Holly and Ivy
Summary: When traveling with Miss Nettle to another kingdom, Ivy encounters a young girl named Holly who has a unique connection to butterflies.
Disclaimer: I don't own the show. I only own Holly.
A/N: I wanted to make sure I incorporated Ivy into another story for Wassailia, and of course, the title is a play on the song "The Holly and the Ivy." ;) Besides, butterflies are just little pieces of symbolism anyway, so why not? Short and sweet, not to mention a little different from most of my stories… I guess it's more metaphorical in a way? Not sure. Lol. Enjoy!
*Story*
"What is this place called again?" Princess Ivy asked as she followed Miss Nettle through the streets of a kingdom they'd just entered. They had been traveling quite a bit recently, going from kingdom to kingdom and introducing people to the fairy's new line of flowers she'd grown.
"Papiliposa," Miss Nettle responded with ease, grinning as the princess scrunched up her nose at the multisyllabic title. "What's wrong, Princess? Too complicated?"
"Just… Why do kingdoms have to have such ridiculously long names sometimes? Or even worse, overly pompous-sounding names."
"I'm sorry, and what is your kingdom named again? Your deserted island with grayscale structures and lush vegetation?"
The younger girl frowned and folded her arms. "I'm working on it, okay? Naming my own island is hard. Oof!" She yelped as she ran directly into someone quite a bit smaller than she was. She glanced down at the child now staring up at her from the ground. She smiled apologetically, something she was still getting used to, as she leaned down and held out her hand. "Sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going."
The girl giggled as she accepted her extended hand and pulled herself to her feet. "It's all right," she responded in a slight English accent. "Neither was I." She dusted off her plaid outfit and adjusted her braided brown hair before glancing back toward the princess, green eyes twinkling. "Wow, you're rather pretty! You look just like a princess!"
Princess Ivy grinned. "I am, actually."
Miss Nettle rolled her eyes. "Oh, here we go... Come find me when you're done basking in the glow of royal recognition." She smirked as she flew off.
"I'm Princess Ivy." The princess smiled as the girl gasped in excitement.
"Oh, how lovely to meet you!" The young girl curtsied, a somewhat clumsy action in and of itself. It was obvious she wasn't used to meeting royalty on a normal basis, yet the dual-tone-haired princess merely shrugged it off. "I'm Holly."
"Nice to meet you, Holly." She gazed up as some of her butterflies appeared from nowhere and circled around her. "Ah, and these are my lovelies—my beautiful butterflies."
Holly's eyes teared up a bit before she blinked them away and instead urged a smile to appear on her lips. She held up one hand and giggled as one of Ivy's butterflies landed on her finger, its wings fluttering in the wind.
Princess Ivy gasped lightly. "That's strange. Usually my butterflies only cling to me…" She gave the girl a curious stare, a sly smile forming on her lips. "Are you a butterfly charmer, Holly?"
The girl grinned modestly. "Not exactly…" She glanced down at the small butterfly with a contemplative look. "When I was a little girl, my sisters and I were playing a little too close to a pond, and I slipped and fell in. Whilst my sisters ran off to find our father to help, I was struggling to make it back to the surface. I actually couldn't swim…"
The princess nodded as she watched the girl curiously, anxious to hear the end of her story.
"It might have been my imagination, but I could have sworn I saw a multitude of butterflies fluttering above my head. They formed some sort of magic rope and pulled me out to safety, and I passed out. When I awoke, I was tucked into my bed, yet the butterflies were gone." She gently caressed the wing of Ivy's butterfly and smiled sadly. "I never told anyone that story… They only assumed I saved myself, but I'm convinced there were magical life-saving butterflies around me that day."
"It wouldn't be surprising to me at all," Princess Ivy insisted. "If your land is anything like mine or any other kingdom, for that matter, it has at least a bit of magic nestled in its roots. Butterflies are known for metamorphosis: transformation and change. They're also symbols of hope." She giggled as the butterfly Holly was holding flew around the young girl's head once before fluttering back to its owner, settling on her shoulder. "You're a lucky girl, Holly."
"That I am, Princess Ivy." She turned as she heard a man calling her name from nearby. "Oh, that's my father. It was…really nice meeting you, Princess Ivy." She smiled as several butterflies instantly fluttered around her, each attempting to nuzzle her in some manner. She giggled as Princess Ivy folded her arms and smiled at the sight. "It was nice meeting all of you as well." After the tiny creatures departed, Holly waved and took off in another direction.
Princess Ivy glanced at her winged friends. "You guys are something else, you know that?"
"One of these days, they're going to talk back."
The princess gasped in surprise and turned, seeing Miss Nettle behind her. "Don't sneak up on me like that." She frowned. "Where have you been?"
"While you were babysitting, I found a location for us to set up the flowers." She grinned as the younger girl sighed. "So, what was the deal with her anyway?"
Considering the question, she just smiled softly and shrugged. "Butterflies saved her life."
Miss Nettle stared at her for a few moments before turning and starting to float off. "That sounds like a cheesy line from a saccharine song lyric."
Princess Ivy scoffed as she followed her friend. "What would you know? At least my butterflies are the appropriate size. You're the largest fairy I've ever met."
"Remind me to introduce you to Sofia's headmistresses." She grinned. "Now come on before we miss our chance to promote these beauties!"
The younger girl nodded before catching a glimpse of Holly through the brush, a smile on her face as she helped her father and sisters set up what looked to be a camp fire. "Take care, Holly." With that, she followed Miss Nettle to their destination.
The end