“Aeriel,” I tugged on Aeriel’s sleeve, trying to stop her just before we reached the living room.

“Yes?”

“You said that the dress… conforms to the user’s wishes, was it?” There’s something I’ve been wondering about…

“Yes. You should be able to freely change how it looks. Why do you ask?”

“It’s just…” I curled my arms around my chest, trying to cover it up. “This is way too revealing!”

My top half is basically completely exposed!

 

By chance, I had glanced into the bathroom through the open door as we passed it, seeing my upper half reflected in the mirror.

 

“What’s the problem? It looks cute,” Zoey commented, turning her head around briefly, before continuing on to the living room, with Mira trailing just behind her. I put my hands up, trying to cover my face as it slowly turned red.

“Well I… it’s embarrassing. And I can’t exactly go outside wearing this!”

“It’s fine. Humans can’t see you, anyway.”

I stared, mouth agape, at Aeriel.

What?!

“No, maybe they can?” She looked off into the corner of the room as she muttered, “You’re half human, so they should be able to see you, but maybe they can’t see your spirit energy? The old Queen wasn’t part human, so she had to materialize to speak to humans, but…”

I left Aeriel to her theorizing and focused on my immediate predicament, desperately shoving aside the outrageous information I had just learned.

Let’s just… not think about that for a while…

Right, proper clothes. Visualise the shirt and shorts I wore a few days ago… Now feel around for the dress’s energy… woah. It’s like it’s a part of me. Well, I did materialize it, so… no, don’t get distracted.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

Find the energy of the dress… now pull it in. Shape it to be the same as the shorts… and pull the rest up to my torso. Wait, can’t forget undies and a b-bra. I wonder if I can change my hair colour as well…

 

“Aww…”

My eyes snapped open as Aeriel’s comment. She was standing just in front of me, looking a little disappointed. Glancing around at my body, I saw the same light blue shorts and white shirt I had worn a few days ago.

It’s still kinda glowing, like the dress did… but at least I’m more covered up!

“...what?” I inquired. Does she miss seeing me in the Queen dress?

“I-it’s nothing.” She said defensively, averting eye contact.

 

“What happened to the dress?”

Emily appeared just behind me, startling me somewhat as she spoke. She was wearing a black shirt and green shorts; an almost identical outfit to me, but in a different colour.

“Um, I-I changed it. It was too embarrassing…”

“You can do that?” She stared at me in wonder.

“Yeah, apparently.”

“That’s so cool… wait. Does that mean all the shopping we did was useless?” Her face that was filled with wonderment suddenly morphed into a disappointed expression.

“No, I don’t think so,” I said calmly, “because if we didn’t do that, then I would’ve been stuck wearing guys’ shorts and shirts.”

“That’s good.” She sighed in relief, before walking past me towards the living room.

 

“Come on, let’s go, you two.”

 

*****

 

“Your hair…”

Elena, Grace, and Melissa all stared at me as we walked in. Elena was the first to recover, whispering breathlessly.

 

“Woah, what’s with all the snacks?”

“Mum bought them yesterday, but we never ate any, so she brought them out for everyone to eat.”

Zoey and Emily were casually having a conversation in the background as the three adults stared at me in a daze. Meanwhile, Aeriel and Mira were stuffing their faces with the various chips and sweets laid out in bowls on the table.

I took a deep breath, about to call out to them, when my stomach loudly growled.

 

“Pffft.” Melissa let out a giggle, causing Grace and Elena to snap out of their trance.

“It’s nearly lunchtime,” She continued.

I stiffly walked over to the low table in the living room, sitting on the floor in front of it while trying to hide my embarrassment.

Why does this keep happening?!

 

“So what happened to your hair?” Elena asked, holding a small plate of snacks as she sat on the couch.

“I… don’t know. Aeriel?” I deferred to her expertise, since she actually seemed to know what was going on. Aeriel gulped down her mouthful of food before speaking.

 

“She learned how to manipulate spirit energy.”

“Spirit energy?” Elena looked confused at Aeriel’s statement. Aeriel held her hand out, palm up, and a small ball of water appeared, floating just above her hand. Mira glanced over, quickly finishing her mouthful, and did the same, a small flame appearing instead. They looked at me expectantly.

 

It took me a few moments to understand what they wanted me to do.

Oh! Umm… okay, what did they do? Hand out, palm up. Pull a small amount of energy out of my core, and push it into my hand. Form it into a ball, and place it just above my hand…

Opening my eyes, I saw a glowing orb, just a little bigger than a tennis ball, floating just above my palms. It shimmered in the same way as my hair and clothes.

