the sky. Birds flew beside her, an owl hovered above her, fairies and sprites danced at her feet.
Liyana set this card beside the first and picked a third. The Moon. A purple-haired wolf standing at a river’s edge howled up at a fat yellow moon. Towering white trees flanked the river, their trunks encircled by a pair of two-headed snakes.
Liyana stared at the cards. All at once, the dream returned.
Bea
“Who wants to hear a story?”
We all looked up. I did, but I wouldn’t say so. I knew who would.
“I do,” Liyana said.
Bea smiled. She looked to Scarlet and me. “You’ll want to listen to this too. You might learn something.”
Scarlet turned her attention from the leaves she was setting alight—none of my sisters seemed alarmed by that, so I pretended I wasn’t either—and looked at Bea.
“Are you all sitting comfortably?” Bea said, as if she were our ma and we her babes. “Then I’ll begin . . .”
Liyana clapped. Scarlet smiled. I did nothing.
“In the time before time,” Bea said, “before the existence of Everwhere or Earth, there was nothing and nowhere, only the light and its shadow.” She waited, a self-satisfied pause. “Then, at last, with the spark of life came the creation of humanity. Such was the explosive force of this creation that the light and its shadow were split apart and, once separated for long enough to forget it was ever whole, one half became the personification of good and the other half of evil.
“When this happened, the forces of good and evil fought a battle to see who’d win influence over humanity. But since both sides were always perfectly matched, no victor ever emerged. Eventually, the powers that be invented the game of chess to decide the fate of humankind, since this method would be both less bloody and over far quicker. However, it didn’t help, since every game still ended in a stalemate.
“Eventually it was decided, by an extremely lengthy and infinitely tedious board meeting, that the influence over humanity would be shared: the forces of good would influence their hearts; the forces of evil would influence their minds. Angels and demons were scattered throughout Earth and Everwhere to exert their influence by these means.
“So humanity was left with a choice: to follow their hearts or their heads. But, once the agreement was made, it soon became clear that humans found it far easier to listen to their heads than their hearts, thus ensuring the demonic influence was far stronger than the angelic. It was widely believed, at least among the angels, that the demons had cheated. However, since they could never prove how, and since the terms of the deal, being sealed by both spirit and soul, were irreversible, there was nothing to be done.
“Thus, the whole of humanity was subjected to a terrible fate, fighting to feel the influence of good, to know fulfilment, contentment, and joy, while all too often being drawn into fear, sorrow, and despair. Being cursed with perpetual free will, humans struggled on, often being thrown back and forth between one and the other a dozen times a day. Many descended into madness.”
Another self-satisfied pause.
“Fortunately, those with pure Grimm blood running in their veins must endure free will for only the first eighteen years of their lives. Then they can choose between good and evil. Each comes with its own consequences, but both are blessed by the fact of only having to be chosen once.”
Bea grinned.
“So know your head and know your heart, sisters. Remember what lies behind you, imagine what lies ahead of you, and make your choice carefully.”
Unable to hold my tongue, I fixed her with a sideways glance. “How do you know all that?”
Bea shrugged, but I could tell she was pleased to have incited my curiosity. “My mamá told me,” she said. “She tells me everything.”
“Is it true?” Liyana asked.
Bea smiled. “Every word.”
Leo
As a star Leo had never felt lonely, as a child he rarely felt anything else. He longed for companionship, but without siblings, with only a frequently distracted mother and a distant father, Leo relied solely on imaginary friends. Sometimes he imagined an impish boy he could make mischief with, a boy to replace the brother he’d never have. Sometimes he imagined a girl, one he pictured with blue eyes, blond curls, and a delirious disregard for authority, like a character in a book he’d once read. Leo himself couldn’t afford to disregard authority, since Charles Penry-Jones was a man who must always