Her daughter, the fairy. Monet almost couldn’t believe it.
It wasn’t as though she had anything against fairies, but growing up her parents had been increasingly rigid about the amount of exposure to supernatural elements. Perhaps it was because Monet had displayed some level of magical talent since her early childhood. Perhaps they hated Supernaturals, though they’d never said it out loud. Instead there had been a rigid set of codes placed upon her life which deliberately limited her time outside of the family property. She found herself in constant awe of the things she never knew. Her own witch powers hadn’t properly developed until she met Faust and he passed on her knowledge to her.
But fairies? They didn’t have any fairy blood in her family; Monet knew this for a fact. One of her most rigid lessons during childhood had been about her lineage and preserving the strictly non-Supernatural bloodline. And as she and Faust walked across the street to the Maldano house, all she could think about was the lack of fairy blood.
‘Are you sure you didn’t have any fairies on your side of the family?’ questioned Monet. She readjusted her grip on Carmen, currently tugging at strands of her hair.
‘I doubt it,’ answered Faust.
‘You doubt it? You mean you don’t know?’
‘Yes.’
‘Yes, you don’t know or yes, you do know?’
‘Both.’
‘…Never mind. I just don’t want to accuse Marigold of anything and then have it turn out that we’re wrong.’
‘Look, you said Marigold gave you a fairy enchantment while you were pregnant with Carmen, so that’s the only way that Carmen could have turned.’
‘I didn’t think fairy enchantments worked that way.’
‘You’d be surprised.’
Monet sighed. ‘Oh, well. At least you’ll finally meet Ichelle.’
‘Yes, the infamous Ichelle Maldano. You do realize that if we arrange a marriage between her and one of the boys, her vampire of a father will come after us?’ He paused. ‘How is it that the daughter of a fairy and a vampire turned out Muggle anyways?’
‘Doesn’t matter. Now, Faust, try not to be creepy.’
‘No promises.’
The door opened of its own accord when they approached. Monet wasn’t surprised. Sometimes, with a flick of her finger, Marigold let it open. Almost the moment they went in, Monet was hit with unfamiliar smells and sensations, such as the lingering sent of paper, wood, and a fire crackling in the corner.
So this is what an ordinary house looked like.
As it turns out, it wasn’t Marigold who greeted them, but young Ichelle Maldano. It had been a while since Monet had last seen her and she seemed much taller than she remembered. Locks of her thin black hair draped her face, still clinging to baby fat.
‘Hold it, Mrs. Slender,’ Ichelle held up her hand before Monet could speak. ‘I’ll let you into my domian, but no pets allowed!’
‘Pets?’ Monet repeated.
Ichelle pointed to Faust.
‘What? That’s my husband!’
‘Same thing.’
‘Honey, I’m a witch. You’re a muggle. I can set you on fire. You can burn.’
Ichelle’s face screwed up in concentration. ‘Fine, you may pass.’
‘Funny,’ Monet lightly guided her over to her husband. ‘Faust, this is Ichelle Maldano.’
Monet quickly guided Ichelle way when she saw the expression on her husband’s face.
‘Ichelle, I need to speak with your mother,’ explained Monet. ‘Is she here?’
‘Sure,’ shrugged Ichelle. She took a deep breath. ‘MOM! THOSE CREEPY WITCHES FROM ACROSS THE ROAD ARE HERE!’
‘Monet!’ Marigold immediately embraced Monet. ‘So good to see you.’
‘Pregnant again? Goodness, and I thought I had a hard enough time with just Ichelle and this is your sixth!’
‘You know me,’ said Monet. ‘I just hope that – Faust! Get away from the fireplace!’
‘I wasn’t doing anything,’ Faust defended.
‘We need to talk, Gold,’ Monet continued.
‘Of course,’ nodded Marigold. ‘Ichelle, why don’t you play with Carmen?’
‘Do I have to?’ Ichelle groaned.
‘Go on.’
‘Fine. Just make sure to put out the fire if you’re planning to leave the room. I don’t want to have to come down here and see the place up in flames!’
Monet and Marigold settled down in the living room, while Faust stood – transfixed – by the fireplace.
‘What’s this all about?’ asked Marigold. ‘You look awfully serious.’
‘Gold, be honest,’ said Monet. ‘Do you notice anything odd about Carmen?’
‘Well, I did notice she had fairy wings. I just didn’t think it was polite to mention it. How did you two get a fairy child anyways? Was the real Carmen stolen away in the night?’
‘No, she’s too much like Faust to be anything but his daughter…I was actually hoping you could tell me how it happened.’
‘I didn’t even know I was a fairy until I was twenty-three, remember? I don’t think I’m the best person to look to for a reference when it comes to fairies and genetics.’
