost dad forever. “This kind of looks like daddy.”
“That is dad’s dragon form.” Marcy took the painting and stared at it.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were in my stall.” Marcy snapped her head to the voice. Standing there was a woman, who looked no older than Marcy, who had pale white skin and long black hair with bangs. Her baby blue eyes stared at Marcy in surprise once she realized who it was. She hastily bowed towards her. “My dark princess and dark prince. It is an honor.”
Marcy tapped her shoulder to get her look up. “You don’t have to bow. I couldn’t care less.”
The fairy stood up straight and stared at Marcy.
“I am so sorry, my dark princess.”
“Don’t apologize. It doesn’t matter to me. I am not one for people bowing towards me. Still not used to it if I am being honest. But I want to talk about this painting. What is this about?”
Marcy showed her the painting. Her eyes widened.
“Oh. That’s the battle on the bridge. It was the last final battle between the fairies and the Black Lotus.”
Marcy stared at the girl’s face as she stared at the painting. She had that far long look in her eyes. It was similar to Marcy’s look. It was clear she had a memory of it. Her eyes lifted to look at Marcy.
“Were you there that day?” Marcy asked. The girl nodded.
“I was. My baba and dad were on the bridge with me when we watched the dark emperor fall over the bridge and crash into the water. We assumed that he had died.”
“We all assumed dad died.” Marcy whispered. The girl placed her hand on her arm.
“I am so sorry. I should destroy this painting. It is upsetting you.” Marcy suddenly grabbed her wrist to stop her from taking the painting from her.
“No. Don’t destroy it. It’s beautiful. It does have some terrible memories tied to it. But my dad is alive. He fought to protect you and your family. You are here now because of that. Let me buy it from you.”
“You want…..to buy my painting?”
“I do. How much?”
“For you, free.” The girl pushed on the painting towards Marcy.
“Nope. I will not take it for free. How much?” Marcy got a little bit closer to the girl. Her entire face turned bright red at how close Marcy had gotten close. The girl stammered to get an amount as her face grew redder and redder. Marcy thought she looked cute with that blush.
Wait? Cute?
Nope. Nope. She just didn’t have that thought at all.
Marcy stepped away from the girl. She handed the painting to Luke to hold and she grabbed the pouch and pulled out a bunch of coins.
“Will this be enough? Maybe more.”
“Stop!” The girl grabbed her hands and stopped her from pulling out more coins. “Please stop. If you really want to pay, then three coins is more than enough.”
Marcy looked at her enclosed hands. Marcy’s hands were littered with various scars from her falls and calloused from having work on the farm for so long. The pale skin had one long scar on the back of her right hand. She looked into the blue eyes. They seemed to pull her in. She also felt a sense of familiarity with those blue eyes. Like she had seen them before.
“Sorry. Here.” Marcy handed the three coins to her. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“It’s okay. I didn’t mean to upset you, my dark princess.”
“Please, just Marcy will do.” Marcy stared at the girl. “Call me Marcy. And you?”
“Lillian. But I do prefer Lily.” That name oddly felt familiar to Marcy as well.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lily.”
Marcy and Luke walked out of the tent and continued walking through the fair together. Luke soon wanted to eat something. They stopped at a stand that sold something called a potato twist. Marcy was fascinated with the treat and it was delicious. They ate in peace as the painting leaned against Marcy’s leg.
“That painting lady was really nice.” Luke said.
“Yeah, she was. She was a little shy too.” Marcy stared at her hands, remembering the feeling of her hands on hers.
“You had a look on your face that only daddy gives to momma.” Marcy’s head shot up at her brother’s words. He had to be joking, right?
“Nice joke, squirt.” Luke blinked at her.
“But I am not joking. You had that look on your face. You have a crush on her.” Marcy huffed in annoyance.
“I do not have a crush on her. I just met her and I don’t know anything about her to say that I am crushing on her.”
“Maybe she is your true love.”
Marcy gagged at the thought. She wasn’t in love with a stranger.
“Yeah no. She ain’t my true love.”
“Aw, but Momma always talks about how she and daddy used to dream of each other. Anne too.”
“Sorry kiddo. I don’t have those dreams. Never have. My dreams had once consisted of mom and dad. But now, I can’t even remember my dreams once I wake up. Save for that one blasted song playing in my head.”
“Oh, I know the one. Momma and Anne sing it to me all the time.”
“It’s a crowd favorite for sure.” Marcy laughed.
