Genre (s): Dark Fantasy/Adventure

Written When? 12th Grade to Freshmen year of College

In her head, Makenna asked, What is this song? This has never happened before.

The stuffed whale Tracey’s spell picked up set itself down on her pillows.

He stopped singing, and everything returned to normal. The green and purple sparkles vanished. Makenna’s room was now spick and span.

She couldn’t believe what just happened. “How did you do that?” she asked her friend.

Smiling, Tracey glanced at her and explained, “That’s a new spell Senpai taught me.”

“No, not that. How did you do that with your voice?”

“Oh, you mean the green and purple sparkles?”

Makenna nodded and met her friend’s golden brown eyes.

Chuckling, he closed them and brought his hand to his beardless chin. “I have no idea.”

Makenna collapsed onto the floor and slapped her palm to her face.

It wasn’t long until Silvey and Raeven approached her.

Raeven landed on her shoulder.

“So,–” Tracey continued as he reached through her window and grabbed his floating suitcase, “where’s my room?” The suitcase hung in front of his chest. Tracey gave Makenna a cheesy smile.

She glanced at him and asked, “Your room? Tracey, you come here almost every weekend. Don’t you know?”

For some reason, her question offended Tracey. “What’s that supposed to mean?” He retreated back a step.

“Nothing. I was just asking you a question.”

“Oh. Okay!” Tracey’s cheesy smile returned. He started to make his way towards Makenna’s door. Passing Silvey and Raeven, he lifted his hand and waved at them. “Hello, Silvey and Raeven.”

They waved weakly back at him.

When Tracey reached the door to Makenna’s room he lifted his foot, since his hands were full, and pulled the handle down with it. He took another step back as the door swung open. Tracey tried to make his way through the doorway, but his suitcase became caught in it. “Oof!” he yelped.

Makenna, Silvey, and Raeven stared as he let his bag go and stood behind it.

The suitcase literally was caught in the doorway. It hovered a few feet off the ground.

Tracey pushed his shoulder up against the bag, but it didn’t budge. With an irritated huff, he unlatched it and pulled out all his clothes. With a pile of clothes in his arms, he ducked under his suitcase and appeared on the other side in the hallway.

Back in her room, Makenna shook her head and told Silvey and Raeven, “There is definitely something bothering him.”

The fairy dog and Megabat couldn’t help but to agree. The three of them knew Tracey well enough to understand when he was having an internal conflict with himself.

Makenna was the one who pulled his suitcase out. She escorted her friend down the stairs into the living room, where her mother was finally off the phone. The TV was still tuned to the Weather Channel.

“Hey, Mom!” Makenna called as she excitedly missed the last three steps and hurried into the room. “Guess what?”

“Oh, Makenna, please! What is it this time?” Mrs. Delling frustratingly slammed the top of the suitcase, that held precious treasures, shut and whirled around to face her daughter. “Don’t tell me you’re here to tell me Clover is just a storm again!”

“No, Mom,” Makenna said with a shake of her head. Gee, she didn’t understand why her mom was so grumpy today. Forcing a smile, she gestured at Tracey. “I just wanted to let you know that Tracey’s here.”

Tracey held his open suitcase in his arms again, but his clothes hung out of its sides.

Raeven landed on Silvey’s head. They trotted over to Silvey’s dog bed in the corner of the room, to keep their distance.

At the sight of Merlin’s apprentice, Mrs. Delling instantly lost her frown and spoke in a sweet voice, “Tracey dear. My, my, you sure have grown in the past week.” She approached him and pushed Makenna off to the side. “Let me take that for you.”

Nodding, Tracey handed her his jumbo suitcase.

Mrs. Delling grunted. Setting the suitcase down at her ankle, she rubbed Tracey’s chest down. “You’re even more handsome than the last time I saw you. Is this a new outfit?”

“Yes, ma’am. Emilee and Jesse took me to the mall Monday to buy it.” Tracey still felt strange calling Emilee and Jesse “Mom” and “Dad”. They obviously weren’t his real parents. That’s what had been bothering him for the last few days. Who were his real parents? What were they like? The song he sung in Makenna’s room about whales seemed somewhat familiar to him.

While the questions swarmed around inside Tracey’s brain, Mrs. Delling picked up his suitcase and said, “Follow me. I’ll take you to your room. We have much to catch up with.”

Makenna let out a low sigh as they exited the living room and slouched her shoulders. She finally decided to follow them. At times, she thought her parents loved Tracey more than her and Caleb. They always gave him the most attention when he came. Makenna and Caleb were always left in a dark corner.

Mrs. Delling and Merlin’s apprentice joked and laughed the entire journey to the guest room on the first story of the house, which happened to be right next to Mr. and Mrs. Delling’s bedroom.

Tracey glanced at Michelle and happily explained to her, “So Senpai and I were training on the beach one day, right? He attempted to show me a new spell, but it exploded in his face! For the rest of the day, he had hair like Frankenstein! I finally asked him, ‘Sensei, did you have a bad day at the barber shop?’ and he answered, ‘The stylist just made a few mistakes, but I still look gorgeous don’t I?’”

Both he and Mrs. Delling laughed.

Makenna puffed out her cheeks and clenched her fists.

She lost her angry face when Michelle glanced over her shoulder and asked, “So, what are you two fairies going to do for your last afternoon on Seabrook Island?”

Makena’s insides squirmed. She stopped right on her tracks and questioned, “Last afternoon? What are you talking about, Mom?”

It was there Mrs. Delling’s grumpy attitude returned. “Didn’t your father tell you yesterday? We’re evacuating to Greenville tomorrow morning.” She smiled at Tracey. “Of course, Tracey dear, we’re not going to forget you. Makenna’s relatives are excited to meet you.”

“Why are we evacuating?” Makenna frightfully asked from behind. “I don’t want to leave.”

Her mother ignored her.

