Braddah's Secret

Braddah stood on one side of the faerie school playground enclosure. Her hands gripped the metal fence behind her apprehensively.

      On the other side of the schoolyard, a shorthaired, high-tempered fire faerie by the name of Densee stood, glaring in the air faerie's direction. Braddah smiled slightly and looked up at the clouds. They were deep grey, a sure sign of a nearing storm.

      Densee, noticing her gaze, also looked up. "Let's get this over with," she said exasperatedly. "Don't forget the rules. This is a faerie duel, use your powers, and call for help when you need it… and only when you need it."

      Braddah smiled wider. "Gotcha, Dens."

      Densee now looked slightly nauseous. "O-okay. On, my count." Braddah grinned and gave a thumbs up. Densee gave a sickly sort of smile back. "One… t-two… uh…. THREE!"

      A small fireball appeared in Densee's palm. Before she even threw her arm back to chuck it at Braddah, a gust of wind hit her face and caused her to stumble.

      Braddah conjured another gust of wind, this time making Densee fall over. She politely waited for the fire faerie to return to standing position, before simply knocking her over again.

      Densee angrily thrust some miniature fireballs in her opponent's direction. When she looked up, Braddah was grinning. And then she noticed why.

      The two fireballs that Densee had thrown were now floating above Braddah's two palms. Densee opened her mouth in anger. "How are you doing that?" she called. "I said to use your own powers!"

      "I am!" Braddah called back, throwing the fireballs back at their creator, "I can play with fire, just like you."

      Densee dodged the fireballs, yet in doing so managed to trip over a stick. When she stood back up, it had started to sprinkle droplets of rain. Densee angrily threw a flame wave at Braddah.

      "I even know some Snow Faerie stuff…" Braddah said calmly, turning the fire to an immobile wave of ice. "And water…" Braddah caught some droplets of rain and created a water ball. "Even some light…" Braddah parted the clouds and brought out some sun, creating a light ball. "A little bit of dark…" A dark orb appeared in her hand. "What am I forgetting?" Braddah asked, juggling the three balls, and then thrusting them in Densee's direction. "Earth!"

      She conjured a potato right into her hand, and chucked the vegetable towards the fire faerie. "Learned that one from Illusen!"

      Densee stood up for what felt like the fifteenth time that day and glared at Braddah.

      "But…" Braddah continued casually, "I am and always will be best at air!"

      Just as Densee threw a fireball the size of a bed at Braddah, the air faerie's famous gust of powerful wind hit it back to its owner. Densee just barely managed to dodge it.

      Braddah stood still, smiling brightly at the fire faerie. Densee walked over right in her face and snapped her fingers. A small flame appeared there.

      Braddah assumed this was supposed to be a threat, but since she enjoyed taunting the faerie that had made her life miserable, she snapped her fingers and did the same.

      Densee glowered at Braddah and at her little flame. "This isn't over," she whispered menacingly.

      Braddah raised her eyebrows. "Is that so?" she said. Flame in fingertips, she blew gently at Densee's flame. It went out so quickly it looked as if a gale had hit it.

     Densee stared at the spot the flame had been seconds before. Then she turned on Braddah. "I'm going to find out how you've learned all the arts of faerie powers! You'll see!"

      She stormed off. Braddah was no longer smiling. She wiped some raindrops off her face an slid down against the fence. She gently pulled on a long silver chain that was tucked neatly at the neckline of her dress.

      Braddah smiled gently at the plate with the gleaming opal in the center. Words were etched in a different language all around the gem, and not until a month ago had Braddah known the meaning of them.

      But Queen Fyora, master of many languages, had deciphered the code for her.

     Born from the clouds; given special powers that others know not

     Faerie of air shall master not only her skill but the others she will be taught

     Silver tears stream down into this faerie's lap when provoked, frightened, or teased

     But the evil ones shall be punished, as the faerie has powers that others know not

      When the Queen figured out what her necklace said, she told Braddah to reveal her powers to no one. And Braddah never would dare to disobey her queen. It had been kept a secret to everyone except a few grown faeries who taught Braddah the other faerie arts.

