The Bakery was always short of help and when Lil’ Boots offered to help out in return for meals, they quickly accepted. “What do I need sheckles for anyway?” Lil’ Boots thought. “I would only spend it here on food.”
“He would leave just as I was starting to eat,” grumbled Lil’ Boots as he stuffed most of his meal into his satchel. “No sense wasting it,” he reasoned as he started munching on one of the sweets that he normally saved for dessert. Staying far behind the Herald, Lil’ Boots watched him walk through the Village, stop at a few of the shops, and then begin walking towards an area that Lil’ Boots knew had a lot of caves. It took all of his skills, but he did not think that Aralt had noticed him as the Herald entered one of the caves. “Do I or don’t I?” thought Lil’ Boots. Deciding that he had already come this far, he was going to at least try to see further into the cave before leaving. As he snuck closer to the entrance, he could see a bright glow just inside. It was a huge Dragon and she was blowing flames! “What do you mean that you haven’t found that little welp?” screamed Siate’ at the Herald. Lil’ Boots was impressed that Aralt didn’t even flinch as the Dragon spouted flames from her mouth and turned a large rock into a red-hot glowing crystal! When she finished, Aralt said, “I have searched the entire village, checked with the Wysps, and even had to endure pranks from the Pyksees, but no one has seen him.” “He is the key! I feel it. He must know something about taking away a Wish Dragon’s magic and I must know what it is before I establish myself as the Queen of Dragons,” growled Siate’ as she stared at the Herald for a time as neither said anything. “You will bring one of his friends here so that I may talk to them,” she finally decided. “Don’t take the Dowager or her son, the Baron, but someone that the villagers won’t notice is missing for a while.”
“As you wish,” was all he said as he left the cave not noticing that Lil’ Boots had seen and overheard all of the conversation and what now knew what Aralt was going to do.
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While as Lil' Boots walked this dirt path he had not traveled before, he saw two bobbing lights in the forest. "Someone out here?" he asked as the lights traveled closer. Hiding behind a large tree trunk, he waited to see who it might be. Soon two little fae could be seen carrying glowing lanterns and scanning the trail as if they were looking for something. Deciding they were probably not a threat, Lil' Boots moved out into the middle of the trail knowing that they should discover him soon. As the first lantern light touched him, the two fae stopped and the lights went instantly out leaving everyone in the dark. "Hello," said Lil' Boots. "I don't mean any harm. I am out looking for daisy petals for a friend. My name is Lil' Boots." As he heard some whispered conversation somewhere ahead of him, it wasn't long before the fae must have made a decision as the lanterns both came back on.
"We are Light Faeries," answered Hope. "It is what we do. We shine our lanterns to help shine out the light of hope." "Don't forget to mention the ray of Love too," butted in Graw. Looking at Lil' Boots, Graw continued, "Graw means love in the language of the faeries. I prefer to be called that instead of 'LOVE'," Graw nodded to Lil' Boots.
"Tell me more," replied Lil' Boots as it wasn't too long ago when he was in a place that he felt was without hope. Being held in the World of Whispers, he certainly could have use Hope's lantern then. It was then that Lil' Boots thought to share his tale with them. Several hours later (because time flies when faeries get together), and when the Light Faeries had heard Lil' Boots tale, Graw told him that he should follow his heart for this was that adventure that he had always wished for. "You will need a crystal to help light your way and to see the truth in what is before you," Graw told him as they gave Lil' Boots a crystal. It wasn't until Lil' Boots was almost back to the cave before he realized that he still had not picked the daisies that Allspice requested. "That's all right," he thought as he turned around to head back to the wild flower patch. "But this time I will use my compass to get me there and back faster so I can crawl into my cozy bed," he told himself. "From what the Light Fairies said, it sounds like this adventure has more to reveal and I'll be needing to get some sleep to be refreshed for it!" as he pulled the crystal from his satchel to light his way to the daisy patch.
