The Little House in the Fairy Wood

  CHAPTER IX

  THE WIND HUNT

  After all, Mother Helma was not there the next morning,--nor the next,nor the next. She did not come back for days and days and days. Muchhappened before she returned, and much happened after. I will tell you.

  During the days the children roamed the forest looking for their mother.They asked every one they could find whether he had seen her. The TreeMan, his daughter, the Bird Fairies, and the Forest Children, not one ofthem had seen or heard of her since she went away. But they all saidwith one accord that she would surely come back in her own time. It wasnot wise to go seeking her so. She loved them. She would return.

  "Wait and be patient," they said. "Time will bring Helma."

  But they were Forest People, who live long, long lives, and see far.Eric was an Earth Child, and Ivra was not all a Forest Child. So theyfound it hard to be wise and wait and do nothing but trust Helma andknow she would return.

  So they went wandering all the day. They did not go home for meals,even, after a while, but ate with the Tree Man and his daughter or theForest Children. Sometimes as they walked through the forest, lookingall about, even up into the trees for their mother, they would suddenlyburst into play. "Tag," Ivra would cry, tapping Eric on the shoulder,and away she would fly, he after her, in a race that grew merrier andmerrier as it ran on. Ivra darted and twisted away when Eric thought hehad her, rolling down little hills on the snow crust, climbing trees,jumping brooks until he was lucky enough to catch her by one of herpigtails at last, or snatch her flying skirt. "Tag!" Then away he sped,and the game would go on for a happy while.

  But sooner or later they always stopped running, stopped laughing, andremembered why they were wandering the wood alone. Then they would callfor Helma. Ivra's voice was shrill and sweet, and rang through the barewoods like a birdsong. Eric's wavered a little uncertainly, as though hedoubted whether Helma knew it well enough to answer. "Helma, Helma,Helma! Ohh Helma! Helmaa-a!"

  No Helma answered. Sometimes a Forest Child came running to say, "Wehaven't seen her yet, Ivra. But we are watching." The Bird Fairiesfluttered at the call and nodded their little heads uneasily. Children'svoices calling for their mother was a sad sound, and made the kindlylittle creatures restless. One or two of them would fly to nestle inIvra's neck and whisper, "Give her time. Do not hurry her so. She willcome back."

  But the children were losing faith. They went calling, seeking andplaying through the woods all the hours of daylight. At night Ivra toldEric World Stories, World Story after World Story until sleep made themforget.

  The fifth morning of their search dawned blue and clear and windy.

  "The Wind Creatures will be happy to-day," said Ivra when she opened hereyes and heard the wind pushing at all the windows of the house and sawthe blue morning sky. "Wild Star will be circling the world."

  "Why, then he will see Helma somewhere!" cried Eric.

  Ivra sprang from her bed. "Eric, how splendid! We must go with him! Whydidn't I think of it at the very first!"

  They did not stop for breakfast, but were into their coats and ready forthe day's search in a twinkling. Neither of them had bothered to undressthe night before. Ivra's hair had gone unbrushed for two days. Thingslike that are apt to slip when one's mother is away. So her littlepigtails were no longer smooth and glossy, but frowsy and loose, and therest of her hair was ruffled until it looked something like the BirdFairies' soft plumage. Eric's head, too, was shaggier than ever, and asmudge from firebuilding had darkened one of his cheeks since themorning before. They had not bathed in the "bird bath" since Helma hadgone away. They never seemed to have time, or else they were too sleepy.

  Now they no more thought of baths than they thought of breakfast. Ericfollowed Ivra, who knew all the ways in the forest, to the spot whereWild Star was most likely to be, if he was to be found at all on such awindy, perfect day. They ran earnestly, never slackening to skip orplay. And soon they came in sight of some giant cedar trees near theedge of the forest. There were several Wind Creatures standing there,laughing in shrill, glad voices, pointing with their arms, and flappingtheir purple wings. Wind Creatures are growing-up boys and girls withfairy-hearts and strong, never-tiring purple wings, remember. Wild Starwas among them.

  But before the children had come up to them, the Wind Creatures suddenlyjoined hands,--as they do just before flying,--and started running downthe sloping hill that ended the forest.