She thought back to Lily again. There was something familiar about her but she wasn’t sure what. Marcy didn’t remember much of her life before the war. She remembered quite a bit of her parents and some of the forest. She does remember playing with a girl but she doesn’t remember much of her. But the rest was rather hazy.
The two Wu kids continued to walk through the fair and just kept looking through the various stands. They ended up stopping one last time at Lily’s stand. Marcy could see that she had no patrons but she was currently sitting down and looked to be sketching something in a book. Marcy waved her hands at her when Lily looked up and waved back. Marcy could hear Luke’s snickering as they walked away.
“You really like her.” Luke teased her. Marcy rolled her eyes.
“No I do not. I barely know her.”
“Then maybe you should get to know her.” Marcy stopped in her tracks at his words.
“I could get to know her more.”
“See, you do like her.” Marcy slowly glared at her brother. He smiled, something so similar to their mother.
“Start running.”
Luke transformed into a rabbit as Marcy gave chase in cat form. They chased each other in the forest as Luke was laughing. Their parents found them after the meeting with branches and leaves in their hair. Darcy just fondly rolled her eyes at them as she plucked the leaves from their hair.
Once the family arrived back home, they noticed a carriage parked in their stable with a couple of horses near Night. They walked into the castle to see Anne and Sasha sitting on the couch with Oum and Bee beside them. Sarah was rustling around in the kitchen as Cecil and Mother Olm sat next to Bee. Sasha was holding Elisa in her arms.
“Anne! Sissy!” Luke shouted as he ran over to Anne. Anne dropped to her knees and hugged Luke. “You are here!”
“Of course we are. We said we would.” Anne stood up and was pulled into a hug by Marcy. “Hey Marcy.”
Darcy held her arms for Anne and Sasha to hug her before John got in a hug. Bee instantly pulled Darcy into his arms.
“Hey Anne. Hey Brute.” Marcy turned to Sasha. Sasha just huffed.
“Still with the name.” Sasha got up from the couch with Elise in her arms. Luke hugged Sasha’s legs as well. “Hey Kiddo, what did you guys do?”
“We went to the fair and it was so much fun. And Marcy has a crush.”
“Luke!” Marcy glared at him. “I do not have a crush.”
“Oh? A crush huh?” Sasha wiggled her eyebrows. Marcy punched her. She even felt her parents’ eyes on her.
“You didn’t say anything about a crush.”
“There is no crush. Luke and I just met this girl at the fair who sold paintings. That’s how I got this.” Marcy showed them the painting. “There is no crush. Nothing. You all know I am not one for romance.” Marcy realized she had made a big ordeal out of nothing. She wasn’t crushing on Lily. She had barely met the girl. “It is not what this looks like. I am sorry for shouting. But we just literally met and I’ll probably never see her again.”
“This painting is rather impressive.” Darcy stared at it. “Is this the battle on the bridge?”
“Yeah. That’s what she said. She said she was on the bridge that day with her dad and….baba as she said.”
“Battle on the bridge?” Anne asked as she looked at the painting.
“It was the day that we thought we lost John. This does manage to capture John’s heroic act.”
“Oh.” Anne looked up at the family. She engulfed them in a hug. “I’m sorry.”
“Anne, we have talked about this. It is not your fault. Our family is together and that’s all that matters.” Darcy grabbed Anne’s shoulders. “And I managed to get not only a son but two other daughters out of our reunion.” Sasha walked over with Elisa. Darcy cooed as she held the baby in her arms. “And there’s our little one. You have gotten bigger since I last saw you.”
“My turn to see my niece.” Marcy held her arms out for Elisa. Darcy turned her body away.
“No. You get to sneak out more to see Elisa while John and I have been busy with the fairy forest. You can see her later. It is my time.”
Marcy laughed as she watched her mom tucked the baby in her arms. Everyone gathered on the couch as they all talked about the day. Marcy kept thinking back to her meeting with Lily.
“So Siegfried of the Phoenix Clan has given his approval. We should start seeing more improvements to the forest soon with his help.”
“The Phoenix clan? Weren’t they not recognized as a clan like how the Dragon Clan wasn’t recognized?” Bee asked.
“Yes. It was something my father had decreed. May explain why the old clan leader was against us and refused to aid in the war. But, with the new leader and my desire to integrate them into the clans now, we are slowly working on fixing the problems of the past. They will be considered a clan. As it should have been. Just like you.” Darcy kissed Elisa’s cheek. The baby giggled.
