White Grass

Ava gets lost, then finds a strange clearing in the woods.

The room was enormous.

Staring at the rock floor, I saw that it was covered in thousands of tiny.......things. There were miniature houses, rocks, trees, lakes, rivers, grass, and other small pieces, some landmarks that I recognized, despite their reduced size. I even saw the little waterfall over to the right, and the small trail leading up the tiny cliff face, leading up to what I knew in real life were Estïqiã's caves.

It was a replica of the entire Forgotten Forest, and then some of the surrounding land.

"Well, it's about time you showed up." came a grumpy voice, and I looked up, gasping.

A huge monster sat on one side of the cave, looking mostly human, but his body looked like it had been stretched out, creating a thin, spindly, and impossibly tall form. His skin was blue, and his hair was white, growing in a messy disorder on top of his head and down to a short beard on his chin. He was wearing a faded gold vest and grey breeches, but nothing else. His feet were bare and his face was peevish.

"We came as soon as possible." Estïqiã told him loudly, and his frown deepened.

"You took forever to get here, and I required your assistance." he informed her accusingly.

"Tiran was hurt, from some rocks your storm knocked over, Omal." Estïqiã struggled to keep the anger out of her voice. "I had to preform-"

"I can see the bandage." the giant interrupted. "You don't have to give me every single detail of your trip. I don't have time for it." His hands pressed together, then pulled apart, revealing what looked like a small grey cloud in his hands that had not been there before. He set it down, and it hovered over the model world, before he gave it a little push. It began to slowly make its way above the replica, with little tiny dots falling from it as it went.

"Is that......rain?" I asked, my eyes wide.

"Of course it is." he snapped, then leaned over. Opening his mouth, he blew a big gust of air at the tiny storm cloud, and small swirls began to circle the cloud.

"And that's wind." Tiran whispered to me. "He's giving rain and wind over there, in the Palaksha regions. That's what storm giants do."

"Hence the name, storm giant." Omal sniffed rudely. "Any idiot could've figured that out." I bit my lip to refrain from shouting something rude.

"My apologies, Omal." Estïqiã inclined her head respectfully, to my surprise. Estïqiã showed deference to no one.

Omal scared her.

It was perfectly natural, of course. The giant controlled the weather, and judging by yesterday's storm, he wasn't afraid to abuse that power towards his own selfish ends.

I did not like him.

"I am in need of your assistance." Omal's rumbling voice brought me back to the present.

"With what?" Tiran asked.

"I am not speaking to you." Omal sniffed disdainfully at my tutor. "You are beneath my attention." His snide remark made my blood boil, but Tiran merely bowed again.

"Of course." Tiran smiled, and I felt anger bubbling up inside my head. Stay calm, I ordered myself. If Estïqiã's forcing herself to stay calm, then I'll do the same.

"What do you need help with?" Estïqiã asked, keeping a respectful tone.

"My door, my tiny door." Omal complained. "It squeals most dreadfully, like a milkweed fairy." Tiran suddenly took a deep breath. I glanced at him, and saw his fists clenching and unclenching, although his expression remained neutral.

"Speaking of which," Omal continued pleasantly. "I once had a milkweed fairy get lost in here. Most unpleasant, what with all the shrieking and fluttering about." His large brown eyes glanced at Tiran. "I finally had to......dispose of it."

Tiran screamed and rushed at the storm giant, just as Estïqiã tackled him to the ground. As I stared with shock at Estïqiã struggling to hold Tiran down, and at Omal's self-satisfied smirk, I snapped.

"What is your problem?" I yelled at Omal, who raised his eyebrows in mock innocence.

"Why, whatever do you mean?" he asked, which only infuriated me more.

"You know perfectly well what I mean!" I shouted. "We came to help you, and you've been NOTHING but RUDE and IDIOTIC! I wish I had NEVER COME AT ALL, AND I HOPE YOUR STUPID HEAD FALLS OFF!!" Whipping around, I held out my palm towards the small door.

