Fable (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale 3)

“Especially that new kid, what’s his name, Nix, uh, no, that’s not right. It’s Nick now. I’ve never seen anyone more acclimated to the water. He may even give Brody a run for his money.” She smiled and moved away from the bleachers, her heels making soft clicking noises as she left Mina to her thoughts.

Mina didn’t need any other urging. She found herself scanning the water, looking for a green-skinned boy. Oh, what was she thinking? He couldn’t possibly have Fae-colored skin here. It only took a moment to see the one young man who was swimming laps around the other athletes. He seemed to be born in the water. His strokes were long and powerful, and he had great stamina and could tread water without breaking a sweat. He actually acted like he had a new lease on life. Well, he did.

It wasn’t until he turned around and made eye contact with her that she did actually truly know it was Nix. He was alive and well, and apparently human. His hair was a shocking red color, and his skin was pale white. But his eyes—his eyes were still that brilliant shade of Fae green.

The coach was busy discussing the tryouts with his assistant, and Nix smiled at her and gave her a thumbs-up. Brody used that moment to hit Nix on the back of the head with the ball. Nix’s head bounced with the impact, and he turned and dove after Brody, attacking him from beneath and pulling him underwater. Brody’s smile dropped from his face as he sucked in a mouth full of water. Brody resurfaced with an impish look on his face and lunged at Nix, pushing his head under the water.

Mina laughed at the boys, who were bonding as only brothers with a love for water could. It looks like Nix had found another family. She couldn’t help but think back on what the phoenix had said to her. Even if I heal him, he will still die on this plane. It was his Fae self that was dying. By bringing him here, he got a chance to live as a human. A teenager with a future that was much more stable than hers.

Maybe Mina Grimm didn’t mess up too badly after all.