Category: Granny Flare

He has arrived...

10/4/2023

"He's Coming! He's Coming!" shouted Meen, the little Pkysee, as she hopped in front of the Village's Council members who were meeting in the Village Council Chamber. "He is coming up the road and should be arriving soon Queen Ffion," Meen said as she stuck her head back out the door to keep watching as she had been told to do. Of course this announcement started all the members talking all at once and staring at each other.

"What are we to do now?" replied one member followed by "What do you think he will look like?" from another council member.

In the middle of all this chaotic noise, Fiddlefaddle leaned over towards the Baron. Being the Baron's all around handy man and procurator of travel arrangements he quietly asked, "Do you know where he will be staying since we don't have what the Outies call a hotel here in our small village?"

With that small question, the noise stopped instantly in the council chamber that one could have heard a pin drop if one was listening for that pin. Finally, Nemmer was the one who broke the silence. "There is a room over at the Rusty Nail Pub. I was just there this past week with my fellow archers and I am sure I heard the owner mention he had a spare room available." Which of course set up another flow of highly opinionated views on that suggestion.

"Well there is the Blue Bird Breakfast & Bed place outside of the Village," suggested Effem. "It's not too far to walk and I hear the rooms are fairly clean." Granny Flare, upon hearing the comment about how clean the place was just smirked and shook her head.

"No, I don't think that is a good idea," replied Awena. "I walked by there on my way to the council meeting and heard that the little old lady that owns the place just picked up a set of Peerrots (in the Outie world would be known as parrots) that squeal 'Rise & Shine and Git Out' every morning now. I don't think we want our guest to think we don't want him here," continued Awena.

At that moment a golden coach pulled up in front of the Village Council's building. All the members stood in anticipation for the Herald to exit the coach. As he did he simple stepped down, gave everyone a cold look, paid the coach driver, and then turned towards the center of the Village as if looking for something. He then proceeded to walk off and left without a word of acknowledgement or greeting as the coach departed in the opposite direction.

So, just like the Pied Piper in tales of old, the Herald continued walking down the center of the small village neither looking left nor right with the Council members (now with a few curious villagers who were wondering where the parade was going and what was it for) all following behind him. Little did they know that Aralt was focusing on the ley lines of the area. He could feel them and though it had been many many years since being here, especially without the Dragons to feed them, the lines were still here, though very faint.

It was taking all of his concentration and with the slight glow appearing in his locket, he soon could feel the pull where the ley lines crossed and where he needed to go from there. For he now knew where he was and the location of the place he was looking for. As he continued walking, soon it became evident to those following as to where he was going. Walking behind him Queen Ffion indignantly muttered, "Well I never!"

"If he thinks he is staying at my castle without an invitation or greeting, I don't think so!" Ffion growled to herself as the crowd all turned towards the Shadows' Queen castle.

They all continued walking down the road like a gaggle of geese following the Herald's lead as he walked into the courtyard of the Shadows' Queen's castle and proceeded to the back upper garden where several of those following soon realized it was the same garden where the young Wish Dragon had transformed into a Moon Dragon. Aralt then went past the waterfalls (that covered the entrance to the secret cave that held the Dragon tablet recently taken by a Borrower) towards a wall covered with bramble vines that grow only in a darker corner of the garden. With his arms raised and the stone in the locket glowing that he always carried with him, Aralt spoke. " Rise to the left. Shift to the right. Reveal these doors to my Sight."

Magically the brambles began to pull to the left with some shifting to the right, soon a massive stone door appeared that slowly opened for him. Apparently, by everyone's stunned reaction, Aralt realized that most of these simple people didn't know about the Dragons' Cave below. He finally decided to address the crowd of followers and turned to face them. "Excuse me. This is where I'll be staying. It has been a long day. I will meet with you tomorrow," and with that walked through the now open doorway with them shutting behind him. All the villagers stood there stunned with their mouths hanging open, wondering just what had happen.

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Gathering the Facts...

9/27/2023

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With the information that Ffion and Dulbbe had received, everyone realized that it was time to meet and discuss what was to be done. It was quickly decided to hold the meeting at the Shadows' Realm castle since both Ffion and Dulbbe were already there and it might be helpful for everyone to have the Dragon orb available if any more questions might come up. Soon the council was all there to include the one whom any decision that came out of this meeting would most affect - Dree, the new Moon Dragon.

