Alvina

Chapter Two

Being friends with fairies definitely has its perks.

The fact that very few people get to admire their sheer, delicate wings that shimmer in the light is one of them. Not to mention their unexplainable gift of seeing past my anger. Never have they called me evil in any way, and to say it's refreshing is an understatement.

In Galleia Valley, where the grass is brighter than I've ever seen, not to mention there are very few green spots in the village, I sit on a tree stump watching fairies fly by. Each time one of their wings catches the light, it looks like they have sparkles emitting from them.

Each of them is beautiful in a way I've never seen. They're each around the size of my hand, just a few inches tall, and they have a surrounding glow that highlights their magic.

Knowing how weary they are of humans, I'm always in awe that I get to sit here in their home so close to them.

I had asked the fairies about the jar I took from Margarie and if they knew what to do with it. One named Merrill made my mistake and stuck her nose in it and started a small panic as she fell back and fainted.

She woke up only to glare at the mixture and fly away, taking deep breaths.

They eventually figured it was a salve to be put on problem areas.

"Alvina?" I look at one of the fairies as she approaches me, her name is Tatiana, and in her peach-colored dress, she looks like a princess, which I know was the goal.

"Hello Tatiana, you look just like a princess in that dress" I smile at her. Her small cheeks color red as she blushes at my compliment.

"Thank you. Lilah made this for Helela, she says it's the same sort of thing they use in the castle to treat the royal family, so hopefully it helps in any way"

She hands me the leather pouch she holds in her hands and looking inside, green and gray powder looks back at me. Looking back at Tatiana, she smiles at me hopefully.

"Green flower ash?" I ask

She nods "It's not so rare around here. But you know we don't venture out past our circle, that's why no one seems able to get their hands on it."

I can't stop the excitement that fills me. Any sort of flower ash, especially green, is extremely rare. I doubt many people in my village even know it exists. The healing properties are extraordinary.

"Thank you, Tatiana. Please tell Lilah thank you as well" I say

"Of course Alvina, anything you need."

Tears gather in my eyes but I stand up from the stump I was sitting on and quickly wipe them away as I tuck the pouch into my pocket.

"Will you come back tomorrow?" Tatiana asks

"Of course, I'll let you know how it works"

Waving goodbye to the other fairies who stopped their work to wave to me, I walk with Tatiana at my shoulder up to the tree line where she hovers, not passing the edge of Galleia. "Maybe one day you'll end up coming with me to see Helena" I say carefully. Fairies hardly ever leave their circle, not while so many people hunt them for their magic. It's unheard of for a fairy to leave their circle, but I see how Tatiana often looks to the tree line as if she can see all that lies in it and beyond. How she asks me more questions about humans than others dare. She's curious, but I know she's scared. Every fairy from a young age is taught to fear the outside and all that comes from it.

Her already pale skin becomes ashen. "I– I don't think so" she laughs nervously, the sound like bells.

I don't push her. If she wants to come, I want it to be out of her own decision and will. Not because of some sort of loyalty she has to me.