Mrs. Delling finally left after Tracey got settled in his room, but that was after she gave Makenna a chore. She placed her hands on her hips and told her, “Makenna Angelia Delling, I want you to go up to your room and pack your suitcase so we can go ahead and put it in the car tonight.”

“Aw, but, Mom!” Makenna groaned. “I haven’t seen Tracey in a whole week. I want to hang out with him.”

Mrs. Delling merely sighed. It wasn’t long until she turned on her Southern mom self. She started to count. Her accent really kicked in when she did. “One. Two.”

Just before she could get to three, Makenna turned on a frightened face, and she quickly ran out of the room.

Mrs. Delling smiled from behind and smacked her hands together.

Tracey, who rested his hand on the top of his suitcase, was amazed. “Wow. Impressive. What happens when you get to three?”

Mrs. Delling glanced over her shoulder at him and winked. “I never do!” She laughed as she exited the room and left him alone.

Makenna hurried into her room, with Silvey and Raeven at her heels, and slammed her door shut. Before her mother could storm upstairs and chew her out, she dragged a suitcase, which had surfboard designs on it, out of her closet, and plopped it down on her bed. Her shaking hands unlatched it, and she quickly started to stuff clothes into it.

“Why are you so tense?” Raeven confusingly asked from Silvey’s head.

Makenna didn’t answer. She was too involved in her work.

Just three minutes into packing, she heard a knock at her door and yelped, “Ahh! Who’s there?” Her insides squeezed together, but they stopped straining when the door opened and revealed Tracey on the other side.

“It’s just me, Makenna.”

“Oh, Tracey. Hi.”

Tracey peered into Makenna’s frightened face and asked, “Would you say this is how you typically react when your mother starts counting?”

“Trust me, Trace,” Makenna said as she stuffed a pair of shorts in her suitcase, “you do not want her to get to three.”

“I can see that. Oh, hey! You’ve also got that picture!” Tracey’s eyes landed on the picture on Makenna’s bed stand. He silently approached it.

Makenna patted her clothes down and said, “I sure do. I’m assuming you have it, too?”

“Of course. I brought it with me. It’s down in my room.”

Makenna watched as Merlin’s apprentice picked up the photo. She finally let out another low sigh. “Can I ask you something, Trace?”

Nodding, her friend said, “Hit me,” and plopped down on her bed.

“Why didn’t you pick up when I called you? You always pick up.”

“I’ve been over at Merlin’s Island for the past few days. There’s not exactly cable and reception out there.”

“Why?” Makenna looked quite bewildered.

“You see, Sensei absolutely despises elec–”

“No,” Makenna interrupted. “I mean, why were you at Merlin’s Island?”

“Oh. Well, Sensei’s been teaching me a few new spells. He says that if I keep up at this rate, then I will soon be a Wizard Fairy.”

“Geez, Tracey. You’re so busy training nowadays. I feel like you don’t have a lot of free time.”

Tracey stood up from his friend’s bed and met her eyes. “It’s important for an apprentice to attend all his lessons when he’s so close to graduating to the next level,” he calmly explained. “At least, that’s what Merlin told me.”

“Yes, of course.” Makenna turned her head away and continued packing.

Tracey soon set the picture back down and said, “Makenna, I was going to head outside and take a flight around the island, if you want to join me.”

“I’d love to, Trace, but I have to pack. If I don’t, Mamma’s going to be steamed.”

“That’s fine. I understand.” Tracey looked a little disappointed that Makenna wasn’t going to come with him. “All right, then. I guess I’ll just leave.” With that, he exited his friend’s bedroom and started to make his way downstairs.

A wave of guilt swamped Makenna right up to her wall. It nearly killed her. She finally yelled, “Tracey, wait!” and chased after him. Her suitcase rested open on her bed.

Silvey and Raeven followed her.

Makenna joined Tracey in the living room.

He smiled when he heard she had changed her mind. No longer was he going to fly around Seabrook Island alone, as if he were the only fairy there.

Makenna first had to get permission from her mother to go out. That wasn’t hard because she was on the phone again. Makenna placed her hands behind her back and snuck up behind her. “Mom, Tracey invited me on a flight around the island. Can I go?”

“Sure,” Michelle replied, not really paying attention. “Be back before dinner.”

“Will do!” Makenna clenched her fist and let out a silent, “Yes!” She shuffled over to Tracey, Silvey, and Raeven, who waited by the front door.

The animals wanted to fly, too. Tracey and Makenna weren’t the only ones with that gift. Silvey and Raeven tagged along when they opened the door and stepped outside. It was gusty today, but there was not a cloud in the sky. It was hard to believe a devastating hurricane that had already killed over one hundred people in the Caribbean was coming straight for Seabrook Island, picking up strength as she did.

Conditions were slowly deteriorating on the island, but the wind felt good to Makenna and Tracey. It helped make things feel cooler.

A few leaves and twigs blew across the empty road, and the palmetto trees swayed in the breeze.

The two fairies and animals made their way down the staircase as carefully as they could. Since Makenna and Tracey were fairies, they were fairly lightweight–about sixty-five pounds each. They had to be so they could fly. Sixty-five pounds was normal for a fairy. It meant they were healthy.

Since they were lightweight, the wind pushed Makenna and Tracey fairly easily. They planted their feet so they wouldn’t blow away.

When they reached the bottom of the staircase, Makenna pointed forward to the Gator Pond. “Tracey, look at all those birds!”

What Tracey saw was amazing. Flocks of herons, egrets, and seagulls were perched on every last branch of moss trees at the back of the Gator Pond. They looked like a bunch of cumulus clouds smashed together.

Tracey smiled and said, “Wow,” at the sight of the birds. He crossed the road and approached the edge of the pond, right next to a bench, so he could see them more clearly. He loved anything that flew.

Makenna soon appeared next to him and asked, “Pretty amazing, huh?”

