Chapter One
The soft patter of unshod feet sounded against the mossy surface of the forest floor, the morning light barely peeking through the thick boughs of the pines and illuminating the mist being stirred by a gentle breeze in swirls of mystical visions, awakening the fairies of the mind. Gentle voices of birds filled the air with a dreamy echoing sound, their songs mingling with the sound of a small and timid voice which belonged to the keeper of the padding feet.
“Arnae, look at the bird up there! It’s bright blue, and do you see the silver on the tips of the wings? It’s a Silverblue, you can always tell from the silver on it.” Almost in a breathy voice a young girl spoke to a small child whose hand she clasped to firmly.
Hair as fair as golden wheat adorned their small heads, to the waist on the elder and barely touching the shoulders of the younger, framing curious green eyes upon lightly tanned skin, proof of their time spent sitting beneath rays of warm sun. They were dressed in oversized sack cloth tunics, hardly luxurious over their seemingly malnourished frames, but they were princesses in their own play realm. It was
their forest.
“Nunu, Go home now, wiff Mama?” The small child pleaded, pulling gently on her sister’s hand, the attention span of the three-year-old hardly held for long.
“Nuaera, not Nunu, silly one.” She corrected, then answered hastily, “Papa doesn’t want us home yet”
“Mama?”
“No, Mama’s sleeping, she’ll be fine.” Nuaera sighed slightly in exasperation, sitting down heavily atop a mound of plush moss, her back against a broken wall of rocks.
Arnae imitated the sloppy gesture, giggling with a few small fingers stuck in her mouth habitually, her green eyes dark still in her youth, a childishly chubby face wielding a wide small toothed grin. Her older sister joined in the giggling, before pointing to a wisp of mist.
“Ooh, look! It’s a fairy!” she called excitedly, grinning as she saw her little sister’s eyes widen.
“That fairy is Lena, she’s the fairy of the mist. Want to hear her story?”
Arnae nodded quickly, her expression eager as she reached a hand out to try and catch the misty form, but it scattered and was blown away by a light breeze.
“Alright…” The young girl took Arnae into her lap before continuing, but her expression was more saddened than it had first been, for she was used to delivering her stories as though she were there when it happened; her own unique form of narrating.
“Once upon a time, before the mists came to the forest, there lived a beautiful princess who loved to leave the castle to dance in the woods, but a man took her and locked her up in a little wood hut, making her sad and tired. She had two little girls who loved her very, very much, and whom she loved very, very much. The man who took her was mean and scary, but she didn’t let him hurt the little children, and often, they would go run into the forest and dance and play just like she did, though they were scared of being seen, so they hid behind rocks and trees when they heard sounds…”
“Me firsty, Nunu” Arnae interrupted with a serious expression on her small face.
Nuaera sighed, hating to be disturbed in the middle of the story, but she forced a smile, handing her sister a small and battered water skin.
“Okay, me done.” Arnae stated confidently, handing the water back and staring at her older sister expectantly.
“You want me to tell more?”
The little girl simply nodded, her emerald gaze locked on Nuaera’s face.
Nuaera smiled brightly but then mellowed her expression as she continued to tell the story, though she decided to shorten the tale for the sake of her little sibling.
“Well… all was alright, until the lovely lady got sick, but when she died, she became a fairy of the forest! And she makes mist in the mornings and the evenings, so that she can hide the horrible place she was kept in and made it a lovely fairyland, that’s why everything looks different with mist, because it
is different, it hides little children like the ones she misses, and gives them a place to play with the other fairies, away from the scary things. It also hides other princesses, so bad men like the one who took her won’t get them. So we shouldn’t be scared of mist, because it’s her trying to make us happy and keep us safe and hidden from nasty things…”
Arnae’s sister was now looking at the ground silently, while the little child swatted at the remaining mist, giggling as she made it swirl into different patterns, listening to the story with barely half her attention.
“Wook, I catch a faiwy fow you, Nunu!” She smiled widely as she held her closed fists up then opened them to show her sister what she had captured, but the misty form had slipped away.
“Owh, is gone!” Arnae scowled.
