I had no choice It was the kind of magic that kills people I went into the Crosswood to look for them That’s where I met Salix I asked him for help finding the twins He tricked me into making a deal He said he would help me if I gave him something I thought he meant a juice box But he didn’t He was saving that something for later Turns out that something is my going on a quest with him It’s going to be dangerous And I will be missing school And my mom is going to be mad at me But that’s what happens when you make deals with Faeries You have to stick to them or else And by the way crossing from the human world to the Faerie world is very uncomfortable It feels a bit like how it must feel to be swallowed You get sucked down into the earth You slither around underground like a worm If you’re not careful you get mud in your mouth Then you pop out the other side For a 3
few seconds everything is upside down You feel like you’re walking on the ceiling But after a moment or two something clicks in your brain Then everything is right side up again That’s what just happened to me Salix and my other Faerie friend Finola brush dirt off me as I stand up Salix looks a bit like a frog His hair and eyes are bright green like grass His skin is slightly green too Maybe all Nixies look like him I don’t know He’s the only one I’ve met so far Finola looks a bit like a swan Actually she used to be a swan A witch cursed her I helped undo the curse Long story Her skin is very pale but her hair and eyes are shiny black She also has a crown made of white feathers a leftover from the witch’s enchantment Salix carries a small lantern Finola has a sword All I have are my backpack and some cupcakes Doesn’t seem like quite enough for a quest 4
Our quest is to find the way into Salix’s home wood That’s why I’m here in the Crosswood again I should be mad at Salix for dragging me along But I’m not A Faerie quest is a lot better than chores and school To be honest I’m not enjoying high school very much I keep getting into trouble I’m not good at making friends And there’s a lot of homework It’s stressful I’ve even been having trouble sleeping What is this wood of yours called anyway I ask as we set off If I’m going to help you look for it I should at least know what it’s called Merwood Salix says Merwood I repeat And you said it’s a few days walk from here At least Finola says Salix nudges her I can tell they aren’t telling me everything That’s just the way Faeries are I’m getting used to it We should go over the rules again Salix says Since you’ll be here in the Faerie Woods for a while 5
Probably smart I say So as we walk Salix and Finola remind me of a few things about Faeries How they can’t lie for example How if you know a Faerie’s full name you can command them to give you three wishes That only works once though remember Finola reminds me So you can never use it on me again That’s how I helped her turn back into a human You can command them to do anything with your three wishes Even magic stuff Only humans can do it though That’s why Faeries try never to let humans learn their full names Yeah I remember all this stuff I say But is there anything new I should know Salix scratches his green hair with one webbed hand As long as you’re with us you’ll be safe he says Although you should always watch out for wild magic 6