“Siegfried had taken control of the clan when the war started. He wanted to protect the people of his clan and of course, his family as well. He was the only one who stepped forward to ask Darcy for help and for protection. The rest of the clan refused and said they could hold the humans off on their own.” John pulled his wife closer. “Something tells me that they didn’t survive.” Sasha said.
“Yeah. They didn’t. Most of the clan was wiped out. The only ones that survived were the ones who managed to get into the barrier. Siegfried had told me that he and his family lived out in a human village in secret. But it wasn’t a village that took too kindly to fairies. They had a rough life.”
Marcy grinded her teeth. She hated how some humans hated the fairies because of how different they were. It was why Marcy had refused to get close to other humans then Anne at the time. Maybe it was why she had issues with getting close to others.
Of course, she had also been raised to hide away from them and didn’t interact with many kids her age or her species. She spent a good chunk of her time in the village in her raven or cat form. She was like a fish floundering on land.
“Well, they are now at least in the fairy forest and in good hands.” Mother Olm said. Darcy echoed an agreement.
“Couldn’t agree more, Mother. Now it is rather late for us all and especially for the younger children as well. Let’s get ready for bed. I hope Loggle got our guests taken care of.” The big burly man bowed.
“I did my duty, my dark enchantress.”
“Yep, the big guy did.” Sasha stood up. Anne took Elisa from Darcy’s arms.
“Good. Let’s get some rest as we have a big day ahead of us. John and I have more meetings to attend to. Mother Olm, will you join us tomorrow? It would only be appropriate for the head of the Dragon Clan to have a say on things.”
“Of course my dear.” Mother Olm took Darcy’s hands.
“Can we go to the fair tomorrow?” Luke tugged on his mom’s dress gently.
“Of course sweetie. You can take Anne and Sasha and Elisa tomorrow.”
“Alright.”
Everyone laughed at the excitable little boy.
Marcy crawled into her bed after saying good night to her family and then to both Anne and Sasha and Elisa. She could hear Anne softly sing that same song to Elisa as she left the room.
Marcy woke up to a strange void. She looked around as she tried to figure out where she was. She then heard vague singing. She followed the singing until she came across two strangers. She couldn’t make out anything. Not their face, their body. Nothing. But she could see they were dancing around.
“Hello?” They continued to dance. “I’m sorry. But can you hear me? Where are we?”
“I know you. I walked with you once upon a dream.” Marcy shouted again but they ignored her calls. Marcy tried to grab their arms. But she phased through. “And I know it's true, that visions are seldom what they seem. But if I know you. I know what you do. You’ll love me at once. The way you did once upon a dream.”
They were singing that song. Marcy tried to call out to them again and again. But they didn’t answer. It was similar to what Anne had told her happened in her dreams. Marcy looked at the strangers again. It was then she noticed bright blue eyes on one. Eyes she had seen only just today.
When Marcy woke up, she gasped as she clenched her heart. She had woken up with fresh memories of her dreams. That dream that played out just like Anne’s.
“Oh by the gods, I’ve contracted that wrench disease.
Marcy decided that she was going to do a bit of spying. She wasn’t sure why she had been compelled to do this but she needed answers. And she hated to admit that she was a little curious about Lily.
What would one do in this situation?
She definitely couldn’t just approach the poor girl and freak her out. And Marcy was also extremely awkward in even talking to people, let alone talk to someone like Lily.
So spying it was. For now.
Marcy separated from her family, which was easy. Her parents had already left for the meeting. Sasha and Anne decided to take Luke off Marcy’s hands and explore the fair with him. So Marcy was left alone.
She transformed into a black cat and ran towards the tents. She realized she had no idea what tent Lily was in. Marcy started just walking through the grounds, looking from something familiar.
She finally came across the tent. She peeked in and saw Lily was alone. She was currently sitting on a chair as she sketched in her book. Marcy leapt right on to the table. Lily gasped in surprise at the cat.
“Well hello there. You spooked me.” Lily reached out to stroke her head. Marcy let her. “Wow. You are the friendliest cat I have ever met.” Lily noticed the scar on her cheek. “You poor baby. What happened to your cheek?”
Maryc meowed. Lily scratched her cheek.
Lily flipped to a new page and decided to start sketching Marcy. Marcy watched her as she sketched out the cat form. Marcy heard her humming.
