Faylinn has returned! After accidentally leaving you guys on a cliffhanger for almost two months, I finally come to you with the next edition of my “Faylinn” short story series!

Let’s get to the info first.

For Newcomers

Each month Arielle posts a prompt on her writing blog that goes along with Fairy Tale Central’s monthly featured fairy tale. I’ve been writing prompts for it of a continuing story about a wingless fairy and banished prince, Raylinn and Finn, or “Faylinn” as is their designated ship name…and their tag along sassmaster, Zayd.

The Previous Stories

For a while each story was more or less one contained story, but the last story I chose to make a more overarching plot, so this one may be prettyyyy confusing if you didn’t read January’s.

• Deal or No Deal (A Rumpelstiltskin-inspired story and the first introduction to these characters)
• Let Down Your Hair? (A Rapunzel-inspired story)
• It Ain’t Easy Having a Genie (An Aladdin-inspired one, and Zayd’s first introduction)
• Frogs and Bears Make Great Boyfriends (A The Frog Prince and Snow White & Rose Red crossover story)
• That’s Definitely Not Granny (A Little Red Riding Hood one that dives into Finn’s story a bit, and reveals he has a sister. Which is important to know.)
• The Genie Can Dance (A Twelve Dancing Princesses retelling in which we discover Zayd’s history.)
• Royalty is a Cold Business (A The Snow Queen inspired story. This one would be a good place to start if you haven’t read the others.)

A Summary

(If you’ve never read the previous stories or just need a refresher.)

Raylinn is a fairy who was born without wings and visible fairy markings, a shame to the proud fairies…and punishable by death. In a panic, her mother took her away from the fairy realm into the human world, where she left baby Raylinn with a kind farming couple. After a tragic fire killed Raylinn’s adopted parents (because fairy tale protagonists aren’t allowed to have parents, you know), Prince Finnigan of Talgaria found her and took her to stay at his castle. Except, one day, grumpy King Olten struck his son and Raylinn became enraged and her fairy magic released unbidden, revealing her true nature. Well, Olten hates fairies (as do most people, due to the fairies’ inherit ruthlessness), and tried to have Raylinn executed. Finnigan quickly defended her, causing his father to disown him. Raylinn and Finn escaped from Finn’s father, and, now engaged, have been on the run ever since, having all sorts of adventures and searching for someone who can help Raylinn learn how to control her magic.

At last they found someone, a snarky genie named Zayd. Genies were once fairies who betrayed the fairy queen and were thus stripped of their wings and cursed as genies—people who can only use their magic when their masters make wishes. Zayd’s master, Aladdin, has the genie lamp tucked away and has agreed to not make any wishes, leaving Zayd semi-free. In order to convince Zayd into helping Raylinn learn how to control her magic, she and Finn agreed to search the world for a way to break Zayd free from his genie curse and become a fairy once more.

And thus the threesome travel the world, and find a lot of trouble along the way.

In the last story, they visited Finnigan’s kingdom Talgaria, only to discover it’s surrounded in a dome of ice. Finn’s sister, Trayla, has apparently aligned herself with, Kellen, the king of the fairies which is…not good. *grins*

There’s also a Pinterest Board!

The Prompt

This month’s featured fairy tale over on FTC is…

THE WOUNDED LION

Although I have a confession to make: I didn’t use this month’s prompt at all for this story WHOOPS. I’m going rogue! It didn’t really fit what’s going on with the story right now. BUT I did throw in some Wounded Lion threads for funsies. So I’m still keeping to the theme of this month’s featured fairy tale. #PointsForTrying?

BUT GUYS. Arielle came up with suuuch a fun prompt that you guys should totally check out. I’m super tempted to use it in a future Faylinn story or flash fiction or something. Definitely head over to THIS POST to check it out. And we’d looove for you to write a piece of your own with it! Even if I failed to.

BONUS: Here’s some Skyrim winter ambiance music that goes great with the story, if you want to give something a listen while you read.

THE WHITE LION

Wake up.

She shivered, struggling to curl numb fingers into fists.

