The Butterfly Fairy – Chapter 16
Little Lizzy didn't know what to say as Tink turned to depict to her, in the best way she could pantomime, just how much Marisol had risked to save Posy. However, as Posy thumbed over the last remaining pieces of Mari's flute … She couldn't help but look up as little Niabi was jumping about the room, making little clapping sounds as she was chasing something flickering around the room.
"What is she doing?" River asked, picking up on the thumps the little girl's bare feet were echoing across the floor as she also caught wind of someone missing from the group …
"Fairy … Clap!" Niabi's little singsong voice chimed in the air. "Fairy clap! Hahaha, fairy want to play …"
The more Posy listened to the familiarity of it, the more Posy felt the healing surge through her wings as she found her eyes connecting with her sister's as they started to blink.
That's it … That's what you were trying to do, Posy felt the words echo off of her lips as she brushed back Mari's tawny bangs to see color start to return to her sister's cheeks as she faintly nodded and squeezed her hand a little in response to her smile. For not just us …
"Nora, keep it up!" Posy shouted, heeding that Lizzy understood, too, as she started to clap as well. Together, the surge of clapping made an uproar in the room as River, Emma, Aquan (still in his winter form), and even Tink each felt inspired as they all took turns flying in between the girls' hands as they started to clap harder and harder until Posy felt a mysterious surge in her hands as she watched Mari's flute pieces start to float into the air …
And then, surprising everyone … Mari's glow began to radiate warmly across her skin as she meekly felt her glass wings lift her up in the air. Stretching out her arms wide, her wings transformed for the better as her inspired butterfly wings took the place of the glass scales in the pattern of her swirls, which filled her with new upbeat strength as she let out a giggle and somersaulted about in the air.
With her new colored wings prominent, she flew up to join the fray as each of her friends just hugged her as both Lizzy and Niabi were left awestruck in wonder. True, their belief in fairies saved her … But, Marisol was in shock herself that she now had the ability to tell and show everyone the gift that she knew she had initially found in herself.
Turning to both of the girls, she playfully bowed and said, "Thank you. But, we're not done yet!"
Niabi just laughed gleefully as both girls heard her talk, but it was Lizzy and Tinker Bell who were both inwardly stunned in wonder.
Tink, whose trepid flaps were nervous, watched Marisol as she whispered into the girls' ears what she needed both of them to do before they eagerly left the room in a hurry, or Niabi anyway as she ran on her two little feet as fast as they would let her as she just giggled and said, "The fairy says some funny things …"
"How … How did you do that?" Tink asked her, to which Marisol only said nothing as a burst of her wings released a small flurry of color dust as she palmed for her flute, to which the flute mysteriously materialized back into her hand as she flew up and off the bed, coming to a hovering stop in front of the window as Emma joined her to see a small sea of butterflies waiting in the meadow, creating a scene of color so intricate that it almost like in Tommy's dream …
"What are you going to do exactly?" Emma asked her best friend as she saw a look of inspiration come across Marisol's face as she just beamed with a serene, yet unfamiliar air.
Annora only smiled as she landed, hearing the vibrating hums of the scouts' wings as they stood at ready as Nyx came forward and said, "This is crazy being this close to humans … What is Marisol even …?"
Not letting her finish her worry thought, Annora only set a momentary hand on Nyx's wrist and replied, "She's finding herself, her true self …" as they heard Marisol play a small series of notes on her flute that summoned all of the butterflies to the window, as a lone blue Morpho came up, leading the flock, and scooped up Mari as they both flew and danced among the blooms for a second before they turned back to the meadow to ready the scene.
"So, what is it that you want us to do?" Nyx asked Annora, seeing that the couple of scouts she had left to join them were touched by the whole field of butterflies and everything that had happened in the last few minutes.
Thinking on it a minute, Annora was partly glad to hear River make the request for them to, "Just keep the skies clear of any trouble … If that's alright with you. Mari's going to need all the help she can get to do whatever it is she's fixing to do …"
Nyx only smiled as she nodded. It wasn't long after that that all of the group found themselves being given each a small part to play in the scene that was about to take place. Everything was almost ready, except for one thing … Where was Mari now?
Turning to her sister before she flew off, she said, "Posy, we're going to need a few of your lights …"
Knock-knock, the girls tried to knock on the study door downstairs as little Niabi called out, "Big Brother, open up … Please!"
"Thomas, it's us," Lizzy tried to add to their efforts as they saw Mrs. Perkins look in on them in silence from the kitchen as she wondered what it was they were trying to do. "Please, let us in …"
"Dears, I'm sorry …" Mrs. Perkins said as she easily opened the door to reveal that he was gone, one of the back windows wide open in the cool chilling air. "I've been waiting for him to come back … I have no idea where he's gone off to this time …"
Picking up his notebook, Lizzy sighed at the familiar photo and looked up, too, to follow their elder's gaze as they both saw the scene outside seemingly vacant as little Niabi tried to push herself up higher to see out, too. Tommy …
"There he is!" Niabi said, seeing something they couldn't as she just laughed as tiny fairy lights began to twinkle up the scene as she pointed him sitting out by the big oak tree, a short ten strides from the house as a familiar face smiled and took off towards Him from the window.
"Then, what are we waiting for?" Lizzy said, picking up Niabi's hand in her hand and also her sense of excitement. "We got to go!"
"Go? Where are those girls going now?" Mrs. Perkins sighed to no one but herself as she just shook her head in confusion, but sat down in one of the chairs as she fingered the top of her sister in law's head in Thomas's picture. Bless you, dear … If only He could …
Thomas. The name seemed to stretch across the trees as a lone sigh echoed up into the wind, where three fairies suddenly stopped their flapping and one of them broke away from the others as it fluttered down into the tree branches, as subtle as a light.
