Tiger's Quest

  I also made a list of every animal we came in contact with. By the early afternoon, we’d seen hundreds of different animals that I knew shouldn’t be living in this kind of environment—elephants, camels, and even kangaroos.

  Late afternoon was when we saw our first predators—a pride of lions. Kishan had smelled them a mile from their lands, and we decided to go in for a closer look. He made me climb a tree while he investigated. Finally, he came back with a look of astonishment.

  “There’s a large herd of antelope near the pride but they graze right next to the cats! I saw a lioness eating something red that I assumed was meat but it turns out that it was fruit. The lions were eating apples.”

  I started to climb down. Kishan caught me around my waist and lowered me the rest of the way.

  “Ah ha! So my theory was correct. This really is like the Garden of Eden. The animals don’t hunt.”

  “It appears you were right. Still, just to be safe, I’d like to put some distance between us and the lions before we camp.”

  Later, we saw other predators—wolves, panthers, bears, and even another tiger. They made no moves against us. In fact, the wolves were as friendly as dogs and approached us to be petted.

  Kishan grunted, “This is strange. It’s unnerving.”

  “I know what you mean, but . . . I like it. I wish Ren could see this place.”

  Kishan didn’t respond except to urge me to leave the wolf pack and move on.

  At dusk, we stumbled into a clearing in the middle of a forest that was full of daffodils. We’d just started to set up camp when I heard the soft, haunting music of a flute. We both froze. It was the first evidence of people.

  “What should we do?” I asked.

  “Let me go look.”

  “I think we should both go.”

  He shrugged, and I trailed quickly behind him. We followed the lingering notes of the mysterious sound and found the source of the music sitting on a raised stone near a brook, playing a reed pipe. The creature held his pipes gently between two hands and blew air softly between pursed lips. As we hesitantly approached, he stopped playing and smiled at us.

  His eyes were bright green and set in a handsome face. His shoulder-length silver hair hung loosely down his back. Two small, brown, velvety horns peeped out of the top of his shiny tresses, reminding me of young deer just growing antlers. He was slightly smaller than an average human, and his skin was white with a slight lilac tint. He was barefoot but wore pants that looked like they were made from doeskin. His long-sleeved shirt was the color of a pomegranate.

  He hung his pipes around his neck and looked at us. “Hello.”

  Kishan replied warily, “Hello.”

  “I’ve been waiting for you to come. We’ve all been waiting.”

  I asked, “Who’s we?”

  “Well, me for one. Then there’s the Silvanae and the fairies.”

  Puzzled, Kishan asked, “You’ve been expecting us?”

  “Oh, yes. For a long time, in fact. You must be tired. Come with me, and we’ll provide you with some refreshment.”

  Kishan stood rooted to the ground. I stepped around him.

  “Hi. I’m Kelsey.”

  “Nice to meet you. My name’s Faunus.”

  “Faunus? I’ve heard that name before.”

  “Have you?”

  “Yes! You’re Pan!”

  “Pan? No. I’m definitely Faunus. At least, that’s what my family tells me. Come along.”

  He stood up, hopped over a rock, and disappeared through the woods on a stone path. I turned around and took Kishan’s hand. “Come on. I trust him.”

  “I don’t.”

  I squeezed his hand and whispered, “It’s okay. I think you could take him.” Kishan tightened his grip on my hand and allowed me to lead him after our guide.

  We followed Faunus through the leafy trees and soon heard the tinkling laughter of many people. As we neared the settlement, I realized that the sound was nothing I’d ever heard people make before. It was unearthly.

  “Faunus . . . what are Silvanae?”

  “They are the tree people, the tree nymphs.”

  “Tree nymphs?”

  “Yes. You have no tree people where you come from?”

  “No. We have no fairies either.”

  He seemed confused. “What kind of people emerge from a tree when it splits?”

  “No one emerges as far as I know. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a tree split unless lightning hit it or someone chopped it down.”

  He stopped in mid-stride. “Your people chop down trees?”

  “In my land? Yes, they do.”

