Tang Ri Shan
(Thanks to Rosie for leaving such motivational comments! I'm glad to see you are enjoying this story)
Tinkerbell: Curse of the Duskmoth
(I do not own Tinkerbell or any of the Disney Fairies. Enjoy!)
Chapter 4
Later that evening, all the fairies and sparrow-men gathered in the place where the autumn revelry was held, where long rows of tables had been arranged. Tinkerbell and her friends sat at one of the tables, feasting on cakes and pies and other sweet-tasting foods that the baking fairies had prepared.
"Mm-mm" Klank said as he wiped his mouth. "I love Huckleberry Shortcake"
"I hear that" Bobble piped up from his right, munching on a piece of comfort cake "The bakers really outdid themselves this time"
"They sure did" Tinkerbell agreed, raising her voice as one of the baking fairies flew past. "Thanks Dulcie!" The fairy smiled at Tinkerbell and nodded, her pale green cooking hat bobbling on her head as she set down a tray of frosted cakes.
"Enjoy!" She said as she darted away.
"Oh I will!" Klank called after her , reaching for a cake, but stopped when Rosetta cleared her throat and gave him an annoyed look.
"What?" Klank asked looking confused. He glanced at Bobble, who shrugged.
"Where are your manners?" Rosetta scolded, picking up the cake that Klank had been reaching for. "Ladies first" She said, taking a small bite.
Tinkerbell and the others chuckled as Klank gave Rosetta a confused look. They he shrugged and reached for another cake, but Fawn beat him to it, smiling and shaking her head. Klank and Bobble sighed, defeated as the others eagerly reached for the cakes.
"By the way, nice job in the play Rosetta" Silvermist commented as she munched on a cake.
"Oh thank you sugar" Rosetta gushed.
"And Vidia, you make a great monster" Fawn added, smiling at Vidia.
"Huh?" Vidia asked, she had only half been paying attention.
"Vidia, are you okay?" Tinkerbell asked, putting down her cake.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine" Vidia answered, a little too quickly.
"Vidia, what's with you?" Everyone was looking at her. Tinkerbell felt a small frown cross her face.
"Well, at the play, when we were taking our final bows, I thought..." Vidia paused
"Thought what?" Tinkerbell asked. But Vidia shook her head.
"Never mind, you'll think I'm crazy" She sighed.
"Vidia, what is it?" Silvermist asked, her tone suddenly serious.
"Well... I thought I saw something, up above the seats. Something dark, with large wings" Vidia explained. "And I think it had, purple eyes"
"What do you think it was?" Fawn asked, her eyes wide.
"I think..." Vidia hesitated. "I think it was the Duskmoth"
For a few seconds there was silence as everyone stared at her in disbelief, than everyone started laughing.
"What?" Vidia asked, now annoyed that everyone was laughing at her.
"Ha Ha, very funny Vidia" Tinkerbell chuckled.
"I'm not lying, I did see it. Iridessa, Rosetta, you were onstage, you must have seen it too!" Vidia turned to the light and garden fairy, who glanced at each other, then back at her.
"The thing is..." Rosetta started
"...We didn't" Iridessa finished. Vidia stared at them, dumbfounded.
"We were kind of busy waving and smiling to the audience" Rosetta continued. "Besides, it was probably hard to see under that ugly mask, you probably just imagined it."
"I'd already taken the costume off!" Vidia fumed, but suddenly there was a trumpet-like sound and they stopped talking. Queen Clarion stood up and everyone grew quiet.
"My friends" She announced. "As you know, the Dusk festival is a mark of the saddest time in our history. It is a time of bravery, and of sacrifice. And as such, I would like to take this moment to honor my old friend, Erikel, for his commitment , bravery, and ultimately, his sacrifice. To Erikel!"
"Hear Hear! To Erikel!" A chorus of voices echoed throughout the hall as cups and cakes were raised in a toast.
