Icasondra wasn’t sure about how she should feel when she was nearby Alta. On the one hand, she was a graceful fairy that amused her, yet on the other hand, he was a bloodthirsty creature that could kill her in a single heartbeat.
One thing was clear to her, she needed to appeal to her inner fairy, for small and new that may be the feeling to Alta, Icasondra believed that watering those ideas could prevent Alta from massacring everyone in the village.
The chimera in question, or rather, the Blossomflame fairy walked behind her as she was unable to maintain flight for long. Still, she was far stronger than Icasondra, as she was able to move the big bolt of red silk as if it was air.
She felt incredibly nervous, a single misstep could cost her dearly, but hiding her true feeling was the best option. The Moonlight fairy sensed that the chimera could smell the fear in her.
Soon enough, the rays of sunlight became more prevalent as the trees diminished in density. Inside a massive clearing in the forest, the fairy village lay inside. It didn’t have a name, not many people visited it, and the inhabitants were few, so there hadn’t been any necessity for one.
Even when most of the population was able to fly, walkways connected the houses and the infrastructure of the village. Though instead of cobblestone paths like those of human cities, the pathways of the fairy village were made of tree roots, weaved to give form in the flattest way possible.
Houses weren’t that big, as fairies themselves were half the size of a human being. Same with the paths, the houses were made with roots expertly weaved to give a solid structure and an enclosed cottage. Though some fairies disposed of big, hollowed trees for houses instead of handcrafted buildings.
The sight was cozy and familiar, and after the recent events, it filled Icasondra’s heart with warmth. Alta didn’t share the same enthusiasm, looking neutrally at the village, more of an inspecting gaze than a delighted one. But even then, Icasondra could tell the chimera was somewhat impressed.
“What do you think?” Icasondra asked her, puffing her chest out in pride.
“It beats the prison, that’s for sure.” Alta nodded.
“Prison?” A frozen shiver traversed Icasondra’s back.
“Yes, this place seems more... amicable, though.” The chimera didn’t elaborate further beyond that statement, but the fairy was elated by the slight compliment.
She needed to take victories where she could, and the fact that Alta wasn’t disappointed with the village was a very good sign.
Though the instant the Blossomflame fairy walked toward the center of the village, Icasondra’s blood froze.
“Wait!” She shouted. “Follow me.”
“Why?” Alta asked a question she couldn’t respond to.
The Moonlight fairy’s mind worked overtime trying to come up with an excuse. She didn’t have the courage to show the chimera to the village yet, she needed a bit more time.
“Em... you... er... your clothes!” Icasondra responded in a flash of inspiration. “We need you to get you better clothing, these rags are awful-looking and will give a bad impression of you to the rest of the fairies. Thankfully for you, my friend is an amazing tailor.” She added with a fake smile. “Come on, follow me!”
“Alright.” The chimera nodded.
Icasondra sighed in relief as she guided Alta through the liminal space between the village and the forest, hiding from possible onlookers. There weren’t any fairies in sight currently, but one could never be sure about who was looking.
Fortunately for her health, the way to her friend’s shop was discrete and fast. No one had seen them, even if the Blossomflame fairy’s wings shone like two torches. She was grateful that the sun had yet to set, and it still overwhelmed the light coming from Alta’s back.
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Icasondra knocked on the door nine times, in pulses of three, and soon enough the door opened.
“Icasondra?” A dark-skinned fairy asked. “And who’s she? I don’t recognize her.” The fairy inspected Alta from head to toe.
“It’s kinda a long story, can we enter first though?” The Moonlight fairy explained.
“Of course, I don’t have any clientele, feel yourselves like at home.”
Upon hearing the tailor’s words, Alta let out a slight groan. Icasondra’s heart skipped a beat, then picked up the hand of the chimera and rushed inside her friend’s shop in an attempt to distract the mind of the highly volatile creature.
The door closed behind them, and her friend looked at them. “So what’s this fuzz all about?”
“Aecansomdrys, this is Alta,” Icasondra told her friend. “Alta, this is Aecansomdrys.”
“Nice to meet you, Alta.” Aecansomdrys tended a hand to the chimera as a greeting. Yet she just tilted her head in confusion.
