Chapter Twenty Six – Fae
Tatiana with Kye by her side found Grasiella asleep. The fire had gone out during the night. “Grasiella,” Tatiana said jarring her sister awake. Grasiella leaned up on her elbows, staring up at Tatiana. She was surprised to see her, although she knew that she shouldn’t be. Grasiella would have come after Tatiana, if she had been the one to leave.
“It took us a while to catch up to you. Why did you leave on your own? What were you thinking?” Tatiana shouted at her sister.
Grasiella reached up, giving her sister a hug. She was happy to see her. “I had planned to be back in a day or so.”
“It doesn’t matter. You should have told me. I was freaking out.” Turning to Kye she said, “He can tell you that.”
Pulling back, she looked over the camp searching for Kana’i, “Where did he go? Kana’i was here.”
“He was. Then he left.” Tatiana didn’t give her much more of an explanation. “He will meet up with us at the volcano.”
“He told you about that?” Grasiella asked, wiping the sleep from her eyes.
“Yes, he said you were headed there.”
Grasiella hadn’t expected Kana’i to leave without saying anything to her about it. “Tatiana, I have a lot to tell you.”
“Me too, G is gone. She left a note. She said she will be back in a few days. She didn’t say why.”
“She left a note? Did she ever read my note?”
“I don’t know. Her note to me was delivered by a gnome.”
Kye interrupted Tatiana; he was concerned because he had learned from Kana’i that Pele was searching the islands for Grasiella.
“I know she is. Kana’i told me that she was.”
Tatiana made a face that conveyed mild yet growing dislike of Kana’i, “Why was he helping you, anyways?”
“I couldn’t really say. That’s not what I had to tell you about.”
“What is it?”
“Mnemosyne, she’s on the island looking for the Painite.”
“I know she is. I know that was why you came here in the first place.”
“I heard her speaking to Hina. She told her that it could be used to conquer galaxies.”
“Are you serious? She said it could be used to conquer galaxies? Who’s Hina?”
“She does seem intent on getting it,” Kye said to her. Kye told Tatiana that Hina was one of the many gods who live on the Hawaiian Islands.
“I heard that it was kept at the Mauna Kea volcano. It’s a sacred place on the island. I think Pele might have put the Painite there.”
“Could she have, Kye?” Tatiana asked him, a concerned look on her face.
“It would be a good place.” He said.
Turning back to Grasiella, Tatiana asked, “How did you learn that it might be there? Did Kana’i tell you?”
“No, it was someone else. I didn’t see her face. I think I can trust her.”
“Why? How can you trust someone you didn’t even see?”
“I can’t give you a good reason.” Grasiella paused before continuing. “I heard it from a faerie.”
Tatiana sat back from her sister, “How can you trust a faerie, Grasiella, after what our experiences have been with them?”
“Her name is Missy. She told me that she was on our side.”
“Was that good enough for you to trust her?”
“Tatiana,” Kye tried to mediate but it was pointless. Tatiana reamed her sister for trusting anything that a faerie would say.
“I’m sorry you think that Tatiana, but I feel that I can trust her.”
“Really, did you get this insight from our ancestor or am I supposed to trust your instincts which, I might point out, haven’t worked out for you so far.”
Grasiella wasn’t about to sit and be insulted any longer, “Go home, Tatiana. Go back to Kauai with Kye.” As Grasiella rose, she grabbed her bag.
“Where are you going?”
“Mauna Kea,” she said without looking back.
“Well hold on up then. Somebody has to watch your back if you’re going to go around trusting faeries.”
Tatiana soon caught up to her sister. Kye held back to give them some time to talk.
“I just want to understand, Grasiella.”
“I don’t know what to say. You didn’t talk to her Tatiana. I did.”
“Well what did she say exactly?”
Grasiella told her word for word as best as she could remember. Although Tatiana was still wary about Missy, she was willing to trust her sister, even though what she wanted to do was go back home to where they lived with their parents and Xavier.
“Good you found each other,” a voice exclaimed to them from the trees. “I tried my best to lead you to her.”
“Who said that?” Tatiana asked stopping in her steps.
Out from the trees jumped Missy. She looked harmless, but then so did Mayrra and the skinny man. She wore jean shorts which were frayed at the bottoms and a cream tank top. Her black hair was pulled back into a high ponytail. She had a small tattoo on her face below her eye. Tatiana couldn’t see what it was.
“Are you Missy?” she asked cautiously.
“That would be me.” She held out her hand to Tatiana who touched the tips of Missy’s fingers to complete the hand shake. Once the contact was made Tatiana pulled her hand away.
Grasiella was next to shake hands. Her handshake was a bit firmer. Kye was last.
“Good.” With her hands resting on her hips Missy then said, “Now that we all know each other I have news to share with you.”
“News?” Tatiana was curious now.
“Of course, and its very important, or at least I think it is.”
“Share with us, please.”
With out further prompting Missy said, “Pele is on the island. I saw her.”
“Where did you see her?” It was Kye who asked Missy the question.
“Not far from Mauna Kea. She looked very unhappy. I wouldn’t go there just yet, Grasiella.”
“What do you mean she didn’t look happy?” Grasiella asked. “What do you mean by that?”
“Her face was red and the volcano was starting to awake.”
“The Mauna Kea is becoming active?” Kye didn’t like that news at all. If Mauna Kea was becoming active then it could only mean that the Painite was gone. Pele must have discovered that it was missing. This wouldn’t be good for Grasiella or Tatiana.