"Caterpillar in the tree, how you wonder … who you'll be …" his voice trailed emotionally as he pulled his earbuds out and tossed them aside like two loose-leaf pebbles that shattered as they got thwacked against the trunk of the tree he was sitting under.
Slumping against the bark, Thomas then stood up and raised his tears to the sky as he wiped them from his cheeks, but as he lowered his head ... A single touch on the tip of his nose was enough to make him look up.
Giggling, Mari watched as the small little butterfly bounced off as he gently shooed it off of him, but it only flew back toward him as he covered his face to ward it off and was surprised when the glittery butterfly flew to the brow of his head and disappeared on a thin wisp of multi-spray dust.
Confused, he wiped at his eyes as he sensed a little glow just above his head as he then felt a pair of tiny hands take hold of his finger to pull him forward out from underneath the shelter of the canopy tree into a scene that He could only truly see …
At her cue, Mari watched as the fairy lights were released and suspended in the air as each of the butterflies, cordially one by one, took off of their individual spots and together started to twirl and swirl around to form a little twister in front of Thomas as he gingerly stepped forward to almost touch them.
"Thomas", a faint wind of a whisper said as he stopped.
As Marisol started to flutter down to rest on Tommy's shoulder, all the fairies were confused to see a clumsy standing idle in the meadow as some of them peeked out from the shelter of the pixie camp grand maple that stood out a few feet away. However, as Mari flapped her wings next to his cheek, the butterflies each started to glow as she streaked straight through them to reveal a lady with butter-clad curls and gossamer eyes that smiled when her eyes landed on Thomas a couple of feet away.
Lizzy and Niabi ran up the path in time to see her reach out her hand to caress one of his fallen tears in hers to catch it … "Mommy!"
Both Mother and Son looked up to see little Niabi waving at them and stood there in awe as she saw several fairies come out of their hiding spots in awe of what they were seeing actually happening right in front of them all.
"Thomas," she then said serenely as he looked back into her hazy form. "I only have a moment, but … Don't ever think I'm not with you. Remember, I'll always be here … I love you."
Before the cluster of butterflies dissipated around her, he felt a surreal warmth wrap him in an embrace that just left him feel like a veil was being lifted from his eyes, as he looked down to find his Lizzy and Niabi in front of him as they just held him, too, as he cried.
"What just happened?" River asked, receiving a bump on her elbow as Winter whispered something that made her squeal out in glee. "Mari can do what?!"
"That was your Mom, right?" Lizzy said, holding out a picture to him. "Like in the photograph?"
"Yeah, but …" Thomas said, receiving it from her. "I never saw that clear … but in my dreams."
Looking past them to see Marisol fluttering in place where his Mother's silhouette had been standing, he got up and held out his hands to touch her wings as he said, "It was you … Why did you do all this?"
Touching his fingers, Marisol gave him a smile that said quite clearly, "to be a friend."
"She also did this to help you believe," Lizzy said, catching off-guard as he looked to see her winking to a familiar tinker fairy that sat up on her head. Tink only laughed as Nyx shot her an amused look of irritation as she found herself grinning, too, at the scene. Seeing Marisol looking down at her sister next to Niabi, she found herself remembering … "You said you didn't believe in fairies."
"That's why she did all this," Niabi also chirped up, catching them both by surprise as Posy whispered up to the little girl, who laughed the more she heard the chime of a little bell. "It hurt … Disbelief hurt-ed her … That's why the butterfly fairy reached out to you, Big Brother."
Thomas watched as Mari put her tiny hands to his heart as she tried to resonate her words by saying, "But most importantly, I saw and found myself through you."
Chuckling, he only smiled at all his new friends as he said, "Well, I believe fully now … Say, what else can you little guys do?" Looking up, he didn't see anybody and asked, "Nia? Lizzy? Where did you two go?"
"Funny you should ask …" he heard Lizzy's voice as he looked up, amazed. "Up here!"
"Up-uppity-up!" Niabi squealed as the fairies dusted her with fairy dust, too, and she rose higher with them, too. "Come on up, Big Brother … Happy thought!"
Together, the two sisters surrounded him with a fresh pinch of their dust as he, too, found himself jovially rising up from the afternoon grass as they all three floated in mid-air together.
"Wow!" was all Tommy really could say as he watched the girls duck, turn, and twirl in mid-air as he looked up to see Mari being crowded by eager fairies who were both in awe of her new wings and abilities, but … Her eyes instantly found him, again, as she flew back over to sit on his shoulder as he started to laugh.
"Aunt Perky!" Niabi called, seeing their nana come out of the house, "Look!" ... But were too far away for her to hear as she instinctively looked up instead, stunned.
"Well, that's a better reaction I expected from last time ..." Lizzy countered, watching as Mrs. Perkins went stiff. "No, I was wrong ..."
As Lizzy and Niabi flew down to help brace Mrs. Perkins as she slid back into a wicker garden chair, Thomas smiled up at all the butterflies that still glittered in the meadow as he turned to shoot Mari a grateful grin as he said, "Well, I do have to say ... What a way to start summer vacation. I can't wait to see what tomorrow sees ..."
This was going to be the finale chapter, but ... Creative inspiration keeps the wings a flapping. So, until next time! Hope you enjoyed this chapter...
Happy reading! (Oh, and this is only Part 1: I'm leaving this story uncompleted b/c I may a couple of more ideas for the future ... So, until then, stay tuned ...)