*whispers* I hope I did this right

It is a common truth in the world that everybody has a secret. They’re big, they’re small, they’re insane, they’re reasonable. What was the point of a secret?

They stay untold in your mouth for the sake of protecting yourself. How do you know how the world will react to what you’ve kept hidden? Haven’t you heard the stories of the lengths humans will go to to keep a secret?

Haven’t you heard the stories of non-humans, whose entire existence was a secret? Now what would happen if you were a non-human raised as a human?

The sticky, dusk sunlight filtered through the trees of the forest and onto the plush grass, warming her skin but also plastering it to her shirt. She skipped over roots and ignored the ominous shadows the plants cast. Her brother walked ahead of her, feet eerily quiet while hers cracked the fallen branches and dried leaves.

This was a sibling ritual. Her brother would take walks in the forest and she would follow without questioning where they were going; he knew the forest better than she knew herself. Somehow it always seemed like the forest was growing, every week her brother found a new clearing or a denser section of trees to climb before he got bored and found another one. He had always been drawn to nature, and it was something she could never understand, no matter how hard she tried.  

“You know, it’s going to get dark soon,” the protagonist called. “Mom’ll want us back about now.” She wasn’t lying exactly, but she was also making up an excuse to leave. The ghost-feeling of bugs crawling up her arms was making her shudder violently. “[Name].”

Slowly, the trees became denser and the grass faded into packed dirt and scratchy bushes. As they passed by a circle made of mushrooms, faint laughter whispered in the air and she turned to it, missing the way her brother went rigid.

Were there other people in the woods? That would be highly unusual. The woods practically started from her house’s backyard, marking the edge of town and the start of unclaimed land. Rarely did anyone else besides the two siblings venture out of town. Even the car roads leading to the interstate avoided passing through. Town folklore had always said anything outside the borders were haunted.

They both had grown up hearing stories of the woods being inhabited by wild creatures that were neither animal nor human. Of things that could trick you into a deep slumber and eat away at your soul, of possessed not-women who sang a siren tune and ripped away the ribbons from your hair as they lured you into disappearing forever. Her brother had been entranced by these stories, more so than anybody else their age. One day he went into the forest, and as a seven year old girl who idolized her older brother, she had followed and never stopped. She reasoned that the stories about the cornfields were scarier, anyway.

But it was getting dark, and she would be lying if she didn’t admit that she was beginning to believe that every tall tale were actually warnings. “[Name], please.”

“Don’t be afraid, Amelia,” he chastised and she rolled her eyes; he always told her that. “The trees aren’t going to be the scariest things tonight.”    

“Tonight? Please don’t tell me we’re going to stay here after dark. Mom will kill us!”

“It’s already dark.”

“Don’t give me attitude dickhead -”

“- Then shut up and listen!” Her brother breathed deeply. “I - I have something I need to tell you.”

The protagonist crossed her arms and shivered as the temperature dropped and night officially made an entrance. Even this far away from town lights, the stars were not visible. The air prickled with something she could not place and the shadows grew. She swore the laughter became louder. “Why are you being so dramatic?”

Her brother finally turned around, and she winced. He was exceptionally beautiful, much so that she could hardly believe they were related. Any newcomers to their town didn’t believe they were siblings either, at first. They didn’t look very alike. His face was angular, with a sharp jaw, ethereal skin, and eyes that never seemed to be one exact shade of green. In the daylight, he was pretty. In the night, he looked like a monster.

The shadows and the moon’s light were making a twisted visage on his face. It looked like his ears were gently pointed.

The protagonist stumbled backward, shock grasping her heart and squeezing hard. She could barely breathe.

“You’re-”

“I’m fae.”

“A changeling,” she whispered. Her mind went frustratingly blank.

So she turned tail and ran away.

The laughter reverberated in her ears, and only then did she realize it was the laughter of the fae. She was going the wrong way.

Her legs burned, her lungs burned, the feeling of the darkness around her burned. It was never just night, wasn’t it? Her brother had always been drawn to it. Now she knew why.

She could run away from him, but she couldn’t run away from her mind. I’m - I was - we were living with a fae. Oh my God. My brother isn’t human. He’s a monster. He isn’t my brother.

Her heart bleated in terror. Oh God, now that he knows I know, is he going to threaten Mom and Dad? Don’t be silly - they raised him. He loves them, right? But does that matter to a changeling? He isn’t human. Not human. Not human. Not human. Not my brother.

“Amelia, wait!” then a faint, “Please, listen to me. You’re my sister!”

She forced herself to go faster, but dread weighed heavily on her shoulders. The fae were unpredictable; if her brother caught her, would he leave her alive? It was better than leading him directly into the hands of her parents.

Not human. Not human. Not. My. Brother.

In the end, the fae changeling caught up to the human girl, who screamed in terror at his pointed teeth and curved ears. To the changeling’s deepest regret, he had to silence her. Humans were unpredictable, after all, but he had the feeling her new opinion of him would never change. There was no telling what would happen if she had escaped.

Three humans came to a tranquil little pond that harbored the most beautiful fish. It's scales glossy in the gleaming water.

One merely sat and watched it in all its glory. Entranced by its beautiful fanning fins. Sighing in contentment when the majestic creature was curious enough to come and peer at the traveler with eyes carrying the wisdom of a sage.