Green Plack Fairy Fountain (February 22, 2021)

“Now boys don't cha go running off back into Green Plack. They’re choppin' the whole forest down to make way for some ‘trains.’ Blasted contraptions, who even knows what they are?! It’s ruining our home.” She had a look of sadness for a moment, “just stay away from them!” 

Conner and Daniel both agreed to their Mothers demands, then went running out the door, she waved after them as they left. From the hillside where the small cottage sat you could see everything. In the east the emerald-green countryside, to the south and some miles away, was the small village of Feakle, to the west were more farm fields and larger hills. However, just to the north less than a mile away, was the old woods. 

Conner and Daniel immediately did the exact thing that their Mother had told them not to do. The two kids went running through the trees which were all tall and old filled with memories, eventually reaching the place that was the very reason they had been told to stay out of the woods. A massive swath of the trees had been cut down and the ground leveled. The kids stepped out into the area of missing trees. 

“What happened here?” Daniel asked. 

“Maybe a beast?” Conner replied as he started following the trail. The woods seemed to have gone silent as if they were now empty. Conner had made it only about a dozen meters when he heard Daniel’s call. 

“Come look at this!” 

Conner hurried over; it was the trunk of a once large tree. Conner thought ‘That hole in da the middle there, it’s big enough for someone to tumble into?’ It was right when Conner thought this, that Daniel tripped and fell into the hole. 

Being the brother he was, Conner went in after him. He tumbled down the dirty and root-filled hole landing right behind Daniel in an earthy cavern with a single large rock in the center. Daniel seemed to be alright as he was already pushing at the rock. Conner did the same, what else were they to do? 

They pushed the rock aside and at once water along, with a tall slender woman popped up out of the ground. She stretched her wings and smiled. “Thank ya lads. As a favor for freeing me, I will grant the two of you one wish.” 

“So does that mean you’re a genie?” Daniel asked. 

“No ya thick lads! I’m a fairy, I don’t just go giving out wishes all the time. This is a one-time favor to the two of you. Then it’s over and I will be off! So ya could wish for anything boys, what will it be? I don’t got all day now.” 

The two boys looked at each other and grinned.  

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The two kids came running up out of the woods and burst through the door of the cottage. They both started talking at once filling the cottage with noise. Their Mother lifted her hands and waved them down. “Slow down children. One at a time now.” 

Switching back and forth the two boys filled her in on the whole story. She gently smiled not saying a word until they finally reached the end of their tale, then their Mother crouched down. “So, tell me lads what did cha wish for?” 

“That the woods would last forever!” The boys said in unison. 

The woods did indeed stand the test of time, and those very same woods of Green Plack stand there to this very day. The green leaves, the tall elegant branches, and even a deep hole, where at the bottom a fountain gushes out water.