Melissa leapt out of her chair, dashing over to kneel down next to me. Staring at the ball of energy in wonder, she gingerly held out a finger, and poked it.

“It’s warm!”

I flinched slightly as I felt her finger poke the mass of energy.

That’s… weird. It’s outside my body, but I can still feel it as if it’s a part of me.

Melissa leant back, satisfied.

 

“So,” Aeriel spoke up, continuing her previous explanation, “since Flora’s the Spirit Queen, she can manipulate spirit energy of all different elements. Her hair changes colour to match whichever element she used.”

“Is that why it turned blue before?” I asked.

“Yes. That was… based off my spirit energy.” Aeriel held her hand out, creating a larger ball of water and churning it around. Her hair began floating, and her eyes glowed in the same way that mine did beforehand.

“So the shimmering is…” Grace said.

“That’s the Queen’s specific type of spirit energy."

 

Melissa hopped back up onto the couch, laughing lightly.

“What is it?” Grace asked.

“I’m just thinking, my house is becoming a hangout for the supernatural.”

 

*****

 

“Aeriel.”

Once we all finished gorging ourselves on snacks, we sat back on the couches, letting the food go down. After a little while, Grace spoke up, staring pointedly at Aeriel.

 

“Yes?”

“I think it’s about time for an explanation.” Her voice was low and commanding.

“An explanation of what?”

“What… exactly happened to all of us?”

We all sat bolt upright in our chairs at Grace’s question.

“What do you mean?” Aeriel looked confused, an innocent expression on her face.

 

“We were all human until a few days ago. And then, you showed up, and all of us started transforming.”

“Huh?” Aeriel looked around at all of us, slightly frightened. Emily, Zoey and I all nodded as her gaze fell upon each of us. I held my hand up as she stared at me.

“I was also a boy until I transformed.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. She continued looking around, until Grace began speaking again.

“And so, none of us actually know how this happened, or even what we are.”

 

“I-it’s not my fault!” Aeriel shouted, causing Emily to flinch and fold her ears back.

“I had a happy life! I had both spirit and human friends, a place to relax, and plenty of energy! And then I got…” Her voice trailed off slightly as tears began falling from her eyes.

“I got sucked into that weird portal, and now I have no idea where I am! I got seperated from all of my friends except Mira, and I couldn’t find any energy. There’s humans everywhere, but no one does any magic! How am I supposed to survive in a place like this?!”

I leapt out of my chair and rushed over to Aeriel’s side, crouching down and hugging her. She buried her head into my chest as she bawled.

“...I would’ve died if I couldn’t find you.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, trying to keep my voice as soft as possible.

 

“Spirits need energy to live,” Mira said. “We get it either from the Queen, or from magic that humans perform.”

 

I reached up and began stroking Aeriel’s head. After a little while, she stopped crying, and gradually unwrapped herself from around my body.

 

“...I’m sorry.” Grace’s head was drooping as she apologized to Aeriel. “I didn’t mean to blame you.”

“I-it’s alright. I’m okay…”

Aeriel took a deep breath, and then began speaking.

 

“A-anyway, I think I can tell you what you all are.”

Everyone leant back in their chairs, ready to listen to her explanation. I tried to stand up, but Aeriel grabbed my arm, pulling me close to her.

 

“You stay here.”

“Why?!”

She clambered into my lap and sat there.

“You’re comforting to be around.”

 

“Okay. Elena and… you-” She pointed at Emily.

“...Emily.”

“Elena and Emily are animal spirits. The animal spirits roamed our world, taking on human forms. Raven spirits had beautiful wings, and soared through the skies. The wolf spirits, who protected the forest, could take the form of a great wolf, and were extremely strong. The fox spirits, who wandered the streets, had command over magic, and could perform powerful illusions. As animal spirits grow old, they choose worthy successors to take on their legacies, and receive their powers.”

Elena and Emily leant back in their chairs, stunned.

“Wait-” Emily snapped forward in her chair- “You said something before about humans performing magic. If I’m a fox spirit, then according to you, I can perform magic myself. So, what’s the difference between their magic and mine?”

“The magic that a human can perform is very limited. They use a catalyst that a spirit has poured their energy into, and can perform magic such as filling a bowl with water, or lighting a small fire. You, on the other hand, command much more powerful magic, using only the energy contained within you. You can also create illusions that cannot be seen through by any human without spirit sight.”

“What about me?” Elena asked. “What can I do?”