“Don’t worry, the fairies need to hide all the time, so they can make the mist for us and watch over us like they always do,” The girl smiled in a heartening manner, standing and toting the sister as best she could on her small waist.
“Nuaera! Arnae!” A harsh voice called through the clearing mist, causing the older girl to tense as she placed Arnae on her toddling legs.
Following the direction of the voice stiffly, the girl paused and bent down to pull her sister into her protective arms. Arnae’s eyes widened in a form of fear, even if the child didn’t know exactly why the situation was tense. From the deeper forest came a tall individual, his hair dark, far from matching the golden gleam of theirs, but he held authority over them.
“I thought you were told to stay with your Mama! You know better than to disobey me, Nuaera,” He growled as he roughly grabbed hold of the older girl’s arm, prying her away from Arnae who had now burst into tears of fear.
“Yes, Elodren, we were just going back. We needed some air,” Nuaera spoke stubbornly through gritted teeth as she trembled but bravely pulled away to lift her smaller sister from the ground and carry her along, ignoring the scowling glare from her father.
“Don’t dare call me that, it’s either sir or Papa to you, understood?! I don’t have time to waste searching for you little worthless rats, let alone care for your Mama, do you hear me?” His voice raised, he bent closer to her face.
Nuaera bit her lower lip, fighting glistening tears as she nodded quickly, her voice broken and struggling.
“Yes… Papa.”
“Now get on home before I take a stick to your back side!”
The ten year old leapt away from him slightly in fear, before turning and hurrying along the path, struggling to hold her sister through sobs which shook her small frame. When she reached a cabin of wood and pine straw thatching, Nuaera haphazardly stumbled in, setting Arnae down upon the dirt floor. Turning to slam the door shut, she slid the wood bar in place and covered her pale face with her hands, heedless to the dirt which covered them, her tears running in streams down her cheeks.
“Nuaera, is that you?”
A calm voice stirred her from her weeping, the source lying in the corner where a mat was spread on the ground. It was a sweet voice, like one which once sung songs of beautiful melodies with the birds of the trees and the breeze of the air, but now it was tired and weary, worn by the years.
“Y-yes, Mama,” Nuaera responded, attempting to prevent the sobs from overcoming her voice, yet still it stubbornly caught a few of her words.
“Do you have Arnae with you, dear?”
“Yes, Mama,” She responded more firmly, glancing over to where her little sister had crawled towards the opposite corner, her thumb in her mouth though she had fallen fast asleep, wearied by the fright.
“Come here, dear…”
Nuaera timidly walked over to the mat and knelt down beside her mother, smiling slightly as her eyes glanced over the frail woman, thinking how even though she was pale and her golden hair was matted with sweat once again, her mother was indeed beautiful in every way, not only her appearance but the kindness and care of her heart. How could the young girl know how things would turn out, looking at that peaceful face below her?
“My dear Nuaera, my song, what is the matter?” Fear crept into the woman’s voice, worry creasing her brow as she lifted a slender hand to smooth away a tear which remained on the young girl’s face. “Did he hurt you?”
“No”
Nuaera could only manage a simple answer, each word trembling, her next words whispered. “He scared us, but he didn’t hurt us...” Swiftly the young girl changed the subject, not wishing her mother to worry.
“How are you feeling, Mama?”
“I am well, do not worry dear, just weary, so weary.” She sighed, turning her head to gaze through the dim window where light barely graced their presence in the dreary darkness of the forest.
“Perhaps just a little water will help,” she murmured, a soft smile crossing her features as she closed her eyes, regretful of the burden she was sure she brought upon the young girl, yet Nuaera took it in stride and nodded, standing and walking over to a kettle which sat by the fireplace. Ladling out a sthingyful of water, she carefully brought it over to her mother, helping her to half sit while she swallowed it. For two long years it had been like this, the pain going on and the weariness, while Nuaera remained by her side, cared for her young sister, and withstood the fiery temper of their father with fierce determination.
“I’ll cook some soup, Mama, just rest, it’ll be okay.”