Raylinn.

Her mind felt on fire and yet every part of her froze. Finn’s scream still rang in her ears, the icicle thrusting through Zayd’s abdomen haunted her mind. Where were they? Where was she?

“Wake up!”

Raylinn’s eyes flew open. Pure nothingness greeted her. She lay in a world of white, like a snowy wasteland, and yet no wind stirred, no snowflakes fell, nothing but an endless hazy white spread out in every direction. The icy blue ground beneath her body lacked solidity, as if she floated amongst the clouds.

Her head ached, her muscles felt numb. She reached for her magic to spark a flame to her fingertips, but nothing presented itself.

“Oh good, you’re awake.”

Clutching the side of her head with one hand, she used the other to shakily push up to a sitting position. Looming just a foot away from her boots stood the most magnificent creature she had ever seen. A lion, whose smooth fur and thick mane covered him like freshly fallen snow. He watched her, unblinking, flecks of blue dotting his intelligent black eyes. Familiar eyes.

As the pain in her skull ebb, awareness slowly resurfaced. “Kellen?”

She could have sworn his black lips curved up into a smile, but he turned away and circled her, his paws softly padding on the strange blue ground. “I need you to focus.”

“Focus? What…what is this?”

“Just a little trip through your mind.” He paused and peered at her, long and hard. “What really happened that day eight years ago when Prince Finnigan found you?”

The pain in her head heightened and a memory surfaced on its own accord. The white nothingness in front of her grew colors. Like the curtain of a window being drawn, a scene appeared before her, a scene that forever haunted her subconscious, however hard she tried to forget.

The little cottage in the green clearing, consumed in flames. Screams pierced the silent air, pierced her mind, her heart. No no no no! Her adoptive parents were trapped inside. A figure rushed through the image, dark hair flapping in the wind, palms spread out as purple markings appeared across her skin.

“Mama! Papa!”

Raylinn clutched her chest as a sob wracked her body.

She wouldn’t reach them in time. However many time she relived this moment, she could never reach them.

An explosion burst through the air. Thirteen-year-old Raylinn was thrown backward in the wake of the eruption and smacked into the grass.

“No!” She scrambled up, but it was too late. The house was nothing but rubble and flames, and the screams had silenced. She sat on her knees, visibly shaking, and stared at her grass-stained palms as her purple markings slowly faded. And the thoughts of then still plagued her now. Had she done that? In her effort to stop the flames, had she made them worse?

Were her parents’ blood on her hands?

A ripping pain sliced through her skull, and she felt something inside, like a hand clawing into her very brain.

“Interesting.”

She snapped her gaze away from the all-too-real memory to the lion. The blue flecks in his eyes now glowed and the ripping sensation worsened. Gasping, she scrambled back, clutched her head.

“Stop it! What are you doing to me?”

He tilted his head. “The magic you did that day. You were trying to conjure up a rainstorm.”

She gasped raspy breaths. He was right. Just a month before the terrible incident, Papa had fallen off one of the horses and hit his head. She had gotten so upset, her magic flared and a rain cloud appeared above her. Strong emotions always accidentally made her magic crop up, but when the fire came, she tried to copy that feeling and bring another rain cloud.

A bout of tremors took over her body. From the pain in her head or her heart, she couldn’t tell. “I failed.”

“Only because the explosion broke your concentration,” he said nonchalantly.

The pain ebbed and slowly she pulled her hands down, trying to process these words. “The explosion…” She swallowed. “The explosion wasn’t me?”

“Not that I can sense.”

It was like a weight had been lifted. She had known for a while now that a wicked imp had started the fire as a ploy to try to kidnap her and gain her magic, yet still there had always been doubts. He may have started the fire, but had she accidentally caused the explosion that finished the deadly deed? At long last, she knew the truth.

The lion closed one eye and squinted at her with the other. “Were you trying to make the explosion?”

“No!” She jumped to her feet, and finally, finally could say in confidence what, deep down, she knew to be true all along. “I was trying to save them.”

