WITCH - The Queen

Bonus 9

Yorrit and Hayo flew away laughing. Peyo tried to catch his two friends, but they were just too fast. Playing catch had been Yorrit's idea. Peyo didn't want to, but his friends persuaded him. Now the eleven-year-olds played above the roofs of their home village. The sun was blinding and the wind was fresh. It smelled of summer flowers as the boys whizzed through the air.

And what did Peyo get out of it?

He had been flying after his two friends for what felt like half an hour and did not manage to catch them.

"Come on, Peyo! Catch us!", shouted Hayo. He was standing on the roof of one of the houses. Yorrit flew over him, grimacing at Peyo. The two had a lot of fun. However, this could not be said of Peyo.

"I done. You're too fast!" Exhausted, he sat down on the opposite roof. The owners of the tiny house, two elderly elves, watched him amused from their garden.

"What? Now?" Yorrit flew up to him and sat down next to him. "That can't be. We're just getting started!"

Peyo grimaced. Then he nudged Yorrit. "Got you!", he murmured, out of breath.

"That's cheating!" Yorrit grinned. "But good. You caught me!"

"Then Yorrit is the catcher now?", shouted Hayo. "How stupid. He always catches us immediately..."

"I've had enough of playing catch!" Peyo pulled his legs up and laid his head on his knees. "Can we do something else now?"

"And what?", asked Yorrit. "It's the perfect weather to play catch... Do you have a better idea?"

"What?" Hayo flew to them and buzzed in front of Peyo with his arms crossed. "But we're just getting started... I am voting against it. You just get tired too quickly, Peyo. You should exercise more! And eat more! You're as thin as a toothpick..."

"Thank you. This is really uplifting!", grumbled Peyo, rolling his eyes. "I've always been this thin, thank you. And I don't like sports. And... I'm just not as hungry as you two are. Can we talk about something else now?"

"About Keike?" Yorrit winked at him.

Keike. That was a girl in their class. Keike lived in a village nearby. Since Peyo's home village had no school, it was too small and there were too few children, they attended the school of the other village. It was not far, and the adults were already thinking about making a big one out of their two villages. Since the other village had to build more and more houses due to the increase in inhabitants and was getting closer and closer now.

The two villages grew together, so to speak.

"Oh! Keike!" Hayo sat down and put his arm around Peyo. "How long have you been staring at her in class? Since the beginning of the school year? Or since first grade? Huh?"

"I don't", Peyo muttered sheepishly.

Keike sat right in front of him and had pretty yellow dragonfly wings and long brown hair in which she always wore flowers. And yes. Peyo stared at her constantly. And sometimes Keike would turn to him and smile at him. But when she spoke to him, Peyo only turned terribly red in the face and did not manage to answer her.

Peyo had been in love with her since he had first seen her. That was in first grade. And Hayo and Yorrit teased him with it for just as long.

A week later, Peyo decided to be brave. On the way to school, he collected flowers. Yellow flowers. The most beautiful he could find. With a small bouquet in his hands, he entered the old classroom and walked directly toward Keike, who smiled at him in surprise.

"Hello Peyo", she said.

"Uh..." Peyo blushed. "I... Hm..." Then he held out the flowers to her. Keike's table neighbor giggled.

"They're for me?" Keike accepted the flowers with shining eyes. "How sweet of you. They are beautiful. Thank you!"

"As yellow as your wings", Peyo said quietly. "Therefore... So..."

"Hm... That's right. I like yellow." Keike pressed the flowers to her. "Thank you, Peyo! Do you want to do something together after school?"

Peyo just nodded.

"Great!" Keike grinned. Her seatmate whispered something to her, whereupon Keike giggled and her cheeks turned as red as Peyo's.

A week later, the two were together. The first couple in their class. After school, they did homework together, walked hand in hand and Peyo gave her the most beautiful flowers. Every morning. Blue flowers. Red flowers. White flowers...

But after a month, the dream was over. Keike realized that she liked another boy better and broke up with Peyo. For him, the end was surprising. His parents tried to comfort him, saying he was too young. Just like Keike. His friends tried to distract him. But it didn't help.

Peyo suffered from his first lovesickness.

About five years later, Reineke, the son of Peyo's neighbors, said he liked Peyo. Reineke had blond hair and blue dragonfly wings. He was two years older than Peyo and very attentive. Peyo liked him and enjoyed every minute with him.

Many of his first times were with Reineke.

The first kiss. The first night together.

Peyo enjoyed it and he loved Reineke. It was different than with Keike. Probably because he was still a child at the time. Too young. These days, he also saw it that way.

Peyo spent as much time as possible with Reineke. This frustrated his two best friends, but they were also happy for him. In addition, Yorrit and Hayo now each had a girlfriend, so Peyo didn't understand when they said he didn't have enough time for their friendship. The two spent just as much time with their girlfriends.

A few months later, this dream was also over.

Peyo went to the only shop in the village, which was run by humans, to buy some new books. There were few humans in the village, but they were all friendly and did not look down on the elves. Since his home village and the neighboring village had merged, some humans lived there.

A noise made him pause. Someone giggled. And then there was another person.

"Come on, Keike!"

"No. Not here..."

"Why? No one notices us!"

"You are impossible! Hey!"

"I can't help it, you're so attractive!"

Peyo knew both voices. But he didn't want to believe it. Frightened, he looked into the small side alley. There were two elves. Keike and Reineke. Reineke had a hand under Keike's skirt while they kissed passionately.

"What!", said Peyo loudly.

Startled, Reineke looked up and stared at Peyo. "Oh! Peyo... It's not..."

"Isn't it?" Keike laughed softly and kissed Reineke's cheek. "Why don't you tell him the truth? That we've been together for a month? You wanted to get rid of him anyway..."

"That's true... Sorry, Peyo. You're a good bedfellow, but nothing more..." Reineke scratched his head. "This with Keike. It's just more!"

"You..." Peyo shook his head. "No. It's over! Bedfellow? That's how you see me? Keike?" He looked at the girl he had once liked. "Find something better than someone that cheats on his boyfriend!" Then he turned on his heel and hurried away.

In the evening, Hayo and Yorrit tried to comfort him. They had come as soon as they saw him walking through the village crying. He told them what had happened and let them hug him.

"I'll beat him up", Yorrit hissed. "Or even better! I castrate him! Bedfellow! Then the thing with the bed is over!"

"You'll find someone better, Peyo", Hayo said quietly. "And you have us. We will never let you down! We stay by your side. Best friends forever!"

"Thank you", Peyo sobbed. He really had the best friends one could wish for.

"Always!", confirmed Yorrit.

But the two could not keep their promise. The very next morning, soldiers came to their village to take new goods for the large slave market. They came about once or twice a year and Peyo was one of the elves who were taken that day.

(c: sasi)