Autumn of Elves

by Joanne Vruno

  Around one o’clock, an idea popped into my head. I knew I should talk it over with Grandma or Silver and Dolph, but I wanted to mend this situation today. The look of fear on Emily’s face drove me to act. As the bus dropped me off, instead of going home, I headed toward Emily’s school two blocks away. I heard the bird calls of the elf sentries warning me not to go in that direction, but I gave them the “all right” signal, one Dolph taught me over the summer. All became silent then. When I rounded the corner and entered the school yard, I heard Silver’s familiar voice in my head. “Aly, what are you planning?” she asked. I could sense her reading my thoughts.

  I noticed flocks of tree sprites, like swarming bees, circling the trees and playground equipment, hunting for clues about their missing member. I turned away from them and looked toward the building, searching for the tree sprite nest. I’d read last night that they made a nest similar to a paper wasp. I needed to find an orb-shaped object.

  I was drawing the flock’s attention as I wandered about. Tree sprites started nose diving right in front of my face. I knew I must be close to their nest if they were being so defensive. None had hit me yet, but I figured it was only a matter of time.

  Silver’s voice returned. “Aly, be careful! I think I noticed it on the tall pine over by the parking lot. Asa and I can’t get any closer right now to help you. Take note, sprites aren’t as fragile they seem. They have a terrible bite that can do great damage. Protect your face, especially your eyes.” I covered my face with my hands as Silver continued. “You’re almost in range. Do you see it?”

  I took a quick peek between my fingers and I saw my target. With hands over my eyes, nose, and mouth I moved toward it. The tree sprites started to attack. The high-pitched humming of wings hurt my ears and tiny but constant bites were being delivered from all sides, like a thousand bee stings all at once. Three more steps, and I heard Silver say, “Now, Aly, now!”

  I quickly thought, I want to send all the tree sprites in this colony to Mexico. I want to send all the tree sprites in this colony to Mexico. I want to send all the tree sprites in this colony to Mexico!

  My world went quiet. The biting stopped, but I was too weak to move. My legs collapsed underneath me, my strength gone. Were sprite bites venomous? As I sat on the ground, I thought, Send me to Grandma. Send me to Grandma. Send me to Gran . . .

  I woke up in Grandma’s house. She was kneeling over me. I could see Emily, Lunt, Lina, and Berg looking down at me. I tried to sit, but I was too dizzy. I sighed as I laid back down. “Did I do it? Are the tree sprites all gone?”

  “Well, yes, you did it, but you barely survived it. Next time, when you have an idea like this don’t attempt it alone,” Grandma scolded. “This Grandma can’t take another scare like this. You just appeared all bloody and unconscious. I had to send Lunt for some answers.”

  “But, Grandma, I wasn’t alone. Silver was with me and guided me. Go ask her . . .” I drifted into unconsciousness.

  When I woke again, I was in my own bed. Elsa, Enar, and Emily sat beside me.

  “How did I get here?”

  “Grandma’s magic. She transported you ahead of us while we came in the car. She told Mom you got sick in school so she brought you home with me. Aly, I’m so confused right now. What really happened to you? I know you were bit by tree sprites, but why? What did you do to them? All I saw was you appearing in Grandma’s living room all bloody and unconscious! I thought you were going to die!” said Emily, sobbing.

  “Oh, Emily, I’m fine. A little weak but fine. I’m sorry I scared you,” I said as I sat up and gave Emily a hug.

  “How do you and Grandma do that travel thing? And how was Grandma able to cure you? What happened to the tree sprites? Are they really gone?”

  I took my little sister’s hand as I said, “Emily, I don’t think you’re ready to know everything yet. Just know Grandma and I will always have your back. We’ll do everything to keep you safe. Now, I need food. All the magic wore me down. I need energy!”

  Emily left to get a sandwich for me while I told Enar and Elsa about all of the events that had transpired.

