literature

Just a Story

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Sunlight danced across the lace curtains and pink walls. Little Kayley Aine stretched under her goose-down comforter, and accidentally kicked her little sister Biddy’s ankle. She paused in her wriggling to see if she woke her sister. Biddy’s breathing remained steady, and a strand of dirty-blonde hair moved each time a snore escaped the four-year-old’s lips. Satisfied that she hadn’t disturbed Biddy, Kayley sat up and looked across the nursery. The crystals that hung on their ceiling littered the sisters’ toys and miniature furniture with rainbows. The big hand on the clock was pointed at nine. Kayley pouted and thought, ‘That must mean Abigail’s running late.’
Kayley was rather serious for her age, a tender eight, and felt that she needed to be. Her father was a Lord of the Irish realm (“Mighty Erin!” he always claimed, and Kayley always yelled it back at him, giggling), and away on business too much for his daughter’s liking. She took on the job of helping her mother and raising her sister. She attended to the most important tasks of helping Mother pick flowers for dinner parties, and tasting every dish to make sure it was suitable for the table before it even left the kitchen. Everyone let her help, and rewarded her with a caramel or a tug of one of her golden curls.
Kayley was especially eager to get up and ‘help’ today, as her brother Caden was coming home from school for summer break. She got down from her four-poster bed and pulled her robe from a golden hook near the headboard. She had almost reached the bell to summon Abigail, when the nursemaid in question bustled in, followed closely by Aunt Brigid.
“Wake Biddy, Abigail, and dress them both, please,” said Aunt Brigid.
Kayley stood straight and looked at Aunt Brigid. “I should say so, Auntie! It’s 9 o’clock!”
Aunt Brigid’s eyebrows shot up, and she bent down to Kayley’s eye level. “My love, the small hand indicates the hour, the big one the minutes.”
Kayley’s eyes went wide, and looked again. The small hand was just behind the eight. Corrected, she looked at Abigail shamefacedly. “I’m very sorry, Miss Abigail, for thinking you were running late.” Her maid smiled and patted the blonde curls on Kayley’s head.
“Never mind, little miss.”
Biddy’s head poked out from beneath the soft pillows. Her bleary blue eyes looked around to her big sister and aunt. When they saw the rainbows, she squealed in delight and pointed at them.
“That’s right, Biddy! Rainbows!” exclaimed Kayley, and she bounded to her little sister and held her hand. Biddy’s cupid-bow lips made an ‘O' at the colors. “Where do they come from, Aunt Brigid?”
Aunt Brigid smiled and turned to the girls’ closet to pick out their dresses. “Sometimes, girls, that means an angel is looking in this room. An angel is such a wonderful creature that wherever he looks, rainbows appear.” She pulled out two spring green dresses for the girls to wear. The girls emitted sounds of approval; white got to be so boring sometimes. Abigail fetched their matching gloves and handkerchiefs. “Would you like me to pull down your boater hats, Kayley?” asked their aunt.
“Actually, Auntie, may I have my hair up like yours today, for Caden?”
Kayley’s eyes were pleading, and, to seem more mature and responsible, she lifted Biddy down off the bed for dressing.  
Aunt Brigid smiled and shook her head. “I’m afraid not, little Kayley. You are not old enough yet.” Kayley nodded obligingly, but glanced at Aunt Brigid’s long, beautiful train on her maroon dress when she wasn’t looking. She had asked that question of her mother before, and had gotten the same answer. Some days Kayley wanted to be an adult, and other days she wanted to play with Biddy in the nursery forever.
As Abigail fastened the back of Kayley’s dress, Aunt Brigid gave a crystal to Biddy so she could be distracted while she fastened the toddler’s dress. “May we have a story, Aunt Brigid?” Kayley requested. Aunt Brigid always told the best stories, about merrows in the sea, the tricky leprechauns (whom she claimed to live in the hills on the grounds) and the mighty sluaghs. Kayley liked to imagine her father was strong like a sluagh, but not as mean.
“Oh, yes!” chimed in Biddy. Aunt Brigid smiled, and said softly, “Maybe when Caden arrives, perhaps. But only if you two keep your dresses clean today. Your mother wants you to look your best.”
Kayley nodded politely and shushed Biddy when she whined. “Be strong like Father, Biddy,” she reminded her sister. Then the girls finished dressing and went down to breakfast without another word.
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By the time the little hand was on four, Caden still wasn’t home. Kayley saw Father talk to Mother quietly several times, but Mother still looked upset. Kayley offered to do anything her mother wanted, but Father just scooped her up into a big hug and admired her beautiful green dress. Biddy only played and cooed the entire time, and sang along to a few songs Aunt Brigid was playing on the piano.
Kayley slunk over to the piano stool, grabbing Biddy to come along with her. The girls sat on the stool, and Biddy began to bang on the ivory keys, ‘composing’ songs only she knew the words to. “Where is Caden?” Kayley asked her aunt, who was relaxing her fingers. “I should think he’d like to hear your story.” Aunt Brigid looked at Kayley and gave her a hug.
“He’s probably just resting by a field for a bit, or his carriage is broken, and they’re fixing it. Don’t worry,” When Kayley’s face didn’t smile, Biddy noticed.
“Caden!” the four-year-old shouted. Kayley tried to no avail to show Biddy some more of the piano, but Biddy was now focused on her missing Caden.
“Time for a story!” Aunt Brigid announced. “I have a new one…” she prompted. Mother and Father sat down. Kayley set Biddy on the ground, who squealed, and then scrambled into Aunt Brigid’s lap. Kayley went to sit with Father. Aunt Brigid took off her gloves and took a sip of water. She did this every time she started a story. She had told Kayley once that it provided ‘drama.’ When she started her tale, her eyes got wider and her hands moved so quickly.  She told of the birth of Bran, which involved an angry fairy. A beautiful woman had married the fairy’s lover, and she was turned into a dog and given to a man who hated dogs. Over time, the fairy got her lover back, and the lady was turned back into a human, and married again.
At the end of the story, the little hand on the clock was on the six, and Caden was nowhere to be seen. Father had gone up twice to go to the entryway hall, but came back each time alone. Mother hadn’t seemed like she’d listened at all, despite how good the story was. Brady the butler came in and announced dinner. Everyone went into the dining room, Kayley holding Biddy’s hand all the way there.
After supper, Father and Mother went to the drawing room, and Aunt Brigid took the sisters up to the nursery. “Is something wrong?” asked Kayley halfway up the marble staircase.
“Where Caden?” pouted Biddy.
“He’ll probably be here tomorrow,” answered Aunt Brigid. Kayley sighed, and held Biddy’s hand tighter.

