Chapter 2

 “Please…please don’t do this…no…n-no…No!!!”

Everly screamed, eyes flying open. Sweat dripped heavily from her forehead as she took in her surroundings. For a moment she sat there, chest heaving from the still present nightmare. She turned to flick on the lamp and looked around.

Safe. She was safe.

The silly plush banana on her bed lay haphazardly on the floor near her floral-patterned curtains, thrown from her flailing limbs. She reached across to pluck it up and squeezed it tightly to her chest. The nightmare had felt so real, so…present.

Everly pushed the covers back and walked to the bathroom to splash cold water on her face. She leaned against the sink, finally looking up at her reflection as droplets shimmied down her face. Everly looked over her shoulder, trying to imagine the space where her wings should have been. She bit her lip and clenched her fists as a surge of anger rose in her. She would never forgive Edward for what he had done to her.

After a quick shower, Everly made herself toast and a warm cup of milk. It was only six in the morning, but she decided to start the day, afraid that if she went back to sleep her dreams would come to haunt her once more. She stared at the milky liquid that was cupped in her hands. Her mind drifted to when she had first met Edward Gilderson.

Everly was an orphan, and an elf-fairy to add. She had elf ears and wings that refused to spread much to her dismay. She had often been the subject of cruel jokes and barbs as a child. Then he appeared, just like prince charming come to save the damsel in distress. Everly had started work at a coffee shop and he would come in at the same time every morning for his daily dose of caffeine. It was almost as if fate had put them in front of one another. One thing led to another and their friendship blossomed into something more.

She trusted him, even though a voice in the back of her mind told her to be careful. She knew she was just an orphan, nothing special, and he was of noble blood. But the way he made her feel, she felt special to him. He could’ve dated anyone, yet he chose her. Whenever she asked him why, all he gave was a small smile. She later found out the reason behind that seemingly innocent expression.

Everly’s 18th birthday announced the awakening of a strong light magic coursing through her body. Her full power had come to be unleashed and with this a pair of beautiful, sparkling wings spreading from her back. She was overjoyed the time had finally come when she stepped into her power. Her enjoyment was short-lived.

A stabbing pain in her chest ruptured through her joy and blood began to gush from her mouth. She stared in disbelief at the scepter lodged in her chest. Looking up, Everly noticed her love Edward, his hand grasping another. A girl, her head held high and a haughty expression on her face.

Forcing herself to smile, Everly managed a gasp. “Ed-Edward…who is she?”

Everly followed Edward’s arm as it encircled the girl in a loving embrace, bringing her closer to his side. His other gripped the scepter and yanked the staff from her chest. Fresh blood continued to flow down her open wound and mouth, black circles appearing in her vision as she lost her balance and crashed to the floor.

The river of blood was nauseating.

Tears welled in Everly’s eyes as she emitted a sob. “Why? How could you do this?”

Before Edward could reply, footsteps were heard near the door. A man with greying hair entered annoyance shown on his face.

“Kelly, Edward. What is taking so long.”

Everly realized the man had only come to speed up her death. Smirking, Kelly stretched out a hand and Everly felt a sucking sensation take hold of her body. Little by little she felt her light being drained from her and a hollow feeling begin to replace it. A sharp pain burned her face, and more crimson blurred her vision.

“You are such a fool.” Edward had stalked toward her and leaned down, one finger following the trail of red before grasping her wings in one hand and carving them out of her back with a serrated knife.

The pain was unbearable and Everly felt as if her body were on fire. In the distance, she heard a horrid scream before coming to the realization that it was her own. Her fingers weakly stumbled toward Edward, trying to touch him. They never succeeded before she succumbed to darkness.

Looking back, Everly realized the stranger was her father. Her one encounter with a missing puzzle piece and it had ended in tragedy. Those familiar eyes and smooth lips… she would have never thought to place them with the man she saw that had such hate in his eyes. It was all a ruse, a trap, to lure her in and capture her magic. But whatever had happened in that exchange between Everly and Kelly, death brought a gift.

She had wandered as a spirit of sorts, able to view her world without notice. That is how she found out who Kelly truly was, a manipulative seductress who had a gift for predicting the future.

The thought hit Everly suddenly and she jolted up. The half drank milk splashed from the cup and onto the table. She wiped it away quickly with a napkin and mulled over the thought.

Her eyes quickly welled at the sudden swell of sadness and though she attempted to wipe away her tears, more poured down and she sighed as she let her emotions take over. It had been so long since she cried and had let herself feel the hurt and pain that had been caused. It was unfair it seemed. To have to go through all this trauma when she had done nothing wrong. She would never hurt anyone, couldn’t even imagine the possibility.

Taking a deep breath, Everly held back the sobs that threatened to further escape and wiped her face. Determination flashed in her eyes. She refused to let the past continued to haunt her.

It must have been because she went back to Osborne, that was why she became so emotional. She had been a wandering soul in another universe for so long, she had been to so many places. 

Osborne was merely a work of fiction by a random person in that modern world, she was only a random villager B. She was not even an important side character or something. It was Kelly who dragged her into all of that mess and resulted in her death.

Everly perked up. The thought she had before she got sucked back into Osborne came back to her mind.

That's it! 

Everly went over to where she hung her tote bag and pulled out her purse, then she pulled open the drawer and took out a locked chest where she kept all her money. 

She emptied all the money she had in her purse and the chest. After counting what she had, she grabbed a piece of paper while she tapped her chin with a finger, thinking of what to write on the paper.

On the wooden desk in her room, a quill dabbed itself in red ink before Everly controlled the quill with her magic to scribble something on the paper after she stuck the paper on the wall.

Large red block letters appeared on the paper:

GOAL: TO REKTORIA CITY

Rektoria City was the city of Fairies, it was quite far from Willow Town. That will be her first stop, after a trip to Rektoria City she would definitely move on to another place. She understood that she needed to be on the move, so Kelly wouldn't track her down easily.