The Last Fairy Tale (9 page)

 “Is he your leader then? Like a king?” Olivia asked.

 “What? Wait, this must be another human concept. There isn’t a leader of Aeldyn.”

 “There isn’t? Then who is in charge of keeping order here?” Olivia asked incredulously.

 “Keeping order? Keeping order of what? What are you even talking about?”

 “Oh, well, never mind, I suppose. So, you’ve never met the Great Fairy?” Olivia took the warm mug in her hands and smelled the tea’s strong, comforting scent. She held the mug close as she let it cool.

 “No, but I’ve always wanted to,” Locke said. He sipped his tea. “I’d like to ask him some questions. You know, because he’s so old, he must know pretty much everything, right?” He chuckled.

 “Well, how did you get orders from him if you’ve never met him?”

 “Oh, his messenger told me,” Locke said. “Your tea is probably cool enough to drink. Why don’t you try it?”

 Olivia slowly brought the mug to her lips, the steam warming her face. When the tea touched her lips, it burned, but only for a second. As she swallowed it, it warmed her whole body. The taste was exactly as she had expected, sweet, cozy, and relaxing.

 “It’s wonderful.” Olivia smiled at Locke.

 “I knew you’d love it!” Locke laughed. “I can teach you how to make it if you’d like. Anyway, do you have any more questions? It’s almost time for us to hit the hammock. Gotta get up pretty early.”

 “If this is real, and I’m almost convinced that it is, then will I ever get to go back to my own world? There are people there that I care for.” Olivia said, gazing into her mug. She was thinking about Nachton and the other children.

 “I can’t really answer that one,” Locke said with a frown. “But perhaps the Great Fairy can answer it!” He looked at her, his mouth spreading into a wide smile, but Olivia was still staring into her mug. “I know that this is all too much for you to take in, Olivia,” he said gently, “but it’s a lot for me to believe, too. You’re a great person, and you’re fun to have around, so I’m glad you’re here. Besides, the Great Fairy wouldn’t have sent for you if you weren’t special. I’m sure that he has his reasons.” Locke paused and looked into his own mug. “And I’m sure he’d tell you how to get back if you asked. You know, if you wanted to.”

Olivia looked up at him, and the corners of her mouth turned up in a small smile. She loved what little she had seen of Aeldyn and the time she had spent with Locke, but it felt wrong to be there. She felt a strong need to return to the orphanage and help everyone.
But what could I do
? She sighed. “I’ll go with you to see the Great Fairy.”

 “Great!” Locke exclaimed. “I’ll get you some blankets and a pillow and get your bed fixed up. Is the couch okay?”

 Olivia giggled. She felt a sense of belonging around Locke, one that she had never felt at the orphanage until recently. “Sure, that’s fine.”

 Locke sprung from his chair to gather the pillow and blankets, looking happy and eager to please his company.

 “Locke,” she called to him. He looked around the giant stack of blankets he was carrying. “Thanks for being a good friend.”

 Locke became extra energetic as he fumbled around for a way to reply. He made her bed on the couch, holding his head high and telling her how it was the Great Fairy she had to thank and that she didn’t have to be his friend at all and that he didn’t really mean that, but he was just saying…

* * * * *

 As Olivia lay on her makeshift bed, listening to the snores coming from Locke’s hammock, she thought of all that had happened recently. She thought about the deaths of Ms. Canterbry and Mr. Dewberry and about the desolate world that she had seen outside the orphanage. She thought about falling through the tree into this world and meeting Locke. Then she thought about the next day and wondered if she’d even be able to go to sleep. She rolled over on her side and pulled the blankets up over her face.

Chapter Six

It’s Not a Dream

 Olivia awoke to an unfamiliar sound. It was soft and strangely pleasant, like a song that had no rhythm or consistent melody. Her eyes snapped open as she remembered where she was. She sat up and looked around. Sunlight was pouring in through the windows of Locke’s hut. She shielded her eyes as they slowly adjusted to the bright light.

