Fairy Magic

She didn't know how long she had sat at the kitchen table, staring at the shotgun. It felt like an eternity. When she had confronted her husband this morning, and he told her that yes, he had been having an affair, she felt like a hole had been blasted through her chest. She picked up the shotgun and loaded it. Might as well get it over with and finish the job. 

 She walked out the back door of the house, down the hill and into the ravine that led to the spring way in the back on the property. As she got closer to the spring, the sides of the ravine grew higher. Good, it would help muffle the noise. The neighbors weren't very close, but the sound of a shotgun carried. The people living in this area would definitely call 911 if they heard it. The vegetation grew thicker and it choked out the light with a green gloom. She realized that she had probably better stop here. She was in mid step as the thought crossed her mind, and her foot came down on some greenery into nothing. She let out a shriek as she fell forward down a slope that she did not see. She dropped the shotgun as she rolled downhill, crashing through trees and bushes, bouncing over rocks. She finally slid to a stop at the bottom of the slope, and lay there stunned for a long time. Gradually she became aware that she was laying on some broken branches and rock, as pain began stabbing her from various injuries. She slowly rolled off the debris of her fall, and carefully moved her arms and legs. There was pain, but everything seemed to be working. She pushed herself to a sitting position, every part of her body screaming in pain. She was sure she had wrenched joints and torn muscles all over as well as cuts and abrasions, but it didn’t feel like anything was broken. She sat shaking in pain and shock for a long while.  

 The sound of dripping water caught her attention. She turned and crawled towards the sound, pain racking her whole body. As she parted the long thick grass, she found the spring.  

 Spread out in front of her was a flat area covered in short brilliant green grass leading down to the water, studded with tiny purple and white flowers. Overhead, the trees grew up and over the entire depression, wrapped in vines; pink and blue morning glories, honeysuckle, climbing jasmine. The air was thick with green and flowers and water, but not oppressive. The back wall was nearly hidden under maidenhair ferns and moss, slow waterfalls making their way through the vegetation to splash into the pool at the bottom. Dappled sunlight pierced the vegetation and played over the water.  

 She rose shakily to her feet, and slowly made her way to the water. She tried to kneel, but one of her knees refused to work, so she rolled over and sat. Cupping her hand, she leaned down and dipped out a handful, carefully wetting her face. The cold water brought things into focus a bit more, and she gazed around the hollow. Had this always been here? She didn't know, she was always too busy to venture back here and check it out. 

 As she was gazing up into the flower bedecked canopy, she heard a tinkling giggle. She looked around in alarm, but didn't see anyone. "Hello?" she called. "Is anyone there?" 

 Another giggle and a tiny splash answered her. She looked down into the spring, and her eyes grew round as she saw what was making the noise.  

 It was a a tiny woman, clothed, if it could be called that, in water weeds and her own long hair. Her skin was translucent, with a pearl-like sheen, and her hair was several shades of blue and green. A pair of delicate pointed ears peeked through the wet tresses. 

 "Greetings Daughter of Eve." the elfin creature said.  

 "W-what are you?" the woman asked, sliding back from the water's edge.  

 "You have forgotten us, Daughter of Eve, but we have not forgotten you. I am a water sprite. I live here in this spring. Do you like it?" the sprite asked.  

 "What do you mean, you live here? I don't understand."  

 The sprite giggled again, the sound like tiny crystals falling into still water. "I am of the Fae, those that the Daughters of Eve and the Sons of Adam called fairies. We have always been here, and we will always be here." 

 The woman rubbed her hands across her face. "I must be hallucinating, I must have hit my head, and I am seeing things. You can't be real."  

 A tiny spray of ice cold spring water hit her in the face. "Hey!" she sputtered, wiping her face with her forearm. "Why did you do that?"  

 The fairy grinned. "I am no hallucination Daughter of Eve, I am as real as you." The sprite swam to the edge, and propped herself up on her elbows, reclining half in and half out of the water. She kicked her tiny feet, making little ripples in the water behind her.  

 The woman crossed her arms, wincing as her palms brushed across scratches and cuts. The Fae frowned slightly, her brow wrinkling. "You are injured, Daughter of Eve. May I help you?"  

 "How can you help me, you are so tiny, there's no way you can carry me up the slope."  

 "Place your hand in the water, and you will see." the sprite replied.  

