Free A History of Glitter and Blood by Hannah Moskowitz

hundred, who finally said, “Ferrum is a lost cause.”
    While the four of them looked up, everyone else nodded.
    â€œIt’s undersized and out of date, and its history isn’t worth dealing with these escalating threats.”
    â€œHistory,” Scrap scoffed. “Fucking mythical history, maybe if there were more than ten fairies who could fucking spell
history
.”
    Cricket said, “Shut
uuuup
.”
    â€œWe’ve held on to Ferrum for as long as we could,” the man continued. “I know we all feel an affection for the place, but we can’t stay here just to prove a point.”
    â€œProve what point?” Beckan said.
    Josha played with his cuticle. He was not interested. “That fairies don’t always leave.”
    The thing is that fairies always leave.
    â€œIt’s time we evacuate the city and settle somewhere stronger,” the man said.
    â€œThis is why books are written about us and not by us,” Scrap mumbled.
    â€œNo one cares about books,” Beckan said to him.
    Cricket leaned over to whisper, “I have to listen to this shit all the time,” in Beckan’s ear.
    Another woman stood up and started talking. “We’ve already talked to some of the major nearby cities. Kelleran and Rankel have both agreed to absorb parts of our population. Kelleran offered wagons to help with the journeys. We would be around thousands of other fairies. We’re not demanding a permanent relocation. And of course nothing is mandatory. You could take your family and move to a hill town, if you can arrange for deliveries from one of the other cities, since we will be shutting down production here next week.”
    Beckan narrowed her eyes.
    â€œWhere will we get food if we stay here?” Scrap said.
    The man exhaled. “Have you been listening, boy? We’re not staying here.”
    â€œI was listening. Well enough to hear that this isn’t compulsory. Which is a better word than mandatory. In this context.”
    Beckan wasn’t so rattled that she couldn’t hear in her head a small bit of bitchy victory music for her small, bitchy friend.
    Scrap said, “But shutting down production makes it compulsory. It makes the city unlivable.”
    â€œWe can’t order fairies to stay in an unsafe city to serve the stragglers who choose to stay behind,” the man said. “Anyone who wants to come back after the war can come back. But we expect many of you will find your new situations far more comfortable.”
    Cricket sat up straighter. “You can’t leave the city for the war and expect to come back and pick up where we left off.”
    The man sighed. “I don’t think anyone’s suggesting that.”
    â€œThey’re very young,” Jenemah said, in a voice she probably thought was gracious.
    Josha said, “This war is for us. Did you see the fliers? The tightropers came for us.”
    Cricket grabbed his hand and squeezed it. It was so small that Beckan almost didn’t see, but she could never have missed the look on Josha’s face, the world disappearing for him as he looked from his hand to Cricket’s hand to Cricket’s eyes.
    â€œWe’ve spoken with the tightropers and expressed our desire for peace, and both parties have determined that the best way to ensure fairy safety is for us to vacate Ferrum.”
    â€œThis is our city,” Beckan said.
    Jenemah shook her head. “No city is worth losing limbs.” She crossed one ankle over where her other would have been. “Just because you four are whole, you think you’re invincible. You stay here? You won’t be whole for long.”
    â€œWe are invincible,” Scrap whispered. “We all are. That’s what being a fairy means.”
    Scrap didn’t know shit.
    The meeting progressed. The elders kept saying the same things. Josha and Cricket continued to fall in love in the middle of the