The woman merely nodded, her head slipping to the side as she relaxed in a calm and quiet sleep. Nuaera sighed and got to her feet, using her small hands to gather herbs from a basket and cut them with a dull knife, placing them in the kettle with a few diced potatoes, all that she had managed to gather in the garden. Why her father even kept them there and allowed them the little food available, she did not know. Perhaps guilt played a roll, guilt for causing the suffering of her mother, or guilt for daring to touch her in the first place.
Silently the young girl shook her head, struggling to lift the kettle onto the hook above the weak flames, and then stoked the fire with an iron rod. With a jolt she dropped the rod, when a loud rapping sounded against the door, accompanied by her father’s angered voice.
“Let me in, Nua! Don’t force me to break the door down! You just don’t learn, do you? Remove the bar, now!”
“Please, don’t! Please, be quite, Mama’s resting! Just go away!” Nuaera pleaded, tears welling in her emerald eyes again as she inched away from the throbbing door while the angered man threw his weight against it. The flimsy wood gave way at the second blow, scattering splinters across the dirt floor, while the young girl ran over to Arnae, who had woken to the sound, frightened into tears once more. Nuaera enfolded her arms around the small child, she herself crying as Elodren stormed over and grabbed her arm, prying her away and gripping her shoulders as he shook her.
“I let you live here, away from the rain and the wolves, and this is how you repay me?! I might as well lock
you out! Little brat, you’d better wish you were out there!”
He raised his hand to deliver a blow, causing the girl to cringe and flinch in preparation, but before he could, the hands of another pried them apart, forcing him away and holding Nuaera closer.
“Arali…” He stuttered slightly as he stepped back from the frail woman, though her form was still fair and spirited, hidden beneath the earth toned cloth she wore. Her strength in will could be seen in her green eyes, so alike to those of her daughters, the children she loved dearly enough to place herself between them and the ravaging wolf.
Arali swayed slightly but held her older daughter by both her shoulders gently, her expression set in a frown as she gazed towards Elodren.
“Lay not a finger upon my children, least you wish a curse upon yourself, filth of the earth.”
His dark brows furrowed as he encountered her resistance, his anger further aggravated. He took a step forward to reach for Nuaera, but Arali stepped in front of the child, while at that moment the young girl took the opportunity to lift her sister from the floor and hold her close comfortingly, their tears mingling within the combined sobs as they tried desperately to block out the raised voices from their minds.
“Step aside, Arali, she must be punished for her insolence!”
“I shall not! You will have to step over my dead body before you displace one hair upon their heads.” The woman declared defiantly.
Menacingly Elodren stepped closer, the anger visible in his fiercely dark eyes, as though the fury of a thousand storms would be released at any moment, but with a glowering scowl of defeat, he turned on his heels and strode away through the door. Pausing, he turned with a deadly glare.
“Be thankful I don’t have the guts to kill you with my own hands, but be forewarned, they shall not remain one second in this place when you’re gone.”
After he had left, Arali released a weary sigh, her expression contorted in pain and sorrow, crying as she crouched down to draw both her girls close to her chest, all three attempting to control their fear which flooded them like a raging river, their limbs trembling with the effort to stay afloat. Slowly the pale woman, with a calm voice in quiet assurance, began a sweet melody, trickling lightly at first as a gentle stream would, then growing in strength as the song of the morning feathered wonders. The words flowed soothingly over the ears of the two young girls, until finally their sobs were calmed and their trembles were relieved of them.
Continually stroking their hair, her song quieted as her weariness grew, and it was Nuaera who first pulled away from the embrace, hastily brushing the tears away with the back of her small hands. Seeing the tears upon her mother’s face lingering still, she took a rag from a tattered pocket and dried the salty lines from the chilled skin. The weary mother smiled softly at the loving gesture, caressing the young girl’s cheek with her hand before carrying her smallest child to the mat in the corner, sitting so that her back was against the two walls to support her feeble frame.
“I love you both, so dearly. Promise me you shall never let Arnae from your sight, my Song…” She whispered softly, turning her dimmed eyes towards Nuaera while she cradled the slumbering child.
“But Mama, you will get better, I know you will,” Nuaera insisted.
“Nay, I am far too ill, but please, promise me you will take her away, wherever you can my dearest song!”
Nuaera nodded numbly, wiping a hand across her nose as she sniffled, her voice meek, “Yes Mama.”
