Siofra was sitting by the window in her parents cottage with her arms folded, one on top of the other on the window sill, her chin rested gently on top of them as she gazed lazily out onto the lush green scenery of the farm they lived on. A yawn erupted accross her features, she had not slept a wink.
"I AM THE KING OF PORRIDGE! I AM THE KING OF PORRIDGE! THE KING OF PORRIDGE AM I!..."
Siofra was snapped out of her musings by the sudden burst into song. She turned to the source of the noise to see her young cousin, Ronin, covered in his morning porridge and wearing the bowl as a hat. She shook her head and giggled despite the fact that she knew her mother would NOT be happy to see such a mess.
"Well I guess you are done with breakfast. Come on you little troublemaker, let's get you cleaned up before my mother gets home and sees what a mess you've made."
"The King says no. The King is happy with his porridge kingdom," he lifts both fists in the air briefly before smashing them down into the pile of porridge in front of him, spattering it around even more, nearly missing getting hit with bits of it herself. Before he could do any more damage she lifted him up and carried him to the basin of water in the back yard. She unceremoniously dropped him in, clothes and all. He yelps as he hits the too cool water, the sun having not had enough time to heat the small body of water, this wasnt going to be a warm bath. Through much protesting and struggle she manages to remove his now wet clothes, give him a decent scrub, and get him dried and redressed in no time flat. She then moves on to the kitchen but before she could adequately finish cleaning up, she hears her mother entering through the front door. She hurries over to her, gathering her into a hug and deftly turning her mother around so her back is to the still messy kitchen. When Siofra pulls away from the hug, her smokey gray eyes meet her mothers brown ones and she holds the stare for a few breif seconds.
"What was that for dear?"
Her face now sporting a big smile, "Nothing. Just glad to see you. How was town?"
"Oh, bustling as usual." Her mother turns again to head towards the kitchen which, to her, now looks as spotless as it was when she left. Siofra makes a mental note to finish cleaning it when her mother makes her way out to the chicken coop to gather some fresh eggs.
"Oh, Siofra, I almost forgot, a letter came for you today."
As she took the letter she returned to her spot by the window. Before she opened it, she looked again at her mother who was taking off her hat and putting on her work apron. This woman who had raised her as her own, was short and rotund with a sweet disposition but a no nonsense attitude when it came to raising her child. She had been a hard woman to grow up with, never allowing any acts of misbehaving to go unpunished, but her gentle nature was ever present and had helped mold Siofra into the strong, respectful, and kind woman she was today.
The man she had called father had been cut from the same cloth; strong and kind but unwilling to allow any unruliness. He had been hard on her as well, but he always told her she was special and that she should never settle for anything less than the best. Along with teaching her the responsibilities of farm life, he had also made sure she recieved as proper an education as was possible. He had passed away when Siofra was still but a child, but what few memories she had of him she cherished. She owed them both a lot, but she wasn't thier flesh and blood.
Siofra was a faerie. Or rather she was born a faerie but had been raised by humans. Her birth mother had not wanted to keep her around as a reminder of the events that had happened that led to her creation so there had been an exchange. One dark night, the human baby girl of Piaras and Mealla Kelley had been taken and Siofra put in her place. The human child had been handed over as teind to ensure there was no chance of return.
Siofra knew she couldn't have been human. The skills and magical abilities she possessed started revealing themselves to her at an early age.
One morning when she was a young girl, she had been chasing the house cat through the cottage and accidentally knocked over one of her mothers beautiful, handcrafted bowls, smashing it to bits. She could hear the footsteps of her mother coming from the other end of the house. Siofra ran to her before she could see the mess that had been made and looked up at her with her innocent, mystic eyes. Maella lifted Siofra into her arms and when their eyes met, the young girls mind was already trying to figure out a way to convince her mother there had been no wrong doing but she couldn't form the words. She laid her head on her mothers shoulder and began to cry as she was carried to the scene of the accident. Siofra waited for her mother to scold her but after several seconds passed she lifted her head and looked down at the shattered pieces of the bowl, then up at her mother. She was smiling sweetly down at her.
"You silly child, what has caused you such distress? I see no reason for you to be so upset."
With a look of shock on her young face she again looked down at the broken pieces that littered the floor. "B..b..but, your pretty bowl.."
