That night Ken found his daughter sitting on his bed staring at the framed photo he always kept on his nightstand. A nurse had taken the photo of him, Orlaigh and a baby Valda, not long after she was born. It was one of his most prized possessions.

"How did you cope when you found out Mom was from a different realm?" Valda lifted her head and regarded her father still standing in the doorway.

He moved forward and sat next to her, taking the frame and running his fingers across their smiling face.

"Your mother was like no other woman I'd ever met. I used to joke about her being from a different world, so when I found out about Adiocion it sort of made sense." His fingers lingered over the image of Orlaigh. Not a day had gone by when her absence didn't affect him.

"Did you ever go there? Did Mom take you? What's it like?" Valda fired off questions so quickly Ken couldn't help but chuckle.

But he shook his head, wistfully. "For a human to walk through a portal they need the blessing of the King or Queen who govern the land you enter. Your mother could never take me to see Lania without first telling her parents. By the time she had the ability to take me, it was far safer for me to remain here with you."

When he was younger, he would have given anything to see Lania, but now all he wanted was to see the woman he still loved.

"Mauve said it's like the whole place is alive with magic," Valda said, awe lacing her words.

Ken could see the same wide-eyed excitement he used to feel about Adiocion in her eyes. The dream of what laid beyond their world was enticing.

"Your mother used to say every breath there was like breathing in new life, making you stronger and more resilient." Sadness tinged his words.

"Dad, what was Mom like?"

Ken looked down at his daughter, his sadness growing. He felt selfish. Whilst he had enjoyed several years with Orlaigh, Valda barely remembered her. She had to leave when their daughter was barely a year old.

He cleared his throat and thought back. "She was always smiling and interested in everything. Everywhere we went she would ask millions of questions about how things worked or what something did. Her curiosity was boundless. Like someone else I know." He peered at his daughter with a pointed look which made Valda snigger.

"But she was also proud and brave. Brave enough to take a chance and fall in love with a human. Brave enough to bring you into this world."

"Yeah, she was really brave when she left us here," Valda grumbled, clenching her fists in anger.

Ken tugged on her hair, which was just as unruly as his beloved's. "She left us here so you could be safe. So you could grow up like a normal kid with no worries. If you ask me, that was your mother's bravest moment."

He watched the flood of emotion crash over his daughter's face. She reminded him so much of Orlaigh in those moments that his heart ached.

"I have to go with Carrick and Mauve, don't I?" Valda gazed up at her Dad, her expression unreadable.

Ken pondered his answer, brushing his hand down the side of her face. "Only you can make that decision, sunshine." Her shocked expression made him laugh.

"What? You're not gonna tell me that I need to go?"

"Nope. you have to figure out what you want to do yourself."

Valda crossed her arms, sulkily. "That's not fair."

Ken couldn't hold back his deep laugh at her outraged expression. He'd always found her anger comical, even when she'd been a child.

"Life isn't always fair, Darling, but it is always our choice. Just know whatever you do I'll always be proud of you." He kissed her head and made his way to the door. There was still a mountain of dishes waiting for him from dinner.

"Dad? Can I keep this with me tonight?" Valda held up the picture frame. She still held herself stiffly, but her anger had disappeared.

"Course you can." Ken smiled in her direction and then left her to her musing.

Valda's hand trailed over the photo of her mother, a woman she'd never really known. The only memory that she seemed to have was of her mother's voice singing to her. But she wasn't even sure if this memory was real or just something her brain had created to fill the large rift in her heart. A rift that had grown now that she knew her mother was still out there somewhere.

Valda tossed in her bed, unable to sleep. She turned on her side and stared at the picture she'd taken from her Dad. The moonlight illuminated the smiling faces of her parents, reminding her she was the one thing that could bring them back together.

She'd overheard Carrick and Mauve talking whilst she'd walked passed their room before bed. They planned to go back to the portal tomorrow with or without her. They had been worrying about family and friends back in Lania. 

Valda had shuffled to her room quickly when she'd heard Mauve sob. She didn't want to witness their sadness when she knew she was one of the few people that could stop it but was refusing to.

Now lying awake in her bed, she wondered what her mother would think of her if she left Lania to defend itself. It was always possible that the rebels, Carrick and Mauve spoke about, would defeat Lorcan's forces without her.

The moonlight reminded Valda of what Mauve had told her in the shop. She wondered whether the lake was really as beautiful as Mauve had made it out to be. Or whether Adiocion was somewhere she wanted to go.

She couldn't say that the thought of seeing her Mom wasn't appealing. If she did she'd be lying, but still Valda struggled to forgive her. And maybe she never would. Still, she wanted the chance to talk to her and ask her how she could just walk away from them.

Thoughts of her mother and Adiocion swirled in her head. Her father's words mixed with Mauve's until she felt like she could almost see what Lania would be like. Even in her imagination it was magnificent.