“Yeah,” Tracey replied. “I have never seen this many birds in one place before.”

He and Makenna sat down on a bench and watched the birds for a little longer.

Raeven flapped down to the bench’s head, next to Makenna, while Silvey sat down next to Tracey. It felt so good outside.

Eventually, the birds took off in flight and zoomed past the groups’ heads.

Both Makenna and Tracey’s hair waved.

Silvey and Raeven’s fur danced.

A few bangs fell over Makenna’s forehead, but she pulled them off to the side.

Tracey, whose eyes remained on the birds longer than hers, grinned and lifted his hand. He waved goodbye to them.

A few herons seemed to wave back. It was like they could understand the young man, no matter how far away he was.

When Tracey lowered his hand, he glanced at Makenna and asked, “Are you ready?”

“Oh, Tracey, I was born ready,” Makenna chuckled. She and her friend stood from the bench.

Silvey and Raeven quickly got out of their way by moving back a few feet.

Both fairies ran up to each other, with excited faces glued on, and met eyes. With the pond shimmering in the background, they lifted their hands over their heads and announced, “Makenna and Tracey! Merfairy transformations!”

***

Makenna transformed first. Smiling, she lifted her hands over her head and covered herself in her own magic. Purple streaks appeared in her hair, alongside the blue streaks, and it grew as long as her Crystal Metamorphic Fairy hair. It went down to her ankles.

Makenna’s hair was pulled back in a low ponytail by a light pink, coral-like hair bow. Sparkly, blue mermaid studs appeared in her ears. Her bangs were parted sideways.

Covered in magic from her shoulders down, Makenna’s legs flew back, and she acted out a boomerang twirl. During the process, a short, light blue and cyan dress, that had a ruffled bottom, threw itself on top of her body.

Makenna performed a midair jeté. As soon as she reached split position, light blue tights and blue ballet slippers materialized over her legs.

She lifted her right arm and clenched her fist. A pink, coral-like wristband emerged around her wrist.

Makenna next grabbed a line of magic and wrapped it around the backs of her legs. Sparkles surrounded them. From the sparkles appeared blue and pink fins that attached themselves to Makenna’s legs. A blue wand that had a star-shaped head and a pink tip appeared in her hand.

Smiling, the Metamorphic Fairy soared forward and announced, “Makenna! Metamorphic Fairy of Seabrook Island!” She tossed blue and pink magic into the sky, with the help of her wand, and large, sparkly, seashell-shaped wings with dark blue borders popped out of her back. They were multi-colored on the inside with blue, pink, orange, and gold.

After transforming, Makenna flew in an arch and happily clenched her fists.

Tracey was next. He, too, opened his eyes and bent his body. His bow was a bit deeper than Makenna’s.

He held his hands in clenched fists in front of him. Magic ninja stars appeared and circled him from his feet up. As they did, his outfit came.

One star moved up to his head and floated across it, from ear to ear. Rays of green light touched different parts of his head. A scanning sound was heard. Tracey’s hair changed. It grew shorter and was now down to the bottom of his neck. Makenna’s hair grew longer with the transformation, but his grew shorter.

Tracey’s Merfairy outfit consisted of: a fully black, sweater-like turtleneck, black jeans with white, pinstriped patches on his hips, tall black rubber boots, a black belt, and a dark green ninja mouth mask that hung in front of his collarbone. Black, fingerless gloves that had gold buckles on them covered his arms and stretched all the way to his upper arm.

Fins also appeared on the backs of his legs, but they were green and purple.

A gold-trimmed, green hooded vest tossed itself over his turtleneck and jeans. It reached for his femurs, similar to his human shirt.

“Tracey!” Merlin’s apprentice yelled when his outfit formed. “Pupil of Merlin the Great!”

His ninja stars shifted over to his bare back and started to circle it. Strangely, something else decided to join in on the fun–the image of a whale.

It stood on its tail behind the fairy and followed every movement he made so his wings could form. Tracey’s wings were large and shaped like a mash between costate shells and oval-shaped leaves. They sported different shades of green and were boarded by purple.

The magic shurikens faded, but the whale stayed, even when Tracey flew forward and joined Makenna.

They both faced forward and smiled like they were looking into a camera lens.

***

Before long, the mysterious whale faded from view, but the excitement was far from over, in Makenna and Tracey’s minds. They had just transformed into merfairies!

It felt wonderful to fly, wide open and free.

Silvey and Raeven went off on their own, while Makenna and Tracey flew in another direction. They promised to meet back up at the Gator Pond in about two hours. Two hours was more than enough time.

The two fairies soared around the island, happy as clams. Blue, pink, green, and purple fairy dust and bubbles shimmered in their wings with every flap.

They flew down a boat load of streets, eager to learn where they led. They found cul-de-sacs, dead ends, roundabouts, marshland, and much more. It was a lot easier to get around by flying.

Makenna and Tracey played their own version of hide-and-seek. One fairy would hide behind a tree, and the other would try to find them. They literally had the best afternoon of their lives.

About an hour later, Makenna and Tracey took a break on top of the Seabrook Island water tower. A few clouds had rolled in, but they were too busy admiring the marsh to notice them.

Makenna propped up her head and admitted, “This is nice. Don’t you think so, Trace? Mamma’s totally overreacting with this storm.”

“What’s the latest behind it?” Tracey wondered.

Makenna waved her legs, which dangled over the water tower, and answered, “Apparently, it has already killed over one-hundred people in the Caribbean and is going to hit Seabrook Island with winds of 144 miles per hour, but you know how much fake news there is nowadays. Right, dude?”

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Sure. Humans overreact about everything. I think it’s a genetic thing. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” Merlin’s apprentice stood up and flapped his wings. He lifted off the tower and soared down towards the marsh.

“Tracey?” Makenna confusingly asked, following him.

