Mary Anne and the Fairy Part 1

Mary Anne was walking through the woods that backed onto the small cottage that she lived in with her mother and father, she liked to go into the woods so she could pick some of the different coloured flowers that grew only in this woods, she would enjoy sitting on the logs that lay around and watch all the animals that lived there as they played, her favourite animals were the rabbits they were always playing, and this made her laugh.

One day as Mary was watching two rabbits jumping up at each other she noticed something shinning in the long grass nearby, Mary stood up and walked across to the grass, lying there on the floor was a very small silver pendant, it was smaller than the finger nail on her little finger, on it she could just make out a picture of a very small fairy and on the back there was some writing again it was to small to read, maybe it was a name Mary thought but I would need a magnifying glass to read that she said.

As the time was getting on and it would soon be lunch time, Mary put the pendant in her pocket and started back to the cottage; she picked a few flowers on the way back to give to her mother and soon was soon sitting at the kitchen table eating her lunch.

As soon as Mary had finished her lunch she told her mother that she was going up to her room for a while and of she went up the stairs and into her room, she took the pendant out of her pocket and lay it on her bedside table, she then went across to the draw where she kept her pens, pencils and other things and took out a magnifying glass.

She went back to and sat on the edge of her bed and picked up the pendant, even with the magnifying glass it was hard to read the word on the back of the pendant, but slowly she managed to make out that the word said Snowdrop, Mary turned the pendant over and looked at the fairy picture through the magnifying glass, she saw that the fairy was dressed in a purple dress and her wings were a mixture of all the colours of the rainbow.

“I wonder who lost this” she said to herself ““they must be sad that they have lost such a beautiful pendant”, “but whoever owns this must be very small, if I was to put it around my neck you would hardly see it”, “that is if you could ever get a chain small enough to hold it”, “why you might just get one of my hairs through the hole. I have never seen a pendant so small”.

Mary put the pendant in a small box and put the box into one of her draws, I think I will go back to where I found the pendant and see if anyone is around or looking for it.

Soon she was back to where she had found the pendant; the rabbits were no longer there.

“I suppose they have gone back into their burrow” she thought.

Mary looked around and called “hello has anyone lost a pendant”, but she could see no-one and nobody called back.

Mary decided that she would have a look around and walked further into the woods, she walked for a while then realised that she had gone deeper into the woods than she ever had before and now she was lost, she had left the path that led back to the cottage and she wasn’t even sure which way she had walked.

“What am I going to do” she said to herself “I think that if I just walk back in a straight line I might get back to the path”.

So off she went walking as straight as she could, but that seemed to take her further into the woods, the trees thickened out and the sunlight was only just visible through the branches on the trees

Now Mary was getting really worried would she ever find her way home, or would anyone ever find her if they came looking for her, she turned around in circles trying to decide which way was the best to go, but everywhere she looked all she could see was tall trees and not a path in site.

Then Mary had an idea, in the afternoon the sun always down went over the top of the cottage and towards the fields at the back, she looked up and could just see the sun peeping through the branches behind her, that must be the way home she said and stared walking towards the sun, a couple of times a cloud would cover the sun and Mary would stop until the cloud had passed by the sun, she didn’t want to go a wrong way again.

Ahead Mary could see a wisp of smoke through the trees as they got thinner, soon she was back on the path and she could see the cottage in the distance, that was scary she thought I must be more careful next time I’m in these woods.

Nearby the rabbits were out playing again and she could hear a woodpecker tapping on the side of a nearby tree, a mouse was running towards the longer grass that stood at the side of the path, following it were three smaller mice, they must be a family said Mary and watched as they disappeared into the long grass.

The sun was now starting to go down and the night was starting to draw in so Mary decided that she would go home and look for whoever had lost the pendant the next day, but this time she would be more careful when walking thought the woods.

Soon Mary was home and relaxing by the fire, it was staring to get chilli at night and being curled up beside the fire while watching the television was what Mary liked, soon mother would call her for her dinner and after helping her mother to clear up after dinner, Mary would join her mother and father on the settee and either watch television if there was anything on that they liked, or they would just listen to music or play card games if not.

The evening soon passed and it was time for Mary to go to bed, she said goodnight to her mother and father and made her way upstairs to her bedroom.

She was soon fast asleep and dreaming of all the things she liked to do, some dreams she could remember when she woke in the morning, but most of them had disappeared just like the night, she thought that was strange, why can you remember some dreams and not the rest, and she always said, I must ask mother when I go down, but she never did ask mother, by the time she had showered and dressed the thought had left her mind.

