The Little Shaman

Chapter 1 - The Light Sprite and the Giant

The morning sun peeked through the frog weed curtains, shining a beam of light directly onto Tibby's eyelids. Springing up from his nest, he rubbed his eyes, bellowed out a body-quaking yawn, and bounced to the floor. Ma and Da were already gone from the hut, likely to get fresh mushrooms for the day. Stumbling outside in his best brown tunic, he stretched again and inhaled the morning air.

The swamp was alive with noise. Bugs, birds, and all sorts of critters were scurrying about, well into their daily routines. Tibby didn't really have a routine. Unless wandering around and solving problems qualified as one. If it did, his routine was definitely the best. At least in the top three. Reflecting on how handily he took care of the missing honey incident form earlier in the week, Tibby smiled to himself, his little tusks jutting proudly.

Circling around his hut, he decided to pay a visit to one of his dearest friends, a light sprite named Deemo. No bigger than a balled up fist, Deemo was old, cranky, and full of life. She enjoyed a good joke and stirring up trouble just as much as he did, which is probably why they got along so well. Skipping merrily towards the shrub she called home, Tibby paused after hearing a startling cry. It was a high-pitched combination of panic and rage. Definitely Deemo.

Switching from skip to run, Tibby arrived to find a shrub squashed into the ground and a depressed Deemo hovering above it. Her little hummingbird wings flapping furiously, she growled as her glowing pink hair and orange skin became blindingly bright. Normally, Tibby could look at her without having to cover his eyes. When she was really angry, her inner light shone fiercely enough to cause permanent damage if you dared to look directly at her. It was clear from the string of curses and swears pouring out of her mouth - the kind of words Tibby got in trouble for saying - that she was super mad.

"What happened?" Tibby asked, his little voice squeaking in concern.

Her light dimming just enough for Tibby to see her properly, Deemo looked distraught. "Oh Tibby, do you see what that oaf did to my home? My HOME?!"

Looking at the situation again, Tibby noticed that the ground around the shrub was indented. Stepping back, he realized the shape of the indentation. A giant foot.

"A forest giant?" Tibby said after a quick gasp.

"Forest giant. Stone giant. Who cares? A dang giant stepped on my house. I'm only lucky I wasn't inside when it happened."

Climbing into the indent and walking up to the broken remains of her little wooden house, Tibby did his best to carefully sort through the wreckage. "Oh no, Deemo! Your wing collection!

Deemo was incredibly proud of her collection of butterfly wings. They came in all sorts of sizes, shapes, and color patterns. Some were lustrous. Some were dull and used by their former owners for blending into the trees. Deemo had an entire room devoted to just wings. Well, not anymore.

"My...wing...collection?" Deemo muttered, just realizing what she'd lost. "No! Anything but that. Sweet embrace of death, take me now!"

"It's okay, Deemo, Tibby said softly, his hands fidgeting. If Deemo were bigger, he'd offer her a comforting hug. "I know! I'll help you collect more."

Deemo flew over and patted him on the shoulder with a tiny glowing hand. "Oh, Tibby, you precious little bean. I started collecting those wings before you were even born. It'll take years to get it back to where it was."

His tail twitching with determination, Tibby stood up straight and put his hands on his hips. "Well, I'll still help! Your collection was the best, so I'll make sure it becomes the best again."

"I appreciate that, little one, but right now I have other ideas."

Confused but excited, Tibby's face lit up. "Like what?"