Page 74 of Bluebell’s Fate

But this afternoon, Nathaniel wanted to find her. He asked Ash to help him with the task, just in case. Nathaniel had experienced getting lost once, and as much as he feigned bravery, the magic in those woods still intimidated him a little. Ash was second in command of the fairies. At least that was what he’d heard Bell tell him the year previous, and the young man had taken it to heart. He was eleven now, and—aside from getting taller—he hadn’t changed a bit. He was still the commanding lord everyone expected in his little suit. He marched Nathaniel to a moss-covered log and told him to sit there. He was sure Bell would come find him.

Then the little lord had left him. Traitor. For all he knew, it was the prank of a youthful boy waiting to see how long he’d wait in the woods for his fairy princess to come rescue him.

Forever.

That was how long he’d wait. He didn’t doubt Bell. She’d fought dragons to rescue him before, she wouldn’t leave him to the fairies now. He made sure he didn’t step on any of the magnificent bluebells as they’d walked, just in case. In the meantime, he pulled out his pocket notebook and made a notation of how far away he was from the stream to reach the mossy log he’d been deposited on. After three years of visiting, he was fairly certain the map of the area was becoming more clear in his mind, as well as on the large parchment he had folded up in his traveling trunks.

He heard Bell’s light airy voice carrying through the dense foliage.

“Just when the pirate thought he’d escaped, an army of fairies enchanted his ship into a deep sleep.”

A small giggle followed. Scarlett, his niece, was getting the story of a lifetime, it seemed. “Aunt Bell, ships can’t sleep.”

“Oh, but they can. You see, fairies can enchant anything made from nature. It is their realm. The trees and the stones beneath our feet would all do dances if the fairies asked them to.”

“Oh! I saw the water dancing in the stream ye-sir-day! Do you think it was because the fairies like me?” Scarlett’s small voice pierced through the wild space.

“I’m sure it was. We’ll have to draw a picture of it so you can remember the magic. The fairies have no choice but to love a little lady such as yourself.”

“Oh, I’m not a lady.”

The pair walked around a large fern and into the clearing, strolling hand in hand. It made Nathaniel’s heart squeeze in ways he’d never imagined possible. For as wonderful of an aunt Bell was, she wanted to be a mother…and that blessing had not been bestowed by the fairies as of yet, despite years of trying.

He stood up and bowed low to his niece. “My dear Scarlett, you may not be a lady, but that is no matter, for you are something far more important.”

Three-year-old Scarlett put her free hand on her hip, a gesture he was sure she learned from her mother. “What’s more ’portant than being a lady? Grandmother Gardner told me it was ’portant to find a lord to marry so I could be a lady.”

Nathaniel picked her up, and whispered in her ear, “You are a princess. That’s far more important than being a lady.”

She scrunched her pert pink lips to the side, considering his words. Then she turned to Bell. “Am I a princess?”

“Of course you are. If you don’t believe us, just ask your parents,” Bell stated as confidently as if she were the queen herself.

And she was. She was his queen. Another five-letter word that Nathaniel had learned to love.

“Let’s go find them!” Scarlett proclaimed. His niece knew precisely how to get what she wanted, no doubt taught by her mother. She bounded in front of them following the stream.

Nathaniel strode to keep up with her, but Bell held him back. “Let her explore on her own.”

Worry pricked his neck. “What if she gets lost?”

Bell laughed. “That child isn’t quiet enough to get lost. Besides, I’m teaching her how to find her way back to the house.”

“You never thought that was pertinent information to give to me?”

Bell nestled herself into his arms and placed a kiss on his neck. “I like finding you in these woods. It reminds me of the first time we met.”

He pulled her flush to him until he could feel her heart racing against his own. “I think I remember you chasing after me, begging to be kissed.”

“Don’t make me desecrate some of these incredible bluebells in order for you to tell the truth, Nathaniel.”

“I would never do such a thing.” He kissed her cheek. “I owe these bluebells and fairies for all the traps they put me through to find you.”

“Was it worth it?”

“I’d make every choice a thousand times again so long as it leads me to be here with you.”

Then he kissed her properly, like any pirate ought to in a magical wood.

The End