Mother loves her garden more than she loves me. I watched her as she pruned vines and watered dramatic flowers drooping in the midday sun. It was her who called me over. It was her idea that we should have brunch in her garden. She had abandoned cucumber sandwiches and fizzy fruit drinks because her moon lace looked a little unenthusiastic.

“What could possibly be your dilemma? Last night was a full Moon!” She said, flinging her hands as if she were talking to a person.

She leaned in closer as if the plant had requested to whisper in her ear. After a few seconds she nodded and rummaged around for a lilac container. She opened it, looked inside, and poured water over the moon lace plants.

“Now how long will this take?” She asked, leaning down again. “I can tolerate an hour. I’ll be back in sixty minutes.”

Then she got up and flew over to her sunflowers. I watched her stifling a giggle as she swooned over a handsome rose bush. Mom had the garden since I was old enough to toddle. She used to bring me out and help me tend the various flowers. I don’t know when I grew out of it. I wish I hadn’t sometimes.

“Mom, this isn’t brunch! I thought we were going to eat together.” I said.

“Just another minute. The Hooker Lips need my attention.” she said.

“THE WHAT?” I asked.

She stepped aside to showcase the plant with vibrant red petals. When you looked at them it was easy to see why they’re called what they’re called. The petals puckered together making a pair of lips worthy of a hookers mouth.

“Are they called that really or did you give them a nickname?” I asked.

“That’s what they’re called. Google it.”

I did. She was right and it made me laugh until my stomach hurt. When we finally got back to brunch, all mom could do was talk about how well her flowers were doing. How dramatic the cilantro was, how picky the blueberries could be, how tasty the chamomile tastes in tea.

“Alright mom! With all this plant talk I feel like I barely know you. How are you? What have you been up to besides tending to your garden?” I asked.

Mom stared at me like I’d told her to name all the people she’s murdered. She recovered quickly.

“Honey, I’m old. Forty seven to be exact. I don’t do much outside of tending my garden and reading books.” she said.

I laughed because there was no way she could deny me. My mother and I are two peas in a pod. Being that way with each other has always been effortless. I’m grateful for that.

“We’ve gotta get you out more, Mom. There’s a whole lot of world out there.” she said.

“Who will take care of my garden?” She asked.

“I’m sure we can hire a grounds keeper or a good friend and show them what to do. Alice has a green thumb like nobody’s business.” I said.

Mom frowned and I could tell she didn’t like that idea. I shut it down swiftly and held her hand in mine.

“I just want you to see the world.” I said.

She gave me a soft grin that didn’t quite reach her eyes. I couldn’t explain why it unsettled me but it did.

“I’ve seen plenty of worlds. Worlds you know nothing about.” She said.

That night, I went to bed with all the tabs of my mind still open. I was trying to figure out how to get Mom out of her garden and into the world. What was that about “plenty worlds? She’s never been outside of Virginia! We’ve driven through a lot of places to get to specific destinations. However, she’s never stayed overnight anywhere else but my house. A woman at her age should be well traveled. Or at least, that’s what I think. Maybe what I think doesn’t matter at all. Maybe she’s happy sitting in her garden and I should allow that. My mind went like this until the sun peeked over the horizon. I was awake when the phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Hey Elle.” Lorrin my brother said.

“Hey. What’s up? It’s early.” I said.

“Something happened with mom. Don’t freak out, it’s nothing major. She’s got some kind of poisoning from one of the plants in her garden.”

“What do you mean? She was fine! I was just over there.” I said.

“It’s something she planted after you left. A blue plant? It’s kind of weird. I don’t know. Look, she’s gonna be fine but she’ll be out of it for a while. I just wanted to give you a heads up.” Lorrin said.

“Alright. Thanks.” I said.

Lorrin hung up and I hurried out of bed. I grabbed my laptop and a few other essentials before piling into my car and speeding to moms. When I entered the house it was eerily quiet, and still like stagnant water. I crept up the stairs hearing soft coughs and gentle groans and followed them into moms bedroom. She was there, laid on her side wrapped in silk and satin to keep her warm. She looked cold still, so I grabbed a wool blanket and threw it over her. She settled into it and looked up at me.

“You told me I should spend less time in the garden. Maybe you’re right.” She said, chuckling

I nodded and adjusted her pillows.

“I’m glad you think so.” I said.

Mom nodded but froze for a few seconds before taking a peek outside.

“Who will tend to the garden when I’m away? I’m responsible for the entire glade.” She said, whispering anxiously.

“I’ll take care of it, Mom.” I said.