  For a minute Ivra was in despair. "Now they are gone for the day tocircle the world, and I shall never find mother," she thought. But shedid not waste any more breath running. She stopped short and lifted hervoice, clear and insistent, "Wild Star! Wild Star! I need you! Don't runaway. Wild Star!"

  The Wind Creatures had reached the foot of the hill, running swiftlyhand in hand, and their wings were already lifted for flying. But WildStar, at the sound of Ivra's voice, leaned back suddenly on the hands hewas holding, almost throwing his comrades on their faces, and breakingthe line. He turned right about, swinging the others with him, and cameleaping and running back.

  "What is the matter, little comrade?" he asked. "What is the matter?"

  "In all your flying 'round the world, Wild Star, you must have seen mymother Helma. She is lost. Oh, can't you tell us where she is?"

  "Yes, of course. But I didn't know she was lost. I thought she wasvisiting Earth-friends."

  "Truly, truly?" Ivra's eyes shone with joy, and Eric grabbed his capfrom his head and threw it up in the air shouting, "Hurrah!"

  "Oh, will you bring her to us right away?" Ivra begged.

  Wild Star looked doubtful. "Perhaps she wouldn't want to come."

  Ivra laughed merrily at that. "Then take us to her," she said, "and youwill see how she wants to come when we ask her."

  "Give us your hands, then!"

  They held out their hands. Ivra's was grasped by Wild Star's and Eric'sby another Wind Creature. With their free hands they clasped eachother's. So the four started running down the hill, while the rest ofthe Wind Creatures flew off over their heads.

  Wild Star and his comrade ran faster and faster, until Eric wondered howit was that he and Ivra were ever keeping up with them. Soon he realizedthat his feet were scarcely touching the ground. At the foot of the hillstood a little group of birches, and they were running right upon it. Hedid not see how they could either turn out or stop themselves at thatspeed. Almost as soon as he had seen the birches, though, they werebeyond them. They had not turned out, they had jumped right over thebirches, and they were much higher than Eric's head! They were runningso swiftly now that only their toes ever touched the ground,--if _they_did.

  What fun it was to run like that, the wind at their backs, and the WindCreatures drawing them strongly forward faster and faster and fasteruntil they were really flying just above the snow.

  Across white fields they skimmed,--over fences and frozen streams,bushes and banks, through orchards and meadows, on, on, on, until theycame to the town.

  There Ivra pulled back for a minute, and the Wind Creatures slowed down.Eric knew why Ivra was afraid of the town. She had told him all about itwhile they played in the wood. Helma, her mother, was a human, but shehated the town and loved the fairies and their ways. That was why shehad run away to live by herself in the wood. But Ivra was neither fairynor human; she was both.

  Now the fairies are afraid of humans because humans look right throughthem and do not see them. That upsets the fairies and makes themuncomfortable. Of course Helma and Eric were exceptions, for becausethey had no shadows in their eyes they could see them and play withthem. So the fairies accepted those two as one of themselves. Ivra wasdifferent. Because she was only half fairy, any human could see herwhether his eyes were shadowed or not if he would only look hard enough.The dreadful part was that when a human did see her, he was likely notto believe in her. He would just think he was day-dreaming, and that thelittle girl with the soft eyes, the ash-colored pigtails, and the quickfeet was just a piece of his day-dream. Not to
be seen is bad enough.But it is much worse to be seen and not believed in. That was why Ivrawas afraid of the town. People saw her there and either rubbed theireyes and looked another way, or laughed.

  But now she was going for her mother, and she could bear anything, eventhat. She did not hold back long. They ran past the canning factory, andEric did not give a glance to it. A little girl looking out over a pileof cans saw him, however, and wondered at his warm suit of brown cloth,his leggins, sandals and the cap with wings. She remembered him in rags.She saw Ivra too, and did not rub her eyes and think her a dream. Butshe did not call to any one in the factory or point, for she knew _they_would think it a dream.

  Through the crooked narrow streets, past the crooked narrow houses,--oneof them Mrs. Freg's,--they sped faster than the wind! On, on, on,--upthe wide avenue through the "residential section" where big houses eyedthem from proud terraces,--out into the country again they raced.

  There they came to a high gray stone wall, blocking their way, and stoodstill.

  "You must climb," said Wild Star. "She is in there."