Fatefall - 30

Chapter 30 - Poppy

It was a complete slaughter.

Poppy tucked her school bag closer to her chest, shrinking back against the coats hanging in the hallway closet of her home. She could hear her parents' angry voices clashing with the bitter tones of the royal Grace hunters. 

“I was under the impression that you had three daughters,” the woman hunter said. Her eyes narrowed at Poppy’s sisters. Bryony shifted uncomfortably at the attention, but she kept her chin raised defiantly. She was only ten months older than Poppy, and Zinnia was a year older than that, and yet she’d already managed to muster up more courage than Poppy could ever dream of having.

Even gentle Zinnia---recently fifteen---didn’t dare let her fear show in the face of these soldiers.

Shame burned Poppy’s cheeks.

“We did,” her mother lied, her eyes darting towards Poppy and meeting her gaze through the small hole under the doorknob. She pressed her lips into a thin line. “Unfortunately, your meddling with the wells stole her from us.” 

“Her name was Poppy, right?”

Poppy’s mother nodded. 

“Is there a reason that she is still listed as enrolled at the local schoolhouse?” 

Poppy froze. The school. She was lucky that Zinnia and Bryony liked to race home, otherwise they probably wouldn’t have beat the soldiers to the house and Poppy would’ve burst through the door and right into their open arms.

“Our grief…” Poppy’s mother began, her voice choking off in a sob that broke Poppy’s heart. 

“We couldn’t bear to take her off the lists,” her father cut in. “Not yet, at least. It’s…it’s been rough. With the rations and all of the new laws, we’ve been struggling to find time for our grief. This is one way we’ve been able to preserve her memory.”

“May I ask how long ago it was that Poppy…passed away?” There was no mercy in the woman’s tone.

“Six days,” Poppy’s mother answered, her voice cracking as she wiped at her eyes. 

The woman frowns. “And yet I have eyewitness accounts that a little dark-haired girl was running around the streets just yesterday afternoon.”

Poppy’s parents shared a look before Bryony cut in. “That was probably me, ma’m. You see, Zinnia challenged me to a race---we’re always racing on account of I’m the fastest kid at school and Zinnia doesn’t believe that---and I was winning like always. Did they say what color the girl was wearing?”

Bless Bryony’s heart. Poppy felt a swell of pride wash over her as her sister lied straight to the woman’s face.

The woman grinned. “Why don’t you tell me what color you were wearing yesterday?”

Poppy bit her lip. She knew that it truly had been her running through the street---and whoever ratted her out must’ve noted that she was wearing teal because the color was so rare, as the dye was challenging to create. But would Bryony remember that?

Bryony itched at her nose, shifting her weight from one foot to the other as she thought deeply. “A teal dress I think.” Poppy let out a sigh of relief, glad that her sister’s usually faulty memory hadn’t betrayed her. “Oh yes, and my new sandals. Well, they’re technically Poppy’s but…” She glanced at the floor. “Mum said Poppy won’t be using them anymore.”

The woman nodded stiffly. She obviously didn’t believe that Bryony had been the one in the streets. “I suppose our visit here is almost done, then. Thank you for your time. Ah, but before I leave, I’d like to have my men search your house. Just a precaution really. You know how the king is.”

None of Poppy’s family let their fear show. “Of course,” her mother whispered. 

Poppy’s Grace hissed in the back of her mind. She shoved it back down, knowing it was the reason she was in this mess in the first place. She should never have showed off to the other girls at school. Should never have bragged to the neighbor kids about how powerful she was.

She closed her eyes, wishing for the Grace of Deceit so she could turn invisible like her family friend, Jett. 

The closet door opened. She told herself it was a dream, but she knew it was real as a soldier grabbed her arms and wrenched her into the hallways. She bit down on her lip to keep from crying out.

Soft fingers forced her chin upwards. Poppy stared at the tear-blurred form of the royal Grace hunter woman, her lip wobbling. 

