Her feet crunched through the dry leaves on the ground, and the smell of a freshly ignited fire followed her.

She was hardly the size of a Human child, but she had lived many, many years. Well, she only truly lived during one part of the year: Autumn was her realm. During that time, she flourished. Her hair stood alive and crackling, her brittle-sounding wings stirring the air with tiny sounds. She floated or walked, it didn't matter to her - her wings could carry much more weight than any other fallen leaf, though they had the same appearance.

When she sang, her voice shot through the air, like a bird's call. She did so love to sing.

The rest of the year, Aili was drab, greyish-brown and not too happy. There were other sprites of the woods who appreciated the other seasons better than she. In Spring, when there were all those bouncing pink and yellow and white blossom-girls... she shuddered and hid away in her nook. In Winter, she still held a little hope, but her flames faded eventually. In Summer, it was time to brush the dust off herself, sometimes she could even get in a few golden leaves before the winds truly turned.

Brittle and fragile she seemed, almost too delicate to touch. But Waneyta enjoyed the Autumn just as much as any of her kind. Frosted hair and frigid wings, the touch of frost brought to morning dew was her favorite part of the season.

Had any Human come to see what the odd snap-crack-crunch noises were, they would have seen a girl-sized creature gleefully breaking bits of dead twigs from fire-struck trees, heavy with the first season's frost.

But no Human had ever laid eyes on her, at least, none in this generation. Perhaps many, many years before they had watched her in the early-early morning or the late-late night. Touching gracefully reddened leaves with a bit of chill and hastening their death.

The fullness of Winter was not her high point, which seemed odd when looking at her. But in truth, it was too cold. She was merely a spirit of the frost, not of ice or chill winds or snow. Thus also, Spring and Summer were her banes - hardly a day would go by when she might set foot outside of her chilly waterfall-hidden lair. But the moment she awoke in Fall, she always knew... Now was her time to glisten in the moonlight.

The forest was wide, but it was shrinking. Ever smaller, the territory touched by the spirit world grew away from Human encroachment. Once upon a time, it was different. Once long ago, the forest was all there was - until you reached the greatest mountains, and until you reached the rugged sea. But now, the woodlands were dotted between farms, between towns, split by wide roads and fences. But even so, the parts that still existed of this once-vast forest were amazing to behold.

In the Winter the low-lying areas were bare of leaves. The oak, hickory, chestnut, maples, all of the leafy trees bereft of their canopy for months on end. Only the spruces, firs and evergreens carried the white weight of snow without appearing skeletal. When Spring would come, green lept from the dead bones of trees, a shower of color below on the flowers that bloomed. Summer brought an endless veil of pollen from the evergreens as well as the festive calls of fledgelings out of their nests once and for all.

Autumn, however, brought so many more things. That pollen drifted down into the soil, slowly new life would emerge. The bees which flew eagerly and noisily between flowers in the Spring rested on their honey-heavy hives, and the fruits which they'd encouraged now dangled ripe and aromatic from every branch. The harvest times on the farms nearby also brought with them tourists and visitors, all claiming that the woods were the most beautiful in this season, when fire colors graced the leaves and the air was filled with the scent of pies and roasts.

It was to one specific tree that Aili would come, almost every year, to do her first dance. It was usually in the very early morning, on the day when she awoke. The temperature had to be just right, else her dance would be in vain. There was just enough of a nip in the air, but plenty of warm sunlight ready to strike the tree's vast still-green canopy.

Today, she arose and stretched, her many crinkly wings furling out until she could fly. The sun hadn't yet graced the horizon, but the sky was not dark any longer. She cricked her neck, shook life into her delicate fingers and toes, and sprang into the air. Her favored tree was quite near the Human farmstead, and it was an old tree. Gracefully the maple rose and splayed, it wasn't the biggest tree in the forest, but it was certainly her favorite. She didn't dare sleep in it, however, because it was quite near where the Humans had cleared other life to make way for their rows of corn and alfalfa and tomatoes. (She liked corn, it was colorful and fun and had a fluffy top on it, as far as Human-encouraged plants, that was her favorite!)(Wait, no, it was the colorful squash! The things that came in so many colors even she had a hard time telling which was the original!)(Wait, no no no, not just any squash, pumpkins. They came in orange, just like she did!)

The Human on the farm hadn't risen, they had had a very long day before, clearing the first of their harvest fields, and would be set up for their long winter with that corn husked and dried. So, Aili ventured out into the open air, and appraised her tree. It was easily seen from one angle, but blocked by two smaller ash trees. But she'd get to them anyway, just not right now.