“Good, my dear Nuaera, good. Rest now, rest while you can,” She whispered, tilting her head back against the wooden boards, her eyes slowly closing.
The day wore on in silence, as Nuaera curled up close to the fire, her eyes staring across the bare floor, the plain walls and empty space, almost in a catatonic state, while outside the broken door a chilling rain poured down through the canopy of trees, dampening half the dwelling. Slowly she lifted her head from the floor, licking her parched lips as she remembered the broth which surely would have burned had she not let the fire die. With numb fingers she placed a few dry pieces of wood into the fire alcove, the flint trembling in her hands as she struck it several times before finally producing a flame. After a moment of stoking the growing flame, she pulled herself across the floor in a weary crawl towards Arali, reaching the woman’s knees and giving one of them a gentle nudge to wake her up for the near ready supper.
Arali remained still, her arms locked in a consoling embrace around Arnae, but there was the expression of utmost peace upon her ashen face, as though she felt no pain. Fear widened Nuaera’s eyes as she shook the stiffened knee harder, and then moved her hand hesitantly to her mother’s shoulder, shaking it until her own arm was sore.
“Mama! Mama, wake up!”
Tears began to form in her eyes, but did not leave the heavy lids as she barely had any left from the day. Her mouth widened in attempt to say more words, but none came. Again she shook the lifeless figure, then carefully pried the clasped hands and enfolded arms away from her younger sister who remained asleep in the presence of the one who bore her.
Arnae stirred from her sleep, rubbing her eyes with her fists and frowning slightly as she found herself in her elder sister’s arms. Struggling, she pulled away, toddling over to Arali and clutching to her arm.
“Mama! Mama, up?”
The small child held her arms outstretched, waiting for her mother to wake and take her into those gentle arms which would so often console her, but no response came. Frustrated, she stuck her lower lip out in a pout and ran over to Nuaera, tugging on her sister’s sleeve, not understanding why her sibling seemed so cheerless and stunned to silence.
“Mama tired? Mama sleep?”
Nuaera’s face contorted in the way only a child’s could when they have experienced sadness and terror beyond what any should have had to go through. She reached out and pulled her smaller sister in a firm embrace, her choking sobs preventing her from speaking words.
“What wong? Why Mama cold? Nunu?”
“Mama’s gone, Mama’s gone, Arnae.”
Nuaera struggled desperately to control her voice, but only few words could she manage amid the weeping which contorted her young features.
Not understanding, the little child struggled to pull away, yet in sudden realization of the words to the extent that a three-year-old could understand, her eyes widened as her lip quivered, her body going limp in her sister’s arms.
“Mama gone? Mama go wiff faiwies? Mama not gone!”
Suddenly she fought the firm hold and crawled towards her mother’s figure, tugging on the sleeve of the worn dress, crying out for her repeatedly, until she flopped down onto the floor and bawled, a few small fingers still gripping to the fabric.
The two siblings held onto each other as they wept, the younger not fully understanding, though hunger soon quieted her sobs as the storms cleared and a thick mist rolled in for the evening, her sister’s voice gently whispering calming words.
“The fairies, the fairies will watch over us, Arnae, shh, don’t cry, they’ll watch us. Mama is with them now.”
“Song, Nunu? Song?” Arnae pleaded quietly, desperate for consolation.
Nuaera nodded, taking a moment to control her own broken tone and gather it into a bitter sweet melody, her small voice a younger replica of their mother’s, carrying on the songs which would have been lost in bitter sorrow had it not been for the love she held for her small sibling. The words were sorrowful, but in that moment, it was all the young child could remember for all the songs she knew:
Laughing play in early morning
Children dancing through the mist
Never saw the early warning
Of the dark sky’s stormy fist
Thunder, lightening, rumbling deep
Streams and rivers flowing fast
Frighten children till they weep
Lost in forests dark and vast
Never found, forever lost
Mothers sob in midnight silence
Angered at the wrongful cost
Taken by the stormy violence
No birds joined the song in that hour of the evening, but the mists carried it as an echo of a sorrowed voice, where some say it reached the mountains of the mystic, and even the brave and wise Nolar wept to hear the melody of a broken child.