It was now Saturday and the weather looked good outside the sun was way up in the sky and there was not a cloud in the sky to be seen, and it was already getting warm.

Mary’s mother and father were going into town to get some groceries they asked Mary if she was going to come with them but Mary didn’t want to go, I have some homework that I need to finish before I have to go back to school after the holidays, I will get that finished and then just play in the garden or watch the rabbits in the woods.

It didn’t take Mary long to finish the little homework that she had to do, she went up to her room and took the box which held the pendant out of the draw and put it into her pocket, just in case I meet the person that lost it she said to herself.

Soon Mary was back in the woods again, she called out and looked around to see if anybody had heard her or was nearby but again the only things she saw or heard were the animals and the birds that lived in the woods.

After a short while Mary saw a baby deer eating some leaves of off a nearby bush, quietly Mary walked towards the deer, the deer looked up at Mary as she got closer, but it didn’t turn and run as she thought it would, it just turned back and carried on eating the leaves.

After a short while the deer stopped eating turned it’s head towards Mary, then turned and started walking away into the woods.

Mary started to follow the deer but this time making sure that she knew which way was home.

She hadn’t gone very far when she came upon a clearing in the woods, “I can’t remember seeing this before” she said to herself, she forgot all about following the deer while she looked around, for there in the clearing must have been every flower that had ever grown, so many different colours that even the best rainbow ever would never look as beautiful as this clearing looked and the perfume that the flowers gave off was the best smell that Mary had ever smelt in the world, even better than the apple pies her mother made and they smelt really good.

There were so many different flowers, that Mary didn’t know which ones to pick, to take home for her mother, where do I start she said.

While she was deciding which ones to pick Mary looked around and noticed that right on the edge of the clearing, the edge over by the stream that she had also never seen before, was what looked like a small house but it was shaped like a mushroom, and a little bit further along was another house and then she saw another, why there were lots of small mushroom shaped houses, and what was that in the stream, why it looked like a very, very small boat.

Carefully Mary crept around the edge of the clearing, all the while keeping her eyes on the small houses, soon she was within a couple of feet from the nearest mushroom house, she lay down on her stomach so that she could have a good look, yes they were defiantly houses, but who would build and live in such small houses.

Then she hear a sound like the wind blowing through the grass, not a loud or strong sound, but just a whisper of a sound, a sound that she had never heard before, so quiet, the sort of sound you would here if an ant was to ever sneeze, that is if ants do ever sneeze.

Then she heard a song being sung very, very softly, and then right in front of her eyes was a fairy hovering just above the ground, sprinkling powder onto the flowers, the fairy hadn’t noticed Mary lying there and carried on sprinkling the powder onto the flowers while singing.

Well some of the powder landed on Mary’s nose and although she tried and tried not to, all of a sudden she had to sneeze, it wasn’t a big sneeze just a little achoo, but the poor fairy, was right in front of Mary and when Mary sneezed it blew the fairy across the clearing and right into a large spiders web that had been built.

Well the fairy was stuck, her wings were caught in the web and she wasn’t moving, luckily for the fairy the spider had gone to build another web somewhere else or other wise the spider would have surely have had her for dinner.

Mary stood up and carefully walked across to the spiders web where the fairy was stuck, she lay down in front of the web and carefully took the fairy of off the web, I am sorry she said as she was removing the fairy, but the fairy had it’s eyes closed, it didn’t move, it didn’t say anything and when Mary put the fairy on the ground it didn’t even try to fly away.

“Oh I’ve killed it” she thought she carefully picked the fairy back up and lay it in the palm of her hand, “I didn’t mean to do that to you or kill you” said Mary and started to cry, then she felt something move in her hand, she looked down and saw that the fairy was starting to move, “are you alright” Mary asked, the fairy, the fairy slowly opened her eyes and tried to fly off when it saw Mary, but it was to tired and could hardly move it’s wings, “don’t be afraid I wont hurt you” said Mary.

Slowly the fairy came around and soon it had recovered it quickly flew of off Mary’s hand and off towards the woods, but then it stopped, turned around and hovered while looking at Mary.

The Fairy and Mary stared at each other neither of them moving, the fairy was thinking, “how could she have seen me or touched me, I have my magic necklace on” and just to make sure she felt around her neck, yes the necklace was still there” she said to herself.

“I am sorry” said Mary “I didn’t mean to scare you or to hurt you some of the dust you were sprinkling on the flowers got on my nose and made me sneeze”,” I wont hurt you I promise”.