Her eyes closed, and she fell into a dream.

She was in a forest which still glittered with morning dew. Trees towered over her in every direction, but she didn't feel afraid. Every time she breathed in the clean air, she relaxed further. It felt like home to her. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew where she was, but that knowledge was just out of reach.

A sudden shadow blotted out the light and Valda raised her head, surprised when she saw the sky darken. She shivered as all the warmth seeped out of the air.

"Quick, we have to run! We need to hide!"

A body slammed into hers, and Valda felt her wrist being yanked, forcing her to run. Too stunned to do much more she allowed the mystery girl to drag her away.

Whilst the place had felt familiar, Valda was sure she'd never seen the girl before. She had a shock of vivid green hair that fell to below her waist, and her skin was so pale it was almost translucent. Her pink smock stopped just below her knee and bounced with every step as she ran.

"Come on! He's right behind us."

It was only then that Valda felt someone else's presence. The ground shook, and the girl turned her head, a look of horror on her face.

Not being able to resist, Valda looked behind her and almost fainted.

A vast shadow was lumbering towards them, its power leaking into the surrounding trees and causing them to wither and die.

"Through here!"

They dodged and ducked through branches, but they ended up running into a deadend. Thousands of bramble vines crisscrossed the path in front of them, making it impossible for them to escape.

The girl grabbed Valda by the hand and spun her so they were almost nose to nose.

"He will destroy everything, but you can stop this. You're meant to be here. You'll see." The green-headed girl went from being terrified to almost smug before she dissolved into mist, leaving Valda alone.

The thing that had been chasing them was still creeping closer, its darkness reaching forward, trying to get Valda. Now alone, she huddled against the brambles, trying to seem small. From the darkness, a pair of red eyes watched her.

Her breath caught in the back of her throat as she watched the eyes move closer. As the shadow pounced, she let loose a scream.

Bolting up in bed, Valda tried to control her erratic breathing. She realised it had only been a dream and laid back. Something tugged at her hair and she lifted her hand to investigate, feeling her stomach sink when she disentangled a small bramble vine.

She put the vine on her nightstand next to the photo and then turned back to her side. Exhaustion claimed her instantly, and she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

Though her nightmare still bothered her, Valda felt rested the next morning. And she'd made up her mind. The only thing she had to do now was explain to her father.

Walking down to breakfast, she saw Carrick and Mauve already dressed and sat at the table. Her father was at the stove making a batch of chocolate pancakes.

They all greeted her when she appeared and she mumbled a few words back before pouring herself a glass of orange juice.

She took a drink to clear her throat and then addressed the room. "So I've decided; I'm going with Carrick and Mauve."

The siblings looked at her in amazement but her Dad just continued to smile at her. It was one part sad and one part proud, as if he'd known what her decision would be all along. Considering he knew her better than anyone, that was more than likely true.

"What made you change your mind?" Carrick asked, recovering from his shock quicker than his sister, who continued to gape at her.

Valda shrugged whilst taking a seat. "I guess I want to talk to my Mom, find out from her directly why she thought leaving was a good idea. And the only way to do that is to save Lania." She tried to pretend that it was no big deal, but her heart was pounding. She wasn't sure she was making the right decision, but it was the only decision that she could live with.

"There is something more. I can see it in your face." Mauve looked at her skeptically.

Valda tried not to fidget under the sudden stares directed at her. Though seeing her Mom was the primary reason she was going, it wasn't the only thing that was pushing her. Her nightmare had also played a role in her decision.

Sighing to herself, she told them of her nightmare. Explaining her feeling of urgency and connection to the unknown girl. Some time during the night she'd realised that the forest she'd been in had to be somewhere in Adiocion, though the girl had remained a mystery to her.

Carrick and Mauve exchanged glances with triumphant looks.

"You know what my nightmare means, don't you?"

They turned to stare at her, as though assessing her, but she didn't know what for.

"Remember when I said that it's like nature is alive in Adiocion? Well, some people believe that literally. That Adiocion has its own soul, its own consciousness. A few great rulers in history have even claimed to have spoken with her."

Valda gulped, trying to process that. "And what did they say she looked like?" She mumbled out. Surely the girl she had seen couldn't be the spirit of Adiocion. It made no sense.

Carrick scratched at his closely shaved head. "Descriptions vary. She typically appears as either the maiden, the mother, or the crone. But your description of the girl with green hair and translucent skin seems to fit in with most of the other descriptions," he said thoughtfully whilst Mauve just nodded her head.

"Do you realise what this means?" Mauve stood excitedly, but Valda just shook her head. "It means you are clearly Queen Orlaigh's daughter. You have a connection to Adiocion unlike anyone else's. You are meant to come with us. This proves it." Her elation was catching as Carrick joined in on her celebration.