‘But I think you know enough. And I think you’re a lot older than you say you are.’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘I think you’re responsible for turning Carmen into a fairy.’ Monet raised her gaze. ‘What I want to know is why.’
Marigold was obviously taken aback. She leaned forwards. ‘Really, Monet are you accusing me of turning your child? What makes you say that? You know I would never do something like that!’
‘Do you remember how I stayed at your house for a few weeks while I was pregnant with Carmen?’
‘Hard to forget. I don’t think Dante has.’
‘Well, you gave me a fairy enchantment you said was for luck. A few days later, Carmen was born. A fairy.’
‘Really, Monet – !’
‘You think you could’ve told me that the enchantment would turn my child into a fairy!’
‘The enchantment was harmless! It wouldn’t have – !’
‘Would it really? Did you turn Carmen into a fairy?’
‘Yes,’ Marigold pressed her lips together until they were a straight, harsh line. ‘Yes, I turned Carmen into a fairy.’
‘Why?’
‘What, do you really need to ask such a question? Other parents are thrilled when a fairy bestows such a precious gift on their child.’
‘I take it these parents knew that it was going to happen?’
‘Do you know Mrs. Rodgers? She didn’t complain when her Sophie sprouted those wings of her. Faust doesn’t seem concerned about this.’
‘He barely notices he has children – Faust, what have I told you about that fireplace? Get over here and sit down!’
Faust grumbled, sighed, and took a place by his wife, watching the conversation with intent interest.
‘Faust, have you noticed that Carmen’s a fairy?’ Monet asked.
‘…Carmen’s a what now?’ repeated Faust.
‘Never mind. Marigold, I want to know why you changed Carmen!’
Marigold, again, averted her gaze. This time Monet followed it and saw that she was looking directly at Ichelle and Carmen, who were playing within their sight.
‘What do you notice about Ichelle?’ Marigold asked quietly.
‘She’s your daughter.’
‘She’s a Muggle.’
‘Is that bad?’
‘Nothing wrong with it. If I had more children, if I stayed together with Dante, it might not be so bad, but she’s all I have. She’ll just grow up like everyone else, get a job, get married, maybe have children, and then she’ll die, like all creatures do. But she’ll do all that without being a fairy. She won’t live long and she won’t know the joys of flying or practising magic.’
‘So this is about Ichelle being Muggle?’
‘Only part of it. I did it because the fairies are becoming extinct.’
‘Don’t be ridiculous. There’s plenty of fairies in town.’
‘Not really. There’s the obvious ones like the Goodfellows and the Rodgers girl, but fairies living in the Sim world is becoming a rare thing. Many fairies are retreating to the woodland to establish “fairy colonies”. I’d love to go live in one of them, I really would, but…’
‘Ichelle’s a Muggle.’
‘Exactly. It occurred to me that soon, all fairies will leave the Sim world, and…I don’t want that to happen. Fairies think that they can ignore the Sim world, but they can’t. I grew up in this world and I’m being expected to leave behind all I’ve ever known. I think we need to get closer to normal Sims – or witches, as it may be – and that means that more fairies must be born from non-fairy couples, so the children can grow up knowing what it’s like to be part of the larger world, and sharing their experiences with these hidden fairy communities.’
‘So basically you just used my daughter as a social experiment! How could you do that?! I thought we were friends!’
‘Look, Maldano, you’ve gone too far!’ Faust finally stepped forwards. ‘Now I got a question for you and I want you to give it to me straight!
‘Where are your matches?!’
‘Missing the point, Faust!’ hollered Monet. ‘Haven’t you been paying attention? Marigold turned our daughter into a fairy to mess with our heads!’
‘Why I am I the bad guy?!’ exclaimed Marigold. ‘I’m just trying to help all fairies and you act like I’m a master criminal! It could be a whole lot worse! I could’ve turned her into a vampire like my stupid ex-boyfriend!’
‘It’s different when it occurs naturally! You changed her without my permission or knowledge! Who knows how she could’ve turned out? All I know is that you’ve violated every law of nature to change her into something she isn’t supposed to be! How do you expect me to overlook the fact that you’ve gone behind my back like that?’
Faust looked between the two women. ‘Carmen seems pretty happy to me.’
‘She doesn’t know the difference yet,’ murmured Monet.
‘Monet…Monet, please listen,’ Marigold pleaded. ‘I’m sorry, but this is something I had to do.’
‘No, I don’t want to hear it,’ Monet raised her hand. ‘We’re done with this. Eventually I might be able to forgive you, but right now…’
Monet paused, looked away, and then shook her head.
‘No,’ she said. ‘Faust, get Carmen and let’s go home.’
The Slender Legacy 