Fairies by Holly Hagen Foxglove sat naked in the thin November light combing her hair, her wings open to catch what heat the Sun could provide. She could feel the sun warmed blood in her arms, thighs, breasts, and belly, recalling vividly Web's hands and the egg. She closed her green eyes and relived their lovemaking. The more completely her body remembered, the faster it coated the egg with nutrient rich mucous. The faster the egg was coated, the sooner she could lay it. Tomorrow it would be Leaf and another egg, the last egg she would ever lay. Winged fairy females only mate during one week of their lives. A shudder ended her reverie, time to get dressed. She stretched, and contracted muscles in her back. Her wings folded into cases over her shoulder blades. White and green streaked hair rippled to her slim ankles, as her delicate body glowed with iridescences in the sun light. Only the swelling of her abdomen betrayed her gravid condition. From a squaw-berry bush, Foxglove plucked an opalescent garment and slipped it over her head. The loose fitting dress provided protection from the fall chill and scratchy brush, but hid nothing. She flicked into the surrounding forest, following a path no human eyes could find. She came to the foot of a limestone cliff streaked with red clay. Unfurling her wings, she fluttered up the cliff face. Each wing beat pulled her dress across her nipples, reminding her of questing hands. Quite egg-heavy and glad to be home, she landed on a ledge. Reluctantly, her wings slowed and stopped. She stepped to a deep crack, the entrance of a cozy cave. Along the wall farthest from the entrance, a small hot spring steamed. In a semi-circle around the spring, five ovals ten to twelve inches long, rested in nests lined with swan's down and rabbit fur. A sixth sat empty. Between the spring and the entrance, was a fairy sized bed. Along another wall stood jars of honey and jugs of nectar. A large, hairy, grey spider jumped from the ceiling and butted Fox Glove in the knees. She gently scratched the spider's back and removed her dress. Opening a jug of nectar, she drank thirstily. She poured a little into a small bowl and sat it on the cave floor. "There you go, Chirp. We new mothers have to stick together." She glanced up at the dark corner where the spider's egg case hung. "Your brood behaving themselves?" Chirp chattered at her a bit and bent to sipping her nectar. "Good, glad to hear it. Mine are acting up a bit, at least this one is." She patted her swollen belly. "Could you be a dear and leave me alone to do this?" Chirp chattered a bit more and climbed the wall to her own eggs. Bringing a fairy egg into the world is a matter of; a lot of concentration, not a little work, and a lot more pleasure. Pain does not enter into it, only weariness after. The egg was a pearly oval a foot long, sticky to touch, with a dimple in one end. Foxglove cradled her egg in her arms, its sticky coating not bothering her a bit. A single drop of golden fluid formed on one of her nipples. She touched this to the egg's dimple, where it was quickly absorbed. She arraigned the egg in its nest and carried it to the others. Each egg received a drop of golden vitamins. The daily feeding of the eggs insured the young would be strong enough to hatch. Even a few hours delay, could mean weak or malformed offspring. A healthy young fairy had little enough chance after hatching, since only one in eight survived to return to the nursery cave. Motherhood was the only thing a fairy took seriously. Chirp swung down and had a close look at the new arrival. She gently patted the egg and chirped her compliments. Turning to the older nests, she inspected for any small insects looking for a free meal. While Chirp finished her hunting, Foxglove sipped nectar. Carefully stepping over her larder, she edged her way through a wide crevice to the bathing room. With a flick of her fingers, fairy fire lit the walls and water with blue light. As she splashed luxuriously, a fetid current of air chilled her. She found a crack in the wall had widened. She waded to the wall and felt the air moving forcefully through it. "The tunnel on the other side must connect with the dungeons of the castle ruins up the cliff," she thought. Her mood ruined, she splashed out of the water and shivered, but not from cold. The ancient ruins atop the cliff had a bad reputation among her people. Many times the ruins had attracted humans, ghosts, and other monsters. The walls were saturated with the echoes of screams and the stench of fear. "Chirp, a crack in the bathing room has opened right through to the old dungeons. We'll have to do something or the whole place will stink of death." The spider twirled and chattered. "Rocks fighting? Rocks don't fight, they fall, or shift, or weaken and crack." Foxglove found a clean shift and pulled it over her head. Chirp squealed and clicked. "Sounded angry did they? Well, rocks don't growl often. I'll have to check it out." The fairy frowned and started pulling on heavy silk stockings. "I can't let the family cave fall down around my pixies' ears, before they're old enough to fly away. This old place has to last at least another six winters." After dressing, Foxglove scratched Chirp behind the eyes and leaped from the cliff ledge to fly her routine daily inspection. She spent of half the next day on the serious and pleasurable business of procreation. The draft in the bathing room reminded her the wall needed seeing to, the