 The woman leaned forward, and slowly stretched out her hand towards the water. "I can't believe I am listening to a hallucination." she mumbled. The Fae waited, and as soon as the woman's hand touched the water, she made a gesture, and tiny glittering motes drifted down from her hand like flower petals. When they touched the water, the woman felt the water stirring around her hand, and she saw the motes flowing through the water, and then with the water, flowing up her hand! She tried to pull her hand out of the water, but she couldn't, it felt like it was being held in a soft wet firm clasp. As the water flowed over her skin, where ever it touched began to heal. Not completely, but enough that she felt the pain subside and the abrasions scabbed over in seconds.

  

 The grip of the water loosened, and she pulled her hand out. She still felt battered and bruised, but her body was no longer screaming at her in pain.  

 "I'm sorry I could not Heal all of you, but I am a very small Fae, and my power is little." the fairy said. 

 "Thank you, I guess. Is this really real? I'm not imaging all this?" the woman asked, looking at her half-healed hands.

 "No, Daughter of Eve, you are not. I will not burden you with our history, you can find out about it for yourself."  

 "You said you were always here, are you immortal?" the woman inquired. 

 The sprite giggled. "No, we are mortal as you, but very long lived. Time runs differently for us than it does you."  

 The Fae cocked her head and perused the woman. "And now, I must ask, what is the darkness on your soul? I felt it even before you fell into my spring. What black sadness rips at your heart?" 

 Memory returned, and she burst into tears. The sprite splashed a bit of water on her, and she was able to draw a shuddering breath, and she wiped her face with her hands. "My husband told me this morning that he had been cheating on me."  

 The Fae frowned, and said "Your mate has caused you much pain, yes? Because he strayed?" 

 The woman nodded, sniffling. "Yes, so much pain." The tears began to fall again.  

 "I see in your heart that you came here meaning to do yourself harm. Why is that, Daughter of Eve?"  

 "Because, I...I can't do this anymore. This is not the first time he cheated, and I don't think I can take it again, I just can't!" she sobbed. 

 The Fae wrinkled her nose and said "This pain is because the Son of Adam lay with another?" The woman nodded, tears dripping down her face. 

 The sprite did a sudden backflip into the water, and disappeared beneath the surface. The woman took a deep breath, and wondered if she had dreamed it after all. As she got to her knees, she heard a splash, and looked at the water. The sprite had surfaced, and was swimming towards the bank.  

 "Hold out your hand, Daughter of Eve." she commanded. The woman did so without thinking, and the Fae dropped something into it with a tiny plash. "Make to drop this into your mate's drink, and I guarantee you will never have this particular problem again."  

 The woman looked into her hand, and resting on her palm was a large drop of water, the surface quivering slightly, shivering through all the colors of the rainbow. "I don't want to kill him!" she exclaimed. 

 The Fae laughed, flipping her wet hair over one shoulder. "Nay, twill not kill him. I told you, I am but a tiny Fae. You'll see."  

 The woman rose to her feet, carefully cradling the drop. "How can I thank you?" 

 The Fae pushed away from the bank, slowly swimming backwards. "Come and visit. I like visitors, but none before you have come in a too long a time." she said. "And Daughter of Eve, remember, you are never alone. We are here for you." She waved once more and did a backflip to dive under the surface.  

 The woman turned and climbed slowly and carefully out of the hollow and into the ravine. Halfway to the top, she found the shotgun, and picked it up, cradling it under her free arm as she walked back up to the house. 

 She entered the house through the laundry room, setting the shotgun on the top of the washing machine. She went into the kitchen and listened, he was upstairs. She went to the coffeepot and pulling cups out of the cabinet, poured two cups of coffee. Into  one she slipped the drop of water.  

 She heard him come down the steps. "Is the coffee ready?" he asked, as if he had not shattered her world just hours ago. He didn't seem to notice her appearance or injuries, as usual. She nodded mutely, handing him the cup. He took it and sipped, walking into the living room and turning on the TV. He sat in his recliner, drinking the coffee. She sat down at the kitchen table with her cup, waiting.  

 After a while he got up, and headed to the bathroom. The door closed, and within a moment, she heard a strange sound coming from behind the closed door. It was a moan, like a dying animal. The moan escalated into a shriek. She heard something about 'it' being gone. Then it dawned on her, what the fairy meant, that she would never have this problem again. She heard a loud thump from the bathroom, like a body sliding down to the floor. The shrieking and moaning continued. As she lifted her cup and took a sip, a smile slowly spread across her lips.

Hero Chapter Two

 Here's the second chapter, enjoy!

