Ivory

The sound of waves crashing against a snow-covered bank filled my ears. I sat at the end of a rickety old dock over a huge sparkling lake. I would say it was the biggest one I've ever seen, but I don't really have anything to compare it to. The sun rose high into the sky over the snow-capped mountains on the horizon and pine trees scattered the landscape as far as the eye could see.

I'm not sure how, why or when I got here or what happened before. It was all fuzzy. I'm not even sure if any of this was real. It could be all in my head. It probably was. Mother would never let me leave the wards. I felt at peace, though. I'm not sure why, but it felt like home. 

But that feeling only lasted for a moment.

"Ivy!" a familiar voice called from behind me. I turned and my heart leapt into my throat.

"Mom!" I stood up on shaky legs and ran. For a moment, it felt like the world was crumbling around me and the dock just kept getting longer and longer. The world around me darkened and shattered like a picture frame. My pulse quickened and my lungs burned. Why can't I reach her? I felt tears burn in my eyes as I sprinted faster and faster. My chest constricted and I screamed. 

"Mommy!"

I stumbled over the uneven boards, scrambling to get to her. She looked so far away. I needed to apologize for what I could not remember. I just knew that I had to. One of the boards caught my foot, and I tripped. Reaching out in front of me, I braced for impact, but none came. Instead, I fell into the warm embrace of my mother and father.

"Mom! Dad!" I cried. I suddenly felt so small and frail. My heart burned and my stomach rolled as tears poured down my face. "I-I'm so sorry."

"We love you, Ivy. I hope you know that." my father said, his voice as gentle as a feather. His green eyes were misty, and he wiped away the tears that refused to stop.

"My darling girl, I'm sorry... I should have told you everything." My mother cried and embraced me, brushing her lips against my temple.

Tell me what? What was going on? I didn't understand. I looked back and forth between them. They looked so sad. Why?

A bright light emerged from behind them and they started to fade.

No!

"No! Don't leave me! Come back! Please! I'm sorry!"

"Don't leave me all alone!"

"Please!" I choked.

"I'm sorry!"

I bolted upright, clutching my burning chest, gasping for air. Where am I? What happened? My eyes stung with salty tears as I rubbed them and blinked through the pounding in my head. I sat in a small cot with a tan woolen blanket. The room looked like our small wooden cottage, but it wasn't my bedroom. As my eyes passed over the dresser that sat across from me, I froze, catching my reflection in the mirror that was positioned next to it.

My heart sped up and my breath caught in my throat. Scrambling, I fell out of the wooden bed, hitting the floor with a thud. On my hands and knees, I crawled and sat in front of the mirror. My hand shook as I touched the smooth glass. My hair was still as white as snow, but my skin... my skin was no longer a rich ebony. It had turned to an icy blue. I noticed a point peeking out of my hair, peeling back the curtain of white. I examined my ears, which had lengthened and came to a point. My eyes were still an emerald green, which brought me some comfort, but their shape had changed. They were slightly slanted and rounded, as well as larger.

"What the fuck?" I whispered. Something brushed against my back, making me jump out of my skin. I turned, but there was nothing there. It happened again, and I reached behind me. My hands grasped a long thick rope, or that's what I thought it was, until I pulled it in front of me. The strangest sensation rippled up my back, and I screamed, dropped the appendage and scrambled against the nearest wall.

I had a fucking tail!

My heart rammed in my chest as I looked around the room, what the hell was going on?! I need to find mom... she would be able to tell me. Was it some kind of rogue spell? I froze. When was the last time I saw my mom... I remember sneaking out of the wards and meeting those humans... but after that. A searing pain and high-pitched whistle blocked my thoughts when I tried to recall what had happened. In the midst of the pain, my knees buckled and I gripped my head in agony.

Why couldn't I remember?!

The door suddenly opened and I jumped, scrambling for the bed to hide. A woman had stepped in carrying a tray of steaming food and beverage. She flinched when she saw me peeking over the bed and set the tray down on the dresser. I'm not sure why, but she looked somewhat familiar, which was strange because I had never seen anyone like her—unless you count my reflection. Her skin was a pale icy blue and her white hair was tied up in an intricate braid. Her light brown eyes studied me carefully as she sat down in one of the plush chairs along the wall. The wrinkles on her face and hands indicated that she was around my mother's age.

"My name is Ayla. What is your name?" she asked calmly. Her voice was soft and sweet.

My eyes narrowed at the question. Should I tell her or make up a name... she did tell me hers. "I-Ivory," I mumbled, releasing the breath I didn't realize I was holding.

Her eyes widened and became misty. "That was our grandmother's name." She smiled as she looked down at her hands, rubbing them together nervously.

Grandmother?

"What exactly are you?"

Her brows pinched together and she tilted her head. "You... you don't know?"

"I've never seen anyone like you in my life. I don't know what kind of trick you're trying to pull, but I suggest you dispel whatever magic you cast on me to make me look like you." Her confusion seemed to deepen. "Magic? Ivory, I cast no magic on you. You are an Elf just like me and just like your..."

"My what? What are you even saying? I'm a human, just like my mother and father. Where even are my parents? Where the hell am I?!" I asked, crossing my arms in front of my chest. If she wasn't blocking the door, I would have been out of here by now. Not to mention I didn't know whether she wielded magic.

Her smile faltered, and she cleared her throat, picking up one of the pictures off the dresser and handed it to me. "Do you recognize anyone in this photo here?"