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When they were in bed, Kayley held onto Biddy and sang softly. The girl was having trouble going to sleep because of the puzzling events of the day. She missed her brother, and for once Father didn’t have an answer.

“Over in Killarney, many years ago,
Me Mother sang a song to me in tones so sweet and low.
Just a simple little ditty, in her good old Irish way.
And I'd give the world if she could sing that song to me this day.”

Biddy was just going to sleep when Kayley heard the wind chimes cling near the window.  ‘Abigail left the window open,’ she thought. She got up to close it, and saw a purple light up on the ceiling. Then, a tinkling came again, like the wind chimes. When Kayley glanced over, she noticed they hadn’t moved, and the window wasn’t open for her to hear them either. Then the purple light started to float down closer. Kayley reached behind her and poked Biddy. When Biddy finally opened her eyes and saw it, she whispered, “Angel…” Kayley shook her head, her eyebrows furrowed.
“No, Biddy dear. They’re the music fairies Aunt Brigid has told us about. It’s singing our song!” Indeed, the purple light was mimicking the wind chimes in the tune of the girls’ lullaby. It danced down like a feather on the wind until it was on Biddy’s knee. Her mouth was in an ‘O’, and she reached for it.
“Don’t touch it, Biddy!” Kayley whispered. “It’s so little, you might hurt it!” Biddy nodded and put a thumb in her mouth, staring at the light.  The light shrank and solidified, until it became a miniature woman. The kobold started to dance slowly and gracefully on Biddy’s knee. Her skin was like the color the frost was when it grew on violets in Mother’s garden, and hair like their dresses they had worn today. Kayley started to hum along, and the kobold kept dancing.

