Wearing ultraviolet makeup made me feel completely different. There was something tingly about it. So, even though I couldn't see the designs on my own skin, I just felt amazing -- almost like I could sense where they were. I asked Thumbelina if that's the way her make up felt when she was presented to the queen.
She said, "Oh, I was such a young fairy when I was presented. I can't even remember. You're the first one we've had to paint up that much in a long time."
"When would you paint a grown up like this?"
"For a wedding or a welcoming."
"When did you have your last wedding or welcoming?" I asked.
"Welcoming? About fifty years ago. We had a fairy that wanted to circle the globe completely. She made it all the way around the world -- without any size shifts or traveling into space. Everyone thought it was a nutty goal. There are groves. There are deserts. There are cities. It doesn't make much difference what part of the planet you're on. It's all good. So, when she wanted to pick a home for herself -- having seen so many places -- we were surprised that she picked this grove."
"Why did she pick it?"
"She liked our queen."
"Do I know her?" I was pretty curious about this Magellan of fairies.
"You might have seen her before we switched groves. I was talking about my home grove, of course."
I started to regret getting my feelings all bent out of shape over the singing incident. Thumbelina obviously loved living in her home grove, and I had been so down, she was willing to switch groves until I end my tour.
"So, what about weddings?"
"Oh, it's not wedding season. We don't see many male fairies since they have work so far from home."
"When will it be wedding season?"
"I'm not quite sure. Sometime around 2032, I think."
"Are you married?" I asked. It had never occurred to me that Thumbelina might be anything but single.
Thumbelina laughed in her magical way, and said, "I haven't even seen a male fairy, and I'm two hundred years old."
This was pretty shocking. "Two hundred?"
"Well, two hundred and thirty. I know humans like accuracy." Thumbelina was still adjusting something about my hairstyle. I turned to quickly to stare at her that she stopped hovering, and stood with her young-looking feet on the dead leaves.
"How many fairies are older than you?"
"Most of them. Fairies can live to 700 or 800. You know a lot of fairies who are married." Thumbelina pointed at a group of fairies opening up dandelion puffs. "All but the blond one over there are married fairies. You can tell by their wings."
I squinted and couldn't see anything unusual about the blond fairy's wings. Thumbelina's either.
"What's different?"
"Well, the major markings are in ultraviolet -- only it's permanent. Not make up." But there's a little notch halfway down my wing and hers. See?"
I looked at the edge of Thumbelina's wing. The little notch was nothing you'd pick out as important. It just looked like the difference in two people's ear shapes -- some have a lump on an edge, and some don't. Some have connected lobes, and some have detached.
"When would you think of getting married, then?"
Thumbelina shrugged. She made me turn back around so she could finish up with my hair. "I guess when a male I like comes through. My mother makes it a point to meet all the young male fairies when they stop off at the moon. That's why she takes supplies there once a month. She's told me about four or five that seem like good choices."
"Arranged marriage?" I was shocked.
"No. Just a little advanced research. I won't even meet any males until they touch down on Earth in a couple of decades. It's just not that important right now."
"Well, if you don't actually live together much, I guess marriage isn't too important in your culture." I was trying my hardest to make sense of this. It was mind boggling, really.
"That's about the most offensive thing you've said yet," Thumbelina answered. She wasn't mad, and it was a simple observation. Like, 'The day is breezy.' or , 'I'm going to lunch.'
"I didn't mean to offend," I apologized quickly.
"I know. That's why I'm not offended," Thumbelina said. "Since humans feel so strongly about marriage, I knew you didn't mean anything awful. We fairies think marriage is just as important. The person who helps make a new fairy with me, and who brings back things to sustain my life should be carefully chosen. I'll pay a lot of attention to mother's opinions when the time gets close. There's no guarantee I'll be ready the next time males touch down -- and there's no guarantee a suitable male will be ready for me, either."
I wanted to ask more, but it was time for the presentation. A breeze scented with deep earthy smells came by. Smelling it, thumbelina said, "They've opened the door. Time to go."
I took her hand and we flitted across a clearing to the most impressive tree in this grove.
"Are you nervous, since this isn't your own queen?" I asked.
Thumbelina nodded.
"Sorry I made you leave your grove."
She squeezed my hand. "It's not a big deal. Do you remember everything?"
I said, "Yes."
I really hoped I remembered, anyway.
 |
| A Home Tree isn't always the biggest in the area. You know it's the most important one, though. This is NOT the home tree I visited, but it does sort of look like it. |
I passed a few glowing mushrooms at the entrance to a room. For a flicker of a moment, I caught a glimpse of the designs on my skin. They were sensational. I would have stayed to examine them more, but we were in the presence of the queen. That would have been incredibly rude.
Queens among humans have more fancy furniture than the commoners, better food, and a lot of servants. The only way I could tell this queen was important was that her ultraviolet markings were a delicate filligree all over her arms, lets, wings, face, and even hair. She was dressed like any other fairy -- just plump and round. In the most appealing kind of plumpness I had ever seen. She didn't have a lot of servants. She was even doing some work -- or what looked like work. She plucked tiny bugs from the walls of the chamber and fitted them with a load of dust (no idea what the dust was meant to do) and then set them carefully on one of three tracks. The long tracks resembled ant lines, but he bugs weren't ants. I would have asked about her work, but of course, this was the queen. I wasn't the one who ought to be asking questions.
"Welcome," said the queen, when she saw us. She gestured for a nearby fairy to take over the work with the dust and the bugs.
I fluttered my wings in the right beat pattern. I had practiced this kind of aerial curtsy for about an hour yesterday.
"You're simply lovely. The fairies took extra care with your appearance today. You have many friends in the grove, I see. I'm glad."
This was a relief. In a situation where I don't know any of the customs, and can't really interpret body language or even tone of voice, it helped to know the fairies were sincerely nice. Not some horrible clique like in high school or college. I would have to find a way to thank everyone who worked on me. Especially Thumbelina.
"What do you think of the grove?" the fairy queen asked.
"I love being here. Learning all the jobs fairies do is a huge eye-opener."
"We were hoping you'd appreciate our work. City fairies have just as much labor -- but with fewer rewards. When it was discussed, though. We decided the soothing atmosphere of a grove would be the best introduction for you to our world."
"I'm so grateful," I answered.
The interview wasn't very long. I had primed my short-term memory to record every word verbatim. Only, things didn't work out that way. All I can remember now is that I liked the queen very much. She reminded me of one of the great aunts in a rural town I once visited who kept the entire neighborhood happy by passing out soup, playing board games with the young adults, and crocheting nearly non-stop. This queen had a lot of work to get done -- probably things she was uniquely qualified for. I didn't want to waste her time with too many questions. Thumbelina showed me out of there, and we got busy with our own chores.
The reason I don't remember much more about the interview was because of a run-in with a badger as we left the tree. I don't have time to write about it, but maybe tomorrow.
Awesome day (except for the badger.)
-- Sabrina
I'm so proud of my little human-fairy. She was respectful to the queen, and helpful all day long. No grumpiness -- even after the badger incident. Things will go pretty well for her now that she looks right. That make up really makes a difference. I don't know if I should tell her it's completely permanent. If she goes to a club with black lights some day, she's going to make quite a splash. Well -- it's able to be altered, but only by fairies. I'll make a point of asking her on the last day whether she wants it removed. And hey -- maybe she'll read my little note on the blog. She might ask me. Right?
Great day for me too.
May your sweet peas always sparkle.
-- Fresh
