Author's Note: Hey y'all. Sorry for the delay. My computer broke and I had to get a new one. Ugh. I'm back now. I hope y'all enjoy this next installment.
Vidia could feel the darkness falling away. A sharp pain was spreading through her head and flowing over her, pushing back the darkness, demanding sole ownership of Vidia's body. The pain tremored along her skin and for a brief moment, she thought she was in the burning hospital, but a gentle breeze blew over her, telling her she wasn't. It filled her nose and she welcomed the air. Though it bit her skin, she enjoyed the way it felt in her lungs. A low hum vibrated around her and she soon realized they were voices blending together. Her eyes were still shut and though she tried to pry them open, they burned when the light hit them and she let them fall closed again. She tried to inhale the sweet air in more deeply. Coughs erupted from her chest and her chest burned with every heave. The hacking scraped by her dry throat. She groaned.
She was suddenly aware of a warm hand in hers. "Vidia?" She heard the voice, but it was dull and sounded far away. She tried to open her eyes again. This time she succeeded in letting in a little light and color in, but she couldn't tell who was there. She let her eyes close again. The burning across her skin was getting worse. How sure was she that she wasn't on fire? And what was that smell? It was horrible. She sniffed at it. Something was burnt. She could tell at least that much. The breeze blew again and as she sniffed she caught a whiff of something else. Sassafras.
"Fawn?" Vidia croaked. Her throat was so raw. She swallowed, trying to ease the pain.
"Shh," came the gentle response. "I'm right here. Don't try to speak. Hold on… let me get Amara."
She felt the breeze of Fawn blowing past her to get the nurse. Sounds were beginning to sort themselves out and she could hear the coughing and hacking of other fairies and sparrowmen, most likely ones that had been caught in the fire. She peeled her eyes open and this time, though the air burned them, she was able to hold them open until she could focus on the room. She was in some sort of tent, it appeared. There were other people on small leafy pallets near her, some of them in bandages, most of them wailing and coughing. She winced as the fiery pain rippled across her skin. She glanced down and noticed that her hands and forearms were bandaged. She was going to investigate further, but she heard Fawn's voice at the opening of the tent.
"She's awake," Fawn cried excitedly. "This is good right?"
Fawn and Amara approached. "It's very good," Amara answered. She looked at Vidia and directed her word to her, "You gave us a good scare." She asked Vidia a series of questions about her eyesight, her hearing, and her pain levels. Vidia tried to answer as best she could, but had trouble speaking and realized that the pain in her head was getting worse and making her feel confused. But Fawn stood to the side and Vidia could tell she was overjoyed. This helped Vidia's pain and she made it through the series of questions. When Amara was done asking questions and checking Vidia's basic functions, she began to examined her bandages, which Vidia could now tell were not only covering her arms but winding up her chest and neck. Vidia winced when she began untying the material.
Fawn stood closer, concern clouding her face. "How do they look today?"
Today? Vidia wondered at this. How long had she been out?
"They look much better," Amara answered.
"How long…" Vidia attempted to speak. The pain stopped her and she simply pointed to herself, hoping someone would understand.
"You've been out for a couple of days," Amara said with a reproachful look as if Vidia had intentionally scared them. "Fawn never left." Vidia looked to the freckled fairy beside her and gave her a smile of thanks. Fawn returned the smile and gave Vidia the softest of kisses on the forehead.
"I was so scared," Fawn whispered. Her eyes brimmed with tears and Vidia couldn't tell if they were from the relief or the memory of the fear.
Amara smiled at the couple. "You're lucky you have someone like her. Don't let her go."
Vidia looked to Amara with surprise and then gratitude. She spoke to Amara, but her eyes slid back to Fawn's. "I…won't."
Amara nodded. "Let me just go get you some water and some herbs to ease your breathing." She hurried off.
Fawn knelt down in the grass beside Vidia's pallet. "You'll have to stay here a little while," Fawn gave Vidia an apologetic look. Vidia shrugged lightly, but then winced. Her back, too? She tried to move slightly on the pallet and the pain shot through her back. Yes, her back, too. She sighed heavily.
"How… bad?" Vidia asked.