"Yes, yes it is. It was hand made by my great grandmother. See the intracacies of the design along the rim. Such handiwork is rarely seen anymore. I've had it for many years so just make sure if you are going to be playing around in here, you take care not to knock it over. I know how careless you can be." With that, she lowered Siofra back to the floor and walked out of the room to continue on with her chores, humming as she went. It was then that she realized she had the ability to glamour.
A couple of years later, she found out that she could shift into anything she thought of, a gift that seemed only to come to her when she was under duress. She had left the gate to the cow pen open and some of the cows had escaped sending her father bellowing after her. She rounded the corner of the cottage and spotted a mouse scurrying past her and under the house, just as her father rounded the same corner to catch her a half second later, he too saw the mouse but no Siofra. He was sure she had come this way but she was no where to be seen so with a low growl, he turned in the opposite direction and continued his search. As soon as he was out of sight, the mouse had disappeared and Siofra had replaced it.
There had been other things that had happened as well, all convincing her that she couldn't possible be the daughter of the human parents she had grown up with and loved so deeply. As her skills had presented them at such an early age, she had choosen not to inform her parents for fear they would turn her out. A freak, inhuman, or worse, they would be afraid of her. So as each talent was discovered, she kept them hidden while her curiosity continued to play around with them and develop them as much as she could. It wouldn't be until she had become a young woman that she would get the answers she so desperately wanted.
Last night she had had a visitor. A visitor that had not only confirmed she was not human, but had told her just what she was. Siofra had been standing at her window brushing through her hair and watching the summer breeze blow through the fields. A wayward gust had snaked its way through her window, lifting the hair off of her shoulders and causing a slight chill to run down her spine. She stood there for a moment, eyeing the seemingly quiet scene in front of her before turning back to the interior of her room. Standing there in the middle of her room, bathed in a pale light that seemed to radiate from within, was a woman. She was eyeing Siofra from head to toe with an ere of superiority as if critically assessing her every feature. She was beautiful.
"Siofra, I am Shaylee. As I am sure you are already aware, you are not the offspring of the human family you have known since your birth. I have come to you now to enlighten you on your true lineage and to allow you the opportunity to ask the questions I know have plagued you for quite some time."
Her skin had the same pale smoothness of her own. The eyes that seemed to regard her with cold distance were the same same shape and smokey gray color that she herself possessed. Siofra knew who she was. This was the woman who had given birth to her.
"I AM THE KING OF PORRIDGE! I AM THE KING OF PORRIDGE! THE KING OF PORRIDGE AM I!..."
Siofra was snapped out of her musings by the sudden burst into song. She turned to the source of the noise to see her young cousin, Ronin, covered in his morning porridge and wearing the bowl as a hat. She shook her head and giggled despite the fact that she knew her mother would NOT be happy to see such a mess.
"Well I guess you are done with breakfast. Come on you little troublemaker, let's get you cleaned up before my mother gets home and sees what a mess you've made."
"The King says no. The King is happy with his porridge kingdom," he lifts both fists in the air briefly before smashing them down into the pile of porridge in front of him, spattering it around even more, nearly missing getting hit with bits of it herself. Before he could do any more damage she lifted him up and carried him to the basin of water in the back yard. She unceremoniously dropped him in, clothes and all. He yelps as he hits the too cool water, the sun having not had enough time to heat the small body of water, this wasnt going to be a warm bath. Through much protesting and struggle she manages to remove his now wet clothes, give him a decent scrub, and get him dried and redressed in no time flat. She then moves on to the kitchen but before she could adequately finish cleaning up, she hears her mother entering through the front door. She hurries over to her, gathering her into a hug and deftly turning her mother around so her back is to the still messy kitchen. When Siofra pulls away from the hug, her smokey gray eyes meet her mothers brown ones and she holds the stare for a few breif seconds.
"What was that for dear?"
Her face now sporting a big smile, "Nothing. Just glad to see you. How was town?"
"Oh, bustling as usual." Her mother turns again to head towards the kitchen which, to her, now looks as spotless as it was when she left. Siofra makes a mental note to finish cleaning it when her mother makes her way out to the chicken coop to gather some fresh eggs.
"Oh, Siofra, I almost forgot, a letter came for you today."
As she took the letter she returned to her spot by the window. Before she opened it, she looked again at her mother who was taking off her hat and putting on her work apron. This woman who had raised her as her own, was short and rotund with a sweet disposition but a no nonsense attitude when it came to raising her child. She had been a hard woman to grow up with, never allowing any acts of misbehaving to go unpunished, but her gentle nature was ever present and had helped mold Siofra into the strong, respectful, and kind woman she was today.
