“Come on, let’s go!” I shout as I walk through the corridor of my branch. Vallen and Lyris trail behind me.
“You’re in a good mood this morning princess,” Vallen states.
“Of course, it’s my first day off,” I declare, “and I get to spend it doing whatever I want.”
“Princess, it’s a great honor to spend your first day off with you,” Vallen continues, “Lyris, thank you for volunteering us to be first.”
“I just wanted to go first so that I could spend the rest of my time relaxing,” Lyris replies, then as she rubs her neck, asks, “So, what’s on the schedule for today?”
“Hmm… Well, I think I’d like to explore Folian a bit today,” I answer.
“Why so?” Vallen asks, “Didn’t we explore Folian during the feast?”
“Yeah, but it was already pretty dark at the time, so I didn’t get a good look of the island. So far, I’ve only seen bits of it whenever I go to the lake.”
“Alright, then lead the way, princess,” Lyris mutters.
“Wherever you go,” Vallen states, “We’ll be by your side.”
“I do wish you two would relax a little,” I sigh, “I haven’t done anything worthy of earning any respect or admiration.”
“You haven’t yet,” Vallen announces, “but being the princess, I’m confident that someday, you’ll be someone many fairies will admire.”
“Are those expectations or hopes?” I inquire.
“My personal beliefs,” Vallen answers.
“Is that so?” I inquire as I look up at Vallen, straining my neck. Damn, he’s fucking tall. I look at Lyris, who’s a bit shorter than him. Well, she’s tall too, so maybe I’m just short. I let out a heavy sigh.
“Is something wrong?” Vallen asks.
“No, but being around just you two,” I state, “I realize how small I am.”
“I know how you feel. It can be rough being so tiny when you’re not used to it,” Lyris comments, “But you’ll get taller, and by that time, you’ll likely be used to your body. Now, let’s get going, the exit’s right there.”
As we descend the Vravyth, I scan my surroundings. As usual, I see thousands of fairies flying about from tree to tree. Some rush about, while others slowly fly alongside other fairies. There are groups of fairies carrying crates, some younger fairies chasing one another, and even some clusters of fairies just hovering in place talking with one another.
It’s almost like a mall here.
Many of the fairies happily greet me as we fly past them. I briefly chat with some of them before continuing on. Slowly I make my way through the crowded air and head toward the small trees surrounding the Vravyth. I scan the trees and see several holes dotting them. It’s an insignificant amount compared to the Vravyth, but each tree appears to have around a dozen holes.
“So, what’re these trees used for?” I ask.
“They’re used mostly by families that arrived here after the collapse,” Vallen answers, “Even with the Vravyth’s size, there’s too many fairies to stay there. So, many of the trees on the island were hollowed out to make space for them.”
“What about actual houses?” I ask, “Do fairies only live in trees?”
“Of course not. We’re just using the trees to hide the sanctuary,” Vallen answers, “In the spirit realm, we have houses, and cities built for fairies.”
“I see. Well, at least they have somewhere to stay,” I reply.
“Yeah, but it’s not like them being here hasn’t had its repercussions,” Lyris comments.
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“Look around, the trees, the ground, even the water around the lake. It looks calm, but a more accurate term would be stale,” Lyris continues, “The environment around Folian used to be full of spyr, hence why it was originally built here. But with the number of fairies here now, any available spyr for the environment is being taken up by everyone.”
“Is that bad?”
“It’s not necessarily bad, but it can have a tremendous impact on the beings living within the affected areas,” Vallen states, “You see, everything uses spyr to some degree. So without it, there’s no wind, there’s no waves in the water, the plants won’t grow, everything just sort of stops.”
“And how’s that ‘not necessarily bad’?”
“Well, there won’t be any major storms, no landquakes, no floods, no volcanic eruptions,” Vallen answers, “So basically, all natural disasters stop happening.”
“Yeah, but at the same time,” Lyris continues, “It usually leads to droughts, lack of food, and many areas become barren wastelands.”
“Are things going to be okay around Folian then?”
“Currently everything should be fine, but there is definitely a limit before we start feeling the repercussions from it,” Vallen states, “Which is why most of us want to return to the spirit realm.”
Which means the sooner I can get Vestele to the spirit realm, the sooner these problems will go away. If it's not the elmite storms, it's something else. I sigh.
We explore Folian for several hours, flying past tree after tree, each similar to the last. The bark on the trees is a dark-brown color, with coarse vertical furrows and ridges. The trunks extend about halfway up the tree before separating into several branches. The leaves are long, thin, smooth, light-green in color, and shaped like diamonds.