“Over in Killarney, many years ago,
Me Mother sang a song to me in tones so sweet and low.
Just a simple little ditty, in her good old Irish way.
And I'd give the world if she could sing that song to me this day.

Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li.
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Hush now don't you cry!
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li.
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, That's an Irish lullaby.”

When the lullaby was over, she stopped dancing and floated up. Kayley put an arm around Biddy and they both laid down. As they fell asleep, a small purple light again appeared in place of the tiny woman.
“Thank you,” whispered Kayley as she fell asleep.

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The next morning, when Aunt Brigid came to dress them again, Kayley and Biddy told her what they had seen.
“A kobold! Indeed…” said Aunt Brigid softly.
“Yes!” giggled Biddy, who then tried to mimic the spirit’s dancing, but fell, only to be tickled lightly by Abigail.
“You two had a wonderful late night adventure, then?” Aunt Brigid asked as she laced Kayley’s white shoes.
“Ah, the stories children think of!” Abigail said. Kayley’s grin turned into a frown.
“No Abigail, it was real!”
“Indeed, miss, as real as the stories your aunt tells.”
“See? She agrees,” interjected Aunt Brigid quickly. Kayley nodded as she lifted Biddy from the chair she was sitting on.
“Girls, it may not be best to tell your mother and father of your adventure yet, at least not until Caden comes,” said Aunt Brigid as they went down to eat. When both girls agreed, she winked. “After breakfast, go play in the garden. You might see a fyglia who has turned himself into a mouse. I did when I was your age,” she added wisely.
“How was he?” questioned Kayley seriously.
“Very polite, but very busy. They guard all the magical forests, you know.”
After they had finished their eggs and juice, the girls skipped to the garden. At Kayley’s suggestion, they started looking under Mother’s flowers for fyglias.
“Tell me if you see any animal, Biddy,” instructed Kayley. After awhile they gave up, and began to pick grass and practice their knots. By now they were on the edge of the forest behind the house. Kayley was in the middle of showing Biddy a knot when she saw a caramel blur out of the corner of her eye. She looked up but saw nothing.
She watched the forest for a minute, and started to go back to her grass knots, when she saw a hand waving at her from behind a tree. Her mouth dropped open, and she hissed, “Biddy.” Biddy looked where Kayley motioned, and, when she saw the bony hand, began to clap. A head came out from behind the tree, and big green eyes stared at them. The creature sported a tall, cone-shaped hat the color of cream. The head was bigger than the torso it was attached to, and Kayley wondered why it didn’t topple over. She stood and walked toward it until only two steps separated it and her. Biddy followed a little slower. Kayley grabbed her sister’s hand and called out a greeting to the creature, who hadn’t moved an inch.
‘Sir? May we help you?” offered Kayley.  
The creature stepped out from behind the tree, and the girls saw he was as bony as his head was big. He peered cautiously at them. She tried not to be rude and stare, but couldn’t help it. The little person finally bowed and swept off his hat, his eyes never leaving Kayley’s face, never blinking. Kayley curtsied and Biddy mimicked her sister, until she fell. Kayley pulled her up, and turned to the creature.
“Please pardon my sister. She quite young still.” The little sprite merely winked. Biddy giggled again, and Kayley allowed herself to smile. “Excuse me, but aren’t you a mitmit? My Aunt Brigid has told me about you,” she said shyly. The creature’s mouth dropped open, and then made a sound similar to a laugh.
“Oh ho! You’ve heard of us!” he said, rather loudly and quickly. He then hopped joyfully around in a circle, turning cartwheels and whooping. Mushrooms sprang up where he danced, and Kayley held biddy’s hand tighter so she wouldn’t join the mitmit. He landed back in front of the girls, who were standing there with their mouths open at his antics. He bowed and flourished his hat again. “Fair ladies!” he squeaked. “Pray, tell me thy names!” Kayley introduced herself and a giggling Biddy, and the mitmit smiled. “I am Calbhach. You may call me Calb,” he said.
“Pleased to meet you,” said Kayley politely.
“Calb,” practiced Biddy.
“Are you hungry?” offered Calb. Kayley had listened well to her aunt’s fairy tales, and politely refused. ‘There’s no telling what magic his food holds,’ she thought. “Have you lived here long, Calb?” she questioned.
He nodded absently. He then walked over to a nearby tree and patted it. It did nothing. He frowned and poked it repeatedly, saying, “Wake up, Selby. They’re all right. Their names for Midir’s sake!” Calb exclaimed. With a creak and a small moan, a face popped out from under the bark. A beautiful woman’s face frowned down at Calb, and her emerald eyes looked distressed.
“You should know better, Calb,” sighed the tree, in a very dignified and wise-sounding voice. Kayley let out a small “oh!” and Biddy squinted at her and mumbled, “Tree-lady.”
On hearing this, the face turned to Biddy and said, “I am not a tree, little one, but it’s guardian.”
“She’s a dryad, Biddy. She helps the tree,” explained Kayley. She introduced herself and her sister. Biddy had walked over and started to stroke the tree’s bark very gently.