Tracey stopped over the marsh and started to hover. He stared down on the gentle water, with a smile on his face.

Makenna flapped up behind him and tilted her head.

Tracey sensed her and admitted, “I love the sea. Don’t you, Makenna? It’s amazing how the water changes with the tides. Don’t you find it terrific?”

“Uh, divine.” Makenna didn’t know what it was, but her friend was acting just a teeny bit off. “Are you all right, Trace? Is something bothering you?”

“Makenna,” Tracey said in a low voice, “whenever you surf or dance, does anything–oh, I don’t know, unusual happen?” He refused to look back at his friend. He expected for her to burst out laughing and tell him he was crazy, but she didn’t.

Instead, she shook her head and admitted, “No. Tracey, what’s this about? Come on, you can talk to me.”

Tracey felt Makenna take his wrist, but he still refused to meet her eyes. “Forget it,” he said. “Pretend I didn’t bring it up.”

“But, Tracey!” Makenna protested. She tightened her grip on his wrist. “You can’t just fly off on your own without telling me what the heck is bothering you!”

Tracey didn’t like being bossed around. Pulling his wrist free, he calmly but snappily told her, “I don’t need your help! I look after myself!”

His tone of voice angered Makenna. Why did Tracey always refuse help when something troubled him? “Oh, give me a break!” she snapped. “Who was it that saved you from the clutches of the Octopus Man last year? I seem to recall when you were sick a few years back, we took you in and tried to take care of you.”

“Sure, but wasn’t it you who hooked me up with Peter Nelson in the first place?”

Makenna and Tracey may have been best friends, but boy, did they argue a lot. Although, a piece of their grumpy attitudes was attributed to stress concerning Hurricane Clover. Makenna and Tracey hadn’t picked up on the truth yet, but they were just as nervous as Mrs. Delling.

Still upset, Tracey turned his head away from Makenna and openly admitted, “In fact, I bet I could beat you in spell brawl with my eyes closed.”

“Excuse me?” Makenna asked, clearly offended. She could feel her anger rising in her body.

Tracey remained calm. Without another word, he closed his eyes and flew away from her.

Makenna watched him go and huffed. “Boys. They think they know everything.” Nevertheless, she flew after her friend.

***

The two fairies turned a little friendlier towards each other again as they continued their exploration. They took Seabrook Island Rd. towards the club and soon found themselves in an open area with marshland on either side of them.

Since most people were off the island because of the hurricane, there were few cars on the road. That protected the friends from being discovered.

They crossed a bridge and soon stumbled upon a fork in the road. One path went to the left, towards North Beach, but the fairies took the straight path. That one led to the club. They landed on the grass next to the road, furthest away from the marsh, and decided to have a race to the club.

Tracey held his finger up to Makenna’s face and told her, “Just watch. I’ll beat you to the club in two seconds flat.”

“You wanna bet? Just because you’re a ninja, it doesn’t mean you’re better at everything.”

“Prove it, then. Show you can outspeed me.” With that, Merlin’s apprentice sprinted forward and left Makenna behind.

She clenched her fists. Her fingernails changed from blue to red–a sign that she was angry. To herself, she mumbled, “Cocky kid. He’ll be scratching his head in bewilderment when I make it to the club first.” Shaking out her feet, she took off.

The fairies currently weren’t flying, because their wings needed a little break.

Makenna caught up to Tracey fairly fast. She thanked Ash’s training from the year before for that.

It didn’t take long for Tracey to notice her. When he did, he made a pretty sneaky move. He purposely knocked down a garbage and recycling can, which had been sitting in front of a driveway.

Makenna’s eyes widened at the sight of them. The cans crashed into her and knocked her down. Glaring, she looked up to Tracey and said, “Hey! No fair!”

“Fights rarely are fair, Makenn,” he told her. He turned to walk away. “Next time, try to keep your head up.” Just as he said that, smack! Tracey’s forehead smashed into a low tree branch, and he fell with a grunt.

Makenna pushed the garbage and recycling cans off her and approached him.

Merlin’s apprentice rested on the ground, with his eyes closed. He clutched his bruised forehead and groaned, “Ugh,”

Makenna leaned over him. “You were saying?” She offered him her hand. “Come on.”

With his eyes still closed, Tracey took it.

His friend helped him to his feet, and they continued their race.

***

In the end, Makenna and Tracey tied. They found themselves in a parking lot with a giant clubhouse behind them, as well as a golf course. There were a few cars in the lot but no more than ten. The club’s pool was still open but only until 6:00. Workers there had to evacuate, too.

Makenna glanced in the direction of the pool, but her eyes widened when she saw a family of four, who were leaving, marching towards the parking lot. The family consisted of two small children and their parents. Makenna snatched Tracey’s wrist and whispered, “Get down!” She pulled him and herself to the ground.

They dropped their wings behind them and slid under a red Hummer.

Tracey’s head banged the bottom of the car. “Ow!” he yelled, reaching for it.

Makenna swatted him on the arm. “Shut up! You’re going to get us both caught!”

“But that hurt.”

“I don’t care!”

Tracey knew Makenna cared. He closed his eyes and said in a calm but stern voice, “You could’ve fooled me, Makenna.”

“Say what?” Makenna threw her hand forward and grabbed him by the turtleneck. “If you have a problem with me, then spit it out!”

The sound of laughter was heard not far from their hiding place. Makenna and Tracey slapped a hand over the other fairy’s mouth. The laughter drew closer until finally, the feet of the family they saw appeared next to the car they hid under.

The mother placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulder and asked both her and her brother, “Are you guys ready to go to Tennessee?”

“Sure are, Mommy!” the children excitedly announced. Images of their grandmother’s toys, who lived in Tennessee, flashed through their brains. The car doors opened, and the mother helped her children inside.

Under it, Makenna and Tracey’s eyes widened.

Makenna pushed on Tracey’s shoulder and whispered, “This is their car! Do something!”