“Interesting, indeed.” He studied her for a moment before turning back to the memory. “But surely you were angry…lonely…”

Something pricked her mind and she, too, looked back only to find her thirteen-year-old self on her knees in the ashes of her home, sobbing. Rain now fell, though whether from her doing, she had never known. As soon as it was safe, she had gone to the house and searched the rubble. She had found her parents, or what was left of them. Bile churned in her stomach at the memory and the hopelessness of that moment crashed into her.

Horse hooves sounded, and her young self jumped to her feet, shivering all over. A horse and rider appeared from the edge of the forest. Raylinn’s heart beat faster at the sight of the young man.

Finn.

Or a much younger version of Finn. She couldn’t help but smile at his shorter, scrawnier self. The rain flattened his usual bushy brown hair, but that adventurous gleam in his eyes shone as bright as ever. He jumped off his horse and rushed toward her younger self. She backed away, eyes wide. He slowed and stopped just at the edge of the rubble, and pure horror and concern took over his gaze at the sight.

“I…I saw smoke while I was out riding. Are you all right?”

Young Raylinn bit her lips together, trying to contain the tears, and shook her head.

He carefully stepped onto the burned debris and held out a hand. “Come on. Let’s get you somewhere dry.”

For several heartbeats she just stared.

This moment was as fresh in her memories as the fire.

At the time, other than her adoptive parents, she hadn’t had much contact with other people. They mostly stayed on their secluded farm, content as just the three of them. But now…now she was alone.

Slowly, slowly she reached for the proffered hand. As his fingers closed around hers, the endless despair weighing her heart lightened, just a little, and the downpour of rain quieted to a trickle.

The boy offered a wide grin that made her stomach flutter strangely. “Don’t worry, it’s going to be all right.”

Pain spiked through Raylinn’s skull. That hand had returned, gripping, constraining, pulling. With a shriek, she dropped to her knees and squeezed her eyes closed just as her past self let Finn guide her out of the rubble.

“Strange.” The lion’s honey-coated voice pierced through the throbbing. “You didn’t use magic at all at this moment.

“Of course…” She gasped in a ragged breath. “I would never…never use magic on Finn.”

“Hmmm. We will see.”

The squeezing hand inside her skull lessened, but stayed put, probing around, searching. She wheezed out breaths and peeled open her eyes. The images before her changed in rapid progression.

The day King Olten slapped Finn and, in her anger, her magic flared and pushed the king back, revealing to him what she really was. The day the imp who killed her parents tried to take over Finn’s mind and she sent a tornado of lava to swallow the vile man up. The day the vila in the tower choked Finn with her long, magical hair and Raylinn enchanted a sword with her magic to cut the hair away.

The hand kept searching, searching, searching. A wave of dizziness washed over her as scene after scene of her life since Finn came into it flashed before her eyes. The many places they visited, the many adventures they got themselves into, the many laughs they shared.

“I don’t understand it,” the lion murmured. “Not once do you use your magic on Finn. No ruses, no enchantments.”

She gritted her teeth against the nausea. “Of course not. Don’t you see?” She tore her eyes away from the speeding memories to face the lion’s glowing gaze. “Finn and I protect each other. That’s what we do. From the moment we met. We defend and protect one another, no matter what.”

He studied her for several seconds, his tail flicking. “Who are you, Raylinn?”

She pulled her head back. “What are you talking about?”

The images disappeared, as did the nausea. She dropped to her knees, taking deep breaths. The lion padded forward, close. His chilled breath sent goosebumps up her skin.

“Who are you?” he repeated, his voice nothing but a soft growl. “You seem…familiar. And yet you do not seem like fairy kind.”

She met his icy gaze, unblinking. “I may have been born a fairy, but I was raised a human. I want nothing to do with your kind.”

His eyes narrowed. “Trayla thought you gave the fairies Talgaria’s secrets to help bring down the kingdom as revenge toward King Olten.”

