Violet Amethyst's Arc

Chapter 8 of 9

The rumor was dead, but the prince came tonight, and Violet still hadn't proven her theory would work. She paced the cottage, the vial of purple fairy dust warm in her palm. She had offered dust before, from a distance. Tonight she planned to hold her own essence and give at the same time. If she couldn't do both, she would fade like the fairy before her. She had never tested it. April arrived first, her book clutched to her chest again. She stopped in the doorway. "You look pale. Please tell me you're not doing something reckless." "I have to test the anchor," Violet said. "Before he gets here. I need to know I can give dust and keep my light." April set her book down and gripped Violet's wrist. "The records said the last fairy emptied herself all at once. What if you empty too?" "Then you stop me." Violet pressed the vial into April's free hand. "If my wings go dim, take the dust back. Don't let me give more." Kai pushed through the crystal door before April could argue. His boots tracked frost across the floor. "I don't like the quiet in here," he said. His pale blue eyes moved to the vial, then to Violet's face. "What are you two planning?" "A test," Violet said. "Just us. No prince yet." Kai crossed his arms. "You want to prove you won't disappear by risking disappearing. That's your plan." But he moved closer, not away. He always did. "Fine. But I'm watching your wings the whole time." Violet stood in the center of the room. She thought of her own essence, the way it sat warm behind her ribs. She held it there, tight, like a hand around a candle. Then she reached for the dust in April's palm and drew a thread of it into the air. The purple grains lifted and spun. Violet felt the pull at once, a tug asking her to give everything. Her wings flickered. April's grip tightened. "Violet." "I've got it," Violet whispered. She held her light and let only the dust go. The thread of purple drifted across the room and settled on Kai's shoulder like a small blessing. Her wings glowed steady again. She had given, and she had not emptied. Kai brushed the dust from his jacket, staring. "You didn't dim." "It works." Violet laughed, breathless. "I can love him and still be me." April hugged her hard. "You did it." But Kai's face didn't lighten. He looked at the door, then at the vial, nearly full still. "You proved it on me," he said. "I'm your best friend. He's a cursed man who watched a fairy fade in his arms. The pull will be stronger with him. Much stronger." He held her gaze. "Are you sure your anchor holds when it's him?" Violet's smile faded. She had no answer. The prince's knock came at the door.