Ordinary

Chapter 11

As soon as the doors opened, my jaw dropped. The room was the most magnificent thing I had ever seen. Crowds of couples danced in sync to the glorious music being played by the orchestra. Beautiful gowns swept the floor as the couples twirled throughout the dance floor. Trellises of vines decorated the high marble walls, dotted with shimmering gold and silver roses.

I tried to contain my excitement. After reading about them and watching them in movies for years, I finally got to experience one.

Marcus bounded right past me, straight towards Elizabeth. I tried not to notice how handsome he looked, but it was impossible. He bowed before her and she curtsied, much more elegantly than I had.

"You look lovely," he said as he held his hand out.

She smiled politely at him and placed her gloved hand in his. "Thank you," she said as he pulled her towards the dance floor. I tried not to notice the tinge of jealousy that shot through me.

But looking around the magnificent room, I could feel nothing but awe.

"Incredible isn't it?" Gwydion had appeared beside me.

I nodded. "I'd never imagined anything this beautiful."

He chuckled as he held out his hand. "You haven't seen anything yet." Timid but excited, I took his hand, and he lead me outside. We walked toward the garden, stretching out almost as far as I could see, the music from the ball still wrapping us in its peaceful melody. We sat on a stone bench, barely wide enough for the both of us.

He had a funny look in his eye as he asked, "Would you like to see what I see?"

I did not know what he meant, but I found myself nodding anyway. He turned behind us to a bush, flowers of every color blooming from its branches. He picked one and handed it to me.

I raised an eyebrow as I held it in my hand. The flower was a rainbow of colors.

"Eat it."

"Excuse me?" I asked, turning towards him.

He tilted his chin towards the flower. "You're human in the faerie realm. There are many things hear that your eyes weren't made to see." I kept silence at the brutal reminder. "It's why you didn't see the wolf as it hunted you and Marcus. You can see faeries because we don't choose to shield ourselves from you, but it would be too easy to hide ourselves from you."

I glanced again at the petals in my hand. "And this would give me the power to see the monsters?" I asked. I shuddered at the thought of being attacked by an invisible force again. I didn't want to be helpless like that again. Well as a human in this world, I would always be helpless, but if I could at least see what I was fighting, I could hopefully stand a chance.

"Yes, you'll be able to see monsters, and you'll be able to see so much more."

Without a second thought, I lifted the flower to my lips and swallowed. I had expected the flower to be course as it slid down my throat, but it turned to mist in my mouth.

The effects were almost immediate. I had to keep my jaw from dropping. As if I had been given new eyes, everything around me changed. The colors surrounding me were bolder and brighter than before. The moonlight that fell around me seemed to glow brighter. The stars were bigger, and I swear I could see them twinkling in the night sky. Little faeries flew overhead, tending to the gardens, zooming by like tiny shooting stars.

"Wow," was all my brain could muster.

Gwydion chuckled at my reaction. I turned towards him, and my eyes widened as I saw him as if for the first time as well.