Fawn cast her eyes to where she was holding Vidia's unbandaged fingers gingerly. "It was pretty bad to be honest. You were burnt all along your arms, chest, shoulders, and a little on your neck and ankles. Your hair was burnt, too. It's about half the length it was."
Vidia's eyes widened. Her hair? Seriously.
"The worst part was your back, though," Fawn wiped a tear off her cheek. "You're going to probably hurt for a while. The nurse says you might have some scars."
"You try and do something nice…" Vidia wheezed, then coughed.
Fawn put her hands on Vidia's cheeks. "You have to take it easy, ok? You're going to be ok, but… you've got to stop with the wisecracks." Vidia nodded. "Besides…" Fawn kept her voice low. "You didn't just do something nice. You did something truly selfless to help someone… who's hurt you horribly. You were everything I thought you could be." Fawn's eyes were shining with pride and Vidia felt her heart jump in her chest. Fawn cleared her throat and then spoke again, "Now, you need to rest. I'm right here."
Vidia nodded and realized that the pain was wearing her down. She brushed her fingers against Fawn's, thankful that she was there and wasn't going anywhere. With that knowledge, she fell into a peaceful sleep.
Tinker Bell was leaning against the cool grey trunk of a sprawling knotted Weeping Redbud. Bright green moss climbed up one side of the trunk to meet the purple and red blossoms that poured like waterfalls all around it. She gazed out over Kaleidoscope Glen. It was one ofthe most beautiful places in Spring. The pearly color of the showy evening primrose washed over the clover, and mixed with the purple tufts of blazing star. Red october grass spurted up through the flowers, but the pink farewell-to-spring flowers were not hidden by it's height as they reached towards the midday sun. She could hear the flowing of the Havendish. Petals from the wisteria trees across the meadow flew through the air as the breeze carried them away. The blonde fairy inhaled deeply.
"I think we really needed this," she exclaimed.
"Oh, I agree, sug," Rosetta said as she fanned herself from her perch on top of a daisy she had grown near the bottom of the tree. Her red ringlets waved in the breeze her fan was creating. "I needed a day to rest. Spring preparations have been kicking me right in the petunia."
Iridessa sat with her back against the smooth bark of the tree. Her deep brown eyes followed the rays of the sun that were trickling through the colored leaves above their heads. She grabbed one of the rays and pulled it over her, relishing the warmth. She sighed, "Not only that, but we can finally spend time together. We haven't done that all season."
Silvermist sat across from her, a game of sowing seeds between them in the grass. Silvermist let her pebbles clatter into one of the hollows. "We've all been so busy getting ready for spring that we've hardly had a minute to ourselves."
"I'm surprised we even got this wee break," Bobble trilled from where he sat on a small rock, fiddling with a copper pot.
Clank nodded, his face slightly panicked, "Fairy Mary has been a madwoman."
Tinker Bell giggled. "She has been really intense lately."
"Fairy Gary has been acting like a lunatic, too." Zarina chirped from her mushroom ledge growing from the trunk of the tree. "Must be an overseer thing."
Iridessa spoke up, "Yeah, I'm sure the Minister of Spring is putting a lot of pressure on them to get everything done on time."
"I'm pretty sure Fairy Gary acts like a lunatic all the time," Terence's bright voice called from where he rode on a wagon that Cheese was pulling.
"Terence," Tinker Bell greeted him cheerfully and kissed him. The others greeted him. "What are you doing here? I thought you had work to do."
"Well, I got it all done," Terence laughed. "And I brought snacks!" He began tossing berries and cakes out to the group.
"Lifesaver," Zarina approved as she caught a lemon tart.
Rosetta nibbled on a small shortbread cookie, enjoying the breeze in her hair, when suddenly a few bits of dirt fell on her face from above. She cried out in disgust and frantically brushed them away. "Fawn!"
"Sorry, Ro," Fawn called down from an upper branch. "Mrs. Robin here was just trying to test out the branches for her nest."
"Well, tell her to go do that in another tree or something. You're getting nasty stuff all over me," Rosetta sniffed and leaned back against the flower. "I'm restin' here."
"Alright, alright," Fawn said in a placating tone.