  “It was good Silver was there helping you, or you probably would be blind. Tree sprites are known for their awful bites,” remarked Enar.

  “The bites have all disappeared,” I said.

  Elsa said, “Guardian magic is the strongest healer.”

  When Emily returned the twins took leave for a while. Fear and concern still colored Emily’s face. She asked, “Aly, tell me, could you have died?”

  “No, Emily. I wasn’t alone. Someday I’ll be able to introduce you to the creature who assisted me.” I thought of all those past times I felt anger toward Silver. Today I discovered she was a loyal friend. I think she was pleased with my choice to go up against the tree sprites. Too much was in jeopardy if they knew of Emily’s powers. Now the tree sprites’ minds were erased of any memory of what happened, and were in their winter environment. By next spring they wouldn’t recognize any of us, thanks to my magic. I wondered later as I dozed off when I’d see Silver, Dolph, and the elves again.

  Eleven

  I went over every part of yesterday afternoon when I woke up. I felt proud I had done what a guardian was supposed to do, by protecting not only Emily, but all of us. I now knew the danger of what I did, but at the time all I thought about was getting rid of the sprites. I survived all those bites. I looked at my arms. Not one sign was left. But when I tried to stand I discovered I couldn’t. The room spun. Some venom must still have been in me.

  Mom opened the door right then, “How are you feeling, kiddo? Are you up to going to school?”

  “No, I’m dizzy. Do you think Grandma could come here? I’m not sure about moving around much.”

  Mom leaned over to check my forehead, “No fever. I wonder if I should take you to the doctor?”

  “I think it’s just a flu virus like Emily’s.”

  “You two have been hanging around non-stop lately. She looked pretty good last night, so I guess we can wait a day and see how you feel,” said Mom. “I’ll call Grandma. What would we do without her, huh?” Mom smiled.

  I fell back into bed and slept until Grandma showed up.

  “You still look out of sorts. That sprite venom must have entered your system before I could draw it all out. Let me try again,” Grandma said as she floated her hands over me, looking determined as she concentrated on her healing powers. I could feel a tingle throughout my body.

  “There, now you should start feeling better. It’s hard pulling something like a poison out of a blood stream. I’m still not sure I got it all, but I did eliminate more of it. I think rest and food is what you need now. Are you up for some pancakes?” asked Grandma.

  “Yes,” I answered with a smile.

  “I think once we get your strength up, you’ll fight off any venom left.”

  Grandma left. I could hear her through my open door humming as she cooked. I smiled. I felt safe. I was only now coming to realize how seriously I was hurt yesterday. I might not have survived without Grandma. She was always there when I needed her.

  Grandma returned with a stack of pancakes and a tall glass of milk. “This should help you recover. Here, I’ll help you sit up,” she said as she set down the food on my desk and helped arrange pillows at my back. “Eat up now.”

  I ate. I could see by Grandma’s face she had more to say. “Aly, when you suddenly appeared yesterday in my living room all full of blood and unconscious, for a moment I thought I had lost you. I wish you’d told me your plan before you acted. We could have had back-ups ready if you needed them. Though Silver said you did everything correctly and took the sprites by surprise. I could’ve been your back-up.”

  “Grandma, if you and I went together, who would have healed us? I thought of that on the bus. I didn’t know I’d be hurt, but af
ter reading about sprites the night before, I guessed I might. I talked myself into staying focused and strong. I knew you’d fix me up, and Silver told me to guard my eyes and face. All I could think about yesterday was the number of sprites in a colony. If even one other one saw Emily speaking to the captured sprite, she’d never be left alone. They’d be after her daily. She wouldn’t be able to handle it. They’d break her silence or hurt her. I figured I could handle them. My plan seemed like the only solution.”

  “But, Aly, to take on such a task solo wasn’t smart. You could’ve been killed, or permanently injured!”