Griselda then spoke up saying "We have learned something about our past. We now are aware who Aralt is and I have told you of my experience with the magical scroll and of the forming of the Wish Dragon clan by Aralt. It wasn't the family nurturing clan I grew up in that's for sure. Who knew that the clan originally was created to control the Dragons more than to work with them," the Dowager said shaking her head slightly side to side as she remembered her vision of that council meeting.

Tattoo of the Wish Clan worn by clan members

"We have also heard from King Dulbbe and Queen Ffion about the potential dangers of a ruling Wish Dragon according to the past stories of the She-Dragon," finished Griselda.

Everyone looked at each other, waiting to see if someone would start the conversation they all knew had to happen. It was Awena who began. "We need to create a plan to minimize the chaos of the arrival of the Herald and the Dragon's return. I have searched the records of the Sleeping Sisters and have found nothing that will aid us in this problem. The only ancient text or prophesy that was discovered is extremely vague. The most we can confirm is that all realms are in danger if the Dragon's are no more and the game is lost. We have not found out what is meant by 'this game of power' nor what would make all of the Dragons disappear," she said and sat down on one of the many chairs in the audience chamber.

"You have all heard what we have found out about the returning Dragons. Do you have any further questions of the Dragon orb?" Griselda asked the others. "If not - then now is the time we must decide what we can do. The one major question we cannot answer is does Aralt know we now have a Moon Dragon here in the Realms?" What do you think of this Dree?" finished Griselda as all turned to look at the young Moon Dragon.

Dree was totally caught off guard. He had been listening to everyone's discoveries and was picturing in his mind what the other Dragons would look like and how they would act, but he had not been following the Dowager's final comments. So with a startled look he realized everyone was staring at him and waiting for his comments.

After a few gulps, he finally started to speak. "Excuse me for not paying attention at everything that has been said here, but I have been listening and thinking. I understand both from your discoveries of the Orb and from the reading I have been doing from some books that Granny Flare gave to me what it meant to be a Wish Dragon. I am just now getting my wings under me in trying to find out what a Moon Dragon may be. I am hoping this Herald can help me discover what it is that I am supposed to do," he said. Taking a slow breath Dree continued, "But, I also know that he is a stranger to me while all of you are my family. I may be a Dragon, and formerly of the Wish Dragon Clan, but you have all raised me and have helped me become what I am now so you are my clan too. I do not know if there is anything I can do to prepare for the coming of my kin, but I do feel that I should learn all that I can to be prepared for their arrival," Dree told the others.

"Dree, you are part of our family too," answered Efem as she walked over to him and squeezed his hand. "After talking to the trees in the Sacred Grove, I now have gotten to the root of what they were trying to tell me. It is this, you can prepare all you want, but when the game of power starts, all you can do is play along and hope you know the rules. We will help you all that we can, but in the end, it will be your decision as to what will happen. I am sorry to have to put all of that burden upon you, but I believe that you are up to the task and we will all support you."

Everyone in the room stood and bowed to the young Moon Dragon to show him their support. It was almost too much for the Dragon, but he finally did look back at them all and said a simple "Thank you."

It was then that the Goodie Sisters and Parsley entered the chamber and announced that the meal they had been preparing was ready... was anyone hungry? Dree started laughing and said "No, I'm Dree now - but I am still Hungry!"

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It is Hot out there...

7/26/2023

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The Realm of Wymsy is in the middle of a heat wave. With the Dragons returning, things have been heating up. Everyone knew that with their return everything was going to be one really hot sticky mess and the Villagers are trying to get through it the best way that they can. Which made me, Augustus (AKA Snoop, the editor of the local newspaper, the Bellwether) realize that there was a story here.

As I went out of my office to see how the villagers were dealing with this unusual heat wave, I spied Gardner, the garden Brownie. He of course was sitting in the shade of a tree taking a nap in his wheelbarrow. What was his secret? He popped open one eye when I noticed that he seemed to be very comfortable. "It's getting the dirt wet first in the barrow before laying on it," Gardner replied to my question. "I get dirty in my job either way, but this way I stay cool," he continued with a wink.

