Fairies of Light

by J. E Hanson

  I still stare at all the pictures of him, “How are you able to take pictures, if there were no cameras invented back then?”

  “Cameras have always been with our finger snaps. We can freeze a moment in time, and turn it into a picture. You will learn how to take pictures in fairy school.”

  I help Mrs. Cirrus cook dinner, and Mr. Puck walks in with Skylar.

  She looks at me weirdly, “Rosalie, what are you doing here?”

  I look at my aunt and show her my hands. “I think momma recruited help,” Mr. Puck smiles as he answers for me.

  Mrs. Cirrus remembers, “Oh! I completely forgot about your date! I’m such an idiot! Rosalie and I were just talking about your brothers.”

  Mr. Puck rolls his eyes. I help her make her famous pork chops, fresh salad, garlic roasted mash potatoes, and homemade rolls. She starts to teach me how to cook. But, I have to go home.

  Before I leave, I hug my aunt, “I have to go home now, Mrs. Cirrus. Thanks for teaching me how to cook.”

  “Please come back and see me, Rosalie!” Mrs. Cirrus yells out the door.

  I wave at her, “I promise I will, Mrs. Cirrus!”

  I hug Mr. Puck, and walk out. I saw Skylar, and Mr. Puck sneaking in a kiss. I think they’re dating each other now. Watching them kiss makes me giggle. I run home in record time. Grandma read me a story about true love, and I love hearing about how grandpa and her met. They met in the forest, while she was picking wild fruit. Grandma says it was love at first sight.

  ~~~***~~~

  The days at Mrs. Cirrus’s are the highlight of my existence now. I make sure to visit her every single day. Violet has a plate of chocolate chip cookies waiting for me, by the door now. I visit her that often, “How was school today, Rosalie?”

  “Poppy, Marigold, and Holly think they can beat me for the Winter Solstice. I practice every single day to make sure that I beat those mean girls, Mrs. Cirrus.”

  “I told you to call me Violet! You have those mean girls beat, and you have nothing to worry about, my dear. Oh! I almost forgot! I have tons of videos of Joey frozen in time, if you want to watch them.”

  “I’m so sorry Violet, and I would love to see him dance!”

  Violet snaps her fingers, and she makes hundreds of videos appear on the ground. I sit on the floor next to the couch. The first video plays in the VCR. A young boy, who is the same age as me, takes over the stage, “He’s really good, Violet!”

  “That’s my baby! You can watch as many videos as you want.”

  Chapter 4

  As the years fly by, trophies and gold bracelets fill my jewelry boxes. My grandparents had to extend our trophy room, because I’ve won so many trophies. I glance at my body, and I notice that I’ve drastically changed over the years. My trophies rest next to the wall. All of my wins give me intense satisfaction. My top changes, because I’m in the final year of fairy school. I’m officially a cadet. In cadets, you learn to fly and teleport. These are crucial lessons to our existence. I ultimately know how to snap a rose into another’s hand. I even know how to deflect magic, and how to counteract spells. The love potions were deadly last year. You had to watch what you ate and drank. If you eat something that a friend gives you, you will fall in love with a tree—or a bullfrog. I barely escaped all the pranks from last year. Ashe is the worst at pranks.

  No matter what I do, there’s no way to hide my breasts now. My top changes to a teal bikini. I cringe to think that this will definitely draw even more unwanted attention to me. The boys and girls, who are my age date for a little while, and then they breakup. But, there is still one couple, who hold to their convictions throughout school. Ashe and Daisy have been courting for several years now. I wish I were as lucky as they are. I idolize Ashe and Daisy for staying in love, and their infinite devotion to each other.

  Today is another big day for me. I leer in the mirror, and try to pull my top up to hide my large breasts. I can’t believe how short my teal skirt is. I bit my bottom lip, and try to pull the skirt down. I try to squat down, and perform a few dance moves. I hate this abrupt change, because I have curves, and this is scary. My stick pale figure is now muscular, and in the shape of an hourglass. I really hate my breasts. Too bad, I’m unable to snap them away. The only problem is that fairies are not allowed to alter their own bodies physically—or other fairies’ bodies. That blows big time! I’m only sixteen, and this sucks!”