As we slowly drift by trees, I inspect the scenery. Something about these woods, aside from my obvious size difference, feels different compared to those back on Earth. The woods around Folian don't feel like they’re alive. The energy and excitement I’d feel roaming the forest in my previous life seems to be missing here.
Back on Earth, throughout spring and summer, the plants bloom and grow densely until changing color in autumn, and eventually die back in winter. There is a continuous wonder within the woods as the plant life drastically changes and is filled with renewed vitality. The colors displayed during each season signifies what time of year it is, and each season offers a uniquely beautiful spectacle.
Here however, like Lyris said, everything seems dull. The air feels stagnant, the plants appear to be lifeless, the ground seems lackluster and dusty, the light is neutral, the temperature is mild, and the water in the lake looks dead. For the first half of the day, regardless of how much I try, or how hard I look, I fail to find anywhere around Folian that seems to be full of energy. Much to my dismay, only the Vravyth has any sense of vitality here.
Our exploration of Folian consumed most of the day, as we stopped only for a small lunch. We float down and land on a small branch of a young tree. I sit down upon landing, place my elbows on my legs, and rest my chin atop my hands.
“You know, this isn’t quite what I was expecting,” I mutter.
“And what were you expecting?” Vallen asks.
“I guess I thought things around here would be a bit more,” I hesitate, then reply, “I don’t know, fairytale like.”
“Yeah, it’s nothing magnificent to look at,” Lyris mutters, “If anything it’s pretty depressing.”
“That’s what I mean,” I state, “Everyone here’s been staying in an environment like this. That’s so… frustrating? No… Depressing is probably right.”
“Unfortunately, that’s how it is. It’s not a pleasant place to stay, but it’s better than risking our lives in the spirit realm,” Vallen responds, “And we aren’t being attacked by people or creatures of the realms either. So we just have to endure it until everything in the spirit realm is resolved.”
“Is there anything that can be done to help?” I ask.
“For you princess?” Vallen ponders, “I think the best thing would be to just get to the spirit realm, then hopefully her majesty can settle things, and everyone that fled to the sanctuaries can return.”
“That’s probably the best,” Lyris adds, “Once there’s less people here, there will be more spyr available to the environment, and things will return to normal.”
So in other words, there’s nothing I can do to help. In the end, it’s all up to Vestele.
*Growl* My stomach roars.
“Should we get something to eat princess?” Vallen suggests.
“Dinner shouldn’t be too far away, but a snack should be fine,” I mumble, “Maybe it’ll help.”
As we make our way back to the Vravyth, a pleasant, smoky aroma fills my nose, making my mouth water.
“Hey, where’s that smell coming from?” I inquire.
“What smell?” Vallen asks, then breathes in deeply, “The smoked meat?”
“Yeah.”
“Give me a moment,” Lyris says as she flies away from us. She starts talking with another fairy holding a stick with different-colored blocks on it. Is that a skewer? Lyris points over at us and the fairy jumps, almost dropping his skewer. After her talk, Lyris returns and says, “Come on, he’ll guide us to where he bought the skewer.”
We follow the fairy, and after a short trip, arrive in front of a small, wooden stall. A bearded, elderly male wisp is cooking a variety of foods for a line of customers. We get in line and everyone, upon seeing me, starts to panic and tell me that I can go ahead of them. I decline their offers and tell them that I’d rather wait in line like everyone else. While waiting in line, I begin chatting with some of the other waiting fairies.
Slowly the line disappears and, as we approach, I notice that before the fairies receive their food, they touch wings with the cook.
“Hey, what’re they doing?” I ask.
“Hmm? What do you mean?” Vallen questions.
“Everyone seems to be touching wings with the cook,” I state, “Why’re they doing that?”
“Ohhh,” Vallen realizes, “They’re paying for their food, princess.”
“You didn’t even know how people paid for their things, pfft,” Lyris laughs, “You really are a princess aren’t you?”
“Pfft,” Vestele chuckles.
“Don’t laugh!” I shout as my face feels warm, “I just didn’t know, okay. Stop laughing!”
Vallen joins in, and the three of them continue to laugh at me. Jerks. While they’re laughing, another fairy arrives behind us and shouts, “Princess! It’s been a while.”
Hearing those words, I look back and see a deva whom I recognize as the fairy that I asked to sing for me.
She is a bit shorter than Vestele and Desela, but much taller than I, and has a dainty figure, with a modest bosom. She has shoulder length wavy pink hair, a cute round face, large pink eyes, curved eyebrows, big lips, a small nose, soft cheekbones, and warm white skin. Unlike her frilly dress from the feast however, she is now wearing a more casual blue summer dress with white flowers on it, and small white shoes.