Again, Lil' Boots could not answer. The whole problem started with Allspice making some comment about losing an hour now that it was spring time. "Maybe that's it!" thought Nutmegg as he remembered that Allspice had also said something about 'springing forward an hour'. "I got it," Nutmegg told Lil' Boots. "Spring took it!" It took a while before Lil' Boots answered because he tried and tried to see how Spring could just take an hour but none of his thoughts added up. "I don't see how Spring can just take an hour," he told Nutmegg. " I mean, why would it only take an hour when it could take a whole day? Spring already takes away the snow and starts turning some of the plants green, so why only take an hour?" Nutmegg, being the detective he liked to think of himself as being, decided that this mystery must have an answer somewhere. "We need to question others to see what they know," he told Lil' Boots as he started off to see if they could find someone else who may know the answer to the missing hour.
The frog took one long hop and landed just in front of them. "Hi. My name is Tad. How can I help? By the way, that's a nice compass. My friend Acorn has one just like it," said the frog. "Thanks," answered Lil' Boots. "We have a question and are wondering if you can help us. Just the other day we were told that everyone here lost an hour of time and we were wondering how that happens. Is it a one-time thing or does something like it happen often here in this realm?" Of all the things really hysterical, one of them is watching a frog laugh! Especially if they are trying not to because their eyes bulge out a little bit more... When he was able to, Tad finally caught a short breathe and told them about how the realm had a way of saving daylight to use later. "Some call it daylite savuns," Tad told them when he was finished with how the hour was not really taken, just sprung forward from the beginning of the day to the end of the day. "It's like magic that only happens from spring until winter so we can have more light in the evening instead of while we are asleep in the morning. We frogs know all about it. We call it 'springing forward'."
It was the sweet taste of honey and cinnamon that made him realize what he was doing. Taking only one bite and then re-wrapping the stick, he put the remainder back into his pocket. "Don't know where I will get anything like it again for a while," he reminded himself. Oh, but boy did that one bite taste good. Next he took out his compass. "I should throw this thing away or trade it since it doesn't work anymore," remembering that it just went in circles while he was in the World of Whispers. As he opened the lid and looked, he was surprised to see that the needle was no longer just spinning around and was now pointed to what it indicated was North. Taking it outside of the cave he decided to check it again just to make sure. "It is working," he told himself as he started to make plans. "I don't need to wait for those other two. I can get home myself. I can't be very far if my compass is working again and I don't even have to wait until morning. The moon is bright and I'm not afraid of the dark."
Sitting down on an old tree stump, he again reached for his Tinselly Zooty stick and this time stuffed the entire thing into his mouth. As he sat chewing, he heard a strange noise in one of the trees next to him. Looking around he did not see anything until he looked up and on one of the branches sat a large owl. "Are you lost?" Lil' Boots asked the owl. "Who" was the answer he got. "Well, I am if you aren't. My name is Lil' Boots and I come from a place far away and want to go home. Do you happen to know my friend Swifty the snail?" Again the response, "Who?" Lil' Boots just shook his head realizing that this bird might be just like the ones he knew. "You don't understand a word I am saying do you. Just like those dumb owls back home," he grumbled.
"And I sing and dance too," answered the owl, "but now I was going to get something to eat and if you can be civil, I will take you to the Sugar Plum Bakery where you can find something sweeter than that little stick you put in your mouth earlier." Feeling the hunger pains returning, Lil' Boots did his best bow to the owl and humbly said, "Please, oh Wise One, forgive an ignorant adventurer and lead the way!"
"As a Borrower, I would never had been invited into such a grand place like this," she knew. "As a Finder, the others actually want me around." It was a good feeling but with that feeling came a responsibility. Now others relied on her and asked her opinions and thoughts. "That is better and I like this feeling of being needed," she finally decided as her attention returned to what the others were talking about. "... and then Nutmegg told us that he would try to bring his leader, named Allspice, here to meet with you," Dree finished telling the Dowager and Baron. "That would be very good," Griselda answered. "Hopefully King Dulbbe and Queen Ffion will arrive before they do." Nodding his head, the Baron agreed with his mother. "Maybe this will give us another advantage over the Dragons," he said. "With Dree's Oracle and the help from SPICE, we might just be able to outmaneuver Siate' and her herald."
