The magic behind a child's smile

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Theres a fairy tale-like forest unlike anything you would've seen, a haven where dreams are brought to life. The simplest things shine like you never thought they could. The light that bursts through the leaves is enchanting, immersing everything in a vast array of green- from an emerald haze in one spot to vibrant lime in the next. The olive-green light cascades upon a cacophony of flowers during the day while at night the stars prove as nothing less than a spotlight-path leading deeper into the unspoken. Natural beauty lulls a symphony as sweet as a sirens, yet the fate that awaits on comers is one less deadly. 

The forest is thought of as if it were from a horror movie, a place where the missing go. Those who 'dare' to enter never seem to be the same again, almost in a constant daze yet seeing things for what they really are. Seeing things as if they were a child again. From the depths of the forest, just behind the treeline is a secret world hidden in plain sight. A world of 'mythical creatures' and magic. 

Trees are enchanted, creating a barrier between our worlds. Just behind picturesque treeline all everything lives in a somewhat confusing harmony; trolls are friends with pixies and mermaids, chimeras and griffins and battle for a land which they share and the Hydra nests with a Demon. Creatures of the light and dark live as equals, creating a balance on earth. Creating a balance we could only hope to achieve. Their world is a whole, theres no divide between species, they thrive on their diversity ... and we shun them for this.

We shun this world for its differences, its ability to be unique. we take the stories we want, use it as a sort of bribe for children to encourage them to do things the way we want. Not all the fairy tales we tell are as good as we've begun to tell them; the price in Rapunzel ended up blind after falling from the tower, the first two little pigs get eaten by the 'big bad wolf', the 'ugly step sisters' cut off their toes and heel so that they could fit into the glass slipper, the witch from Hansel and Gretel gets burned alive. And so on. You may have noticed that these fairy tales also have humans in them- typically princes and princesses, this is because we used to be part of this other world before we were consumed by greed, the want for power and control. Humans had no power over anything else in this world and none of them had power over us but for some reason, this wasn't good enough.

We started the first war this 'other' world has ever come to be part of. Humans crashed a ball for no known reason we started a riot and wreaked havoc. Burnt homes and set half the original forest alight. No celebration has ever been the same since. 

The ball the humans crashed was one unlike any other, it was a fairies celebration a simple tradition but this year was the most elegant ball yet. Little did they know it may be their last. Everyone is welcome but overtime the fairies were left to have their celebration and others would come to admire rather than partake. Pixies however, mischievous as always would use the ball as a chance to play few harmless and somewhat humiliating pranks, luckily they were always laughed off and seen as a memory from then on.

That day is still looked back on, not known if it should be seen as happy or sad. It's a day that will never be forgotten. The beauty of the ball. The fright of the fight.