  “I knew I was being watched as I walked toward the school. I heard the elf sentries’ bird calls. When I waved away the birds, I knew either Silver or Dolph would arrive. Dolph taught me that. And Silver appeared right when I arrived at the school. She read my thoughts and knew what I was planning. She gave me direction, told me to guard my face, and directed me where to go and when to act. Having her there gave me strength. I knew she’d get me to you if I wasn’t able to. We worked as a team.”

  “You still really scared me.”

  “I’m sorry, Grandma,” I said as I reached for her hand, “but it worked, and we’re all safe now. Isn’t that my job as a guardian?”

  “Yes, it is. You’re much stronger and braver than I was at your age.”

  Twelve

  As the days went on, Emily was much more motivated in her training. Maybe the sprite scare had made an impression on her or she just wanted to become stronger. She’d changed, and I wasn’t sure it was for the better. Emily had always been known for her free spirit, being full of life. Now she seemed so serious. I finally asked her, “Emily, is something wrong? You seem all business as you train.”

  “I have to be,” she said. “I need to know all I can so I don’t put you in danger again. Aly, you don’t know what you looked like when you arrived at Grandma’s with bites all over you. Your face was all swollen up and blood was everywhere. Grandma worked on you for a long time without you reacting. I didn’t even know Grandma could do what she did to heal you. I kept saying we need to take you to the emergency room, and she kept telling me not to worry. Not worry? My sister looked like she was dead!”

  I hugged her. “But I’m not dead. I’m here.”

  “Yeah, but I didn’t know Grandma was magic. I didn’t know you were magic. I don’t understand any of this creature stuff. All I know is not to let any creature know I can sense them. I learned the reason for that the hard way. I’m not going to fail ever again with it.”

  “You’ve definitely passed ignoring creatures in the past few weeks,” I said, trying to console Emily. “I understand your fear and frustration. I lived it this summer. And I’m still in training. Grandma needs to teach me more, but I had some powers arrive early so she and Lunt worked on teaching me how to handle them.”

  “What are your powers?” asked Emily, almost shyly.

  “I can tell you about the two you’ve already witnessed. Grandma and I can heal people, animals, and creatures. Remember how Dad’s hand healed so fast? I wished that he would heal, without knowing I actually had the power to make it happen.”

  “So you fixed Dad?”

  “Yeah, and that power is kind of cool! I could battle tree sprites because I knew Grandma could heal me. The bites made me want to cry. They hurt so much. I kept going because I knew I had to have their whole colony. In order to do that I needed to get close to their nest. I figured they’d all be called to protect it, and I was right. When they all came after me I was able to send them all to Mexico. I chose Mexico because you said that is where they winter.”

  “So you didn’t kill them?” asked Emily.

  “Is that what you thought I did?”

  “Yes,” replied Emily. “All I knew is you battled them, so I assumed you destroyed them like I’ve seen in battles in movies.”

  “No, no . . . my magic is meant to keep other creatures alive,” I reassured her. “We don’t want any species to be eliminated, just kept from endangering us or others. I moved the colony.”

  “How do you do that?” asked Emily.

  “I transported them, just as I transported myself to Grandma’s house. I repeat in my head what I want and then, poof! It happens. You may get this power. We don’t know. So right now, don’t repeat anything three times—in your head or out loud—or it may come true. It’d be bad if you moved someone else, yourself, or something in school. It took me weeks to learn how to control it. It’s the hardest power to control.”

  “What do you mean I may get this power?”

  “You may get the same powers I have. But there are lots of kinds of powers. Only a few humans get any powers, even if they can see creatures. Some only see them. Others also get powers. No one knows. Grandma said her powers arrived slowly, while mine all came kind of at once. But as we wait, I’ll be teaching you things so you won’t have unexpected things happen. The first, like I said, is to never repeat a wish or want three times. It could happen. All right?”

  “All right.” answered Emily, “How will I know if a power arrives?”