"TECHIET!" I screamed angrily, and the entire door, including the small human door cut out, incinerated, leaving a long pile of ash stretched across the opening of the cave.

Dead silence followed. Even Tiran stopped struggling, and Estïqiã stared fearfully at Omal. The giant remained impassive as he slowly raised his hands and clapped them together once.

"Omal, wait!" Estïqiã screamed desperately, just as a grey whirlwind sprang from Omal's palms and rushed at her and Tiran. The miniature twister picked up both of them and spun out of the cave, moving back along the trail at high speed.

"What did you do?" I demanded.

"I sent them home." Omal shrugged.

"Why?!" I shouted, becoming more and more angry. "Just because you're bigger than everyone else doesn't give you the right to be such a sour-faced, conceited, pompous fool!" Omal stared at me again, now incredulous.

"You still dare to insult me?" He stood, his head almost touching the ceiling. "In my own home, no less!"

"Where else would I do it? This is a good a place as any to give you a perfectly accurate assessment of your selfish personality!"

"Nobody speaks to me like this, impudent girl!"

"Impudent?? At least I have manners!"

"You better watch your tongue, girl, before I flatten you and your friends!"

"Oh, dear me, I'm so scared!"

"I'll do it!" Omal raised his foot over my head, but I didn't care.

"Just try it!" I shrieked. "You're nothing but a big blueberry with white hair and wrinkles!" The foot came down towards me.

"DERIDA!" I screamed the word for push and moved my palms towards the rapidly descending foot. Shoved by an unseen force, the blue foot flew backwards, toppling a surprised Omal onto the hard cave floor. "EMAUT!!" I followed up with lightning, and tendrils of white energy snaked up and down Omal's body.

The cave became silent, except for my labored breathing, due to the explosion of my temper. A quiet rumble of tiny thunder came from the miniature storm cloud as it progressed across the model land.

Then Omal began to laugh.

He pushed himself up into sitting position, chuckling loudly, and a small snort of laughter escaped me, despite my anger, upon seeing his golden vest, which had patterns of scorch marks all over it now. Seeing his face, I choked a little again, and pointed at his hair. Omal picked up a nearby mirror and looked at his hair. His spiky white hair stuck out at the most unflattering angles, giving him a hedgehog-like appearance.

We both burst out laughing, past anger forgotten, until tears stream down our cheeks.

"What was your name, girl?" Omal chuckles, wiping his eyes.

"Avaline Hart, former princess of Islan, current......" I curtsied as I introduced myself, then paused awkwardly, unsure how to describe my current situation. Quester in waiting? Magic trainee?

"Well, Princess Avaline, nobody has spoken to me like that in a long time." Omal broke the silence with a grin.

"I'd say you needed it." I replied.

"Did I ever!" Omal agreed good naturedly.

"Why were you being so rude?" I asked curiously, and Omal shrugged.

"To respect somebody, I have to see that they aren't afraid of me. Not a common occurrence, I assure you." the giant sighed.

"You are fifteen feet tall." I pointed out, and a short silence followed. "Do you live alone?" I finally asked. "It must be awfully boring up here."

"It is, but it's the life of a storm giant. We don't have many of us left, and all possible men giants must serve. We get to go home to our families about twice a year, if we're lucky."

"Don't you have a family?"

"Yes." Omal smiled, a peculiar smile I had seen only a few times before on Dantaus's face when he had spoken of Pasquel. "Emilia, my wife, and Lumni, my daughter." He pulled a small painting off his shelf, and showed me.

Omal, looking happy and carefree, had his arm around a pretty storm giant with long white hair, braided down her back. A small girl stood in front of them, with spiky white hair like Omal's.