“I know you. I walked with you once upon a dream. I know you. That look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam.”
Marcy looked at Lily with surprise as she heard her sing that song. How did Lily know that song?
Marcy heard Lily giggle. She turned her head at her.
“Sorry. You looked really cute swaying like that. You must really like that song.” Marcy didn’t say anything. It could give her position away. “I see that look in your eyes. You are wondering where I heard that song. It’s something I hear in my dreams. I’m a light fairy and according to us, if you dream of someone every night then you are dreaming of your true love. And every night, my true love sings me that song. They have a rather beautiful voice if I am being honest. But I wish I could see their face because….I want to know what they look like. You know what I mean?”
Marcy nodded her head. Lily stroked her head with her finger.
“I want to meet them. Maybe they are my crush.” Lily laughed. She wiped something from her eye. She turned to Marcy and smiled. “You want to know who my secret crush is?” Marcy nodded her head as she hopped over to Lily. Lily sat closer and draped her arms on her table and placed her head in her arms. “It’s Marcy Wu, our dark princess.” Marcy went slack jawed as Lily mentioned her name. Lily sighed. “She is really beautiful. And she was so kind to me yesterday as well. I never really had another friend besides some of the forest animals when I was in the human village. They all hated me because of how strange I was to them. They called me things like witch or monster. Even now, I still feel like an outcast.”
Marcy knew the feeling. How she had seen it with Anne and even with Sasha. Even now, Marcy was struggling to make a true connection to someone. They all fawned over her because she was the dark princess. She even had a fan club where they praised her deeds. Marcy didn’t want that. She never felt like she could really be a friend to someone just because they would use her status. Until now. Hearing Lily talk was making Marcy feel that connection to her. They shared the same feelings. That feeling of loneliness. Marcy wanted to drop her disguise and talk to Lily but she also really didn’t want to make things awkward with her if she did. Especially after literally just confessing her crush to her crush.
“I feel a kindred spirit within you. Listen to me. I’m talking to a cat. No wonder those human kids thought I was strange.”
Lily stopped talking when a fairy walked into her tent. Marcy hopped onto her shoulder and observed everything from her new perch. The customer complimented Lily for her art and soon walked out with a painting. Lily had a big smile after the sale.
“It seems maybe you are my lucky cat.” Lily stroked Marcy’s chin.
Lily went back to sketching as she waited for someone else to show up. Marcy stayed by Lily as she observed her. She had to admit, Lily was amazing. She could almost rival some of the master painters Marcy saw at the castle. Maybe she could convince her mother to order a commission from Lily. Her mom had been talking about getting another portrait done. Only this time to include Luke, Anne, Sasha and little Elisa.
Lily just casually chatted with Marcy. The conversation was just one sided as Marcy really didn’t want to give her secret away.
“The human village we hid out in didn’t take too kindly to fairies. They blamed us for the war and destruction. At least it was easier for us to blend into the human world. We just hide our ears. But there was an incident where…No. I don’t want to talk about it.” Lily shook her head. Marcy watched as a few tears fell. She really wanted to wipe those tears.
“Confound it. I am not a love struck fool like that brute.”
Lily was furiously wiping those tears away and Marcy was fighting herself to transform. Because of that, they didn’t know someone had walked in.
“Are you okay?” Lily shot her head up. Sasha was standing there with a look of worry on her face. Lily instantly jumped out of her seat and nearly fell backwards. Sasha grabbed her arm to stop her. Lily went extremely pale in the face, like she feared Sasha. Her chest rose up and down rapidly. “Whoa. I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to spook you. Are you okay?”
“I’m…..I’m fine.” Lily choked out. Marcy decided to step in and let out an angry hiss at Sasha. Sasha jumped away from Lily and from the angry black cat.
“Shit! I thought I was over that fear of black cats.” Marcy smirked before seeing Sasha’s face. Sasha was observing the cat before a sly smile appeared on her face. She recognized her. Marcy cursed her luck. Sasha turned to Lily. “I am so sorry about scaring you.”
“It’s okay. I just wasn’t expecting someone to walk in on me.” Marcy believed that Lily was lying. Her reaction was one of fear, not surprise. And her whole body was still shaking. Lily swallowed loudly. “May I ask what brings you here?”
“I was actually wanting to just check out this stand. So this is where Marcy got that painting from.”
“Marcy? You know the dark princess?”
“Yep. She is technically my sister-in-law.”