“Dark hair, brilliant blue eyes.” The woman’s smile sent shivers down Poppy’s spine. “I have to give you credit---you hid her well. But not well enough.”

“Please!” Poppy’s mother begged, dropping to her knees. “She’s just a girl. She hasn’t done anything wrong--”

“She possesses the power of the Fates, and therefore she is an enemy of this kingdom.”

“She didn’t ask for this!”

“They never do, but that does not make them innocent. Your daughter is tainted, ma'am. I’m doing you a favor. I promise that the king will ensure that justice is served--”

“He’ll kill her!”

“Then so be it!” Poppy winced as the man holding her arms tightened his grip. The woman paused, her shriek still ringing in the air as she turned back to Poppy. “Because I am not a monster, I will allow you one minute to say goodbye.”

Poppy didn’t want to say goodbye. She wanted her weird illnesses to stop. Wanted her parents to stop their secret conversations in hushed tones whenever she walked in the room. Wanted her Grace to go away.

But those problems weren’t going to leave.

So maybe it was her turn to run.

Her Grace flared in her chest and she latched onto the pulse of the man standing behind her. She tore with all of her strength and Grace and tried to ignore his animal scream as he dropped her.

And then she ran. Faster than the neighbor kids. Faster than Zinnia. Faster than Bryony. 

Her school bag tumbled out of her grip and caught on her ankle and then suddenly the ground rushed up to meet her. Poppy struggled to her feet only to find that it was too late.

The masked woman stood before her, blocking the sunlight. 

“You have proven your guilt by running. The king demands you atone for your sins.”

The words echoed in Poppy’s mind as the woman’s sword slid from its sheath. She could hear her parents screaming her name and Zinnia sobbing and Bryony’s tiny legs pounding against the ground as she ran to Poppy’s side.

She arrived too late.

Poppy didn’t register the pain as the sword slid across her neck with ease. Didn’t see the woman's emotionless face as she beckoned for her soldiers to follow her. She only saw the sun, so bright and blinding and warm. No, the warmth was coming from her neck and leaking down into her hair.

Faces swam in her vision, but they weren’t her parents and sisters. Poppy blinked in shock as the images descended upon her. Pale skin, cold as ice. She could feel the emptiness of their bodies---knew they were dead. Knew she had been the one to kill them. 

Her victims come back to haunt her. She choked on the blood pouring from the wound on her neck as they reached for her with grubby fingers. Her body was no longer her’s. They arranged her hands across her chest like they were preparing her for a burial and then tucked a single nightshade blossom in between her fingers. A ritual. Because she was dead.

And she had been, for four and a half years.

Poppy woke drenched in sweat, her lungs heaving and her heart fluttering.

She rubbed at her eyes, trying to remind herself that she was in her team’s apartment. Nakoa slept soundly in the bed across the room, a handful of letters still gripped in her fists. She’d been writing to Ansel, apologizing that she couldn’t leave the apartment, if Poppy remembered correctly. 

But honestly, her mind was kind of a mess.

The dream had shaken her more than she cared to admit. No, not a dream. A memory. Until the end, at least.

Poppy glanced down at her hands. She’d let her Grace get away from her during the Trial, and now her team didn’t trust her. And why should they? Hands weren’t supposed to glow, and forests weren’t supposed to turn into sacred sites after a single healing. 

Her Grace was broken, and it had been, since that day when the Grace hunters had come for her. No, not broken. Changed. Strengthened. Just like her.

She hadn’t expected to wake up again, not after having her throat slit. No one could explain it---or at least, they chose not to---but Poppy healed miraculously. Her wounds sealed right in front of her entire family and so they took her back to the cellar. Let her spend a week in a comatose state before she awakened once again. Alive.

It took nearly a month for her hair to shift to red and her lighten to its current pale, freckled form. She no longer looked like the rest of her tan skinned, dark-haired family, but that didn’t matter because she was alive. 

Was it Poppy’s Grace that had saved her? Or someone else’s? A Fate, perhaps? 