She looked at me with her eyes glistening.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I can do it. I used to do it with you when I was small. I can do it now.” I said.

My mother laughed and wrapped her arms around me as much as she could.

“You’re going to fall in love with it. It’s grounding. Helps keep me sane.” She said.

I sat with her for a while longer before heading outside. She had fallen asleep and from what I knew the plants got finicky in the afternoon. Some got too hot quickly, some needed partial shade, some needed more water and others needed more specific things.

I was wrong when I said all mother does is garden. All mother does is garden and document her garden. She told me about the instruction manuals before she fell asleep. I didn’t think she was serious until I found them. Two thick books complete with petal and soil samples, intricate drawings, and detailed instructions on how to keep them alive and well. Mom didn’t spare any expense in coloring and drawing them. I scooped them into my arms and went outside

I opened the first one, it was lilac in color and bigger than my head. The plant closest to the door was called Moon Shade. It is not to be confused with Moon Lace, which are larger with softer petals. These could afford a bit of roughness. Each morning, she needed to be pruned. (Yes, mom gave them genders.)

I kneeled down with a pair of gardening shears. The manual said only three stems needed to be pruned. There were six stems in total so she rotated each day. I examined the leaves and scrunched my brow. Three stems had been pruned already this morning. I moved on thinking Larrin did it. But when I went around the remainder of the garden the plants were already taken care of. I shrugged not understanding but also happy to avoid the work. I decided I would pluck up the plant that made mom sick, so I went to find it. When I reached it, the blue and black plant was in pieces. It looked as if it was being harvested piece by piece and removed from the garden. I kneeled down and examined it closer.

“Hey!” A voice said. It was small but gruff and tinged with an accent I couldn’t place.

I turned my head this way and that.

“Down here!” The voice said.

I looked down. There was a tiny man on my shoe.

“What. The hell?” I asked.

“What the hell?” The man echoed me.

“What — who are you?”

“Oh, that was polite. You didn’t call me an it. Names, Hovel. Sounds like shovel. Can you dig it?”

The small man jumped on the tip of my shoe and did a little jig. I laughed partially because it was funny, partially because I was going insane.

“Hovel, am I crazy?” I asked.

Hovel looked at me with his small face and small body.

“Only one way to find out. Here ya’ go.” Hovel made his way to my leg beneath the hem of my jeans. Something sharp stabbed into my ankle and I let out an incoherent curse.

“OW! Hovel, that freaking hurt!” I said.

Hovel jumped back down onto my shoe.

“You’re not crazy though. A bit sore. But not crazy. Doesn’t that make you feel better?” He asked.

I didn’t say anything because he was right and I was mad at him. I wouldn’t admit that he was right while my ankle was throbbing.

“What did you poke me with?” I asked.

Hovel showed me a small double edged sword.

“For warding off uglies. Your family is blessed and cursed. You lot are oozin’ magic!” He said, hopping off my shoe and hitting the grass. “This nasty beast here is called denig asulta. It stands for assaulting the bad mouth. It was originally made as a punishment for gossipers. Now, it's just a poisonous plant you send to someone you hate.” He said.

“How did they get here?” I asked.

“Well, I just told you the flowers are sent to someone you hate.. They don’t grow in very many places on this plane of existence. If you’ve got Denig Asulta plants, someone has ill intentions towards you.” He said.

Who could have ill intentions for my mom? She doesn’t do anything. She doesn’t leave the house. When I explained this to Hovel he stared at me open mouthed.

“You really don’t know anything about your bloodline do you?” Hovel asked.

I squinted at him before shaking my head. Without warning, the small man crawled up my body until he was sitting on my shoulder. When I looked at him, he put his palm out flat and made me do the same with my hand. He slid down my arm like he was on a playground and rested in the palm of my hand. Again, I thought I was losing my mind. He poked my finger with his sword to shake me out of my daze.

“Come now. Back to the library.” He said.

I nodded and walked with him back to Mom’s library. It was a small room but packed with books. Hovel swiftly moved up the shelf and called down to me when he was about to drop a book. I caught it and then him when he jumped down without flinching. I wondered how he knew I would catch him.

Hovel instructed me to Mom’s workbench. I opened the enormous book and let Hovel skip through unnecessary pages before stopping on pg. 138. The page was covered in drawings of faces I’d never seen before. Beneath their pictures was a blurb about their lives. Each person bore my last name and had similar facial features.

“What is this?” I asked. Hovel stood on top of the book and gestured to the pages.

“This is your history. These people are the keepers that came before you. We pick people who are pure of heart and intention to steward our secret.” Hovel said. “I told you, you stink of magic. Humans with consecrated blood lines stink.”

