Fairies Two - Three Chapter Sample

7/28/2019 Fairies Two - Three Chapter Sample

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FLYING WITH FAIRIES LOVE IS IN THE AIR ROBERT H. CHERNY

FLYING WITH FAIRIES

LOVE IS IN THE AIR

BY

ROBERT H. CHERNY

A Club Lighthouse Publishing E-BookISBN 978-1-897532-60-7

All Rights Reserved

Copyright 2009 Robert Cherny

Cover Art: T. L. Davison

This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission.

This book is a work of fiction.

Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is purely co-incidental.

For information contact:

comments at clublighthousepublishing.com

A Club Lighthouse Fantasy Edition

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CHAPTER ONE

"PIZZA'S HERE!" DANNY CALLED as he struggled to balance two pizzas, a six pack of beerand a six pack of soft drinks while opening the apartment door.

"That was fast," Stacey said from the sofa as she swung her feet off the coffee table to the floor.

"What did you do, fly?" She wrapped Danny's bathrobe tighter around her body and brushed her bright

red hair out of her eyes.

"I know it's the middle of the night, but did you really think I would do the Superman thing in

full view of a City of Boston Police precinct station? You know me better than that."

"No, I don't know you better than that. I thought I did, but I was wrong. Until a couple of hours

ago I didn't know you could fly, or that you were a healer or that you had a buff friend named Eric who

was a fairy with dragonfly wings who could fly and who could get hurt colliding with the guy wire on aradio tower and that I could heal him of his injuries."

Eric took the pizzas from Danny and set them on the dinette table. "You learn quickly. Come getsome pizza," Eric said. "You had a long day yesterday and we've kept you up all night. You must be

starved."

"And I learned that Eric is a healer and he can sense other healers. Let's see, what else?" Sheopened the pizza box. "I learned that you like anchovies. ANCHOVIES? YUCK! I hate anchovies!"

"I only put them on one half of one of the pizzas. Eat the other one," Danny replied.

"What else have I learned in the last couple of hours? Your parents are mages. You helped the

fairies defeat the elves in a bloody war. You have a friend who is an ogre."

"More like a comrade in arms," Danny quibbled. "He's really Michael's friend."

"You are friends with the queen of the fairies and you helped her realize that this fairy guy

Michael loved her."

"I would have done it if he didn't," Eric interrupted with a mouth full of pizza.

"You have friends who are centaurs and you left a woman behind in the land of the fairies who

you think is pregnant with your baby. And you have pictures to prove all of it. Have I hit the high

points?"

"Enough of them," Danny offered. "Don't forget you need to be in Newton by ten. You'remeeting that girl whose parents were killed in the wreck on the Mass Pike yesterday."

"I haven't forgotten," Stacey snapped. "Was that only yesterday?"

"Yup, time flies when you're having fun," Danny quipped as he popped open a beer. "You

realize this it the first alcohol I've had in this house since the last time you came to visit."

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"At least you remembered what beer I like."

"How could I forget?"

"Look, yesterday morning I was having breakfast with some EMT buddies from the hospital I

worked at while I was doing my residency when they got the call for the big wreck on the Pike. Idropped in at the hospital to see if I could help. You came in straight off vacation and went directly into

surgery. We worked all day saving lives. We are doctors. We save lives. Just another day at the office.So far so good. I wanted to decompress after the long day and I came here for a little casual sex instead

of my normal late night drive to the suburbs and things got strange in a hurry. In the, what is it, eight

hours since we left the hospital, my life has turned completely upside down. Cut me some slack, OK?"

Danny's answer was interrupted by a knock on the fire escape door. Danny's face lost its color.

Eric stopped eating in mid-chew. The bottom of the fire escape was locked. There were only two waysto get to that door. One was from one of the other apartments, but the people in the other apartments

would come to the front door. The other was to fly. The second knock was more insistent than the first.

Eric furled his wings and put his jacket over them before answering the door. Danny reachedbehind him and picked up the ceremonial sword, a gift from the fairy queen, that he had laid on the

desk. When Eric was sure that Danny was ready, he opened the door.

"Hello, Eric," the elderly man on the landing said cheerfully.

"Judge Levine? Mrs. Levine?" Eric sputtered.

"Dad? Mom? What are you doing here?" Danny shouted.

"May we come in?" Danny's father asked politely.

"Yes, come in."

Danny's mother held her arms out to Stacey. "It is good to see you again. How are you dealing

with all this?"

"Um, Mrs. Levine, how did you get on that landing?" Stacey asked fearfully.

Mrs. Levine looked at her son who up to this very second had no idea his parents could fly, but

jarringly had come to that inescapable conclusion. "Does she know about you?"

Danny nodded.

Mrs. Levine's face lit up. "We flew."

Before Stacey had a chance to react, two pixies, one male and one female, flew in through theopen door and landed on Mrs. Levine's shoulder. "Greetings!" they cheerfully said in unison.