It’s her… Crap, what was her name again?
“Hi, um…” I mutter, “What was your name again?”
“Vivian!” she exclaims, “I’m a little hurt that you forgot.”
“Sorr-”
“Just kidding,” Vivian interrupts, “There were so many fairies at the feast that night, so it’s okay.” She smiles brightly. “So, what’ve you been up to princess? I’m sure you’ve been busy.”
While waiting in line, I talk with Vivian, and explain my last five days at Folian and how hectic things have been for me. Vallen and Lyris join in and comment about my activities and praise me for the improvements I’ve made.
“Honestly, it’s nothing to get excited about,” I say, “I haven’t done anything other than sit in lessons, or get yelled at by Minerva.”
“It sounds like you’ve been having fun,” Vivian replies.
“I don’t know about fun, but it's been a ride,” I correct.
“A fun ride,” Vivian beams.
“Sure,” I concede, “but today’s my first day off, so I’m here with my guards. We just finished exploring Folian, and now we’re getting something to eat.”
“Well, you came to the right place,” Vivian says as she looks at the line, “I come here all the time to eat. Mr. Smokey’s smoked skewer’s are the best.”
“Mr. Smokey? That’s not actually his name, is it?” I question.
“Who knows,” Vivian shrugs, “but that’s what everyone calls him.”
“Huh, okay then…” I mutter.
“So, what’re you doing after this?” Vivian asks.
“I’m sorry, but that’s not something you need to know,” Vallen declares.
“Vallen!” I bark, “Sorry about him. I’m thinking about stopping by a chef I know to make sure he’s got everything ready for my visit to the orphanage tonight.”
“The orphanage?” Vivian questions, “Why’re you going there?”
“Ah, well, some of my guards used to live there,” I answer, “So, I wanted to visit and see how things are there. I’m also going to be bringing a gift as well.”
“Sounds like fun,” Vivian says, “Would you mind if I tagged along?”
“Sure, I’m fine with that.”
“Princess, I don’t think we should,” Vallen states.
Lyris places her hand on Vallen’s shoulder and sighs, “It’s just another person coming along, what’s the big deal?”
Vallen looks away and mutters something before turning around and says, “Fine, if the princess wants you to come, then it’s fine by me.”
“Oh, if you’re coming too, would you mind singing for everyone?” I ask.
Vivian chuckles, “Of course. It’d be my pleasure.”
“Yes!” I exclaim, “I’m sure this will boost everyone’s mood now.”
We continue chatting until it’s finally our turn to order. We order our food, four skewers with an assortment of meat and vegetables, as recommended by Vivian.
“So how do I pay?” I ask.
“Please just take these ones for free, princess,” Mr. Smokey says, “It’s already enough for you to visit my stall. I hope you enjoy them.”
“Ah, no it’s alright, I’ll pay,” I reply, “I don’t want any special treatment.”
“No that’s, um…” Mr. Smokey glances at Vallen.
“It looks like the princess has made her decision. Why not just accept it?” Vallen states, “I’ll cover the payment for you, princess.” Vallen walks over, touches wings with the cook and then takes the skewers.
“But I wanted to pay,” I mutter under my breath.
“T-thank you very much!” Mr. Smokey exclaims.
Suddenly an orange blur zooms past us, and before I realize what happened, it’s gone.
“Hey!” Vallen roars, “Get back here!” Vallen bolts in the direction of the orange blur.
“Wah, Vallen?” I shout, then chase after him. Lyris and Vivian follow behind me.
Vallen rampages past fairies and yells as he blazes after the orange blur. What the hell’s going on? Vallen just took off. Dammit, I wish I was faster, he’s getting farther and farther away.
“Lyris, do you know what happened?”
“It was pretty fast,” Lyris casually answers, “but I’m pretty sure a sylph stole our food.”
“What?” So, Vallen’s chasing after the thief…
“Come on princess,” Vivian says as she speeds up, “Let’s catch up.” Vivian then dashes ahead.
For several minutes, Vallen pursues the thief with Vivian just behind him. Lyris and I bring up the rear. We circle several trees, ascend up some, navigate through a maze of branches, dive down under some roots, and pass through a fallen trunk. After rushing out from the fallen trunk, Vallen and Vivian are stopped by a large crowd of fairies. Lyris and I fly up next to them.
“Let me go!” a boy cries out, “Let me go!”
