Where Spring Touches Winter
Disclaimer: I do not own Tinker Bell or any of the characters there within.
Clarion peeked over the tree root and her wings fluttered.
There, just across the stream, lay a world blanketed in crystal and ice. The stark border between the colorful spangle of spring and the harshly beautiful silvers of winter drew the boundary with unmistakable definition.
Clarion edged around the root.
Snowflakes lazily drifted to rest on gently rolling snow banks and evergreen needles. Trees in eternal hibernation housed those creatures on their winter cycle. The silence at the border was palpable. Nothing but the sigh of the warm spring breeze through the trees and soft rush of the stream could be heard. Animals did not linger at the border; they crossed and remained in their season until nature called them onward. The natural progression herded creatures great and small as strongly as the powerful magic boundary. Clarion could feel its intensity buzz from her wingtips to her toes and she shuddered.
She glanced once over her shoulder, nibbled her bottom lip and shot out to the log where the animals crossed. She landed just where the frost line met the bark of the fallen tree. She peered up into the clouded wintry sky. The vast snow-covered land stretched as far as the eye could see.
Clarion reached one hand up and hesitated.
While border-crossing was not strictly forbidden, Queen Aurora warned fairies and sparrow men from venturing over the border and most of her subjects had the common sense to remain on their own sides. Fairy wings were a temperamental appendage requiring meticulous care and those who valued their ability to fly honored the border. It was dangerous to cross for all.
All but the queen.
Though not immune to the cold, Queen Aurora's pixie dust protected her wings from the Winter Wood's chill far longer than the average fairy. Clarion was still mastering all the properties and techniques of pixie dust, but perhaps it would be enough.
She reached and her arm passed through the border. Frigid air nipped at her bare skin and she snatched it right back, made giddy by the magic and her own recklessness.
Curiosity overruled her common sense and she stepped into the snow.
The chill blasted her in welcome, snowflakes kissing her face as they brushed past, feather light and soft. The strays that clung melted and stung her cheeks to a rosy hue. The snow crunched beneath her feet as ventured further into the woods, head turning every which way to take in the austere beauty. She exhaled an awed sigh and a cloud of vapor suspended in the air.
Winter had a magic all its own.
The deeper she drew into the woods, the colder it felt. Her delicate calla lily gown reached to just above her knees and did little to ward off the cold. She let down her long brown hair to cover her bare shoulders and continued on.
Clarion stooped to sweep the snow with one hand and toss it in the air. It flurried and settled. She scooped up a handful of the pristine white and sculpted it into a sphere. She tossed it up and caught it. Lips curling into a devious smile, she chose a tree as a target and threw the snowball. It struck the tree and stuck. Bubbling with laughter, she sculpted another sphere and threw again at another tree. It stuck.
By the fifth snowball, Clarion packed a solid sphere as hard as she could and wound back to hurl the projectile at her smallest target yet—a little white stump—and she pitched with all her might. To her shock, the stump tumbled over with a yelp.
Startled, Clarion froze when a snow-dusted face popped up over the knoll. The agitated sparrow man spat out a mouthful of snow. Clarion rushed up the hill sputtering apologies but the closer she drew the slower her stride became. The tall, handsome winter sparrow man with slicked back platinum hair and deep chestnut eyes stood, tucked a book under his arm, and brushed snow off his suit, grumbling.
"…came here for some peace and quiet and of course I get smacked by a—" he looked up and his jaw dropped. Their eyes locked and the pair stared at each other; snow continued to fall around them. A sudden warmth replaced the icy breeze; Clarion's heart beat in her throat as a new sensation flooded her entire being. It felt a bit like the first time she'd wielded pixie dust—she'd gleamed a brilliant gold as the dust flowed through her and she was filled with a pure, boundless joy.
The sparrow man's strong jaw hung open as he studied her, stumbling over his words.
"A…a…a w-war…a warm..."
At his faltering suggestion, Clarion remembered she was not meant to be in the woods. She was well beyond the border and if Queen Aurora ever got word of her crossing…Clarion shivered from more than just the cold. Now conscious of the consequences for her actions, Clarion felt the winter close on her and she hugged her arms to herself, teeth chattering and wings numb. She fluttered them in assessment and this caught the handsome stranger's attention. His eyes opened wide.