"Honestly, Vidia," Rosetta said, glancing to her right to a hanging branch that bent back towards the ground. Vidia was reclined on the smooth bark, her arm tucked under her head, staring at the blue sky and relishing the feeling of cool air on her skin. She drowsily looked Rosetta's way. Once she knew she had Vidia's attention, Rosetta continued, "That girl is like a hurricane sometimes."
Vidia raised an eyebrow and then glanced up at Fawn who was happily discussing branch stability with the robin. "I know…" Vidia said softly, a smile on her lips. "I can't believe I ever breathed without her."
Rosetta was taken aback by Vidia's statement, but the heartfelt look in Vidia's eyes touched her. She dropped the subject. She caught Iridessa's eye and they exchanged a knowing look.
"Hey, Fawn," Tinker Bell called. "Aren't you going to come down and get a snack?"
"Yeah, I brought honeycomb cake," Terence added.
"Oh of course!" Fawn yelled back. "Be right there." Fawn clambered down from the tree, sliding down the branches, showering purple leaves over the group. She rode the branches down until she could easily drop to the soft clover beneath her.
"Fawn… why aren't you using pixie dust?" Zarina asked. She was used to identifying the behavior patterns of someone who was moving about without it.
"Oh, uhm," Fawn seemed startled by the question and hesitantly said, "I-I well… just…"
"She's… uh… practicin'," Rosetta hurried to finish her sentence.
"Practicing for what?" Zarina asked.
"For the Pixie Hollow Games… of course," Iridessa's voice was overly loud.
"But…" Zarina wore a quizzical expression. "Those aren't until Fall."
Vidia heard the confusion and mirrored it in her own raised eyebrow.
Iridessa stammered, "Uh… uh… well…" Her eyes darted to Silvermist who caught her cry for help.
The water fairy quickly added, "Well, Fawn's planning on winning this year."
"Yee-aah," Tinker Bell said slowly. "She's just… getting a headstart."
"Oh, I see," Zarina seemed to be satisfied with that answer. "That's very diligent of you, Fawn. I didn't realize you were so serious about the Pixie Hollow Games."
"She kind of needs to be," Clank asked, wiping cherry juice from his chin. "The animal fairies didn't do so well this past year."
"Hey!" Fawn said in a teasing reproachful tone.
"Well, more power to you, I guess," Zarina waved her hand and leaned her head back against the tree.
Vidia noticed the look of relief on Fawn's face when Zarina stopped questioning her. She raised an eyebrow. Maybe Zarina was ok with that answer, but… she wasn't. She knew Fawn too well. She was hiding something.
Fawn saw Vidia's arched brows and narrowed eyes. She tried not to look her girlfriend in the eye. "So, how about that honeycomb cake?" She tried to avoid Vidia's eyes.
The rest of the afternoon was spent as lazily as possible with only short conversation and quiet games. Clank and Bobble suggested a game of flying disc. Fawn readily agreed, eagerly diving through the sea of wildflowers as she chased it. Tinker Bell, Zarina, and Silvermist eventually joined in. Iridessa and Vidia began discussing the many uses of curry in a wide variety of dishes. Rosetta pestered Terence with uncomfortable 'sparrowman questions' that made Terence blush heavily. Tinker Bell ended up saving him by leaving the disc game to come intercept Rosetta for him, asking the garden talent about the difficulty of growing bamboo.
As dusk began to fall and the mist settled about them, Clank and Bobble had to say their goodbyes. Terence left shortly after that, though before he left, he and Tinker Bell were inexplicably absent. She came back, a blush on her cheeks and the group exchanged amused looks. Zarina waited until the sun was completely below the horizon and then yawned. "Well, us dust-keepers have to be up before everyone else to get the dust depot running, so I'll see you scallywags in the morning." They chuckled at her old pirate terminology-one of the many quirks they loved about her. They waved as she flitted off. It was just the six core members of the group left in the first sprinkles of starlight. Gradually, they all gathered on the soft clover at the base of the tree. They huddled together in the evening breeze looking out at the sky across the meadow. It was clear and the stars were bright against the rich blackness.
"So did the tinkers ever get the hospital rebuilt?" Iridessa asked, her legs stretched out in the grass and crossed at the ankles.
"Yeah, it's back up and operational," Tinker Bell smiled proudly.