  Skylar taught me how to manipulate my own hair. I usually leave it down in curls, but today, I pull it up in a ponytail. I casually saunter in the living room to view Snow and Ice Winters resting on our couch. Jazzy wears a yellow shirt with a yellow Beret. The Enforcers even put a pipe in his mouth, and they keep taking pictures with their fingers.

  I want to kill them, “What are you doing to my dog?”

  Alston Wind laughs at me, “Relax, Rosalie. We’re having a little fun with your dog. He’s perfectly okay.”

  I snatch the pipe out of his mouth, and point at him with my finger lit, “Leave my dog alone! He’s my dog, and not your toy!”

  “We want to make him our official mascot for the FOL. Do you even notice the shirt and hat?” Terrance Wind continues to argue with me.

  I’m furious with them at this point with their stupidity, “He will never be your official mascot for your stupid group! You all need to find other ways to preoccupy your time—or go find some fairies to save.”

  Snow and Ice Winters laugh along with the other five men. They turn the subject to talking business with my uncle, but not before, they whistle and make catcalls at me.

  Oberon tries to restore order to his pathetic group, “Dudes, stop that! She’s still a baby!”

  The Enforcers sit around our living room. They stop playing with my dog, and start to drool over me. Terrance Wind has perfect dark velvet skin with brown eyes. He wears the short silver loincloth shorts. The reason why he wears silver is that he’s an atmosphere fairy along with his twin brother. Terrance and Alston are over six feet tall with equal amount of muscles. They are easy on the eyes, but they both can be perverts at times.

  Terrance flocks over me, “Your baby niece is moving up on the female hotness scale. She’s now of age, and ripe for the picking.”

  Oberon drops a file in front of Terrance, “Try to keep you fucking tongues in your mouths! She is still my baby niece!”

  I roll my eyes at them, and walk into another bathroom.

  Skylar stands there and keeps her back to me, “Get out, Rosalie!” She has been moodier as of late.

  “I’m so sorry! Why are you so irritable lately?”

  Skylar turns around, and her body has drastically slimmed down, “I’m still struggling to lose these last five pounds! How the heck do you stay so thin, Rosalie?”

  I stare at my body, “Do you honestly think I enjoy looking like this? I’m not allowed to shrink my boobs as I want.”

  She finally notices me, “Oh dear, you’re wearing your adult fairy top.”

  I start to cry, and she tries to comfort me, “This isn’t the end of the world, Rosalie. You should be thankful for what the Creator gave you. You’re absolutely gorgeous.”

  “I wish I had a boyfriend though.” I’m naturally disgusted by my current relationship status.

  “You have all eternity to find a husband. It would also help you, if you stop visiting Mrs. Cirrus's house every single day. You should stop watching all those videos of Joey. You need to mingle with the public every now and then,” she reminds me.

  I quickly change the subject, “How are you and Mr. Puck doing?”

  She reapplies her lipstick, and she puckers her lips in the mirror, “We are taking things slow.”

  I’m in disbelief over the elapse of time spent together, “If you two go any slower, the Pines will shoot out a dozen more babies.”

  She finishes putting on more makeup, “I get your point, but he wants to wait a couple of years to commit. I refuse to rush him, because I feel that it will piss him off. I’m afrai
d of pushing him away, and that’s why we are taking our time,” she answers and then she glances at the time, “you had better leave! You will be late for fairy school! You are a cadet, and you’re almost finished!”

  Realizing the time, I grab my breakfast, and run out the front door. I barely chew it down. Daisy and Ashe greet me, while they hold hands with each other. Jesse walks down the dirt path holding hands with Gardenia.