“What am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know! Anything!”

“Why do you always ask me to get us out of sticky situations?”

“Because you’re a ninja! You’re also Merlin’s apprentice!”

“But I–” Tracey wasn’t able to finish the sentence because something strange happened to him from out of nowhere. His eyes glowed up a bright, blue color. A beautiful, blue galaxy-like feature danced in them.

Makenna noticed his eyes. At the sight of them, her entire face drained of color. “Tracey, what’s wrong?” she asked, but he didn’t hear her.

He, instead, heard something else. It sounded like whistling–like it belonged to a whale of some sort. “I understand,” he spoke in a trancelike voice.

“Understand what?” Makenna inquired. “What are you talking about, dude?”

Tracey ignored her. “We’ll give it a try.” Then just like that, the blue, galaxy-like feature vanished from his eyes, and they were back to normal.

Shivers ran up Makenna’s spine. What on Earth just happened to her friend?

Tracey glanced at her and whispered, “Makenna, we need to transform back into humans.”

“Bu-But!”

“Just do it.”

Still confused, Makenna nodded. She and Tracey closed their eyes, and their bodies glowed up with their theme colors. Within seconds, they were back in their human forms and in their outfits from before.

Tracey smiled feebly at his friend.

She couldn’t help but to smile back.

Merlin’s apprentice turned and prepared to crawl out from under the car, but a sudden voice caused him to again bang his head on the bottom.

“Hey! Just what do you think you kids are doing? This is our car!” The voice belonged to the mother. She, her husband, and two kids rested on the ground and met eyes with the teenagers.

Makenna slapped Tracey’s arm and again mouthed, “Do something!”

Still in a bit of a trancelike state, Tracey did, but Makenna immediately regretted her decision of letting him be the problem solver. He used magic.

Remaining calm, Tracey turned back, so he could face the family members, and brought his hands to his chest, shutting his eyes. A powerful wind gust blasted through the area and blew his long, black hair all over the place. A green and purple ball of magic appeared in front of his chest.

“What are you doing?” Makenna frightfully mouthed. “You’re using magic! You’re going to get us both thrown into a laboratory!”

Tracey refused to listen to her. He listened to his fairy instincts. They never let him down.

The family watched amazed as another strange phenomenon involving whales took place.

A magical, blue figure of a humpback leaped out of Tracey’s chest and the ball of light in front of it. The mysterious creature swam out from under the car and danced on its tail around the family.

Makenna watched wide-eyed. She had no idea what was going on.

At the sight of the whale figure, the family smiled and turned their focus away from the fairies so they could play with it, even the adults.

While distracted, Tracey snatched Makenna’s wrist and whispered, “Come on.”

They quietly crawled out from under the Hummer and made their way towards the club’s pools.

Stopping at the gate, Tracey pulled on it, but the gate didn’t budge. “It’s locked!”

“Move over!” Makenna pushed him aside and whipped out a club card from her jacket pocket. She used it to unlock the gate and get her and Tracey inside. Even though there were only a few cars in the parking lot, there were actually quite a few people at the pool. Perhaps everyone just wanted to fit in one last dip before Hurricane Clover destroyed everything.

Makenna and Tracey sighed breaths of relief and decided to spend some time at the club. They rented some towels and grabbed two chairs behind the club’s largest pool, in a sandy area that overlooked the Atlantic Ocean. Two umbrellas hovered over each chair and provided the friends with shade.

When nobody was looking, they used magic to change into bathing suits and flip flops and plopped down on their chairs.

Makenna wore a pair of blue surfing shorts and a bikini top. She pulled her long, brown hair out of her braid and let it flop down over her shoulders.

On the other hand, Tracey changed into dark green swim trunks and a black top that had green trimming.

He and Makenna closed their eyes and let the sea breeze massage them. This was nice and all, but Seabrook Island didn’t compare to Merlin’s Island and Coutarine Island. Those islands had to be even more beautiful than the South Pacific islands.

Nevertheless, the two fairies enjoyed their time at the club. They glanced at one another and smiled.

Makenna showed off her sparkly, cobalt braces.

Tracey lost his smile when she asked him about what happened back at the Hummer to the family. How the heck could he summon a magic whale, and what the heck happened to his eyes? Who communicated with him?

“I don’t know,” was Tracey’s answer. And he didn’t. All this was so new to him.

To take their minds off the phenomenon and Clover, Makenna and Tracey headed to the pool for a swim.

Kids cheered and tossed toys around, while parents sunbathed and cooled off.

Makenna and Tracey shuffled over to the deep end, which was nine feet, and dove into the water at the same time. Their ears didn’t ring as they swam to the bottom and met up with each other. They sat down next to the drains and locked eyes again.

“You should have seen my dive,” Makenna bragged to Merlin’s apprentice. “It had to be the straightest thing ever!”

Tracey, whose hair color changed from black to light brown with black streaks whenever he was underwater, shook his head and said, “I wouldn’t be so sure, Makenn. It looked quite lopsided, if you ask me.”

Bubbles escaped their lips when they spoke and floated up towards the surface.

Makenna shook her head and said, “Oh, Tracey. You are impossible.” She returned to the surface so no one could suspect drowning.

Through ninja speed, Tracey remained underwater and zoomed across the pool to the shallow end.

People were forced to move out of his way.

When Tracey reached the three feet zone, he leaped out of the water and back flipped onto the cement. People stared as he lifted his hands and announced, “And he sticks the landing!”

Makenna, who had just climbed up the deep end’s ladder, groaned and brought her hand to her face. She wondered if she would ever understand Tracey. Removing her hand from her face, she saw he had vanished from his spot. “What the–? Where the heck did he go?” Makenna squeezed water out of her bikini and trotted to the shallow end, stopping in front of the bathrooms. “Tracey? Tracey!”

