I opened my eyes to the light of the morning sun filtered through a maple tree. I lifted my head off the soft bed of pine needles, and got a good look at my surroundings. I was near the edge of a forest of mixed pine and deciduous trees, without it feeling truly like a wilderness. There are certainly worse places to wake up from a interdimensional travel than a secluded grove, and I've probably been to most of them.
I retrieved my motorcycle, propped against a tree, and headed out to get a better idea of where I was. Amidst the rolling hills of farmland, I spotted a walled town nearby. Its round lookout tower loomed over a settlement of colorful buildings with steep red roofs. The burg looked like a fairytale Bavarian castle that would have been at home in the 17th or 18th century in my own world.
And that's exactly where I'd have pegged the local technology level -- until I saw a familiar ribbon of striped asphalt conveying a Volkswagen Beetle towards the town. Some designs are truly universal.
I rode my bike past the castle gates and up into the town. Life looked pretty much normal from the village square, with people cheerfully hawking their goods around the fountain. A little food stand was busily serving waffles to the tourists, while the the local schoolchildren walked by on their way to school.
Well, most of them were walking towards the school. There was one girl with giant buttons in her brown hair, who kept stopping, as if distracted by something. She finally got close enough for me to hear her talk towards the empty space beside her, "I'm going now! Geez, I'm going to be late for school again!"
Well, that was suspicious enough to make me wonder, so I looked out with magesight. And right where the schoolgirl had left, there hovered a small white glowing mass, the magical energy intricately arranged almost like a snowflake. Once I knew where to look, I could see what had once been invisible to my normal sight. In the place of that magical glow was one pink-haired fairy, wings and all.
Intrigued, I approached the six-inch tall fairy, who looked like a she was just a young girl. A
pouting young girl. "What seems to be the problem, Miss Fairy?"
She looked at me, stunned for a second, and then ascended in a excited spiral. The blur of pink and white finally settled down around to my eye level and shouted, "Wow! You can see me too! Just like Saga!" She added her cheer, "
Waffo!"
I guess she wasn't trying to hide from people after all. "Yes, I can see you."
"Hey! If you can see me, can you help me out?" she entreated in her squeaky little voice.
"Sure. What seems to be the problem, little lady?" Had I known then the wild goose chase I was getting myself into, I wouldn't have been so eager to help. But I've always been a sucker for those in need, and it's hard to say no to a face like hers.
"Mister," she said, "do you know where to find a twinkle?"
-- ∇×V
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