6.

6.

The Glade was a flurry of activity. Autumn Fåries flitted hastily between trees, bushes and flowerbeds, decorating the green leaves with an orange tinge, the beginning of the new season just creeping into being. Not one of the busy Fåries noticed the procession of Elders, drifting hesitantly toward the dark passage that lead to Coccoon. Lead by a young Fårie who danced freely, the solomn Elders proceeded to follow the girl with some trepidation. She led them down the rarely used path, for there were no visitors to the Coccoon, humming to herself as she daintily stepped between the stones, keeping her bare feet on the earth and hovering short distances with her wings where she couldn't.

“This is unheard of...”

The Queen pretended to ignore the outraged whispers drifting to her ears, locking her gaze on the childish behaviour of the possessed girl ahead of her. Dalun walked beside her, silent as she was herself, watching the girl that both was and yet was not his daughter. It was true, no Fårie ever sent to Coccoon had been allowed free, it was a punishment set forth for those who did not learn their lessons and continued to endanger the other inhabitants of the Fårie Kingdom, as well as those who showed no remorse for their actions.

“High Chancellor,” the Queen said quietly, making sure the other Elders could not hear her. “I will not deny that I am, greatly disappointed by your deceit. It is no small thing, to hide such a large lie from your own Queen for a hundred and thirty two years.”

“Three months and fourteen days...” Dalun replied loftily, his thoughts caught up in his own memories. “Not a second of that time has gone by that Mirabelle and myself have not thought about her. But we have continued on as we promised, and now it turns out she was right.”

“What do you mean, she was right?” The Queen asked, curious despite her disappointment.

“She told us both, that we would see each other again.” Dalun said, glancing briefly to the Queen before looking back to his daughters dancing body ahead of them. “Before her trial, she said that no matter what happened, it wasn't the end. That there would come a day where we would all meet again and until that day, we must keep her secret.”

“Well, I suppose this is all rather conveient for your family then,” the Queen said at length. Dalun frowned, turning to watch his Queen as she watched the girl dance ahead of them with eyes narrowed in thought. “Your daughter commited a crime, and yet went unpunished, because your eldest child successfully hoodwinked the entire Fårie population that she was the guilty party, even going so far as to allow herself to be committed to Coccoon, only to promise you that the day would come when you would all meet again..?” The Queen stopped, and turned to the Elder with a confident wave of her hand towards Mirabelle. “This is all a farce, is it not? To release your eldest child from her branch?”

“No.” Dalun and the Queen turned as one, at Mirabelle's easy refusal. “The Fadeleaf family have concocted no scheme, there is no deception in play here.” She said, closely examining a gently tinkling Golden Bell flower as a small sprite collected its nectar.

“So sayeth the girl who, most conveniently, became possessed moments before she was to be punished for her crimes. Crimes which, according to the revelations we have heard today, have in fact gone un-punished for over a century.” Mirabelle merely smiled, turning to face the Queen with calm, clear eyes.

“You believe this girl has magick that is powerful to out-class your own? Enough to disrupt the Elements, in ways which you yourself cannot, as we did upon our arrival?” She asked knowingly.

“What makes you believe I cannot, that I have not the power to cause such a commotion?” The Queen countered.

“Because you have not.” Mirabelle answered at once, watching a small brown Dragon fly by her nose, flying lazily over to the small sprite collecting nectar. The sprite nodded as if receiving a message, and flew away, as the Dragon twisted on the breeze and drifted to the ground, no more than an Autumn leaf. Mirabelle turned back to the Queen, smiling with joy at the simple sights she beheld.The Queen merely raised a delicate shoulder, offering neither further accusation nor a verbal response.

“Very well!” Mirabelle grinned, clapping her hands together loudly and excitedly rubbing them together as she glanced around for something. “A-ha!” Mirabelle waited until the other Elder Fåries had all gathered behind the Queen and High Chancellor. She raised her hand, and pressed a finger to her lips. A silence fell easily over the group, as she slowly ran her eyes over every Fårie present. With her mischiveous grin never once faltering, she moved her finger slighty, until she was pointing at a small fallen acorn-like seed, a short ways from them.

She turned to face it fully, stretching her arm towards it as if she meant to grasp it from whence it lay. However, instead there came a small trembling in the ground beneath their feet, and a tiny crack opened enough for the small seed to fall inside, and be covered by the lightly shaking earth.

Dalun glanced toward his daughter, and barely held back a gasp of surprise, however his posture stiffened considerably, which the Queen noticed. Following his gaze, she drew in a sharp breath and stared in awe, as a twinge of fear trickled up her spine. Mirabelle's eyes glowed a muddy brown, and as she watched the girl they began to blend into a turbulent shade of deepest blue. A small cloud began to form above the small patch of dirt, where the acorn-like seed lay hidden. With a tiny crack of thunder, the small cloud began to rain.

The soft patter of the water hitting the loose soil was soothing, almost cathartic to the more tense and freyed nerved Elder Fåries present, who watched the spectacle with awestruck expressions of wonder. Slowly, the rain began to ease and then stopped altogether, the cloud blew away like smoke in a breeze.

The deep blue glow of Mirabelle's eyes began to swirl, dirtying into a fierce shade of green. Mirabelle shifted her hand slightly, as if applying pressure to a wound, steadying her position as the earth rumbled gently on. From the loose, damp soil, a tiny sapling began to sprout.

Tentative vines poked their way free from the soil, curling and tangling together to create a thick trunk, before creeping further upwards to form branches, which settled high above them. The glow of Mirabelle's eyes seemed to brighten slightly, fusing into a more vibrant green, similar to the first sprigs of grass in the Spring. The tree began to sprout leaves all over, which in turn sprouted great pink and blue flowers.

Dalun and the Queen watched in shocked silence, as the flowers first bloomed, and then slowly began to wither. Mirabelle's eyes blurred, faded to a sunset orange, and the leaves on her tree followed her example, slowly turning from healthy green to crisp browns, reds and oranges. As the leaves drifted to the ground, small acorn-like seeds dropped from the expired flower pods, falling to the floor like stones. Mirabelle's eyes glowed brighter, hotter, a passionate and powerful shade of red.

In a heartbeat, flames licked up the trees great trunk, crackling merrily as it ate away at its bark. Fåries gasped and gripped their neighbors tightly without thought, at the suddenness of their appearance. But all too soon they were depleting, the tree disappearing beneath their hungry assault. Slowly Mirabelle lowered her hand, her eyes fading to a gentle, murky blue. She slowly walked forward and crouched down by a steaming pile of ash, all that remained of the great tree she had created and destroyed. She raked a single finger through the ashes, and plucked from its centre a small acorn-like seed. She stood, turned, and made her way back to the stunned Fåries who were all staring at her. She paused before the Queen, smiling as she reached down and took her hand, causing several Elders to gasp in outrage and fear alike.

“All things must come from somewhere,” Mirabelle said, as she dropped the small seed into the Queen's open palm. “And they usually return to whence they came when they die. We do not die.” Mirabelle said, dropping the Queen's hand as she straightened herself, standing tall as she clasped her hands lightly before her. “We are eternal, and right now we are trying to help you, and your people.” The Queen stared at the small seed, rubbing her thumb gently over its heavily charred shell. “Your fear and doubt is misplaced. We are not your enemy.”