  He shook his head sadly. “I’m very glad I live here. Those poor trees. What would happen to all the future generations, I wonder.”

  I looked at Kishan, who shook his head imperceptibly before he led us on.

  As darkness fell, we stepped under a wide arch full of hundreds of miniature climbing roses in all varieties of color and entered the village of the Silvanae. Lanterns hung from ropy vines that draped down from the largest trees I’d ever seen. The small lights inside the lanterns bobbed up and down in their glass houses, each one a different vivid color— pink, silver, turquoise, orange, yellow, and violet. On closer inspection, I saw the lights were living creatures. They were fairies!

  “Kishan! Look! They glow like lightning bugs!”

  The fairies looked like large butterflies, but their glow did not come from their bodies. The soft light emanated from their colorful wings, which opened and closed lazily as the creatures sat perched on a wooden mount.

  I pointed at one. “Are those—?”

  “Fairy lights? Yes. They have two-hour shifts on lantern duty in the evenings. They like to read on duty. Keeps ’em awake. If they fall asleep, their lights go out.”

  I mumbled, “Right. Of course.”

  He led us farther into the settlement. The small cottages were made of fibrous woven plants and were set in a circular fashion around a grassy space. The center area had been set for a banquet. A giant tree stood behind each hut; the towering limbs reached over and across, twining their branches together with their neighboring trees, creating a beautiful green bower overhead.

  Faunus raised his pipe and blew a happy melody. Slight-framed, willowy people streamed out of their cottages and hopped down from hiding places in the foliage.

  “Come. Come and meet those we have been waiting for. This is Kelsey and this is Kishan. Let us bid them welcome.”

  Shining faces came closer. They were all silver-haired and had green eyes like Faunus. Beautiful males and females were dressed in shimmering gossamer clothing in the bright colors of the flowers that grew everywhere.

  Faunus turned to me. “Would you like to eat first or bathe first?”

  Surprised, I said, “Bathe first. If that’s alright.”

  He bowed. “Of course. Anthracia, Phiale, and Deiopea, will you take Kelsey to the women’s bathing shallows?”

  Three lovely Silvanae approached me shyly from the group. Two took my hands while the third led me out of the clearing and into the forest. Kishan scowled at me, obviously unhappy about our separation, but I noticed he was soon escorted away too, in a different direction.

  The women were slightly smaller than Faunus, about a head shorter than me. My escorts followed a path colorfully lit by helpful fairies until we came upon a round, sunken pool fed by a small brook. The water dropped down from larger stones to smaller, and then dropped to the pool, creating a diminutive, hidden spray of water. It worked like a wide faucet that was constantly running.

  They removed my backpack and disappeared while I took off the rest of my clothing and stepped into the pool. It was surprisingly warm. A long, submerged stone too convenient to be natural, ran along the arch inside the pool, serving as a stepping stone and then as a seating stone once I was in the water.

  After I’d wet my hair, the three nymphs returned and brought bowls of fragrant liquids. They let me
pick the fragrance I liked and handed me a mossy ball that functioned like a loofah. I scrubbed the dirt from my skin with the fragrant soap while Phiale soaped through my hair with three different products, having me rinse under the small waterfall each time.

  The fairy lights glowed warmly. By the time I stepped out of the pool and the women wrapped my body and hair with soft cloth, my skin and scalp were tingling, and I felt relaxed and refreshed. Anthracia massaged perfumed lotion into my skin while Phiale worked on my hair. Deiopea disappeared briefly and returned with a beautiful celadon green gossamer dress embroidered with shimmering flowers.

  I reached out to touch the dress. “It’s lovely! The embroidery is so fine that the flowers look real.”

  She giggled. “They are real.”

  “They can’t be! How did you sew them in?”

  “We didn’t sew them. We grew them in. We asked them to be a part of this dress, and they agreed.”

  Anthracia asked, “Do you not like it?”

  “No. I love it! I would be very happy to wear it.”

  They all smiled and hummed contentedly as they worked on me. When they were finished, they brought out a silvered mirror set in an oval frame carved with looping flowers.

  “What do you think, Kelsey? Is your appearance satisfactory?”