"Then I guess we'd better get you three ready." Ken's voice broke in.

Valda turned to look at him, feeling a lump in her throat. "Dad I..." She wasn't sure what she wanted to say.

"It's okay, Valda. This is something you need to do. I understand that." His words were heartfelt, but sadness still lurked in his eyes.

Over the next few hours, Valda had tried to find time to talk to her Dad but their preparations kept them apart. She packed and repacked her rucksack so it was light enough not to weigh her down on their journey. Carrick and Mauve had already explained that it would take a few days to reach the rebel stronghold from the portal, and there weren't many towns in that isolated part of Lania.

Finally, when she was sitting next to her Dad in the car, Carrick and Mauve in the back, she found all the words she wanted to say died in her throat. All she could do was look at him out of the corner of her eye whilst her mind focused on the road in front.

They made the usual two and half hour journey in just under two hours. Almost like the world was desperate to get rid of them. Her time with her Dad was drawing closer to an end and yet she still couldn't think of what to say to him.

Dusk was just beginning to settle as they made their way to the ruins of Wallington Castle. Carrick had already explained that time in Adiocion mirrored that of the human world. So when they stepped through the portal it would be dusk there too. They planned to use the cover of night to arrive and leave the portal as quickly as possible.

During their preparations Ken had voiced the worry about the portals now being guarded by Lorcan's forces, but Carrick had assured him that Lorcan would not know about the secret room in the castle that had once held the archway they'd travelled through. Without that room, he would remain uncertain of how the siblings had made their escape. 

Whilst Valda acknowledged to herself that this sounded reasonable, she also noticed the worry in Carrick's eyes. It didn't make her feel particularly confident.

They checked their bags one last time before Carrick and Mauve moved away to summon the portal, subtly giving Valda and her father some time alone.

Valda opened her mouth to say something, but before she could her father was pressing her head against his chest. His arms enveloped her in a hug so tight she felt like he might crack one of her ribs. It didn't stop her from hugging him back just as tightly.

"Promise me, you'll listen to Mauve and Carrick? No unnecessary risks, okay?" Ken's voice wavered.

"I promise, Dad. I'll come back." Valda shook in her father's arms, knowing that maybe that was something she couldn't promise.

Ken stepped back and rubbed away the few tears that had escaped to roll down her cheeks. "You were born to do this, love. I have always known Adiocion would need you someday and that I can't keep you from your destiny."

Valda's eyes widened, and she wanted to ask her father how he'd known, but shimmering lights reflected in her father's face, distracted her. She turned and gasped. The stone archway, which had stood empty, was filled by shifting light, colours blurring like a kaleidoscope.

"Valda we need to go. The residual magic in this place is the only reason we can open the portal in the human world. I don't know how long it'll last." Carrick waved her over, looking sympathetically between her and Ken.

"Go, honey. I'll be here when you get back," Ken said fiercely as if challenging fate to defy him.

He planted a quick kiss on her forehead before pushing her towards the portal. Carrick grasped her hand on one side and Mauve held her other. The last image she had was of her father looking anxiously at her before they all stepped through the portal.

The feeling of being compressed and pushed through a freezing waterfall, rushed through her, but her companions' hands in hers stopped her panic.

When her foot touched solid ground again, she breathed an enormous sigh of relief and realised that her Mom had been right. Breathing in Adiocion was like breathing in pure life. For the first few seconds, she felt exhilarated. She was in an unknown world and couldn't wait to explore it. But just as quickly as her mind thought this a gigantic shadow loomed out of the trees in front of them.

The man was tall, as most Fae were, and his face was frozen in a cold sneer. His skin was pale and his hair bright white, as though they had both been leached of colour. He wore all black except for a silver crest on his breast and had a sword pointing directly at Carrick's chest. If that image wasn't bad enough, more men began emerging from the trees, until she and Mauve were also staring down the blade of a sword.

"Well, well. If we don't have the Prince and Princess. Lorcan will reward me handsomely for your capture. Bind them!"

Quicker than they could react, their arms and legs were secured with rope that faintly glowed. The man who'd ordered their capture removed Carrick's dagger and tossed it aside before laughing at Mauve's attempts to use magic to loosen the rope.

"Silly girl, Lorcan spelt this rope himself to block all magic. As long as it touches your skin, you and your brother are powerless. Now sit, nice and quiet, we wouldn't want to gag those pretty mouths' of yours." The man chuckled to himself before they were all tossed into the back of a wagon.

"You can't do this, Blaan!" Carrick roared out, but Blaan only smirked and turned away.

"Not a bad haul tonight, men. Two royal brats and a rebel scum. Lorcan will be impressed."

Valda looked at the distraught faces of her companions as cheers went up around them. What the hell were they supposed to do now?