Honey and Apples

This is a tale of true love and magic, but I promise you I will not start my little anecdote with “once upon a time” or “There once was a beautiful maiden.”
My story begins simply on a clear day in the midst of a buzzing spring morning. The dew drops on the emerald blades of grass seemed to hover in the air and the breeze brushed the flowers and leaves like a Mother tenderly pushing back stray strands of hair out of her child's eyes. Playful butterflies with cobalt wings and splashes of sky blue dancing across the meadows and into the forests, wandered aimlessly from one point to the next, never in a hurry to be anywhere in particular. The woodland creatures walked majestically into the meadow to take their morning meal while their overly energetic offspring dashed and darted throughout the feeding grounds, frolicking amongst the swaying grass.

Life within the forest was awakening to a new day as well. The great oaks stretched up to touch the sun as the first rays of sunshine smiled down on their leaves. From under little mushrooms the first of the fair folk poked their heads out, readying themselves for a day of foraging and playing tricks on local travelers. Not mean tricks, mind you, just tiny little practical jokes to lighten the weary nomad and bring good luck to the remainder of their journey. The faeries lived anywhere and everywhere within the forest. They were its healers and its spirit.
On this particular morning, a tiny faery venturing outside of her home within one of the great oak trees for the first time, blinked as the sun greeted her squinting eyes. She dug her head into the comfort of her mother's thigh and grasped onto her skirt in an attempt to hide from this strange bright light.

“Come now, sweetie. You were so excited about coming outside a moment ago!” her Mother cooed as she tried to gently shoo her baby from her leg. The little girl shook her head vigorously into her Mother's thigh and answered with her head still buried in the soft flesh.

“I don’t want to. It's bright.”

“You silly little butterfly, that's just the sun. You'll get used to it soon enough.”

“No!” The baby cried. With a sly grin, her Mother bent down and pressed her forehead against her daughter's.

“Well you know what happens to little girls who cling to their mamma's legs don't you?” The baby shook her head, and one of her bright blue and gold eyes looked up to meet her mother's cobalt and purple eyes.

“Wha happens?”
Her mother slowly moved her hands towards her baby's ribs as she grinned even wider.

“They get...TICKLED!!” Tiny bells of laughter flew into the air as her mother's finger tips moved up and down her ribs. Joining her in laughter, her mother threw her into the air and her newborn wings opened like sails in the wind. Opening her own wings, the mother rose into the air next to her babe, taking her small outstretched hand.

“Alright, little one. Let's go and see if we can't find you a name.” It was the custom of the fair folk to not name their children until their first spring morning. Once out in the meadow with all the other little faery children, the first name to come to them was the name they kept for life.

“Mamma, wha's your name?” Her mother smiled and chuckled.

“Morning Star.” The little girl blinked up in awe.

“Am I gonna get a pretty name like you?”

“Of course you will, unless one of those little boys decides to call you Mud or
Froggy.”

“Mamma!” The baby giggled and fluttered onto her mother’s back. Her mother reached behind her and pulled her baby into an embrace, their faces nearly touching.

“I'm only teasing. Whatever name you are given will be the most beautiful name the world has ever uttered.” With a final nose nuzzle, they reached the meadow where all the other faery families had brought their children to play and receive their names.

“Alright, baby girl. Go find your name!” She released her daughter into the air, letting her fly free under the mother’s watchful eye.

The baby flew in spirals with glee as she smelled the openness of the fields and tasted the savory flavors of the wild poppies and honeysuckle. She flew in and out of logs and into crystal streams looking for her name. She looked up at the clouds and down in the dark gopher holes, but still her name was no where to be found. Becoming frustrated and a little impatient at not finding her name right away, she landed with a thud upon the vine of a honeysuckle bush. For a brief moment she forgot her quest as the temptation of honey called to her.
Suckling the flower like a newborn on her mother's breast she sat there, quite content to have that sweet taste trickle down her throat. Her ears perked as she heard a soft crunch on the leaf behind her. With the honeysuckle still in her mouth, she peeked over to find a little dirty-blond haired boy looking back at her, a slice of apple hiding his mouth as its juice streamed down his cheeks. They stared for a moment, and then waved like little children usually do when they find a potential playmate. The flower's nectar splashed onto her hands as she took the sweet treat from her mouth.

“You don’t like apples, do ya?” The boy took the slice of apple from his mouth. “So, you like honey better!”

“That’s ‘cause honey tastes better.”

“Does not.”

“Does too.”

“Does not!”

“Does too!”

From above them came the loving laughter of their parents. The three adults shook their heads and glanced at each other.

“Well, Morning Star, I believe your little girl has given our son his name,” chuckled the boy's mother.

“And I believe your son has given my daughter her name, Blossom.” Confused, the children perked their ears and turned their heads, giving their parents a puzzled look.

“What’s my name, Mamma?” Both children asked in unison, looking startled when both their voices melded together as one. Morning Star flew down to her baby girl and kissed her forehead.

“Your name is Honey,” she answered her child as Blossom and her husband, Willow, floated down beside their son.

