Fairy's Tale

It wasn’t until I was halfway through my tale that I realized I’d forgotten to say “Once upon a time.” If the little girl noticed, she didn’t say. I was rusty at first, never having told a story before. But it got easier as I went along. I soon understood why everyone I’d crossed paths with had been so eager to tell me their tales. With each word I felt lighter, as if I wasn’t quite so alone anymore. Evie interrupted every once in awhile to add a comment or to exclaim over my bravery. I was surprised at how many of the people and creatures in my tale she already knew of. It took forever to convince her that Wolf was one of the good guys though. Apparently in her world, people don’t become animals, animals don’t talk, and wolves are always bad news. When I reached the part of my story where the Queen stepped on my fairy twin, Evie asked “Why didn’t you clap?” “Clap?” “Yeah,” she said. “With your hands.” Then she mimed the action to me, as if I didn’t know what clapping was. “I understand what to do,” I replied. “I just don’t understand how that would have helped. It wasn’t really a clapping matter.” Evie rolled her eyes at my ignorance. “No. When a fairy dies, you can bring it back by clapping. You’re a fairy. You should know that!” I thought over the idea for a moment. “Do you think it’s too late?” The girl shrugged. “We could always try.” So we clapped, quietly, so Evie’s Mother wouldn’t hear. “How do we know if it worked?” I asked. Again the girl shrugged. “I guess we don’t.” So I went on with my story, stashing away all of Evie’s advice for later use. She seemed to have an answer for everything! Human babies are delivered into the world by large birds called Storks. Fairies can make things fly by sneezing on them. A tree will grow out of anything you plant. If you catch a mermaid or merman, it will grant you three wishes. And witches melt in water! “Witches MELT?” I burst out. “Of course!” She seemed so knowledgeable for such a small being. I finally grasped why The Great Phoenix had sent me to her. “You need to come back with me!” I said. “I think you’re what I came here to get.” “I can’t,” Evie yawned. “I have school tomorrow.” “But I need you!” I whined. For the first time in my life, I felt I needed someone. I enjoyed the company of most of the people Wolf and I had met on our journey. Then there was Wolf himself. He had become the greatest friend and confidant I could ask for. But our skills complimented each other. I didn’t feel I needed him for my survival. It was different with this girl. Without being able to explain it, I felt our world depended on her. Evie stifled another yawn. “Maybe you should find the princess.” “The princess? Are you talking about the one Wolf was looking for?” “No. Like the one in Kanchana’s story. You need to find the ruler of your world, the one who is meant to kill the Queen.” “But I’m out of time,” I whispered dejectedly. I could see the young girl was falling asleep. Her eyes were glassy and her breathing had started to slow. “How do I get home?” I asked in her ear. Her eyes opened again. “I need a mirror.” “In Mom’s purse,” she said. “There’s a special mirror. Compact.” Then her eyes started to drift closed again. “Thank you Evie.” She smiled and started to hum a tune softly. I turned back when I reached the crack in the door. The song she had sung, before it drifted off into her dreams with her, was very familiar to me. “Children, children, play at night,” I sang. “When the fairies all take flight.” It was the song I’d heard in the Dogwood forest. “Parents see with doubting eyes.” Who was this girl? “What they think are fireflies.” The hall outside the door was dark. I could here the mumble of voices from behind another door to the right, but no noise came from the great room at the end. I fluttered around freely, looking for the item Evie called a “pers.” It was something her Mother, the witch, owned. I tried to think back on what the witch had looked like. She’d had a hat and a broom and those tiny little shoes. She was carrying a bag as well. I decided to start looking for those items first. I found the shoes by the door, but there was nothing in them. The hat was on the table, but it was empty as well. The broom, which was propped up against a wall, was harder to inspect. After combing the bristles for a mirror I came up empty handed. I finally found the bag on a chair next to the table. It had some sort of latch on it that kept it closed. In my struggle to unlatch it, the bag rolled off the chair and hit the floor with a loud thud. I froze midair, waiting for the witch to appear. After several moments of silence, I looked down at the bag. It had popped open during its collision with the floor. I scrambled inside to search the contents. There were numerous tubes of indefinable red stuff, a square piece of fabric folded several times over, some keys, and a hard saucer that looked like a clam. I twisted the caps off the tubes and some oozed red liquid onto the floor. None contained a mirror. I unfolded the thick piece of fabric to find other hard, thin square things. But there was no mirror. Lastly, I tried the clam. It struggled to stay closed, but finally opened under my prodding fingers. I squeaked in delight. On one side of the clam was its creamy flesh. On the other was a mirror. I reached forward to touch its surface, stopping with my fingers just a hair away. What if it didn’t work? What was I going to do when I got back? Evie had given me answers aplenty, but none would help if I was already too late. Suddenly, something flickered across the surface of the mirror. I turned around sharply, expecting the witch to be behind me. There was nothing there. I looked back at the mirror. Something flashed again on its surface. Whatever I was seeing, it was on the INSIDE. I took a deep breath and touched the mirror. My fingers disappeared. In the short time since I’d used Mirror Mirror to leave my world, I’d forgotten what the sensation of entering it had felt like. The warmth and darkness of the inside enveloped me. I felt cocooned. “Maybe I don’t have to go back,” I thought. Then I was being hurtled forward, not unlike how I’d fallen before. Only this time the direction had changed. With every moment I moved onward, the warmth drained from my skin like a blanket being dragged off. By the time I had stopped, I was cold again. “Hello?” I called meekly into the darkness. I had expected to end up in my world again. But the only thing that greeted me was more of the same. “This way, Fae!” It was Phoenix. He sounded so far away. I flew toward his voice, until a pinpoint of light appeared on the horizon. “Where are we?” I asked when I reached him. “Right now we’re in a closet,” he said. The light he cast illuminated the four walls around us. I didn’t remember entering the room, but we were there just the same. “Is that a skeleton?!” I asked, startled. He nodded at the tiny bones on the floor. “A very small one.” “Why are we in a closet with a skeleton?” “Because it’s the only place that’s safe at the moment. We need to talk before you go home.” “Can’t we talk later? I think I’ve wasted enough time as is!” I was confused and starting to feel panicked. Nothing seemed as it had been before. I’d once been a simple fairy. Now the fate of the world balanced on my small shoulders. I felt like I was being crushed. “I understand now why you sent me there, Phoenix. But I’m afraid it might be too late. I feel like an awful lot of time has passed since I left my world.” “You haven’t missed anything, my dear.” The Phoenix seemed unhurried and took a moment to shift his wings after speaking. “Time where you come from has stood still.” “Stood still? I don’t get it.” “What you don’t understand is that time there cannot continue without you. Although it must eventually, it can wait for your return a little while longer.” I took a deep breath to ease the dizziness that was creeping in. “Ok,” I said. It wasn’t as if I had a choice. “So tell me Phoenix. Why me? Why am I so important?” “Ah!” The Phoenix replied. “Now that’s THE question.”