In the end, when Icasondra said that they were going to go shopping, she meant that she would buy everything on the market and leave Alta to carry the products. At least the Moonlight fairy had only bought food, or ingredients as she called them. No trinkets like the plethora that populated the market street.

It also made sense for Alta to be the one carrying everything. She may have copied Icasondra’s body, but hers didn’t resemble internally to that of the weak and fragile fairy. The chimera’s body was made of reused biomass, part of which was of the wardens’ muscles. And unlike one may think, the colossal wardens’ musculature was more efficient than that of humans and fairies in weight-to-strength ratio.

Alta couldn’t imagine Icasondra carrying more than four jars of this jam food. They weren’t heavy per se, but cumbersome and heavy enough that it made flying unviable.

Icasondra flew over the market’s road whilst Alta followed her on foot, carrying two bags full of products. The Moonlight fairy herself did carry a bit of weight, the bag of money Aecansomdrys had given her. And even though they had gone through several stalls by now, the volume of the bag didn’t decrease at all. It neither looked light, judging by the tense ropes holding the bag’s opening together.

“I think that’s all~” Icasondra sat on a cut tree trunk and stretched her arms upwards, a hint of a yawn in her voice. “Moons, I’m beaten.”

Upon hearing those words, Alta couldn’t but look at the relaxed fairy with a tired and unexpressive look as she remained with the bags in her hands.

“Em...” The fairy hesitated after looking at the chimera’s expression. “Well, we should bring the food home, what do you think?” She added with a nervous chuckle at the end.

“Understood.” Alta nodded.

She remembered where the Moonlight fairy’s house was, and even if she didn’t, it wouldn’t take her much time to find her way back there considering the small size of the village.

Icasondra fluttering was heard from behind and the fairy quickly caught up to her from her resting position. She acted as if she needed to guide Alta, the fairy putting herself in front of her, and flying in a straight line to her home.

As soon as they arrived there, a very glaring problem became clear to them.

“How are we supposed to take these bags upwards?” Alta pointed out looking at the tree house.

“Well, I normally don’t buy much, so I have more than enough strength to fly anything I bought without problems but now...” The fairy’s gaze shifted to the chimera’s heavy-looking bags. “Can you fly them up there?”

Alta blinked twice, thinking if she truly had heard what she had heard.

“What do you think?” She responded, not a shed of animosity in her tone.

“Right, right. Dumb question.” Icasondra added with a dry laugh. “Let me leave the coin bag first and I’ll do some rounds to pick each bag.”

“Understood.” Instead of sitting down, Alta remained still like a statue with the bags in her hands.

Icasondra quickly descended from the skies only a few seconds after flying up, her massive silhouette boosted by her fairy wings blocking out the sun.

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“Here.” Alta raised one of her arms and dropped the bag on her hand.

“Oof.” The fairy grunted, her altitude decreasing by a few heads. Her wings began hitting the air with more energy, trying to keep her afloat. “Moons, they are heavy! How much did we buy?”

“How much you bought, you mean.”

“Excuse me, I have only bought this much because half of the food is for you!” With a harrumph, she left for her home.

Alta fluttered her wings, trying to take to the skies as the Moonlight fairy did. Alas, she had no practice whatsoever and the increased weight wasn’t helping her either. The Blossomflame fairy sighed, waiting for the only capable fairy to come back. This time she took much longer, closer to a minute. Is it that difficult and slow to fly with weight?

“What took you so long?” The chimera asked the panting fairy.

“Uh, you know, I may not, uh, be in good shape,” Icasondra responded between gasps. “How in the elder’s name were you able to carry the bags without breaking a sweat?”

“For once, walking is the better option.” Alta smiled at her. “And besides, fairy’ bodies are not meant to carry weight from a biological standpoint. Anyways, here.” And then she gave the struggling fairy the other bag.

“Urgh.” Icasondra’s arms trembled, truly fighting against the weight of the bag. “Wait for me here.”

And she did. This time the fairy took even longer to come back, most likely to recover her breath. Maybe the shape of a fairy wasn’t as good as I thought. The chimera pondered. If I were able to fly or use their magic it would be of great significance, but as of now, it’s useless besides the good looks.

Because she couldn’t deny it. After she had seen her reflection in the Losttime fairy’s shop on the furniture piece called a mirror, it felt like a waste to dispose of this shape. At least, this soon.

When Icasondra came back, she had regained her breath and color.

“Alright, follow me!” She ordered, flying back into the village, without any explanation whatsoever.

“Where are we going?” Alta asked, following behind her.

“I thought that it would be a good idea for you to meet the elder of the village,” Icasondra responded. “She’s not only our leader, but also the teacher of young fairies, so maybe she’ll make a better job than I.”

“Well, your job hasn’t been disastrous enough to look for a substitute.” The chimera praised.

The Moonlight fairy turned to look at her, and after inspecting the Blossomflame fairy’s face she was left more dumbfounded.

“Thanks... for the praise?” She added in confusion. “Nonetheless, even if I don’t get replaced by her, I think it will do you good to know her.”

Alta appraised the fairy’s expression and tone and decided that she was being truthful. She truly believed the encounter would do her good. So, Alta nodded in affirmation.

The elder’s home was located next to the market they had visited, inside of a colossal tree, far bigger and wider than the others surrounding the village. Or more accurately, the tree itself was the house.

The chimera looked upwards. She knew that her perspective had been altered by the shift in her size, she was only a third of what she had been at her peak, but the tree appeared incommensurable either way.

There’s something more, though. It didn’t feel like it was the raw size that was overwhelming her, there was something beyond all that altering her senses. Magic? The chimera wondered.

“What are you waiting for, come in!” Icasondra incited her from the entrance of the tree, a gate made by an aperture in the bark. The tree itself seemed to be hollow.

Alta took cautious steps forward, ready to enter combat at a moment’s notice. She didn’t feel such pressure since her instance in the prison.

Curiously enough, the way ahead wasn’t straight, both of them had to walk across a series of corridors covered in vines, slowly trekking upwards with slight differences in altitude with each step she took.

The tree wasn’t that big from the outside. Alta realized. Certainly magic.

She also became aware of the treacherous path, clearly not something people used day to day. But then again, fairies flew everywhere they went. There was probably an aerial entrance to the tree or maybe they just went through the canopy.

Soon the plentiful vines ended, becoming more sporadically yet not completely disappearing, and sunlight bathed them once more.

On the zenith of the tree, sitting on a throne made of bark, vines, and roots, lay a mystical figure. A mostly naked woman with bountiful assets, perfect curvature, and long hair looked at them amused. But most importantly, her hair and skin were of the most peculiar color. Green.

And even if the woman had no wings on her back, Alta instantly knew that she was the elder.