“Grasiella, I think you need to go into hiding.” Kye said to her, as he was concerned for her safety.
The color drained from Grasiella’s face as what Missy told them sunk in. Mnemosyne must have the Painite in her possession. What did this mean for them now?
“Missy,” Grasiella hoped that Missy would be able to answer what she was about to ask. “Do you know where the Painite is right now?”
Missy gave the question some thought before answering, “No, but I can find out.”
“Good.”
“I will find you again soon. Stay away from Mauna Kea. You don’t want to get caught in her fires.”
The three of them watched as Missy jumped up into one of the trees and was gone.
Kye was the first who spoke. “I think you may have been right to have trusted her.”
“Why?” Tatiana asked.
“I can feel that the island has changed, I can sense the fires beginning to boil in Mauna Kea.”
“You can feel all that?” Tatiana was amazed as his ability.
“Yes, I can sense it.” His eyes grew dark. There was a fire coming.
Grasiella knew what Mnemosyne planned to do with the Painite. Mnemosyne would be waiting for the arrival of the general. She was planning on giving it to him. Grasiella looked up into the skies. They were still clear, for now.
Missy didn’t have to travel far to find what she was looking for. She felt the Painite. It was with an off islander. Jumping out of the trees, she found him starring into the pond. “Hello there,” Miss
y called in greeting.
The faerie was startled. He quickly stood on his feet. He looked at her curiously.
“What do you have there?” Missy asked.
“What do you mean? I have nothing.”
“You’re not from the islands are you? Where do you rest your head?”
“It’s a small island. We have it to ourselves.”
“No humans at all?”
He nodded his head.
Missy leapt over the pond in one jump. She landed gracefully at his side. Holding out her hand, she said, “I’m Missy.”
Without thinking he took her hand, “Reggie.”
Missy gave him a big smile as she shook his hand in an exaggerated fashion. She not only shook his hand but his arm as well. “Reggie, that’s a nice good name.”
He nodded again.
Missy sensed that he had been enchanted. She knew by whom, Mnemosyne. She could smell her scent on him. In one fluid motion she drew his arm into her side. She held it and raised it to shoulder height. His shoulder was turned in. She could have snapped his elbow in two. She chose not to. It wasn’t Reggie’s fault that he didn’t know what he was doing.
Pushing his arm away from her, she picked his pocket.
“No! Stop!” he shouted at her.
“Thank you! I had been looking for this.” Missy jumped up high into the trees. He jumped up to follow her.
He could not let her take the stone from him. He had to get it back. He gripped her leg just as she was about to jump into the next tree.
Missy fell with him onto the ground. He landed on top of her. “Look, I am trying to be nice here,” she said.
“Give it back!”
“I really would if I could. That’s just not possible.”
“Give it back!”
“You already asked for it, and I already said no.”
He put his hands around her throat.
“Really? You’re resorting to this?” Missy was not fazed. She easily pushed him off her and was on her feet.
His face became distorted as he was preparing to attack her, “I can help you Reggie,” Missy said bringing him to a halt.
“Give it back to me.”
“Come closer.”
He obliged. He reached for her shoulder to bring her down to the ground. The moment he laid his hands on her shoulders her eyes shifted. They became larger then her face. She opened her mouth. A loud scream erupted from her lips. He shouted in pain. He released her, falling to the ground. She knelt beside him. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t leave me here.”
Reggie had been released from the charm’s hold. Missy didn’t know for sure that it would work. She was glad for him that it had. “Go back to your island Reggie.”
“I can’t.” He looked up at Missy. The look of fear was in Reggie’s eyes as he said, “You don’t know what she did to me.”
“She won’t bother with you again.” Missy tried to assure him that he would be safe. The look of fear in his eyes told her that he didn’t believe her.
Missy heard Eros approach, his voice even as he asked, “Did you get it?”
“I did. Was there ever any doubt?”
“Let me see it.”
It had been Eros who sought Missy out. He had told her about Mnemosyne escaping from the crystal. He had enlisted Missy to help the twins.
“Who is he?” Reggie asked frightened. He could sense that this was another magical being but clearly not a faerie. He held onto Missy’s hands, preventing her from leaving his side.
“He is a friend.”
“A friend?”
“A good friend,” Missy made a face as she said that last part. Eros wasn’t anyone’s good friend. Reggie didn’t need to know that.
Reggie was appeased enough to release his hold on Missy. Her stride was quick as she made her way to Eros. Holding the Painite out to him with a smile of pride on her face, she felt quite proud for she had done good work to get this.
Eros didn’t touch it; he did look at it closely as she held it out to him. It wasn’t his to take. He owed this to Grasiella. He always repaid his debts, although he hoped one day Grasiella would remember this.
“Take this to Grasiella, and tell her that I said hello.”
“Of course, will she know what to do with it?” Missy wanted it destroyed. No one should have access to the kind of power that the Painite was capable of creating.
“She can be trusted to make the right choice.”
Missy replaced the Painite in her pocket, “It should be you who delivers this to her.”
“It can’t be me.”
“Why can’t you? It was you who asked me to get this for her. It should be you who should place it in her hand.”
“I should be getting back.” Eros hesitated. “I could delay my departure.”
“Good, it won’t take long.”
Reggie did not want to be left behind. “Can I come?”
Turning back, Missy gave him a long look before saying, “Sure.”
“Missy,” Eros didn’t want the extra company.
“I feel bad for hurting him.”
The three of them made their way to Grasiella and Tatiana. Eros wanted to finish with Mnemosyne today. He wanted to go home.