      Now, Braddah fingered the necklace. As the deciphered prophecy had said… the evil ones shall be punished. Well, Braddah had gotten her revenge on Densee. The air faerie smiled at herself, remembering exactly how the duel had gone.

      ***

      "What is it, Braddah?"

      Braddah entered Queen Fyora's study nervously, clutching her necklace protectively. "Um, Queen Fyora? I-I have a question for you."

      The queen set her quill down and tilted her head. She saw the necklace and nodded. "About the prophecy, you mean?"

      Braddah took a step forward. "Well, sort of."

      Queen Fyora raised one purple eyebrow and chuckled. "You know how I feel about 'sort of's', Braddah. Tell me exactly what it is that is bothering you."

      "Well, you see," Braddah began, "the prophecy said, 'the evils ones shall be punished'… right?"

      "Yes," Fyora said, frowning.

      "So… say I got my revenge on the one person who has made my life miserable. Is that punishment enough?"

      There was a tense silence, as Fyora looked Braddah over thoroughly. "Whom have you been dueling with?" she asked quietly.

      Braddah hated it that Fyora knew everything. Nevertheless, she spoke. "Densee, the fire faerie."

      More silence. Fyora stood up and walked to her bookcase, back to Braddah. "I believe that is for you to decide, Braddah," she said, fingering the spines of the books.

      Braddah hated these answers, but she nodded. Fyora turned around walked closer to her.

      "Did you use all of your powers?" she asked.

      Braddah was hoping this wouldn't come up. "Um, well… uh…" she saw the look on Fyora's face. "Yes," She said glumly.

      Fyora smiled. "There's no reason to be sad. It's all right to use your powers in front of others. But…" she suddenly looked severe, "you are not to tell them of the prophecy, of the necklace, or of your secret lessons. Understand?"

      Braddah nodded quickly, and tucked her necklace back in.

      Fyora smiled again. "Excellent. You may go."

      ***

      The next day, Braddah walked up to Densee in the school hallway. Densee looked up at her coldly. "What do you want?"

      Braddah smiled. "How're you?"

      Densee rolled her eyes. "Quit being nice. I know you're up to something…"

      Braddah's smile didn't fade one bit. "I'm fine too, thanks. I just wanted to apologize for the schoolyard incident yesterday."

      Densee raised one eyebrow and snorted. "Oh?"

      "Yes," Braddah went on, "I've gotten my revenge on you enough now."

      Densee had started to walk away, but when she heard this, she whipped around. "Revenge?"

      Braddah still beamed. "I'm finished though. So this is like a peace treaty. Leave me alone… and I won't have to beat you up in schoolyards anymore…"

      Densee made a sudden violent movement to whack Braddah in the head, but the air faerie was too quick. A gust of wind hit Densee and she was smashed against the lockers.

      Braddah bent down to the struggling fire faerie. "I don't like it when a duel starts unofficially," she said, "before everyone is ready, that is. You better watch out, Dens."

      Densee leapt up abruptly and a fireball went zooming. Braddah caught the flaming ball in one hand and let it revolve an inch above her palm. She smiled.

      "We shouldn't be doing this in the halls," Braddah said. She created a water ball and put the fireball out. Smiling brightly, Braddah made another potato pop out of her hand and handed it to Densee.

      Densee looked at the potato. "What's this?" she asked, disgusted.

      "A potato. Po-ta-toe."

      Densee threw the vegetable back at Braddah, who dodged. The potato instead hit a passing light faerie.

      The light faerie squealed with anger. "You!" she said, advancing on Densee. "Never throw anything at me again!"

      She formed a light ball and started to throw it at Densee. Braddah, standing between the two, made a gust of wind that caused the ball to fall to the ground.

      "No more fighting," she said, "enough is enough."

      Densee and the light faerie stomped away. Braddah smiled to herself, bent down, and picked up the light ball.

      No more fighting was right. She flew gently up to the ceiling and allowed the ball to float like an overhead lamp above the now empty hall.

      A little bit of light was all everyone needed. Stop the fighting. Braddah smiled and walked out of the hall, past the potato, which still lay on the ground.

The End