“I am Selby of the oak tree,” she replied. A bigger groan than the last came out of her mouth, and she stepped fully out of the tree, making more creaking noises. She was tall and skinny, and her skin seemed to be of the type of polished wood Father’s chair had, Kayley noticed. The dryad wore a long dress made of leaves that made no sound, held up by knotted grass strands. Seeing this, Biddy yelled happily, ran off, and came back with Kayley’s own grass strands. She held them up to Selby, and the tree guardian took them with a small smile.
“Very nice, my dear,” she acknowledged as she took them. The grass strands crawled like caterpillars up the spirit’s palm and circled around her wrist to make a bracelet. “Thank you, girls,” she said.
“You’re quite welcome,” said Kayley, more out of habit than anything. The amount of magic being displayed was starting to overwhelm her. Biddy was humming to herself, taking it all in stride. Kayley took one of Biddy’s hands and held it, more to comfort herself than Biddy.
“You see? Perfect ladies,” sighed Calb happily. “And so pretty! Humans have always been my favorite!”
“Yes, they are nice enough,” Selby allowed. She bent down so she was eye-level with Kayley, and smiled gently. “Only this one- Biddy? - has a spot of dirt on her.”
“Oh no! Biddy!” cried Kayley. Mud had splotched on Biddy’s white dress, staining it. “What if Caden comes? You look a fright!” Biddy started to pout, and hung her head.
Calb bounded forward to inspect the dirt. “All she needs is a little water on it.” He looked to Selby. “Let’s take them to Mesi, shall we?”
Selby looked at them both a long minute, then nodded. “So long as they promise to tell no one of us. Any of us,” she stressed. After both children had promised, Selby stood and offered each girl one of her hands. Biddy happily accepted, and Kayley, after only a moment of worrying about splinters, did too. Selby turned to her oak and murmured a foreign-sounding word. She then turned to Calb and said, “Lead the way, Master Mitmit.”
With another cap flourish and a flip, Calb began to march deeper into the woods in a most comical way. Biddy giggled and began to kick her legs high like him as she walked. On the way, Kayley told Selby (who reminded the young girl somewhat of Aunt Brigid) about Caden and his distressingly late arrival. Selby assured her, repeating much of what Aunt Brigid had said last evening.
“He’ll be here today, young one. You shouldn’t worry so much.”
Kayley frowned, and spoke up. “How do you know, Selby?” She instantly regretted her rudeness, but Selby only smiled and stayed silent.
After a bit, when Mother’s garden was completely out of sight, Calb stopped near a small pond. He bowed towards the girls and Selby, and outstretched his arms in the direction of the pond, as if to present something. All Kayley could see was a tiny, dirty pond.
He then straightened and gently swept a finger across the surface of the water. After he had swished it a few times, he stepped back respectfully. The ripples he had caused grew more pronounced until they resembled small waves. Instead of going towards the shore, however, they were moving towards the spot where Calb had touched the water with his finger.
All of a sudden, when Kayley thought the pond looked like boiling water, but emitted no steam, the crown of a head appeared, as white as a lily. A blue face followed that, and then slender blue shoulders. Translucent wings came attached to the back, and shiny blue limbs were attached to the slender female body. The water sprite shook the water from her bangs, and spread her wings. Water fell from the wings in diamond-like dots, and the mud shied away from her feet where she stepped underwater to make the pond crystal-clear. Even Biddy was quiet at this spectacle. The wet eyelids opened to reveal eyes as gray as the ocean next to Ahern summer home. She looked around at the group, the eyes widening a little at the human girls.
Calb took a step forward and bowed, extending a leg and taking off his cap. “”Lady Mesi, we have come to request your assistance in an emergency.” Kayley stepped forward and curtsied.
“My sister needs help cleaning off her dress so she looks clean for when our brother arrives, which may be at any moment. I hope we didn’t disturb you,” she added, thinking that it was a bit much, asking someone so mystifying to come to clean a child’s dress.
But the sprite merely bent down, putting her weight on her knees. She looked Biddy in the eyes, and asked (in a voice that made Kayley think of a brook), “And your name, precious?”
Biddy bowed in a way similar to the mitmit’s, and answered, “Biddy.”
The sprite smiled, revealing teeth the color of washed pearls, and kissed Biddy’s forehead. The toddler shivered and grinned. Mesi touched the dirty spot, and the dress was immediately clean.
She then turned to Kayley, still smiling. “It was no trouble, girl. Selby and Calb brought you by to show you off more than anything.” When she said the dryad’s name, she nodded to her. The dryad nodded back. Kayley couldn’t keep the furrowed brow off her face. She couldn’t place what kind of fae Mesi was, and it was bothering her. Mesi seemed to know, and laughed at the face Kayley was making. “Few have heard of my kind, and fewer still believe in me today. I’m an asrai. Tell your children stories of me, and your grandchildren. I miss it.” She said this with a bit of a wistful look, and Kayley grew more curious.
“Madame, what-what type of stories should I tell?” she prompted. Mesi laughed again, and flew over to a rock in the next to the pond shore, under a tree. Selby sat down next to the roots of it, and leaned against the trunk. Calb grinned ear-to-ear (which was saying something), and took the girls by the hand and sat down with them.
“Well, asrai were formed when goddess Midir cried for the first time. We were made out of her magic tears…”

