creature jumped out of the water in front of him: it was a golden-haired girl with a strange necklace on her head, translucent double wings and a child’s voice. Not surprisingly, Feodore was frightened, shouted and backed away until he leaned his back against something solid, which later turned out to be a pine tree.
The girl sat on the water like a log, and, laughing, chattered with her feet in the river.
– Ho you? – she asked in unintelligible language.
– What? – Feo didn’t understand.
– Who are you? – She asked.
– I am Feodor Bill. And who are you?
– I? I am Livie, a fairy, a higher fairy. Are you new?
– No, old man! I’ve lived here for a long time, and I haven’t seen you fairies.
– Wait now.
Livie shouted something at the tops of the trees, and two more fairies came down from there: a boy and a girl.
– Yu vis hio befoshe? – Livie asked the fairy boy.
– Nih, – he replied.
– Ya tuly, – the girl confirmed.
– What are you talking about?
– I asked them if they had seen you before, and they said “no.”
– Are you an elf? – You have elven ears.
– Vi dot lefry, – Livie said.
– Speak normal! – Feodore couldn’t understand it.
– I will translate. She said, “We’re not elves.” By the way, I’m Chris, this is my sister Missie, – the guy intervened.
– Thank you. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude to you.
– Yu dot rozki on fayikes? – Livie asked.
– Do you speak like Fairy? – Chris translated.
– No.
– Nih, – he told Livie.
– Feodore, do you want me to show you Tember? – she suggested.
– Of course!
Feodore got up and shook. Livie also got up. She stood on the water as firmly as Feo on the ground. For this, that air, that water, could become that surface on which it was possible to step quietly, and therefore these beings, meter – one and a half growth, were almost imperceptible. Looks like the fairies liked the stranger, or they wanted to check something.
– Went?
Livie took his hand and pulled him along. Since Feo did not walk on water, he cried out so as not to drown when the fairies dragged him down the river:
– Livie, so you! I’m not a fairy!
– Oh sorry. Chris, drop Feodor.
At first, the guy took the word “throw” as “bring to shore.” But it was not so.
Livie easily took Feo, who was upside down, and threw (literally) him to Chris. Poor Bill did not have time to shout, as he found himself on the other bank.
– I what for you, a feather or something! Enough of laughing and making fun of me! Although you are strong, it means nothing! Feo shouted at them, all trembling, wet. – And… And.. All the same I will not find the Mirror cave, I looked for it everywhere already.
– But you didn’t find us? – Livie asked.
– No.
– I’m sorry, Feodore. We love to play. In hiding, for example. Do you like hiding places? If so, we will show you the cave.
– Won’t you throw yourself at me like a toy? – He glared at Livie and Chris.
– No, we promise. Went!
On the shore were hills (and maybe low green mountains), and on one of them, hidden by trees, was a cave. Hide and seek. That’s why no one could find their country of Tember. Soon Livie, Feo and Chris approached the cave.
Long, sharp stalactites hung from the ceiling, and in some places a cobweb hung in a thick layer from the stone corners of the cave.
– Spiders? – he whispered. – I hate it!
He looked at the web in horror.
– Are you afraid of spiders? – Livie asked.
Feo looked at her.
– I hate it.
– Wait a minute, – Chris said. – We’ll be there soon.
And indeed, soon in the “heart” of the cave Feo saw sunlight, and later heard some magical sounds.
– What it is?
– You’ll see now.
With these words, Chris and Livie introduced him to the magical Tember – the land of fairies. The sunlight, not clear where it came from in the cave, blinded Feo’s eyes for a moment. Tember seemed unreal to him. The fairies here were different: simple, different and, as he later learned, fairy warriors. The most amazing thing is that they all lived together. And their horses were strange, with wings. Feodore then learned that these were pegasi. It was always warm and cool at the same time. Forest with emerald leaves, cold underground springs, silk grass pleasantly caressed Feo’s feet. So that the fairies were not dressed, their clothes were light and not felt. There was spring all year round, there was no grief and tears. Feodore later learned that Tember translated “fairy” means “paradise country” and that fairies are immortal. Here he felt carefree. Even the horrors he experienced during the Darkness War were forgotten for a while.
The fairy houses resembled small castles built of stone, with large oak frames and shutters, they seemed as eternal as the fairies themselves. Feo noted that there is no transport in Tember. He did not notice even simple carts. But they were replaced by graceful pegasi, which took Bill’s breath away.
And various birds were flying in the sky, among which was an eagle – a bird resembling a stork, only with bright pink and blue plumage, and somewhere they were already watched by a scarf – white tigers. Tember was a completely different world – the shores were covered with pearls, and the reeds – sharp as a knife blade.
Leila, the golden serpents, basked in the sand, and since the sand was also golden, Feo almost stepped on them several times. The fairies did not pay attention to him, because it was not the first time that loybbies (a small tribe of people, from there Feodore Bill) came here.
– Do you see the castle there? – Livie asked, pointing to a tall, elegant ivory castle.
– Yes.
– Now let’s go there. This is my home.
– Wow, you have a house!
– And what do you want, I’m still the highest fairy!
– How beautiful and easy it is here! I even forgot my worries for a while.
– What worries can you have? – Chris asked.
– I defeated Merak.
– Merak? Darkness? Something familiar.
Livie Castle was located on a hillside near a waterfall. Feodore became more and more fascinated by this country. It’s unreal beauty surpassed the nature of the Land of Milanta, although it has not yet experienced all the countries of this place.
Inside, Livie’s castle was all made of wood, gold and stone. The diamond chandelier above their heads shone with all the colors of the rainbow, the golden columns supported the high ceilings, and the