Suddenly, she heard a scream from the women’s bathroom, “Ahh! Just what do you think you’re doing?” and whirled around.

“Oh no!” Makenna hurried into the bathroom, as fast as her legs could carry her. A few minutes later, she re-emerged with Tracey’s arm in her grasp.

Confused, he peered back to the bathroom and asked, “Why did all those women freak out?” Boy, he was so clueless about the human world. There was still so much for him to learn, and it was up to Makenna to teach him. In a way, she was also his senpai.

***

The night was silent, for now at least, but more clouds moved in, and the wind increased. Faint, white lightning shocked the clouds, but there was no thunder.

On Seabrook Island, everybody rested in their beds and slept peacefully, except Tracey. He suffered from a nightmare. He heard screaming. The screaming belonged to hundreds of fairies, with the exception of one.

A female figure flew over a destroyed realm, with a bundle in her arms, and yelled, too. Whatever was going on was tragic.

Within just seconds, the shadow of the Octopus Man appeared in front of the female figure. He pointed his trident at her.

Before he could murder her, Tracey forced himself awake. He shot up in bed, drenched with sweat, and inhaled breaths of air. What on Earth was that dream? The Octopus Man had been destroyed, but his shadow still lurked in the apprentice’s very soul. There was a reason behind that. Tracey didn’t know it, but he was very much like Poseidon. He, too, had a deep connection with the ocean. The dream made no sense to him. He didn’t know who the woman and bundle were.

Tracey’s room was dark, but he had no idea why. Last he checked, the bathroom light was on. It also felt much colder than it did when he went to bed.

Conveniently, the thunder started to boom right after he woke up. Lightning flashed outside his window, and it was followed by a loud thunderclap.

Tracey yelped when he heard it and quickly pulled his covers over his nose. Thunderstorms and darkness never really mixed in well with him.

After a round of lightning and thunder, he finally just said, “Ah, screw this!” and hopped out of bed. Reaching into his suitcase, he pulled out a flashlight and turned it on. He knew the storm wasn’t the hurricane yet, but it made him even more anxious for it. Were Emilee and Jesse going to be okay? Was Sensei Merlin going to be? Secretly, Tracey was actually taking the storm a little more seriously than Makenna, but he refused to show his anxiety. He was Merlin’s apprentice, and Merlin’s apprentice didn’t show fear.

With the help of his flashlight, Tracey opened the door to his room and glanced into the short, dark hallway. He held a blanket under his free arm and was dressed in a pair of Sky’s old pajamas. Emilee provided them for him when he first met her and Jesse on the haunted island.

Cautiously, he made his way through the dark house and climbed the stairs to Makenna’s room.

An enormous thunderclap shook the whole house. It scared the living daylights out of Tracey. Immediately, he picked up speed and sprinted down the hallway towards Makenna’s bedroom door. Images from his nightmare flashed through his brain. He heard the screaming, the suffering, and the pain.

Mumbling to himself, Tracey threw open his friend’s door and scrambled inside, slamming the door shut behind him. His sweaty hand turned on the light. He started to move furniture around, so he could find a place to spread his blanket. He dropped the flashlight in the process and kicked a few chairs aside.

“This stupid hurricane is going to blow Sensei Merlin, Emilee, and Jesse right off the face of the Earth!” Tracey mumbled. “Why did I even agree to leave in the first place? I’m such an amateur!”

Makenna shuffled in her sleep and woke up.

Raeven and Silvey were asleep in the corner, but they didn’t stir.

The Metamorphic Fairy’s eyes landed on Tracey, who shoved her toy box. A few of her stuffed animals fell.

Confusion flashed across her face, and she propped up on her elbow. “Tracey?”

“What?” Tracey glanced over his shoulder.

Makenna sat straight up and placed her hands in her lap. “What are you doing here? You just barged into my room!”

“I had a stupid nightmare,” Tracey explained as he next pushed on her dresser. “It’s also dark in my room, so I told myself, ‘What the heck? Maybe it’s brighter in Makenna’s room.’”

“Whoa, whoa! Wait a second!” Makenna chanted. She waved her hand. “You’re moving in here for the night?”

“Well, where else am I supposed to move?”

“There’s always the couch downstairs.”

“Sure, but it’s dark down there.”

Makenna again shook her head. “Okay, Tracey, if you want to become a Wizard Fairy, you have to get over your silly fear of the dark. You do know you’re practically an adult now, right?”

“You don’t understand, Makenn. I have very bad memories of the dark: between what happened when I was four, the Octopus Man, and The Kate. You’d probably feel the same way if you experienced the same trauma.”

“Well, yeah, but–”

“It’s not just that,” Tracey interrupted. “It’s this hurricane. She’s going to destroy Sensei Merlin and my new family!”

“You don’t know that,” a sudden voice spoke from out of nowhere.

Both Makenna and Tracey jumped. Who on Earth just spoke to them?

“Who’s there?” Makenna asked. She reached down and picked up a baseball bat.

Tracey stopped what he was doing and tossed his blanket on the floor.

Raeven and Silvey snoozed on.

A blast of cold air rushed through the entire bedroom.

Tracey and Makenna closed their eyes against it. The lights shut off by themselves. The only light came from the lightning outside.

A shadowy, familiar figure emerged in front of Makenna and Tracey. He was very handsome. He looked to be around Tracey’s age–maybe a little younger. His long, dirty blonde hair had been pulled back in a ponytail, and two sideburns hung in front of his long, pointy ears. A sword in a sword case, shield, bow, and quiver of arrows rested on his back.

The boy’s light blue eyes landed on Makenna and Tracey, and he smiled at them.

“Ash!” they shouted at the same time. Indeed, the boy was Ash, or his ghost, at least.

His distinct, Scottish accent echoed throughout the room: “Hello, Makenna and Tracey.” He landed gently on the ground. “Am I catching ya at a bad time?” His shadowy form faded when he hit the ground, so he no longer looked like a ghost.