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A few stories and five hours later, the sisters stepped out of the woods smiling like cherubs. Mesi had told the girls enough stories to last all winter around the fireplace. They had both promised the spirits they would visit again, and promised Calb they would bring him a small  human toy next time. They entered the house and looked for their Aunt Brigid to tell them what they had seen, but she was nowhere to be seen. They ran into the drawing room, thinking she was on the piano, but the only one there was a strange man.
“Excuse me sir, but have you seen my father, or my Aunt Brigid?” The man turned to look at her, and Kayley gasped. He had Caden’s eyes and father’s pocket watch, but everything else about him was too big to be Caden. Biddy immediately recognized his eyes and ran to her older brother with a laugh. Mother and Father came in from Father’s study and smiled at the children’s’ reunion. Aunt Brigid came in from the nursery huffing.
“You two! I have been looking everywhere!” At the warming sight in front of her, though, she stopped her scolding and allowed herself a little smile.
Caden noticed his sister’s seriousness, and looked at her honestly. “I’m very sorry I was late, Miss Kay. My carriage driver got us lost as I was taking a nap coming home. Please don’t be mad.” Kayley just smiled and kissed his cheek.
Brady brought in the afternoon tea, and Aunt Brigid took a glass of water. She had begun to remove her gloves when Kayley spoke up. “Actually, Aunt Brigid, if you don’t mind, I’d like to tell a small story.” Aunt Brigid gave her an interested look, but passed Kayley her water glass with great ceremony.
Kayley nodded her thanks and cleared her throat. “Asrai were formed when the fairy goddess Midir cried for the first time. They were made out of her magic tears…”
Whew, je suis fatigue. OK, this was for [link] for her fairy fic contest. Check out her pics, they're good! Plus, it'll give you visuals for the creatures in my story. My first contest entry! :dance:
A few notes on it: I went into detail about the origins of the character's names. Calbhach means bald in Gaelic :D Guess what nationality they all are. I recommend [link]. The lullaby is a real Irish folksong.
If anyone knows why Kayley wouldn't let Biddy dance with Calb, they get a cookie (a real one if I hang out with me! ;))
Otherwise, I hope you like it!
© 2007 - 2024 WaterKitty73
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