“So what should Renny do?” Simone asked as she kept her gaze down on the crown she was constructing, weaving a violet-colored ribbon between the branches she had pulled into a circle.

“Renny should know what to do to identify a Woodland Spirit, but there are also ways to bring him protection so you don’t have to live in constant fear all the time. There are certain things that Woodland spirits are naturally repealed by because they are extra blessed. Certain flowers. Certain oils, harmless to us but unpleasant enough that if a Woodland Spirit comes into contact with them, they reveal their nature – uncontrollable sneezing, or sudden vomiting.”

“Like the nightwalkers,” Mimi said.

“Very similar yes, which is why we aren’t allowed to use certain flowers in perfume here in the colony,” Mama said firmly. “During Renny’s ceremony tomorrow, he will be given all the things that are repulsive to Woodland Fairies so none are tempted to come close to him. Long ago they would make those in the fairy years wear crowns of flowers just like you are making now until they were married, choosing flowers that were especially fragrant and dipping the ribbons fastening them together in the oils the Woodland Fairies couldn’t stand.” She looked at me then with a fond smile. “But nowadays, you only have to wear them on the first day of your fairy years as a reminder of the caution you must take as you begin your journey into adulthood, which is why, tomorrow, Renny will wear his special flower crown. On his wedding day, he will wear another to ward off fairies as well, who try to snatch him up before he is married and thus...out of their reach.”

My lips thinned as I looked down at the flowers, popping another candy into my mouth as Mama started going over all the different flowers and oils that were used to ward off Woodland Fairies.

I stayed at the table, somewhat helping with the flowers until it was bedtime and the routine of settling down for the night started up.

As everyone was already in their pajamas, all that was left was brushing teeth, washing faces, and making sure the animals were taken care of. I was in charge of the two dogs, so while my sisters did a cat check to make sure the four family cats were inside, I took the two dogs out to go to the bathroom. Outside was the pair of strictly outside dogs, dogs whose job it was to protect the property from predators...not that there were many here in the colony. Mainly just foxes. There was a rumor that a mountain lion had been roaming Daisy Fields, the next town over where most of Mama’s family was from, but I guess the nightwalkers that were guarding the area caught whiff of it and had a competition over who could kill it first.

Anyway, the only predators the outside dogs had to worry about were foxes. We had a lot of chickens, and they were all soft snow breeds, which was one of two main breeds of chicken here in the colony (and maybe outside, but who knows). Unlike the hardy hen breed, the soft snow breeds were specifically bred for their docile and trusting temperaments, their feathers soft and a bright white like snow.

So yeah, if a fox came over they’d go right up to them and follow them like they did the family cats or dogs.

But the foxes were, you know.

Foxes.

They wouldn’t hesitate to kill them. The trusting, sweet nature of the soft snow breed meant that if they weren’t protected, they were slaughtered.

Since we had two really nasty breeds of dogs serving and guards, though, we hadn’t had a single chicken lost. The guard dogs were much bigger breeds than the house dogs, who were roughly the size of the house cats and just hunted mice. The outside dogs, however, were bigger then most ponies, though not quite as mean.

They were, however, protective and loyal to a fault, and when the nightwalkers came to get you, they’d kill your dogs first.

They killed my Dad’s guard dogs when they came to get my uncle Laurie, slaughtered all three of them. My Dad had a full breakdown, my grandpa was in the hospital where they were trying to save his jaw, so I sat on the porch while my Mom dug up the graves for the dogs before cousin Hester came down so she could go to the hospital to be with grandpa.

And then cousin Hester made me help him drag the dogs into their graves. He told me that when it came to nightwalkers, nothing and no one was ever safe, and so you had to do whatever you could to avoid them at all costs.

Like that hadn’t already been hammered into my from birth.

But anyway, I didn’t want a dog because of all of that, but when we finally moved into out own home, we were gifted them and I couldn’t imagine not having them. Turns out, having something that loved you unconditionally, was loyal to you unconditionally, and would die protecting you?

I mean, it really does wonders for your self esteem and ego, and it was a rough couple years after that horrible, shitty year that nothing had yet to top.