Knowing that this method would definitely not work with Granny Flare who is always clean and tidy, I decided to see how she was handling the weather. Dropping over to her cottage she invited me in. "Whoooo! This is like a blast furnace in here!" I shockingly shouted to Granny. She had every oven in her small home on and was cooking up a storm. "Why in this heat Granny Flare?" I asked and she just looked at me funny. "I really hadn't noticed," she replied. "I am busy preparing cookies for the local bake sale to raise money for a local charity."

I am not called Snoop for nothing as I realized this could be another story for the newspaper. Granny then started to tell me about a frog family that has lost it's lily pad. She was trying to help them move into a tree stump by the river by raising funds to make sure their new home would be safe and secure. "Especially by flooding," she told me as I was leaving. But I couldn't leave until I knew her secret in staying cool in this heat as she certainly looked tidy. She too winked at me and said "My secret? I spray it on first thing in the morning and it keeps me cool and comfortable." Not wanting to get more details in her grooming technique, I left it at that for if I stayed another five minutes by her ovens I might be the next heat victim

Thinking of what Granny had told me about this poor frog family, I decided to check out the river. Would anyone be down at the local swimming hole trying to keep cool? When I got there, it was empty. Not a person in site, but when I put my foot into the water I understood why. Even that was hot! Out of the corner of my eye I did see Meen, the Pyksee, bouncing from toadstool to toadstool in a nearby meadow but she disappeared before I could talk to her about how she was staying cool.

By this time I decided to head back to the village when I was surprised to see Hir'aeth, the Gooblin King, out of his cave. He had apparently been visiting someone at the village from the direction he was coming. At first I was going to ask him how he was keeping cool, especially since Gooblin's are sensitive to the sun then I discovered his secret myself. He had his mechanical bird, Rave, flying over him with a bucket of water with small holes in the bottom. He was getting a small gentle rain falling on him to stay cool just like a summer shower.

"We should all have something like that!" I realized. "Instead of sitting in a tub of water, we could have cold water poured into a bucket with a bunch of holes in the bottom and have it drip down. I'll call it a 'shower'. This is brilliant!"

Snoop then rushed off to Ironmonger's Hammer and Spike shop to pick up his bucket list of supplies to build his own 'shower' to keep cool.

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VMP Arrivals...

5/16/2023

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As Snoop quietly snuck across the street and into the alley beside the council chamber, he could now see clearer through the window. There she was, Granny Flare, and she was doing the cleaning.

At first he thought she was sweeping with her broom, but realized that she was actually holding a Dusty Myte and pointing it towards the floor as it was sucking in the dust.

It was that new style of cleaning she had shown to some of the other house Brownies at her last convention that he had written about. She called it 'vak-u-ming' (whatever that was). "It will never replace the broom," Snoop thought as he continued watching her clean. "There must be a meeting going to happen today," he realized when he also saw the brewing tea pot and cookies. "There sure are a lot of cookies and cups, so it must be for a full council meeting. Maybe even some VMPs (Very Magical Persons) " Snoop muttered to himself.

Since he knew all of the best hiding places to observe the towns people, he soon was sitting comfortably in an old chair outside of the Hicaberry Tea Shop. Here he could sit at one of the best places for a cup of tea and could watch the council chamber too as he hid in the shadows of the eaves. Snoop had long ago set aside a small expense budget for just this purpose because the Tea Shop made him buy something when he just sat on their porch and watched things happening.

"At least the tea is better than what I brew at the Bellwether," Snoop thought while he slowly sipped a little. "I might have to make this cup last a long time since it doesn't appear that anyone has arrived yet but Granny Flare."

It was then that he noticed the troll. It was Dulbbe, the new King of the Trolls, and standing besides him was Drat. "Where did they come from," he wondered. "They had not been there a minute ago." Listening closely as he leaned over slightly (another reason he had picked this spot), he could just barely hear Dulbbe talking to Drat.

"You were right," Dulbbe said to Drat. "It was uncomfortable besides being dirty too. I don't want to have to use that route again unless we absolutely have too. I mean, I can usually see well in the dark, but not in that pitch black hole you took me through. I don't know how you did it because I could not see my hand in front of my face! And don't tell me what was making that sound when were were walking around down there... I don't even what to know who or what it was," Dulbbe finished with a shudder as he brushed his clothes with his hands.