Hovering in front of us is a young male sylph who is holding our skewers, his arms held by Vallen. The sylph has a slender figure, long limbs, and is around Faraine or Zoelle’s age but a bit taller. He has messy, short orange hair, a long head, high cheekbones, flat eyebrows, a straight nose, small thin eyes and fair white skin. He’s wearing a tattered brown t-shirt, blue shorts with holes in them, and worn-down brown shoes.
“I said, let go!” the sylph shouts as he struggles in Vallen’s grasp.
“You think you can steal from the princess and get away with it?” Vallen barks as he restrains the boy, scowling furiously, “Now, how should I deal with you?”
“Hiii,” the boy shrieks.
“Vallen, calm down!” I shout, “You’re scaring him.”
“Princess, he stole from you!” Vallen argues, “He needs to be punished for such actions.”
“Sure,” I state, “but you don’t need to scare him to death in the process.”
“Princess, you’re too nice,” Vallen protests, “If we don’t make an example out of him, others might try to do something too.”
“Vallen…” I sigh, “Just hold him.”
Lyris takes the skewers from the sylph and I ask, “Do you like stealing other peoples’ food?”
The boy refuses to answer and looks away from me. Vallen leans over and whispers something into his ear.
“Ah! Alright, no, I don’t,” the sylph responds. I’ll ask Vallen about what he said later on.
“Okay, then why’d you take it?” I question, “Were you hungry?”
“Um…” the boy mutters something under his breath.
“I can’t hear you.” He’s clearly terrified. I need him to get him to calm down. “Alright, how about we make a deal?”
The boy glances at me, then mutters, “W-what kind of deal?”
“I’ll have Vallen let you go, and I’ll give you these,” I say as I motion toward the skewers, “but you need to promise you won’t run, and you’ll answer my questions. Deal?”
The sylph hesitates, looks down, then mumbles, “Deal.”
“Vallen, let him go,” I order.
“But princess,” Vallen responds.
“Vallen, I already gave him my word,” I hiss, “Don’t make me a liar.”
“I understand,” Vallen sighs as he releases the boy and flies back a bit.
The boy hovers in place, surrounded on all sides by Vivian, my guards, and I.
“Alright, then back to my questions,” I remark, “Why’d you take our skewers? Were you hungry?”
The boy shakes his head, “I- I mean, I am hungry, but that’s not why I took them. I-” The boy stops, turns away from me, and continues, “I wanted to give my younger brothers something to eat.”
“I see, then in that case. Lyris give him the skewers.”
“Sure thing,” Lyris mutters as she hands over the skewers.
“Now, take those and give them to your brothers,” I say with a smile, “but I want you to promise me that you won’t steal from others anymore. Can you do that?”
The boy looks down and nods, “I promise.”
“Alright then. Come on, we’ll get a snack from the cafeteria,” I announce, “We’ll check on Lhoris while we’re there too.”
We leave the boy and head toward the Vravyth.
“You handled that pretty well,” Lyris states.
“Yeah, I got in trouble once for stealing in my previous life,” I reply, “That’s pretty much what my mom told me before, and it stuck with me.”
“Hearing that makes me feel a little defeated,” Vestele comments.
“Princess, you didn’t punish him,” Vallen complains, “He’s just going to do something else again in the future.”
“It’s fine. Let’s just say we gave him a warning today,” I respond, “If he does it again, and we catch him, we’ll make sure he’s punished.”
Vallen sighs, “Very well, but I still don’t like it.”
“Don’t worry so much, Desela said that once Nolodar shows up,” I continue “We’ll be leaving here anyway, so it won’t matter too much.”
We continue flying in silence for a bit before I ask, “Hey, are there a lot of people like him?”
“I wouldn’t say there’s a lot,” Vallen answers, “but there’s certainly way more now that there’s so many fairies here in Folian.”
I see, so again, it all falls back to the collapse of the spirit realm.
Vivian laughs then says, “Did any of you see that boy’s face when he was making that promise with the princess?”
“No.” “Nope.” “I didn’t.” Vallen, Lyris, and I respond.
Vivian chuckles and sweetly says, “He was blushing so much. His face was more red than his hair.” She points at Vallen’s hair. “Princess, he’s totally got a crush on you now.”
“What!? No, no way,” I mutter, “That’s ridiculous.”
“I don’t know,” Lyris states, “A beautiful young princess, being nice to a young boy, who should’ve got in trouble, and instead of punishing him, let’s him go so he can feed his younger brothers. Honestly, I’d probably have the hots for you if I were in his shoes.”
“Please stop,” I say, “The last thing I want is for a boy to have a crush on me.” I mean… that would lead to… I rapidly shake my head and yell out, “No no no! Definitely not!” Lyris chuckles.