  They even make me sigh with disappointment, “She’s so lucky to have such a wonderful guy.”

  I start to complain and Ashe starts to laugh at me, “If he’s so wonderful, he would have never made out with Poppy Breeze a few months ago. That dude is a major player, and I’m surprised that he has never tried to make a move on you yet.”

  “I see your point, but he is so attractive,” I admit to my friends.

  Daisy rolls her eyes at my swooning, “I would stay away from that no count Jesse Hurst! He will wind up breaking your soul, just as his mother...”

  “What do you mean by his mother?”

  Daisy bit her bottom lip, “His mother screwed his father, while she was dating Joseph Cirrus.”

  The shock continues, “This is the first time, I have ever heard about this!”

  Ashe stops me, “Please stay clear of Jesse. He’s not a good dude, Rosalie. He will use you, and he will break you.”

  I struggle to keep my mind off that gorgeous Jesse Hurst. He has huge muscles, and he keeps his hair long. His hair appears golden blonde from the reflection of the sun.

  I change my unpleasant fantasies to other important issues, “I think I have this competition beat, and I want to try something different this year.”

  Daisy rolls her eyes at me, “That’s the only thing you do. You always study dancing non-stop. You should learn to lead a normal existence. How do you expect to marry someone, if you’re always hanging out at Mrs. Cirrus's house? That place is a major buzz kill, and besides, you always win these competitions. What are you so worried about?”

  I start to daydream about Joey again, “I love her house, and she makes the best chocolate chip cookies. Frankly, I can use all the help that I can get. I have to evolve my dancing techniques, or that stupid Poppy will try to beat me. I don’t want to lose to her, and I’m so sorry, if I’m completely anti-social.”

  Pine shakes his head at me as we enter the huge school, “I think you’re obsessing over Joey way too much. You’re insane to spend all of your teenage years to think about a fairy, who you will never meet. I hate to inform you of this, but he will never jump out of the television for you.”

  I dreamily think about him again, “I know that he’s unable to jump out of the television. There’s always hope, that one day we will finally meet. He’s such a great dancer, and his moves are spot on. I would love to dance with him just one time. He’s so sexy too.”

  Daisy scratches her head, “You need to forget about him too, and move on. It will take a miracle to bring him back. You obsess over him way too much, and it’s almost scary to see how much of a crazy stalker you become, when it comes to him.”

  We walk along the hallways, and make it to our new classroom. I have to deal with Puck Cirrus as my new cadet teacher. The other boys in the classroom eye me with drool hanging from their mouths.

  Mr. Puck grins at me, “I see that I have you for your last year, Rosalie.”

  I instantly hug my former kindergarten teacher. I’m so thankful I have Mr. Puck, “I’m so glad that I have you, and not Poppy's mom.”

  The male fairies are still unable to pry their eyes off me. I casually take my seat on the ground. The teacher's assistant finally arrives, and I’m surprised to see that the assistant is none other than Jesse Hurst. This will be one interesting school year.

  I lean back as I bask my flawless skin in the sunlight.

  Ashe Pines points out, “The other dudes are observing you, Rosalie.”

  I purposely shake my hair out, and I feed off any attention. Even Jesse is gawking at me. He never notices I exist until now. He’s always with his stupid girlfriend, Gardenia. I hear about his latest commitment issues quite often, and it’s only a matter of time before they break up again.

  For me, I walk with a twist and it makes everything far worse on me. I know it does, because I can overhear all the complaints from the other female fairies.

  “Congratulations cadets! I want to congratulate each one of you for making it to your final year. You will learn a lot this year, and you will receive your final exam. This exam is comprehensive, and we will be testing all of you from the beginning of your education to now. It is up to you, if you want to graduate—or not. We have Jesse Hurst, who will assist me with cadets this year.”