I stared at her for a moment, a question dancing on my lip, but not sure how to put it into words. She didn't answer any of my questions. What the hell was going on?! I needed to find mom. Maybe if I was quick, I could barge past her. I could still feel my magic swirling inside me so I could use that if it came down to it, but only as a last resort. I shifted on the floor, about ready to bolt, when she spoke again.

"Humor me, please," she said, shaking the small portrait. "I promise to tell you all that I know." Her honey glazed brown eyes bored into mine, gentle and soft like my mothers.

Reluctantly, I sat on the bed and took the wooden frame. The picture was of her and two others. A woman who looked just like her but older, they were sitting side by side with their heads together and big bright smiles on their faces. When my eyes shifted to the background of the picture, I nearly dropped the frame. The man standing behind them was my father—albeit a younger version of him. His green eyes sparkled as he engulfed both the women in a hug.

"My...my dad..."

The strange woman shifted in her seat and sighed. "William Hart was a great man and one of my closest friends, second only to my sister, Willow, your mother." she reached forward and tapped the other woman on the frame.

My breath froze as I took in her words. "What... but how? I don't understand. What do you mean, was?" a lump formed in my throat. Please don't say it.

A tear slipped down her cheek, and she quickly wiped it away. "They're dead."

I felt my world crumble around me. "No... no!" I started for the door, but Ayla blocked me. "I won't listen to these lies. I'm going to find them."

"Child, I'm afraid there's nothing left to find. Even if you were to go back to that world, all you would find is ash."

Ash? My stomach churned. It wasn't... couldn't be true! But as my hand trembled over the doorknob, flashes I couldn't make sense of flooded my mind. Blood, fire and the most piercing blue eyes. My knees buckled and Ayla caught me, guiding me back onto the bed.

"That world?"

"The Earth plane. Where the humans live and where your mother and father escaped to."

"What... what happened?" I asked as tears burned in my eyes.

"That I do not know, for I wasn't there. I only know what Carver told me. He and Xavier found you and your parents. After retrieving you, they burnt down the cabin to keep the humans from finding it."

The cabin was gone? Mom and dad were gone. I'd never see them again... I'd never be able to apologize for sneaking out... or the fight. I would never be able to tell them how much I loved them. Oh god did I do this? Was that why my mother didn't want me to leave the wards?

"You said Xavier and Carver found me? Where? Why... why don't I remember anything?" I asked, blinking back tears. I can't break down right now. The fight with my mother carved deep holes in my heart. Dad tried to stop me, but I wouldn't listen. I'm such a fool.

"Your mind probably blocked it out. When a person experiences a traumatic event, the mind puts up a block to protect itself." She sat on the bed next to me and, after hesitating for a moment, she put her arm around me and squeezed.

"Are you hungry?" She asked.

I shook my head. My mind was reeling from the news. It still didn't feel real. My stomach rolled at the thought of food. Though I realized I hadn't eaten anything since lunch on my birthday. How many days has it been since then? How long was I asleep?

She looked at the picture in my hands and whispered. "Would you like to hear stories about them?"

To be honest, all I wanted to do was bury myself and wallow in my grief. I looked at Ayla and for the first time I saw bits of my mother in her gaze. They had the same nose and heart-shaped face.

"Maybe later... I just want to be alone right now."

"Okay... well, there's tea and food on the tray if you get hungry. It'll stay hot for a while. I'll be outside if you need anything. There are clothes in the dresser and a bathroom through that door. If you want a bath, let me know I'll show you how to use the crystals."

Crystals?

"Actually, a bath might be nice." I said.

She smiled and showed me into the bathroom. It wasn't a very big room. There was a strange-looking seat with a hole. It connected to a box that hung on the wall and a rope dangled from that. I assumed it was a toilet. A wooden sink was next to that, with a mirror. Along the wall under a small window was an oaken tub.

"So to fill it with water, we just turn this tab here." She turned a small knob on top of the brass spigot. "It's connected to a tank outside. Once it's full, you take these crystals and just drop them in. Do you like lavender?" She asked as the tub started to fill.

I shrugged.

She opened a small cabinet and pulled out a small jar, pouring it into the bath. The room instantly filled with the scent of lavender and honey. The water took on a purplish glow and seemed to fizzle.

"What was that?" I asked, wondering if there was magic involved. I knew mother had some soaps she made at home that had the same effect, but she never told me where she got them.

"An old family recipe. I could show you how to make it sometime if you like?" She turned off the water and dropped the crystals in.

"It'll take a moment, but the crystals will warm the water like a natural hot spring. There are soaps in that cupboard there. I'll leave you be. If you need anything, I'll be down the hall" I watched her leave and close the door. Alone once again.

When the water started to bubble and steam, I sank into its hot embrace. Letting the world fall away from me.

They're gone.

They can't be...

I wish I knew what happened. If only my mind wasn't so weak. I sank lower into the water, my eyes burning from the tears I was desperately trying to hold back. I didn't want to cry. Crying would mean that they were truly gone.

Was I just supposed to take Ayla's word? I didn't even know her. She, being my aunt, only confirmed that I wasn't human, like my mother had me believe. But... my father was, wasn't he? He definitely wasn't an elf. Why did they keep this part of me secret?

These questions circled my mind until my head hurt. Letting out a frustrated groan, I plunged my head into the water, hoping its fiery embrace could soothe the ice that was consuming my heart. 

©2022 Jessica Powell. All Rights Reserved

How do you feel about Ivory? 

Author's Note:

I will be going on a 3 week Hiatus to try to jump a bit farther ahead of the chapter updates. 

they will resume September 9th!