A Million Questions

Izora stood there for a moment, looking at Raf's beautiful eyes, trying to make sense of everything.

"Cadence...is she...human?" At the mention of her name Raf's scowled.

"She's not. She's also a demon, one of my parents' lackeys in fact. You see, the King and Queen never know when they will be overthrown. Some never even wanted a child in the first place but it's a curse on the royal family. I'm my parents' second son. They actually wanted me, but they still don't want to be over thrown. They wanted to keep us apart, because as long as you can't break the bond, I won't die." Raf sighed and sat down.

"If we were to become King and Queen for example, we could rule for two days before our first star falls. Some King and Queens have ruled for hundreds of years before their star fell. I don't know how the keeper of stars knows, but I think it depends on the personalities of the rulers. My great grandfather and his queen were kind and gentle rulers. They were ready to accept fate and yet they had the longest rule."

"Is it always a prince searching for a princess?" Izora mused.

"No, there have been a few princesses too" Raf was glad to see that Izora was trying to lighten the mood. A lot of information had been placed on her today and she was probably more confused than ever.

"More than anything, at least for now, I'd like to keep you safe." Izora looked at Raf with a puzzled expression.

"I thought no one would harm me?"

"Well...in every kingdom there are rebels. No common folk would harm you, but there are always a few that my parents could hire to keep you away from me. I don't know what they'd do but I wouldn't put it past them to try something that might put you in harm's way."

"Then what do I do? Uproot my life and hide in your basement until I'm a hundred?" Raf laughed again. Izora felt scared but his laugh had a calming affect on her.

"No, but I'd like to keep you close to me, and if it's alright with you, I'd like to to have someone I trust protecting you when you aren't with me."

"That depends...can I meet them before I decide?" Raf smiled and and held out his hand.

"Of course, just promise me you won't scream. Her form in this realm looks much scarier than she actually is." Raf walked into his office and opened one of the windows. A huge gust of window blew in and something flew past Izora. She turned around and hovering behind her was a small creature that looked like a large fairy. She seemed to have a dark mist surrounding her and her wings looked battered. But what was terrifying was her face. She looked almost alien. Her face was pitch black, smooth, and shiny. She had two bright blue eyes that had no pupil or iris. And her teeth. The most terrifying thing was her millions of tiny sharp teeth filling up her mouth that gaped open.

"Izora, this is Mazidae." Izora didn't want to be rude, but she was curious, and a little scared.

"What...is she?"

"She's a spryte, a type of faerie." Raf could tell Izora was confused so he explained.

"Everyone in the royal family is given a spryte egg. Those who are born from a star are given one at birth. They hatch once the prince or princess has reached maturity and they join him or her when they cross over to the human realm. A prince or princesses' soulmate eventually receives one themselves during the wedding and their egg hatches once they've been crowned." Raf's eyes glazed over as if he were thinking about something very far away.

"It's a beautiful tragedy really. All at once, a new reign begins, the old King and Queen die with a burst of light and a spryte hatches with a burst of darkness." Raf snapped out of his thought and looked over at Izora.

"That's our world really, in essence it's just light and its absence, darkness. Everything. Your world and this one." Izora bit her lip and looked at Mazidae who tilted her head and looked back.

"Nice to meet you." Mazidae bowed her head. Izora turned to back to Raf. "Does she speak?"

"No in any specific language. I can communicate to her through my mind, we're connected in that way. She can understand you, and everyone else, but any sound she makes wouldn't communicate anything to anyone besides another spryte. When...if you receive one, you'll be able to understand yours through the mental connection."

"Will I be able to see Mazidae in the human realm?"

"If you allow her to kiss your eyes, then yes. When you receive your own you'll see her no matter what. Sprytes are an embodiment of a spirit that can guide and help you. They choose their counterpart and stick with them through their entire life. When I die, Mazidae will too." Izora smiled at the thought of having a companion like that for life. Frowning, Izora realized something sad about the whole ordeal.

"You said spryte eggs are given, but you also said that each spryte choses their own...creature or person. How is that possible?"

"I was given an egg yes, but the egg was empty until Mazidae's spirit filled it. She choose to inhabit the egg given to me" Izora nodded. The things she found out today were strange, but oddly enough it all seemed to make sense. Suddenly, the clock in Raf's office struck 12 as Izora's stomach rumbled. They'd been talking all morning and she'd forgotten to eat breakfast since she woke up so late. Raf giggled hearing this.

"Do you want to get something to eat? We can talk more over some food."

"Which realm?" giggled Izora.

"Well there is actually pretty good food here but I'm sure you'd want something you're familiar with after today." He took her hand and led her back through the mirror. Izora noticed that Mazidae was following behind but she disappear once they crossed back over.