cold and odor were offensive. She called to Chirp. The spider went to work at once making a curtain from layers of fine web. Tired, Foxglove at last took her warm bath. It was the most important week of her long life, and the most exhausting. Above the cozy cave, a new neighbor was kicking the foundations of his new home. It was exactly his kind of place, tumbled stone above and dank tunnels with dungeons below. The Red Cap stamped his iron soled boots, shook his shaggy head and laughed wildly. When she left the cave, Foxglove heard the racket. The screams of a terrified rabbit and insane laughter prompted her upwards cautiously, to investigate. The brown and white rabbit was scurrying for cover with a huge Red Cap giving chase. Despite his size, he kept up with the frightened animal, cutting off escape routes as the hare reached them. She realized the mad giant was playing with his prey, and would finish the game when the rabbit was too exhausted to give good sport. Not wanting to watch any more, she fluttered down to the forest floor. A Red Cap is one of the few beings that would, and could, destroy every thing for the joy of killing. Her new neighbor would kill her if he could catch her. Her clutch wasn't safe. Hoping Leaf or Web might know a way to get rid of the Red Cap, She quickly found a fox to take messages to them. They would send to the Fairy Court, but the message might take weeks to find the King or Queen. Foxglove flew her territory, asking animals for information on the disposal of Red Caps. An old owl, roused from his day's sleep, remembered seeing a Red Cap banished long ago. "It happened when I was little more than a hatchling." Gray Silence reminisced. "It was just dawn. I saw my parents and a falcon diving on a monster. He was huge and carried an ax as big as a man. Crossing a rock slide, he tripped as he swung the ax at my father. While he was falling, the falcon picked up a big rock and flew high with it. The falcon dropped it on him, and it hit him in the face. Father picked up something from the ground in his beak, and flew right in the monster's face. The giant screamed, then vanished, boom." "Do you know what it was that drove the monster away?" "No. It could have been anything." The owl shrugged. "You never know what wingless creatures are thinking." She thanked the sleepy bird and continued her flight. Leaf was flying their boarder when she reached it. He tried to offer comfort, but had little news. Web was the same. "We can move the eggs to my territory, until cold weather sets in." Web offered, at their mutual boarder. "I don't have any nice warm caves to winter over the eggs, so they'll be just as dead after first frost. I'll ask around for information on Red Caps. You go home and take care of my eggs. If all else fails, there is always the human town two valleys over." "Thanks, Web. I am taking care of your eggs and Leaf's eggs. They are all my eggs" Fox Glove hugged his shoulders and tried to smile. "Leaf sent word to the court. He doesn't have any place warm enough for eggs either. He's asking his animals too, and says if fighting will help, he'll fight." Foxglove retreated to her nice safe cave to feed the eggs. Chirp left off hunting and stroked her arm comfortingly. "No, Chirp, I'm alright. A Red Cap has moved into the old castle. He's up there now, laughing and screaming and killing every thing that moves. The really bad part is, he's fast and my glamour won't work on him." Chirp chattered agitatedly and hopped around the room. "We've sent to court but you know how hard they can be to find. The last I heard, the King was in Ireland and the Queen was across the sea. Leaf and Web said they would help." Chirp left off her hopping and sat down at Fox glove's feet, chirping more quietly. "No I don't have a plan. Maybe the males will find out something. They promised to question animals and birds in their territories." Foxglove thought about tricking the humans from the valley to the south into coming and killing the monster. It was a pleasant thought, but then she'd have to get rid of the humans. They could be as pesky as pixies and every bit as destructive as the Red Cap. Maybe one of the smaller beetles could spy on her enemy. It wasn't a solution, but it just might help find one. "Chirp, which is harder to catch; a fire fly or a lady bug?" The spider waved a leg and chirped. "I want a spy in that castle small enough not to be noticed and smart enough to do some good, that's why." Chirp chattered quietly and waved another leg. "So, a fire fly is faster, but a lady bug is smarter. I guess I'll ask a lady bug then." Foxglove fluttered down to the forest floor. She managed to locate a brave little lady bug willing to enter the ruins and spy on the enemy. She took the little hero up to the castle. He flew down on his own and landed near the entrance. There was no sight of the Red Cap, but there was blood and fur smeared on several rocks. She watched until her spy was in the ruined castle, then glided down to her cave. At home, a crow sent by Web waited for her. The crow remembered a Red Cap from his travels and had seen a human army fighting it. The army had lost. Foxglove thanked him, wondering how she could prevail against a monster that could rout an army. While the crow and Chirp were exchanging compliments, a young falcon arrived with a message from Leaf. "He said for you to come to your meeting place. There's an old wolf that fought a Red Cap." At last, someone that knew how