"Sorry Sire, but you did say you wanted to get here fast," Drat answered (but not before Snoop noticed that the rat had answered with a small smile on his lips). Still smiling, Drat stepped aside and motioned for his King to enter the council chamber first as he followed.

"Interesting," thought Snoop. "I wonder who else will appear." Just as he said that, the coach with Queen Ffion pulled up being pulled by no less than four Nytemares. "She must have been in a hurry," he decided. "This must be important!"

As Snoop continued to sip on his tea, he was able to observe several more arrivals for the meeting. There was Hewy, Hir'aeth the Gooblin King, the Goodie sisters, Awena from the Sleeping Sisters, the Baron and his mother the Dowager, and even Dewin the Wizard. All VMPs indeed! It was the last guest that appeared the made Snoop realize that he had to get into the meeting somehow. It was that young Wish Dragon who had transformed into a Moon Dragon, Drai'ochtluan. "I am glad that he likes to go by 'Dree' for short," Snoop sighed to himself. "I would have to look up the spelling every time I want to write it down."

As Snoop was trying to figure out some means of getting into the council chamber, he did not notice that a Pyksee had been sneaking up behind him until she pulled on his sleeve, making him jump several inches into the air. It was Meen, the new Queen's minion. "Don't do that," he told her. "You made me jump."

Not realizing that Snoop meant it as a bad thing because she liked to jump everywhere, she shrugged his comment off and pulled on his sleeve again. When she thought she had his full attention, she delivered the message she was sent out with. "The Council asks if you would join them in the council chamber. They said they did not want to start without you."

Snoop was flabbergasted... how did they know that is exactly where he wanted to be?

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Snail mail is fine but...

4/19/2023

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The average 'Outie' (humans outside the Realm) having a message delivered by postal service is common and not something special. But here in the Realm of Wymsy it seems that everyone has their own special means to get 'the message' out. The Sleeping Sisters have the Petal Post, Queen Ffion now has the Nytemares while Parsley has the Mushroom Line, and Cornelia & Efem has the Bee-Gs.

There is even a local newspaper called the Bellwether that is ran by some crazy newspaper editor called 'Snoop'. But the Dowager Griselda has something truly unique as they are created from wishes. They are the Flutterbys. Which is why she is using them to call out the council for an emergency session as she wishes everyone there.

Silently a Flutterby drifts into the castle window and lands on the single rose left in the vase near the window. Ffion had placed it there in remembrance of her father, the Shadows' King, who had recently vanished when the Wish Dragon transformed into a Moon Dragon. Ffion has had so much to do since then that she is still trying to figure out what it all was about. She has barely been able to keep up with the messages coming in from her new subjects.

Between finding out she was a Nyte Shade and now the Queen of the Shadows' Realm, she still is trying to get her priorities established. "There is so much that I have to learn and so little time in a day," she thought to herself as she sat at her desk reading some of the material left to her by Awena. As Ffion started to turn a page, she noticed the Flutterby on the rose and smiled. She gazed on it warmly as she knew that it must be from her counselor, Griselda. Before she could even acknowledge it, the Flutterby proceeded to tell her about the emergency meeting to be held at the Village on the Wall council room. "The Dowager would never tell me 'Now' if it wasn't an emergency," Ffion thought to herself. She immediately sent for Scarlet to ready her coach with the Nytemares. They would get her there in a flash.

As Ffion's message was being delivered, another Flutterby was floating into the Troll King's receiving chamber. The others there did not notice, but Drat, the old king's minion, immediately saw the Flutterby and figured that it was important. Since Drat had just recently became the new king's Chief Counselor with great perks, he didn't want to have the new king miss this message.

"Sire. I suggest that you take a break from the tediousness of your new duties and possibly retire to your chambers," Drat told King Dulbbe. At first Dulbbe only stared at Drat, but quickly he realized that Drat had something to tell him. "An outstanding idea," Dulbbe replied as he stood and preceded his counselor to his private chambers. Once inside and the door was closed, the appearance of decorum quickly disappeared. Dulbbe turned to Drat and asked, "What did I do wrong now? This being King business is a lot harder than being an accountant."