She pushed the thought away. Thinking of her Grace only brought back the fiery pain of the collar around her neck. So incredibly unbearable that she’d barely been able to focus for the ride from the Trial to the apartment. 

Poppy flopped back over on her bed, her mind warring with its exhaustion and its terror from the nightmare. She swore she could smell the bitter nightshade blossom from her dream. 

Belladonna. Nightshade. Her signature. She always left a nightshade flower on her victim’s chests, so seeing one laid on her own felt strangely symbolic and also slightly terrifying. And seeing her victims--

She closed her eyes and pictured Zinnia and Bryony and her parents instead. Somehow, the strategy worked.

She slept like the dead girl that she was.

They spent two days under house arrest.

Poppy thought she was going to go insane, and she wasn’t the only one. 

Nakoa spent almost every waking moment fretting about Ansel because he hadn’t sent her any letters during the Trial. Then there was Adrian, who had apparently decided now was the time to investigate his brother’s death---and when he realized he couldn’t leave the apartment, he covered the whole sitting area in papers full of nearly illegible scribbling about all of his suspects. 

Only Sage and Jett seemed partially stable, although that may have been due to their renewed focus on research of the Trials. They were running out of articles, and their strategy notes rivaled Adrian’s maniac theories. 

Poppy spent most of her time avoiding Adrian, which meant putting up with way too much of Jett and Sage’s flirting.

It came as an immense relief when there finally came a knock at the door. 

Poppy practically flew to her feet, rushing to see who was there and thanking the Fates when it turned out to be Koda.

Admittedly, it didn’t appear that he’d been sleeping much better than the last time Poppy had seen him and her Grace sensed the exhaustion that had settled deep into his bones, but he was smiling so this visit had to be a good thing. Right? 

“Oh, thank the Fates,” Adrian sighed, suddenly standing at Poppy’s shoulder. “Koda, please save me. Jett and Sage are insufferable.”

“That bad, huh?” Koda laughed. 

“They’re not that bad,” Poppy argued. They’re better than you, at least. She didn’t like how close Adrian was standing to her, his threat still lingering in the back of her thoughts.

“You don’t share a room with them,” Adrian pointed out. “I have to listen to all the bedtime banter.” He pitched his voice an octave higher in a horrible impression of Sage. “Oh, I’m so cold. If only there were someone who could warm my bed.” He gagged. “They should get a room.”

“Or you should get out of ours!” Jett challenged, not moving from his spot on the couch where he had his head resting in Sage’s lap.

“And sleep where? The couch?”

“We have extra beds in our room,” Nakoa offered, sounding sincere.

“Do we?” Poppy asked, glaring at Nakoa. “Because last I checked, both of the extra beds were covered in your love letters.”

Nakoa blushed furiously. “Then I guess Adrian will just have to sleep with you.”

Oh, she would pay for that comment. Poppy would make her try on the most scandalous dresses she could find and Nakoa would suffer. 

“As tempting as your offer is, I’d prefer to sleep in my own bed back at my own home,” Adrian said, finally changing the subject as he turned back to Koda. “Speaking of which, can I please leave?”

Koda grinned. “Eventually. But for now, may I come in? We have a lot to discuss.”

There wasn’t room in the sitting area, so they had to sit at the table, which was also covered in papers. Poppy half-heartedly tried to clear them away. 

“So,” she pressed, sinking into the seat across from Koda. “No more house arrest?” 

Koda ran a hand through his hair. “It’s…complicated. The Trial didn’t go as anticipated and there has been a lot of unrest in the city.”

“But there were two victors, right?” Adrian asked. “Technically, the Trial still resulted in two winning teams. We heard three sets of fireworks.”

“Technically, yes, the Trial succeeded,” Koda admitted. “However, they weren’t counting on you to kill their false Fate.” 

Poppy dropped her gaze. It wasn’t her fault that the false Fate was dead---Adrian had been the one to kill her. Besides, it had been for self-defense purposes. That justified it…right? 