She scoffed. “I would never do that to Finn’s kingdom, no matter how the people here treated me. I’ve never even been to the fairy realm, nor do I desire to. You who think you’re superior to other species just because you have magic. You who would slay a child just because she looks different.” She gritted her teeth. “I hate fairies! Do you understand? I hate them!”

With a roar, he swatted her in the chest. She flew backward, skidding on her back. Before she could even move he was atop her, pinning her down with his great paws, salivating teeth looming above her face. His head came down and she let out a screech, but instead of the sting of teeth, soft, frosty fur met her forehead as he pressed his head against hers.

Pain, worse than ever, spiked through her head. She convulsed but his enormous form kept her down.

“Hold still,” he purred. “It’ll be over soon. These memories are deep, deep inside you. I just have to pull them out.”

She shrieked, tore at his legs, kneed him in the stomach, but he didn’t budge.

Then an image flashed through her mind’s eyes. A woman, cloaked, tearing through the forest in the pouring rain. Whimpers sounded from a lump in her arms.

“Shhh.” She peeled back the green shimmering blanket. Tear-stained purple eyes of a baby stared back at her. “It’ll be all right, sweetheart. I’ll find you somewhere safe, I promise.” She covered the baby back up and broke from the forest. Ahead, a little farm house sat lit up and warm in the downpour.

She approached it, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door. As it opened, light poured across the woman’s form, revealing a streak of purple hair fallen out of her hood.

A broad-figured man appeared on the other side of the doorway, with a homely dark-haired woman peering from behind. Their eyes widened at the sight before them.

“I need your help.” With a shaky breath, the woman straightened and pulled down her hood. Silky purple hair poured out, matching the swirling marking across her face. Lumps on her back shifted beneath her cloak. Wings.

The image vanished, along with the weight of the lion.

He stumbled back. “It’s her.”

The whiteness around them wavered, darkened, crumbled. A heaviness weighed down on Raylinn’s wrists. Head throbbing, she blinked as the world around her changed.

With another blink, the strange white world and lion dissipated complete, and a dark cell formed around her. She lay on a cot with icy straps along her wrists, holding her down. Ice crawled along the stone walls, and looming over her stood not a white lion, but Kellen, king of the fairies.

He stared off into nothing, shaking his head, mumbling. “She said…she said the baby had died during birth.”

Raylinn pulled in a breath. That woman in the image was her mother. Her actual birth mother. That was the day she gave Raylinn up so Raylinn could live.

Lips trembling, she turned to Kellen. “You knew her?”

His shocked gaze snapped over to her, as if he had forgotten she was even there, yet he only stared.

Clenching her jaw against the pain, she reached for her magic. A spark of warmth touched her fingertips. “Did you know my mother?”

His jaw slackened, but still he said nothing.

“Tell me!” She splayed her fingers and fire blazed from her palms, melting away the manacles. She jumped from the cot, swaying with dizziness, but meeting his gaze nonetheless. “Did. You. Know. My. Mother?”

The shock in his gaze faded, and one corner of his lips tilted up as he looked at her. Slowly, he reached for her cheek with the back of his fingers. She swatted it away and stumbled back, bumping into the cot behind her.

He laughed—a silky, icy laugh that sent shivers up her spine. “No wonder you seemed familiar. You’ve got her spirit. Stars, I miss her.”

Heart hammering, she clung to the edge of the cot. She struggled to speak past thickening saliva. “Is she…is she dead?”

His face fell and he stepped closer. “She rebelled against my ex-wife. She wanted to make peace with humankind, said they could be our allies. I’m sure you can imagine what the dear ol’ queen thought of that.”

The tears came unbidden and she slumped against the cot.

Until now, she had never been able to give her a face, but she thought of the woman often. The one who chose to let her live. Who chose to seek help from humans—the greatest shame to a fairy—just so her baby had a chance in the world. She hated fairies, but she never could hate her mother. A part of her had always hoped maybe, just possibly, she could meet her one day and thank her. Now that chance was lost forever.

And yet…

Yet a new form of hope blossomed. Her mother hadn’t been like other fairies. She didn’t hate humans or hold to the fairies’ prejudice. She was good and kind and fought to bring peace to the two races.