"That's it!" Stacey shrieked, "I'm out of here!" She started for the door.

"Better put some clothes on first," Mrs. Levine suggested.

Trembling, Stacey threw herself on the sofa and covered her face with her hands. The pixies

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gently rearranged the folds of Danny's robe so her thighs were not exposed.

The female pixie said, "Doctor Danny, she's awfully pale. You should fly her to Florida for the

weekend so she can get a tan. We know some great beaches."

Stacey rolled her head side to side slowly saying, "No, no, no." She sounded ready to cry.

Mrs. Levine sat beside Stacy and enfolded her in her arms. As gently as she could, she said,

"You know, Stacey, she's right. It wouldn't do to have the entire fairy world know Danny's girlfriend

has pasty legs."

Stacey rolled her hands back, her eyes wide with shock. "I am not his girlfriend! He left apregnant woman behind in fairy land. SHE is his girlfriend."

Mrs. Levine patted Stacey's knee. "Well, you are a girl and you are in his apartment with no

clothes on and you are his friend so that makes you his girlfriend. The pixies are horrible gossips and

whether you like it or not you are big news."

"No, no, no, what about the other woman?"

"Aurora? You'll meet her soon enough, I suppose."

"Won't she hate me?"

Mrs. Levine laughed, "No, dear, she got what she wanted and sent him on his way."

"I don't understand."

"You don't need to, dear. Trust me. Look, instead of hanging out looking like the start of an X

rated movie, get dressed so we can see about getting you to Newton by ten."

"How do you know I need to be in Newton by ten?"

"The pixies. There are no secrets from the Pixies. Take a shower. You'll feel better."

Stacey slowly shook her her head and cautiously headed for the bedroom.

"Dad!" Danny said exasperated as Stacey closed the bedroom door. "Did you pick all the

anchovies off the pizza?"

"They weren't as fresh as I would have liked, but they were tasty."

Danny made a growling noise in his throat. "All right you two, it's about time you came clean

with me. I thought you were a pair of drunks, but you're not. What's the deal?"

"It was a cover. It allowed us to be abroad at all hours of the day or night. We have been

tracking down enchanted elven gold for years and some of that had to be done at night. No one paysattention to the wanderings of a drunk. It worked quite well."

"How did you know I was home?"

"We felt you pull power. You have a distinctive signature. We could tell every time you used it.

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We knew when you were healing. We knew when you were flying. Ever since you healed your friendBrian, we've known what you could do. We heard about the wreck on the news and felt your work at

the hospital. That's how we knew you were home. We were glad you were using your power for the

victims, but when we felt you draw it again in the night from here, we became concerned. There were

other signatures in the power we didn't recognize. We sent the pixies to spy on you and they reportedthat Eric was here and that you had healed him except that even accounting for Eric, the signature was

wrong. Someone else was drawing power from here and we were afraid it was one of our enemies. I

am thrilled to find out it was Stacey. I always liked her. You should have brought her home from schoolmore often."

"But we killed all the elves. What other enemies do we have?" Danny asked.

"No, you killed Hassan and the male elves in his army, but the female elves and the children

survived. Not only that, Hassan's clan was only one elven clan. You won a big battle, but the war has

been raging for a thousand years. Whatever victory you might have achieved is but a skirmish in thetotal conflict. In spite of our best efforts, this war will likely go on for another thousand years. All we

can do is keep from losing it."

"There's an encouraging thought," Danny sighed.

Danny's mother put a piece of the pizza on her plate and popped the top on a soft drink. "I

always loved the smell of pizza in the morning." She grinned maliciously.

Danny sat in silence while he ate the remains of the slice his father had denuded of anchovies.After he finished it, he said, "Now, what do we do?"

"Your mother and I will continue our search for enchanted elven gold and you will train a

medical corps. We will be happy to help your training if you need us."

"Medical corps? Like Army Medical Corps? Like MASH units?" Danny sputtered.

"Exactly," his father replied through a mouthful of pizza.

"You want me to train a bunch of kids from the Boston suburbs and take them into battles like

the one I just fought? You want me to risk the lives of innocents?" Danny was aghast.

"Not exactly like, but similar. They will stay behind the lines of combat."

"No! There were no lines of combat! There were no safe areas. Ask Eric."

"That's true, sir, there was no safe place to hide. We all fought," Eric affirmed.

"I heard you were particularly brave, Eric, visiting the ogres, centaurs and gnomes all in a single

day. That was an incredible feat of flying stamina and courage. Truly heroic. Had you not enlisted the

centaurs' aid, the castle would have fallen," Danny's father said.

"Thank you, sir. I did what I needed to do. I wasn't trying to be a hero," Eric said softly with a

catch in his voice. "Sir, did you see the valley where the centaurs shot down the elves and their

dragons?"

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"No."

"I did. It was horrible. I never want to see, hear or smell anything like it again."