We all make our way to the cafeteria, get a small snack, and meet up with Lhoris.
“How’re things going here?” I ask as we enter the kitchen Lhoris often uses.
“Ah princess, you arrived at a perfect time,” Lhoris says, “I just finished packing up the last of the sweets. Everything’s ready to be brought over whenever you want.”
“Perfect, it might be a little early,” I state, “but I’m sure they won’t mind.”
“In that case, can I get everyone to help me carry these down to the orphanage?” Lhoris asks.
“Sure.” “Of course.” “Yeah.” We all answer. Lhoris, Lyris, and Vivian grab a couple of flat boxes.
When I go to grab one, Vallen takes it from me and says, “Princess, I will carry these for you.”
“Vallen, I can carry these myself,” I declare.
“I know how you feel princess,” Vallen sighs, “but if Desela saw you carrying something while we were here, we’d get into trouble. So please understand, this time I’m simply doing my job.”
Right… I’m not allowed to do anything on my own… I just… I sigh heavily, “Fine… I’m not going to argue.”
Once we have everything, we leave and head down to the orphanage. While on our way there, Lhoris approaches me, and says, “Princess, um… there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Hmm, what is it?” I ask, “Ah, before that, thank you for preparing all this. I really hope they like them.”
“Of course princess, but there’s one teeny-tiny problem,” Lhoris replies.
“Well, what is it?”
“Um… well…” Lhoris hesitates, “I believe there should be enough for everyone at the orphanage, however, with the size of this order, um…” *cough* *cough* “Well… I sort of ran out of ingredients, so I won’t be able to make any more sweets for a while.”
We continue flying while I stare blankly ahead, processing what Lhoris told me. I tilt my head and ask, “So… when you say you won’t be able to make any more. You mean, at all? Like, everything’s gone?”
“Yes, that’s correct,” Lhoris mutters.
“So… I won’t be able to eat any more of your sweets?” I question.
“Yes, that’s correct,” Lhoris mumbles, his voice trembling.
I take a deep breath then ask, “When will you get more ingredients?”
“Um, well… my companions that harvest the ingredients won’t be back for a few more days,” Lhoris explains, “Once they return, I’ll be able to commission them to get more, but it’ll take about a week. So, maybe two weeks?”
“Two weeks!?” I shout, “Two weeks, two weeks without sweets.” I look at the boxes everyone’s holding, bite my lower lip, then mutter under my breath, “No, it’s for a good cause. I’ll be fine. I went months without them before, I’ll get by… I hope.”
Together, the five of us fly down the Vravyth, and land on a large dirt mound. For the first time since coming to Folian, I’m able to really stretch my legs on the ground at the base of the large tree. Vallen leads us to a stairway that spirals to the left, we walk down it and enter underneath the Vravyth.
Inside, the majority of the base is hollowed out like a massive dome, with several large crystals illuminating the inside. The ground is soft and moist, I realize we are now in the lowest and darkest part of the Vravyth. Hundreds of fairies are flying about down here, many of them look small and young.
“Um… princess,” Lhoris says with apprehension in his voice, “O-once we deliver these, would you mind if I leave?”
“Hmm, I don’t mind,” I answer, “but is something wrong?”
“I-I just don’t feel c-comfortable being un-underground,” Lhoris stutters.
Vallen leads us through the open dome. Similar to my arrival to Folian, most fairies stop what they’re doing upon seeing me. As we continue toward the orphanage, young fairies become more and more prevalent. Vallen guides us to a giant archway composed of the Vravyth’s roots, and announces, “Princess, this is the entrance to Folian’s orphanage.”
“Alright, let’s go in,” I state.
We head inside, and I see that the orphanage is another, separate dome. The walls are made of several massive roots, there is a large root-like tower in the middle of the dome, and dotting the walls are dozens of holes. Flying about the air, and walking on the ground, are hundreds of young fairies, more so than outside in the larger dome.
As we walk toward the tower, many shouts and cries by a multitude of fairies in the air announce my arrival. I notice Summer rushing toward us. She is trailed by the rest of my guards: Zoelle, Faraine, Orianna, Lenadrea, Koralesca, and Galatia. Behind them are crowds of other fairies, mostly young looking ones.
“Princess!” Orianna shouts as she runs over. Everyone arrives behind her.
“Princess, you’re here a little earlier than we were expecting,” Zoelle says.
“Sorry, I figured it would be fine if I came early,” I reply, “That’s not a problem, is it?”
