Chapter One: Calvara

A girl has to keep a secret. Can she? Will she keep it to save her family and best friends?

            Faye fell out of the ripple in the wall, a porthole from Calvara. It was a chilly and windy day today in France, odd for a summer day. When she got into the alleyway that she was hoping for, she felt wooziness inside of her. She felt her forehead, which was clammy from being sick for four days in Calvara. She sat down on an old step connected to one of the old houses in an alleyway which led to a big street in Paris. She took her bag from behind her and changed quickly. Then, she threw her faerie clothes back into her bag and rushed out into the street in her jeans and sweatshirt. She looked around, but she could see nothing familiar, even though she had lived in Paris her whole life. The Calvaran princess, Faye, didn’t notice she was walking barefoot until she was walking on the gravel to her house. She looked down to find her feet stinging with pain from sharp stones. She knocked on the door that, even though she didn’t recognize the neighborhood she recognized the house. A woman in her late thirties opened up the door. She looked confused for a moment, trying to distinguish the face and then her face lit up. She looked tired and sad, but when she saw Faye’s face it was as bright as the August sun.

 

 

 

 

 

"Faye!" the woman cried as she hugged her daughter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Mother," Faye whispered hugging her mother back.

"Where have you been?" Faye’s mom cried in her British accent. Faye’s instinct told her not to tell her mother where she really had been the past four days.

"I am so sorry, mom. I got a message from a friend who lives in Ireland. So I took a plane all the way there and back. When I got there...uh...I got a hotel set for two days and two nights," Faye said, improvising.

"What happened?" her mother said as she brought Faye inside.

"Uh...my friend....uh, Lucille, uh, her grandpa died and we were very close,” Faye said.

"Oh," her mother almost whispered, very sadly. “How sad.” Faye nodded her head. She hated to lie to her mother because she never lied. But this time she had to, to save the Faeries and all the other magical creatures, both good and evil, in Calvara from disappearing forever in Limbo where everything would be lost and takes forever to find. Faye had six brothers and sisters. Helene, who was 17, Alex, who was 16, Bella, who was 15, Monique and Paris who were Faye’s age, 13, and Daniel who was 10. They were all so worried about Faye’s sudden disappearance. Monique, Paris, and Daniel were racing down the stairs, but Helene, Alex, and Bella were walking in from their poker game in the sun room. Daniel was hugging Faye at the waist as Paris was touching her new, very shiny, red-gold, curly hair.

"Faye!" Monique squealed, hugging her sister. Faye hugged Monique back.

"Bella, Helene, Alex, I am so glad to see you!" cried Faye. Bella and Alex hugged their younger sister first and Helene French-kissed Faye and then hugged her.

"It’s great to have you back, sis," Paris said smiling at her twin.

"Yeah, I am sorry, all of you, for worrying you so," Faye said.

"Well, let’s eat. You must be starved, Faye," her mother said.

***

That night as Faye was sleeping a dream came into her mind. The dream was of Faye’s hand stretched out and a ripple in the middle of a wall in the alleyway on a strange street in Paris. Faye looked around, but the alleyway was deserted. Faye put her hand through the wall again and there was the ripple once more. Faye made sure no one was following her and she stepped through the wall. She looked around and everywhere there were grasses everywhere and blossoms. Faeries were flying in every direction. Faye didn’t believe in magic – she was taught that make-believe and fantasies didn’t really exist and it was in everyone’s imaginations, but now she knew that it wasn’t just an image in people’s minds, but true and real. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. The adrenaline rushed through her body, the hair on the back of her neck standing up, and as she turned around she tripped on a beautiful gown that she was wearing that wasn’t on her when she left Paris. It was a beautiful blue silk gown.

 

“You must be Princess Faye,” the stranger said. It was a beautiful woman dressed in a green dress. She smiled a beautiful pearl white smile. Faye looked confused. “It must be your first time here. I’m Mackenzie Peterson, I’m one of the “guides” for the Queen,” the woman said.

“Queen?” Faye said.

“Yes, Queen Aurora, your mother,” Mackenzie said.

“Mother?” Faye said. Mackenzie nodded.

“Yes. Maeve is your step mother. Your parents got divorced, the Fates clipped your father, the king’s, thread and so he’s dead now. That was after Steven and Maeve got married. Right after your brother, Daniel was born,” Mackenzie said. Faye still looked a little confused.

“But I don’t understand. Why didn’t my mother tell me? Does she know that I am a Faerie?” Faye asked.

“No, of course not. If any mortals find out about Calvara, everything, and I mean everything, will be lost forever in Limbo,” Mackenzie said warningly.