More tears spilled.

“I’m sorry, Raylinn. I really am.”

Her gaze snapped back to the man before her, and a lick of fire rushed through her chest. “What about you? Did you help with the execution?”

“Me?” There was that chilling laugh again. “Oh, dear Raylinn. How do you think I got banished? I was your mother’s advocate.”

Her brow furrowed as she tried to process this new information. “Why?”

He shrugged. “What can I say? She makes a compelling argument. She always had.”

“How long did you know her?”

“Why, forever of course. I was older than her. Oh, right, I didn’t get to that part yet, have I?” He leaned in close, eyes gleaming. “Your mother was my sister.”

The entire world seemed to tilt, and she just stared at the white-haired, blue-eyed, frosty-skinned man before her. Kellen righ Sithic. King of the fairies. Her mother’s older brother. Her uncle.

He tilted his head. “Raylinn?”

She blinked. And blinked again. This man was her uncle. She was of fairy royalty. Her mother was executed because she tried to bring peace between the fairies and humans. And this man, this man who put an ice dome around all of Talgaria, who aligned himself with Finn’s sister, who turned the Talgarian army into nothing more than moving ice sculptures, had been banished from the fairy realm for advocating her mother.

“This is…a lot,” she finally said.

“Mmm. For me too. I had no idea Altheria gave her baby up to a pair of humans.”

Altheria. Her mother’s name. She never knew it.

“She claimed you had died,” Kellen went on. “It was after that that she really changed. She had never been happy about our stance on humans, but after your ‘death’ she became proactive about it. Fighting to make peace, to bring change. Now I understand why.”

She swallowed. “So she could live in the human world. With me.”

“It seems so.”

Silence fell between them. Raylinn shifted her weight. “What now?”

He folded his arms and glanced at the ceiling. “Well, Trayla did request I kill you once I finished making sure you hadn’t cast any enchantments on Finnigan.”

She clenched her hands, warmth seeping around her fingertips. “So you’re just going to do what she says? Of all the humans to ally with, you had to choose Trayla. You know, for a fairy king, you’re not very smart.”

He chuckled. “Is that so? What other army do you think would freely let me give them my gift and help me take down the fairy queen?”

“Your gift? You mean where you turned good soldiers into frosty puppets?”

“That is an unfortunate side effect. But in return they have received great strength and are now nearly impervious to magic. It is the only way to take down the queen. But you know I can only give the gift to those who willingly take it. After fairies attacked Talgaria, these people became desperate. I caught wind of the attack and offered my services to Trayla.”

She stared at him for several heartbeats, trying to solve this enigma of a man. “So you really want to kill the fairy queen?” she finally asked.

A sharp edge glinted in his eyes. “More than anything.” He pulled up a hand and stared at it as snowflakes sprinkled down from his fingers. “I tried to stop Altheria’s execution, you know. But the queen and the other fairies all overpowered me. The queen disowned me and then…cursed me. With this.” He tapped his chest. “An icy heart. I can never feel warmth again, and I can barely even love. My kiss just turns a person into a frosty puppet, as you say. And, worst of all, I can’t even die.”

She tilted her head. “Even in this realm?” The immortality of fairies only worked when they were within their own realm, where they received their magic. When they stepped out into the mortal realm, they themselves became mortal as well. She aged as normally as any human. But if she ever entered the fairy realm, she’d stop aging completely for however long she was there. “If you’ve been banished for years, you should eventually grow old.”

He barked a dry laugh. “Not so. She froze my heart and my age. I am stuck like this forever. Never able to be released from this icy prison.”

Unable to love. Unable to die. She had never desired her rightful fairy immortality, because all she ever wanted was to be able to grow old with Finn. But if she couldn’t love, would she want to live forever? That really would be a prison.

She stepped forward and, slowly, slipped her fingers around his upper arm. His icy skin chilled her down to the bone, but she held on. “I’m sorry, Kellen.”