Joy died. Uncle Laurie was as good as dead. The family dogs were murdered. Grandpa lost the ability to talk forever.

So.

I really couldn’t imagine a year topping that – I don’t think we’d be able to survive it.

I watched as the little house dogs went to the bathroom where they usually did in the place Dad had trained them to go, and when they were done they scampered back inside while I cleaned up their mess and went to make sure the guard dogs had drinking water. They came over and poked me with their noses until I petted them, staying right behind me as I dumped out their water trough, the pair of them immediately sticking their face in as soon as started to fill it up, snapping at the water coming out of the hose fixed there above it.

After I finished my dog duties, I went inside and made sure the doors and windows were all locked, my other nighttime duty. Dad and Mama would lock the windows and the doors before me, but we were supposed to double-check each to make sure.

Mama came into my bedroom as I was checking the window in the bedroom I shared with the younger two girls, Mimi and Delphi already asleep in the bed they shared across from my own. I yanked closed the curtains before I turned and saw Mama coming toward me.

“Story time was nice tonight, thanks for that,” I said with a polite smile.

“A good little warm-up for tomorrow.” She said, leaning down to kiss my cheek as she stroked back my short hair, the same dark auburn as her own. “Sleep up.” She pulled back to watch me with a fond, wistful look in her eyes. “Got a big, big day tomorrow, baby. Lots of sleep for you.”

I laughed a little, “Yes, of course.” I said with a little smile as Mama hummed, turning to leave. I watched as she flipped her long hair over a shoulder to reach up and start braiding it higher up, and when she left my room I went to the doorway and watched as she poked her head into the room the twins shared with Simone, wishing them goodnight and thanking them for their help today in the kitchen. I watched as she went into her bedroom and I waited until her door was closed before I turned and hurried down the stairs.

My Dad suddenly sidestepped out of the kitchen and gave me a tight smile.

“Not a fucking chance,” Dad said, pointing to the stairs.

I got up in his face, real close so that only the two of us heard me hiss “No fucking way am I going through was Birdy did!” I lifted my hands to make motions in the air, “Getting hit with eggs, and sprayed with that stinky shit- hit with freaking branches!”

He did not look sympathetic in the least. “There’s another tradition that they don’t tell you about for your Fairy year birthday that you’re about to learn,” Dad said, looking amused, while I scowled in question, “It’s running for your life from a hunter.”

“Yeah, I fucking know that one, and I’m not running around the yard in that stupid hat.”

Dad smirked. “The hunter is always your mother, and if the fairy child can avoid their mother for the entire day, then they say you are smart enough to evade capture and don’t need to go through the ceremony.”

I stilled, leaning back on my heel to glance up the stairs before I looked back to Dad. “Are you shitting me right now?” He shook his head slowly. My eyes narrowed. “Why am I only hearing about this now?”

“No one wants to admit that their Mommy grabbed them and dragged them back home by their ear for a spanking from the entire family. They all want to be big, bad adults that were willing to go along with the games because they are such good people.” He patted my cheek then, leaning closer to say “But you don’t get to run until dawn. Those are the rules of the hunt.” He kissed my forehead before he shoved me aside by my face with a chuckle. “If I were you though, I’d just stay for it and be pampered by the family. A few dozen swats from a stick and getting hit with hallowed eggs is temporary.” He said as he went to the stairs, glancing over his shoulder to grin at me, “Your mother hunting you down will give you nightmares for years to come.”

My lips twisted but I didn’t argue. I had gone hunting with Mama. She was vicious when she wanted to be.

But I was hella stubborn. I gave him a tight smile and a little wave that he returned.

I scowled when I heard my parents' door open, then close, rolling my eyes to look over to where a cat was standing with his paws on the table, hissing at the flower crowns on the table before she got down and sauntered toward me. I picked her up to pet her, my scowl deepening as she purred aggressively.

I would wait until just before dawn, then.

But as soon as the sky began to change colors, I was out of here, and I wouldn’t stop running until I was sitting in a shop in Riverside, safe from the stupid ceremony my family had planned for me. I went upstairs with the cat then, going to the room across from my parents to see Simone tightly braiding Wendy’s hair, her face twisting in a wince and eyes tearing up as her dark auburn locks were twisting and yanked into tight, small braids.