  “I was surprised by every power I got. But, believe me, you’ll definitely know if one arrives. Just let me or Grandma know. In the meantime, we’ll keep training. Let’s start with staying calm. With every power, calmness is the key. Creatures stay away from humans who don’t react. When you add calmness to ignoring, you’ll keep yourself safer.”

  I took a deep breath. “Grandma told me to think of happy things. Mine is how I feel skating, listening to music, and laughing at a good joke. Everyone has their own thoughts that’ll work for them. Think of some of your happiest moments, and your body seems to go into an auto-calm mode.”

  “Hmm . . . I guess mine could be remembering our pretend world we made in Grandma’s yard. We always had such wonderful days there,” said Emily.

  I smiled. “We did have awesome times playing there.” Her memory might change if she knew we constantly invaded Lunt’s home. She could learn that later.

  “I feel happier already thinking about those times,” Emily said.

  I nodded. “So when you’re in a scary situation, focus on those times and you can calm down a racing heart. Focus on staying calm so you can think clearly. Fear and anxiety can make you overreact, which usually causes more problems. Staying calm helps us find more solid solutions to a problem.”

  Thirteen

  The weeks went by. Emily proved to be a quick learner. She seemed to master whatever I threw at her in no time at all. She remembered all the facts of every creature we reviewed. Soon it was the night before our fall break. All elementary, middle, and high schools in the state were closed for the two-day teachers’ conference held the third Thursday and Friday of October. On Wednesday evening Mom and Dad thought it would be fun to go on a family walk around a park with Chica. They both had to work over the conference, so we were going off to Grandma’s in the morning and staying the long weekend with her. We’d go to the apple orchard and pick out pumpkins.

  We decided the wooded path in the old Battle Creek Park—the original part that the creek flowed through—would have perfect fall colors. We had two to three hours to explore the most beautiful park in the area before sunset. It was rustic and full of nature. One path followed the creek shore. The other side had steep sandstone rock formations. Some large rocks in the creek let us cross over to the rock formation on the other side. All around us were yellows, reds, and oranges of autumn.

  Dad, Emily, and I took off on some dirt paths that went straight up the hills, while Mom stayed on the main path with Chica. We seemed to find more beauty with each hill we climbed. So much untouched woodland! We didn’t stay long because it wouldn’t be fair to leave Mom alone.

  “Are the colors as beautiful there as they are here?” Mom asked when we rejoined her.

  “I don’t think o
ne can be judged by another,” said Dad. “Everywhere’s perfect today.”

  Emily and I took Chica and ran down the path. Mom and Dad chose to walk slower arm in arm. They caught up with us as we explored the water’s edge.

  Together we walked to the end of the path, which was quite a distance, over a mile, and turned around. The sun was lowering by then, turning the autumn colors to even more fascinating hues. Mom took out her cell phone to get some shots to post on Facebook later.

  Emily and I decided to run ahead while our parents walked slowly, taking photos. As we headed toward the winding creek shoreline we both noticed something in the water up ahead. A signal bird swooped in front of me and I quickly scratched my neck, signing to Emily we were approaching a creature. We kept our glances away from it but could still see it peripherally. We turned to each other as we walked past it. Without trying to show any emotion our eyes seemed to talk. We had just passed the most beautiful white swan we had ever seen.

  “Well, should we wait for Mom and Dad on the bridge?” I asked my sister.

  “Sounds good,” replied Emily. We stood on the bridge with our backs to the swan.

  I looked at Emily and, like I would with Grandma, told her in my head to stay calm. To my surprise she answered me with, “I will, Aly. Wow, I can hear you. Can you hear me?”

  For a moment we both forgot the swan as we smiled in acknowledgement of our new communication skill.

  “So, are you two really going to ignore me?” The swan asked. “I’ve been searching for you, Guardian. You see, your services are needed. The light elf king sent me here. First, to find the endangered elf colony, and then to connect them with you!” the swan continued in an assertive voice behind us.