“Of course not. We’re grateful that you would visit us,” Summer declares. She turns toward the crowd behind her and shouts, “Children, please gather everyone and meet at the kitchen!” Following her request, the crowd of fairies scatters and they all spread out, each traveling to a different part of the orphanage, some even head through the entrance. “Please follow me princess, dinner should be almost finished.”
We all walk toward the tower in the middle of the dome, go around it, and stop at an outdoor kitchen, where dozens of fairies are cooking.
“I brought some sweets for everyone,” I state, “Where would you like us to put them?”
“Princess…” Summer makes a troubled face, then sighs, “Please give them to the cooks. We’ll hand them out during the meals, but you really didn’t need to go that far.”
“It’s fine, I just hope everyone likes it,” I reply.
“I’m sure they will,” Summer smiles.
I look around, scanning the fairies flying about and those arriving around us. I don’t see very many fully grown fairies. Most look like they’re younger than Koralesca, which means they’re under thirty, and their clothes look pretty worn down.
“As I’m sure you’ve been told, most of the fairies here lost their parents during the collapse. While there are some fairies that were separated from their families, there are also many that joined after losing their families here in the physical realms,” Summer explains. I focus on her as she continues, “We do what we can to support everyone, but with the number of refugees here at Folian, there’s a lack of available resources, so we can only give the kids the bare minimum.”
“I see,” I mutter. There are a lot of them too.
“Princess,” Lhoris calls out, “I’ve delivered the sweets. I’m going to take my leave now.”
“Alright, thanks Lhoris,” I reply, “I’ll see you later.”
Lhoris nods and bows slightly, leaving thereafter.
“Another one that’s afraid of being underground,” Summer comments, “Not that I can blame him.”
After waiting for a while, Summer says that most of the fairies are here and that she’ll begin. She starts her speech by introducing me, and thanking me for visiting the orphanage. Following that, all of the fairies surrounding us all say their thanks. She then lets me say a few words before we start eating, and while I speak, Summer translates for those that don’t know Annic.
“Hello everyone. I’m Evetta, and I’ve come to pay everyone a visit and convey a message to everyone,” I announce, “Sometime in the near future, things will return to how they’re supposed to be. I’m sure things have been difficult for everyone here, so for tonight, I’d like everyone to have fun.”
With the conclusion of my personal introduction, Summer states that everyone can get their dinner and that a guest of mine, Vivian, will be singing. Everyone receives their dinner, and along with it, each person is given a single chocolate candy. Summer informs everyone that they are to enjoy and savor the gift that was given to them. While everyone is eating, Vivian heads to the center of the crowd and starts singing.
The song Vivian sings is different from the song she sang during the feast, but is just as lovely and wondrous. Her silvery, hymn-like voice soothes my ears. I close my eyes and slowly start swaying back and forth listening to her.
I feel like I’ve heard this song before, but I’m not sure where.
“Dance of the Elements,” Vestele mutters, “It’s been so long since I’ve heard someone sing it this beautifully.”
“Dance of the Elements?” I whisper.
As Vivian continues her song, Vestele starts to hum along with it. No way, this is the song Vestele always hums. I open my eyes, and watch Vivian, making sure I focus on her while she continues her song. The song lasts for several minutes, and after Vivian finishes, everyone applauds, roars, and cheers her on.
“Vivian, that was incredible,” I say as she rejoins us.
Vivian giggles, “I’m glad you liked it princess.”
“I more than liked it, I loved it,” I state, “Could you teach me that song sometime?”
“Hmm? I guess,” Vivian answers as she tilts her head, “Is there any particular reason why?”
I lie, “It’s a song my mother sang for me before I left to head for the spirit realm, and well-”
“You don’t need to say anymore,” Vivian interrupts, “Just let me know when, and I’ll be there.”
“Thanks,” I smile.
“Someone’s curious,” Vestele comments, “But personally, I’d like to know more about this girl, and why she knows that song.”
Oh, now that sounds interesting. Is there something wrong with Vivian knowing that song?
“In exchange princess,” Vivian says, “I’d like to make a request.”
“Ah,” I gasp as I refocus on Vivian, “Sure, as long as it’s something I can do.”
“Of course princess,” Vivian chuckles, “but I’ll bring it up some other time. For now, let’s enjoy tonight.”
My guards approach me along with Summer and say that many of the children would like to meet me. I accept, and begin to meet and chat with the fairies that live at the orphanage. While I’m talking with everyone, Vallen, Lyris, and Galatia stay at my side. Orianna looks like she’s having fun as some of the younger fairies chase her through the air. Koralesca, Lenadrea, and Zoelle are talking with some of the others, and Faraine is with Summer and some of the other fairies that work at the orphanage.
