[Daisy's perspective]

I'm fast asleep. Comfortable, feeling warm and relaxed. That is until I remember what happened.
"Ahh!!" I shout and I sit up straight in bed again. Huh? Didn't I do that earlier?

I look around and see...."Aahh!!!!"  Another shout leaves my mouth. Something big is right next to me.

It takes me a few more seconds to understand what's going on. We are not in any immediate danger.
Someone's trying to be funny and put a huge plushie next to Rose and me.

"Hey, Rose, wake up!" 

I gently shake her.  "Mmmmmmmmnnnnn nooooo."   
Okay...I guess she's not going to wake up anytime soon.

Only then do I realize that we are not in the Palace anymore. We're lying on a ginormous bed in an unfamiliar room. That at least explains the oversized plushie.

Then, without any warning, someone rushes into this room. I feel like we have been miniaturized. We're tiny, and everyone and everything else is just plain huge! Just like the person who just entered.
"Hello? Are you awake?" A kind female voice gently asks. But she doesn't approach us. 

"Eh...yeah?" I keep my eye on her, but at the same time try to wake Rose once more. This time I succeeded.

"Mmmmmm...one more minute mom...."

"Rose, I need you to wake up."

That helped her to focus. "Huh? Daisy? What happened?"

Rose is still half asleep, so I point at the giant lady near the door.

"AAhhhhhhhhh!" 
Rose wants to hide, but I hold her. "Stop! We're safe here!" 

She immediately calms down and looks at me, then at the lady.

I look at the giant lady as well and ask "please, miss, can you please tell us what happened?"

"May I approach you?"  She asks with that kind voice of hers again.

"Yes, of course. Please do." 

"Daisy, I'm scared." Rose whispers.

I simply hugged her and patted her back. "Me too, Rose, me too." What else can I do? 
They could have killed us while we were sleeping, but they haven't. They even put us on a bed, so....that makes me feel safe for the moment.

When I let go, I see the lady sitting down on a chair close to the bed. She's not even asking questions, let alone attempting to hurt us. She waits for us to calm down.

"Miss, I am Daisy. And this is my best friend, Rose. Would you please help us? We have no idea what's going on."

She smiles and moves a bit closer to us. She has long, blonde hair, flowing freely halfway to her back.
A beautiful wooden hairpin, probably handcrafted, decorates her hair. Her dark green dress seems practical. Not like the royal robes we were wearing yesterday. Her dress covers her arms as well. One part of it extends to her middle fingers, which are used to keep the sleeves straight I guess. She has long, pointy ears and crystal clear, blue eyes. She's kind and pretty.

When she notices that I have finished glancing at her clothes, she says "I am Meira of Maglee. Welcome to the Elven village Lana Serin, in the Ennore region."

"The...the Ennore region?" Rose asks.

"Yes, that's right. I already assumed that you have traveled from beyond." Meira asks, showing genuine interest.

"I don't know how to explain, but we live in the Northern Asari region," Rose explains.

"The Asari region? Oh my goddess, how did you end up all the way here?"

"Yes, I'm pretty interested in that part as well." I looked at Rose.

"Ho ho....I didn't do this on purpose, you know? We were attacked by an Ashling in the Palace, remember?" Rose put her hands up in defense until she saw me nod.

"An Ashling? And you survived? Remarkable. And what Palace?" Meira is still trying to figure out where our home is.

"Well, she is Princess Daisy. The Palace is in Duskhaven. The name of our country is Betrana."

"Oh...a Princess? In that case, welcome, your highness." Meira said. There was no sarcasm in her voice, she really sounded polite.

"Please, Miss Meira, just call me Daisy. I never was a fan of this Royalty stuff."

"Amazing. I like your attitude. Okay, Daisy and Rose it is. You two are truly very, very far away from your home. At least a month's travel by foot. Even a river separates our regions. How were you able to cross that and why were you bleeding, Daisy?"

She looked at me, so I replied "I was bleeding because that....Ash-thing used its claws on me. But how we got here is a total mystery to me." I look at my right hand and don't even see any scars. She must have healed me somehow.

"Well.....I have a theory?" Rose said, looking a bit guilty.

"By all means, please explain" I motioned her to continue.

"I...ehehe....may have transported us here.....by accident. You see, I was panicking and accidentally poured all my mana into the transport spell."

"Oohhh...a transportation spell. That makes sense. Don't worry, Rose. Thank you. I think you actually saved us." I gave her a quick hug, something she obviously needed.

"Yes.....that actually explains a lot." Meira says, while putting a few stray hairs back behind her long ear. "Last night, our guards noticed a bright flash and investigated the area. It took a while before they found you two. You were both found in our gardens, unconscious and completely drained from mana. 
Then they brought you here, where we healed your wounds, Daisy. And we replenished both your mana levels with Blue Berry Brew." Meira moved a bit closer to me and seemed to be studying my teeth. Scary, I know.

Somehow that sounded absolutely delightful, so I was almost about to ask for more. "Blueberry brew? Sounds delicious." 

"No, it's called Blue Berry Brew. And a few drops were enough for your tiny body to slowly restore the mana." Meira shakes her head, we obviously won't get any for dessert.

Rose smiles and pushes me slightly, bringing me back to reality. I seem to be daydreaming a lot, I can't remember doing that on Earth. When she sees that I'm back with them, she says
"Thank you very much, miss Meira. It seems you have saved our lives."

"Don't worry, offering help was our duty. You see, we respect all forms of life. Even that of demonic fairies." Meira frowned for a moment.

I just have to ask, "something tells me you don't really like fairies?"

