Isle of the Faeries

Pixie Dust

      Leaving the girls I walk slowly to the center of the room where the glow is brightest. Crouching on the hardwood floor I drag my fingertips across over the floorboards, my fingertips begin to sting and they are coated in a shimmering blue green powder. Pixies Dust. I glance up at the window, it is open a crack, hardly noticeable but just enough.

      Pixies are not the cute little flower people of Disney movies. They are not exactly cruel but they are extremely mischievous and dislike humans because they see them as environmental threats. In reality they are tiny balls of light that protect their designated flowers, they love music and in the summer it is not uncommon to hear them singing, shrill and enchanting, as they tend their flowers. In the spring and summer they are content to stay with their flowers and ignore humans, in winter they are dormant, but during the Tráth their flowers are dying and they are restless. Though they rarely kill they are known for playing dangerous tricks and they shed Pixie Dust wherever they go.

      My guess is the Cheever girls saw the pretty lights through the window and heard their singing and invited them in to play. From there the Pixies had their fun. I sigh and stand, it is what I had thought and it is a fairly easy fix compared to some other cases, I glance up at the door where Harold and Gerta are watching me clutching at the door frame with white knuckles.

      I stand and pull two iron chain necklaces out of my pocket and walk to the oldest girl first. Carefully I drape it over her head and fasten it around her neck, her eyes begin to clear, brown irises and dark pupils emerge from the blue. Harold and Gerta rush to her side as I move to the other child. I pull her hair to the side and fasten the necklace around her throat. She reacts quicker than her sister, her eyes clearing as she blinks rapidly, a little gasp escapes her mouth and she launches herself into my arms. She catches me off guard but I manage to catch her with my good arm. She shudders with sobs; I have captured wild, sea crazed Aughiskys, argued with a Merrow, had a facedown with a black dog and have been avoiding a tithe to a powerful fire elemental Sidhe for over three years, I should be dead a hundred times over. However none of that has ever intimidated me quite as much as this crying child clutching my neck.

      Harold glances over cracking a smile at my predicament before prying his daughter off of me, "Thank you," he says smiling.

      "Just make sure you keep the necklaces on them at all times and lock the windows at night until spring. By then the Pixies should have lost interest but keep the necklaces, they will provide some manner of protection if they need it."

      Gerta thanks me profusely, I wave her off and show myself to the door. The clock in the hall reads four in the morning; too late for me to go home so instead of turning for home I turn for Allards.

       I am the first one to arrive which is not unusual or unwanted. I love to get to the barns first, to hear the hungry wickers and soft munching of hay and grain, just the horses and I while the rest of the island sleeps. I start tipping feed to the brood mares and foals in the Breeding Barn, then moving through the Training Barns, Show Barn, Sales Barn and into the Main Barn. Allard's operation is massive – housing at least sixty horses at any one time – and by the time I get into the Main Barn some of the lights in Allard's house glow in the distance. Avi greets me with a growl this morning and Cinis greets me with a content hum.

      When all the horses are happily eating their breakfast I roll the cart full of grain buckets into the grain room. The brownie seems to be happy since the room is spotless and the milk and cheese I put out last night is gone. I go to my office to grab today's riding schedule to post on the bulletin board in the Main Barn. I am not happy about putting Marissa on my list as I don't want her on any of my horses, but though I ride, train and manage their day to day care I don't own them; her father does. So I have selected the most agreeable, good natured horse for her to do some flatwork with while I reschool the horses she's been showing; they've gotten sloppy.

      Looking at the post-its on my desk I groan with the realization that we have some potential buyers coming by later this morning. My notes are to show them Bedlam's Magic Card, Allard's Little Missy and Pandemonium's Surprise, a colt and two fillies that were ready to run on the mainland tracks. I'll have to ask Curt – who ran the tractors and machinery – to drag the track. The Tráth is when most of our sales are made; rich tourists come for the Sidhe and horse, for Allard's big sale will take place on October twenty fifth; three days from now.

      Several grooms and hands have arrived when I emerge from my office to post the notifications. They have begun turning out and are starting on the stalls, I head over the Avi. I know no one will touch her, especially after yesterday. I grab her halter and in my right hand and slip into the stall, her ears pin but after yesterday her respect for me has increased, she hesitates before baring her teeth and snapping but she doesn't lunge. I slip the halter over her nose and slide the chain over her nose glancing to make sure no one is in our way we head out to one of the Aughisky equipped paddocks. She dances a bit and her head is up her ears swiveling with the wind. I murmur in her hear and rub her cheek with my rings momentarily. She head lowers an inch and comes willingly. I will ride her today, she needs the exercise, I just haven't had time lately but in light of yesterday's disaster I will work her after she is turned out for a while.

      Once Avi and Cinis are out I grab Pandemonium one of the horses Marissa has been touring with, one of my personal favorites. I was ticked when Marissa took off with him but so long as she was gone I could deal with it. Panda however came back with sloppy transitions, take offs and a hard mouth because of the bit she had put him in. After a few days off I figure it's about time he got back into the program and when I get him to the ring he is more than happy to work for me.

      I hand him off to one of the nearby grooms to turn back out after a decent ride and go back to the Aughisky paddocks to catch Avi. When she sees me she snorts and pins her ears pacing by the gate, the Tráth wind tickles her ears and ruffles her mane, I pull the iron rod tipped with a square of red leather – like a crop – out of my pocket. I unlatch the gate and grab hold of her halter with my left hand before the rest of my body is through the gateway. I snap the lead over her nose and up the side of her face before she snaps at me. The red leather square catches her jaw before her teeth can make contact. Her ears pin back but her head drops so I open the gate and bring her to the barn and tie her to the tie chain in her stall. By the time I have her tacked she has relaxed slightly but I will still take her to the far ring, the small indoor that is rarely used, I don't want anyone else to get hurt because of this mare, I have not ridden her in far too long.

      Once we are locked in the small indoor I swing up as she skitters to the right. She pops up in protest, my rings press into her shoulder as a warning and her feet hit the ground. She feels wrong after so many weeks of training with Cinis, she is slighter and shorter and inconsistent in my hands, resisting my aids just enough to let me know she doesn't want to listen to me.

      For the first few minutes she trots choppily with her ears flat to her skull but she is happy to be doing something and soon her ears prick up and her naturally smooth elegant gait emerges. I hum to her and she flicks an ear back, I have her attention. We move into figure eights, then serpentines to warm and supple her muscles. When I feel she is warmed up I ask her to move into a canter. She bolts, leaping through the air and landing with an excited buck then her muscles bunch and she is off like a little rocket. I sit deep and allow her her fun for a moment before bringing her into a circle forcing her to slow or fall over. I murmur to her and she responds shortening her strides and evening out.

      The rest of the ride is not bad considering the time she has had off; she only bolts a few times and throws in a few more bucks and she comes back to me after a few moments. We end on a good note and I dismount careful to keep an eye on her mouth. She stands fairly quiet while I rub her down and stays beside me when I turn her back out although she does kick out in my direction as I release her and slide through the gate.