"I have seen other battles," Danny's father said gently. "They are the same in that regard.

However many you see, you never get used to them. Unfortunately, your cousin Michael will need yourservices sooner or later. There will be other battles and you will hate every one of them."

They ate in silence until Stacey appeared.

"Oh, my dear," Danny's mother said, "you can't go looking like that."

"I don't have time to drive home and change."

"Dear, do you still live in Lexington?"

"Yes, right off Route 2."

"Eric, can you cloak?" Danny's mother asked."What's that?"

"Create a bubble of invisibility while you fly."

"No," Eric shook his head, "I didn't know there was such a thing."

"It's rare among fairies, but common among pixies. Some dragons can do it. Could you carry

Stacey forty leagues or so?"

"How high?"

"Not very."

"I suppose I could carry her, why?"

Mrs. Levine stood to all of her four and a half feet tall and took off her jacket. When she

unfurled her wings, everyone in the room gasped. Stacey collapsed on the sofa with her hand over hermouth. Danny choked on his drink. Eric stood in silence. Danny's father stood up and kissed his wife.

"I love when you do that. You are so beautiful."

"Mom! I didn't know you had wings!"

"Well, now you do."

When heart rates and respiration returned to normal, Mrs. Levine said, "Stacey, can you

navigate your way home from the air?"

"Yes," she said tentatively.

"Good, give Justin your car keys," she said pointing at Danny's father. "Eric and I will take youhome so you can change. I will cloak and Eric will carry. Justin will drive your car to Newton and we

will meet him there. We'll fly back and meet you here later."

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"Mom, I can drive the car," Danny protested.

"No, little boy, you are going to take a nap. You've had a long day and as soon as I can get

everyone else some rest, we're going to do it."

"Yes, mother."

"Eric, I know you're tired, but I will help as much as I can."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Danny, bed!"

"Yes, mother." Danny walked into the bedroom and closed the door.

"Stacey," Danny's mother said, "this will be one of the scariest things you have ever done. I

need to ask that you not scream. I can cloak vision and radar, but I can not cloak sound. Understand?"

"Yes," Stacey answered trembling."Good, Eric will carry you on his back."

"Won't that get in the way of his wings?"

"A little," Eric answered, "but forty leagues isn't far."

Fairy Chief Justice Justin Levine used his son's computer to map the location of the doctor's

office mentioned in the email printed on the desk. He stepped out on the fire escape for the short jump

to the hospital parking lot where Stacey had left her car.

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CHAPTER TWO

STACEY WAS NOT AS TERRIFIED by the flight as she thought she would be. The strongsteady rhythm of Eric's wings was comforting and reassuring. She had thought that the wings would

beat in unison, but they did not. The muscles in Eric's back tensed and the front two wings beat down.

The leading edge was lower than the trailing edge on the down beat. At the bottom of the front wings'

travel, the rear wings beat down with their leading edges lower. The wings would pause in the lowerposition for a moment and rotate so that the air spilled backwards as the wings raised, first one pair

then the other. A brief pause and the cycle started again. Mrs. Levine stayed below and slightly in front

of them.

Eric set Stacey down gently on a jogging path not far from her parents' house. Stacey's parentshad insisted that she live at home until she finished med school so she would not be too deep in debt

when she graduated. Living a hundred yards from the bus stop had been convenient. Now that she had

passed her med boards and had a job, she would be finding a place of her own.

Stacey raced in the front door and headed upstairs for her room. Her mother met her there. "Ididn't hear you drive up."

Panic stricken as she rummaged through her clothes, Stacey said, "One of my friends dropped

me off. I stayed at his place last night. We worked the wreck on the Pike and I was too tired to come

home." The words tumbled out in a nervous rapid stream, an instant clue that she was not being

altogether truthful.

"He didn't come in?"

"He went to get gas."

"Was it that young man you brought home last summer?"

Stacey had forgotten that Danny had been there. "Yes." She pulled a tailored business suit out of

the closet and started to change.

"He seemed kind of strange."

"Mom, you don't know the half of it."

"Are you still seeing him?"

"Romantically, no, professionally, yes. He is brilliant and we talk about our patients."

"But you say he's strange, Is he dangerous? Why don't you tell me about it?""Mom, I'd love to sit and chat, but we have a meeting in Newton with some potential pre-med

students and I am late."

"I'll leave you alone. You know how proud we are of you passing your boards first try and

getting that nice job in Burlington."

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"Yes, and I love you, too."

Stacey tossed a hair brush and some lipstick into her purse and jetted out the door.

Eric greeted her when she returned, "Are you ready?" He flashed her a broad smile.

"Let's go!"

Stacey had a pretty good idea of where they were going and they had no trouble meetingDanny's father with her car. Once they were all together, Mrs. Levine said, "So, we'll see you after

work tonight at Danny's?"

"Um, Mrs. Levine, could Eric stay with me? I am not sure I want to face her alone."