The others were looking over the Oracle and discussing what questions to ask it and what more could they learn from the Moon Dragon who created it. "I feel that we don't have much time before Siate' and Aralt do whatever they are planning," Dree told the others, "So I think we need to decide what questions to ask the Oracle otherwise we might end wasting a lot of time. As much as I would like to know my kin's past, we need to focus on what is happening now." The others agreed and as they continued their discussion, Fiddlefaddle entered the tea room with King Dulbbe and Queen Ffion. Shortly they were brought up to date on what was found in the Gooblin King's treasures and the meeting with Nutmegg. As Fiddlefaddle was refreshing the tea, the other guests arrived and were shown into the tea room.
"I am not sure I understand what might cause mis-enchantments as we did not have that problem when the Wish Dragon's were here before. We just had to watch how literal they could be was our problem with the Wish Dragons," the Dowager said. "If someone asked for a gold mine, they might find themselves in the middle of a mountain somewhere surrounded by gold but not able to return with it. What is a mis-enchantment?" she asked. "That is a good question, madam. Let me see if I can explain," answered Allspice. "With a mis-enchantment, a wish granted by the Wish Dragon may be successful but sometimes others in the area of where the wish was granted just up and disappear. We just recently recovered one of these victims who described the place he was transported to as the World of Whispers. Apparently it is a white glistening world that time does not hold. As Lil' Boots was there for a long time and never had to sleep or eat. Those trapped there could be heard but only as a whisper on the wind. We don't know why there are mis-enchantments, but we have found a way to bring them back. Sometimes when they return they are changed in some way but after visiting one of our Fae healers, they usually return to how they were before."
After the silence that followed the explanation, it was Drat and Dree who started laughing first. Soon the laughter was infectious and everyone was snickering. "Imagine, a burping Dragon," laughed Drat. "Now I know what to get you to drink the next time you start those bad knock, knock jokes," the rat said to Dree. When the laughter was contained, Dree spoke. "I think it is time to ask the Oracle our questions and now I think I know what to ask it," he said as he started to open the bag that held the magical trinket.
After all, why would a fairy need boots in the first place as we fly where ever we need to go. With these big boots I actually had to visit Dewin, the wizard, for him to cast a spell on them to stay on my feet when I did my take offs for flying. Before Dewin casted the spell he said he could see these were magical boots. I told him that the Silly Cat had said that too. The cat said, "Be careful for what you wish for as these boots are made to take you on adventures grander than you can imagine." Being a fairy that does sound kinda of exciting which is one reason why I accepted the boots.
Then he felt the tingle again. But this time before Lil' Boots had time to react he was surrounded in a glittery green glow - then he Poofed again!
The creature said "I am Nutmegg and I am here to help you. The World of Whispers is where those caught up in the Dragons' wishes go. That is where you have been." "But where am I now? This isn't my home," cried Lil' Boots. Nutmegg smiled and told him about how a Wish Dragon granting a wish had caught him through a mis-enchantment and flung him to the World of Whispers where those inside that mystical place could be heard but only like a small whisper on the wind. "The problem is that we could not see or find you and it took a Wish Dragon to bring you back," said Nutmegg. "You are now in the Realm of Wymsy and we will do all that we can to help you get to your home. But first, did you see others where you were and possibly my pet rock?"
"If we don't get at least one mis-enchanted return, then we are going to have to find something with a little more kick that makes these Dragons belch," he continued. Thinking about what that might be just made Allspice smile. "What indeed could we feed a Dragon to make him really burp and yet keep down the flames?" he asked Nutmegg but knew that he would not really get a useful answer. It was one of those discussions that always became more fanciful the more they passed it back and forth. "I was thinking of something the 'Outies' call Rootbeer. Supposedly it gives you lots of gas but I can't ever seem to find anyone who knows what roots to use."