 Chapter Two  

 Olak noticed a smudge on the horizon, which slowly revealed itself to be a town. Most likely Drowed, the town indicated by the signpost as being in this general direction. He kicked Aman lightly with his heels, and the gelding turned his head and fixed Olak with a long suffering look, but increased his speed gradually until he was at a slow canter. The town grew larger, and Olak was able to pick out individual buildings. As he got closer, he noticed something strange. There was little to no activity on the outskirts of town. Maybe it was market day, and everyone was in the town square. Yes, that must be it. He didn't notice a small child slipping away from the roadside, racing in between the buildings.  

 As Olak reached the outlying buildings, he reined in. Aman was more than happy to drop back into a walk, although this one was a bit faster than before. The gelding knew towns meant stables, food and no traveling, at least for a short time. As they made their way through the town to the square, Olak became aware of a sound, the droning of people all together in a group. As he made his way into the open, he saw the town's inhabitants gathered around a platform. On the platform was a group of young people all dressed in identical white robes, with crowns of ivy and flowers on their heads. There was an older man was on the dais as well, holding a jar and speaking to the crowd. As Olak rode closer, the man noticed him, and stopped in mid-sentence. As all the people in the square turned to look at him, Olak pulled Aman to a stop, and nervously raised a hand in greeting. Something wasn't right here, but Olak was not sure just what exactly was going on.  

 The man on the platform came quickly down the steps, handing the jar to a younger man standing at the bottom of the stairs. He hurried over to Olak. "Good Morrow Sir, may I enquire whether or not you are a Knight?"  

 Olak nodded. "I am. What's going on here? Are you in need of a Knight's services?" He inquired, glancing around the square at the sea of faces turned to him. The people on the dais clasped their hands and looked hopeful. Olak dropped his head and smiled a little to himself. Things were looking like they might actually pan out for once.   

 The man nodded. "We are! If you would be so kind as to dismount, I would be more than happy to explain it to you, Good Knight! Come, we will go to the inn." He waited until Olak had dismounted, and then led him to a building off to one side of the town square. A sign with a bright red ear of corn, with a foaming mug and a leg of fowl underneath it proclaimed the building's identity.  

 A rotund man standing in the doorway wearing an apron turned to yell over his shoulder. "Zusi, get out here, we got a customer!" A short young girl with dark hair in an untidy braid down her back squeezed past the innkeeper, and came up to Olak, smiling shyly.  

 "I'm the stablegirl, Sir Knight. If you would tell me your warsteed's name, I will take him to the stable and care for him." the girl told Olak.  

 He handed her the reins. "His name is Aman, and he is fond of carrots. If he gets stubborn on you, offer him a carrot, and he will do whatever you want, happily." he told her.  

 Zusi giggled, turned to the horse and held her hand out palm up for the beast to smell. Aman whuffled her palm, and dipped his head so she could scratch his nose. The girl obliged, and then told the horse, "Come on Aman, I have some carrots and a nice warm stall for you." She turned and tugged on the reins, heading around to the back of the building, where Olak guessed the stables must be. Aman followed her eagerly, and Olak stepped to the door of the inn. The innkeeper moved aside, and once Olak entered, he hustled the knight to a table.  

 "Welcome to Drowed and the Red Corn Inn. I am Daffyth, the innkeeper. What be your pleasure this fine afternoon?" He didn't wait for an answer, but turned and yelled over his shoulder, "Lurie! A meal for our guest!" He trotted over to the bar, sliding behind it. He tapped the keg behind the bar and brought a mug of good brown ale to the table. "You just start on that Sir Knight, and your meal will be out shortly." He bustled away back to the bar, and pulling out a rag, began polishing the already gleaming bar top.  

 Olak took a sip, and nodded happily. The ale was excellent, Daffyth certainly knew his brewing. He had high hopes that the meal would be as good. He was starving, it had been a long while since his midday meal of bread and a turnip. Olak was accustomed most of his life to eating well, and once his Royal father cut off his funds, he had to make due with whatever he could get.  

 A shadow crossed the door, and the man from the platform entered the inn. He navigated the room to Olak's table. "May I sit, Sir Knight? I have need of some business I must discuss with you, and it cannot wait."  

 Olak waved his mug at the chair across the table and leaned back in his chair. The man seated himself, and raised a finger to Daffyth, who brought him a mug of ale, then returned to his polishing. Olak looked across the table at the man. He was tallish, with the pot gut and slightly oily skin that spoke of rich foods and good living. His hair was a middling brown, thinning on top and hung in longish limp locks, framing his face. He was dressed in better clothes than most of the townspeople, a maroon velvet coat with a white shirt under it. No one who did manual labor for a living wore such clothes. Some sort of local official most likely.  