Eric smiled, "I'd be happy to stay."

Mrs. Levine returned the grin. "Keep her out of trouble."

Eric laughed and took Stacey's hand as they headed for their appointment with the girl from thewreck. They met the girl in the waiting room and Stacey asked about her condition before she saw her

own doctor. Eric leaned his head back against the wall and promptly went to sleep. After the girl's

doctor examined her, Stacey met with him for a few minutes and was heartened by his opinion that herbruises would heal and there was no permanent damage. Stacey was afraid to try her new found skills

on a stranger or she would have arrived at the same conclusion herself.

"How are you getting home?" Stacey asked.

"I have taxi money," the girl replied.

"We'll take you home. Shall we get lunch first? I spotted a little restaurant a few doors down."

"Sure."

Stacey shook Eric to wake him. "Wake up sleepy head."

Eric blinked, yawned and started to stretch when, suddenly aware of his surroundings and the

tightening of his jacket, pulled his arms back in and stood up. "I'm awake. Really. OK. Let's go." Heyawned again. "Long night."

"Diane, this is my friend Eric. He dropped in last night. It was kind of a surprise."

"Pleased to meet you," Eric said as he held out his hand.

"Pleased to meet you." She shook his offered hand. For a split second, her eyes got wide and

then with the sharpness of recognition, narrowed in suspicion.

Eric and Stacey noted the reaction, Eric with pleasure and Stacey with concern.

"I'm starving! Can we go eat?" Stacey said.

"I'm hungry too," Diane said. "Let's go."

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Over lunch they discussed Diane's current living arrangements now that her parents were gone.Just turned seventeen, she would be finishing her junior year in high school in a couple of weeks. Her

brother was in his second year at junior college, but did not have a job and could not live on his own.

The family had already decided that her brother would be better off moving to Phoenix and living with

their paternal grandparents until he either found a job or was admitted to a four year school. He wouldfinish the school year here and then move as soon as possible. There was general agreement that Stacey

should finish high school where she was. The only problem was that her aunt and uncle really did not

have space for her and with their three small children, they had their hands full. Their maternalgrandmother had moved in with Diane and her brother so they could stay where they were until the

school term ended but after that, the lease would end on the apartment and they would have to move.

Diane's aunt and uncle had pledged that they would make it work for the year until Diane went

off to college, but Diane knew how much of a hardship that would be for them and did not want to putthem through it. After lunch, they drove Diane home. Eric slept in the back seat of the car while Stacey

went up to meet Diane's grandmother. They chatted about Diane's condition and Stacey extended the

invitation for Diane to come visit at the hospital any time she could get away. Stacey came away with a

vague unease about the grandmother that she could not explain.

Stacey returned to the car and woke Eric. "So, what's the answer?"

"She has power. She is very strong. She is stronger than you and may be as strong as Danny."

"Can she fly?"

"I think so. I'm not sure."

"Anything else?"

"She knows I'm different."

"You think?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Does she know what you are?"

"I don't think so."

"I'll take you back to Danny's so you can tell them what you learned and I have to go to work."

"I can get to Danny's from here. You go to work."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'll hitch a ride on a truck. I watched them on the way out. See you tonight after work."He stepped out and took off. Stacey drove to work.

Danny woke up late in the afternoon. His mother held the phone out to him. "It's the hospital."

Danny quickly came awake. One of the orderlies was on the phone. There was a girl at the

hospital demanding to see him. The orderly recognized her as being in the hospital the day of the wreck

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on the Pike. Danny assured the orderly he would be right there. While Danny dressed, his motherbrought him up to speed on Eric's report of the morning. Eric was crashed out on the sofa or he would

have explained it himself.

"I think you should come with me. I am not real good at dealing with emotions," Danny said.

"You think?"

Danny rolled his eyes. "Please come with me."

"Of course, dear." Mrs. Levine headed for the fire escape.

"Not that way. We need to walk. We can't get there too quickly."

"Ah, right. We walk." Mrs. Levine clearly did not like the idea of walking to the hospital.

They walked in silence. When Danny and his mother entered the waiting room, Diane launched

herself at him and stopped short when she realized that the woman who had entered with him was

actually with him. "Diane Parker, please meet my mother, Mrs. Rachel Levine. Mother, this is the girl Itold you about."

Diane made no attempt to hide her surprise or her fear.

"Pleased to meet you Miss Parker. Are you any relation..."

"The statue on Lexington Green, yeah, I'm related to him." She had answered the questionthousands of times.

"It is my honor to meet a member of such a noble family." Mrs. Levine took Diane's hand in

both of hers. A look of recognition passed between them. "Danny, can we go somewhere private?"

Danny turned to one of the doctors who was in the waiting area talking to a patient's family."Dr. Gupta, could I borrow your office for a few minutes."

"Certainly, Dr. Levine, soon you will have one of your own. I am very pleased that you will bejoining us."

"I am looking forward to it."

