I sat across from him signing my name to the contract I'd just finished read before.

"Are you sure you won't regret this?" he asked me and I paused, thinking about everything that could happen if someone evil bought me.

"Why should I?" I asked as I finished signing my name. "This is better than the alternative, right?" I stood once he took the contract and looked it over again.

"Yes, I suppose it is." Another man placed manacles on me that connected it to a collar. My long red hair was pulled up into a bun so it wouldn't get caught. The chain was so long that it fell to the bottom of the oversized shirt I was wearing. "Do you have trouble breathing?"

"No," I answered as a man placed a white sheet was placed over my head reaching the back of my knees.

"Shall we?" He opened the door and motioned for me to go through it. I started forward and he walked in front of me to lead me to where I'd be auctioned off. I didn't even notice the whispers or the creatures around me. I stood in the center of the stage and stared down at it. I didn't want to see the people and creatures who were looking to purchase me.

"Ladies and gentlemen, what we have for you now is a rare prize even for this venerable auction house!" the announcer called out. A rare prize? Guess they don't sell humans much.

"Ooh!"

"There it is!"

"I've never seen one before!"

"Do I hear one million pounds?" Pounds? Isn't that the currency in England? I hadn't paid much attention to where we were going when we left Japan.

"One point one!" But does it really matter?

"One and a half!" All I want is a place to call home.

"One point eight!" Will I really be able to find that with these people?

"Two million!"

"Two and a quarter!"

"The bids are so hight! What is that thing?" I heard someone ask.

"You don't know? Really? It's the most wondrous tool an Alchemist can hope for. A Sleight Beggy, but this one is more than that. She's also a Sleigh Fendeil. What's a Sleigh Beggy and a Sleigh Fendeil?

"Five million." My eyes widened and I looked up to see a man with horns coming from his head and a red cloth in front of his face. "Yes, I've made my decision. I'll take you as my apprentice." The cloth fluttered and I saw a glimpse of white and purple.

"Thank you kindly for your payment," the man who was with me when I signed the contract said to the man who bought me as I stood next to him. I looked down at the check the man had written out. "This is an eighteen-year-old girl from Japan. She's shown no trace of aggression and should be simple to train. I confess I was quite pleasantly surprised to see you at today's auction, sir. However, in the future, I must ask you to follow the rules of our auction house. Bidders must stay off the stage-"

"I require neither a lecture nor small talk, thank you," the man interrupted him before standing to his feet. "You come with me." I didn't move and the man grasped my chain and forced me to look up at him. The cloth moved in the wind revealing a skull sitting on a purple neck. "Eyes forward, not on the ground. Keep your chin up and your spine straight. Understood?" he asked me.

"Yes, sir," I nodded. I followed him out of the room, missing the looks and whispers of the two men we'd left behind in the room. I finally looked at the creatures in the tanks and in chains around me. There are so many inhuman creatures here. Dwarves, monsters, werewolves? I'm used to seeing strange sights, but I've never seen these before. I guess it's no surprise that they exist. I looked at the man in front of me. This guy handed over a fortune for me like it was chump change he found in the cushions. Just who is he? I watched a creature emerge from his shoulder and fly to me and rub its head on my cheek.

"Oh-! Look who's here!" a man said from next to one of the creatures chained up. "What brought the magus out? Magus? "I thought he disliked being among people."

"We missed out on a real gem today."

"You hardly ever see one of those for sale!"

"She may only be a halfbreed, but the other half is even rarer!"

"A genuine Sleigh Beggy and Sleigh Fendeil halfbreed." Sleigh Beggy and Sleigh Fendeil? I held the small creature close to me.

"Ahh, as I thought. You can see them." I looked up at the man in confusion.

"Are you talking to me?" I asked him.

"There's no one else nearby, is there?" he asked me. "What is your name?" he opened the door and ushered me in. I walked in before turning back to him.

"Reika Hatori, sir," I told him, removing the sheet from my head. He closed the door and leaned on the wall.