  I stared at the person in the mirror. “Is that me?”

  They erupted in tinkling giggles. “Yes, of course, it’s you.”

  I stood transfixed. The barefoot woman staring back at me had large brown doe’s eyes and soft creamy white skin that glowed with good health. Sparkling green eye shadow enhanced my eyes, and my lashes were long and dark. My lips shone with apple red gloss, and my cheeks were a becoming pink. The green gossamer dress was in the Grecian style, which made me look curvier than I was. It was draped over my shoulders, wrapped around my waist, and fell to the ground in long folds. My hair hung loose and wavy down my back, ending just above my waist. I hadn’t realized that my hair had grown so long. It was adorned with flowers and butterfly wings.

  The wings moved slightly. Were there fairies holding my hair in wavy twists?

  “Oh! The fairies don’t need to stay in my hair. I’m sure there are other things they would rather do.”

  Phiale shook her head. “Nonsense. They are honored to hold the tresses of one as fair as you. They say your hair is beautiful and soft, and it’s like resting in a cloud. They are happiest when they serve. Please let them stay.”

  I smiled. “Alright, but just through the dinner.”

  The three Silvanae women fussed and primped over me for several more minutes and then declared me presentable. We started back to the village. Just before we reached the banquet area, Deiopea handed me a fragrant bunch of flowers to carry.

  “Uh . . . I’m not getting married or anything like that, right?”

  “Married? Why no.”

  Phiale said, “Do you want to get married?”

  I waved my hand. “Oh no, I just asked because of the beautiful dress and the bouquet of flowers.”

  “Those are the marriage customs of your land?”

  “Yes.”

  Deiopea tittered, “Well, if you did want to marry, your man does look very handsome.”

  The three ladies fell into giggles again and pointed to the banquet table where Kishan sat, obviously frustrated. They bounced to the table before disappearing into the silver-haired group. I had to admit, Deiopea was right. Kishan did look very handsome. They’d dressed him in white pants and a blue gossamer shirt made of the same material as mine. He had bathed too. I laughed out loud as he looked uneasily around at the Silvanae, obviously feeling out of place.

  He must have heard me because he looked up and scanned the crowd. His eyes lit on me and flew past, still searching. Kishan didn’t recognize me! I laughed again. This time, his eyes darted back to me and stayed. Slowly rising, he made his way to me. He looked me up and down with a big grin on his face and let out a whoop of laughter.

  Annoyed, I asked, “What are you laughing at?”

  He took both of my hands in his and looked in my eyes. “Nothing at all, Kelsey. You are the most enchanting creature I’ve ever seen in my life.”

  “Oh. Thank you. But why did you laugh?”

  “I laughed because I’m the lucky one who gets to see you like this, to be with you in this paradise while Ren had to be chased by monkeys and fight needle trees. Obviously, I got the better quest.”

  “Undeniably you did, at least, so far. But, I forbid you to tease him about this.”

  “Are you kidding? I plan on taking your picture and explaining everything to him in great detail. In fact, stay right there.” Kishan disappeared and came back with a camera.

  I frowned. “Kishan.”

  “Ren would want a picture. Believe me. Now smile and hold your flowers.” He took several shots then slipped the small camera in his pocket and took my hand. “You’re beautiful, Kelsey.”

  I blushed at the compliment, but a feeling of melancholy stole over me. I thought about Ren. He would have loved this place. It was a scene right out of Midsummer Night’s Dream. He would have been the handsome Oberon to my Titania.

  Kishan touched my face. “The sadness is back again. It breaks my heart, Kells.” He leaned over and kissed my cheek softly. “Will you do me the honor of accompanying me to dinner, apsaras rajkumari?”

  I tried to snap out of it and smiled. “Yes, if you tell me what you just called me.”

  His golden eyes twinkled. “I called you ‘princess,’ ‘fairy princess’ to be exact.”

  I laughed. “Then what would you call yourself?”

  “I am the handsome prince, naturally.” He tucked my arm through his and helped me sit. Faunus took a chair across from us, sitting next to a lovely Silvanae.