Danny led the way to Dr. Gupta's office. As soon as he had closed the door Diane challenged,

"Mrs. Levine, what is going on here?"

"Please call me Rachel."

"Rachel, please tell me what is happening? Something is not right."

"On the contrary, dear, something is going very right. You must promise that whatever I say ordo, you will not shout or scream or make any loud noise."

Diane opened her mouth to say something but shut it instead.

"I will not hurt you," Danny's mother said softly.

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"I promise."

"Please take of your blouse, dear."

Diane looked at Danny with a question in her eye.

"He is a doctor and I am his mother. You don't have to take off your bra, just your blouse."

Diane turned away from Danny as she removed her blouse. Mrs. Levine touched Diane's backalong either side of her shoulder blades. She gently traced a line with her fingers. "Danny, come here

and put your hand on her shoulder."

"What is he doing?"

"Seeing if he can feel what I felt." She made a small hand motion which Danny understood, but

Diane did not.

Danny nodded as he returned the hand motion.

"It is as I thought. Diane, please put your blouse back on."

When Diane had finished tucking her blouse back into her skirt, Mrs. Levine said, "Diane,

please turn around. Put both your hands over your mouth. Do not say a word. Your life is about to

change in ways that none of us can even imagine." Mrs. Levine took off her jacket. Slowly, gracefully,

she unfurled her wings as Diane watched at first horrified and then transfixed. Then as gently as shehad opened them, she closed them again and put her jacket back on.

"The boy I met this afternoon, he was like you, wasn't he?"

"Yes, dear. We are fairies, like in the stories."

"Is Dr. Harrington like you?"

"No, Stacey is not exactly like us but she has powers like you."

"What power do I have?"

"You're a healer, and once we fix your wings, you will be able to fly."

"But, I couldn't heal my mother!"

"Diane, I couldn't either, and believe me, I tried," Danny said sadly. "There was too muchdamage. With my training and experience I couldn't save her standing on top of the strongest point in

the power line. There was no way you could have done it. It is not your fault. When I saw her, I was

surprised she lived as long as she did. That must have been your work."

Silent tears flowed in Diane's eyes. "What do I do now?"

Mrs. Levine took her hand. "Dr. Stacey Harrington, of the Lexington Harrington family, willinvite you to stay with her, but you will be staying with us, dear."

"Why me?"

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"Someone in your family tree married a fairy. For no reason I can explain, you, dear, inheritedfrom them. You are part fairy. We have much to talk about, but this is not the place. Danny's apartment

is walking distance from here. Shall we go?"

They quietly left the hospital with Mrs. Levine's arm wrapped around Diane's shoulder

comforting her.

Danny's landlady, Mrs. Goldstein, was sweeping the front step when they arrived. "Mrs.Goldstein!" Danny called, "I would like you to meet my mother, Rachel Levine."

"Mrs. Goldstein, Danny has told us of you. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Please call me Sonya. If you need anything, please come downstairs. I will be happy to share

what I have. And who is this young lady? You've been crying my dear. What's the matter?"

"Mrs. Goldstein, this is Diane Parker. Her parents were killed in the wreck the other day on the

Pike."

"Oh, I am so sorry. You must have been heartbroken. Have you eaten? You look pale. Wouldyou like some chicken soup? Chicken soup is good for everything. Come with me. Nothing makes a

person feel better than chicken soup and pleasant conversation. Danny, Rachel, come have some soup!"

Danny's mother raised an eyebrow at him.

"Mom, Mrs. Goldstein makes awesome chicken soup. There is nothing that makes me feel

better on the night before a big exam than a bowl of her chicken soup. Trust me on this."

"Better than mine?"

"Yes."

"This I have to see."

They spent an hour in Mrs. Goldstein's cluttered little apartment. She regaled them with stories

of her children and grandchildren now scattered across the country. Finally, Mrs. Goldstein declared

she was tired and shooed them out. When they left, Diane's tears of sorrow had been replaced by tearsof laughter.

Justin and Eric were watching a Red Sox game on television when Danny, Rachel and Diane

arrived. "So, what's for dinner?" Justin demanded when they had closed the door.

Danny reached into his desk and tossed a menu at his father. "Chinese take out, Dad. You know

how to use a phone!" He tossed the phone at his father.

Diane looked back and forth between Danny and his father. "Do you have any brothers orsisters?"

Danny smiled. "Nope. I'm enough trouble all by myself."

"That's for sure," Danny's father quipped. He proceeded to order enough food for a group twice

their size even assuming Stacey joined them in time for dinner.

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Eric stepped up to Diane. Even standing as tall as he could he barely came to her chin."Welcome, Diane, I was hoping you would come." He blushed. "I am happy to see you."

Diane blinked. "Oh, my god. How old are you?"

"Nineteen. Only a little older than you."

"You are a boy fairy."

"And you are a girl fairy."

Diane took a deep breath. "Are fairy years like human years?"