He glanced down at her, lips quirked in half smile. “What? No ‘Uncle Kellen’?”

She tried to grimace, but a chuckle slipped out instead. “I don’t think so.”

He grinned. “Too strange?”

“Much too strange. Now, come on. I need to find Finn and figure things out.” She walked to the closed cell gate and gave it a shake. “Can you open this?”

Silence.

“Kellen?” She glanced over her shoulder to find him frowning at her. “Are you going to open this or not?”

“That could be a problem.”

“What? Did you lose the key or something?” She raised an eyebrow. “Um. We both have magic. I’ll just blast it open.”

He raised a hand and a spurt of ice whizzed from his palm and froze the lock, tighter than ever.

Raylinn’s heart sped up. “What did you do that for?”

He stepped toward her, his frown deepening. She pressed against the bars, reaching for her magic.

“K—Kellen?”

“The thing is,” he said slowly, cautious. “It is going to be a long war to defeat my ex-wife. A war where we will have to do some…” His gaze rolled up to the ceiling. “Hard things. Things I fear Prince Finnigan will not approve of.”

She licked her lips. “Like turning the Talgarian army into puppets?”

“For one example, yes. I don’t think your prince was happy about that.”

“Well, neither am I.”

“I understand, but this is a war, Raylinn.” His voice rose. “Against the woman who killed your mother, my sister. Who cursed me into this. We have to stop her, no matter what.”

Those three final words churned her stomach. “At what cost?”

He shifted his weight, dropping his gaze to the floor.

She pushed away from the cell bars and clenched her fists. “At what cost, Kellen?”

His eyes slid back up to hers, and the heaviness in them weighed down to the pit of her stomach. “In order to kill a fairy royalty, another royal’s life blood must be spilled.”

Her breath left her as his words sunk in. “Spill a royal’s blood?” she choked out. “Any royal?”

He licked his lips. “Any will do, yes.”

“Does Trayla know?”

He turned his head, silent, but that was answer enough.

“So you’ve deceived her then.”

“I’m doing what I have to.”

Heat swelled in her chest, her fingertips. “You are just as bad as the fairy queen. You lie and deceive and use people to get whatever you want!”

He snapped back around to face her. “I am nothing like her.”

“How can I believe that after what you just told me? Whose blood are you going to spill? Trayla’s? Finn’s? Mine? I’m of royal blood, aren’t I? Are you planning on killing me, Kellen?”

Blue sparked in his eyes. “No. I wouldn’t do that. Not…not now.”

She snorted. “But you were. I was disposable until you discovered we’re family.”

“Why do you think I’m telling you this?” His voice rose and ice crackled along the floor and walls. “The queen killed your mother! You of all people should understand. She has to be stopped.”

“Not at the expense of someone’s life!”

“It’s a war, Raylinn. People die!”

Heart surged through her bloodstream despite the lowering temperatures. “Willing soldiers die to protect and defend their home, their loved ones! What you’re doing is taking away their freewill and trading lives! Is that why you locked us up? To use Finn’s blood as the sacrifice? Or is this just all a ruse and Trayla is your target?”

He worked his jaw back and forth, voice lowering. “No. I have nothing against Finnigan. And Trayla… I wouldn’t hurt her. But there is another we can use, one that would benefit us both.”

Dread squirmed in her stomach. “Who?”

“King Olten.”

The fire seemed to seep out of her, leaving her cold, shivering, numb. “Finn’s father…” she whispered. The man who tried to have her executed, who banished his own son for befriending a fairy girl.

Kellen stepped closer. “I saw what he did to you in your memories. I know his hatred for our kind. It is people like him who spread the hatred of fairies like poison. With him and the fairy queen out of the way, we could live in a new world, Raylinn. One of peace between both races.”

She took in a shuddering breath. It was true. King Olten was one of the devoutest fairy haters in the kingdoms. As long as he lived, she could never come out of hiding, never live any normal life. And neither could Finn.

She squeezed her eyes shut, remembering the day Olten struck Finn in anger. The day her own fury revealed itself along with her magic and she threw the king across the room with a burst of light.

