Fairy Glade and Other Enchanting Tales
Read Fairy Glade and Other Enchanting Tales Online
Authors: Dawn Beaumont-Lane
Fairy Glade and other
Enchanting Tales
By
Dawn Beaumont-Lane
First Edition
Dawn Beaumont-Lane © Copyright 2008
All rights reserved:
Edited by Shirley A. Roe
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted in any form or by any means
without the prior written permission of the
copyrighter and/or author, except by a reviewer
who may quote brief passages in a review to be
printed in a newspaper, magazine, or journal.
ISBN: 978-1-906806-52-1
Published by RealTime Publishing
Limerick, Ireland
Dedication
This book of short stories is dedicated to my daughter Della, and my friend Shirley Roe, who encouraged me and made it possible for me to meet Janet Smith of the Writers’ Village University. To my husband John Lane who convinced me to keep writing even though I was dyslexic.
Introduction
Within these pages you will find stories written
with love. Stories to pass from generation to
generation. I hope that your children and your
grandchildren receive as much joy hearing them,
as I had writing them. After each story you will
find the reason behind the story, I have included
this information so that readers will know these
stories come straight from the heart
.
Enjoy!
Author, Dawn Beaumont-Lane
THE FAIRY GLADE
Once upon a time, there was a lovely village by the sea in the Highlands of Scotland. Findhorn was a beautiful little village, with white washed houses, bathed with bright sunshine. The sun shone brightly on this particular day, warming the golden sand under foot. Although Findhorn was a seaside village, it had a lot of woodlands. It is about the woodlands that we are going to hear. It is told the woodlands were magical and home to all the Fairy Kings and Queens of Scotland.
In the village of Findhorn lived a little girl named Della and her older brother Kevin. One day they saw the woodlands from the top of a hill and were anxious to explore, so they asked their Mummy if they could have a picnic to take with them.
“Yes”, said Mummy. She packed a lot of goodies and a bottle of juice in a basket, and then off they went with a promise to Mummy not to be later than 5-o-clock.
They went running so fast they were out of breath, over the sand dunes and fields until they came to the woodlands. Outside the woodlands the sun shone, but inside the woods was dark and chilly. The children were not frightened because this was their adventure. As they walked deep into the woods, they saw several furry rabbits, colorful flowers and birds. The birds were singing beautifully, filling the moist forest air with cheery sounds. Here and there the sun managed to peek through the trees, brightening the path from above. Sunrays danced on the forest floor as the trees swayed in the breeze.
“Isn't it beautiful in the woods?” Della said to her brother Kevin.
“Yes” Kevin replied in a manly reassuring voice. “You're not scared are you Della?”
“No” said Della, “I'm not.” and with that on they went.
It must be getting near lunchtime, thought Kevin, who was always hungry. They walked along the culling path between the trees and bushes. At last they came to a clearing.
“Oh! Isn't this beautiful?” said Della.
“Yes,” Kevin replied, the lovely scene before him took his breath away.
Once in the clearing, the brilliant sunshine made them feel warm again. There were sweet smelling flowers everywhere, colored polka dots of red, yellow and white, covered the ground and the grass was so lovely and green that it looked like a velvet carpet.
“Shall we sit down over there and eat our lunch?” said Kevin, who was very hungry by now.
“There's a grassy hump over there, we could sit on it and have our lunch” said Della. Sweet biscuits and crunchy apples satisfied the two adventurers. After a while they had eaten everything their Mother had packed for them.
“That's better,” said Kevin, rubbing his tummy and brushing crumbs from his shirt.
“I feel sleepy,” said Della.
“So do I’ said Kevin. So they laid on the grass and soon fell asleep in the warm sun.
What the children did not know was that they were sleeping in the magical fairy glade. All the time they had been in the woods, the fairies and pixies had watched them. While the children were asleep, all the fairies and pixies had gathered around the little boy and girl. They were fascinated as the children were so much bigger than themselves. Then suddenly the children woke up! Kevin and Della sat up and rubbed their eyes, at that very moment all of the fairies and pixies scattered from sight. All except one fairy, a daring little soul, her name was Bluebell
“Hello!” she said to Kevin and Della, “Who are you and what are you doing here?”
“Oh” said the children together, “a fairy!” They were so surprised they just sat there with their mouths open. It was Della, who believed in fairies, who pulled herself together first. Kevin, thinking that it wasn't manly for a boy to believe in fairies, was hesitant; although he had to admit he was talking to one.
“Hello!” said Della, “I am Della James and this is my brother, Kevin James.”
“Why are you here?” said the fairy again rather crossly, not liking to wait so long for an answer.
“We came to see the woodlands,” said Kevin, rather crossly himself.
“It's so beautiful here, there are so many beautiful flowers” said Della sweetly. She was sorry Kevin had been so rude to Bluebell. “We are very pleased to meet you, how do you?” said Della, putting out her hand like she had seen her Daddy do when meeting someone new. Frightened, the little fairy leaped back. “Oh!” said Della, “don't be frightened, we won't hurt you”
“Come back” said Kevin, “we want to be friends!” The little fairy came towards them smiling.