“And you, my little leap frog, are now Apples,” hummed Blossom as Willow ruffled Apples shaggy bangs. Apples roared like a great mountain lion and pounced onto his father, only reaching his stomach. Willow fell onto his back in a feigned manner, hugging his child to him tightly. Muffled cries of glee came from Apples as he tried to break free. The father and son continued to wrestle as the women watched them, smiles tugging at their own faces. Giggling into her hands, Honey tugged at her Mother's cob web and rose petal skirt.

“He’s not a very good wrestler, is he Mamma?” Both Morning Star and Blossom chuckled, looking at each other with a look of delight twinkling in their eyes. Leaning down and pinching Honey's cheek gently she whispered, “mind your manners you.”

Placing her hands on her hips defiantly, Honey said in a louder voice, “well it's true!!”

Blossom bent over towards her friend for a moment, eyeing her husband and son as they continued to rough-house, unaware of the conversation surrounding them.

“I’d have to agree with your daughter on this one.”

“Well tha...Shush! You're encouraging the little rebel.”

“Oh come on, she's being adorable right now. Look at that roguish pose she's taken.”

“You are such a trouble maker, Blossom.” With that, the Mothers moved off on their own to talk amongst themselves for a while, leaving little Honey standing there in the middle of her leaf looking for something to do. She wandered about for a moment, until her curious eyes spied a butterfly dancing towards her. It was just a wee white one, with faint cream splotches atop a cloak of white, but to Honey it was a giant. She watched the butterfly land four inches from her on the neighboring leaf and dropped to her knees as she began to squirm towards it. The creature knew the little faery was edging closer, but it just giggled, shook it’s head, and played along with Honey. Behind her, Apples was still battling his Father valiantly, but losing all the same. To Willow’s surprise, he stopped wrestling when he caught sight of Honey wandering towards the butterfly. He landed with a thud next to his Father, then clumsily brushed himself off and fluttered over to where Honey was “hiding”. Willow grinned, like only an "all knowing" Father could, and joined his wife and friend in the midst of their conversation.

He chuckled, “ you know, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the two of them became inseparable.” The two women turned to look lovingly upon their respective children. They watched as Apples accidentally startled Honey and was quickly scolded for scaring her while she was trying to catch the butterfly.

“ Honey, why you goin’ after the butterfly?” asked Apples as he squirmed closer to Honey’s side and plunked his head upon his overlapped hands.

“ Cause I like it.” She answered simply. All her attentions were focused on those pretty white wings before her.

“ Oh…after you catch the butterfly, you wanna go play tag?”

“ uh huh.” Honey was barely paying attention to what was being asked of her, seeing as she was on the verge of pouncing upon her target. The butterfly shifted a bit, still smiling, but ready to move out of the way of the impending attack. She grinned and wiggled her body a bit. Apples looked at her in confusion, but just as he was about to ask her what she was doing, she jumped into the air and let out mini-battle cry of, “ AAAAAEEEEEE” as she went after the butterfly. It laughed and gently glided into the air just as Honey’s tiny hands went to grab it’s legs.

“ Here now, Little miss! Is that any way to make a friend?” asked the butterfly in a gentle tone. Honey plopped herself down onto the leaf, legs spread out behind her and wings drooping, to look up at the creature.

“ You talk?”

“ Of course I talk, silly bee!” By this time, Apples had edged forward and was, again, sitting beside Honey. The butterfly looked at him.

“ Well hello there! Are you two friends?” Honey and Apples looked at each other for a moment.

“ Are we friends?” Honey asked Apples.

“ Uh…I dunno. Do ya wanna be?” Honey thought for a moment and then smiled brightly.

“ Yeah, we can be friends.” They grinned at each other before turning back to the butterfly, who was thoroughly amused.

“ She’s my friend.” Apples said proudly to the butterfly.

“ Excellent! Your first day out in the world and already you have a companion. Your parents must be thrilled.” The babies looked at one another, then back to the butterfly.

“ Why?” They asked in unison. The butterfly giggled to itself and fluttered away.

“ No reason, no reason. Why don’t you two go and play? The day is still young, it would be a shame to waste it sitting on that leaf!” With that, it was off to find another flower or leaf to land upon. The two children watched it fly away for a moment, amazed by it’s movements. Suddenly, Apples jumped up and poked Honey in the side.

“ Hey!” Honey was about to become very cross with him for poking her and then just flying off without any sort of explanation or apology! Then from behind a leaf, she heard the magic words, which call all children to play.

“ Tag! You’re it.” Honey gasped with glee and immediately chased after him, determined to get him back one way or another.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Six spring times had passed since the naming ceremony and in that time, more little faeries had come into being, each edging out nervously into the meadow to find a friend and a name. Since that time, Honey and Apples had become quite the pair. Not lovers, mind you, but the very best and closest of friends. They danced in the rain when all their community came out to welcome the waters and bring droplets to the tiny saplings that couldn't reach out from under the mighty oaks to drink for themselves. Their voices joined in an enchanting harmony when they went out into the night air, under the stars to sing the songs of their ancestors and of the earth. Their laughter rung clearer than any other's when they took up the age-old tradition of pranking and granting luck to the few travelers who wandered through their forest and they continually played little games like Tag and hide-and-go-seek. Their parents watched them with delight and encouraged the friendship all they could, hoping it would eventually blossom into something more.
Honey and Apples were oblivious to the desires of their parents and contently continued to play their games.