  ~~~***~~~

  In this class, we will learn how to fly. Jesse focuses his attention directly on me. I wave at him to see if he’s actually staring at me. I let it go for now, so that I can visualize flying in the air. For me to visualize anything is incredibly difficult for me to do. The first two attempts are not going over too well. I jump up and down a few times.

  Jesse walks over to me, “You need to close your eyes, kid. You’re not visualizing flying as you’re supposed to.”

  I’m fine until he places his hands on my hips. His touch unhinges me uncomfortably. I close my eyes, and I slowly fly away from him. Without noticing, I’m in the air with Jesse close by.

  “Whatever you do, don’t look down, Rosalie.”

  I do the one thing he tells me not to do. I stare at the ground, and I’m overlooking the treetops. I instantly panic, and automatically hurl towards the ground. I shield my head with my arms as I’m about to make impact. Out from nowhere, Mr. Puck saves me. We slide through the tall weeds and wildflowers together for a few minutes.

  There are grass stains all over us, “Now I should have included insurance forms. Are you okay, Rosalie?”

  I kick the mud and grass off me, “Jesse told me to not look down, and well, I looked down. I need to remind myself never to do that again. I know that I will fail, Mr. Puck.”

  Mr. Puck laughs at me for a minute, “You’re about as bad at flying as my youngest brother was. Joey also struggled with flying.”

  He takes me completely off guard by this latest revelation, “I had no idea that Joey also struggled with flying. I thought he was Mr. Perfectionist at everything he did.”

  Mr. Puck laughs, and he snaps us back to class, “I’m surprised that momma never told you about his terrible flying skills. You should ask her about them. I assume that you’re coming over today?”

  I bashfully smile and nod yes. I stroll away, and twist my hips.

  Jesse traipses over to my seat, and he squats beside me, “I’m so sorry, Rosalie. Are you okay?”

  I scan myself as I continue to heal, “I’m fine now, and I will remember to never look down from here on out.”

  For safety purposes, we spend the rest of the day teleporting roses.

  “Are you hanging out at Mrs. Cirrus's house again?” Ashe normally asks me this same question every single day.

  “I’m going over there again today,” and I always give him the same answer.

  “You will remain single, if you never go out with us.” Against his friendly teasing, I manage to ignore my friends after the bell sounds.

  I even ignore the onlookers as I leisurely stroll through the Cirrus’s driveway. Jazzy is waiting right beside momma.

  Momma perches on her front porch swing with a plate full of cookies, “Something tells me that you’ve had another rough day, Rosalie.”

  There is no way to avoid momma, “I took a nasty nosedive, while learning how to fly today. Did Joey also struggle with flying?”

  My newly adopted mom hands me a cookie. She cheeses over my latest failure, “I would lie and say no, but he was rather dreadful. He crashed hard into the ground, and he was out of school for the whole week. We heal, but he took a nasty fall. I’m so glad that you’re okay, Rosalie.”

  I take my usual spot next to her, “
How will I ever graduate, if I can’t fly?”

  Violet pats my head softly, and she toys with my hair, “Just remember not to look down, and you will do just fine.”

  Momma opens the front door for me, and we stroll inside her two-story white frame house. I park in my usual spot on their floor, and next to a stack of Joey’s tapes. I mull through his tapes, and found one that I’ve never seen before. The new tape plays in their VCR. To my amazement, he creates a brand new move. This is a new dance step of his that I’ve never seen before, and I automatically start to study it. I attempt the brutal dance move a few times, but I keep falling on the floor. The move he perfects is extremely hard to accomplish. I continuously rewind the tape, and I even freeze the move in slow motion. There’s no easy way to accomplish this move. Even through his tape plays in slow motion, the move is far too difficult for me. After I collapse on the floor a few times, I have to give up for now.

  There is something about him that grabs my full attention. He has the prettiest set of crystal eyes that I’ve ever seen on a man. Something inside of me desires him. I continue to fantasize about kissing those lush and pouty lips of his. I bit my bottom lip just thinking about what it would be like, if he were right here with me now. While Violet washes the dishes, I froze his video just to stare into his perfect eyes. I continue to lose myself in those steamy crystal eyes of his. By a sheer force of will, I managed to stop fixating on him. I observe the wall to study all his wins. To prove that I can tie with him, I have to complete my winning streak during my cadet year. The sun sleeps, and its dark outside, but a beautiful crushed velvet darkness.

  I’m lost in a lustful fog, and daydream about him as I return to the Palace. Oberon and his friends grub on Skylar's food. They continue to drool over my flawless body again.

  My uncle turns around, and he smirks at me, “I notice that you made it to the Cirrus house again. Did you learn anything new?”