"I'm sorry, but yes, that's correct. Perhaps we should discuss that another time. For what's worth, you two don't seem to fit the description, though. So you can stay here for a while, assuming the Elders agree."

Rose and I nodded, but only Rose replied with "thank you, Meira."

"Very good. Now, if you don't mind....you are invited to meet our elders and join us for dinner."
A smile formed on Meira's face again. 

"Dinner? It's already that time of the day?" 

"Yes, nightfall will arrive in a few hours. You have missed most of the day recovering on my bed."

"Okay, that explains a lot. Oh...and Meira....sorry for wearing pajamas....we didn't really have much choice." I said, and apparently Rose only now noticed that, grimacing at the thought of having to wear these while meeting the Elders.

"Don't worry about it. They will understand. Excuse me for a moment." Meira said smiling and then left us alone.

"Rose?"

"Yes?"

"She seems nice enough. Don't you think so?"

"Yeah, but I'm more worried about how we can get back home." Rose's expression was anything but happy.

"We will find a way. It just might take us a while. These people seem nice, so that's a plus." I tried to cheer her up, but I guess that didn't quite work.

Rose lets herself fall backwards onto the bed. She seems frustrated with the situation, and I can't blame her.

"Rose, can't you try that...eh....transport us back to the Palace mana thing?"

"I....I don't know...how. I just wanted us....far away from that monster. But to get back.....I never learned how to focus the spell yet. We were supposed to practice this next week. Can you imagine that? Just another week and I might have actually learned how. I don't even know if they are safe! I should have checked!" Rose then starts crying. First softly, then she released all the tension she was still holding in.

I hugged her and just let her cry. She knows I'm here. "It's okay, Rose. I'm here, just let it all out. I don't blame you. And at least we're still together. Assuming you don't mind spending some time with dense Daisy."

A soft giggle told me that she would be okay eventually.

A few minutes later Meira returns and sees me hugging Rose. She wants to give us some privacy, but I motion her to move closer. 

"The Elders are ready for you now. Can you walk, or fly?"

"Eh....I don't think that I will be flying for a while, my wings feel a bit sluggish. And Rose needs time to recover as well. Can we..perhaps get a lift?" I give Meira my best puppy eyes impression.

"A lift? You mean, I take you in my hands?"

"Sure, if you don't mind?" But before she opens her hands to offer us a ride, I ask her "Meira, isn't there a way to send a message back home? Just to let them know we're safe?"

"A message? Mmm..." She puts her index finger on her lips. "No... I don't think so. Our Bloodtalons won't be able to reach that remote location of yours."

Bloodtalons? Must be something like our pigeons. The name's scary, though. "Okay...so no email or cell phones, gotcha."

"E...mail?" She tilts her head in confusion. "Is that like a messenger?"

"Yes! A messenger! Well, more or less." I don't think we're talking about the same thing here.

"Oh...that could work! Let's discuss it with the Elders. You might be able to send a message at the guild. They can send messages to other guilds. That might work?"

"Yes! That sounds like a perfect idea! Thank you, Meira!" Finally, a spark of hope.

Meira giggles almost inaudibly. "It's my pleasure to help." She once more offers us a ride by allowing us to hop on her hand.

We hop on and I ask "Meira? May we please use your bathroom?"

"My bathroom? You wish to be bathed?" She looks pretty confused after hearing my question.

"Huh? No no no....I mean....you know....when you drink too much....."

"Huh. Oh? Oooohhh! I'm afraid that we don't have anything suitable for your size. I'm afraid you will have to use our gardens."

"I see. Okay then, please find us a spot where we won't bother anyone."

"Ha ha ha, yes, of course, your majesty." Meira makes a polite gesture with her free hand, causing all of us to release a giggle.

 

Just a few minutes later, Rose and I find ourselves standing between some huge plants in their garden. Meira is waiting a few feet away, giving us some privacy.

"Eh...Rose....how....you know...."

"What? Are you serious? It's the same as using a toilet!"

"But but but....there is no toilet here!"

"My goddess, okay okay....I'll teach you.  Yes, okay, now......"

[ Meira's perspective ] 

He he he, her highness seems to prefer the comforts of her Palace. But they both seem nice. 
They aren't anything remotely like the demonic fairies I've heard of. I wonder if the Elders can help them. Just hear those tiny voices from between the Dewberry plants. Aren't they cute?

"Feet apart!!!"

"Oh...right."

"My goddess. You ARE dense, Daisy. Hey, that actually really sounds nice...Dense Daisy."

"Hey! It's still Princess, you know?"

"Really? That's easy to forget sometimes."

[Daisy's perspective ] 

"Eh....Meira?" I shout.

Meira offers her hand to let us hop on. "All finished?" 

Why is she smiling like that? Whatever... "Yes, Meira. Thank you. Ouch! Hey! Yes, thank you too, Rose...sheesh."

Meira laughs and says "alright, I will take you to the Elders now."

"Eeeek!!" Rose shouts.

"What's wrong?" Meira asks, looking around but not finding anything remotely dangerous.

"Rain rain rain!" Rose really seems terrified of the rain. She keeps pointing up and puts a hand above her head.

Meira is kind enough to shield us from the rain with her other hand. "So...is this better?" 

"Yes...thank you!" Rose replies.

What's wrong with those fairies? Two drops of water and they call it rain already. Must be bad luck or something, because nobody died from a few raindrops, as far as I know. But then again, those raindrops do appear a bit bigger now.

From between her fingers I can see Meira run to the next building, or rather hut, probably trying to save us from death by rain. A rocky path leads us between a few trees and then we have already arrived. Let's see what these Elders are about, I hope they are nice to us, we sure could use some help.