"But, there are others who's sacrifice deserve mentioning as well." The queen continued. "For as we know, the Duskmoth was defeated, but not completely. Many believe that the creature still exists. That is lurks in the shadows just out of sight, watching, and waiting" Tinkerbell felt a shiver run down her spine at those words.
"It is this fear, and the fear of what would happen if the Duskmoth did return, that has commended some fairies to make a great sacrifice of their own to ensure our safety. I am, of course, referring to, the Guardian Guild!" Clarion announced to a chorus of cheers and clapping.
Everyone gasped as a small group of fairies flew into the hollow. Some were carrying lanterns, others were carrying makeshift weapons. But all of them were wearing black, except for the sparrow-man that was leading them. His clothing was both black-and-white.
"Oh my gosh" Fawn gasped. "It's them, it's really them!"
"Huh" Tinkerbell mused "I thought there were more of them"
The Guardian Guild made one loop around the hollow, to the delight of the crowd, and landed on the stage. The black-and-white sparrow-man made a grand sweeping bow to Queen Clarion.
"Ohmigosh" Fawn said, clapping her hands over her mouth. "You guys, that's Lord Kelsier!"
"Who?" Tinkerbell asked, looking confused. Vidia sighed and explained.
"Lord Kelsier was Lord Erikel's best friend. They did nearly everything together. When Erikel went out to fight the Duskmoth, he made Kelsier promise to protect Pixie Hollow. When Erikel didn't come back, Kelsier founded the Guardian Guild to protect us from invaders."
"Really?" Tinkerbell said, watching Kelsier speaking with the queen. Vidia snorted in annoyance.
Everyone grew quiet as Queen Clarion spoke up. "We are honored that Lord Kelsier would take time from his duties to join us for the dusk festival, so let us all welcome him!" Everyone clapped and cheered as Lord Kelsier stepped forward, his hands outstretched to everyone.
"Thank you! Thank you, my friends, and I am equally honored to be here! We of the guardian guild have devoted ourselves entirely to the protection of Pixie Hollow. We are always vigilant, always alert, we never let down our guard. Why? Because our enemies never will either. One in particular" As he spoke, his eyes narrowed and his tone became more serious.
"Wow, he really knows how to speak" Silvermist commented.
"And he's not back looking either" Rosetta muttered, gazing dreamy-eyed at Lord Kelsier's handsome features.
"Oh please" Iridessa scoffed, rolling her eyes.
Tinkerbell laughed. "You sound like Vidia" She teased, turning to get a reaction from Vidia, but her seat was empty. "Vidia?" She looked around, but there was no sign of the fast-flying fairy.
"Make no mistake my friends, the Duskmoth is still out there. Even though the brave actions of my dear friend Erikel saved us all, that vile creature ultimately took him from us. He will be missed." Kelsier hung his head, as did the rest of the guild. Silence filled the hollow. "That is why we train. If, heaven forbid, the Duskmoth decides to return, we must be ready to face it, for Erikel"
There was a loud chorus of approval from the crowd, though the fairies also noticed that many of the crowd also had skeptical looks on their faces. Fairy Mary, sitting at the table next to theirs was among them.
"Oh please" She whispered to Fairy Gary. "It's been many a year since that monster came here. If it was still alive, I'm sure it would have made an appearance by now."
"Fairy Mary has a point" Klank commented, turning back to the others. "Even if the Duskmoth was real, the last time anyone saw it was a very very long time ago. Could it still be alive now?"
"Lord Kelsier and Queen Clarion are still alive, aren't they?" Bobble argued.
"Good point" Klank admitted. "What you you think Miss Bell?" Klank turned to Tinkerbell, who was only half listening to the conversation, she had half-risen out of her chair and was searching the crowd.
"Tinkerbell, what is it?" Bobble asked.
"Um, has anyone seen Vidia?" Tinkerbell responded, motioning to Vidia's empty seat.
"She was here a minute ago" Iridessa said looking around.
"Where did she...?" Silvermist was cut off as an ear-splitting scream cut through the air.