“Ash!” Makenna and Tracey repeated. They hurried towards their friend.

Makenna threw herself into his arms, trying to hold back tears. They swelled up in her eyes like a fountain. After a bit, she let go so Tracey could have his turn.

“Buddy!” he choked out. He and Ash embraced, too.

When they disconnected, Makenna rubbed tears from her eyes and asked the deceased Wizard Fairy, “How can you see us? You’re a ghost. We can even touch you. But how?”

Ash placed his hand on his hip and said, “You still have Crusader, right, Makenn?”

“Of course.”

Crusader was the name of Ash’s sword–a sword he owned before he died. The sword was magic. She had the ability to change forms into many different types of weapons.

Ash started off with Crusader, but Makenna winded up with her after hers, his, and Tracey’s mission the year before. That’s because Makenna was a princess, and she was destined to become queen after Selene died. Crusader was what saved her hide in the Bermuda Triangle.

“Well,–” Ash explained to Makenna after she answered his question, “as long as ya still have Crusader, you and Tracey will be able to see and touch me. Ya guys know well enough I can’t stay, correct? I just came down to talk to ya.”

“About what?” asked Makenna. “Are Tracey and I able to visit your new home?”

Ash shook his head no. “Naw. Not yet. Ya will be able to soon, but not now.” He pulled one of Makenna’s chairs to him and sat down. “I want to talk to ya guys a little bit about your next mission.”

“Next mission?” A question mark appeared above Makenna’s head. “What are you talking about, Ash?”

“This mission is the only way you’re going to get your next transformation,” Ash explained. “Now how it’s gonna work out, ah dinnae ken, but I don’t want ya guys to get up to high doh. This mission is made for pure dead brilliant fairies such as yourselves, so keep the heid.”

Makenna held her hand up to her friend and asked him, “Do you think you can cut back a little on the slang, Ash? Sorry, but I didn’t understand half of what you just said. Unlike you, Tracey and I aren’t from Scotland.”

“Basically, this mission is made for you and Tracey. It is very important if ya guys want to reach the next level of your fairy lives. Remember, whit’s fur ye’ll no go past ye. Sorry. I did it again, didn’t I? It means whatever is meant to happen to you, will happen to you.”

“But what is the mission?” Makenna asked. “Please, Ash. Don’t make this even more complicated than it already is.” She kneeled in front of Ash and rested her hands on his cold knees. Since he was dead, there was no warmth in his body.

He took a deep breath and tried to find his words. When he did, he gracefully met his friends’ eyes and explained, “The two of you will travel to Nova Scotia, where you’ll uncover a bonnie, auld legend about a lost wain that is over one-hundred years in the making.”

“Nova Scotia?” Makenna and Tracey yelped at the same time.

Ash nodded. “Correct.” He pulled his attention away from Makenna and focused it on Tracey instead. “And you, Tracey. You will find answers to why strange things happen whenever ya sing now, especially about the ocean. It will also answer the question why ya were able to transform into a merfairy in the first place, even though you’re not a Metamorphic Fairy.”

“Not a Metamorphic Fairy?” Makenna asked. “Whenever he sings?” She glared at Tracey out of the corners of her eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Tracey didn’t answer. His attention was focused on Ash.

Nodding, Ash explained, “You’ll learn more about your mission later. For now, ya guys need to get through this hurricane. Tracey, don’t worry about Merlin, Emilee, and Jesse. They’ll be fine.”

“I hope you’re right,” Tracey spoke in a low voice.

“Trust me.” Ash patted his thighs and stood up. “Now, I’ve gotta get going. My sister is calling me. If ya guys don’t make it out of this hurricane alive, then I’ll make sure your remains get back home.”

Tracey’s and Makenna’s faces turned blue. “Gee. Thanks, Ash.”

“I’m just kidding. I know ya guys will survive. My fairy instincts are telling me. However, I do feel like there is going to be an injury during it that involves trees.”

“Oh, okay!” Makenna quickly spoke. She pushed her friend’s wingless back. “Time for you to leave, Ash!”

“Was it something I said?”

“Ash!” a telepathic voice spoke from off to the side.

Silvey the fairy dog, who had woken up, jogged to him and rapidly wagged her tail.

“Silvey!” Ash yelled. He kneeled and held his arms out to her.

Silvey leaped into them and whined.

“How ya doing, girl?” Ash asked.

Silvey licked his cheek and cuddled up to him.

While they embraced, Makenna shuffled over to her closet and opened it. She pulled out a brown, leather scabbard and tossed it onto her bed.

Tracey watched, silent, as she drew a beautiful crusader sword from it. Its blade shimmered with each flash of lightning, and its hilt felt extremely comfortable in Makenna’s hand.

She shuffled over to Ash and asked, “Ash?”

“Yes?” Her friend looked up from embracing Silvey and rose to his feet.

Tracey appeared next to Makenna and glanced at her.

To Ash, she asked, “Did you say the only way we're going to see and touch you is if we have Crusader?”

Ash nodded. “That is correct. Ya see, the world of spirits is a little bit complicated. Guys, let’s all grab hold of her. She will tell ya guys your strongest weapon that will help ya succeed in this mission. She will also say when you’ll be ready to visit my new realm.”

Even though he was dead, Ash was still a Wizard Fairy and the most experienced out of the trio, so Makenna and Tracey listened to him. All three of them set their eyes on Crusader and grabbed her hilt.

Makenna and Ash stood right across from each other, as they did on Coutarine Island the year before, while Tracey stood off to the side.

Silvey watched them, intrigued, with her feelers swaying gently.

It wasn’t long until Crusader’s hilt started to glow. The light eventually moved up to the blade.

Makenna’s window suddenly blew open, and a warm breeze rushed through hers, Ash, and Tracey’s hair. The Metamorphic Fairy noticed something glowing on her neck. However, it wasn’t her necklace with the blue horse head pendant; it was another one.