“How old is she?” I asked, touching the younger girl’s face.
“She was about seventy when the painting was done, the last time I was able to go home and visit. Now she’s one hundred seventy-three, as of last week.”
“She’s seventy?” I asked incredulously. “You haven’t seen your family in one hundred years?”
“Your human years are so short.” Omal sighed. “As far as human physical appearances go, I suppose she was seven years old the last time I saw her.”
“And now, in human terms, she’s over seventeen years old.” I confirmed. “Omal, why didn’t you go back?”
“There have been two storm giant deaths in neighboring territories, one from old age, another for reasons unknown. Somebody’s got to pitch in and help, until we can get another replacement.”
“You’re doing three times the amount of work you should be doing, and it’s keeping you from seeing your own family!”
“I get letters and globe communications daily from them.” Omal defended himself as if I was mad at him. “My son is almost a hundred years old, and he’s seen me every few months or so.”
“You’ve never even been face to face with your own son!” I became more and more outraged. “What idiot designed this system?”
“The Council did, and to argue with them is against the law.” Omal informed me, shocked.
“Yeah, well, I’m not a storm giant, so I can insult them all I want.” I raged. “Of all the stupid fools in this world, a whole band of them is in charge of an entire race!”
“Stop, Princess Avaline!” Omal commanded me, but I kept going.
“I will not stop! Somebody has to tell them that they’re a bunch of-”
My words were stolen from my mouth as a whirlwind yanked me off my feet and started to spin out the open cave.
“OMAL!” I shrieked angrily, but I was moving away too fast for him to even hear me. I didn’t even know where I was at this point; the small tornado was spinning me around and around, making my stomach hurt and unable to see straight.
It suddenly dissolved, and I went sprawling on the forest ground. Even though I was back on solid ground, the world kept spinning around me, a blur of nauseatingly bright colors. I forced myself on my knees and threw up, feeling unbalanced and sick to my stomach.
After sitting for a while, the trees stopped spinning enough that I could stagger to my feet, knees wobbling. Mud and leaves were stuck to my tunic, and my leggings had a long rip down the side. I cursed Omal under my breath as I stumbled down the trail, blinking and shaking my head to clear my vision.

My balance eventually came back, and I was able to walk without tripping every few steps. The path was shaded but warm, and the sounds of the forest would usually make me feel excited to be so close to so many mythical creatures, but right now, my mind was preoccupied with Omal.
It just wasn't fair that he had to take the burden of two other giants, and that he hadn't seen his family for years and years. He hadn't even seen his son, and only knew him through letters and.......what was it? Globe communications? I'd have to ask Estïqiã about that later.
Lost in thought, I must've wandered off the trail, because the next time I looked up, I was totally and completely lost. To top it off, it was beginning to get dark; not dark in a way that I couldn't see, but the horizon was beginning to tint with light purple, pink, and yellow.

"Great. Just what I need." I grumbled, and decided to find a clearing. I'd use magic to lift myself up, get an ariel view, and find my bearings. A variation of color up ahead promised a treeless spot, and I headed towards it.

I broke through the trees and stared at the strange clearing. The ground was covered in grass, but this grass was different. It was white, for one thing, and it shimmered in the sunlight.

A mound of dirt stuck out of the ground, perfectly rounded, dead center, and standing out in the white grass like a wolf in a pack of sheep.

Soft music began to play in my head, the music that I always heard when I used magic, but I wasn't using any magic.

Small floating lights appeared in the tree-line, and began to approach me, making me nervously back up a step or two. When they were close enough, I could discern the small bodies and wings, and felt less intimidated.

"Why are you all so tiny?" I asked them. "Tiran is bigger than me." My only answer was a chorus of different bells, each fairy making a different type of bell sound. They surrounded me, then all began to brush against my clothes and hair.

"This is kind of strange." a little bit of my worry returned as they grabbed pieces of my clothes and began to pull me into the clearing. "Seriously, stop. I need to go home." They didn't stop, and continued pulling me, the combined force of almost two hundred fairies bringing me to the rounded dirt hill in the clearing.

