The Battle of the Spring Faeries

A story I wrote that was published in The Fairy Society magazine April issue.

Part 1

The Battle of the Spring Faeries


The earth was still under the clutches of Grundor the Ice Troll King and his minions. Frozen patches of snow covered hills and valleys still lay across the landscape like icing that had been plopped down by a careless baker.

The Ice Troll king was restless, he knew his days were numbered. The third month of the year was fast approaching. The earth would begin to thaw as the Spring fairies awoke from their winter slumbers and made their way to the surface to warm the earth with the gentle breath of springtime.

So it was Tatiana the Spring Faerie Queen, awoke from her sleep one early spring evening and stretched lazily. She yawned and sat up looking around her little bedroom of, violets, cherry blossoms and all manner of spring and summer blossoms and plants.
Her home was a bower of beauty in the height of the springtime. But now, with a long winter behind them, the beautiful flowers once so fresh and lovely, were wilted and cold, sad looking and browned as they awaited their queen's awakening.

She and her army of spring fairies would restore the glory of color and freshness to a frozen earth once more. All flowers hoped in this each season, and slept with her each winter.
Tatiana rose from her soft silky bed and went to her bath. She lived in a cave with crystal walls.
In her beautiful refuge there was an underground spring. It was warm and flowed like blue-green silk into a small lagoon. The water was always warm, always fresh.
  The queen slid into her luxurious bath with a sigh of contentment.
She could stay here forever. Unfortunately, she was a queen and many duties lay before her
each day.

  Suddenly, a very excited fairy came fluttering in on red gossamer wings. She landed with a small plunk and squeak.
It was Iredessa the queen's assistant and best friend. She was the fairy of love and gentle ways.
Iredessa was shy and just a tiny bit clumsy. Always pleasant and smiling even when her crude landing had resulted in a
very sore and wet bottom from landing  and slipping in the water on the pearly cave floor.

Rubbing her backside she bowed to her queen and fluttered her wings excitedly.

"Your grace, we have news from our scouts! They say the Troll King has vowed to keep
winter all year. He will not leave. He says he will not allow the spring faeries to thaw the earth.
What are we to do?"

Tatiana rolled her eyes and reached for her warm robe of fleecy lined dandelions.
She slipped it on and walked to her sleeping chambers.
There she rifled through her many outfits until she found one that suited her.
Today she would challenge the Ice Troll king and demand he return with Vessela, his sister who was queen of the south.

Although the Snow queen had more gentle ways, she was just as powerful as her brother. She commanded the southern regions of the earth. The territories to the north of the belt on the earth's center were the reign of the Ice Troll king.
 While the northern region enjoyed spring and summer, she went about freezing and sending snow and ice upon the southernmost areas of the earth.
It was Tatiana's job each spring to warm the frozen earth and restore the beauty of springtime after the Ice Troll king had departed to the south to join  Vessela the Ice queen. This year, for some reason, he did not want to leave.

Tatiana sat down and brushed her hair. As she touched small trailing vines growing on her dressing table, they lept to life and blossomed under her touch. Beautiful blooms sprang up before her eyes.
Tatiana then wove them into her dark thick hair and smiled at her reflection.

"Come here Dessa. We need to give you a spring make over too."
The queen touched the wilted leaves in Iredessa's hair and they sprang to life. They began twinning and
intertwining through Dessa's pale blond curls.
Iredessa was at once a spectacle of pink and red blossoms and her pale winter face took on a soft pink sheen.
She smiled and bowed low to her queen.
"I do so love it when you do that your majesty."
As she straightened to standing, a tiny twig on a blossom in her hair caught the silkworm lace doily on Tatiana's round table, the doily became caught in Dessa's hair and was pulled off the table, scattering the contents all across the floor.

"Oh, my .. did you see what I did? oh dear!" Dessa went to her knees, the doily still tangled and hanging from her head
like a Spanish mantilla as she tried to grab rolling apples and plums and other delicate items scattering across the floor.

"Dessa for goodness sake, don't worry about it. Here let me get this out of your hair."
Tatiana bent to untangle the doily and place it back on the table.
Dessa had her arms laden as she sat up pink faced and distressed and handed them up to
her dear queen and friend.
"Forgive me my queen. I am so clumsy sometimes."

"Sometimes?" Tatiana grinned, raising an eyebrow and took the items from her.
"Dessa, I think it's time we sent you to the Fae School of Charm. The teacher is a most
handsome and charming elf. It will change your life.
I was required to go when I was younger, and even though
I don't need it to be a warrior, I learned much.
Perhaps it will do you good too."

Dessa nodded eagerly and bowed once more.
"Dessa you know you don't have to bow to me all the time. I hate that." remarked Tatiana as she rose from her cushioned stool. She took a deep breath as she looked around.
"Call the house fairies, it's time this place had a spring cleaning anyway.
I will attend to the high and mighty Ice Troll king as soon as I've had my breakfast."

Iredessa lept to her feet and pulled a small round pink object from her pocket. She spoke into it and at once six glowing multi-colored fairies appeared with feather dusters, and various cleaning objects in hand.

 They took one look at the queen's room and scattered quickly  all over her home.
A sound of tinkling bells, and high voiced singing was heard as a whirlwind of activity ensued.
Then before Tatiana had time to go to the royal kitchen,the house was sparkling.
The happy and colorful entourage of fairies bowed quickly and flew away with the sound of merry chatter.
Tatiana laughed, " I love to watch them work."

She had a lovely breakfast, prepared by the best of faerie chefs. The queen went to fetch her leather cape and hair coverlet, a band she wore over her flower-filled locks of jet black hair.


The queen wore the garments of warriors although she was a spring faerie. It was her duty to guard and protect springtime from the forces of winter. No delicate pastel colored flitting faerie was she.

Although, very beautiful, she was larger than her species. A queen in manner and bearing
but kind of heart and nature. She loved all things green and growing. Flowers were her brothers and sisters.
It was their time to shine on the colorless landscapes of earth once more and she would see to it that the Ice King and his armies were not going to interfere.

She called all faeries together and spoke to them in a raised, clear voice. "It is our time upon the earth. Spring cannot come without our work being done. Things must grow and bloom now."
"I hope all of you will band with me to fight Grundor so that the earth can be released from his icy clutches and green will spread across the lands.
Faeries! Are you with me?"

They raised their tiny melodic voices in unison and chanted. "Bring on Spring! Bring on Spring! Bring on Spring!"