Hey, everyone! Angela here. I want to let you know that everything is still on schedule. Tina and I decided to drop a little exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at what we've been working on. This scene, however, is quite unusual and may end up on the cutting room floor. Or will it? Personally, I adore learning the crow's point of view, and who their master truly is. 

Happy reading! 

Angela

Curse of the Fallen Fairy: Crow’s POV Scene © copyright 2025 Angela Sanders and Tina Glasneck

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Under the waning daylight, warm tendrils of the sun’s rays beat down upon my black feathers. Thick, wispy clouds shifted across the painted sky.

And the madness below reminded me of the stupidity of bipedal sorts. Here high above, near the Tower of Punishment, us murder of crows cawed, waited. On the high walls, Guards in garish gold and red stood at attention, while metal clanked incessantly against the flagpole. Curiously, the royal banner did not fly.

I cocked my head to the side.

Often, these things happened when no flag flew from the pole, as though a reminder of something missing.

“If only I were a bird.”

Brought by the wind, the words of the red-headed fairy on the raised wooden platform, cut to me. My head turned until I could focus on her. Her long hair whipped around her youthful, kind, but pain-stricken face.

A face I remembered.

Of all the fairies, she was one of the nicest. Lovely even. Perhaps she’d wanted a pet crow. Maybe that’s what she thought I’d become. A pang of regret hit me. Everything around us had energy, and even now, gazing over the crowd, I watched that energy shift in color—some more brightly than others. 

“This is one hell of a day.” Shadow released a low, raspy call, and bobbed his head. “But we need to be careful. Something doesn’t feel right.”

Feelings, instinct. 

We all had to pay attention to that around us. Just because we sat up here, didn’t mean we were outside of danger.  I leaned my beak into the wind, lightly tasting the difference in the air.

Seated on the castle’s turret, I observed the lowly fairies making haste, screaming, chanting, demanding if the cracking of the trees were any clue as to what they were talking about. The square below packed them in. Although I didn’t quite understand, the energy around them was dark, murderous even. 

My mother had told me about this when I was a hatchling, about the pound of flesh, blood and bone, which would soil the ground. Mm. An appealing meal and I was ravenous. Their latest doings had dispelled good prey, leaving me and my murder wasting away. 

But tonight, we’d dine… gloriously.

Would my dear friend now perish? Would she be what the others were looking forward to feasting on?

“May the curse of the dark fairy bring justice, and may you all pay,” the woman shouted, and my wings fluttered.

“It's dinnertime, my pets. Now, feast,” she commanded, a wicked smile upon her face.