Finn had immediately run to his father, fear in his eyes. Because, however cruel Olten was, he was still Finn’s father. Raylinn and Finn spoke of him often. Always hoping, always wishing maybe he’d come around.

“Father used to be softer, back when Mother still lived,” Finn had told her once. “After her death, he became hard and cruel. I don’t want to become like that. I don’t ever want the trials of life to harden me. I want to return evil with goodness and maybe…maybe the goodness will win out in the end.”

Return evil with goodness.

That was what Finn believed in, what he strove for. So often she had fallen into bitterness. Toward fairies, toward King Olten, toward all those who hated and shunned and feared her kind. But Finn reminded her that there was good in the world, and that hate only brought more hate.

“Help me, Raylinn.” Kellen reached for her cheek. “Help me end this.”

She snatched his wrist. Steam hissed as her fiery fingers met his icy skin. “No.”

His gaze hardened. “Raylinn—”

“No! I will not help you spill innocent blood.”

“Innocent?” he scoffed. “That man is anything but innocent. He hates us and would happily slay our throats!”

“Yes, exactly. It’s like you said, his hatred for the fairies is like a poison. But you can’t fix hatred with hatred. If word gets out that we murdered the king of Talgaria to end this war, how do you think people will react? They will only hate us more. We cannot stoop to the fairy queen’s level! If you fight hatred with hatred, it will keep spreading that poison.”

He leaned in close, his breath sending frost across her face. “This is the only way.”

“I don’t believe that.”

A dangerous gleam sharpened his gaze. “So you won’t help me?”

She refused to break his stare. “If this is how you’re going to fight, then no. I cannot be a part of this.”

He stared at her for one, two, three heartbeats. “I’m sorry to hear that,” he whispered, and then his other hand snapped up and clutched the side of her head. Icy pain shot through her skull, whiteness edging her vision.

She grunted, squeezed her eyes shut, slumped against the bars.

“This is not the family reunion I hoped for.” Kellen’s voice barely slid through her fading conscience.

Family…

Heat crackled in her chest and spread, spread, spread. Down her arms, her legs, to her fingertips.

He hissed and jerked his arm she still held in her hand.

She opened her eyes. Steam hissed violently where her fingers touched his skin, and his hold on her head loosened.

She shoved back up to a stand, meeting him eye-to-eye as empowering flames flared through her core, begging to be released. She thrust her hand against his chest and let it loose. Flames leaped from her palm and threw him back. He slammed into the wall and slumped to the ground, still.

Heart pounding, she rushed to him. A red welt marred his chest, but it moved up and down, slowly. He lived, and even now the welt faded. No doubt his wounds healed quickly.

She blew out a breath, turned to the gate, and thrust a ball of light at the lock. The entire gate flew off its hinges and clattered on the stone floor. “I’m sorry, Kellen.” She stepped out of the cell and cast him one last look before marching down the hall. “But I have to go save my real family.”

Remember when these used to be just goofy short stories? Yeah, those were good times… *cough*

ALSO. Full disclaimer, I am 100% pantsing this, so if any of you sharped memory people have discovered any inconsistencies, I apologize. These characters keep throwing random plot twists at me and I don’t even know what to do with them. *shakes head* This story is such a mess. But I’m having fun, and hopefully you are too!

Aaanyways, I apologize again for the long wait with this! February was so busy, I just didn’t get a chance to get to this. Annnd April is looking to be pretty full too whoops. But if I can’t get to the part 9 by April, I should have one for you by May for sure!

Thanks for sticking with me, guys! Hope you’re all doing well!

LET’S TALK!

What did you think of this latest story? Any guesses of what will happen next? (Even *I* don’t know eheheheh #helpme) That cliffhanger wasn’t quite as bad as the last one’s? Yeah? Maybe?? IpromiseIloveyouguys.

And don’t forget Arielle’s got a great The Wounded Lion inspired writing prompt HERE. As so many of us are stuck indoors right now, this is a great time to release some creativity with flash fiction writing!