Once upon a time there was a very handsome little faerie named Thomas, who had a beautiful, squiggly white beard and green twinkly eyes and shimmery, periwinkle wings.
He lived with lots of his brothers and sisters and friends in a very tall Oak tree smack in the middle of a huge woods. The air there was clear and crisp and the dew drops that glistened on the leaves made the whole wood look like it was decorated with tinsel and diamonds.
Thomas was no ordinary faerie. He was a prince. His father was the great Faerie King, Edmund the Magnificent. King Edmund had the largest wing span of any faerie in the woods, and he was greatly respected for his wisdom and excellent leadership. He wore a shining crown made from a golden acorn and had a silvery beard that cascaded down to his knees. He was truly a site to behold.
Thomas loved his father very much, but he always felt like he lived in his father's shadow. Because of this, he was determined that he was going to become great and famous all on his own, thankyouverymuch. He surely had enough beauty and talent and wits about him to make a name for himself, and he set out early one Spring afternoon to do just that.
Thomas knew he was not allowed to leave the great woods. He had been told time and time again it was dangerous to venture out alone. Many faeries had done so and never been seen or heard from again. When he was little, Thomas had sat around with his buddies at camp and told scary faerie stories about all the horrors that were outside of these woods. But he was grown now, and those were just stories, right?
He knew if he was ever going to make a name for himself for being adventurous or brave or inventive or smart, he had to march his little faerie self right on out of those woods and do something BIG. He wasn't sure quite what, but he knew he was born for greatness, and this was his destiny. He was going to exit those woods as little, insignificant Thomas, and come back THOMAS, FAERIE EXTRAORDINAIRE.
He traisped right on out of those woods and the first thing he saw were some roads that led on down into a city. He didn't know it was a city, or even what a city was really, but he saw all the lights and traffic and people and thought it all looked very interesting.
When he got to the city, he noticed it was quite hot, indeed, because there were very few trees to shade him. The ground was covered by this hot, hard stuff called concrete, that made him miss the soft earth under his feet. He also began missing all the flowers and ferns and mosses that he was used to, the leaf chairs that cradled his little willowy body, and the tree swings that lulled him to sleep.
He began looking in the windows of the various shoppes, looking for inspiration. But the things he saw frightened him very much. He wished he had never looked at them, and tried hard to get them out of his mind, but he knew he would never be able to erase the things he saw.
Then, to make everything much, much worse, being in the city, away from all the moisture and clean air, his shimmery wings stopped shining, and started sticking together! He couldn't fly at all!
Now he was quite scared and wanted very much to go home, but he was so mixed up, he didn't know which way WAS home. He couldn't see the stars to guide him and there were no fireflies to light the path. He realized that by going where he was not meant to go, he had lost the ability to return home! He thought of His father, and how disappointed he would be in his son for wandering off, how humiliated the whole family would be at the disgraceful choices he had made.
He sat down on a curb and began to cry great big drops of faerie tears. They plunked down at his feet so hard that they splashed right back up and coated him. Faerie tears, as you know, are very much like silvery, glittery dust. So he was mostly covered in a glittery mess when he finally stopped and looked up.
And who do you suppose he saw?
Why, it was his father, the great Faerie King!
Edmund bent down to his son and grabbed him up to his great faerie chest and held him tight.
When Thomas asked how he had found him, and who had he left in charge back in the woods, Edmund explained that he had left all the others to come find his missing child. He told him how he had worried about him, how he had missed him, and how relieved and joyful he was to have found him to bring him home!
Thomas could hardly believe it.
He didn't know how to get home, so his father had come to rescue him and bring him back himself.
He looked at his once beautiful wings and almost began to cry again. His father cupped his sweet little bearded face with his giant faerie hand and told him not to worry.
Edmund picked Thomas up and flew them right back to their precious woods.
His brothers and sisters and all the wood nymphs and gnomes and flowers and birds had a huge party to welcome him home with love. The fireflies lit up the celebration and the moon shone bright. The crickets came out and brought the music with them and everyone danced and sang and celebrated with joy and laughter.
After Thomas was back in his misty, sparkly home, his wings started to absorb some of that lovely moisture, and soon enough, he had recovered his sheen and shimmer and sparkle. It didn't take long before he was able to fly again, much to his father's delight.
Thomas was very sure not to fly beyond the borders of the woods again.
But when he glanced out past the safety of his home and thought about all the things he had done and experienced, he thought less about his shame and trauma and much, much more about the loving father who had left his entire village behind to go and rescue his beloved son.
And when he thought about that for very long, his wee faerie heart would swell and stretch and his tiny chest would puff right out and he would be at once all content and grateful and full of joy.
The End.
