As I walked down a wooded lane in Galway, how was I to know that I had been visited by a fairy? I had my bright pink headphones in and I was focused on my cares of the world. I would raise my gaze to take in the moss covered trunks of the trees that lined my walk, but I wasn't looking for anything out of the ordinary or anything much higher up; it was just a walk after all. I had my backpack loaded up for the day. In it I had packed a notebook and some pens, a book to read, my camera, some food and water, and, of course, a charger.
Perhaps this is why I didn't notice that a fairy had landed on my back pack. She was hardly any weight compared to the supplies I thought I had needed for the day. She had fallen out of one of the trees above me, and I was completely oblivious. At first she froze, afraid that I would see her, but shortly I'm sure she realized that I had taken no notice whatsoever. She let out a wee little sigh, relieved that she had not exposed her secret world.
But then, she noticed one of her wings was stuck in one of the elastic straps criss-crossing across the front of my backpack. How was she to get free without asking for my, or another passersby's help? To be honest, I don't even know why my backpack even has those elastic straps. The clamp, or whatever it's called, at the bottom would suggest they're for tightening or loosening the size of my bag, but I've never actually used them. I guess I always thought of them as decorative.
Not this fairy though, she thought of them as a trap. She was in a difficult position, lying on her back with one of her wings stuck in an ugly elastic (and useless) contraption. She was already embarrassed that she had fallen out of her sacred tree onto an actual person, threatening the exposure of her world. Luckily for her, I still hadn't noticed her plight. She was tempted to use some of her magic to help set her free, but she thought surely I couldn't ignore if that happened.
She thought of calling for help, but surely I would notice a swarm of fairies yanking on my backpack. She sighed, she was just going to have to wriggle out of this somehow. Placing her little feet on the edge of where my camera bulged out of my bag, she pushed herself up, gaining some leverage and agency over her position. But while she had more control, her wing was just driven under another strap.
She exhaled, blowing her wispy hair up over her little forehead. She didn't like her last option, but it would work. And her fellow fairies' magic could help fix the consequences. She shut her eyes tight, folded her delicate arms across her chest and then quickly jumped off.
Part of her wing snapped off, caught in my bag. It hurt, but she was able to flutter, at an angle no doubt, away and back up to her sacred tree. Her kinsfolk chided her for her mistakes, but quickly set her right.
Meanwhile, I kept listening to my pink headphones and enjoying the fact that I knew where I was going and that I was getting a sense of my new city. Little did I know that I had missed out on an extraordinary part of it.
I was completely unaware of any of this until I sat down a little while later. I plugged my phone in, as had become my customary first step when going anywhere with an outlet, and then noticed something on the outside of my backpack.
There, perfectly trapped in the elastic bands, was what appeared to be a yellowish brown oval leaf. I stared at in, wondering how I could've gotten a leaf stuck in my bag without even noticing that kind of tree around.
I never even considered it could be a fairy wing.
(Prompt from Kimisha Cassidy)
Perhaps this is why I didn't notice that a fairy had landed on my back pack. She was hardly any weight compared to the supplies I thought I had needed for the day. She had fallen out of one of the trees above me, and I was completely oblivious. At first she froze, afraid that I would see her, but shortly I'm sure she realized that I had taken no notice whatsoever. She let out a wee little sigh, relieved that she had not exposed her secret world.
But then, she noticed one of her wings was stuck in one of the elastic straps criss-crossing across the front of my backpack. How was she to get free without asking for my, or another passersby's help? To be honest, I don't even know why my backpack even has those elastic straps. The clamp, or whatever it's called, at the bottom would suggest they're for tightening or loosening the size of my bag, but I've never actually used them. I guess I always thought of them as decorative.
Not this fairy though, she thought of them as a trap. She was in a difficult position, lying on her back with one of her wings stuck in an ugly elastic (and useless) contraption. She was already embarrassed that she had fallen out of her sacred tree onto an actual person, threatening the exposure of her world. Luckily for her, I still hadn't noticed her plight. She was tempted to use some of her magic to help set her free, but she thought surely I couldn't ignore if that happened.
She thought of calling for help, but surely I would notice a swarm of fairies yanking on my backpack. She sighed, she was just going to have to wriggle out of this somehow. Placing her little feet on the edge of where my camera bulged out of my bag, she pushed herself up, gaining some leverage and agency over her position. But while she had more control, her wing was just driven under another strap.
She exhaled, blowing her wispy hair up over her little forehead. She didn't like her last option, but it would work. And her fellow fairies' magic could help fix the consequences. She shut her eyes tight, folded her delicate arms across her chest and then quickly jumped off.
Part of her wing snapped off, caught in my bag. It hurt, but she was able to flutter, at an angle no doubt, away and back up to her sacred tree. Her kinsfolk chided her for her mistakes, but quickly set her right.
Meanwhile, I kept listening to my pink headphones and enjoying the fact that I knew where I was going and that I was getting a sense of my new city. Little did I know that I had missed out on an extraordinary part of it.
I was completely unaware of any of this until I sat down a little while later. I plugged my phone in, as had become my customary first step when going anywhere with an outlet, and then noticed something on the outside of my backpack.
There, perfectly trapped in the elastic bands, was what appeared to be a yellowish brown oval leaf. I stared at in, wondering how I could've gotten a leaf stuck in my bag without even noticing that kind of tree around.
I never even considered it could be a fairy wing.
(Prompt from Kimisha Cassidy)
I hope the fairy can regenerate her wing!
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