Episode 3 – The Truth Comes at Dawn

Grandma Anya woke before the sun. She lit a small fire in the cottage hearth and sat in her wooden chair, waiting. Nicco was still asleep in the tiny loft above, her dark hair spilling over the edge of the mattress. The old woman’s heart ached. Today, she would break a promise she had kept for twenty-two years.

When Nicco climbed down the ladder, rubbing her eyes, she found her grandmother sitting unusually still. “Granny? Are you alright?”

“Sit down, little one,” Anya said. “I have something to tell you. Something I should have told you long ago.”

Nicco sat on a stool across from her. The fire crackled. The morning birds sang outside, but inside, the air felt heavy as stone.

Anya began slowly. “You are not my blood granddaughter. Your true mother came to me on a stormy night, heavy with child, wearing a torn cloak and a face full of terror. Her name was Elara. She was a concubine to the Fairy King, Telomakus.”

Nicco blinked. “The Fairy King? Granny, that’s just a story.”

“It is not a story,” Anya said firmly. “The fairy kingdom is real. It sits high above those mountains, hidden by clouds and magic. King Telomakus rules with wisdom, but his wife, Queen Melody, is evil. She hides her cruelty behind a smile. When Elara became pregnant with you, the queen grew jealous. She dragged your mother to the edge of the fairy realm and threw her down to the mortal world. ‘If your child lives,’ the queen said, ‘I will find her and destroy her.’”

Nicco’s hands began to shake. “My mother… what happened to her?”

“She gave birth to you in this very cottage. She named you Nicolette. Then she showed me a small mark on your back—a crescent moon holding a seven-pointed star. That is the royal mark of the Fairy Kingdom. Only a blood heir bears it. You are a princess, Nicco. A true fairy princess.”

“No,” Nicco whispered. “That’s impossible.”

Anya stood and walked to a small wooden chest in the corner. She opened it and pulled out a folded piece of cloth. Inside was a thin silver locket. She opened it and handed it to Nicco. Inside was a tiny painting of a woman with kind eyes and dark hair—the same dark hair Nicco saw in her own mirror every day.

“Your mother,” Anya said. “She died hours after you were born. Her last words were: ‘Hide her mark. Hide her voice. Or the queen will find her.’”

Nicco touched the locket, tears sliding down her cheeks. “But I sang at the fountain. Every night. For years.”

“I know,” Anya said. “I could not stop you. The singing is in your blood. And lately, I have felt a cold wind from the mountains. The queen’s shadow hunters are searching. They have not found this village yet, but they will.”

Nicco looked up, her eyes wet but suddenly fierce. “Then what do I do?”

Anya took her hands. “There is someone you must meet. A young prince from the Tiger Kingdom. His people can shift from human to tiger. The fairy queen calls them beasts, but they are kind-hearted. For weeks, he has been listening to you sing from the shadows. He wants to protect you.”

“A tiger prince?” Nicco’s voice trembled. “I don’t understand.”

“You will,” Anya said. “Tonight, go to the fountain as always. But do not be afraid when you see him. His name is Pond. And he has been waiting for the right moment to meet you.”

Nicco looked out the window at the distant mountains. Somewhere up there, a queen wanted her dead. And somewhere in the forest, a tiger prince was waiting.

“Tonight, then,” Nicco said softly.

End of Episode 3

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