The Dragonfly's Secret

The Dragonfly's Secret - Chapter 1

The world was not as it seemed. All my life I grew up believing that where I had grown up and thrived, was the only place in the world. But here I stand, in front of a magical glowing tree with birds that have colored feathers of glimmering, otherworldly hues. There were enchantments carved into the trunk of the large tree. But what caught my attention the most was the radiating aura. Although the tree was fascinating, it had a dark and eerie feeling creeping up my back, the hair on my arms standing up as chills ran through my body. There was something wrong with his place. But alas, I am far ahead of myself, aren't I? This is only the first part, you have much to learn ahead. Let's get started, shall we?

A small faerie walked a shortcut to the main square. She kept her things close as she felt something creep up her back. She fluttered up, flapping her wings quickly, to jump away from all the shadows that were closest to her. " H...Hello?" Her small voice echoed through the cracks of the tiny buildings. " Anything out there...?" She shuffled away, quickly running into a wall. She watched something slip out of the crack of a nearby building. It was dark and it had particles surrounding it. It inched its way close, freezing the small faerie in her spot. As it got closer, something slammed over it.

" AHA! I finally got you!" A faerie with sparkly pink hair had covered the creature with a jar. Her ice-blue eyes glanced up, seeing the faerie from before with her hand over her heart. " Oh, Are you alright? Are you hurt?" She asked as she slid the jar around and quickly put the covering on it. She fluttered up and off the ground, flying over to her. " My name is Sundew Pollenwhistle! What's your name?" The young faerie asked, putting her hand out.

" I'm Amaltheia Daisyweather." She hesitantly stuck out her hand to shake the other's. " Well, Amaltheia, it looks like I just saved you, aren't you just so glad!" The outgoing girl smiled and held up the jar. " What do you suppose this is? I have been following it around ever since I saw it run through the middle of town."

" I have no idea, I just want to get as far away from it as possible, it is obviously radiating a negative aura. I want nothing to do with it." Amaltheia started walking away, letting her bag fall back into place. She started shuffling quicker when she heard Sundew falling into place next to her. " Oh come on! This is a really cool discovery! In all the books I have ever read, they have never mentioned a creature like this! I bet there are more out there, maybe they are what is wreaking havoc on the village nearby!" Sundew fluttered up excitedly. She flew forward, cutting Amaltheia off from her path.

" You mean the one that is losing all their crops and all the missing fae? Yeah, no thank you." She backed away from the gregarious faerie and went around her, walking off quickly. Sundew sighed and softly landed on the ground. She took one more look at the strange creature and then stuffed it into her bag. After she did, she caught up with the stubborn winged creature and silently walked next to her, her leafy shoes making sounds against the small stones. It dawned on her right then and there that this was a stranger she was asking for help.

Sundew let out a sigh and started to flutter again, her wings feeling useless when they were calmly laying limp. " I guess I could always ask someone else." She whispered to herself as she took the strange creature out of her bag. " I bet Finch would get a kick out of this!" She flew up and did a backflip in the air before landing back on the ground. Amaltheia looked at her, with her eyebrow raised. " Do you happen to know Newt Littlestem?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. " Boy, do I know him! His father is on the faerie council with my mother. I have flown into him a few times. He works down at this shop that is close to the middle of the village."

Amaltheia's ears perked up and she paused her walk and fluttered up next to Sundew. " Do you think you could take me to his shop? I haven't seen him in awhile and it would be nice to pay him a visit." She stroked her hair nervously as Sundew made a knowingly face. " I'm guessing you two are in kahoots!" She wiggled her eyebrows as she flew in the direction of the middle of the village, after she put the shadowed being back in her bag. Amaltheia flushed and flew next to Sundew's side. " No, we are just friends." The pink haired, winged fae sighed dramatically. " Of course you, the cold, reserved, lavender fairy would be so lousy in love." She put her wrist to her forehead and a hand over her heart as she let herself fall, to emphasize how dramatic she was. Once she was done, she quickly resumed the height she was previously at. It was a quick flight to the center of town, the winds were pushing them in the direction. Sundew landed, and so did Amaltheia right behind her.

