Chapter 4

"What day do you think it is today, Sister Iria? I get so confused, don't you? Isn't it a lovely sky!? Just look at the sun's glow!" The orangey fairy wings of little Sylvia, the "baby" of the Sisterhood for ages now, flitter into the garden grown inner sanctum of the Eixip fairy palace. She was glowing herself with the forever quizzical look in her big aquamarine eyes. She was filled with innocence and utter wonder.

The pastel green fairy who tended and cared for this garden, Iria, the fairy of all flora and plantlife within Eixip's grounds, looks up from her fingertips. She has been caressing her newest bed of vivid green leafed cabbuce. She smiles. Iria always had a fond spot for her younger sister and the curious questions on every little thing.

Perhaps that is because your heart is so big it truly does care about every little thing, Sylvia. Especially those tiny creatures you hold so dear.

Iria brushes her hand at her work-mussed hair, pushing it back as she gazes down at the small, furry squirmunk that Sylvia had brought in from the outside world. She released it to pitter-patter up to Iria's barefooted feet.

"And what are you doing in here, furry one?" Iria remarks. The smile was still unchanged on her face as she kneels down to it, scratching the furry squirmunk under it's billowy chin.

It chortles back in delight at her most tender fairy touch. Sylvia's giggles join in the merriment. She had a special connection to all animals, as she was the fairy of the fauna.

"That's a very good question, Sister. Sylvia, you know quite well that we are FORBIDDEN to go into the outside world. What would Mistress Sallie say if she knew you even stepped one foot out of Eixip?" The pastel blue fairy of good fortune casts a sky blue shadow over Sylvia. The poor girl shrinks behind Iria's protective stance. Her little squirmunk friend quickly follows suit.

"I'm sure Sylvia didn't leave Eixip, Middie. The creature just probably wandered in." Iria was quite used to covering for her youngest sister and though Middie too was less in rank than the elder Iria, the green fairy knew that Middie had an overpowering way of frightening little Sylvia into submission.

It wasn't that sister Middie was exactly mean-spirited or anything like that--it was just that she was so exacting and demanding that those things often covered her pure fairy heart's goodness.

Iria was sure Middie's hardness towards Sylvia was only out of love for her and fear of the outside world.

All of us fairies hold and have held, since the beginning, a profound and deep fear of the danger of what lies beyond Eixip's perfect and safe pearly shores, don't we? All of us, that is, except for...

Iria lets her nostalgic mind wander back to a time when this garden of hers was filled with the sweet sounds and songs of a fairy in pink--of the bosom friend she had shared everything with. The museful fairy of dreams who taught her not to fear her dreams and take hold of them...

Oh, Leia. I think maybe you should have feared your dreams. Iria shakes her head sadly.

She comes back into focus as the two sparring sisters before her continue their argument over allowing one tiny, little (he couldn't be more than 4 inches big in total) squirmunk into Eixip's sacred palace. Middie was stubbornly insisting that the "filthy" creature had to go back to the outside world he came from. But it escaped her hands at every grasp. Sylvia shielded her furry friend as much as she could until--

SLINK!

Down Middie's low-cut sky blue dress he unwittingly goes slipping down, down, down...

"GET IT OFF ME!!!" Middie's shrieks could be heard outside the garden realm of the palace. Sylvia's girlish laughter at her difficult sister's strictness and Iria too was unable to suppress the laughter at Middie's wriggling torment.

Sallie listens to their chattering until a sweet yellow vision skips out of the pillared front entrance over the water takes her attention away. The sweet humming song escaping the throat of yet one more of her small fairy family calms her entire soul with the enchantment and the purple beauty of the most purest of pure that was the fairy Cathrine...

She was the most special fairy amongst them. Haughty Middie would often not admit this fact and acted as her rival in all things.

They all knew however, from the start, that Cathrine was the fairy which every whimsical fantasy of beauty, kindness and love were blessed especially upon, destined long ago, waiting...