“Your sister-in-law?” Lily suddenly bowed towards Sasha. “I am so sorry, your majesty. I didn’t realize it was you.” Sasha waved her hand.
“What are you apologizing for? You have nothing to apologize for.” Sasha smiled. Marcy watched as Lily got a little bit more relaxed. Marcy felt something of a pain in her heart. She turned to Sasha and let out another hiss. Sasha jumped which made Lily laugh. Sasha shot a glare at Marcy. “Will you stop scaring me!”
“You know this black cat?”
“No. But you can say that I have a small fear of black cats. Especially ones with green eyes. A black cat is how I got this scar.” Sasha rubbed her scarred hand. “Would you look at that? My scar is acting up.” Sasha shot a smirk at Marcy. Marcy was plotting her demise already. “But if you do not mind, I would like to look around and find a painting for me to take home to my castle.”
Lily had a look of surprise on her face. “You want to take one of my paintings for your home?”
“I do. Your work is phenomenal. I think it’s even better than some of the masters that I have seen.”
“I am honored, your majesty.”
Sasha eventually picked out a painting. It was of the forest at dusk. Sasha paid for the painting and patted Marcy’s head on the way out. Lily sighed before sitting down on her chair. Marcy leapt up onto Lily’s lap.
“I am sorry about my reaction. I hate to admit that I have a fear of humans.” Marcy felt bad for Lily. She bumped her head against Lily’s hand. Lily stroked her head. “Let’s just say that my life in that village was rough. I was tormented and teased and bullied. The way the humans treated me made me fear for my life. It’s why I am sort of glad that we could move back to the fairy forest. But even here, I see humans as well as fairies. I mean, at least we can have a more friendly relationship with them, but I still have that fear. A fear that those humans will come and hurt me again.” Lily shook her head. “But never mind that. That princess, or I should say queen now, was nice. But she is Sasha Waybright. She was the one who defeated Sam and she is an honorary member of the Raven clan. So our dark enchantress sees some good in her. I wonder what the dark princess thinks of her?”
Marcy did think Sasha was a good human. They may have had their problems in the past but she knew Sasha would do anything to protect Anne and Elisa. She may still tease her but she would also be a huge defender of Sasha’s name. She would never say that to the brute’s face though.
“Ugh. And then there’s the fairy ball coming at the end of the week for the entire clan leaders. I am really not looking forward to it because of the fact that I will be forced to dance with people. And I really don’t want to. And as much as I would like a dance with our dark princess, that won’t happen. Not in a million years. She won’t even look in my general direction. I mean, look at me. I am nothing. My dad may be the clan leader but….I have nothing to give to anyone. My true love wouldn’t even want me if they ever meet me.”
Marcy wanted to just hug Lily and chase away those fears. Marcy realized what she had thought.
No. Nope. She wasn’t in love with Lily. And it sounded like Lily already had a true love waiting for her.
“Hey Lillibell.” Marcy turned at the unknown voice. She saw a red haired man with emerald eyes walk into the tent. He smiled at Lily.
“Dad!” Lily smiled widely at him before jumping out of her seat and hugged him.
“I see some more paintings are gone. It appears you are doing well.”
“Yep. Had a bunch of customers today. I am surprised to see you out and about.”
“David, you didn’t tell me your daughter was a painter.” Marcy felt her blood run cold. That was her mother. Marcy tactfully tried to hide away but still remained by Lily’s side.
“Yeah. Lily doesn’t like when me and my husband are shouting it all over the forest. She says we embarrass her. But I mean, she is an exceptional artist.” David laughed. Lily gently punched her dad in the arm.
“Dad, stop it. You are embarrassing me in front of our dark enchantress.” Lily looked down at Marcy and smiled. She suddenly grabbed Marcy and held her up in her arms. “Look at this cat that decided to join me. She has been my good luck charm. Can we keep her?”
Darcy saw Marcy and cracked the widest smile on her face. Even John had to hide his laugh with a well timed cough.
“Well there you are. I was wondering where you had run off too.” Darcy put her hands on her hips. Marcy lowered her head into her shoulders. She was caught.
“Oh. This is your cat?” Marcy heard the pain in her voice.
“You could say that. I didn’t realize she had stuck away to your tent.” Darcy looked at the paintings. “Oh. This is where my daughter got that painting from. I must say, your father is right. You are an exponential artist. I would even dare say you are better than some of the other painters I have seen. How old are you?”