"Sire, you are doing fine. Except, maybe you might want to consider growling at your subjects a little more often. It is good to keep them concerned that you might do something to them. It seemed to work wonders for your predecessor," answered Drat. "But that is not why I suggested you adjourn. As you were speaking a Flutterby arrived from the Dowager."

It was then Dulbbe realized that the Flutterby had flown into his chambers when they entered and was now sitting on his shoulder. Quickly it whispered Griselda's message. "The Dowager is calling an emergency meeting of the council," the King told Drat. "Any suggestions on how to get there fast?" Drat only smiled and said, "You aren't going to like this as it is not too comfortable... but we have secret ways..."

As the Flutterbys continue to deliver their message, finally one arrives at Granny Flare's cottage as she was looking up in her magical cook book on How to Rid a House of Dust Bunnies. House Brownies never would have dust in their homes unless they put it there themselves to have something to clean or they were invaded by these rasky rabbitz!

As the Flutterby tells Granny the message, she slowly closes her cookbook. "If this meeting is what I think it is, then everyone there will need something to eat. I have never known Griselda to hold a short meeting," she ponders. "I should also probably bring that old Dragon book I got from Atian's library before he left on his trip. It will be needed I am thinking."

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Cooking with a PEE - C!

12/8/2020

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"Yep! The holidays are going to be soon here so I had better get busy with my cooking," thought Granny Flare. There is nothing better that this special little house Brownie enjoyed more than cooking for the holidays - other than maybe cooking with friends. But this year was different and Granny couldn't get together like she would have in the past. "I wish the gang and I were doing this together. There must be someway that could happen," she grumbled to herself.

That is when a message was delivered by a Bee G. It was Bee Glad who had showed up with a message from Parsley. Granny listened with interest as how the little Bee G explained that Parsley had found a new "Outie" tool called a PEE-C that was faster than the Mushroom Line and almost like opening a magical portal. Parsley was going to send one over today as she picked up a few for her friends. Now this was interesting!!!

As Granny continued to listen she found that when her PEE-C arrived, she was going to need to connect to something called a Zoom. There she would find a portal where she could cook and talk with Parsley just like she was in her kitchen.

After the PEE-C arrived Granny was glad she had listened to the instructions that Bee Glad had given her as she was soon connecting to this Zoom portal. Before you could say "Twitter Bird", Parsley was talking to Granny just like magic.

They were both so excited that they had this new toy to play with that they almost forgot that they had things to bake. That was until Sprout walked into Parsley's kitchen asking what was for dinner.

So, as Granny and Parsley dive into their cook books and herbs, let me share a recipe or two from them for this holiday season.

And if you haven't tried the gluten and dairy free pumpkin pies... click on this link to go there -
GLUTEN & DAIRY FREE PUMPKIN PIE RECIPIE (oops - Recipe)

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Letters from the Lovelorn Ladies...

1/27/2020

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In all affairs of the heart, the Bellwether likes to pride itself as an equal opportunist for those that wish to express themselves in the language of Love.
As such, this week's edition of the Bellwether is devoted to the Ladies.

Who will be brave enough to come forth in their adventure of looking for Love?

My Roots Run Deep...
Don't hide your light under a bush. Are you someone I can grow closer to? If so, then long walks along the garden path and dancing in the moonlight are just the things that will bring out my glow of happiness. Meet me at the Entrance of the Sacred Grove at the next Full Moon to see if we are kindred souls.
P.S. Must love cats and Giggle Juiceberry cookies.
~~Share with me the beauty of nature,
 Efem, Tree Mother of the Sacred Grove

Come Sweep Me Off My Feet...
I am a homebody at heart and looking for someone to share the hearth with. We will spend magical evenings lounging by a spotless fireplace. Or if being well stuffed after one of my dinners in a well-scrubbed kitchen is more your idea of romance, I have been known to whip up something delightful in a moment's notice.
A game of matching the last sock out of the wash is one of my all time favorite matchmaking games.
Dust the negativity out of your life with me,
Granny Flare, House Brownie

Do You Believe...
As a Dowager, I excel at ruling over a large table of guests, but nothing warms my heart more than a lovely intimate dinner for two. If good food prepared by the best Brownie cook with stimulating conversation and dragon flames glowing in the sconces on the castle walls; followed up by a tasty dessert is your type of wish for a Valentine evening then *RSVP below.