"I am Elias Ainsworth. It's a pleasure, little puppy," he said holding out his hand for mine. Puppy? "And it would appear you do possess sight, as advertised. That's rare among either of your races - for all the good your luck may have done you."

"My luck... huh?" I asked him.

"I'm not takin them," one of my relatives said as I held my baby sister's hand tightly. "She'd just be a burden."

"But if we send them to an orphanage, the neighbors-" Another argued.

"Who cares? They only have the tiniest inheritance. There's no benefit to us." Was that all we were worth to them? By how much money we had received? I followed my sisters gaze to see an arm waving at us. "Anyway, I hear there's something wrong with them. They talk to themselves and acts weirdly."

"But still, shouldn't we-"

"No. I'm not taking them, and that's that."

"Hey, is it true your parents left you?" One of the boys in my class asked me.

"Nah. Her mommy killed herself. She's got nobody but her whiny sister."

"Same thing, isn't it? Not even her own mommy wanted her!"

"No," I said. "Whatever luck you claim to think I've had was stolen from me. My "sight" has never brought me anything good. It's only stolen those I care for most away from me."

"Is that so..." I looked up at him. as he spoke. "I'll have to ensure you'll be glad of it one day."

"You'll... what...?" I asked shocked.

"And I must say, your passivity is unappealing," he said. "Beautiful dolls have their place, but I spent a pretty penny on you. I'd prefer you to be more interesting." He grabbed my shoulder and pulled me to him. "Now, shut your eyes and hold on to me." I looked up at him. "Eyes closed. You may get dizzy." I held his jacket in my hand tightly and looked back down at my hand.

Nettle in the shadows...

False holly in a ring...

Spin 'round ten times, twenty times...

Spin a spider's web on that distant bough.

I opened my eyes and looked at the branch next to my face. Thorns...? I quickly closed my eyes until he told me too.

"There. You may open your eyes now." I did as he said and my eyes widened at the small cottage in front of me. There was a large garden and it was surrounded by the woods and a path that must have led to a city. "Impressive. We made it in a single jump." In one of the trees was a birds nest where a mother watched its eggs. "This is my home." I looked back up at Elias. "As of today, it is your home as well." He moved to the door of the cottage.

"Wait a minute!" I called as I ran after him. "Where are we? How'd we get here? We were just inside-!"

"This is the countryside west of London. On the shores of England," he told me.

"So... we really are in England," I mumbled. "You said something about me being your apprentice? Apprentice of what?"

"Oh, yes. Here." He poked a link in the chain around my neck. "You won't be needing those anymore." The collar, manacles, and chain all burst away from me and disappeared! I placed my hand on my now bare neck. "As of now, you are an apprentice mage." A mage? "We are a dying breed, fading from this world. But I, at least intend to hold on till the end. Now! The first order of business is a bath. I welcome you into my home as my apprentice and a new mage, halfbreed- ah, I beg your pardon. Welcome home, Reika."

I fought against him, a large blush on my face as he tried to remove my shirt from my person.

"No, no, no-! Hold it!" I yelled at him. "I can handle this part on my own!"

"I doubt you can work the tub. Besides, you're filthy. I'll scrub you clean," Elias said.

"I'm not a baby! I've taken a bath before! I'll figure it out!" I yelled.

"Now, stop fussing like a kitten. In you go!"

"First I'm a puppy now I'm a kitten! Make up your mi- Aaah!" He dropped me in the tub, completely naked. I covered my face with my hands. There is no God... He saw everything...

"Immerse yourself to the neck, or the chill won't leave your bones," he told me.

"Ok..."

"Come out once you've warmed up." I sank into the water, my blush still on my face. I totally forgot to ask him for a total explanation about what a Sleigh Beggy and a Sleigh Fendeil are. Then again, in all my imaginings of what would happen after the auction, I never imagined I'd have a good hot soak again.