Even though they’re struggling, they seem to be doing alright.
While talking with the kids, a young boy with orange hair approaches me, three smaller boys follow behind him.
“H-hello, my n-name’s Hester,” He stutters, “I-I’m sorry for what I did earlier today.”
The skewer thief. I look up at him and reply, “You’re the sylph I met today. So you were staying here?”
He nods and continues, “Um, thank you for what you did today. Me and my brothers wanted to thank you and apologize for earlier.” He waves and the three boys walk up to his side. “This is Dane, Pelleas, and Ralic,” he introduces them.
All three are shorter than him. The closest in height is the gnome Dane. He has a broad build, spiky brown hair, tan skin, a rough face, and thin brown eyes. He’s wearing a tattered blue shirt, muddy brown shorts, and old grey shoes.
The next is the wint Pelleas, who is a bit shorter, has a slender build, straight short cyan hair, snow-white skin, a round childlike face, and downturned cyan eyes. He’s wearing a torn light brown shirt, grey shorts with holes, and stained brown shoes.
The shortest boy Ralic, is a nix like Galatia, and is about my height. He has a small build, short messy teal hair, light white skin, a long face, and wide teal eyes. He’s wearing a dirty white shirt, blue pants that have holes, and ragged blue shoes.
They’re his brothers?
“One, two, three,” Hester counts. The four of them then say together, “Thank you and we’re sorry.”
I smile and ask, “Were the skewer’s good?”
“They were delicious,” Hester answers.
“They were great, it’s been so long since I’ve had something that good,” Pelleas bellows.
“Yeah, and thank you for not doing anything to our brother,” Dane says as he looks at Hester.
“Yes, thank you very much,” Ralic replies softly as his face turns red. He’s embarrassed.
“I’m glad you liked them, but from now on, please refrain from stealing,” I state.
“We will,” Hester declares.
“Good.”
“Princess!” Orianna shouts as she and the other girls show up, “Come on, we want to show you around.”
“Alright,” I say to Orianna. I look at the boys and smile, “Take care of yourselves, and try not to get into any more trouble.”
I say my goodbyes to everyone around, and follow Orianna and the girls through the orphanage.
“The root tower is used by the orphanage staff and also acts as a warehouse for the orphanage’s goods,” Faraine explains, “The baths are located underneath the tower, and you already saw the kitchen.”
“Most of the area around the orphanage is open, with various spots where we are.. uh.. were taught,” Zoelle states.
“Some of those included simple lectures about reading and writing,” Lenadrea adds, “but there are also some to practice different skills such as sewing or cooking.”
“All that leaves are the rooms,” Koralesca remarks, “which are located along the walls around the orphanage.”
So, all those holes in the walls are the bedrooms.
“And we’re going to visit ours and grab a few of our things so we can take them back to our rooms up in the branches,” Orianna declares.
We fly around the orphanage, and the girls show me the different areas they were taught, and introduce me to some of their friends. As my tour of the orphanage comes to an end, we stop by the girls’ room.
“You guys all shared one room?” I question as we enter a hole.
Inside the hole is a fairly rundown, circular room with five beds and dressers located at the end of each.
“Yeah, it’s not the most pleasant, but we at least each got our own bed,” Faraine says.
They each head to a dresser and start rummaging through them, everyone takes out some clothes and places them into bags. Orianna pulls out a couple of small stuffed animals, a white rabbit with wings, and a pink horse with wings and a horn too. Compared to the others, Zoelle’s clothing appears nicer and comes in various colors. Koralesca seemingly removes everything into one large bag, while also holding a second, small bag that fits snuggly in her hand. Once they’re all finished, they grab their bags and move back toward me.
“What were you all getting?” I inquire.
“Mainly our clothes,” Faraine answers as she holds up a clean, undamaged white blouse.
“Hey, why’re your clothes in better condition compared to others here in the orphanage?” I ask.
“It’s because we bought them ourselves,” Koralesca states, “Unlike most here, we chose to join the elmite suppression group, and have been earning enough to pay for our own things.”
“Like stuffed animals and fancier clothes,” I comment as I glance at Orianna and Zoelle.
“Hey, Whiskers and Twinkle help me fall asleep,” Orianna barks.
“I sort of enjoy shopping for clothes…” Zoelle mutters, “a lot.”
“It’s fine,” I reply, “I was just making a statement. What about you Koralesca, what’d you grab?”
“It’s a crystal my parents gave me when I was a kid,” Koralesca says as she holds out her hands. She removes the bag to reveal a rainbow-colored sphere. “It’s a keepsake that I got for my tenth birthday, and I’ve kept it with me since the collapse.”