"Wow, that was fast," Vidia said in disbelief. She was leaning against the smooth bark.
"Well, we're good at what we do," Tinker Bell chuckled. "Besides, we had the Carpenting-talents helping us."
Rosetta shivered. "The memory of that fire…you don't see fires like that in Pixie Hollow very often. Do they know how it started?" She was sitting primly with her legs tucked under her and fanned outwards.
"The scouts have their suspicions, but there really wasn't much to go off of," Tinker Bell shrugged. "It was so destroyed."
"What are their suspicions?" Vidia asked. Fawn was sprawled in the grass beside Vidia, silently gazing at the sky. She seemed to not be paying attention to the conversation, but the goose bumps on her arms and shiver down her spine were not from the evening wind.
Tinker Bell wanted to phrase her words carefully. She knew this was a sensitive subject for all of them… but especially Vidia. "They think it might have been… Phoenix. He was moved that morning to a room on a lower level while they cleaned his. One of the nurses swore the smoke started in that room." Tinker Bell saw the way Vidia's eyes widened and the way Fawn swallowed. "But they don't know for sure."
The group was silent for a while, unsure of what to say.
Vidia finally spoke, "I haven't thought about him in a while." The girls knew who she was talking about.
"I still can't believe you saved him," Silvermist said quietly. She was resting her head on Iridessa's shoulder.
"You could have left him under those branches you were trapped in," Iridessa commented. "We all would have understood."
"But instead," Rosetta added. "You risked your life to drag him out of there."
"Why, Vidia?" Tinker Bell spoke somberly. "Why would you do that?"
Vidia examined her hands. The scars were barely visible in the moonlight, but she was painfully aware of their existence. Her alabaster skin was now marked in a wild scattered pattern all up her arms and across her back, neck, and chest. She sighed. "I still don't know."
"I do," Fawn spoke. She hadn't in awhile and they were beginning to grow worried. So when she did, the tension in the group faded quickly. Fawn turned to face Vidia and the group could see her tear-stained cheeks. "She drug Pheonix out of that fire, because I was right."
Vidia's eyes widened and she smiled sheepishly.
"You were right about what?" Iridessa asked.
"I was right about her," Fawn smiled. "She's proven that she's everything I hoped she could be…and more. " Vidia felt her heartbeat quicken under Fawn's proud gaze. Making people proud was not something she was used to, but she could get used to that look in Fawn's eyes. Fawn took Vidia's white hand in her own. She looked at Vidia in earnest, "I told you that I would try to understand you. I told you that I thought you had light inside you and I just wanted to prove that I was right about you."
Rosetta sat up straighter and nudged Silvermist silently, excitement in her eyes. Silvermist smiled and patted Iridessa. The light fairy nodded giddily and poked Tinker Bell. Tinker Bell waved them off, putting a finger to her lips, but then she flashed quick hopeful grin at them before refocusing on Vidia and Fawn who seemed unaware of their friends' silent conversation.
Vidia could see her girlfriend's nervousness in the way Fawn swallowed, absent-mindedly tracing the lines of Vidia's hand. Fawn could feel her body shaking and she struggled to calm her breathing. She needed to focus on Vidia. She glanced up and caught Vidia's grey eyes. She focused on their icy color, licked her lips, and continued. "What you did in that fire… you proved me right. You have proven yourself time and again. Now it's my turn to prove myself to you. Vidia…I told you on our first date that if you were who I thought you were, I'd want to spend the rest of my days with you, remember?"
Vidia nodded slowly, but didn't speak because her heart was beginning to race in confusion. What did Fawn mean by proving herself? Why was she bringing up their first date? What was Fawn getting at?
"I need you to follow me." Fawn stood and opened her hand to help Vidia up.
"Where are we going?" Vidia asked as she hesitantly followed.
"It's a surprise," Fawn smiled. "Come on, guys," she waved to the other girls who were practically vibrating with anticipation.
"What's with you guys?" Vidia raised an eyebrow.
"Oh.. nothing… nothing… we're… oh we're nothing…" Iridessa stuttered.
Vidia seemed perplexed, but flitted behind Fawn, who led them to the cart that was hooked up to Cheese. Terence had left it mysteriously. Cheese yawned from his nap and smiled at the group.
