Chapter 51

One month later

I paused outside my parent's room, hefting my backpack over my shoulder. Mom wasn't home, of course. She had left to go to the hospital a few hours ago. I stared in through the open door feeling a vast array of emotions tugging at me.

I closed my eyes as I turned away. I clenched my fingers around the strap of my bag. Though I had made this choice the day I found Gran's old photo a month ago, that didn't make it any easier now that the day had come. I had said my goodbyes to Mom earlier when she left for work, though she didn't know how permanent it had been.

I had made this choice all on my own. After three whole months of wasting away, I knew I couldn't stay here any longer. It wasn't because of Ankou, though he still tried to influence my dreams sometimes, and it wasn't even because of my guilt over Oisin.

This just wasn't my home anymore. As much as I loved my family, I also knew watching me waste away was too much for them to bear.

The hall in front of me appeared to stretch and expand. Every step I took felt like a mile. But I moved forward through the quiet house. I said my silent farewells to my childhood home.

I looked down at the things I had in my hands. A picture of me with my parents out in the park on a hot summer day. We were all smiling, happy. It was a memory I had to bring with me. A reminder of my life as a human.

I reached the end of the staircase and peeked around the corner. Dad was still home, and I could see the warm light spilling from his study. A firework cracked from outside the walls, likely set off by early partygoers. It was Halloween, and it would be dark soon.

I didn't have much more time.

"Heather?" Dad called. Though I had been careful to not make any sound, he still heard me sneaking through the house. There was the sound of his chair rolling and he stepped into the door frame. He frowned, looking me up and down.

"I do hope you don't have one of 'em little cheeky bunny suits under there, Heather," he said, gesturing to my warm pants, boots, and waterproof jacket. I was dressed much more practically for Faerie this time.

I glanced away, already knowing I was going to have to twist my words carefully to get by him. Now that I knew my own Dad was half-faerie, everything had clicked into place. His aversion towards anything metal, and most technology. Even now ink stained his fingers from where he had written out his entire lesson plan by hand.

But above all else, Dad was exceptional at sensing a lie. And now that I couldn't do so, it was even harder to get past him.

His bright blue eyes appeared more violet tonight, reminding me of Gran's. It must have been because the veil between our world was thin tonight. He still didn't know it, living his entire life blind to who he was. But right now I could see the faeness of his features. Sharp and elven, an unnatural sheen to his skin.

The same way mine did.

"No Dad, I told you. I'm not dressing up tonight."

Dad's eyebrows furrowed, eying me critically. "Sure, what about these friends you were telling me you had plans with?"

I smiled. This lie, I had prepared for. I even went through the effort of making real plans with some coworkers. I had just never planned on going through with it.

"I'm supposed to meet them in an hour." Truth. "We are supposed to take Kyle's sister out trick-or-treating, then hang out for a couple of drinks. Nothing major, just some people from work. Most of them have to work tonight, anyway."

Dad's eyes remained narrowed. He had a hard time ever since I came back believing that I had given up my partying lifestyle.

"Alright, whatever you say." He exhaled slowly, clearly not buying it. That was fine. I knew he had no suspicions about what I was really doing. He wouldn't have been able to guess if he tried.

Even I had a hard time finding any information about how to open a faerie portal, and I had known where to look.

"Love you, Dad," I said, moving towards him to wrap him in a hug. I held him longer than usual, and I felt him shift uneasily. I had never been much of a hugger, and he probably sensed something was up.

But this was the last time I was going to see him. Tears tried to make themselves heard, but I forced them back, pulling from my Dad once I had composed myself.

He stared down at me, clearly confused. He ran a hand through his hair, disheveling his perpetually wind tossed waves. "Well, then." He tried to impose the same stern expression he had been wearing before, but it didn't come so easily. "Love you too, sweet one. Just be safe tonight. You know how I worry. Don't go making me go grey anytime soon."

I smiled and nodded, unable to say the words out loud.

"Bye, Dad." I opened the door, unable to face him. At least this time I had been able to say goodbye.

"Have a good night, see you tomorrow."

I didn't reply, I couldn't. I stepped out the door without looking back. The sky was growing dark, a few kids already out in their costumes, going from house to house. Childish giggles filled the night. The sulfuric scent of fireworks still lingered in the street. Cool air brushed past my cheeks, carrying the ever present threat of rain. I held out my fingers instinctively, enjoying how the air ran through them. It didn't stay to play, but it soothed me. It helped calm the turmoil left behind by my decision.

I stepped out on the sidewalk. I didn't head in the direction that would take me to Kyle's. Instead I turned towards the forested area a few blocks from my house. Back to where it had all started.

It was time.

#

As I entered the same forest I had tried to cut through six months ago, a gentle gust of air came to greet me. The trees closed in overhead, cutting off the moon. I felt a residual trace of magic on the air, some of the trees feeling more alive than usual. I sucked in a deep breath, enjoying the invigorating earthy scent.

I hadn't realized how at home this made me feel. The air felt different, a few stray wisps hesitating near me. I felt my fingers tremble, so desperate to have it back. A small crackle started against my skin, and I moved in deeper, walking instinctively to the place I was looking for.

I stopped in front of one of the largest trees, a few shafts of moonlight shining through the canopy of leaves overhead to illuminate the ground. There, a peculiar gathering of toadstools stood in a wide wring. When the police had investigated my disappearance, they had found a scrap of my ripped dress at this very spot.

I knelt down on the ground in front of the faerie ring. I opened my bag, pulling out a collection of wildflowers and herbs. I placed my offerings around the ring, along with another few things I now knew might also appeal to the fae. Shiny rocks, and carved little figurines I had found at the thrift store. A beaded bracelet from when I was a child and a few more shiny coins I had saved for this very moment. Something prickled at my neck, the eyes of a forest just like this one, staring back at me through the thin barrier between our worlds.

I could feel its magic, a low trickle. My hands shook as I balled them into fists.

For once, everything felt right, and I knew no matter how hard this choice had been, I made the right choice.

I didn't have to wait long. The moon shone brightly overhead, and as I blinked my eyes it took on a violet tone. I heard the crunch of leaves, the air shifting ever so slightly, a faint shimmer overtaking the area. As the figure parted from the shadows, the moonlight colored its coppery fur a deep crimson. It slunk out towards me, looking at me expectantly like it had been waiting all along for me to summon it again.

I tilted my head, and watched it approach. Once it was at the edge of the ring, it sat down on its haunches, staring at me with unnatural green eyes that carried a depth of intelligence I could only imagine. We were silent for a long moment.

"You've been watching me for some time, haven't you?" I asked. I lifted my bag onto my shoulder. If I expected the wolf to reply back to me, I wasn't sure. But it promptly stood, turning and walking back to where it came from. Before it disappeared, it paused, looking back at me from the shadows.

I didn't need words to know what it meant.

Satisfied, the wolf disappeared into the darkness. I turned to look back at the forest one last time. Distantly I could hear the cars on the street driving past, the calls of kids boasting to one another about who had gotten the best treats while trick-or-treating. Little did they know, that if they took one small wrong turn, they would be in a completely different world.

I looked back through the shimmering moonlight. I had lingered long enough. Stepping over the ring of toadstools, energy sizzled through me, the air lifting and whirling from my feet. Grabbing at me as if it had just welcomed back its long last lover. I let out a deep sigh.

And I followed the wolf back into Faerie.