 On the nearby windowsill, a bird as bright and blue as the morning sky hopped back and forth as it sang the lovely song that woken Olivia. It suddenly stopped as it noticed Olivia sitting up on the couch and watched her, chirping and tilting its head this way and that. Suddenly, it flew away, causing Olivia to jump in surprise. She looked over at Locke, who was sleeping precariously on his hammock. His head was hanging off one side while one of his legs was dangling from the other. A long string of drool hung from his mouth.

 “Locke,” Olivia said in a whispered shout. He didn’t move. She tried again, “Locke.”

 “Hmm?” he mumbled. “I like the stew, yes…I like daisies…too…” He rubbed his face with his hand, breaking the string of drool and smearing it across his cheek before dropping his hand and snoring again.

“
Locke
!” Olivia didn’t bother to whisper this time.

“
Aaah
!” Locke shouted and sprang swiftly from the hammock. He ran around aimlessly for a few seconds, a blanket wrapped around his foot. Then he looked over at Olivia. “Oh my
twigs
! You’re here! It was real! Holy toadstool!”

 “Uh, I’m the one having trouble believing I’m here, remember?” Olivia giggled.

“Yeah,
heh heh
.” Locke sheepishly cut his eyes to the side. He paused for a second, thinking. Then his eyes widened as he looked at Olivia. “
Twigs
! What time is it? We’re gonna be late!” He kicked the blanket from his foot and grabbed a cloth sack from under his hammock. “Hurry, we gotta pack!”

Olivia grabbed her journal from under her pillow and watched as Locke frantically ran about the hut shoving things into the sack, including a book, a chunk of wood, a small pouch, a wooden container, and a blanket. Olivia wondered how such a thin sack could hold all the items without tearing.
Probably has something to do with magic, I’m sure
, she thought, not really believing herself.

 “This is all I really have to pack,” said Olivia, holding up her father’s journal. “But I’ll just carry it.”

 “Okay,” said Locke, panting, “I think that’s everything. Let’s get going.” He strode across the hut, carrying the sack over one shoulder and his violin over the other. He flung open the door with such force that a few leaves blew in. He didn’t seem to mind and continued out of the hut. After a moment, he poked his head back into the doorway and said, “Oh, I almost forgot.” He ran back into the hut and grabbed a rough brown cloak that was hanging near his hammock. “Put this on. The Great Fairy’s messenger said that you probably don’t need to attract attention to yourself before we get to the Hollow.”

 Olivia slipped on the cloak and pulled the hood over her head. It was a little bit too big for her, so the bottom hem dragged on the ground.

 “Well, let’s go,” shouted Locke, thrusting a finger into the air. He turned and began marching away, his arms swinging vigorously, a determined expression on his face.

 Olivia followed, immediately shielding her eyes from the bright golden sun that shone down through the tops of enormous trees, creating heavenly rays that illuminated the forest floor. Small specks of blue and purple light flitted around through the warm air. She could hear birds and bugs chirping and buzzing from all directions. The wind blowing was like a rush of energy through the trees. Despite the noise that filled her ears, Olivia enjoyed the busy activity and couldn’t wait to be a part of it. She inhaled deeply and smiled.

 “Hey! Are you coming or what?” Locke shouted. He was waving his free arm in the air to get Olivia’s attention.

Olivia pulled her gaze from the beauty of the forest and looked at Locke. She trotted over to him, dodging one of the tiny purple specks.

“What
are
 those?” she asked, pointing at one of the balls of light and following it with her finger. It floated around the tip of her finger a few times and then dissipated into the air, leaving behind a faint cloud of blue. She put a hand to her mouth in horror.

 “Ha-ha! Don’t worry. You didn’t do anything,” said Locke. “We call that dust. They’re just bits of atmospheric magic. They come and go naturally, just like fog or rain. I keep forgetting you come from a world of science. Even simple things like this dust are interesting, huh?”

 Olivia nodded, pulling her hand away from her mouth. She was eyeing another bit of dust.