"Why did Terence leave his wagon?" Vidia asked, confused.
"I asked to use it," Fawn shrugged. "You want to ride with me?"
"Uh, why when we could just fly?" Vidia frowned.
"Would you shut up and get in?" Rosetta burst out before clapping her hand over her mouth. "I mean… wagon rides are so romantic."
Vidia was taken aback by Rosetta's outburst and tentatively climbed into the seat beside Fawn. The animal fairy smirked at the visibly confused fast-flyer and spurred Cheese on. They clattered across Spring, their friends floating along behind them.
It took a while and Vidia asked too many questions. Rosetta kept hollering at her and the rest of them stammered so much, she was worried they were sick with some strange illness. Finally, at nearly midnight, they approached the northernmost border of Pixie Hollow. A series of cedar trees marked the border line. Before the line of trees was a large empty field. In the center of the field was a single tree-a great flowering Myrtle, wreathed in a veil of bright pink blossoms. Vidia saw it and eyebrows shot up to her hairline. Her lips parted in shock, as her heart flipped in her chest.
They stopped the wagon a few feet from the tree. It was bathed in moonlight. The tree was immense and was obviously ancient. Fawn set the reins down and looked to Vidia. "You know why we're here, right?"
Vidia didn't answer. The tree towered above them and she felt fear grip her heart at the sight of the smooth bark. "Fawn…you're not going to climb this are you?"
"Why else would we be here?" Fawn asked. "I told you I'm going to prove myself."
"But… you don't need to…" Vidia started to say, but Fawn cut her off.
"Vidia, I'm climbing up there…right now… and I'm bringing you back one of those blossoms." Her voice was firm. She gave Vidia a quick peck on the cheek and then hopped out of the wagon and sprinted towards the tree.
The other girl's approached. "Oh my goodness, Vidia… she is climbing the Great Myrtle for you," Rosetta gushed. She fanned herself as if she were going to faint. "I can't hardly contain myself. I'm about to buzz my britches off."
Vidia looked up at the girls that had gathered around the wagon. She could see where Fawn was slipping off her slippers. The animal fairy put her hands on her hips and examined the trunk of the tree for a moment before rubbing her palms together.
Fawn felt strange flashbacks as she put her hands to the umber, knotted bark. Clark had been standing exactly where she was now. She remembered how she had adjusted his glasses and them shamelessly tossed them the ground. She had been sitting right where Vidia was sitting now. She had giggled giddily as she watched him. So many years had passed since then.
"She doesn't need to do this," Vidia sounded overwhelmed, as she watched Fawn begin her slow ascent.
"She wanted to, Vidia," Tinker Bell put a hand on her shoulder.
"It's tradition," Rosetta said emphatically.
"Normally it's something sparrowmen do," Vidia argued.
"It's something lovers do when they want to show their devotion," Iridessa corrected.
"I think it's very sweet," Silvermist squeezed her hands together and tucked them under her cheek.
Vidia smiled slightly. "It is…" She watched as Fawn continued climbing. They could see that it was tedious progress. "Wait… is that why she hasn't had Pixie dust all day?"
"She wanted to make sure she did it right," Tinker Bell gave Vidia an encouraging smile.
"You know she's going to present you with the flower once she gets it," Rosetta put a hand on Vidia's. She could see the fast-flyer was shaken up. "And you know she will get it."
Vidia chuckled lightly. "Yeah, that's for sure." She could feel emotion rising within her and she wasn't sure what it was. She felt honored, and terrified at the same time. Was she ready to be with Fawn like that? Was she ready to make that sort of a commitment?
"Are you going to accept it?" Silvermist pressed.
Vidia watched as Fawn made her way up the trunk. She was nearly halfway up, but they could see that she was tired. "I don't think I deserve her."
"You heard her," Iridessa remarked. "You've proven yourself. You're an amazing person."
"Not only that," Tinker Bell spoke up. "But… Fawn wants you. Look at her! She's climbing up that damn tree to prove it."
"And I've known Fawn a while…" Silvermist said slowly. "She's a good judge of character." She flicked her finger across Vidia's nose, which surprised Vidia and made her crack and amused smile.
