Page 46 of Heart of Dawn
“Okay.”
The buds opened into golden, pinwheel-shaped petals, centers a vibrant yellow. They released a delicate perfume I couldn’t quite place. It resembled lavender in one sniff, then jasmine the next.
I returned to the log. “Those are pretty flowers.”
“Unique to this hive. Ah. I think this is a good one.” She crawled inside the cell, flying out a minute later to land at the center of a flower.
Wendy did the bee thing, gathering pollen and crawling across the yellow bit.
If only Miko could see this right now.
I did ask her a question then. “How do we get the honey to Earth safely?”
“I can teleport you some of the way, possibly back to the Faery gates we came through.”
“Wow. Thanks.”
“I wish it was a more reliable skill to carry you all over the place.”
“No, no,” I replied, “don’t even worry. Thanks a million times over for saving me. Twice.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Just don’t hurt yourself, please.”
“Thank you for being so caring.” She moved onto the next flower. “Isn’t it strange seeing me outside of the digital world?”
“Yes.”
She chuckled. “I miss it.”
Wendy would never be my little plastic companion again. I sat with that for a moment, unsure of how to process it.
“What was it like inside that world?” I asked.
“A simple existence. Safe. Comforting. I enjoyed our time together so much, but I lived in endless guilt. I ended up asyour pet because of running and hiding from sorrow, forsaking everything that made me queen of this place.”
“Wendy…”
“I worried over the honey production every day,” she continued, flying up to the cell she’d chosen and crawling inside. “Oversaw a lot of aggression from the fae visiting here. Their greed reached overwhelming heights, tainting everything, becoming intolerable. Violence often broke out around the tree, vile words hurled at my bees for not being quicker.”
“I’m so sorry,” I offered, bearing collective guilt for the actions of my ancestors.
“Such darkness and greed eventually broke my heart beyond repair,” Wendy said. “I’d created a monster. I left this forest, abandoning everything. There was nothing left for me. But I didn’t think of my fellow bees, what a selfish queen it made me to leave them behind to die. And I felt them die. One by one, day by day, their final breaths reached me, shattering my heart.” She took a brief pause. “I can’t die to join them, bestowed with immortal life.”
I watched her work, wishing I could hug her.
“With my entire hive gone,” she added, “I arrived on Earth, running from my sorrows. But rather than live out my days over there in some miserable corner, like I imagined, I transformed into the virtual pet, losing all control. A strange magic took hold of me, whispering of the scarlet-haired fae. I never understood it until you found me inside that shoe box, everything falling into place.”
I scratched my head. “That’s… I don’t know what to say.”
“The universe gives, takes, scatters the pieces for us all to find and play the game while it awaits the outcome.”
“Wendy…” Could I hug a bee? I decided against any attempt, keeping my bum on the log.
“It’s my honor to make my honey for you,” she said. “I want you to have love. I want you to live your life again outside of Dawn.”
She crawled out of the cell, leaving behind shimmering golden honey.