“You did give me a fright,” she said, “but you seem nice.”
“Are you alone?” asked Della.
“Oh no” said Bluebell. “The entire fairy kingdom is watching you”. At that moment, they all came running and flying from the trees and bushes. The children were thrilled; they had never seen such a magical sight.
“We were to have a wedding this very day!” boomed a voice. The children turned round to find the Fairy King standing with his hands on his hips. He had a cheery face with a long white beard and a rather large tummy. He was dressed in red and green with a golden crown on his head.
“Well, that is wonderful,” exclaimed Della. “May we stay for the wedding?” she asked excitedly.
“Yes!” said the Fairy King, at that all the fairies and pixies jumped up and down with excitement. There were red, green, yellow and pink dots jumping up and down everywhere; their clothes were the colors of the rainbow. It made the enchanted children quite dizzy watching them. All at once they came to a stand still. As a trumpet sounded loudly, everyone parted to make a pathway for the wedding couple.
The Prince and Princess of Fairies, who were followed by the bridesmaids and pageboys, entered the glade. It was a beautiful sight with all the colors blending like a rainbow. The little group came to a stop in front of the King and Queen, who were now magically dressed in blue and gold. The King stood up, while the Prince and Princess knelt down in front of him. The King opened a little golden box, covered with lovely jewels. He put in his hand and took out some silver dust; he sprinkled it over the little pair. Silver sparkles filled the air and all at once they disappeared from sight. Suddenly, everyone began to dance and sing. They all seemed so happy for the Prince and Princess.
Bluebell came dancing up to Della and Kevin, “What did you think of our wedding ceremony?” quizzed Bluebell.
“Lovely!” said the children.
“It was very different from my Uncle's wedding” Kevin told Bluebell.
“Where did they go, the Prince and Princess?” asked Della curiously.
“Oh!” said Bluebell, “I forgot, you wouldn't know would you! Well,” said Bluebell, “when the King sprinkled the silver dust over them, it sent them to their honeymoon home in Fairy Land! That's where we all go, after we are married! Don't worry, they will be back with all of us soon.”
“How lovely that sounds!” said Della.
The Fairy Glade was nearly empty by now and the sun had set. “We had better be going,” said Kevin to Della.
“I do wish we could stay longer, but Mummy will be waiting for us,” explained Della.
“I will show you the way to the edge of the woods,” said Bluebell. So off they went, with Bluebell flying ahead of them. They were soon at the edge of the woodlands when they turned to say goodbye to Bluebell, but she was nowhere to be seen.
“Oh dear!” proclaimed Kevin, “She's gone! Or was it all a dream?”
“No” said a little voice. The children looked around. It was Bluebell coming from behind a tree smiling, with a twig in her hand. “I am going to give you both a gift.”
“Oh, how lovely!” said the children together. “It will be a fairy wand” and with that she tapped the twig with her hand and Hey Presto, there was a golden wand in her hand! “With this wand you can have a wish, each and everyday” explained Bluebell. “Wish for ice cream and you shall have it! If you wish to see me at anytime, tap the wand three times and I will be there with you.”
“Thank you, thank you!” proclaimed the children. Bluebell passed the wand to Kevin and smiled.
“Now you know it all wasn't a dream, don't you Kevin?” Kevin's face went rather red and he nodded. For now he did believe that there were fairies and pixies.
“Thank you Bluebell” said Kevin clutching his new wand gratefully, “We will be back to see you again”.
“Goodbye until we meet again,” said Bluebell, and then with a flutter of her wings and a poof of fairy dust, she was gone.
THE END
This story came from my heart on Christmas Eve 1966. I had no money to buy my daughter a Christmas gift as we lived alone on limited funds. This is one of two stories I wrote that night so my daughter would have Christmas gifts when she awoke on Christmas morning. There in, her belief in Father Christmas would stay intact for years to come.
TEDDY BEAR JUNCTION
Once upon a time very long ago in Teddy Bear Junction, there lived a teddy bear and a steam train named Tilly Chuff. Teddy bear was a hard working little teddy, for it was he who owned the little red and black steam train. The entire town of toys in Leapylea relied on Teddy Bear and Tilly to take them to the seaside town of Whiteleaf each day. This was where the town's folk bought their groceries or went to the beach to swim and play.
Early each morning Teddy Bear got up to get ready for work. First he would eat his breakfast of honey and oatcakes, and then wash his sticky face and hands. Next he would clean his teeth and dress in his navy blue train engineer's uniform. After brushing his furry head, he straightened his special engineer's hat before leaving the house to wake up Tilly.
Tilly Chuff, the little steam engine lived and slept in a lovely green shed on the outskirts of Teddy Bear Junction.
“Wake up, Tilly old girl,” said Teddy bear, “It's time to have your wash down and polish.”
“Oh,” said a sleepy Tilly, “is it morning already?”
“Yes!” exclaimed Teddy Bear who was all ready for his day's work. He fetched his bucket and filled it with cold water, which he then threw over Tilly.
She shivered and cried out to Teddy Bear, “Oh dear me, the water's too cold! Please no more cold water, Teddy Bear.”