"Sugar plum," Rosetta sat down on the wagon beside the trembling fast-flyer. "Don't complicate this. Do you love her?"
Vidia didn't need to think. As always her tongue made up it's own mind, "More than anything." Her voice was thick with emotion.
"And she loves you," Rosetta pointed to the animal fairy who was now mostly up the trunk. She was now quite high up the tree and the danger was increasing.
Vidia swallowed the fear that was threatening to choke her. "I know…"
Fawn couldn't hear their conversation from where she struggled to scale the tree. She was having trouble finding places to grip or footholds to push herself up on. She was drenched in sweat, and her breath was coming in puffs. It wasn't that much further now. She marveled at how her skinny scribe-talent of a boyfriend had once done this for her. She was grateful for her romping adventures with the animals that she cared for, or else she wouldn't be nearly as prepared. Although, remembering Clark's determination to get her a flower, she assumed that the reason he had been climbing the tree, and the reason she was now, was the biggest factor in whether or not you made it. One of the thinner branches was almost within her reach and once she could wrapped her legs around the limb she could easily scoot up to where the blossoms hung. She found a promising foothold. She stuck her toes in the narrow slot and pushed herself upwards. She could feel the aching of her feet as they struggled to keep her up. She managed to grasp the thinner part of the branch. She pulled herself up and onto it with relative ease and was now sitting in a more horizontal position. She took deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart. All that was left was to shimmy across the branch and pluck a blossom… and then get back down. No problem…
Her friends could see that she was now straddling a thinner limb, but that limb was quite long and she would need to balance across a good portion of it before she reached the blossoms. They watched breathlessly, the conversation forgotten for the moment, as Fawn made her way slowly across the limb.
Fawn's fingers brushed past a beautiful magenta blossom. The petals were so soft and it was large enough to be a small water basin. She reached in towards the stem and pulled vigorously where it clung to the branch. She pulled, her muscles straining, but it didn't budge. She glance down to the field where she could see her friends waiting for her. She could almost see the worry in Vidia's face and she set her jaw. She was getting that flower.
The girls strained to see what was happening.
"Does she have the flower yet?" Iridessa asked eagerly.
"She looked like she was reaching for one," Silvermist answered.
"Oh my stars," Rosetta exclaimed. "This is so romantic. I can't wait until Sled brings me a myrtle blossom! That is… Unless they do it different over there. But either way, he's hunky, so climbing that tree with no pixie dust shouldn't be any problem."
"Terence, on the other hand," Iridessa started to say.
Tinker Bell flashed an angry glare at her. "Hey! He is a lot more strappy than he looks."
"Guys, guys," Vidia urged them to pay attention. "Look… she's got the flower."
The girls all quieted as they waited breathlessly. Fawn was about to start back down the trunk. She had the flower clasped in an iron grip, her other hand clutching the bark of the limb. She stared at the crinkled edges of the petal. She had held one of these in her hands once before. Clark had presented it to her. The sun had been so bright that day. She still found it amusing that he had chosen the hottest part of the day to do such a strenuous task. As he had held the flower out to her, she'd practically snatchd it from him. Fawn smiled as the nostalgia swept over her. She glanced back up at her waiting girlfriend. She narrowed her yellow eyes. She was going to give this to Vidia. She was going to ask Vidia to be with her. And she hoped to the second star that Vidia would say yes. She couldn't be sure that Vidia was ready for this, but she had to try. Suddenly, an incredible need to get back to Vidia as quickly as possible filled her. She was still so far. She could see that the branches were so overladen with blooms and leaves that they were bending down towards the ground, grazing by the tallest grasses. She wondered…
Vidia caught sight of Fawn, attempting to stand on the limb. "Guys, what's she doing?"
"Looks like she's trying to stand on the branch," Silvermist said.
"Yeah, thanks Sil," Vidia rolled her eyes. "I mean, why is she standing? That's kind of risky."
"It's supposed to be a chivalrous show of devotion, Vidia," Rosetta said irritated. "It's not a picnic in the park. It does warrant some risk."
"I don't want her to get hurt," Vidia looked back to the branch. "Wait! Is she running?"
