Pixie Ring II

Again, Eddus found that he had no answer to what he’d just heard, so he remained silent. He half expected her to tell him that she was messing with him again.

Abbi abruptly halted, turning to face him, her brows knit. She pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes for a moment, deep in thought.

“Come with me,” she said, taking Eddus by the hand.

She led him back in the direction they’d come from. Her pace was quick as she pulled him along the path back to the clearing she’d found him in. Stopping at the mouth of the clearing, they stood for a few moments in silence.

“You can never disturb these,” Abbi said, gesturing to the several rings of mushrooms in the grass. “And not just these ones. If you ever see rings like these- anywhere- don’t disturb them. Don’t touch them. And never step into one. Ever. Just, please, avoid them if you can.” She looked at him with a serious, yet pleading look.

“The mushroom rings?”

“Yes. No. You don’t understand, Ed, it’s not the mushrooms.” Abbi set her jaw, then pulled his hand. Leading him between the rings to the one he’d been about to step into earlier. She knelt down, dropping lightly to her knees, sitting with her feet under her, and then motioned for Eddus to sit with her.

Eddus studied her face as he looked at her. He could see in her expression that this was not something she was playing at, and he could hear in her voice that there was a sense of urgency, though he could not understand why. Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground and faced the young woman, unsure of what to expect next.

“This is a pixie-ring,” Abbi said, turning her head toward the circle. She gently touched the outer edge of one of the fungi with her fingertip.

“I heard them called faerie rings when I was growing up.” Watching her finger trace the rim of the white mushroom, Eddus then looked at her face, still unsure as to what was happening. Her expression was somber as she withdrew her hand and met his gaze.

“They have been called many names,” Abbi said. “But what they’re called is not as important as what they are.”

“What are they?”

“You probably wouldn’t believe me.”

“You can tell me.”

“It would be better if I show you.” Abbi sat still for a moment, thinking. She took a deep breath, as if unsure of what she was about to do, then reached down to a white mushroom standing alone outside of the circle, and broke a piece of its cap off, holding it out to him.

“Eat this,” she said.

Skeptically, Eddus looked from the piece of mushroom flesh in the girl’s palm to her face, slightly shaking his head, with a look of uncertainty. “I don’t know...”

Abbi paused, tilting her head. She watched him for a moment with a slightly puzzled expression before her eyes widened with a look of surprised realization.

“Eddie! Do you really think I would drug you?” She laughed, a sparkle in her eyes as she gave him a mischievous smile.

“Abbi, no-” It was Eddus’ turn to look surprised. He chose his next words carefully. “I didn’t mean anything like that.”

“It’s just a mushroom, Eddie,” Abbi said. She took the piece in her hand and broke it in half. Putting one of the pieces into her mouth, she chewed it. Again, she offered him the other half. Eddus took it from her, examining it for a moment, then hesitantly put it into his mouth.

“There now.” Abbi smiled. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

Eddus smiled sheepishly. “I suppose not, but if it’s just a mushroom, then why did you want me to eat it?”

“I wanted to know if you trust me, before I show you what I’m going to show you.”

“What are you going to show me?”

Saying nothing, Abbi gave her head a slight shake, her eyes smiling.

“What if I hadn’t eaten it?”

With a soft laugh, Abbi shrugged and raised herself a little, on her knees. She turned to face the pixie-ring, her knees just outside of the mushrooms. She nodded, indicating he do the same.

“I want you to lean into the ring,” she said. “You can put your hands on the ground if you need to, but don’t go all the way inside.”

Repositioning himself in the same fashion, Eddus looked at the ground inside the ring. He saw nothing but the same kind of grass and dirt that they sat in outside of it. Abbi gave him a little smile.

“Do you trust me?” she asked. Not waiting for a response, she placed her hand on his shoulder, gently pushing him forward. Not looking away from one another, they leaned in together.

Eddus was suddenly aware of music playing and saw movement from the corner of his eye. Putting his hands on the ground to steady himself, he turned his head to see that there were dozens of people around them.

It seemed to be some sort of formal gathering. There were men dressed in suits and other fancy clothing of many bright colors, while the females were clad in gowns or dresses of all styles, in equally as many colors. While few of them looked like ordinary people, many of them had brightly colored hair and skin ranging in tones from pale green to translucent blue. A few were so white they almost seemed colorless.

Some were walking and talking with one another, while others danced to the lively tune being played, or stood together in small groups drinking from what appeared to be wooden mugs.

As he looked on, something occurred to him. Almost every person Eddus saw had a pair of wings on their backs, even those who looked to be ordinary humans. Most had what appeared to be large, almost insect-like wings. The wings were similar to those of a dragonfly’s, and some like a butterfly’s, but with semi-translucent membranes.

Eddus found himself staring. Slowly, he realized that the wings on their backs were moving, not in a flapping motion, but they slightly opened and closed as these beings interacted with one another. It was much like one may move from one foot to the other absent-mindedly while engaging in activity or conversation.