"Don't make me stop you guys. You know I can." I warned them, my hand resting on the hilt of my sword. "I'm much bigger than you. I could-" I stopped talking as one fairy fluttered up, right in front of my face. She was close enough that I could tell what she looked like. Her long, auburn hair reached her waist, and she was wearing a dress with an upside-down red rose as a skirt, and a white petal bodice. Her minuscule hands held a slender rod, with a tiny speck on top, which I assumed was some sort of precious jewel, and I could barely make out a tiny circlet on top of her head.

"Who are you?" I asked, but she only let out a series of melodious bells that I couldn't understand.

"Sorry, I can't understand you." I kept talking, in the hopes that she could understand me. "But I really need to go home. If you would just tell your.....uh....people to let me go, I'll be on my way. I don't want-" She flew even closer and placed her hand on my lips, closing them, and smiled.

The tiny fairy queen raised her scepter and placed it on my forehead as the music in my head continued to play at the same quiet but clearly audible volume. Five fairies took each of my fingers on my right hand, and lifted it up, while another traced her miniature hand along my scar.

Four of my fingers were folded over, leaving only my pointer finger extended. The fairy in the white dress went down to my finger, and placed her hand on the tip of my pointer.

"This is starting to get a little strange." I said, watching the fairy in transfixed fascination. "Okay, what are you doing?" I got a tad nervous as she pulled something out of her dress. "No, really, stop." I warned her as she raised the object above her head. "Stop-ow!" Her hand flashed down on my finger, and stabbed the object in my finger. A drop of blood oozed from the wound and dropped to the ground, before I yanked my hand back. It was now too dark for me to see the wound, but I could still make out land features and the fairies, who glowed in the dark.

"What was that for?!" I shouted angrily, and the fairies all withdrew a few feet. Pressing my finger against my shirt, the tiny prick stopped bleeding within seconds, but I was still angry. "I'm lea-" I turned to leave, but movement in the corner of my eye stopped me. Something was sprouting out of the mound at an incredibly fast rate.

A rolled up, ghostly white stalk broke through the dirt, then began to straighten as I watched. A bud was on the tip, and began to open, revealing a snow white petals. The music in my head continued to play.

I kneeled down to get a closer look at the flower, transfixed by its strange appearance. In all my wanderings in the forest, I'd never seen a flower this white, much less one that seemed to sparkle. Then again, I'd never seen white sparkly grass, either.

The white petals looked so soft and delicate, I couldn't resist reaching out to the flower and gently brushing it with my finger, just the tiniest bit.

Suddenly, the entire flower began to shake and move, and the horrible suspicion that I'd killed it crossed my mind. The music in my head began to gradually grow in volume as the petals drooped, each tip touching the stem, and the black center began to grow even more. Something began to grow straight out of it, creating a hourglass shape, then separating into five different parts. Two grew out the sides, opposite each other, taking on a different color, like a really pale peach color, and two grew out the back, become wide and flat. The middle part first grew thinner than the others, then suddenly widened, elongated, and closed off, making a spherical shape with the same pale color.

It looked like a tiny person.

I got even closer to be able to see every single little detail, and watched the two side parts grow into two tiny arms. The spherical shape on top grew a small protrusion in the front, like a nose, and began to create tiny facial features. Wispy, snow white hair grew out of the top, and tiny pointy ears formed. The hair grew only to the ears and chin, giving it a slightly boyish haircut. The music in my head was louder than it had ever been before, and it brought in types of harmony that I'd never even heard of.

The tiny face was still and unmoving, the eyes closed with tiny white sparkles balancing on its minuscule but beautiful lashes. Its tiny lips were bright cherry red, strikingly beautiful against the pale skin.

I started as the eyes flew open, revealing large, angled icy blue eyes who stared at me as I stared at it.

Then it smiled, and moved its wings experimentally before suddenly flying upwards a few inches, leaving only a bare, snow white stalk which immediately shriveled up and disappeared. It slowly came down, landing on the dirt mound, where it brushed back its hair and grinned up at me.

"I'm Elix." she told me. "Who are you?"

Author's Note

Omal will definitely be returning later, and what do you think of the fairies?