 The man took a sip, then set his mug down on the table. "My name is Kreed Dogin, and I'm mayor here in Drowed. As time is of the essence, I’ll get right to the point. I'm sure you noticed we were holding a lottery when you arrived." Olak nodded. An older woman wearing a huge apron that covered nearly her entire body came out of the kitchen bearing a massive platter of food, which she set in front of Olak. He nodded thanks to her and she dimpled at him and returned to the kitchen.  

 The platter held a huge slab of beef ribs, a bowl of roasted root vegetables and a steaming loaf of crusty bread, already split open and slathered in fresh melting butter. As this was the best meal he'd seen in weeks, Olak wasted no time in pulling his eating knife out of his belt pouch and setting to. He waved a rib at the mayor. "So, what was the lottery for, anyway?" he asked, taking a bite of the tender beef. "Oh, by the way, the name's Olak of Dald. I'm out looking for Quests, so I would be happy to help with any problems you might be having."  

 The mayor cleared his throat nervously and leaned forward in his chair. "Well, you see, we do have a bit of a problem. Been a problem for a while now, and we've been hoping for a Knight to come along that could help us." Olak nodded again and reached for his ale to wash down another bite of succulent meat. "We have a dragon problem."  

 Olak nearly choked on his swig of ale, and turned away coughing. He gasped, "A dragon? I don't remember there being tales of any dragons in this area, just the opposite. Are you sure it's a dragon? Not just a large lizard or something?"  
 Kreed Dogin nodded sadly. "Very sure. Once we realized that it really was a dragon, we of course sent people out to investigate it. None returned. After that, we instituted the Lottery, as is traditional in these circumstances."  

 Olak knew exactly what the mayor meant. The town would put the names of the ‘eligible’ into a pot, and every time the dragon poked its snout out of whatever place it was holed up, the townspeople shoved a tender young person in front of it to distract it from ravaging the countryside. Barbaric, but effective, as everyone knew Dragons could only be slain by a Knight, and Knights weren't exactly thick on the ground in Treegan.  

 Kreed Dogin continued, "The dragon has taken over a keep a few miles from town. Most of the Keep's inhabitants fled, but the Lord's daughter was trying to get her maids out, and ended up being caught in the tower. The dragon keeps her prisoner, knowing that a hostage is the best way to keep the local people quiet and giving it what it wants. The Lord was one of the first killed, trying to rescue his daughter, and the rest of the Household fled."  

 Olak chewed for a moment, thinking. A Dragon! Now that was a Quest to make his Name if he ever heard one, and would let him retire as Sir Olak the Dragon Slayer. He could live comfortably the rest of his life on a reputation like that.  

 "So, I'm guessing you need me to slay the beast for you, good fellow?" Olak asked, grinning. "That is a job for a Hero, after all."  

 Kreed Dogin inhaled hugely, eyes round. "Yes, yes, of course! Please, Fair Knight, rid our town of this evil scourge!"  

 There, the Request was made. Now for his Answer. So tiring, these little word games that must accompany any formal Questing.   

 Olak set down the rib bone, and leaned forward in his chair. "Of course, Good Mayor, I will be happy to deal with your dragon problem." There, formalities out of the way. Now he could finish his meal in peace.  

 The mayor blew his breath out in a huge gust and leaned back in his chair, spreading his hands wide. "Thank you, thank you Sir Knight! The dragon isn't due tribute until sundown tomorrow, so you and your steed can rest and we will tell you what we do know about it." Dogin looked up and waved, and a young woman appeared beside Olak. "This is Kendis, if you need anything, she will be taking care of you during your stay here in Drowed." Olak glanced over at the young woman. Buxom, blonde and bouncy, just what he liked. He might just stay a while after he dealt with the dragon, if the town was properly 'grateful'. The girl wrinkled her nose and smiled at him, and dropped a curtsey, batting her eyelashes in a flirt. Yes, things were definitely looking up.  

 Olak finished his meal with the girl Kendis attending to his every need. He decided he ought to stroll around town for a bit, and see what the townspeople could tell him about the dragon. As he stood up, Kendis dipped into another curtsey and said coyly "I will make all ready in your room for when you are ready to return and rest, Sir Knight." She turned and scampered up the stairs to the sleeping chambers on the second floor. 

 Olak turned to the innkeeper. "Going for a walk to stretch my legs, tell your cook that the meal was excellent."  

 Daffyth nodded "Many thanks, I'll let her know. Supper will be ready about sundown, and your room will be ready then as well. Enjoy your walk."