They were at a spell and enchantment shop. Each faerie had their own type of magic they could use since they were born. But some, if they chose to, could learn a different type of magic. Though some never tried to do the adverse of their inborn talent. Sundew opened the door and a melodic chime rang through the store. She watched as the music notes danced all the way to the store owner, alerting him of new customers. " Oh how I love coming in here!" She smiled brightly as she walked around, trailing her finger across a table as she gazed at spells in place. Of course the shopkeeper had to show off the enchantments. In each glass containment, you could see a spell doing its job. Amaltheia looked around, twirling a few candles around. The two faeries walked through to the middle of the store, finding Newt Littlestem.

He was restocking some bookshelves, placing each book with delicacy. Sundew flew over to him and leaned on the bookcase. Newt jumped and looked at the bright faerie, quickly calming down. " That has been old for quite a long time, I almost dropped some of these." He casted a gust of wind spell at her, causing air to fire at her face. She coughed and fixed her hair and clothing. " So rude, even when I brought you such a surprise." Newt rolled his eyes and placed the books down on the nearest wood stool. " It's always something.." he turned around and saw Amaltheia standing there, holding her bag tightly. "Amaltheia! What a surprise!" He fluttered over to her and pulled her into a tight embrace. Sundew was quickly ignored as the two caught up on what they had been doing since they had last seen each other.

She rolled her eyes and looked through some of the books Newt had put down. Most of them she had already read. Since she was a tiny faerie, her mom wanted her to learn every spell out there, eventually she outgrew the small shop's resources and her education was at a halt. She let out a sigh and flipped through the last book in the stack, when her eyes came across a familiar name. Cirro. She quickly picked up the book. Drawings were sketched in, along with words in a distant but similar language. She flipped through the pages.

There were many objects that were described, plants and magical creatures were shown, but eventually she reached a gate of sorts. " Hey, Newt, you think I could take this book?" She turned around and looked at the golden winged fae. He turned around and nodded. He pointed with his chin at the large wooden table that was placed close to a mossy wall and quickly went behind it. Sundew handed him the book and quickly grabbed her gold coins, placing them on the table as the other wrote down what the book was called and the date it was sold. He slid the journal away and gave the book back to Sundew. " I'm surprised you found a book that was up to your level in here little Pollenwhistle." He put his elbows on the table and leaned forward. " Yeah... me too."

She put the book in her bag and looked at Amaltheia. " Okay, let's go. I am sure you two lovebirds will see each other plenty soon. I'll show you the way back to the faerie tavern a little down the way. It's getting dark and you definitely don't want to be lost then." Amaltheia sighed and nodded. She did a small way, only moving her wrist, as she smiled shyly at Newt. He in turn gave her a smile while he summoned petals and used the wind charm to blow them her way as she left. Once the door shut, he let out a sigh as he rested his head on one of his hands.

Amaltheia and Sundew walked side by side. " There is a festival tomorrow I believe it is, and Newt will be casting spells to liven the place up. I am sure you two can talk there." The eccentric faerie said to the more reserved one. Amaltheia nodded, brushing through her hair with her fingers. " So, you said your mother is on the fairy council. Do you think I could stay with you for the night? I'll get a room at the tavern first thing in the morning, but I just, I don't know, would feel better if I was with someone I kind of knew. I mean, I guess we don't really know each other but you are friends with Newt and..."

Sundew put her hands up to stop the quick sentences coming from her newfound friend. " Of course you can stay with me." She laughed as the lavender-hued faerie blushed and nodded. The two walked in silence as they made their way to the home. Once they finally arrived Amaltheia gasped. She looked at the luminescent haven and watched as the sparkling magic radiated off the walls of the abode. The small bricks were covered in delicate flower petals that traveled inside as well. The ceilings were enchanted to look like a starry night, the stars twinkling as you walked under them. As the two walked through the home, Amaltheia saw that the rooms were filled with whimsical trinkets and enchanted objects, each, she guessed, had a story of their own. The air was filled with the sweet scent of wildflowers and the sound of laughter and twinkling bells could be heard everywhere you walked. This surely reflected Sundew's carefree spirit.