"If you're so willing to discard your life, why not give yourself over to someone who can make use of you?"

"Make use of me... huh?"

"Oooh! I thought I smelled something sweet and scrumptious!" I looked up to see three little people with feet like birds and feathered shoulders and wings. Their eyes were completely black and had two antennae on their heads. "Look! An adorable human girl!"

"Are you... fairies?" I asked them.

"Oh my! She's unfazed!" One of them said. "How refreshing! But unsurprising, since you can see us! Yes, indeed. Humans do call us "fairies". But how about you don't, sweetie. It's so dull."

"Call us "neighbor" or "friend"! That's much more fun," a second said.

"You've seen folk like us before, haven't you?" the third asked.

"So few humans can see us nowadays!" the first sighed. "But if the bonehead's taken you in, you must have some kind of talent, right?" Bonehead? They must be talking about Elias. "We're so happy you're here, sweetie. Humans hardly ever notice us anymore. And in the old days, there were so many humans with the Sight-! Mages and all sorts of others! But these days they're all into that "science" stuff, and we've been relegated to "fantasy". The "new world" whatchamacallit... America! They've got ghosts and monsters, but don't care about us! So mean!"

"Yeah! A friend came back from there a while ago! Said they called her a demon!"

"Eww! That's an awful story, poor thing!"

"By the way, sweetie... You're half Sleigh Beggy and half Sleigh Fendeil, right?" There are those terms again. That's what they called me at the auction house. What are those things "Training someone like you to be a mage, huh? The Thorn Mage is so silly sometimes!" The first fairy kissed my cheek before joining her friends.

""Thorn Mage"?" I asked them.

"One of Elias' other names," the second fairy told me. "We call him that, the old half-baked bonehead!" Half-baked?

"You poor dear! Getting tangled up with a scary-faced monster! Poor child, sweeter than even honey mead- the draught more prized than gold or the fairy kingdom's own flowers. Oh, our beloved little cub, how we adore you! If you're doomed to be a mage, we'll gladly do all we can to help you." Beloved? Adore?

"Reika?" I jumped at Elias voice coming from the still closed door. "Are you all right? You haven't fallen asleep in there, have you?"

"I'm fine!" I shouted at him. "I promise! Really! You don't need to come in!" I got out of the tub and wrapped a towel around my body before turning and looking for the fairies. They're gone...?

"For today, simply eat and drink," Elias told me as I sat on the couch next to his chair. "Make yourself at home." In front of me on the coffee table was an assortment of foods and two tea mugs. I took a mug and sipped my tea. Tea and a full meal. He really is welcoming me into his home. I've never felt so comfortable in someone else's house before.

"Um... while I was bathing, some fairies visited me," I told him.

"Ah, the Ariels?" he asked. "I expect you piqued their curiosity and they came to greet you."

"Oh."

"I can see that you have many questions," he said. "Very well. Tonight, instead of bedtime stories, I'll give you what answers I can."

"Is it true that you can use magic?" I asked him. A cage on the coffee table unlocked and a firebird appeared on his finger.

"Yes, it's true."

"When you said I'm your apprentice, what did you mean?" I asked him.

"It means you're now my pupil, pup," he told me. "To reiterate, I am a mage, and irritatingly, I appear to have some prestige in our society."

"Appear to?" I asked him.

"I don't know specifics, as I avoid others when possible," he told me. Then why take an apprentice? "You see, many alchemists and magic users died in the last great war. Nowadays, we have a severe lack of gifted young people. Even a glimmer of talent is sought out. In desperation, some resort to abduction or even slavery- as in your case. Now, children with magical talent are unusual, but not that rare. Sleight Beggy and Sleigh Fendeil, however, are nearly unheard of. I was quite fortunate."

"People at the auction house kept calling me those names, too. What exactly does Sleigh Beggy and Sleigh Fendeil mean?" I asked him. He crossed his fingers in front of his face and stared at me with his glowing red eyes.

"An apt comparison might be to a queen bee," he told me.