“What do I smell like?”

“Like a field of daisies to me. Like a stewed gym sock to people who don’t like you.”

“How would anyone not like me?” I asked.

“You keep the magic world safe. You’re trusted in ways they couldn’t be.” He said.

“How come I haven’t seen you until now?” I asked.

“You didn’t want to see until now.” He said.

I scrunched up my face and Hovel chuckled.

“You offered to tend to your mothers garden though you aren’t fond of it. It’s important to your mother, which makes it important for you. This act of selflessness proved your good heart. We felt safe. So we came about.”

“We?” I asked.

Hovel grinned excitedly and took me back outside. The family book was nestled underneath my arms protectively. Hovel said a small lady named Luna could help me put more of my family’s history together. I choked a little at the familiar name but ignored the pain in my chest. I opened the patio door and I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were tiny humans everywhere. They had beards, and came in different shapes and sizes. They had different hairstyles and outfits and babies. Imagine how small a human child gets. Now imagine a small human having an even smaller baby! The tiny people halted their work to look at me.A beautiful grey haired woman came to the front of the crowd.

“Elena Luna. How nice to finally be seen by you.” She said.

Something like sadness caught in my throat. No-one had used my middle name since Grandma passed away. Not even mom. It was a respectable thing. That is what she named me, and she is the only one who can utter it. Somehow, it didn’t feel out of place when the miniature human said it.

“You don’t recognize your own granny do you?” She said.

My wind caught in my throat. My lungs wheezed like wind chimes as I peered at the miniature lady in front of me. Gran passed away in her sleep a few years ago. Yet, there she was in front of me. Ninety eight percent shorter, but one hundred percent as sassy as before. I dropped to my knees.

“Gran?” I asked.

Tiny woman looked at me and smirked.

“I was wondering when your mother would let you meet everyone. I guess fate has forced you out of hiding.” She said.

I couldn’t help it. I started crying. Gran came up gently and squeezed around my ankle.

“Come now dear.” She said.

Gran told me everything.

“The fairies always choose a palatable form. Small humans are easier to digest than small fae creatures. If Hovel had appeared to you in his true form you would’ve run out the door.”

Are you Fae?” I asked

Gran laughed and nodded.

“I was unfortunate. I didn’t get a full fae percentage. It varies from generation to generation.” She said.

“How much fae am I?” I asked.

“Your mother is full blood fae. I am certain she passed the gene to you. I can smell it.” She said.

“Then what are you?” I asked.

“A leech.” She said, laughing. “The faeries decided you young ones would need someone to look after you. I am an elf, here until I’m bored or no longer needed. Whichever one comes first.” She said, booping my nose.

We’d reached the end of book 1 and begun digging into book two. Hovel came in with snacks and I almost fell out of my chair.

“Hovel?” I asked. “You’re a full sized man?”

“You didn’t tell her we could shapeshift? Do I need to lead the newbie magical creature orientation or what?” Hovel said, joking.

Gran punched him in the shoulder.

“We were just getting to that.” She said.

Gran talked while Hovel changed into various creatures. Normal animals, odd mythical creatures, trees, and a bunch of other things.

“What’s your favorite form?” I asked Hovel.

He poofed into a dragon and I understood why the ceilings in moms houses were always so high. He let me touch his gelid scales and pet his warm snout.

“How long have you guys been around?” I asked.

“Since you were a child. Since your mother was a child. Since I was a child. I’ll never forget when I first spotted the little people. I told your great grandmother I saw them preparing dinner in her garden.”

“What did she say?” I asked.

“She didn’t say anything. She took me outside to meet them. Hovel and I have been friends ever since.” She said.

I peered at Hovel whose eyes sparkled looking at my gran.

“Can you be bigger?” I asked.

“No, dear. I’m not full fae remember? I can only stay in the form I’ve been granted. If I wish to take another form I have to fill out a lot of paperwork.” She said.

I looked at her with my brows raised.

“Faeries are very orderly creatures. There’s a form for everything. Most of them are very simple. Others require meetings with the council.” She said.

“Who's the council?” I asked.

Gran looked at me. Her face glowed a warm ember and her eyes sparkled with elated emotion.

“Your mother.” She said. “Soon to be you.”

I sat there staring at the wall behind Hovel. He was regarding me with tact and care. As if If I told him I needed something he’d cross heaven and hell to retrieve it.

“Hovel. Who are you to us?” I asked.

Hovel placed his hand on his chest and pounded twice.

“A faithful servant. A consultant. A friend. Anything you need, Elena Luna.”