“I am twenty-five years old.” Lily bowed.
So, she was the same age as Marcy.
“You are skilled for someone so young.” Darcy hummed as she examined Lily’s paintings. Lily was still holding onto Marcy. Darcy finally pulled a painting out. “This one is marvelous. What do you think, John?”
“I do agree. It is really nice. It would look good hanging up in the castle. Let’s buy it.”
“How much, my dear?” Lily opened her mouth before Darcy held her hand up. “And do not try to give it away for free. Your work shows your talent. You must be paid accordingly. Got it, young lady?”
“Yes, my dark enchantress. That will be three coins.” Lily looked at Marcy. She held her out. “And here’s your cat back.”
Darcy laughed. She slapped John’s chest.
“Be a dear and grab our cat and I will pay for our painting.”
John grabbed Marcy and set her on his shoulders. It was like the old times where Marcy used to sit on his shoulders back at the tea shop.
The family walked away from the stand. Lily waved goodbye to them as they left. Once they were far enough from the stand, Marcy leapt down and transformed back to fairy. She turned to her parents and smiled. They both had smirks on their faces.
“Now what were you doing at her tent as a cat?” Darcy asked.
“I wasn't doing anything wrong.”
“No, you weren’t. But it is a little suspicious that you would go out of your way to transform into your cat form to snoop on the poor girl. You must have had an ulterior motive to why you were spying on her? So why?”
“The truth.” Marcy inhaled. There was no sense in lying to her parents. They could see through her lies. And she feared her mom’s power. She could easily have Leif brew a truth potion. “The truth is that I am not sure what is happening to me. I feel something with Lily. I don’t want to say love because I just met her but there is something there. It is infecting me and I want it to stop. And…I just had that same dream you and Anne have had. It has happened these past two nights since I met Lily and I need to clear my head. But I can’t see the mysterious figures that are dancing in my dreams. And Lily was suddenly singing our song so…I don’t know. I don’t want to get my hopes up.”
“So why a cat? Couldn’t you have just talked to her?”
“Mom, I’m awkward. Plain and simple. I would be awkward around her and I’m afraid with my klutzy nature that I would do something to hurt her.”
“Your mom was the same way with me.” Darcy shot John a playful glare.
“Watch it, buddy.” John smirked.
“She was awkward. But so I was. It seems it is a family trait. But if Lily is your true love.” Marcy blanched at that. Lily was not her true love. “Then she will love you as yourself. But she needs to see all of you. All of your traits, your personality and you.”
Marcy hated how right her parents were. Lily needed to see her for who she was. And she was curious to know more about Lily as well.
The night of the ball was here and Marcy was extremely nervous. She hated these types of balls if she was being honest. She nervously looked around at the dancing people. She saw her mom and dad dancing together. She looked over and saw Anne slowly dancing with Luke in her arms. Sasha was dancing with Oum since Anne was already occupied. Bee was dancing with his sister, Sarah. Marcy stayed in the back and had been slowly sipping her drink.
Her eyes wandered around the dance floor, hoping that maybe Lily was here. But she hadn’t yet seen her. She felt someone touch her arm. She looked over to see Andrias standing there.
“I see someone is alone. Care for a dance partner?”
“Sure, dad.” Andrias smiled before taking her hand and leading her to the dance floor. Marcy took a few dance lessons from Anne when she became a princess. Marcy at first was terrible, like her mother was. But as she kept dancing, she got better. No more stepping on people’s feet.
“So your mother has told me that you may have met someone.” Marcy shot a glare at her mother. Her mother slyly waved at her.
“I mean……yes. I did meet someone.”
“What are they like?”
“She is nice. She is an amazing artist.”
Marcy looked around and noticed a beautiful red dress off in the corner. There were yellow flames along the edge and what looked like feathers. They had long black hair that was done up in a loose ponytail. She could see that they were close to two familiar faces that Marcy knew. They were Tonya and Teresa, the so-called founding members of Marcy’s fanclub and members of the Peacock clan. The clan was notorious for believing that they were better than anyone else and they believed they were the most beautiful out of the clans. Her mother hated dealing with the Peacock clan. In her words, “They were too cocky.”
Tonya had dark purple hair and purple eyes. Teresa had light green hair and yellow eyes. Both of their dresses were like that of a peacock, with a sort of crown on their back that was like the tail feathers of a peacock.