"A queen bee?" I asked him.

"Sleigh Beggy have the ability to summon and bind all manner of things while Sleigh Fendeil protects not only the humans but the neighbors as well," Elias explained. "And while you can perceive fairies and the like for your kind, that is very unusual. Most don't even realize what they are doing. Fae beings are like worker bees who flock to the queen- whether she sees them or not. And for those of your kind who cannot see them, they bear both good and bad luck."

"Good and bad luck?" I asked.

"Fae notions of gifts and favors aren't always in a human's best interest," he told me. "But their fondness means you'll never lack for help. Magic often requires their aid. Their willing assistance will be a great asset to you. You will be a magnificent mage one day. That said, I don't want to force you down any road."

"But... you bought me," I reminded him. "Doesn't that mean I don't get a say anymore? You're giving me a choice to do what I want?"

"Not really!" he told me looking happy. "But you may think things over. The path to becoming a mage is only one of many open to you now." He placed his hand on my head. "I'll do what I can to guide you on that path, but that doesn't mean I won't help with other things. I wouldn't mind spoiling you a bit." My eyes widened at his words and action. "After all, you're practically family now." Family? He made a necklace appear in his hands. At the end of the necklace was a green stone with a hole in the middle of it. "This Adder Stone comes from a riverbed, where the hole wore into it naturally. It's yours now. It will protect you." He tied the necklace around my neck and I picked up the stone and stared at it. "I think that's enough for one evening. Let's call it a night."

After he showed me to my room, which was across the hall from his, I sat on my new bed and looked around the room. It was a plain room: bed, dresser, desk, and a chair. It was plain, but mine. I smiled at the thought. I'd never had my own room until now. I touched the stone around my neck again. He said I had options. Am I really going to be his apprentice? He's not lying about me having a choice, is he? I plopped down on my pillow and took a deep breath. What a strange scent. The tea had the same smell. Some herb maybe? Fresh, but faintly bitter. Like a grassy field. I hugged the pillow to my face. A real bed is so nice and there's no scent of must or mildew. Brain shutting off for sleep now... I closed my eyes and was close to sleep when...

"Reika... Reika..." I opened my eyes and looked through the window. "Reika." I looked up to see one of the Ariels from my bath. I opened the window so she could fly in.

"You're one of the Ariels from earlier," I said.

"The Thorn Mage told you our name, huh?" she asked me with a smile. "Care for a nighttime stroll with me? The forest is so pretty by moonlight!"

"But..."

"Fae notions of gifts and favors aren't always in a human's best interest."

"It won't take long, and no one will mind!" She told me. "A nice walk will be just the thing to make you sleep well!"

"Yeah, I guess so..." I said thinking about it. "I'll go tell Elias-"

"Oh, don't bother him!" The Ariel told me. "We'll be back before he even knows we're gone!" Something rang in my head and I looked back down at the stone around my neck. "Come on, sweetie. Pleeeease?" She begged.

I walked out the door and met with the Ariel. I wrapped a cloak around my shoulders as I followed her into the forest.

"It's a lot brighter than I thought it would be," I commented.

"Yep! We leave sparkle trails when we fly," she told me. "You can see them, right?" I nodded. "We play in the woods lots, and go to and from the Fairy Kingdom, so there're trails all over! There are tons of us! Some in the human world, and even more in our kingdom. Some of us live alone, and some live like humans do- in pairs with children. Where do you come from, Reika?"

"Japan."

"Japan?"

"It's a small country way east of here- across the whole continent and the ocean."

"And your family?"

"I haven't had any since my baby sister died," I told her. "Dad ran away with my baby brother when I was little. For all I know, he's dead too. Relatives passed me and my sister around after my mother died. My sister killed herself about a month ago."

"Were they good to you?" she asked me and I stopped walking and looked down.