The man she had called father had been cut from the same cloth; strong and kind but unwilling to allow any unruliness. He had been hard on her as well, but he always told her she was special and that she should never settle for anything less than the best. Along with teaching her the responsibilities of farm life, he had also made sure she recieved as proper an education as was possible. He had passed away when Siofra was still but a child, but what few memories she had of him she cherished. She owed them both a lot, but she wasn't thier flesh and blood.
Siofra was a faerie. Or rather she was born a faerie but had been raised by humans. Her birth mother had not wanted to keep her around as a reminder of the events that had happened that led to her creation so there had been an exchange. One dark night, the human baby girl of Piaras and Mealla Kelley had been taken and Siofra put in her place. The human child had been handed over as teind to ensure there was no chance of return.
Siofra knew she couldn't have been human. The skills and magical abilities she possessed started revealing themselves to her at an early age.
One morning when she was a young girl, she had been chasing the house cat through the cottage and accidentally knocked over one of her mothers beautiful, handcrafted bowls, smashing it to bits. She could hear the footsteps of her mother coming from the other end of the house. Siofra ran to her before she could see the mess that had been made and looked up at her with her innocent, mystic eyes. Maella lifted Siofra into her arms and when their eyes met, the young girls mind was already trying to figure out a way to convince her mother there had been no wrong doing but she couldn't form the words. She laid her head on her mothers shoulder and began to cry as she was carried to the scene of the accident. Siofra waited for her mother to scold her but after several seconds passed she lifted her head and looked down at the shattered pieces of the bowl, then up at her mother. She was smiling sweetly down at her.
"You silly child, what has caused you such distress? I see no reason for you to be so upset."
With a look of shock on her young face she again looked down at the broken pieces that littered the floor. "B..b..but, your pretty bowl.."
"Yes, yes it is. It was hand made by my great grandmother. See the intracacies of the design along the rim. Such handiwork is rarely seen anymore. I've had it for many years so just make sure if you are going to be playing around in here, you take care not to knock it over. I know how careless you can be." With that, she lowered Siofra back to the floor and walked out of the room to continue on with her chores, humming as she went. It was then that she realized she had the ability to glamour.
A couple of years later, she found out that she could shift into anything she thought of, a gift that seemed only to come to her when she was under duress. She had left the gate to the cow pen open and some of the cows had escaped sending her father bellowing after her. She rounded the corner of the cottage and spotted a mouse scurrying past her and under the house, just as her father rounded the same corner to catch her a half second later, he too saw the mouse but no Siofra. He was sure she had come this way but she was no where to be seen so with a low growl, he turned in the opposite direction and continued his search. As soon as he was out of sight, the mouse had disappeared and Siofra had replaced it.
There had been other things that had happened as well, all convincing her that she couldn't possible be the daughter of the human parents she had grown up with and loved so deeply. As her skills had presented them at such an early age, she had choosen not to inform her parents for fear they would turn her out. A freak, inhuman, or worse, they would be afraid of her. So as each talent was discovered, she kept them hidden while her curiosity continued to play around with them and develop them as much as she could. It wouldn't be until she had become a young woman that she would get the answers she so desperately wanted.
Last night she had had a visitor. A visitor that had not only confirmed she was not human, but had told her just what she was. Siofra had been standing at her window brushing through her hair and watching the summer breeze blow through the fields. A wayward gust had snaked its way through her window, lifting the hair off of her shoulders and causing a slight chill to run down her spine. She stood there for a moment, eyeing the seemingly quiet scene in front of her before turning back to the interior of her room. Standing there in the middle of her room, bathed in a pale light that seemed to radiate from within, was a woman. She was eyeing Siofra from head to toe with an ere of superiority as if critically assessing her every feature. She was beautiful.
"Siofra, I am Shaylee. As I am sure you are already aware, you are not the offspring of the human family you have known since your birth. I have come to you now to enlighten you on your true lineage and to allow you the opportunity to ask the questions I know have plagued you for quite some time."
Her skin had the same pale smoothness of her own. The eyes that seemed to regard her with cold distance were the same same shape and smokey gray color that she herself possessed. Siofra knew who she was. This was the woman who had given birth to her.