I raised the cat as I came on, Wendy holding out her hands for me to put the cat in.

“Excited for tomorrow?” Wendy’s twin, Fiona, asked as she braided her own hair around cloth strips, twirling and pinning them up to produce far looser and larger curls than the ones that Wendy's tight braids would make.

“Oh yeah, sure.” I said vaguely, “Thanks for all of your help getting stuff ready – it looks great downstairs.”

“You running?” Wendy struggled out as a fat tear dragged down her cheeks, Simone making a soothing noise as she violently yanked on Wendy’s hair and Wendy sniffled.

“No shit I’m running.” I said with an eye roll, “If you guys want to go through the ceremony when it’s your turn, be my freaking guest, but there’s no way I’m going to do it. I saw how many times Birdy got his dick hit with those branches.”

“Birdy got-” Wendy gasped in pain, Simone pausing to wrap an arm around her to take her hand to grip it briefly before she returned to her violent act of braiding, something that no one – according to my sisters – did better then Simone. Wendy fixes me with a teary-eyed glare. “Birdy got his dick hit because Birdy is a jerk.”

I held my hand to my heart, “And I’m not?!” I hissed.

Simone nodded. “You are.”

“Yeah, but Mama would protect you.” Fiona said firmly, “Birdy’s Mama and Daddy want the family to beat him because he doesn’t get beaten enough by them – they both work too hard, and he’s too fast for Granny Violet to hit him.”

“I am-” I glanced back to my parent’s door, hoping into their room to pull the door closed before I looked between the three of them. “I am far, far worse than Birdy, far more stubborn, and far more in need of getting hit and you all know that!” I hissed as I cupped my crotch, “I don’t want to get switched in the dick by half the extended family!”

“Mama would never let you!” Fiona hissed right back, “Stop being such a big baby, Lawrence – it’s literally ten minutes of ceremony and then fun and games!”

“Ten minutes can cause a lifetime of trauma,” I insisted, shaking my head. “I’m making a run for Riverside-” I pointed between the three of them, “You make sure you tell Dad that. He and I have a deal about me telling him when I’m going-”

“We know,” Simone said in a distracted tone as she continued to eye Wendy’s scalp while she braided, her glasses perched at the bottom of her nose.

“-okay, but only tell Mama if she asks.” I said with a wave of my hand, “I want a fair chance.”

“You gonna run the entire way?” Wendy asked, her eyes screwing closed as more tears fell, her hand hurriedly petting the wide-eyed cat in her lap.

“I’ve done it before,” I said with a shrug, “I might jump a delivery carriage. Maybe I’ll just hide in the woods. Who knows.”

Wendy let out a hard, pained exhale while Fiona stood from their small vanity table, loaded down with their hair accessories and beauty products, “Well good luck.” Fiona said as she patted her hair, grabbing a silk wrap to wind it around her head. “If you can outrun Mama, you deserve the win.”

Simone nodded while Wendy made a pained squeak and then a long whine as Simone yanked hard enough to make Wendy shake.

“Thank you…” I said carefully, looking between them, Wendy’s eyes widening before she sucked in a breath, Simone humming to her. “So you’ll deal with the family while I run?”

“Everyone will agree if you can outrun Mama, you deserve the win,” Fiona said firmly before she looked at me. “But yeah, we can deal with the family.”

“Gonna eat you-” Wendy squeaked, jolting as Simone yanked hard, her entire head jerking back, “-eat your desserts, Little Laurie!” She grounded out, her eyes flashing behind her tears. “I spent four hours cooking them up, and if you run and Mama serves them for breakfast liked planned, I’m eating all your shares!”

“That’s fair,” I said with a nod. “Okay.” I let out a slow breath. “Thanks, girls.” They mumbled various replies as I left their room, sliding a kitten back into their room with my foot when he tried to make a jailbreak. I pulled the door closed then, letting out a long breath.

Now, sleep.

I’d get a solid eight hours, and then just before dawn, I’d make the most important journey of my entire life.