"Let's see. After Aralt left, I decided to check out the area where Aralt said he first had met the Dragon named Dree. He had mentioned it was at the caves by the water. Since many of the caves here are by a stream or some small amount of water, that wasn't really helpful so I decided to choose what was the biggest body of water and start from there. Also my choice was a little bit based on if there were anyone else living nearby the caves. After meeting a couple of talkative Wysps who bragged about some of their 'good' deeds, I found that the Dragon was living in the caves near this small lake. These caves are also tucked back beneath a place they call the Baron's Mansion. I decided to check it out and spent a while searching through the caves. It is a good spot to hide as there are many tunnels leading to other locations and was hard to find where the young Dragon lived." Since Allspice did not ask any questions, Nutmegg continued. "Finally, I heard some talking and managed to follow the voices until I came across a large opening. There were a couple of privacy screens, a few piles of pillows, and a couple of large stacks of books. Sitting on the pillows was a large white rat and the Dragon I had been looking for. The Dragon and rat were talking about some meeting they needed to get back to. Apparently they were taking a break and now needed to go back to this Baron's Mansion to talk with some oracle." "That's terrific!" exclaimed Allspice. "Now we know where he is if needed before Aralt and Siate' find him. The question is, what do we do now?"
"Well boss, I kinda told them all about SPICE and the problems with Wish Dragons' wishes going bad. This seemed to bother the young Dragon a lot but I don't know why... Otherwise it seems they want to meet with you at the Baron's Mansion if you will come so they can talk with you. Whatcha think? Should we go?" asked Nutmegg. When Allspice told Nutmegg to do his detective work on the young Dragon, this was not what he had expected, but sometimes it is the unexpected that works out better than the plan... "Why not. Help me dampen the brewing fires and roll this barrel of Ambrosia over to the store room. Then you can take me to the Baron's Mansion and we will find out what they know. Maybe we will find the answer to how to take away a Wish Dragons ability to make wishes," Allspice answered as he started putting away his cooking utensils.
Faun decided to let the wind guide her to any nearby flower patch. So when the winds from the mountains brushed past her sensitive nose, she followed them to the Valley of the Caves. Normally the fauns did not travel to this valley as they don't really like being underground and can't see a reason to want to be. "Ugh - caves!" Faun thought as she traveled past the first of the caves in the mountain side. It was then that she caught a whiff of a daisy. "Theres one. Now to find it," she told herself. As she came around a group of large boulders and a few fallen trees, she spotted the daisy patch. Smiling to herself, she plucked a petal and slowly chewed on it before swallowing. "Just right," she thought as she pulled out her map of the valley and marked the spot for others to be able to find the patch.
"Ah... no. I thought they were wild and just need a few for something I am baking up for my friends. Is it okay if I have some?" Allspice asked the faun. The look that Allspice had as if he was a small child caught with his hand in the cookie jar made Faun laugh before she answered. "No, these are wild and are available to anyone. My name is Faun. Do you live near here?" Allspice smiled at the faun and also introduced himself. "I am Allspice and my kitchen is in that big cave over there," he told her as he pointed to one of the caves on the mountainside. Would you like to see my kitchen?" Faun just shuddered thinking of being underground so she politely declined. "Well, I must be getting back to my kitchen. It was a pleasure to meet you Faun," Allspice said as he started back to his cave while the faun watched him go. It was then that Faun noticed some other movement in the bushes near another cave. As she watched, there appeared a young Dragon! Now Faun had met Dree earlier and knew what the Dragon looked like. Then just as quickly she realized something. "That's not Dree!"
"Very good sir," Fiddlefaddle answered as he left the room while the others looked around the room to figure out where to sit. Dree went straight to the pile of pillows that the Dowager now left out for him when he visited, Drat sat in a chair closest to the doorway (as was his habit since he always was watching for escape routes), as Arnie nervously stood not knowing where she should sit as rarely was a 'Borrower' invited into such an elegant room. The Dowager had been watching her since they had entered the room and had quickly realized the situation. "Sit down here besides me dear," she told Arnie. "You are welcome in our home for you are one of our friends now." As Arnie warily moved to the indicated chair and began to sit, the Dowagers question really surprised her. Enough to make her stand back up!