When the person in the red dress spun around, Marcy’s eyes widened when she saw it was Lily. Her mouth dropped wide open as she just stared. She heard Andrias chuckle.
“It seems to me that you see something you like.” Marcy went bright red at the words. But she couldn’t argue. Lily did look beautiful in that red dress. “Go ask her for a dance.”
Marcy was gently pushed towards the area where Lily was standing. Marcy gulped loudly as she nervously walked over. Her legs felt like a newborn deer’s legs. They kept wanting to buckle as she walked. She stepped over to the table, which was filled to the brim with drinks. She grabbed one just to help her out and slowly sipped it. She looked over at Lily and the fangirls out of the corner of her eyes.
Lily looked uncomfortable as Marcy picked up on Tonya gossiping with her friend. They both spied Marcy coming up and started talking in whispers. Lily rolled her eyes as she ignored them and focused on her drink.
“It’s the dark princess. You think she is here to ask one of us to dance with her.” Marcy had to bite back a laugh. Nope. She was here for Lily.
“She will dance with me first. Look at her. She is looking over at me.” Marcy was trying to stare at Lily, not at Tonya.
“No way. She is looking at me. She will dance with me.” Teresa shot back. “I am the most beautiful out of the two of us here.”
Tonya suddenly scoffed and tilted her head towards Lily. “Unless you count Lillian over here. But that statement still stands.” Marcy clenched her fist, her nails digging into her palm. “There is no way the dark princess would pick someone like Lillian to dance with.”
Oh, Marcy was going to show them.
“Yeah. Her dads may be the clan leaders but she is nothing like them.”
Marcy watched as Lily clenched the glass in her hand. Her other hand tightened around her dress. She could see Lily was getting upset. Maybe it was time Marcy proved them all wrong. Lily was about to step away when Marcy made her presence known.
“Excuse me.” Lily, Tonya and Teresa turned their heads to Marcy. Tonya and Teresa both looked at each other and let out a squeal. They purposely pushed Lily out of the way and bowed towards Marcy. Lily was pushed against the table and gasped in surprise. Marcy wanted to reach out and take her hand but she was stopped by the two fairies.
“Oh greetings, our dark princess.” Marcy looked down at the two. She had to since their bow had them nearly to the floor. “It is an honor to be in your presence.”
Marcy opened her mouth to say something before noticing Lily leaving through one of the outside back doors. Marcy tried to follow her but the two appeared in front of her vision.
“My dark princess, will you humor me in a dance?” Tonya held her hand out, as if she suspected Marcy to kiss the back of her hand. Marcy just glared daggers at her.
“No, my dark princess. Humor me with a dance.” Teresa bumped Tonya out of the way with her hip. If looks could kill, Teresa would have been dead on the floor.
“I asked first.”
“I am the prettier of the two so she should pick me.”
“Oh shut up Tonya. You're not the prettier one. I am.” Teresa turned to Marcy. Marcy just let out a small snarl. “Which one of us is the most beautiful to you, dark princess?”
“Neither of you. I am not interested.” Marcy pushed them out of the way and walked to the door where she had seen Lily walk out onto. She scanned the grounds for Lily before finally finding her sitting on a bench by herself.
“I am worthless. I’m a loser and a dumbass.” Lily whispered to herself. “I just am a failure in every sense of the word. No one will want and no one will love me. You would think by now that my true love would have come forward by now but they haven’t. I don’t even have the courage to tell the person I have a crush on that I like them. But…there is no way that they will ever look in my direction.”
“Excuse me. I don’t mean to interrupt.” Lily jumped in surprise. She turned around to see Marcy standing there. Marcy could see tear streaks down Lily’s face. That broke Marcy’s heart.
“My dark princess.” Lily bowed down towards Marcy. “What are you doing out here in the cold?”
“The cold doesn’t bother me in the slightest.”
“Shouldn’t you be inside and enjoying the party?”
“Well, I was for a bit. But the dance partner that I wanted to dance with walked away from me.”
“I am sorry to have bothered you, my dark princess. I will take my leave so you can find your dance partner. ”
“I was actually hoping to dance with you. I wanted to dance with you. If you are interested.” Marcy held her arm towards Lily. “May I have this dance?”
Lily looked at the outstretched hand before glancing up at Marcy. Her hand reached out before pulling back slightly.
“Please tell me you aren’t joking.”
“I would never joke about this or to you.” Lily looked at Marcy in surprise. She finally set her hand into Marcy’s. Marcy brought her close. “Do you want to go back inside or stay out here?”