Eric looked to Mrs. Levine because he did not know the answer.

"Close enough, dear, for affairs of the heart, except that fairies are more likely to die in battle

than humans. Eric is a combat veteran. He is a hero, although to listen to him tell it, he was merely a

simple messenger boy."

"Really?"

"Mrs. Levine exaggerates." Eric looked down, embarrassed.

"No, she doesn't," Danny said. "If Eric hadn't risked his life to contact the centaurs, the fairy

castle would have fallen to the elves and their fire dragons. I would have died along with the others."

"Centaurs?"

"Ogres and gnomes as well," Danny said. "Eric, you can tell the story as well as I can. Why

don't the two of you go out on the fire escape where you can talk in private."

"Do you think that's wise?" Danny's mother asked after they had closed the door."Better the fire escape than the bedroom," Danny replied.

"Do you think you can repair her wings?" Mrs. Levine asked.

"Not by myself. I'll need help. They don't appear damaged, but they never grew. We need to

make them grow. I might be able to do it if Sinead and Mary were here, but I don't know how to reach

them."

"The pixies can find them and bring them," Danny's mother suggested.

"Can you call the pixies?"

"No, they come and go as they please."

"What about the two that came with you?"

"They're probably hiding somewhere near here. If they want to run this errand for us, they'llcome out. If not, not. They must be convinced that this favor we ask of them is important enough to

earn their attention."

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"If we are to give Diane her wings, we can't do it without their help. Would giving a fairy herwings be important enough?"

Two pixies floated down from behind the valence on the living room window drape. "DoctorDanny, we would be honored to find Sinead and Mary for you. We must ask a favor in return."

"What would you ask?"

"My sister is having a difficult pregnancy. The healers think it is triplets. Can you help her?"

"Twins are rare among pixies. Triplets even more so. With multiple births, the mother usually

dies," Mrs. Levine said softly.

"Can she come here or do I need to go to her?"

"If one of the girls can carry her, it would be better if she came here."

"By all means, we must do everything we can to save your sister and her babies."

The pixies flew out the open window.

The pixies returned two hours later. The Chinese take out had been eaten, the dishes had been

cleaned and the leftovers put in the refrigerator.

Sinead carried the obviously pregnant pixie and set her on the kitchen table. The pregnant

pixie's consort flitted nervously around the room until the male pixie of the original pair sprinkled himwith dust and he fell to the floor in a heap. Justin picked him up lest he get stepped on and put him on

the desk underneath an upside down spaghetti strainer.

After the briefest of greetings, Danny, Sinead and Mary set about making the tiny creature as

comfortable as they could. They piled rolled towels around her to make as close as they could to an

obstetrical table. They did what they could for her as they waited for the contractions to stabilize.

Stacey walked in to find Eric with his wings unfurled snuggled next to Diane on the sofa. Diane

was resting her head against Eric's shoulder as he gently stroked her hair. Justin was watching

television oblivious to the chaos in the rest of the room. Two pixies were perched on one of thevalences. A third pixie made desperate noises from under a spaghetti strainer on the desk. Danny, his

mother and two fairies Stacey did not know were so intent on whatever they had on the kitchen table

that they did not hear her come in.

Stacey needed all of five seconds to figure out what was going on when she reached the table.

"I am so glad to see you. Her water broke ten minutes ago," Danny reported. "It's triplets. I

think one is breech."

Shaking her head, Stacey washed her hands in the sink. "Get out of the way! I don't need power

for this. Be ready to catch." She looked at Sinead and Mary. "Do you know what to do with the baby

once I give it to you?"

"Yes, ma'am."

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"Danny, what do pixie babies eat other than their mother's milk?"

"Honey."

"Figures. We don't have any do we?"

"No. We have maple syrup."

Stacey looked up to the female pixie sitting on the valence and motioned her down. "Help himmix up something we can feed these babies. Their mother will not be ready to breast feed for a while."

The pixie nodded and flew to the kitchen counter.

Stacey looked at her fingernails. "Damn, it took so long to grow these." She quickly trimmed

her long nails.

"Why did you do that?" Sinead asked.

"Too easy to puncture something vital with long nails. Are you ready?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Stacey spoke to the pregnant pixie. "I won't lie to you. Some of this will hurt and none of it will

be pleasant. Push when I tell you to push and relax when I tell you to relax."

Less than a minute later a strong contraction started. The first baby was partially lateral breech.

One shoulder appeared at the top of the cervix. Between contractions Stacey inserted two fingers and,using external pressure from her other hand, gently eased the head into its proper orientation. On the

next contraction she brought the head out. She paused until the contraction abated and flipped the arms

out one at a time. The rest of the baby followed easily. She quickly tied the cord and passed the baby toSinead. The second one was head first and slid out as gracefully as could be expected under the

circumstances. She handed the second one to Mary to tend to. The third one was not dropping. Twointense contractions failed to dislodge it. Stacey knew she would have to get it out the hard way.