“What’s Limbo?” Faye questioned her guide. The two started to walk down a beautiful field of grasses and flowers. Butterflies were flittering about in every which way direction. There were people Faye’s size and age, and some taller and older, who were walking about. They had wings on their backs and some of them were flying. But all the faeries that Mackenzie and Faye passed parted if they were in their way and bowed. Faye’s eyebrows rose.

“You’re the princess of Calvara, Princess Faye,” Mackenzie whispered in Faye’s ear. Faye nodded as they walked on.

“Anyway, what’s Limbo?” Faye repeated. Mackenzie told Faye all about what Limbo was. Limbo was a very bad, magical place where all the magical creatures, both good and bad, would go if any mortal found out if the most powerful good witch, the Source of all good and evil creatures in Calvara, did not know and give permission to the creature asking for it. It happened only once and the Source before Belthazia, the current Source, had to bring all the creatures, mostly faeries, back from Limbo, and it took all of his power that he died from all the power being taken out of him. He became a dust cloud and was never seen again. His son, Belthazia became the Source and bad, and the former Source never came again to the land of Calvara. He was lost forever in Limbo.

“Wow, what a dramatic story,” Faye said raising her eyebrows again. Mackenzie nodded thoughtfully.

“Well, we’re almost to the castle,” Mackenzie said. Faye was so spaced out that she didn’t notice the root that she was about to trip over.

“Faye-” Mackenzie started, but it was too late. Faye’s foot locked in the root. Faye screamed as she fell. The root tightened and then wrapped around Faye’s foot. She screamed again and Mackenzie tried to pull Faye away from the root, but it was too strong. Suddenly a tree started to grow quickly.

“Eric! Let go of Princess Faye!” Mackenzie cried. Eyes started to grow on the so-called-Eric-tree. The eyes widened and then the root let go of Faye’s foot.

“I am so sorry, miss. I didn’t know. I thought you were trying to hurt me,” Eric said in a handsome voice. Suddenly, the tree was gone and there was a boy about Faye’s age, or a few years older. He smiled a flashing smile at Faye and she smiled back. Faye thought that he was so handsome as well.

“This is Eric, a shape-shifter. He is an excellent wizard who can change into anything he wants to. Even another person,” Mackenzie said.

“Nice to meet you,” Eric said bowing. He took Faye’s hand and he kissed it. Then his head lowered... Faye giggled because she’d never been kissed by a guy before, even on the hand. But then again, she wasn’t a princess in the mortal realm, just in Calvara. Eric started walking away and other girls were staring after him.

“Wow, he’s...” Faye started.

“I know,” Mackenzie finished. “He’s a prince – literally.” The two came to the front of a huge, stone castle. Mackenzie knocked on the door and the doors opened wide, revealing beautiful floors of stone, chandeliers, and several huge doors. “Follow me,” Mackenzie said as she led Faye down a huge hallway, up a long stairwell, and down another hallway. She knocked on the door.

“Come in,” a woman’s voice said from the other side of the door. Mackenzie opened the door and walked in. She took Faye’s hand and pulled her in as well. There was a beautiful woman dressed in a royal purple gown reaching all the way to the floor. She was wearing a crown and was looking down at some papers and writing with a quill pen.

“Hasn’t anyone invented the ballpoint pen here?” Faye whispered to Mackenzie.. Mackenzie tried not to smile. The woman in purple looked up from her papers.

“Ah, Faye, my darling, how are you, dear?” the woman said getting up from her desk and coming down a couple of stone steps. Her shoes made a loud clicking noise as she walked, her gown flowing behind her. Mackenzie bowed then and Faye looked at her, surprised. Mackenzie lifted her eyebrows as she came back up.

Mackenzie whispered, “Bow,” to Faye. Faye did as she was told and looked up after that.

“Um...good...ma’am?” Faye said.

“Do you mean well?” the woman said, correcting her.

“Um...sure...I guess,” Faye replied.

“Well, don’t guess because if you guess you may lose a lot of time,” the woman said. “Queen Aurora, you’re mother.” She smiled. Faye opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it. Finally she said something.

“M-mother?” Faye said. The Queen smiled and nodded slowly a couple of times.

“Yes, darling, I’m here,” Queen Aurora said. She opened her arms and Faye took slow steps toward her and they hugged each other. “Oh, darling,” Queen Aurora said. When Faye looked up she had tears in her eyes.

“I haven’t seen you in ages,” Queen Aurora said. “Not since you were a baby. I am so glad to finally get to see your beautiful face.” I’ve never seen you, though, Faye thought in her mind.

Author's Note

Ignore the grammar please! But otherwise...thanks!

Reviews

[Becca]

Nice! It's very clever and also creative! Keep writing you're doing great!