“It’s beautiful,” I comment.
Once the girls finish gathering their things, we return to the root tower, and meet up with Summer. We announce that we will be leaving; Summer, along with everyone at the orphanage, say their thanks for us visiting them and spending the evening with them.
I, along with Vivian and my guards, leave the orphanage and travel back through the large dome that is now quiet and almost free of fairies. We make our way back up the stairs and begin our ascent up the Vravyth. As we make our way up the Vravyth, I thank Vivian and we part ways. My guards and I arrive at my branch and walk through the corridor leading to everyone's rooms.
We arrive at our rooms and the girls branch off to drop off their belongings. Avane, who is guarding my door, and I notice each other at the same time. She nods toward me and leaves to go inform Desela of my safe return. I make my way to the bath, hoping to get in and out before anyone else joins me, but as I make my way down the corridor, Larina calls out to me, “And where do you think you’re going?
“Dammit,” I mutter under my breath, “To the bath.”
“I see, well, why not wait a bit so everyone can join us.”
“No, that’s okay, really.”
“Oh, don’t be like that princess. Everyone wants to hear about your day.”
“I said I’m fine!” I shout as I bolt toward the bathroom.
I’m instantly captured by Larina, and am forced to wait until everyone else arrives. Once again, I’m forced to bathe with all of my female guards, Desela, and Desela’s female pages.
“I just wanted to bathe on my own for once,” I whisper to myself.
“Evetta!” Desela calls as she swims over to me, “How was your first day off?”
“Tell us tell us!” Avane adds, “I want to hear all about it.”
The girls all join in and I’m forced to explain the events that happened today. I recount my exploration of Folian, my disappointment with the state of the island due to the lack of spyr, how I ran into Vivian, and my run in with the skewer thief. Lyris comments about how the boy might have a crush on me now, which gets everyone excited, but I deny all their claims. I continue on, explaining my visit to the orphanage, and how I enjoyed my day off.
“Well, it sounds like you had fun for the most part,” Larina states.
“I’m curious about this boy that has a crush on you,” Desela comments as she bites her thumbnail.
“I told you he doesn’t have a crush on me!” I shout, “I was just being nice, that’s all!”
“Yeah, but you’re a princess, and you’re cute,” Desela remarks, “It wouldn’t be surprising for there to be quite a few people around Folian that have a crush on you by now.”
“That’s ridiculous,” I argue.
“Is it?” Desela inquires, “You’re still young, but you look a lot like auntie, and she’s quite the looker.”
Our back and forth continues for a bit until Lenadrea interrupts us. She looks to Desela, “Excuse me, but there’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?” Desela asks.
“Earlier, as we were making our way back up the Vravyth,” Lenadrea explains, “it felt like someone was... following us.”
“Following you?”
“Yes. I’m not certain if they were just heading in the same direction as us,” Lenadrea continues, “but they were definitely trailing us, and they seemed to stop once we entered Evetta’s branch.”
“Did anyone else feel this presence?” Desela asks. No one answers. “Hmm…” Desela ponders for a bit, “Who’d Eude pair you with?”
“Me and Zoelle are paired up together,” Lenadrea answers.
“Alright, since you’re the only one that could sense it, tomorrow, you two will be guarding her,” Desela orders, “If someone is following her, let me know, and make sure nothing happens to her.”
“Understood.” “Of course.” Lenadrea and Zoelle reply.
I fight to wash myself on my own, but fail due to several persistent attacks by Avane and Larina. After they finish, I make my way out of the bath and grumpily shout, “Goodnight everyone.”
“Goodniiiiiiiight princeeeess,” Desela’s pages tease.
“Sleep well.” “Night.” “Goodnight.” My guards reply.
Lenadrea and Zoelle walk me back to my room. Before I enter I say, “Goodnight. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Get some sleep, princess,” Lenadrea states.
“See you tomorrow,” Zoelle says.
I enter my room, lay in my bed and try to fall asleep, but I struggle for what Lenadrea said keeps popping back into my head.
Someone was following us? No, they’d be following someone specifically. Me? One of the girls? Vallen? Maybe Vivian? No… They’ve all been here for a long time, so it would be weird for them to have someone following them now, which means... they had to have been following.. me?
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I am having a lot of fun reading this story. I just do not get why they have to wait for her brother before going to the spirit realm. Wouldn't it be better to get there as quickly as possible?
I don't believe it hasn't been explained yet because the people making the decision know something that Evetta doesn't. Essentially though, it comes down to manpower.
Thanks for the chapter. This story has been really fun to read.
I had such a great time, so thanks again