"The wings of the monarch!" He suddenly dropped to one knee in the snow. "Your Highness, please allow me the honor of escorting you back to spring."
Caught, the fairy snapped her wings shut again. If word in the Winter Woods traveled as fast as it did in Pixie Hollow, Queen Aurora would know of Clarion's little jaunt before her protégé even returned home. Reminded of her formal station and rather unprepared expedition into the winter season, Clarion hugged a bit more tightly to herself.
"Please, I-I-I'm not a qu-queen yet."
The sparrow man noticed she was shivering all over and he wordlessly returned to the crest of the knoll where he produced an ice blue blanket. He wrapped the cover about Clarion's shoulders and she was hopeful the biting air reddening her cheeks hid her blush. Was it her imagination or was he quaking? His strong bare arms shook as he draped the blanket around her. He couldn't be cold—he was a winter fairy! He smelled like crisp morning dew and evergreens.
"Thank you," she clasped the blanket closed and followed him down the incline. Because her wings were covered, they walked together back toward the border. Clarion was surprised she had gotten so far away from it so quickly.
Clarion came back to herself and remembered in all the commotion she had not properly apologized.
"I-I'm so sorry for…" she motioned toward the back of her own head, "for hitting you, ah, who did you say you were?"
"I am Milori, Highness." He inclined his head.
"Milori?" Clarion paused in surprise. "Lord Aquilon's heir?"
"Yes, Highness." He nodded and pressed on. Queen Aurora had spoken highly of the winter lord and his fair charge of the winter fairies and brilliant stewardship of his young apprentice. Of course, the queen made no mention of just how striking this young lord was. "Your Highness?" Milori paused when the warm fairy did not follow. Clarion started and hopped forward.
"Clarion. Call me Clarion."
"As you wish, Highness."
They walked in silence and Clarion sighed inwardly.
Everyone treated her as the revered royal. They greeted her with formal words and respectable distance, just as this winter fairy was now. These were the times she found her station most tiresome. She wanted to take tea and race butterflies like any other fairy. While Queen Aurora encouraged her exploration of their world, the fairies of the hollow did not seem to be on the same page. Even Mary, her closest friend, took ages to break from formality. But that was all. The queen's protégé had no other companions.
Clarion cast a sidelong glance at her stoic companion and, heart fluttering, decided that would change. Today.
She eyed the book under his arm and a grin spread over her face.
"Yellow eyes of snowy owls, peering out from white down cowls. Gliding still on silent wings, they soar the snowfall, winter kings."
The sparrow man came to an abrupt stop and turned to her, eyes wide.
"You've read 'An Anthology of Owls?'" The animation hidden beneath his startled inquiry made his chestnut eyes sparkle.
"That and the Minister of Winter's record books, 'World of the Winter Fairies,' 'Ten Ways to Hibernation,' 'The Art of the Snowflake.' But I'd have to say 'An Anthology of Owls' was the best read."
"It's my favorite book!" The sparrow man burst. He presented the exact book Clarion quoted under his arm. "I must have read this twelve times—the section on snowy owls is the most well researched item I could find on them. They're such beautiful creatures; so agile, elegant. I actually hope to someday—" Milori checked himself, embarrassed for his outburst. "Oh, I-I'm sorry, I—"
Clarion saw decorum war with his enthusiasm as he backpedaled. She touched his arm.
"Please, go on."
Milori looked from her hand back up to her eyes and she saw something change there. Those deep brown eyes seemed to pierce right to her heart and the fairy found her heart in her throat once more.
A strong wintry gale shattered the moment and Clarion yelped as the bitter wind tore at what remained of her warmth. She shuddered violently, her wings losing all feeling and Milori sprang into action. One arm swung around her back and the other swept her legs out from under her as the winter sparrow man launched forward, hurtling them both to the border. Clarion was certain her face was a bright red now.