“Can we stay out here? Sorry. That's selfish of me.”
“It’s fine. We can stay out here. It’s not too cold for me. But are you cold?” Marcy had noticed that Lily’s dress was strapless with an open back. She noticed that it hugged her waist well. She noticed Lily rubbing her arms a bit.
“I’m okay. You shouldn’t have to worry about me.” Marcy took her suit jacket off and wrapped it around Lily’s shoulders. “My dark princess.”
“Marcy. Please just call me by my first name.”
“Okay, my dark….Marcy.” Marcy chuckled before holding her hand out. Lily took the offered hand. She pulled Lily close to her body. She took one hand and put her other hand on Lily’s waist. They started slowly dancing in the grass. Marcy could see Lily was smiling.
“I know you. I walked with you once upon a dream.” Marcy started softly singing. “I know you. That look in your eye so familiar a gleam.”
“And I know it’s true,” Lily started singing. “That visions are seldom what they seem.”
“But if I know you, I know what you’ll do. You’ll love me at once. The way you did once upon a dream.” They sang together as Marcy pulled Lily closer.
“How do you know that song?” Lily asked, looking up at her. Marcy realized that Lily was short. The top of her head only reached to her chin as she held her close.
“It’s something I only hear in my dreams.” Marcy smiled. “My mom and dad used to sing that song to me all the time when I was little. And I would sing it to Anne. Where did you hear it?”
“I know this may sound crazy but I hear it in my dreams.”
Marcy held Lily close to her as they danced on the grass. After the dance, Marcy stepped away before kissing the back of her hand.
“Thank you for the dance, Marcy.”
“It was my pleasure.”
“We should go inside.”
“Lily, if I could, can I ask to be your dance partner the rest of the night?” Lily looked at her in surprise.
“Me?” Marcy nodded, holding her hand out. “Su-sure.”
Marcy held her arm out for Lily to take again. Lily slipped her arm around Marcy’s arm. They walked through the doors together. She could feel everyone’s eyes land on her as she guided Lily through the crowd and towards the center.
“Marcy, I feel their eyes on me. I feel like they are judging me.”
“Then don’t focus on them. Focus your eyes on me.”
Lily looked over to Marcy. She laid her head on Marcy’s shoulder. Marcy knew she was smiling like crazy. She took her to the middle of the floor and held Lily in her arms. Lily did just as Marcy told her to. She focused her attention on Marcy. Another song played as they glided through the dance. Lily settled her head on Marcy’s shoulder as they danced. Marcy looked over and could see Tonya and Teresa were just fuming at Lily. She smirked at the two of them. She proved them wrong. Then Marcy saw her parents watching her dance with smiles on their faces. Even Sasha and Anne were smiling at her. Marcy knew her family was going to tease her for it. But she didn’t care. She was having fun with Lily.
They danced the night away. Marcy refused to let go of Lily. For once, she even enjoyed the ball. As the night dwindled, Siegfried came up beside her.
“I am sorry to tear you two apart but it is time to go home, Lily.”
“I didn’t realize it was already so late. Sorry baba.” Siegfried smiled as he held his arm out for Lily. Lily took one look at Marcy bowing. “Thank you for the dance. It was wonderful.”
“All I wanted was to make your night special.” Marcy bowed before taking her hand and kissing the back of her hand.
Lily started to step away with her father. Marcy noticed David standing off to the side. He smiled at Lily before she kissed his cheek. He took her arm and was walking her out. Marcy felt her arm be touched but she ignored it to see Lily walk out.
“You know she lives with her dads at the Phoenix clan part of the forest. You could always see her again. Just like the good, old days.” Marcy looked over at her mom.
“Good, old days?”
“You and Lily always played together when you were kids. You two always would hang out in the back and draw together.”
“Siegfried did mention that his daughter and I used to play together when we were kids. Wait.” Marcy suddenly realized that Siegfried and Lily were related. It suddenly made sense though. Lily looked like a carbon copy of Siegfried. “Lily is Siegfried’s daughter? I didn’t realize that?”
“You did. You obviously don’t remember it but you two were close to each other.” Her mother leaned in close to her. “You could get to know her more now. Make up for lost time. It seems like you are already smitten.”
“I’m not smitten. But…..yeah. I do want to know more about her.”
Marcy watched Lily walk away from her.
“Yeah. I could get to know her more. I could be her friend.”