“All done with the water,” said Teddy as he began to wipe Tilly dry with a big soft rag. Teddy was now ready to polish Tilly; she liked this as it made her feel all warm and cozy. She tooted her whistle to show how happy she was.
“I feel like a brand new engine,” said Tilly.
Teddy jumped up into the engine cab and started up the steam engine. He would back Tilly up and couple her to the passenger cars on the rails behind. After having taken care of that, off they went huffing and puffing to Leapylea station to pick up all the toys in Leapylea.
As they drew near the platform, Teddy Bear could see all the toys waiting patiently for them to arrive. Mongo the monkey was there waiting for the train to puff and chug into the station. He waved at Teddy Bear who leaned out the engine cabin, calling out for all to stand clear as Tilly chug-a-lugged into the station.
Kittykat rushed her kittens onto the platform counting them as they passed through the gate. Flustered, she mopped her face with her hankie. “Oh, no! Where is Luke? He's such a slow poke. We will miss the train if he's not found.”
Teddy Bear could see his passenger cars would be full today. “Hey Tilly, we have a full load today for our trip.”
“Toot. Toot!” Tilly replied cheerfully.
“The sunshine sure brings out the beach people too, Tilly.” Teddy Bear waved to all his toy friends as Tilly chugged up along side the platform.
“Good morning!” Teddy Bear called out to Barbie Doll.
“Good morning to you Teddy Bear.”
He blew Tilly's whistle and waved his hand as they slowed down and came to stop at the platform.
“All aboard!” yelled Teddy.
Soon everyone was aboard Tilly. Teddy Bear blew Tilly's whistle once again and off they puffed and chugged on their way to Whiteleaf by the sea. The toys were singing happily when it happened; Tilly came to a jolting stop! Her brakes squealed as the train gripped the trakes. Teddy Bear tumbled forward and so did all the toys. They all asked in unison, “What's wrong, Tilly?”
Tilly exclaimed, “The little blue bridge is broken down. Take a look ahead, Teddy Bear,” said Tilly. And so it was. There was a huge gap where the train track should have been. The side of the cliff had fallen away to the river far below.
“What a good thing Tilly noticed that the bridge was broken down. If not, there would have been a terrible accident!” cried Teddy Bear.
He patted Tilly with pride as he got down from the cab, and ran along to the passenger cars to the worried little toys. He explained the trouble with the bridge and told them that they would have to return to Leapylea.
“We can't go on and it's no use waiting. No one seems to be here yet to repair the bridge, so we must go back to Leapylea railway station.” Teddy Bear paced worriedly. “We must inform the stationmaster and the railway workers of the damage, so no other train has an accident. I know you are all disappointed and frightened but it is the best thing to do.”
Off went Teddy Bear as he climbed up into Tilly's engine cab. He would have to back Tilly up all the way home. This was a difficult task for Teddy Bear and Tilly. It would be a slow journey home. The toys were very anxious as the train backed along the tracks.
At last they were backing into the little railway station at Leapylea. How good it felt to be back in Leapylea. All the toys got off the train and said their ‘good byes’ to Teddy Bear and Tilly, thanking them for saving them from a terrible accident. They made their way home, leaving Teddy Bear to find the stationmaster to explain why they had returned so early from their trip.
Teddy Bear found the stationmaster in his office drinking his cup of afternoon tea. He looked up with surprise when Teddy Bear entered his office.
“Hello, Teddy Bear, what are you doing back here so early?”
“Hello,” said Teddy Bear and went on to explain about the trouble they had run into with the broken down bridge.
The stationmaster beamed at Teddy Bear, “I'm very proud of you and Tilly. You saved many lives today. I will send out the railway workers to repair the bridge at once. And I will call ahead delaying the London train until the bridge is repaired.” He was expecting the London train to arrive on time today. He called the London train station to delay it from leaving until the repairs were finished. Off he went to find the workmen and send them to do the repairs on the bridge.
Teddy Bear and Tilly went home hungry and tired; it had been a busy day. What a surprise the pair of them got as they neared their home. The entire town of Leapylea toys were there waiting for them beside Tilly's green shed.
The toys began to cheer and clap for Teddy Bear and Tilly, for they had both saved everyone from terrible danger this day. Tilly tooted her whistle and Teddy Bear took a bow. The toys slowly trickled away to their homes. Teddy Bear turned to Tilly and patted her lovingly, saying, “I'm so proud of you, old girl. You saved us all today.” Then he wished her good night as he turned to go home to bed. Tilly tooted at Teddy Bear with pride and love.
THE END
This story was inspired by my love for my daughter, Della. Late at night on Christmas Eve, 1966, I sat staring at a blank piece of paper thinking of a story I could write so my daughter would find a gift on Christmas morning, therein keeping her belief in Father Christmas intact. We lived alone with one small income. There was no money to spare on this Christmas Eve for Christmas gifts, except for the story of Teddy and Tilly and the other story I wrote that night, The Fairy Glade. She was delighted and never forgot the beautiful gifts Father Christmas brought to her.