to get rid of the monster; some one that had done it themselves. Foxglove quickly thanked the crow, and made sure the falcon would take the message to Web. She flew as fast as fairy wings could go to Leaf's grove. Leaf and an old grey wolf waited in the glade. He hugged her hard, burying his face in her hair. Web glided down and joined them circling the others with his arms. The wolf waited quietly for the greetings to end. When the fairies were seated, the old campaigner began his story. "When I was a young pack leader, I had a human friend that had a pack. It was small, only his mate and a few cubs. Their hunting ground was high in a pass by an old human den. A Red Cap came to live in the old den, and kill everything that came his way. "The man, some other men and I went to clear the monster out. One of the men said the Red Cap would leave if he was beaten in a fight. The men fought well, but the Red Cap was stronger and faster. We did not do well at first. I saw the giant pick up two of the humans at once, and throw them. Then my human noticed the Red Cap didn't fight as smart as a human or wolf, and he didn't seem to see well either. "We sat a trap. I got the monster to chase me between two tall rocks where the humans were hiding. They pelted him with stones from their rock throwers, while I got away. The rocks mostly bounced off, but one hit him between the eyes and he fell. The humans hit him in the face with more rocks, moving closer with bigger rocks. One of the bigger rocks knocked out a tooth, then my human found it and held it up. When the Red Cap saw that tooth, he disappeared, boom." When the wolf stopped talking, he lay down facing the group. Web and Leaf soon fell to arguing about the best way to win, and how many fairies it would take. "Just a minute there, cubs," the old campaigner interrupted. "I didn't say that you would need an army. As I told you, the humans had to trick the giant to win. Do you want me to believe that fairies are less tricky than humans?" "Tell us, grey one, how do we save our eggs?" Foxglove asked. "Just do what fairies do best. Trick him and make him fall down. Two legged creatures fall easily enough. Once you have him down, drop rocks on him. That old human den has rocks laying around, doesn't it? I'm only that sorry I won't be there to help." They began talking again, this time making plans with the old wolf throwing in his advice. A plan took shape. "I'll talk to that lady bug tonight. He should be able to tell me something about the monster's habits by tomorrow." She said as they were getting ready to leave. "He needs to know what to look for now that we have a plan. Do you two want hear his report tomorrow night, so we all hear his news?" Both males agreed and hugged her. Web thumped Leaf's back before taking off. Leaf, in his turn, vanished with the wolf into the trees as Foxglove fluttered home. The lady bug was on the ledge waiting at the appointed time. His report was short, but informative. The monster spent the day tearing up the vegetation and tossing around big rocks. He took a break in the afternoon to nap and scratch, then resumed rearranging the landscape. "It's too bad Oberon took language away from the Red Caps." Leaf said. "He might have said something we could use." "Oberon only took the words 'bleed' and 'die' away from them." Web corrected. "Of course since those are the only words they ever uttered, it had the same affect." "We'll have to make do with what we do know." Fox Glove commented. "We need to know if he sleeps at the same time tomorrow and for how long. Can you tell us these things?" The lady bug seemed willing, but not eager, for this duty. He waved a wing cover at her and departed up the cliff. She talked to Chirp about making a rope. "It must be strong enough to catch his stride without breaking. Do you really think ten strands will be enough? Twenty feet should do." Foxglove listened to the spider's chatter then fussed. "They won't let me fight the beast. They will only let me set the trap, and stay out of the way. I suppose it's for the egg's good, but it is my territory he moved into. I should be in the battle. I feel left out." Chirp started her own part of the plan. She climbed to the highest point in the ceiling and reeled out heavy silk as she jumped to the floor. Then, she started all over again. The next day, Foxglove was irritable from waiting to hear the lady bug's report. "He took a nap from the hour of short shadows until the hour the sun shines in that big mouth of the human cave." The spy reported. "He tried to eat some of the big rocks, but it hurt his mouth so he stopped. I'll be glad to get back to my family, they usually make some kind of sense." "We will meet you on the plateau shortly after shortest shadows tomorrow." Leaf nodded his agreement. "After you tell me where he sleeps, you can go home." "When I was a little one, I was friends with a human child," Leaf said. "He showed me the crafting of a rock thrower such as the humans use. A sling he called it. Lately, I have crafted one these slings and practiced with it. Maybe it will help." "Anything might help." Foxglove commented. "I can use a sling too. Perhaps, if you will make one for me. I can practice as well. " "No!" Web and Leaf answered together. "We agreed that you stay away from the fighting. Without you to feed our eggs, they will die." Leaf reminded her. "We already have little ones with other females. If these eggs don't hatch healthy fairies, your line