With spoon handles holding open the birth canal, Stacey reached into the pixie's womb and

brought out the third baby. Mrs. Levine carried it to join its sisters. The first two had been quiet littlegirls. The last was a boy and a noisy one at that. Sinead and Mary expertly tended to the babies. Stacey

finished with the mother and covered her with a towel so she could rest. She called Eric and Diane to

assist moving the pixie mother to the desk next to her still captive consort. "Monitor her vitals and don'tlet him out yet."

"Yes, Dr. Harrington."

"Call me 'Stacey'."

"Yes, Dr. Stacey."

Stacey sighed and slowly collapsed on to the sofa. Danny sat beside her to comfort her.

Once the crisis had passed, Mrs. Levine addressed the male of the original pixie pair that had

brought the girls. "How far did you step back?"

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"Two weeks."

Mrs. Levine cursed under her breath. "Where am I supposed to hide Sinead and Mary for two

weeks until they can return?"

"We knew you would figure something out."

"Thanks."

Justin wandered over. "That isn't your sister, is it?" he asked the pixie.

The pixie looked away. "No."

"She's the Duchess of Willow, the queen's sister, right?"

"Yes."

"And we have delivered three contenders to the throne that the queen tried to have killed instead

of helping a barren queen have an heir of her own.""Yes."

"And we have drawn enough power for every magical creature within a hundred leagues tohave sensed it, and if we heal Diane's wings, which we need to do, we will draw even more power

exposing us to discovery in a place we simply can not defend." Justin shouted in anger.

"Dad, we would have helped her even if we had known who she was. This building has a steel

structure. Elves can not penetrate it. One tried while Stacey was delivering the third baby. He burnedhimself on the fire escape railing."

Stacey stood and asked, "What did you just say?"

Rachel took her hands and looked into her eyes before answering, "We're at war, and you've

been drafted."

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CHAPTER THREE

STACEY COLLAPSED BACK ONTO THE SOFA and buried her face in her hands. Her heavysobs silenced everything else in the room. Justin clicked off the television. Even the babies stopped

whimpering. Danny tried to sit beside her, but she pushed him away. Justin opened his mouth to speak,

but Danny cut him off. "Let her cry it out. Forty eight hours ago she was looking at a comfortable and

peaceful life as a respected doctor in a suburban hospital. Since then she has spent a day in a traumaunit performing triage on the victims of a horrific wreck on the Mass Pike. She has learned that she has

healing powers. He has met beings she did not know existed. He helped heal one and helped midwife

three more. She has learned that there are other healers, and that the man she thought was a shy andretiring studious type was something else entirely. Then to top it off she learns that she is to become a

combatant in a war between creatures she knows next to nothing about. She has a right to be upset. Her

life has turned up side down."

Danny looked around for reactions. "The only other person here with a right to be distraught is

Diane. There's a whole lot going on here and even I'm short some answers. Can we stop and discuss ina rational manner what has happened since I returned from the other side and what we are doing from

here?"

Justin started to speak, but Danny cut him off again. "No, I am going to ask questions and youare going to answer them. Mom, Dad, sit there."

"Yes, Danny."

"Good. Now, someone remove the spaghetti strainer. Pixies sit on the desk and do not play with

the computer. Eric, stand guard on the fire escape."

Eric picked up the ceremonial sword and went out to the fire escape.

"Sinead, Mary, one of you stay with the babies and their mother. The other go take a nap. It's

going to be a long night."

Mary went into the bedroom to lie down.

Danny took a deep breath before continuing. "Mom, when you asked how far they stepped back

what did you mean?"

"There are several different ways to transition between the universe we are in now and the other

side. The other side is kind of like a parallel universe. I don't understand it all, but getting back and

forth can take some skill and requires using power. Hitching a ride on a rocket or a jet plane takes less

power than jumping from the ground, for example. One skilled leader can pull a group through withthem depending on their ability to focus the power. Pixies are especially good at it. Danny, when you

came back did you notice that you seemed to have been there longer than you were gone?"

"Yes."

"Well, that's because you're still there."

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"How can that be?"

"I'm not sure, but it is. When they brought you back from the other side, they stepped back two

weeks. You were on the other side twenty four days, but you were only gone ten days. If I went acrossnow, I would find the battle you fought in progress. However, I can not interfere with it because I have

had contact with you. I can not change what has happened to someone whose past is looped pack onitself. If I went across in three weeks, I could make changes, but not until then. Also, you can not be inthe same universe in two places. You can be in two universes simultaneously as you are now but you

can not jump back and forth such that you meet yourself in either place."

"So, the pixies had to wait two weeks for me to leave from the other side so they could bring

Sinead and Mary back with them. They can't go back for two weeks because that would put them in thesame universe twice."

"And both instances would instantly turn into a fine dust."