"I don't think I noticed much. I was too worried about my little sister," I told her. "But if I'd learned to love them I probably wouldn't be here now." We walked in silence after that for a little while. "Hey, um... we've been walking for a while..." I noted looking around and noticing the eyes watching us. "If we go any further, we'll-"

"Oh, don't you worry, sweetie! It's a ways yet actually. You'll never have to go back again!"

"What...?" I asked her. She wrapped her arms around my pointer finger.

"We managed to pull the wool over the old bonehead's eyes!" She said excitedly. "If I don't bring you home, they others will be so mad at me! Don't you worry about a thing! Life in our kingdom should be so much easier than in your world!

"What are you talking about?" I asked her confused.

"Perfect! The way's even open." I looked and saw a large boulder that seemed to be glowing a blue light. "The Fairy Kingdom is through here. My home- your home!- where every day is nothing but fun!" I followed her to the entrance and looked down the stairs "Ready to go?" I looked down the stairs before backing away from them.

"No... I- I think I should go back..." I turned and went back to the house.

"Go back where?" she asked me and I froze again. "To what? That dinky little "Japan" place across the sea? But there's nobody there. No one's waiting for you, sweetie." Arms wrapped around me and held me close. "So why not live your life with us, playing and having fun?" The arms spun me back to the Ariel. She's right... No one's waiting for me anywhere I could go... But... I reached for her hands with my finger. But I...

"After all, you're practically family now."

I quickly grabbed onto my own arm and my nails dug into my arm making it bleed.

"Reika? What's the matter?" she asked me.

"I'm not going with you," I told her. "I'm going back to the house."

"But why?" she asked me. "There's no reason you have to live with that musty bonehead. Is it because he bought you? Don't worry your head about that! It's-"

"That's not why," I stopped her. "All my life, no one ever said I was welcome with them, but he made me feel welcome and gave me a home. Even if I'm just a pet, I'll stay until he gets bored and tosses me out. Because he... he said we were family. My family didn't want me because I had the Sight and they didn't. My father ran away with my baby brother. My mother and sister killed themselves. He may have bought me, but he did what no one else ever has. He's given me a life."

"Well, well." I looked up to see Elias standing next to me, his hand on my back. He pulled me to him as he looked down at me. "It would seem my little puppy has learned where her den is."

"Elias-!"

"Thorn!" the Ariel said angrily. "How did you find us?"

"Why, I put a bell on her collar." He picked up with stone around my neck. That's why he didn't want me to take it off. "Besides, what mage worth his salt would overlook a font of magical energy like that gate? Be gone. This once, I'll let you go. Do it again and you'll be food for the salamanders."

"Hmph! Do you really think you can keep our little cub from us forever bonehead?" she asked turning from us and going to the stone.

"I do, and I can. You know that," Elias told her.

"You can change your mind any time, Sweet Reika." I sighed in relief.

"Reika." His hand came towards my head and I tensed. He's going to yell at me. "That was quite the learning experience, wasn't it?" he asked me and I looked up at him shocked. "Most of their kind are pests. They lure the unwary with honeyed words. Their pranks have brought misery to countless humans for centuries. Be more cautious."

"I... I'm sorry," I said looking down at my feet.

"Well, I ought to have warned you sooner," he said before hugging me tightly. It's strange. He's so warm but feels... kinda stiff and awkward. "I'm surprised you hadn't already learned to be wary of them. Be more careful in the future." He suddenly picked me bridal style and I started flailing around.

"Ack! Wh-what are you doing?!" I asked him.

"It's easy to get lost in these woods at night. I will carry you back to our home," he told me and I smiled up at him.

"All right."

"Once there, I'll need to take a look at that arm," he told me. "We can't have my future wife covered in scars."

"Okay," I said before his words started sinking in. "Huh...?" Wait a minute... "Um... what's this about a future wife?"

"Oh, haven't I mentioned it?" he asked me like it was nothing. "I bought you to be my apprentice, as I said..." he raised me so I was looking in his eyes instead of up at him. "But also to make you my bride."

"Huh?"