One day, however, Honey’s feelings towards Apples began to change little by little. It all started, when she saw Apple’s parents kiss each other. Like all little girls, she began to dream. She wondered what it was like and who would kiss her like that. At first, none of her feelings towards Apples shifted, but then as she looked at him more closely, she found herself wondering what it would be like if Apples were to kiss her. Soon, she found herself engaging in games that the slightly older girls played. Things like picking the petals off flowers to determine the identity of one’s true love or dropping an apple peel into a bucket of water to see the first initial of one’s future husband. She had been able to keep her secret hidden from Apples and from her Mother, which in itself was no small task. She had made absolutely sure to hide her diary in a very safe spot, not under her pillow, as one might think, or in her drawers, or under the mattress, but in a secret spot, known only to her.

Oh, but secrets you see, and especially secret crushes cannot be hidden for long. They are like silly little moths caught in a cage. Eventually, they flutter out for all to see. It so happened that one day, when both families had gone out together for a little picnic upon the banks of the lily pond, that the coveted truth popped out.
The adults sat on spider silk blankets sipping their elderberry wine from their acorn cups, and occasionally they would eat some of their prepared foods. The children darted and dashed between the blades of grass, some times diving towards the surface of the water and pulling up just in time to stay nice and dry.
Blossom watched the not so little ones playing together and couldn’t help but sigh. Morning Star blinked at her and followed her eyes out towards the children.

“ They really are close, aren’t they?” Morning Star sighed.

“ Isn’t it wonderful? Wouldn’t it be fantastic if those two fell in love when they were older?”

“ Blossom…” Willow smiled while shaking his head.

“ What? I can dream, can’t I?” They all chuckled to themselves, seeing as they all shared the same dream.

“ To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if they did end up falling for each other eventually.” Morning Star commented as she took another sip of her wine. Just then, the children flew by and Willow was hit with a marvelously wicked idea. Just as his son flew over his head, he shouted out, “ You know, I think Apples has a crush on Honey already.” At this, Apples came to a full stop in mid-air. The two mothers gasped and laughed as they watched poor Apples face turn bright red. Just like when Honey and Apples had first met, Apples tackled his Father and tried to beat an apology out of him. Honey glided down and sat to the right of her mother, letting one fatal adoring look escape through her eyes as she watched Apples. Morning Star just happened to look over at her baby at the right time. Had it not been for the amorous look, Honey's secret would have remained locked away in her heart forever, but as it stood, the cat was out of the bag. Morning Star nudged Blossom.

“ Blossom, look. Look!” she whispered excitedly. She looked over to her friend’s baby. Honey’s eyes were locked on Apples as he fought his Father. As they watched her, a gentle smile worked its way across little Honey’s lip. Both mothers made soft excited squeaks and started whispering together. By this time, Honey had shaken herself from her trance and saw the mothers giggling and casting quick glances at her.

" What are you laughing at?" She demanded. Morning Star cleared her throat, stood up, sauntered forward, and bounced into a squat, while Blossom followed suit. She grinned and looked at Blossom again who returned the expression. At this point, Honey was completely lost.

" What??"

" Honey, why were you staring at Apples?" The women giggled, already knowing the answer. Shuffling her feet, bringing her hands behind her back and casting her shy little eyes to the ground, the little faery mumbled something under her breath.

" What was that, sweetie? We couldn't hear you."

" Apples is cute." Her cheeks became a soft bashful rose color as she continued to look at the ground and knock her knees together. Blossom moved a little closer, still grinning.

" You're going to have to speak up, little one." Honey puffed a breath through her nose, slightly annoyed at having to repeat herself so many times and turned her head towards the sky as she shouted, " APPLES IS CUTE! APPLES IS CUTE! APPLES. IS. CUUUUUTE!!!"

At this point, she had gained everyone's interest, including Apples, which is saying something considering the fact that boys tend to have the attention span of gold fish. Lifting his head up off his Father's chest, messy strands of hair going every which way, he blinked at Honey. He sat up as Willow, grinned and slowly began to move Apples closer to her. After sitting in silence before Honey as she twisted her hair into tight little buns from nervousness, he shuffled a bit. He pushed himself up off the ground in a clumsy fashion and walked right up to her. She immediately glued her eyes to the ground. Apples put his hands on his knees and bent over until he was looking backwards and up into Honey's face as she bit her lip to try and hide her smile.

" You think I'm cute?"

She nodded vigorously. He turned his head and began to come up to standing and as he did, Honey's eyes followed his, but she still kept her head tilted slightly down. She backed up a little when he moved in closer to look into her eyes. He pulled back and continued to look at her.

" You have pretty eyes." Honey blushed even more and started to squirm with embarrassment. Suddenly, he gave her a quick peck on the cheek, blushed and flew behind Willow, who burst out into light-hearted bouts of laughter.