I was dumbfounded, sitting in my chair numbly. This was a lot. My mother is a keeper of magical creatures and some of them live in her garden. My family had done this for years. It made sense now, my entire life. Problems had never been a factor to me. They would rise and be quickly squashed. Oh, no juice in the fridge? Close it and walk away. Now there’s juice. A bully at school? They fall asleep and end up with their shoelaces tied together. All that time there were little guardians watching. Some of them even turn into dragons.

“Why do I get so much security?” I asked.

“Because things are always trying to kill you,” Hovel began but Gran yelled at him.

“Hovel! You can’t just say that to a girl. Rule number one of newbie mythical creature training is not to scare the piss out of them!” Gran said, turning to me.

“As a mortal with Faye magic in your blood, not to mention such a high concentration you’re not very well liked beyond the fairies. There are plenty of creatures that have a problem with you. Sometimes, those problems get physical. It could be something as small as a bully or a deadly accident. It could also be as big as sending a creature to exterminate you.”

I followed Gran around the library as she told me what would like to kill me and what would help me if I needed it. There were too many creatures to remember, but I remembered them all. It was like my brain had stored the information until I was ready for it. Gran regarded me with jubilance sparkling in her eyes.

“I told your mother you would be a natural.” She said.

“Why didn’t Mom ever tell me?” I asked.

“You’re a logical thinker dear. Even as a child you stuck to the facts. But I saw the whimsy in you. When you would sit and write, or draw. When you would get lost in books and struggle to separate the real from the fake. It’s always been real to you. You just didn’t understand how special you were.” She said.

My cheeks warmed in that way they do around your grandparents. They have a way of making you glow from the inside. This is what I missed the most about Gran. I still couldn’t believe I had it back.

I spent my nights in the garden with the faeries. Gran, Hovel, and I checked on Mom in intervals of an hour. She was recovering from the poison nicely. She’d be back on her feet in a few days.

“When Mom is awake will she tell me what percentage of Fae I am?” I asked.

“We’ve already told you dear.” Gran said.

I zipped my lips and looked down at the floor fidgeting with my fingers anxiously. I knew Gran and Hovel were telling me everything they were permitted to tell me. However, the information felt lacking. There was a huge piece missing. Something that might make me walk away from the magical world all together if I knew too soon. I could feel it like a sixth sense. Whatever it was, I needed to know fast. Mother was up in the morning. She was still a bit weak, but she had a glimmer about her.

“You know.” She said, as I walked into the kitchen with blueberry tea. I tensed up.

“Yeah. I know.” I said.

“How much?” she asked.

“Everything you told them to tell me.” I said, cautiously.

Mother squinted her eyes at me for a moment and grinned. Her freckled face was smug and proud.

“You’re just like me.”

“And who are you?”

“The Counsel.”

“What’s the counsel?” I asked.

“The people who decide what happens in the magic world. A Queen of sorts.”

A Queen? I asked more questions. All of them answered in the way they were asked. Quickly and in a teasing tone. Mother was enjoying the game. She liked watching me put the pieces together. It was time for the one question I had been avoiding.

“What percentage of Fae am I?”

You could hear a pin drop in the dead silent room. It was like a graveyard. Why was this one question so heavy?

“Full blooded .One hundred and ten percent. High Fae” she said.

From what I knew of the High Fae they were too powerful for their own good. They were often reclusive because of that power. Their only friends were the magical creatures they protected. Just like Mom.

“That’s why you don’t leave.” I said, realizing.

“Oh no, dear. I leave. I leave often. I just don’t frolick the mortal world like you do. I frolick different planes of existence. I leave this world altogether.” She said.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

She shrugged.

“The unseen, mostly. A lot of what you see isn’t what is there at all. There is a whole world layered beneath this world to watch out for. I watch out for this realm and the next. As will you.” She said.

Mother explained that tending the garden was a way she kept balance. Having the fairies near her home let her remember her duties. As a Fae, it was sometimes difficult to balance both worlds. Most Fae abandoned the Fae world to become mortal. Mother didn’t want to lose her magic so she kept it just behind closed doors. It was this way with all the women in our family.

“Why not the men?” I asked.

“The men in our family are fickle. Hard, logical creatures. They belong in the mortal world. We, however, have ties elsewhere.” Mother smirked, gesturing between the two of us. I grinned, happy to be a part of this secret. This eternal inside joke. Larrin loved insisting that he was the favorite. I wonder what he’d think now.