“Do they know it was our team?” Sage asked, his voice nearly a whisper as he and Jett joined the rest of the team at the table.

Koda nodded. “Several trusted judges with the Grace of Time watched the Trial from afar. The king was quite clear with his rules about murder, but they’ve decided not to press charges because the false Fate wasn’t supposed to kill any of you---which she nearly did.” His gaze flicked to Nakoa. “But something---or someone---managed to stop that.”

Nakoa raised her chin and stared Koda dead in the eyes. “I have no regrets.”

“Nor should you,” Koda said, and then winced. “Well, maybe a little, because you all did kill a woman. Regardless, there was a lot of drama with that. Sage’s father was the one who actually managed to convince King Hector not to press charges.”

“That lump is finally useful for something,” Jett muttered under his breath. 

“So were we on house arrest because of the murder?” Poppy asked, trying to get back to the point. 

“Not entirely,” Koda said. “An entire team went missing, too.”

“Which one?” Adrian asked, glancing in Poppy’s direction. She wondered if he was thinking of Hunter. 

“You probably don’t know any of the members, but their names were Alta, Rene, Jeremiah, Stefan, and Declan,” Koda said. “I was asked to do the Elimination for the other two teams as soon as possible and privately so there was no chance for the public to know about the missing team, but they found out anyway and then four more of the Graceless competitors went missing.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “At least the Graces I took this time are safe under lock and key.”

Poppy struggled to comprehend all of this information. Nine more missing competitors. No wonder her team had been placed under house arrest---the Tournament couldn’t continue if there was no one to participate in it. At least none of the names from the missing team sounded entirely familiar.

“I’m sure my father is stressed out of his mind,” Adrian mumbled.

“Your absence certainly hasn’t helped things,” Koda pointed out. “Aida has been working her butt off to cover for you, just so you know. Well, you and Asher.” He sighed. “And it doesn’t help that there have been civilians gone missing too.”

Poppy watched Nakoa’s expression morph into one of horror. “Do…do you know the names of the missing civilians?”

Koda shook his head. “Unfortunately not. But I do know your, uh, special friend is not one of them.” He grinned when Nakoa blushed once again. “I’m not stalking you or anything, he’s just been checking with the lady at the front desk every day to see if he’s allowed to visit you yet.”

Poppy elbowed Nakoa in the side, earning a glare that seemed more relieved than angry. 

Thank the Fates, Poppy thought. Now Nakoa could stop worrying incessantly about the boy she pretended not to love. 

“So we can leave?” Sage asked. “We don’t have to worry about escorts or anything, do we?” he added when Koda didn’t react.

“Yes,” Koda confirmed. “Well, yes to your first question and no to your second. You can leave---and you’re free to do so whenever you please. As your sponsor, I am also obligated to remind you that the Fates’ Fete will take place in three days, beginning in the evening at the castle. Additionally, the final Trial has been postponed for the time being, but its official date will be announced at the Fete.”

Good. The Fete was still happening, meaning Poppy could rope Nakoa into dress-shopping. She’d always loved shopping with her sisters in Aecheral and it had been so long since she’d gone with anyone… 

She shoved the thought away. 

“So if we’re free to leave…” Jett began with a meaningful look at Sage, who covered a giggle.

“Kill me now,” Adrian mimed. Poppy laughed, but then caught herself as Adrian’s eyes flickered to her’s and his lips twisted. She looked away, not willing to see his sneer as embarrassment speared her cheeks with heat.

Jett and Sage hurried off, ignoring him as they grabbed their jackets from by the door with Nakoa following closely behind them. 

“Not so fast,” Poppy scolded, jumping up to stop Nakoa from leaving. And to get away from Adrian and his stupid face as soon as possible. “You can see the lover boy after shopping.”

Nakoa groaned, rolling her eyes. “Poppy, it’s been nearly a week since I’ve seen him.”

“And you can wait a few more hours,” Poppy pressed. “Besides, just wait until he sees you in a stunning new dress. Trust me, you need this.”

Just not as much as I do.