The sky was a mess of the molten sun.

It was a blanket of changing hues, mischievously blending from one colour to another. The chaos of the wrathful reds and melancholic oranges, slowly transitioned into a soft, soothing violet above the horizon. It reminded Ced of someone.

" It's beautiful, isn't it ?" Hazel smiled.

Ced looked at her, her hair frequently tossed mid air by the wind, her lips bent into a gentle curve and a serenity written all over her face, as it shone in the light of the golden sun.

" Indeed, it is." he said.

*******

It all seemed like a dream ; a nightmare and a fantasy at the same time .

Hazel was back in the study at home, the place where it all began.

Gran Luella snored lightly on the green armchair.

Hazel coughed lightly. Gran woke up with a start.

" Hazel ! Why, I've been waiting for you !" she said, " How are you , my child ?"

" I don't know. I feel different, really different. I still look the same, though."

" Sit down, dear."

Hazel sat down, comforted by the familiarity of her surroundings. 

" I know you have a lot to tell and I'm eager to hear too, but I believe that I owe you some answers, first."

Hazel nodded.

"The strange woman you saw all those years ago, was Cap of Rushes. You are connected to the other dimension, you can see what ordinary humans cannot. You are gifted. I am sorry, I didn't tell you sooner, love."

" Gran, you said that this special gift runs in our blood. Did dad also ...."

Gran Luella's eyes turned moist and grim.

" Yes." she sighed, "If you believe in ever afters, in magic, in dreams come true, your life will be full of miracles. All you need is to have faith and open your eyes wider. I'm afraid your father wasn't much of believer."

" Did you ever try to send him to the Fantasy Realm ?" Hazel asked.

" Of course. He went to the Realm, but he was not as strong  as you are. He could not accept what he was. He grappled with reality. He lost belief in his childhood adventures and the scenes he had witnessed, claiming that I had bewitched him. His sight weakened over time.

" Alas !" said gran," Humans have become so comfortable in their own small world that if something, however true it may seem, tries to destroy it, they refuse to accept it. And so, my dear, truth  becomes a lie.

" I foolishly tried to share my wisdom with the world, to make them aware. I wrote tales and theories on fairy tales. Instantly , fame was bestowed upon me. People were amazed by my perspective on the old myths. I tried to emphasize on the truth of what I said; they were not myths , but facts. It was not meant to be."

Little tears rolled down Luella's cheeks, as harsh memories of the past were refreshed. Hazel's eyes welled up too.

" They called me crazy. They laughed at me. Some were scared too. They wouldn't let their children come near me, because they were worried that I might manipulate them into thinking like me, like a lunatic." said gran. 

Hazel took Luella's hands, holding them firmly.

" You are not a lunatic , gran. You are the most amazing grandmother in the history of the two worlds. I aspire to be like you; brave and dauntless, but calm and wise."

"So are you."

Hazel hugged her grandmother. " I love you."

" I love you too, dear, the most in the world." gran said, pecking her on the cheek.

" There is one more thing I want to ask, Gran."

" Go on."

" What did you tell mom and dad about me being away for so long ?"

" But you have only been away for the night." gran smiled.

" What ?" Hazel asked, completely baffled.

" It's only been twelve hours, Hazel."

" But how? I have been away for nearly twelve days."  Hazel said.

Gran smiled at her, amused. "Can't you figure it out?"

"So by some crazy science, one day in that realm is equivalent to one hour in this world ?" Hazel asked.

" Crazy science, it is."

*****

" Rise ! Rise , O miraculous talismans. Come to me from heaven and below. Come to your master, the maker of your powers. Listen to he who beckons you. Rise !"

The imp laughed to his heart's content. His surroundings were shrouded in smoke and shine.

The talismans were coming back to him, to make his half a whole.

He felt the warmth of power in his sinew and danced in all his mirth.

"Tomorrow ! Tomorrow !" he sang in sheer delight, "Nobody knows my name. I am called ..."

He hushed himself, for he mustn't say it out loud, at least, not yet.

He let out an ecstatic shriek that pierced the dark sky.

******

Hazel did not feel like herself. It was like Life had seized her and filled her with zeal.

She had laughed at her mother's baffled expression when she had hugged her and said, " I love you so much mom . Thank you for saving me. You gave me the will to get up and the courage to fight."

Her mother had thought that she had had a bad dream.

It was like A Christmas Carol ; one night had changed her life, miraculously.

She stood in front of the mirror and saw a girl stare back at her. It was not the old her, but someone much different. Someone much more powerful. Someone who was aware of her entity.

Someone who believed in herself and valued herself.

Her eyes shone like purple fire and she seemed to glow with newfound confidence. And there was a curve that never left her face.

Hazel Smith had found herself; after all this time, she knew who she was.

 *THE END*

The  Author's  Last Note :

Well , I really don't know what to say . So I'll just do a short and rundown version of Acknowledgements . Thank you mom for making me fall in love with fairy tales and thank you dad, for being a constant Grammar Nazi and showing me that there is scope for improvement at each step ; you taught me how to be a constant learner.

Thank you @fieryme1611 for introducing me to Wattpad , a platform which gave me the confidence to share my story with people from different parts of the world and learn from them. I love you my drama queen <3 ! 

Thank you @IamSomya  and frozenshadows11 the former , for bearing with me and always giving candid opinions on the story, and the latter , for loving me and caring for me, more than I ever could for her .

And above all , A BIG THANKS TO ALL MY READERS , who stuck with me and my not so perfect story . I love you guys to infinity and could not be more thankful for every single read , vote , comment and the love that I got from you all each day. I am grateful.

Also, thank you to my brother for nothing really. He just felt bad that he wasn't mentioned in the Acknowledgements. So there you go !

Moving on from one hell of a trashy Acknowledgement , I LEFT YOU GUYS ON A CLIFFHANGER !! And that most definitely means that there will be a sequel.

This will be a trilogy. The next book , 'FROST' will be up after a week or more , maybe. I am not promising  anything. Whenever it will be up , you guys will be notified by an update in this book itself . So till then , Adieu.

Cartons of dark chocolates and love

Bookworm