Mother and I tended the garden together. I pruned and watered and whispered right beside her. The flowers are very talkative. After my first few months they grew chattier and chattier. Eventually, I didn’t need to whisper. Mom told me they were never that loud. She enjoyed having me by her side. We even slept in the garden a few nights. The moon watched over us as we chatted about magical affairs. I admonished myself for not being interested in my mothers affairs sooner. She always seemed to prefer her own company. Little did I know she had two worlds to look after. I wished I had spent more time with her sooner. The boring little lady who gardens all the time was a warrior. I listened as she told tales of her battles across multiple realms. I learned we had powers.

“What?!” I asked as Mom placed magic into a tree branch and made it grow. It curled around my ankle before she disenchanted it. It stood in its usual spot, breathing. Alive.

“You’re literally a magical being.” I said.

She chuckled. “I am. It’s true.” She said.

Watching Mom use her magic felt like being in a movie. Spending time with her made more of me make sense. Getting to know her magic meant getting to know mine.

“It doesn’t matter how old you get. You will never stop learning. I’m not saying that your elders are always right. But there is something to learn from us. Even in our mistakes.” She said.

She told me her mistakes and regrets. Many of which involved me. It’s hard listening to the shortcomings your parents carry around. Especially when she was the only one of the two who stayed.

“I wished a lot more for you than what I could give. When I realized the fairies were not just keepers of the garden, but friends who could help me with things, I leaned on them for support. When I had you, they loved you. You carry strong magic. Magic that’s even stronger than mine.” She said.

Stronger than hers overwhelmed me. My mother was pretty strong. I watched her bloom plants in her garden with her magic. I watched her harvest and process herbs for the spice jars and her apothecary. I liked watching her speak to things

“The littlest things are curses and blessings. Be very careful how you speak. Carless words matter more coming from us. Speak good over all creatures.” She admonished me.

I made a mental note to wire my jaw shut.

Mother is still not telling me something. I know it everytime we speak about my magic. Everytime I ask to try my abilities, everytime she says I’m just like her.

I haven’t had the heart to ask her what she clearly doesn’t want to talk about. I sit with her in the garden. Hovel stands beside me in the form of an elderly man.

“Is this who you imagine yourself to be?” I asked.

“No. This is who I am.” He said.

I nodded, understanding why he’d been with my family for so long. He was just as matter of fact as the rest of us. He was also just as blunt.

“Hovel, can I ask you something in absolute confidence? Please don’t lie to me. I’m not a baby, okay?” I asked.

Hovel tensed and his face paled two shades.He seemed to visibly stiffen, like a mannequin in a store window.

“What is it about me that’s different? Why does Mom keep tiptoeing around?” I asked.

I knew that cornering Hovel was wrong. But I also knew that he was the only one who would be able to answer me. Whatever this thing was I needed to be aware.

“Please Hovel. No one else will tell me. If it’s this big that it needs to be hidden I need to know. I need to be ready.” I said.

Hovel sighed. “You’re every bit as stubborn as your mother.” He said fondly. He sat me down in the shadow of a willow tree and told me the truth.

“You’re not just a full blooded faye. You’re a full blooded dark faye. This makes you more powerful. However, it also makes you more prone to destruction.” Hovel went on to tell me that I was the last of my kind for the next hundred years. If I were to fall in love with the mortal world, it would mean that everything would be thrown out of balance. Not to mention, there was a prophecy about me. A petrifying one.

One will arrive without much fuss

But regard the magic as heavy

If held or restricted

Although rather gifted

Will forfeit the crown to be levied

If she who is wild

Can somehow be tamed

Than balanced the world as it were

If she still runs free

The darkness you’ll see

Will encroach on the land with no cure.

“What–What does it mean?” I asked.

“It means your temperament will be difficult to overcome.” He said.

My shoulders sagged as a burden rested on my shoulders. Hovel spoke again.

“But it also means that it’s possible to overcome. These prophecies. They aren’t written in stone. They’re just a caution.”

“How do I heed the caution?” I asked.

“One day at a time. You have to know when to intervene, and when to leave it alone. What is meant to happen will happen. Don’t get so caught up in the difficulties.”

So I flowed through life like water for fifteen years. I laughed at my mistakes, I held my tongue and guarded my soft heart. I didn’t hide as much as mother did. I learned from her mistakes. I didn’t let pain make me bitter. Mothers issue was never that she would fall in love with the mortal world. It was that she’d become attached to the magical world. There were problems in either case. Being human means being breakable. When you’re breakable as someone who is very hard to break it brings you down to earth. I remember how breakable I am or I try to. I know my power does not make me invincible. I spend time in both the mortal world and the world just above. I keep myself in balance and everything else follows suit.

Mother likes the way I run the ship but it was only a matter of time before I found my iceberg.