“Well, I hate to keep urging you, but we do have to get going,” Locke said. “I know you’ll have tons of questions along the way, so I’ll make a deal with you. I’ll try to answer your questions and tell you about Aeldyn and its magic,
if
 you promise to tell me about your world and its science. Deal?”

 “Sure,” Olivia agreed. She couldn’t imagine why a creature like Locke would be the least bit interested in her world or the subject of science, especially when he was from a world like Aeldyn. Then again, she thought that the feeling was probably mutual.

 They set out northward, both answering each other’s questions and becoming more overwhelmed with each other’s worlds. Locke kept peering around anxiously, but Olivia didn’t seem to notice, because she was still taking in the enormity and complexity of the world around her. Soon they came near the edge of the forest, where Locke sat down his sack and patted his stomach.

 “I’m quite hungry. You?” he asked.

 Olivia nodded, suddenly noticing that she was indeed extremely hungry.

 “Well, we don’t have much,” Locke said, looking through the sack. “I figured the walk to the Great Fairy’s Hollow wouldn’t take all day, so I only packed a small lunch.” He pulled out two apples and a small pouch. He handed Olivia an apple.

 “Oh, thank you,” Olivia said excitedly. She placed her diary in her lap and took the apple from Locke, her eyes shining brightly. The apple was one food that she had wanted as far back as she could remember. It had appeared many times during her childhood—in one of the encyclopedias and even when she learned the letter ‘A’ in the alphabet. The children had never been allowed to ask why they always had to eat Crud, so she had dreamed to herself that one day she would be able to taste an apple. That dream was about to come true.

 “You’re welcome!” Locke said. He took a large bite out of his apple. “You act like you’ve never seen an apple. I mean, it’s not like apples depend on magic, so you have them in your world, too, right?”

 “I think we used to have them,” Olivia said, gazing happily at the apple and debating on whether she should eat it or hold it a little while longer.

 “Used to? What do you mean by that?” asked Locke in a muffled voice. He closed the sack, holding his apple in his mouth with his teeth.

“What I’ve told you about my world so far has been based on what I know of the past,” Olivia explained. “It used to be beautiful, like this.” She pointed behind them into the forest. “But something went wrong, and now we all live inside vaults called orphanages. I think only children remain in my world…” She stopped, suddenly remembering the children back in the orphanage. She wished she could go back and bring them all into this new world. She reminded herself that she had made a promise to visit the Great Fairy and see what he wanted from her before she went back. She wanted to go back despite how wonderful this land was.
It’s not fair for me to be here and for everyone else to be stuck back there
, she thought.

“Well, cheer up,” Locke said, patting her shoulder. “Things like this don’t happen every day, you know. Twigs, things like this have
never
 happened before. I’m pretty sure.” He looked up with a thoughtful expression. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure this is a once-in-a-lifetime type thing. The Great Fairy wouldn’t have asked to see you if he didn’t desperately need you. To tell you the truth, I didn’t even know you existed. I thought humans were just a fable. So, the Great Fairy knows more than your average scrowl, I can tell you that!”

 Olivia looked up at Locke and smiled. She didn’t know what a scrowl was, but decided against asking for now. She appreciated Locke’s constant effort to try to keep her spirits up. Even if everything about Aeldyn seemed unbelievable, Olivia felt that whoever the Great Fairy was needed her help.

 “You’re right,” she said, gently tossing the apple and catching it. She took one more look at it before biting into it. The fresh, crisp taste was unlike anything that she had imagined or expected—it was far better. It was sour, but sweet at the same time. Juice dripped down her chin as she took another bite, and another. She wished the apple would last forever. She turned the apple a little and bit into it again. Closing her eyes and breathing deeply, she savored the taste. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

 “There are plenty more apples,” said Locke, looking at Olivia with a faintly sympathetic expression. “Well, we better get moving again. I also brought some nuts, if you would like to have some.” He held up the small pouch.