“You are supposed to accept the handshake.” Icasondra whispered to Alta.
“Oh.” The Blossomflame fairy extended her hand and shook hands with her friend. But she didn’t add any presentation and simply nodded.
Well, so far so good. She couldn’t expect everything to go smoothly.
“Alta, Aecansomdrys is a Losttime fairy.” Then directed to her friend. “And Alta herself is a Blossomflame fairy.”
“Oh, a Blossomflame!” Aecansomdrys undid the handshake and fluttered in excitement, slowly taking off the ground. “We have never had one in the village! And don’t worry about the stories they tell about Losttime fairies, I assure you I’m a good fairy.” The dark-skinned fairy added with a bountiful smile.
“What stories?” Alta asked.
Icasondra stopped breathing for a second and jumped in front of Aecansomdrys, putting a hand on her mouth. “Children’s tale, don’t worry about them.”
She couldn’t afford to feed the chimera tales people told about Losttime fairies. Alta would most likely take it as an offense.
“Keep your words to a minimum,” Icasondra whispered to the ears of her friend.
Even without understanding the context, the tailor nodded, trusting her friend’s judgment.
“Well, Aecansomdrys,” Icasondra started. “We came here because we need to get Alta a better dress than these drags. Oh, and also undergarments.”
“Undergarments?” The chimera asked.
“I’ll explain to you later.” The Moonlight fairy added. “We have also brought a magnificent bolt of silk, surely it will more than cover for the dress and leave us some money to spare.”
“But of course, I would never send away a customer. Though were did you get t-“ Aecansomdrys stopped mid-sentence as she saw Icasondra’s eyes. “Doesn’t matter.”
Then the tailor walked to the bolt of silk, caressed the fabric, and nodded in satisfaction.
“This is good stuff. Sure, I’ll start making the dress this very moment.” The Losttime fairy said. “Though I’ll need to take Alta’s sizes first.”
Icasondra could already feel the Blossomflame fairy tilt her head in confusion.
“Alta, can you take off your clothes...” The next blink the girl was already naked. “...so Aecansomdrys can measure your body?”
“Sure.” The naked fairy affirmed.
She’s doing this on purpose, isn’t she? Icasondra thought.
“Oh, what a nice body!” Aecansomdrys commented, taking a measuring tape out of nowhere and carefully taking the Blossomflame fairy’s three sizes. “You are incredibly toned, girl.”
“I have strong biomass.” Alta neutrally responded.
“You sure do!” The tailor giggled, not understanding that the chimera was being serious. She also tapped the fairy’s belly. “These are quite serious muscles. I have never seen a fairy with muscles other than on their back.”
“Thanks.” She nodded.
At this point, Icasondra couldn’t tell if the chimera was adapting to the conversation, or if she was truly serious. Then as she saw her friend play with the new-fairy’s body, a doubt sprouted in her mind.
“Isn’t the dress going to burn with those wings?” Icasondra pointed at the leaf-shaped wings blooming into flames.
“I don’t think so no,” Aecansomdrys responded, not taking her sight away from Alta’s body. “I don’t know much about Blossomflame fairies, but their wings only should burn if they wish to do so. Much like how Stillwater fairies’ wings aren’t wet.”
That took a weight out of Icasondra’s mind as she wouldn’t like to have the village set accidentally set on fire after all the troubles she had gone through to keep up the chimera appeased.
“Now, now.” The tailor expressed, removing herself from the fairy. “I already have Alta’s sizes, so seeing how the silk will be more than enough for materials, I guess I’ll have the dress ready for tomorrow morning.”
Icasondra’s visage turned sour upon hearing her friend, but it was to be expected. One couldn’t rush perfection, especially something as important as it was a fairy’s dress. At least it wasn’t much time at all, so she could hide Alta in her house during that time.
“Alright, I guess I’ll take Alta with me and come here tomorrow morning then.” The Moonlight fairy replied.
“See you tomorrow!” The tailor added, vanishing on the back shop, already thinking about designs.
“Come on, Alta.” Icasondra prompted the red fairy. “Let’s go to my home.”
“Understood.” The chimera did not only follow her commands but also gained some common sense as she wore back the drags.
This will be easier than expected!