Suddenly aware of himself, Eddus quickly glanced to the right and left, his heart pounding. The area they were in seemed enormous, and he could see some kind of translucent barrier around it. Following its edge with his eyes, Eddus saw that it encircled the entire area, like a dome.

“Abbi...”

“I’m right here.”

“Abbi, what is this?” Catching his breath, Eddus turned his head to look at her.

He could see her head, arms, and shoulders. She also had both hands on the ground. Her eyes shone as she watched him take in the surroundings.

“This is why you don’t ever step into a pixie ring uninvited. You’ll disturb this.”

“Yes, but...”

“Look up, Eddus.”

Raising his head, Eddus could see the trees through the barrier that surrounded them. They were gigantic, as if they’d been enlarged to hundreds of times their size, or as if he’d somehow been made smaller... He looked around at the barrier, where it met the ground. The mushrooms of the pixie-circle, outside of the barrier, were tall enough that, were he to stand next to one and raise his arms as high as he could, he would still not be able to touch the underside of the mushroom cap.

“This isn’t possible, Abbi.”

“I told you the forest is a magic place.”

The edges of his vision began to blur and darken. Sweat beaded on his forehead, though he felt cold. His airways felt restricted.

Eddus shook his head, panic setting in.

“This can’t be-”

“Possible? We should probably go now.”

He felt Abbi’s hand touch his own.

Nodding blankly, Eddus watched as she backed up, disappearing through the barrier beside him. A moment later, he felt her hands on his shoulders, and she pulled him backwards.

He fell onto his back as Abbi pulled him past the point of sitting upright. He quickly tried to sit up, but she gently pushed him back down. Letting himself relax, he felt the cool grass against the back of his head, and he could feel Abbi’s fingertips as she gently stroked his forehead.

“Just rest for a minute, Eddus. You’re disoriented.”

Taking a deep breath, Eddus felt confusion, not disorientation. It was like his mind was playing tricks on him. He was looking up at the starry night sky through the gap in the trees’ canopy. He could see the sliver of moon, peaking into the gap from behind the branches overhead, illuminating the clearing. He scrambled to his feet, almost losing his balance.

“It’s dark! Why is it dark?” he asked. “How long- How long were we-”

“Eddus, be careful!” Abbi placed a hand on his shoulder and one on his back, helping to steady him. “We need to get away from here.”

Looking down, Eddus saw that his foot was at the edge of the pixie-ring, just touching one of the mushrooms. He numbly followed Abbi to the pathway, stepping where she guided him as they passed through the pixie rings in the moonlight.

• • • 

“Abbi, what was that?”

She had led him to a park bench next to a lamppost beside the pathway, where he sat down quickly, bewildered, looking up at her.

“Eddus.”

“What the hell was that?”

“I shouldn’t have shown you.” There was a hint of worry in her voice.

“I’m not even sure what it was you showed me.” Eddus leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “What kind of mushroom did we eat?”

“Look at me, Eddus Brandt.” Abbi knelt in front of him and looked into his eyes. Taking his hand, she was quiet for a moment. When she did speak, she spoke solemnly. “I promise you, it was just a mushroom.”

“But I was hallucinating...”

“You weren’t,” she told him. “Eddie, you could eat every shroom in this forest, and it wouldn’t do anything to you.”

“I wasn’t hallucinating?”

“Did you see a large group of people dancing and drinking?”

“Yes.”

“Then you weren’t hallucinating.”

Eddus said nothing, but continued looking at her in disbelief.

“Those are my people, Ed.”

“No.” Eddus shook his head, smiling nervously, sure that she was messing with him again, “the people were- they were green. And the trees...”

“Yes, they were,” Abbi sat down on the pavement, crossing her legs under her dress. “They were faeries, Eddus.”

“What?”

“Pixies. They were faeries. You weren’t hallucinating. I saw the same thing you did.”

“What I saw wasn’t possible, Abbi. Those people... they- they had wings. Wings! They weren’t-”

“Human?” Abbi smiled, raising her eyebrows. She was visibly amused and made no attempt to hide it. “No, they aren’t human.”

“What?”

“They’re faeries, Eddus. Pixies. Well, most of the ones I saw, anyway.”

“But that’s impossible, Abbi.” Eddus stood quickly, stepping past her. “Isn’t it?”

He took a few paces away and then turned to her again.

“Faeries don’t exist.”

“You saw them, Eddus.” Abbi rose to her feet, brushing off the backside of her dress with her hands. “Faeries do exist. You saw them.”

“I don’t know what I saw.”

“I exist, don’t I?”

Eddus stood still, looking at her questioningly, as she stepped forward, closing the gap between them. She reached out and grasped his hand, looking up at him.

“I’m real, aren’t I, Eddie?” she asked softly.

“Of course you’re real, Abbi.” Slowly, confusion washed over him. “What are you saying?”

“I’m a pixie, Eddus Brandt. I am a faerie.”