Milori's wings beat hard to keep them aloft, yet they still only cleared the ground by a wing-length. It was enough. Milori landed at the edge of border and released the quivering Clarion who wasted no time stepping out of the Winter Woods and back into the welcome warmth of Spring Valley. A gentle breeze lifted her wings and skirts and she breathed in the floral bouquet. Sunlight replaced the chill that had seeped into every pore and Clarion let her wings soak in the warmth. Teeth still chattering, she turned back to her anxious companion who lingered among the drifting snowflakes.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
"I-I'll be f-fine." She insisted, but the sparrow man seemed unconvinced.
"Why did you come here? Certainly you of all fairies know of the dangers crossing the border."
Clarion stretched her wings; they were numb, but present. She looked toward the valley behind her and the spot where summer edged the spring.
"I've seen all the seasons. I've learned every law and regulation from spring showers to summer storms, memorized every color and pattern of fall leaves. I've lead the spring thaw, the summer games, the autumn festival; tended to every solstice and equinox," she peered back into the world of white, "except winter."
Milori looked on in silence.
"I've spent hours reviewing the minister's logs, read every book our library has on winter, studied snow and ice and hibernation, and I was fascinated. I wanted to see it for myself."
"Enough to cross the border?" Milori's eyebrow rose. Clarion brushed the melting snow off her hair.
"Yes."
He gave a light shake of his head.
"A warm fairy in Winter Woods. And the queen's protégé no less."
It took a moment for Clarion to realize she was being teased. Delighted by the camaraderie, she took the jest in stride.
"I'll admit I could have dressed warmer." She laughed and Milori joined her. When they calmed, Clarion handed the blanket back to him. "Thank you, Milori, for bringing me back."
"Of course, Your High…Clarion."
They smiled at each other, reluctant to leave. Milori cleared his throat and shifted his weight.
"Are you sure you've never been here before?" He rubbed the back of his head with one hand. "You have, ah, quite an arm. You'd put some of the best snowball fighters to shame."
Clarion covered her mouth with her hands, laughing.
"I am so sorry. I'd read about snowballs—it sounded like harmless fun."
"Harmless." Milori chuckled in sober agreement. Clarion gave the woods one last longing glance.
"It's cold, but it is breathtaking." She sighed. "And I'd so hoped to see a snowy owl."
Milori's lips pursed in thought and his wings beat, lifting him off the ground.
"Meet me here at sunset. Bring a coat, goggles, and a sapphire."
"A sapphire?" Clarion repeated, intrigued. Malori flew down and handed her his book.
"Page three-hundred and ninety-four." He nodded, smiling broadly. "Sunset."
Clarion hugged the book to her chest and smiled back.
"Sunset."
Author's Note full of SPOILERS! Read at your own risk!:
I've been busy. So busy, I haven't kept up with the Tinker Bell series as hotly as I have been in the past, until an FFN member, thank you Ellen Potter, brought it to my attention that the new film had come out. And Queen Clarion had a love interest. Long story short, I was absolutely useless at work for the rest of the day trying to sneakily look up fairy-related things at my desk. Giddy and useless. And y'all, I had the HARDEST time snagging a copy of the DVD-it was sold out everywhere! D: But I finally got it and wow! What a ride! While I think I still like the first movie the best-'Secret of the Wings' has become a strong second.
I ain't gonna lie, I screamed when Queen Clarion and Lord Milori kissed. I. Screamed. I absolutely loved their little arc and I'm SO glad Disney ran with it. I loved their wordless exchanges and lingering looks; the forbidden love, it's just so romantic. I was bubbling over with fan-girlish squeals at their every interaction. All I could think, as horrible as it sounds, was Queen Clarion got herself a boy toy! WOO!
So I took some creative license with this story. I figure Clarion wasn't always queen and Milori was appointed lord down the line, you know, they're young and foolish and aren't shouldering all their responsibilities yet. They can fall in love. I dunno why I write Clarion as a young troublemaker, I think I really see a bit of Tink in her. I just hope I wrote Milori all right. He seems very intelligent and stoic (my fav archetype), hopefully how I've portrayed him here does his character justice. Why yes, I made the snowy owl poem thing up on the spot.
And yes, this can be construed as a cliff-hanger. If this story generates enough interest, I'd be more than happy to continue with what I have outlined-otherwise I have many, many other projects to attend to. So folks, give me a shoutout if you want more!
Blackfire 18