The necklace had an orange costate shell pendant. Makenna found it in the reef just outside Coutarine Island the year before. Why was it glowing? Ash said Crusader would tell her and Tracey their strongest weapons that would help them succeed in their next mission, but Makenna didn’t understand. Why was the costate shell necklace considered her strongest weapon? Why wasn’t it her horse head necklace, surfing, or even dancing? None of this made sense anymore. Makenna was too bewildered to even ask Ash about the mix up.

Tracey’s weapon was unusual, too. It wasn’t his singing or his ninjutsu. Singing was weird, though. Tracey absolutely loved to sing. It only made sense it would be his strongest weapon, but apparently not. His was what Makenna had seen off and on with him throughout the afternoon: a whale and the sea. Magic, green and purple water escaped Crusader’s blade and circled Merlin’s apprentice.

From deep within the water leaped out another figure of a whale, and it swam in circles above Tracey’s head.

“Mom?” Makenna heard him ask. “Dad? Is that you?”

The phenomenon ended just as fast as it started. The costate shell necklace stopped glowing, and the whale and water disappeared in a burst of bubbles.

Crusader next showed Makenna and Tracey a glimpse of Ash’s new world. It was breathtaking... absolutely gorgeous. The world was a grassy, hilly kingdom that literally floated above the clouds! It was complete with buildings, trees, and even an old, medieval castle. The castle sat on the kingdom’s highest hill. Was the afterlife seriously that beautiful?

Makenna and Tracey almost wanted to die at the sight of the cloud kingdom.

“Say hello to my new home, Majestica,” Ash explained to his friends. “It’s part of a huge afterlife kingdom called Maleeka.”

“I-It’s beautiful,” Makenna stuttered. She rubbed a tear from her eye. She really wanted to visit Majestica, as well as Tracey, but they couldn’t. Not yet. Maleeka was home to magical beings, animals, and humans who died honorably.

Without thinking, Makenna spat out a question directed to Ash: “Do Tracey and I have to die in order to visit?”

Ash smiled and shook his head. “Ya actually don’t. However,–” His smile ceased, “ya do have to overcome a great obstacle. Maleeka is home to those who die honorably. Just like how ya guys proved honor to the Atlantic Ocean to earn your merfairy transformations, ya have to prove honor to the afterlife. If and when you come, ya guys will not be able to stay. If ya don’t make it out during the time elapsed, then you’re trapped, and ya will be dead.”

Makenna gulped.

Tracey did, too.

“Close your eyes,” Ash ordered.

The fairies did. While they stood there, they felt their friend’s hands leaving Crusader. Her glow faded, as did the image of Majestica.

“Ash?” Makenna asked.

No answer.

“Ash?” Again, no answer.

Makenna and Tracey opened their eyes. The lights were back on in the room, but Ash was nowhere to be seen.

Tracey let go of Crusader and crossed over to Makenna’s open window. “Ash!” he yelled. “He ditched us!”

Suddenly, Makenna yelled, “Watch out!” She threw down Crusader and hurried to Tracey. Grabbing him, she pulled him off to the side. They both fell to the floor.

A large tree branch flew through the window and crashed into Makenna’s bedroom door. It broke into two pieces.

Makenna quickly got up and hurried to her window. She closed it, latched it shut, and pulled her curtains over it. Lightning flashed on the other side. “That was too close,” Makenna sighed. “You’re welcome, Tracey. I just saved your life.”

“Tha-Thank you,” Tracey stuttered.

Makenna nodded and grabbed hold of the costate shell necklace’s pendant. Hundreds of questions flashed through her mind, but she didn’t have an answer to any of them.

Neither did Tracey.

Silvey jogged to Makenna and rubbed up against her leg. She made a sound that almost sounded like purring, but another clap of thunder washed it out.

After the strange phenomenon with Ash, the whale, and the necklace, Makenna wanted Tracey to spend the rest of the night in her room. Both of them did not want to be alone.

The storm raged outside Makenna’s house, but it wasn’t Clover. It was another storm system.

Tracey moved a few more things aside so he could find a place to lay down, but Makenna didn’t want him to sleep on the floor. That was not how someone treated guests.

“Tracey, I don’t want you to sleep on the cold, hard floor,” Makenna spoke. She patted the bed cover next to her. “Just crawl up here and you can sleep with me.” Silvey had her dog bed, so Makenna didn’t worry about her.

“Sleep with you?” Tracey asked his friend. He started to sweat. “Um, is that okay?” He turned his head, and his eyes landed on a chair in the corner of the room. “Why don’t I just take this chair over here?”

“You’ll be uncomfortable. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”

“Okay.” Young Tracey took a deep breath and tucked his blanket under his arm. Plopping down on the bed next to his friend, he hooked his fingers together and set his hands down on his belly. His blanket covered both him and Makenna. There was a moment of silence between the two, and then Merlin’s apprentice asked, “You do know I’m older than you, right, Makenn?”

“Yes, of course.” Makenna fluffed her hair and turned onto her back so she and Tracey could look at the ceiling. She already felt safer with him next to her.

Totally misunderstanding her when she said “sleep with me”, Tracey waved his hand and said, “Um, I’m not sure if I’m entirely ready yet.”

Makenna couldn’t help but to chuckle. “Oh, Tracey, I don’t mean it like that at all.”

“Oh.”

“We’re just friends. We’re nothing more. I think we’re too young to be thinking about that, anyway.”

“Yeah. Although I have to admit, I sometimes wonder what it’s like.”

“Me, too. Well, goodnight, Tracey.” Without another word, Makenna shut her eyes and shifted onto her side.

Tracey tapped his belly and said, “Goodnight,” back. Sighing, he let Silvey and Raeven’s silent breathing lure him into a deep sleep.