Page 75 of The Demon's Beauty
Tentatively, I flex the massive appendages. The sound of the wings moving, leathery and sharp, echo in the bathroom. It’s music to my ears. But this bathroom is small, far too cramped to truly experience the full effect of my wings. I stumble out of the bathroom to grab pants, lacking all the grace and poise I typically possess, and make my way out of the house.
The moment I’m out in the open, I spread my wings out as far as they’ll go. They ache, but it’s a good ache. Itmeans they're as strong as my old ones. But that has yet to be tested. Humans have a saying I once found quite odd. They always compare a vastly unrelated task to riding a bike. It took me a great deal to understand what that meant, but I think I finally do.
It’s all muscle memory. Things you don’t learn, but rather come as naturally as breathing. I hope this rings true now. I access the muscles that have been lost to me for so long. It’s painful, but like I said before, I’m not a stranger to pain. It’s easy to ignore.
The leathery wings began to thrash until I’m able to control the speed to a simple flutter. My eyes close, feeling the sensation of the wind and world around me. Listening to the sounds of the restless forest and smelling the cedar of the trees, mixed with toxic gasoline from the cars in town.
When I open my eyes, my cottage is below me. The lush expanse of the forest is for my viewing. A curious bird flies close but quickly retreats from the strange gray man in his skies. I’m so overcome with emotions that tears stain my cheeks. Crying is something I never do, but it seems like the only logical response to such a tremendous and world-changing gift.
I’m no longer grounded on earth. The skies are open to me once again.
A battle cry forms in my core, and I shout to the heavens, for once praising the mercy of gods instead of scorning. But my job is far from done. I still have two more girls to go. If this is my prize for four, she most certainly will be my prize for six.
With thoughts of a life that could potentially be mine once again, I take flight to the next destination—to find the new future fae queen.
To be continued…