The fairy came closer to Mary, “how can you see” me said the fairy, “what do you mean” said Mary, “your not invisible and I heard you singing, I thought you had a nice voice”, “but I’m wearing my magic necklace” said the fairy, “so you’re not suppose to be able to see me or even touch me”, “well I can see you and I did touch you, so your magic necklace can’t be working” said Mary, “anyhow I said I was sorry I was just looking at the small houses by the lake when I heard you”.

“But all fairy houses and palaces are invisible to humans, and fairies are as well now that we wear the magic necklaces” said the fairy, “well like I said can see you and I can see the houses and if we keep this up we will be saying the same thing for the rest of the day” said Mary, “so please stop and tell me your name”.

The fairy thought for a second then said “yes I suppose you’re right, but it still doesn’t make any sense, my name is Snowdrop, what is yours” , “My name is Mary Anne Elizebeth and I live in the cottage at the farm with my mother and father just outside of the woods” said Mary, “I come into the woods often to watch the animals and birds play, but I have never seen this area before, or seen such beautiful flowers, how long have they been like this”.

“It has always been like this” said Snowdrop,” it’s just that, luckily humans can’t see it, for if they did I am sure that they would destroy it all”.

“Why can I see it then” asked Mary, “I don’t know perhaps you are special” said Snowdrop, “but yes it is strange”?

Mary then heard her mother calling her home for lunch, “I had better get going or she will come searching for me, I am sorry for hurting you, I hope that you are ok now” said Mary.

“I’m fine now but will you promise not to tell anyone about this place, not even your mother” asked Snowdrop.

“Of course I won’t tell anyone, but can I come back and see you again” asked Mary.

“Well if you come back later in the day all the fairies will be here and if you can see us I can’t very well say no now can I”, said Snowdrop.

“OK” said Mary and ran back to the cottage.

“Have you finished all you home work” asked Mary’s mother when Mary came into the cottage, “yes it’s all done and ready for when I go back to school” said Mary.

Mary was excited and couldn’t wait to get back to the clearing to see if all the fairies were there, it would be magic.

“By the way” Mary’s mother said, “we have been invited to the party being held this afternoon at Mrs Bakers for the grand opening of her new store, so we had better get a move on”. “But mum I”, “no buts we are all going” said Mary’s mum “so come on”.

The afternoon soon passed, the party was good and everyone said what a nice time they had, it was now starting to get dark, so Mary knew that her mother wouldn’t let her go out again tonight when they got home, “I will have to wait until tomorrow to see the fairies now” she thought, “I hope that they will still be there and not have moved away”.

They arrived home and soon were sitting down in front of a warm fire watching one of their favourite programs on television, later on they played a board game and then Mary said that she was getting tired and was going to go to bed.

As Mary was getting ready for bed she realised that she still had the small box with the pendant in her pocket, she removed it and put it back in the draw.

Mary woke on Sunday morning around 8.30, got out of bed and looked out of the window, “good it’s not raining that means I can go back into the woods and find the fairies” she said and quickly washed and dressed.

Soon she was sitting at the breakfast table eating here breakfast very fast, “you must be hungry eating your food that fast”, Mary’s mother said, “yes but I’m full now, so I think I will go out for a bit” said Mary, “not so fast” said Mary’s mother, “first you need to clear the table and you still have your room to tidy up before you go out”.

Mary had soon cleared the table and then ran up to her room and had it all cleared up within 5 minuets, she quickly ran back down and asked her mother if it was ok to go out now, Mary’s mother said she could but she needed to be back by 11, “Ok” said Mary and then she was gone.

She quickly made her way back towards the woods to go to the clearing and find the fairy again.

Mary went in the direction that she had walked yesterday but couldn’t find the clearing, “I was sure it was this way” she said.

Mary walked around in all directions but no mater where she went there was no clearing in the woods no mushroom houses and no stream.

“I cant understand, it was all here yesterday, I know I wasn’t dreaming” she said and started looking again, going back to everywhere that she had been earlier, but it was still the same, no fairy, no mushroom houses and no clearing with all the beautiful flowers in it.

Mary was now upset “I’m sure I wasn't dreaming, I wonder if the fairies have moved because I found out where they lived, but it can’t have been that because the clearing in the woods would still be there”.

Disappointed Mary made her way back home, “you’re back quick” said Mary’s mother.

Yes I thought I’d play indoors today” said Mary, not that she really wanted to, but she was too disappointed to stay outside now.

The day and evening passed slowly for Mary she watched some television and played cards with her mother and father before going to bed, but she didn’t really enjoy it, she was always wondering why the fairy was no longer in the woods.

 

Part 2 to follow