(*RSVP - Reserve Seating with a Very special Person)
In friendship,
Griselda, the Dowager

Valentines Day is coming and love is floating in the air - who else will cupids arrows strike? One of the few immune to this Valentines Day holiday is Sprout. He can't figure out what all the hallaboo is about with squirrely giggles and fluttering butterfly kisses. So where is he? Parsley still has not found that boy...

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Hidden in a message...

5/24/2018

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"Terrific! I got you back before Granny even knew you were gone. Hungry, I am getting out of here before she shows up", whispered Meen. "See you later, and you better stay inside or Granny will get annoyed and you know what that means. No sweets!"

Hungry watched Meen as she scampered out of the cave.

"No sweets?" But I like sweets," Hungry growled.

"Hungry! Where have you been? I have been looking high and low for you. You know you aren't to leave this cave! Do you want someone to see you?" Granny Flare shouts, pointing her finger at the little Dragon. "Do you know what would happen if anyone saw you?"

"No, what would happen?" he asks. "Would they feed me?" Granny could tell, this was not going to be easy raising a baby Dragon.

Meanwhile, as the Baron was starting to settle down on a chair in the parlor, he thought he heard voices. "What's this? Hearing voices at my age? I'm not that old!" he mumbled to himself. "Now I am talking to myself... Fiddlefaddle, where are you?"

The faithful batman was just finishing unlocking more doors when he heard his name called. "Now what?" he thought, "I haven't even been able to put away the luggage."

Entering the parlor, he sees the Baron sitting near the fireplace.

"Fiddlefaddle, we need to check out the Mansion." says the Baron. "I am hearing voices."

Turning around to do as the Baron asked, Fiddlefaddle notices the letter on the mantle. "It appears a message has been left for you." Taking the message from the mantle, he hands it to the Baron as he reads the cover. "It is from your granddaughter, Dragonia."

"I wonder what she has been doing?" thought the Baron. Opening the letter, he starts to read.

Did you see the hidden message? --- Dragon below mansion in cave

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A Dragon's Secret

2/22/2018

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The Shadow King Hears a Rumor...

2/11/2018

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“The King must hear about this,” thought Meen excitedly. “If Atian didn’t have the best jumping mushrooms around his cottage to jump over, I would have never heard him and Granny.”

As Meen rushed back to the Shadows' Realm, jumping over mushrooms, logs, and frogs in her hurry to report to the King, she could still hear Granny telling Atian not to yell at her. “Of course Dragons could talk – doesn’t everything talk?” Meen asked herself. “If frogs and fish can talk, why not a Dragon?”

Shortly Meen was through the edges of the forest and starting into the deeper, darker, parts of the woods. This is where the sun could only come through the tree tops as small beams of light and wisps. The Shadows lived here and the bright strain of sunlight was never very strong. “Ah, home!” smiled Meen. It was nice to play tag with the sun beams as they poked out, but she preferred to stay hidden in the shadows.

“Okay, slow down, catch your breath… breathe…” she told herself before entering the Shadows' King's Receiving Hall. “Oh how I can't wait to tell him everything,” she mumbled to herself.

“Tell me what Meen?” asked Hunter, the Shadows's King of the Shadows' Realm. Startled, Meen prostrated herself before her liege. “Arise Meen. You know I do not like that! Get up!”

“My Liege, I have wondrous news. Granny Flare and Atian have a baby!”

Hunter looked at Meen, raised one eyebrow and tipped his head down to look at her, and waited for Meen to say more. When Meen just stood there smiling, Hunter asked again “Let me get this right, you are telling me that Atian and Granny Flare have a baby?”

Meen jumped up and down, clapping her hands together and smiling while nodding her head in the affirmative. “They were talking really loud about it to each other outside of his cottage. I was hopping mushrooms when I came up on Snoop who was there listening too. They were yelling about the baby and who on the council would they tell first.”

“I will have to see this! They must be very excited. Thank you Meen. As he turns to leave he thinks to himself..." I did not even know they were seeing each other, or is the correct term dating each other, let alone now having a baby!"