Danny smiled with an idea. "If Sinead and Mary can't return to the other side for two weeks,

then neither can whoever brought me back. Where are they?"

Danny's mother giggled and pointed at the fire escape. Titania gently floated through the open

door. She landed in the center of the room as gracefully as a prima ballerina with Michael, her consort,right behind her.

Everyone in the room jumped to their feet with the exception of the Duchess and the babies

who were sleeping.

Danny's parents bowed deeply, "My Queen, I live to serve you."

"Senior Chief Justice Levine, Assistant Chief Justice Levine, I had hoped ye would feel likethat," Titania smiled. "Would one of ye be so kind as t' go downstairs and open the door for the rest o'

the party?"

Danny's mother returned with Aurora and the stunningly beautiful blond elf who had previously

been enchanted into a dog. As they crowded into Danny's tiny apartment, Stacey said, "You must be

Aurora, and you must be Salome."

Aurora reached out to hug Stacey. "And you must be Stacey, the woman who stole his heart."

"What are you talking about?" Stacey stammered.

Aurora laughed. "Girlfriend, we need to talk."

Danny threw his hands up in dismay. "There are too many people here. We can not stay like

this!"

Danny's mother held up her hand for order and room fell to a hush. She turned to Michael,"Commander, what is your opinion?"

"I would prefer somewhere with fewer strangers. I do not wish our activities to create notice."

"I suggest we move to New Hampshire," Danny's mother offered. "The trailer park has a club

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house next to the pool that we can take over for as long as we need it."

"Won't there be people there?" Danny asked.

Danny's father responded, "No, with all the mill closings, the park is almost empty. Your

mother's right. That is a good place. There are heavy wrought iron fences all around and lots of steelframe structures."

"How do we get there?" Stacey asked.

"The ones that can't fly will have to go in your car. The rest will fly or be carried since Danny

does not own a car."

"It's a two hour drive," Danny objected.

"But only a half hour flight," his father reminded him.

"It's a plan then," Danny's mother turned to Titania. "My Queen, with your permission, I would

like to move our base of operations to our home in New Hampshire."

"Make it so, Justice Levine."

"My Queen, I would like to request that you carry the Duchess. I think Sinead, Mary and Eric

should carry the babies."

"Michael?"

"Yes, you should carry the Duchess. I will fly cover. It will be easier to protect you if you aretogether."

Titania gently woke the Duchess in her bed made of folded towels on the desk.

"Queen Titania!" The Duchess attempted to stand.

"Please rest. You have had a difficult birth. Triplets! Ye need t' rest."

"Thank you, Queen Titania. Your friends have done me a great service, I owe them my life."

"Shall we consider it a return of the favor ye did me in the forest a year ago?"

"Queen Titania, that was but a small thing I did. This is far greater."

"Please, I would call us even. If we are t' work together as much as I hope we will we need t'

stop keeping score."

"As you wish, Queen Titania."

"Are ye fit t' travel?"

"I am too weak to fly."

"I will carry ye."

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"You, Queen of the Fairies, carry me? I am not worthy."

"My military expert suggests that we must move for our own safety. Even I listen to Michael

when he speaks and he requested I carry ye."

"Who is carrying the babies?"

"Sinead, Mary and Eric."

"Is this the famous messenger, Eric?"

"Yes."

"Could he carry my son? Perhaps he can fill my son's heart with courage so he can grow up to

be brave like Eric."

Eric smiled and shrugged with an expression that said, "Yeah, whatever."

As the preparations were made to transport the Duchess and her babies, Mrs. Levine turned toStacey. "Aurora, Salome and Diane will ride with you."

Diane interrupted, "Could I fly with Eric?"

"Not this trip, dear. He will need all his attention on the baby. You will be flying on your own

soon." She turned back to Stacey. "Head north to Manchester. Go west on highway 101 and call

Danny's cell. He'll direct you from there."

"Can we pick up some food on the way?" Diane asked. "I'm starving."

"There's an all night diner around the corner. We'll eat there before we go."

Stacey, Aurora, Salome and Diane left via the front stairs.Mrs. Levine pointed to one of the pixies. "Can you cloak?"

"Yes."

"Would you stay with Danny so he can clean up this mess and cloak him as he flies to meet us.

There should be no evidence left behind that any of us was here."

"With pleasure."

"Thank you."

The Duchess and the babies were swaddled in the towels that had been used to form their

makeshift beds. With Mrs. Levine in the lead, one by one, the remaining visitors in Danny's apartmentstepped off the fire escape and flew into the night sky. When they had all gone, the lone remaining

pixie cocked his head and laughed.

"What are you laughing at?"

"This place is a disaster. You got screwed!"

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Danny gathered and hauled out the trash. He sent an email to the company that cleaned hisapartment to ask for an additional service, the second in as many days. Two hours after he started

cleaning, with the pixie on his shoulder, Danny stepped out to the fire escape and jumped into the night.

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Fairies Two - Three Chapter Sample

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