will die out." Web pointed out, "You must survive to protect the clutch, if we can't knock out a tooth." This was logic Foxglove couldn't deny. However, it was still galling for her not to have a bigger part in the battle. The lady bug was waving his legs and shouting in beetle common, but the fairies didn't notice. Unfortunately, a lady bug shouting is not much louder than a leaf falling. The poor little fellow finally gave up, and returned to the ruins. Foxglove, promising to get some rest waived farewell to the others. Chirp finished grooming the eggs and butted Fox Glove's leg. Having a beetle for a guest, even one of the nastier tasting ones, made her hungry and a little nervous. "We just have to get through tomorrow, then everything will get back to normal. About time it did to." In spite of her promise to her mates, she had little sleep that night. The next morning, she paced her cave, folding and unfolding her wings. When the appointed hour came, she was calm and in charge of herself. Web and Leaf had pebbles to boulders to choose from. They gathered their hoards while Foxglove found a good place to anchor her spider silk rope. The old entry was flanked on either side by pillars, now broken and stained. They were perfect for her intentions. She secured the ends with her strongest knots, at her knee level. The spy landed on her shoulder and tried telling her to look at something in the dirt near by. She listened, but they were interrupted by Web and Leaf. "We're ready," said Leaf. "We should get this over with." "I agree. Foxglove, go watch from a safe place." She hugged each of them tears streaking her face. Watching Leaf and the lady bug enter the black maw of the old ruin, she fluttered to a high thermal. A short eternal wait ended with a roaring from the ruins. Fast as a dragon fly, Leaf zipped into view with the Red Cap on his very heels. The monster's foot caught Chirp's rope, and he came crashing down. Web was ready with a boulder, dropping it from a great height. It shattered into dust, leaving a huge crater next to the Red Cap's head. Leaf flew over with a big block, dropping it on the monster's shoulder. The Red Cap was getting to his knees, when Web dropped another rock and hit the top of the giant's head. He shook his shaggy mane, but continued to rise. Leaf did a little damage with his sling, there was blood oozing from one eyebrow. The monster began throwing boulders and swatting at fairies. Web and Leaf fluttered and swooped, dodging blows and slinging or dropping their rocks. They were fighting hard, but little damage was done on either side. Foxglove watched, wringing her hands from a distance that grew shorter as the battle progressed. Suddenly, she was aware of a lady bug perched on her nose shouting at her. She tried to be reasonable and gently remove him, but he flew to her eyes. Finally, the tiny creature's message reached her brain. "The Red Cap has already lost a tooth when he tried to eat a rock. It is in the dust near the castle entrance." She saw the battle had moved away from the entrance. Quickly, she swooped down to search for the tooth, the little spy with her. He directed her search, but the bare patch of dust held only dust. They looked under nearby rocks and grass, but with no luck. Frantically, Fox Glove patted and stirred the dusty ground, turning over a splinter of rock. The lady bug jumped on the yellowish shard and waved his legs. Web, hit in the shoulder by a thrown rock, fluttered lower and slower than before. Leaf tried to draw the giant's attention away, but the Red Cap smelled blood and moved in to kill. In desperation, Leaf flew for the forgotten rope. Carrying one end, he tried flying around the monster's legs, dragging the other end. Web, out of rocks, fluttered to get more. The giant pulled up a small tree, roots and all, still tossing boulders with the other hand. Leaf, in his efforts to entangle the huge legs, became entangled himself in the tree branches. The Red Cap roared with laughter and slammed the tree top against a boulder. Leaf hung on tight, as several branches snapped. Web glided down to a nearby pile of rocks. The tree and Leaf were swung up and then down, right at Web. Foxglove caught an updraft, climbing above the combatants. Directly above the monster, she dove for his face. Gripping the tooth like a dagger, she stabbed into his eye. There was a clap of thunder, and the Red Cap disappeared. "If you ever do anything like that again, I'll have to kiss you. " Leaf shouted. "Web is hurt. We'll need to help him down to your cave." "Hurry then. It's time to feed the eggs." Web was bandaged with cob webs and herbs. They were congratulating themselves with a nectar toast. A young fairy, dressed in the livery of the King, flitted into the cave. "Please, Lady Fox Glove, I have a message from the King." He handed her a long scroll. She took the scroll and read aloud. "It says that the court won't be able to help with the Red Cap. The King suggests we scare the Red Cap off with one of his own teeth. There is no suggestion on how to obtain a tooth, however." "You mean the court doesn't have one?" Web smirked behind his cup of nectar. "Perhaps we should send them ours." Leaf laughed. ----- This ASCII representation is the copyrighted property of the author. You may not redistribute it for any reason. The original story is available on-line at http://tale.com/titles-free.phtml?title_id=18 Formatting copyright (C) 1998 Mind's Eye Fiction, http://tale.com/