“Raven spirits are the watchers, or observers of the human world. They soar through the sky, acting as messengers. They are capable of performing magic as well, though with a different focus to the fox spirits.”

“...So I can fly.”

 

“Oooh, me next!” Zoey shouted. “What am I?”

“You’re a greater fairy. Fairies are enigmatic beings, who spread out and observe society not unlike the way spirits or animal spirits do. If a fairy has enough power, they become a greater fairy, and can use magic and suggestion to blend in to the human world.”

So… is everyone capable of magic, or something?

 

Continuing around the circle of couches surrounding the table, Aeriel turned to look at Melissa.

“Sometimes, some humans grow up with exceptionally good compatibility with spirits. In these cases, they often obtain what is known as Spirit Sight, which gives you the power to see spirits that haven’t materialized their forms, as well as see through magic performed by other non-human races. Humans with spirit sight often become capable magic users, as well.”

 

“...So, what about me? You said I was a dragonkin, but what is a dragonkin? And what can I do?” Grace asked.

“I don’t know.” Aeriel slumped in my arms.

 

“The last time anyone saw a dragonkin was long before I came into being. We only know stories about them. It’s said that they are extremely strong, very resilient, and capable of breathing fire, but… that’s all we know.”

“Alright,” Grace replied, “I’m… sorry for pressuring you, before.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” Aeriel leant back into me, adjusting herself into a more comfortable position.

 

“And… what exactly am I?”

Aeriel twisted her head around at my question, until her face was very close to mine. I leant back slightly, my face turning a little red.

“You’re the Queen of Spirits. I thought I explained it earlier.”

“Yeah, but-” I sputtered, “You didn’t explain how I ended up as the Queen of Spirits. I said that I was a boy before, remember?”

“Umm, I don’t know. Let me think…” Aeriel averted her eyes, looking to the side.

 

“If I remember correctly, when a Spirit Queen dies, a new one is born from the energy given off by spirits.”

“I thought spirits took energy from the Queen to stay alive.” I interjected, confused.

“Ah. Different type of energy. It’s like a… symbiotic relationship.”

“Right… that still doesn’t explain how I, a human, ended up as the Queen of Spirits.”

“That, I don’t know…” Aeriel slowly floated off my lap, turning around in midair to face me.

“Normally, Spirit Queens materialise out of pure energy. They’re not half-human, like you are. So… I have no idea how you ended up as the Queen.”

I stared at the ground, struggling to make sense of my situation.

 

So, Spirit Queens are born out of energy given off by spirits. There was no Queen here, so a new one was born, but there are also very few spirits. Is that why it turned me into a spirit? So that it would have a host? Grace said that she saw energy shooting into my body in her dream. If all of that was what turned me into the Spirit Queen… that makes it sound like I’m possessed! Though, she also said that animal spirits ‘choose worthy successors’ and give their powers to them. Would that be a form of possession? Are we all possessed?

 

“Hey Aeriel, there’s something that’s been bothering me for a while now.” Zoey called out, interrupting my train of thought.

“Hmm?”

“If you’re from a different world, then how are you speaking English?”

...Wait, that’s right! I thought there was something weird about that!

 

“...English?” Aeriel looked confused.

“You know, the language? You speak fluent English perfectly, but I seriously doubt that whatever language you have in your original world has the exact same words, inflections, and intonations of English here.”

“Language… Oh! That! Umm… I don’t quite know how to explain this, but… spirits don’t actually have the concept of language.” Aeriel said sheepishly, pressing her fingers together.

Zoey stared at her, confused.

“Spirits learn things in different ways to other races. We don’t have a set language that we use, instead we communicate based on the language used by the person we’re talking to.”

“Eh?!”

“So then,” Elena spoke up, leaning forward to look at Aeriel.

“If I speak like this, from your perspective, it’s no different to before, is it?”

 

Huh? Did she change her voice? It’s… really hard to understand her.

 

“No different to what?” Aeriel replied.

“Wait, what are you trying out?” I interrupted, looking at Elena. She stared at me, wide eyed. I glanced around, and saw everyone else looking at me, confused.

“Huh? Why’s everyone staring at me?”

 

“I didn’t know you knew German, Flora!”

Wait, what? I looked over towards Elena, who had a slight smile on her face.

“...I was speaking German. You replied in completely fluent German, with the exact same accent as me.”

I glanced around rapidly, confused.

 

“You’re a spirit too, remember?” Aeriel said.

Oh… right. So all that stuff applies to me too, now.

I’m really… not human anymore, am I?