My middle name is Fantasia. Did I mention that? Fantasia. Shana Fantasia Carr. Actually, Fantasia derives from a word meaning ‘fancy’, but that still doesn’t help the fact that Fantasia reminds me so much of Fantasy. The irony is not lost on me. I know that my parents could not have known that I would hate all things fantasy and unrealistic when I was born, but that doesn’t stop me from wondering what was going through their heads when they named me. I like to think that at the time where my mother wrote my name on the birth certificate, she was hyped up on the numbing drugs and my dad was in the can. Actually, I think it would be better if he was someplace more exciting and less gross. Let’s see… my dad was off saving orphans from a fire, and the nurse was new and didn’t realize that maybe she shouldn’t let the new, drugged-up mother name her child quite so soon after delivery.

Yeah, that was a good story. You see, saving orphans from a fire, though unorthodox, is still possible, and it’s my mind, so this does not count as fantasy at all.

So, if this story were true, surely that means that I can have my name changed, right? Right? It’s just a name, after all. Changing it couldn’t be too hard. Wait, but what if it was a family name? Then I’d be disgracing my family! Of course, it probably wasn’t, but it never hurt to ask, and maybe I’d even get a good family story out of it. I loved when my grandmother told me stories about old family relatives. True stories. Worthwhile stories. No fantasy.

“Grandma?” I asked.

“Yes?” she looked up at me from across the table and over her dinner which she had been picking at for awhile.

“Is Fantasia a family name?” I asked.

“Yes, it is,” she answered, looking down at her food and picking at it more incessantly. I blinked a few times. Yes? Yes? I had been expecting a ‘Why no, Honey Jar. Would you like me to take you to get it changed? It is a strange name after all.’ Ahem. I can hope, can’t I?

“It is?” I asked, my fork poised in midair, green beans about to fall at any moment.

Grandma sighed, looked up at me, and set down her fork, “Yes. Listen, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you. Actually, I was hoping that it could wait, but since you’ve asked…”

Then she got up and walked away. Um… Did I miss something? I put my fork down. My heart was pounding and I didn’t know why. What could she have to tell me? The last time she had used her ‘serious’ tone, she had been talking about the night my parents died. We didn’t talk about that anymore; it was a rule.

Soon, but not soon enough, Grandma came back into the room, holding something in her hands.

“Here,” she said, waiting for me to outstretch my hand, and then dropped the object into it. She was watching me intently, waiting for my reaction. I looked down at the cool piece of metal in my hand and felt my face twist into a look of confusion.

The thing in my hand was a glass vile containing a red powder that was kept in by a small cork in the opening at the top. A silver fairy, wings and all, adorned the odd vile that was attached to a long, thin chain.

“A necklace?” I asked, just to make sure.

“Yes, a necklace,” Grandma said in a tone that suggested that she had been expecting this sort of response from me. I must have been looking at her oddly still, for she handed me a very very old scrap of cloth. I looked down at it, and then back up at her, “Read it,” she said, nodding toward me.

I am Harem, the faerie of passion, seduction, and desire.

No man can stand tall in my presence,

No woman can hope to rise to my magnificence.

This gift of faerie dust is one of the precious few that will ever be given.

The recipient of this gift if truly blesséd, and should treat the gift with care.

Be warned, for I am the faerie of the sin desire,

My anger will be avenged.

Sprinkle a tad of dust about you,

Close your eyes,

And let me into you heart.

Desire is easily acquired,

But hard to get rid of.

The world I show you will be one of magic and wonders,

Truly magnificent.

But do not stay too long,

For if you choose to stay,

You can never return.

“What is this psycho poem about, Grandma?” I asked, looking up. She was gone. I hadn’t even heard the door to her room shut. I had been so entranced by this poem… No, not the poem! I’d been entranced by the stupidity that must have been running through Grandma’s head when she had given this to me. There is no such thing as faeries, she knows that. She also knows that I wouldn’t be able to take this poem seriously. If she had been there I would have scoffed at her. I had asked her about the name ‘Fantasia’ and had gotten a necklace and a threatening poem. Gee thanks, Grandma. Why can’t you just make cookies like every other grandmother in the world?

I picked up the necklace and poem, inspecting them a bit more as I entered my room. Hey! The ‘faerie dust’ matches the red on my walls! Cool. Sure it was strange, the faerie necklace, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t pretty. My shoulders rose in a shrug, and I slipped the long chain about my neck, realizing that it didn’t have a clasp.

I yawned wildly, letting my arms fly up in a sloppy stretch. I hadn’t realized how tired I was! Of course, it had been a hectic week. Semester finals had been in progress, and my lack of friends at school had made me not think twice about getting to leave school for winter break. I had no friends to mourn with over the fact that we wouldn’t get to see each other for nearly a whole month, so all I could feel was excited. I was definitely embracing the fact that it was Friday. TGIF, as they say.

Despite the early time, I found myself switching my lights off. I scoffed at the thought of that poem again and suddenly felt my head spin. The whole room was spinning! I had to squint my eyes, for the red of the walls would surely cause me to go crazy.

“Oh” I heard someone say, as if they were extremely sick and they couldn’t even manage standing. When I collapsed onto my bed, I realized that the sound had come from me.

My heart thumped faster than it ever had, my brain seemed to be trying to get out of my head, and I was starting to sweat despite the still nice weather outside and the room temperature surrounding me.

Then I closed my eyes.

A/N: Sorry this chapter is kind of slow and not that interesting, but the next one will be amazing! We’re getting to the fantasy soon! Weeee! Again, no worries. Her grandmother’s behavior will be explained later as well.

I enjoy reviews! Any kind! Really!

Sparkleshoelaces: Thanks so much for the review! My first (but hopefully not last) review. Weeee!