When word gets out, I think you will be very busy." As Drat had been listening to the conversation (as again was his habit of eavesdropping which was one of the requirements of his job for the Troll King), he noticed a couple of small tears forming in the former Borrower's eyes before she sat down near the Dowager. The Dowager's question did not get an answer, but Arnie did say 'thank you' very quietly. "As we wait for the tea and snacks, who wants to tell us what happened with Hir'aeth?" asked the Baron as he looked over to address Drat. "By the way Drat, King Dulbbe has already told us about your mission and is on his way here to meet with you." Nodding his head in acknowledgement, the rat (as well as Arnie) both looked over at Dree to see if he would start. Feeling their gaze, the dragon smiled to himself and began the tale of their adventure. "Drat and I asked Arnie to join us as we figured having a professional 'finder' would improve our chances. It did and without her we may never have had an audience with the Gooblin King." As the tea and cookies arrived, Dree went on to tell of how they met with the King, was granted a favor by him for a favor to be repaid later, and the discovery of the 'scroll'. "Have you read the scroll?" asked the Baron when Dree was finished. "That is the problem," the Dragon replied. "It is not a scroll but a device that only I can hear when I ask it questions." Now that did surprise everyone since Dree had not told his traveling companions either. "You mean you have been talking to it since we found it," asked Drat. "Well... Yes and no. It talked to me when we entered the last treasure room with the Gooblin King. It was a voice that came to me telling me what to say to Hir'aeth. It wasn't until later that I realized that only I could hear it," answered the Wish Dragon. "I did not want you both to think I was going loony and talking to myself until I got the chance to figure what was going on." "And what have you figured out," asked the Dowager. It took a minute before Dree responded since he wanted to be precise but was still slightly reluctant to tell everyone everything since he was not sure about some of it himself. "It appears the device was made by the only other Moon Dragon to have existed. It was told to remember everything it had seen or heard from when it was with the Moon Dragon and after they were separated. I still don't know what happened to the other Moon Dragon and I have not had a chance to ask IT about by my kin who departed this realm," answered Dree.
"The landscape looks the same in all directions, so I have as much of a chance finding others or a way out no matter which direction I chose to go," he thought. "I am going to close my eyes, spin around in a circle and when I stop that would be the direction I will go," he decided. Planting the heel of one boot on the ground and starting his spin, he was reminded of how he got his name. "Lil' Boots indeed," he smiled at the memory. It had been during the time of the Wish Dragons when wishes had been granted willy nilly making strange things starting to happen. One day he had been sitting on a tree branch when out of no where a cat appeared. This was not an ordinary cat as it wore a tunic, carried a small sword, and had on a pair of large boots on its back feet! The little fae was used to cats walking on all fours, but this cat stood erect and walked like one of the Outies that had came to the realm. At first the cat was too distracted to notice the little fairy in the tree as it was wailing that it needed to get home to help his master, the 'Marquis of Carabas'.
"Hello," he said as he hovered over the unsuspecting cat. "Do you need help?" The startled cat looked all over but did not see anyone! "Where are you?" it asked. "Look up," was the reply he received. As the cat peered upwards, it was startled to find a fairy floating in the air over it's head. "I must have hit my head," the cat muttered to himself. "Do you need help?" the fae asked again. Back home, this cat was known to think fast and quickly realized that any help he could get was better than no help so it replied, "I need to get back to my master's castle before the ogre returns." "That's easy," answered the little fae as he held up the portal stone and told the cat to look through the hole and think about where it wanted to go. In an instant the cat could see the castle. "I see it, now what?" he asked the fae. "Just tell yourself that is where you want to be, but make sure that you pick the spot you want to appear or you might find yourself in a tree or pond," answered the fae. Before the cat disappeared though, he wanted to give the fae a gift. It was the cat's most precious possession... his boots. From that day forward, the little fae had picked his name. He was now Lil' Boots! As Lil' Boots stopped spinning, his mind was clearer and he realized that he was in the same predicament as the cat those many years ago. "Now to find someone who can help me get out of this place," thought Lil' Boots as he also wished he had not yet returned that portal stone to the Brownie who had lost it.
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GreetingsWelcome to my blog. This is where I will reveal the magic of my Fae and their stories and share with you some of the success and pitfalls through the journey of doll making, sculpting, and other crafts that all come back to my dolls in many ways. Archives
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