Page 19 of Folds
“I know you wouldn’t.”
I swallow before I ask my burning question. I hope I’m not making too many assumptions.
“Would you… like to visit me again?” I say, my voice tinged with hope. “I don’t know how to contact you.”
Selvanar’s answering grin is wide.
“Of course. I would brave the human world any time for you.” He extends his arms, and I fall into them, leaning my head against his chest. “I’ll come visit as soon as possible.”
“Will you bring a mushroom?”
I can feel his chuckle vibrate against my cheek. “Yes, of course.”
Once more, I squeeze him tight, then we release each other. I turn around to face the barrier, and with a deep breath, step through it.
I’m still tiny when I emerge, but my clothes are nearby, so I go sit inside the hem of my shirt until the mushroom wears off. Returning to my normal size is… a shock, to say the least. Suddenly everything is small again, and I feel like a giant tromping through the woods.
I understand fairies much better now.
After dressing, I return to my car and check my phone. I have many calls from Lizzie and even more worried text messages.
I have a lot to tell you.
She answers immediately.
What’s going on? Is it about the fairy?
Yeah. Come home after you get off work.
Then I drive in a daze, thinking about nothing but Selvanar’s face and his lovely home high up in the trees.
“Wow, who knew?” Lizzie says, sipping her wine as we talk about what transpired in the fairy hive. “A whole separate world just in the state park.” She cocks her head. “You wouldn’t show me, would you?”
“Never. I promised I would never tell where they were.”
Lizzie nods in understanding.
“I’ve been looking into it,” I go on, “and there’s a problem with fertilizer running off of yards in the nearby neighborhoods, polluting the river that passes through the hive’s territory.” I did a lot of deep digging today. “I think we should put a stop to that.”
Lizzie blinks. “Really? How?”
“I have some ideas. But it means I have to start going to town hall meetings.”
My sister sticks out her tongue. “Sounds tedious.”
“Yes, but important!”
With a laugh, Lizzie refills both our glasses.
“I’m glad to see you excited about this. I guess it’s pretty real with the fairy man, isn’t it?”
I rub my cheeks. “I think it is. We’ll see if he comes to visit like he said, once his wing heals.”
In the meantime, I prepare for Selvanar to come to my house again. I start by making tiny cushions and pillows for all the couches and beds in the dollhouse, something of good quality that Selvanar wouldn’t mind sleeping on. Then I figure out how to turn off the power to the apartment and buy a load of candles to keep electrical interference to a minimum.
As days pass, though, I start to wonder if he’ll come back. I miss my fairy quite a lot already, and I hope he feels the same way.
Thankfully, a week later, I’m lying in bed reading when I hear a tap at the window. I spin around and sure enough, he’s there at the glass, smirking that arrogant smirk at me.