"Oh dear… " Iridessa covered her eyes. "
"She's been practicing," Tinker Bell reassured the shaking light fairy.
"But those trees were a lot closer to the ground," Silvermist countered.
Vidia bit her lip. Fawn… she tried to will the animal fairy to hear her. Please be careful. She watched as the reckless animal fairy jogged across the branch and leapt into the air. Vidia cringed. What in the world was she doing? Fawn landed expertly on the branch again, this time landing on her butt and beginning a rapid slide down the thinner wispy part of the limb. Petals flew as she careened down the branch. Vidia held her breath. The gap between the branch and the ground looked much further from Vidia's angle and she began to worry that Fawn would be injured in the drop. "She's not going to make it!" Vidia cried aloud. The other girls feared she might be right. Vidia leapt from the wagon and raced towards the tree branch that Fawn was now rapidly descending. The other girls followed. They all lighted in the grass at the base of the branch, where Fawn would hopefully land. The branch looked even further away from here. Vidia felt fear climbing into her stomach and gripping her heart. Suddenly, they heard the peal of Fawn's laughter as she slid towards them. Suddenly, she burst from the blossoms and plummeted to the grass with a thud. Vidia cried out, "Fawn!" And dove towards her. Fawn lay limply in the grass, the deep pink blossom clutched in her fist. Vidia knelt down beside her and put a hand to Fawn's cheek. "F-Fawn…"
Fawn gasped suddenly, and put a hand to her chest. "I'm ok… I'm ok."
"Fawn, you did it!" Tinker Bell cried.
"We were so worried for you!" Silvermist exclaimed.
"You could've gotten hurt!" Iridessa voiced her concern.
"It was such a daring feat," Rosetta was obviously impressed.
Fawn chuckled, still catching her breath. "Thanks, guys."
Vidia helped her to her feet. Fawn brushed hair from her face and turned to face Vidia. She lifted the flower between her and the beautiful girl before her. Fawn trembled as a renewed sense of nervousness filled her. She wanted to continue but her throat closed up. She tried swallowing the lump that had formed, but the knot stayed strong. She tried to calm her breathing and the shaking of her hands. Fawn took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. She looked past Vidia to her other friends. A series of encouraging smiles and thumbs up gave her courage. She looked back to Vidia's flawless face and refocused on what she was doing. This was what she wanted. Vidia was what she wanted. Nothing stood in her way. She shook her head to clear it and then looked Vidia in the eye. "Vidia… I present you with a myrtle blossom as a symbol of my undying love and endless devotion. I offer it to you in the hopes of becoming one heart and living out our days together. Will you please accept this bloom, just as you accept me?"
Vidia could feel a new emotion overcoming the fearful one that had been rising a moment ago. Fawn had climbed all the way up that giant tree to prove herself. She wanted to be with Vidia… forever. She wanted to prove that she was committed. No one had fought this hard for Vidia, ever. Her eyes shined with tears. Vidia didn't feel like she deserved this kind of love. But she knew she needed it. She knew she wanted it. A breeze blew and her cheeks felt cool. It was then that she was crying. She wiped the tears from her cheeks and took a deep breath.
The other girls looked on in anticipation and concern. They truly didn't know if Vidia was going to be able to commit to something like this. They looked fearfully at one another.
Fawn could feel the tension and fear prickled the back of her neck. She was still panting from the exertion and the flower trembled in her hands as she held it out to Vidia.
Finally, after a long moment, Vidia exhaled, a slow smile spreading joyfully over her face. "Yes, Fawn…yes, I accept." She reached her hands out and took the tender bloom in her hands. Fawn's heart soared. Vidia looked up from her flower into Fawn's shining eyes. "I can't believe you did this." With that, she laid the flower across her arm, cradling it, and reached for Fawn's neck, pulling her into a swift and fervent kiss.
The onlooking girls cheered and hugged each other, their eyes brimming with tears. When Vidia and Fawn parted, they were aware of the starlight above them, the fireflies dancing about in the grasses, the congratulations and laughter of their friends, the warm hugs and affectionate pecks on their cheeks, the cool night breeze, and the sound of the wind rushing through the prairie, but none of this was important to them as they lost themselves in each other's eyes.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed it. I am a hopeless romantic. :)
