Day 6

Day 6
March 6th, 2009
30-Day Writing Challenge
Picture submitted by: Dr. Carl Bridges

 

The Axe-Wielding Fairy Princess

Princess Amihan was the pride and joy of the forest.  Tiny-- hardly bigger than three inches tall-- she nevertheless had an energy unmatched by any other fairy.  Both her hair and her eyes were as black as the night time, and just as the stars sparkled in the night sky, mischief sparkled in Amihan’s eyes.  She most enjoyed wearing a little dress made of ivy leaves, and a crown of watermeal flowers.  She would dip her hands in the pond and bring up a handful of the soaking watermeal flowers, and then lay them delicately on her head.  She wore this outfit most often because they matched her emerald-green wings, which weren’t big enough to carry her weight, yet.

One afternoon, Princess Amihan surveyed her kingdom from her very own throne.  Queen Divina had a bigger one, and much more magnificent, that Amihan would one day inherit.  She didn’t really look forward to it, because Queen Divina’s throne sat down on the forest floor, deep in the center of the woods, a hollowed-out stump that nature had carved most beautifully.  Flowers sprouted up around it, and the elves had laid all kinds of sparkling crystals around it.  Although the Queen’s throne ranked most magnificent, Amihan preferred the Princess throne, because it was softer. 

Princess Amihan’s throne sat high on a splendid pine tree, not far from the Queen’s throne.  Polypores climbed up the tree, providing a cushy staircase all the way up the trunk until they reached the branch that shaded the Queen’s throne.  At the point where the branch met the tree, a little hollow had formed, and here Princess Amihan had established her throne.  Several leaves provided a base, and on top of these, birds had donated feathers, and forest animals had provided some of the fur they had shed.  The throne provided such warm comfort, that Princess Amihan had been known to fall asleep in it.

This particular afternoon, Amihan was not asleep . . . yet.  Groggily, she directed her gaze toward the far end of the forest.  The east wind whispered little lullabies to her, crooning her to sleep.  Subtly, the music changed.  The east wind became agitated, and carried a new scent that Princess Amihal had never smelled before.   Suddenly, she felt quite awake.  She flicked her wings, craning to hear what other bits of information the east wind would carry to her.  It carried the sound of footsteps, much like fairy footsteps, but much, much bigger.  Curious, she hurried down her staircase to the bottom of her tree.  Quietly, she sneaked through the foliage until she reached the mysterious stranger.  She gasped.

He was a giant.  He towered what she calculated must be a full five feet above her.  He had a beard.  His shoulders were broad, as was his face.  Over his shoulder, he balanced a massive axe.  He stomped through the forest, examining the trees.  With growing alarm, Princess Amihal watched him come closer and closer to the center of the forest, and closer to her beloved pine tree.

He stopped in front of her pine tree, and Amihal held her breath.  What would he do?  He rand his hands up and down the trunk, grunting now and then.  He nodded, and Amihal watched in horror as he swung his axe around and aimed it at the bottom of the tree.

“NOOOOO!” she shouted.  A breeze rose up and pushed the giant’s hair aside.  He stopped, savoring the breeze, then readjusted his grip on the axe.  Panicked, Amihal yelled again.  This time, the breeze pushed harder against the giant.  Amihal felt something stir within her, and she took hold of it.  “Don’t touch my tree!” she screamed savagely.  This time, the east wind picked her up and blew her at a terrifying speed toward the giant.  She spread her wings and found that the wind held her up with them.  She charged at the giant, screaming.

She smacked against his hand.  He looked down at her curiously.  Only momentarily dazed, Amihal pulled from that power within her.  She wasn’t entirely sure how, but she managed to pull the axe out of his hand.  It felt strangely lightweight.  She pulled away from him and waved the axe at him.  “Don’t touch my pine tree,” she commanded.

Curiosity had quickly turned to fright for the giant, and he held his hands up.  “All right, all right.  I meant no harm.  I just wanted a tree for the Festival of Trees this evening in town.  Your tree looked so beautiful that I wanted it, but I’ll find another.”

Princess Amihal looked at him cautiously, still hovering with the axe.  “You celebrate trees by cutting them down?”

“Only one.”

Amihal lowered the axe, then held it with one hand.  With the other hand, she pointed a ways into the forest.  “You may have that one, as long as you use his wood for something that will last many years, when you have finished the Festival.”

The giant nodded.  “I will.”

Amihal nodded regally, and returned the axe to its owner.  “Take only what you need, and you’ll find that the earth is generous.”

He smiled.  “Thank-you, my Lady.  What’s your name, Lady, if I may ask?”

“I am Princess Amihal.”

***

Divina looked askance at her two-year-old daughter, who was delicately pummeling a sofa with a plastic axe.  “There’s gotta be something wrong with that,” she remarked.  “Amihal, give you brother his axe back!”

“She’s fine,” laughed Mona, Divina’s mother-in-law.  “She’s not even old enough to know that it’s a weapon.  I think it’s funny, especially since you dressed her up in that green fairy costume.”

“She reminds me a story my grandfather told me once,” mused Ted.