Feathers & a Dash of Magic

Chapter 13: Magic! *Jazz Hands*

CW: implied death

The book did not have the answers to his questions. At least, the first half did not, since he finished the first half in one night. And it wasn't that there weren't a lot of pages, it was a pretty big book, he just couldn't put it down.

One thing he was thankful for was when talking about the anatomy of a creature, it didn't tell where their core was. It only described the creature and their abilities, before talking about the habitat they prefer among other things.

The book has told him about all kinds of creatures, even some species he didn't know. For example, he didn't know there were two kinds of sirens, one that lives in water and one with feathers! He wondered if fairies were related to them at all.

Luckily, there wasn't much work to be done in the fields. Logan brought Patton home in the morning, but had to leave to return to his work. Virgil's brother was tired, and wanted a lazy day, so they both decided not to do any work.

And the fairy decided he would try to go to the woods to continue reading. Patton was worried about him going to the forest, and to be totally honest Virgil was scared too. The last thing he wanted to do was run into the hunters again, but he didn't want to be afraid of the forest forever. It used to be his safe space, somewhere he can go and be alone with just his thoughts. He was able to do whatever he wanted when he was there, he was even able to keep his wings out! He needed to take it back, he'll just run at the first sign of hunters.

He was able to get to his normal spot this time, and he didn't see any traps on the way so that was a good sign. Plus some animals had started to follow him, though every time he looked over they hid as they always did. Forest animals were always skittish. His 'spot' was actually a giant rock that was next to a stream. It wasn't tall, but it was long and Virgil liked to sit on it as he reads or draws.

He continued reading the book Roman had given him, letting his wings lay out in the sun. He had a box full of strawberries and blueberries again, happy to actually be able to eat it this time. Though, he occasionally threw a blueberry at the squirrel that was watching him. It always took the berry before running off to a safe distance to eat it. They might like him, but it typically took longer for the smaller animals to trust him. He didn't mind though, as long as they weren't attacking him for whatever reason. Even the smallest animals can hurt you if you're not careful.

Virgil's head shot up when he heard a sound off in the distance. It took him a moment to recognize it, but it sounded like Darrell, or at least another fox. He wasn't sure if they were in distress, and was about to put his book down to find them, but it sounded like the fox was coming closer. Then Virgil heard footsteps, boots to be specific. They weren't running, and it only sounded like one pair, but the fairy closed the box of berries and put it in his bag, grabbing the book in case he needed to run.

"Where are you taking me?" he heard a voice ask. Oh, it was Roman. Since when did he live so close to Virgil's spot? He knew it was in the same forest, but he's never seen the witch while in the forest before.

The fairy saw Darrell jump over a log before seeing him. Instantly the fox ran over to him, jumping onto him and making Virgil laugh slightly as he caught himself before he could fall backwards.

"Hey bud, what are you doing here?" he asked.

The fox chirped loudly in response, getting off of Virgil and running in a circle before stopping and getting down low, his fluffy tail wagging in excitement. Virgil looked up to see Roman come into view, the witch instantly finding him.

"Oh, that's why you were in such a rush," Roman said, speaking to Darrell. "You must have caught his scent."

Darrell yipped in response, rushing over to Virgil and basically climbing in his lap. He licked his cheek, making Virgil laugh again as he scratched the fox on the head.