  “May I introduce our sovereign?”

  “Of course,” I said.

  “Kelsey and Kishan, meet Dryope, titular queen of the Silvanae.”

  She nodded delicately and smiled, then announced, “It is time for the feasting! Enjoy!”

  I didn’t know where to begin. Plates of delicate lace cookies and honey cakes were placed next to fluffy lemon meringue tarts, platters of stewed fruits in sugary syrups, baby quiches, and cinnamon crepes. I scooped up a helping of dandelion salad with dried fruits and lime dressing and a portion of an apple, onion, and mushroom galette with baked stilton cheese. Other dishes of sugar plum pudding, blueberry scones, pumpkin cups with cream-cheese filling, soft rolls with creamy butter, and fruited jams and jellies were also brought out.

  We drank honeyed flower nectar and watermelon spritzes. Kishan handed me a fruit appetizer. It was a tiny nutty pastry cup filled with raspberries and topped with fresh cream. All the food was small except for the final pastry—a gigantic strawberry shortcake. Red glaze dripped down the sides of the white cake, which was filled with sweet red berries and fluffy custard. It was topped with mounds of whipped cream, had a dusting of sugar on top, and was served with milk.

  When we were finished, I leaned over to Kishan and said, “I had no idea vegetarians ate this well.”

  He laughed and scooped up another helping of the shortcake.

  I dabbed my lips with my napkin. “Faunus, may I ask you a question?”

  He nodded.

  “We found the ruins of the ark. Do you know about Noah and the animals here?”

  “Oh! Do you mean the boat? Yes, we saw the boat settle in the hills, and all manner of creatures emerged. Many of them left our realm and entered your world, including the people who were in it. Some of the creatures decided to stay. Others had generations of descendents and then returned to us. We agreed to let all of them remain if they followed the law of our land—that no one creature may hurt another.”

  “That’s . . . amazing.”

  “Yes, it’s wonderful to have had so many of the animals return to us. They find peace here.”

  “So do we. Faunus . . . we are here seeking something called the omphalos stone
or the navel stone. Have you ever seen it?”

  All the Silvanae shook their heads as Faunus answered, “No. I’m afraid we don’t know of such a stone.”

  “What about a giant tree thousands of feet tall?”

  He considered for a moment, and then shook his head. “No. If there is such a tree or such a stone, they reside outside of our realm.”

  “You mean back in my world?”

  “Not necessarily. There are other parts of this world that we have no control over. As long as you walk our lands beneath our trees you are safe, but once you leave their shelter we can no longer protect you.”

  “I see.” I sank back in disappointment.

  He brightened, “However, you may find your answer if you sleep in the Grove of Dreams. It’s a special place to us. If we have a difficult question that needs to be answered or if we need direction, we sleep there and can find the answer or see a dream of the future and realize the question wasn’t so important after all.”

  “Could we please give it a try?”

  “Of course! We will take you.”

  A group of excited Silvanae began chattering at the other end of the table.

  “How momentous that you came at this time! One of the trees is splitting!” Faunus explained. “Come and see, Kelsey and Kishan. Come and see the birth of a tree nymph.”

  Kishan held my hand while Faunus guided us behind one of the cottages to the tree behind it. The whole town waited, humming quietly, at the base of the tree.

  Faunus whispered, “These trees were here before your Noah and his boat of animals landed. They have given birth to many generations of Silvanae. Each cottage that you see is set before a family tree. This means that all who live in the cottage were born from the mother tree behind it. It’s getting close to time. Look up. See how the other trees offer their support?”

  I glanced up at the leafy bower overhead, and it did look as if the branches were squeezing the leafy fingers of the tree that was straining nearby. It made wooden groaning and popping sounds as the leaves trembled above us.

  The tree nymphs seemed to be focused on a large, knobby mound that bulged near a low branch. The tree shuddered as the long branch quivered. After several intense moments of listening to the deep rumbles of the tree and watching the trunk expand and contract, so slowly that I wouldn’t have noticed if I wasn’t paying attention, the bottom branch broke off from the enormous trunk with a terrible crack.