For now, she swung through the air with a sultry giggle. Which leaf would be the right one? Every year it was slightly different. She almost delighted in causing the Humans to hunt for it, for this dance she would do did not have immediate results. Aha - she found one, toward the farm, almost two-thirds of the way to the top, a branch that had been snapped by a raven landing on it, its partner was now alone. Aili settled gently with her toes on the air near the leaves, and leaned over to kiss this first hand-shaped courtesan. "Good morning to you, sir, I would love to dance with you." She spoke and the branches beyond shuddered.

Warm wind came with her, would it ignite? It was that of a fire about to burst. But no flames shot out from anywhere, her hair was the only thing that burned, and even it wasn't really alight. She slid her fingers around the branch, and moved in a wide, long circle to embrace the tree, twig by twig. By the time it was dawn, most of the tree had been tapped or breathed upon or kissed or lovingly held. As the light of morning started to enter the woods, she moved on to other trees. But that one would always be the most enjoyable.

It was not early Fall when Waneyta rose, the season had been growing more colorful by the day, and she awoke abruptly. It was earlier than usual, however, the warmth in the air was a bit too much for her, but the chill of the last night had roused her fully. It surprised her, to see that so many of the trees normally half-bare by now, were still bright and some even still green!

Well that wouldn't do at all. Waneyta gathered her wits and her strength and .... The waterfall she lived behind wasn't even frozen a tiny bit, that was just awful. She didn't really mind getting wet, but this was so unusual for her, she stood and stared at the happy gurgling stream and obviously liquid water around her den and glared at it as though she could freeze all of it.

She could not, but the already-fallen leaves and some of the grasses still cheerfully sprouting beside the streambed frosted over and cracked a bit. She harrumphed and nodded sharply to herself, and then strode off in search of, well, something more to cover in frost. The grass was dry, but not dead, and the trees, while beautifully colorful were still far too alive for her to bear touching.

Not... not necessarily because they were painful for her to touch, of course. But more because she feared she'd actually do permanent harm to them. Her job was to hasten leaves dropping and becoming part of the soil - not to put frigid knots that would never grow back into a treetrunk. As she walked along, the grass below her feet tended to wilt, but that was acceptable to her. It was so short-lived anyway, it was the bushes and trees that were her concern.

Nowhere was there an entirely bare tree. Just not a one. There were evergreens that still even had the faint dusting of pollen from the Summertime on them! What was going on here! In the distance, she heard the sounds of the farmers and folk, still gathering their foods and turning the soil so it would get aired out. Yet... the nip in the night air wasn't her imagination. She was impatient for the middle of Fall, true, but ... It was just too early for this.

It was confusing. She'd hardly ever seen so many colors though, normally Waneyta was greeted by brown cold ground, rich evergreen needles, and white treebark. Sometimes even the sky was just white, overcast and gloomy. Today, there were plenty of clouds but they were high in the sky, not particularly lurking near the woods. It was eerily unfamiliar, even though she knew the trees were in the same places and the rocks and the stream... But it was all so claustrophobic to her, there were so many things everywhere.

She much prefered the later Fall, obviously. Finally she did come to a reasonably withered Ash, and she stared at it for a good, long time before deciding to go ahead and set frost on it. The leaves were richly red and gold, not one she could see was green yet. Good. If she was going to be awake, she might as well be doing something productive.

What was that odd sound? Or that smell? It was unusual for the scent of fresh frost to be on the wind, Aili turned her brilliant eyes around to see if she could find the source. There had been a deep chill on the wind, much colder than the night before, which helped hasten the forests' turn into a rich golden hue. But, too quickly and the trees would be damaged forever. There were a handful of them from a century past, here and there where somehow, the frost bit deeply and killed the sap at its source. Those trees grew still, but slowly, and their hearts were hollow. They were sad to see, but helpful none the less, because they became homes for foxes and bobcats and even bears if they were big enough.

But Aili didn't like seeing them, it reminded her how fragile life really was. The forest was changing, sometimes the greens of Summer lingered, and sometimes they never grew fully verdant. There would come a day, she feared, when the forest would simply never bloom again.

The Humans weren't entirely to blame, of course, but they chopped and hacked and burned their way through so much of the vast woodland, that she wondered when they might stop. Their smelly vehicles and noisy animals and dangerous weapons... All those things changed the way the forest looked and felt.

snap

Aili focused on the sound, clear above the song of a single bird. It had come from by the stream, which Aili loved to watch. The falling leaves would gather on it, swirling as though they were still on the wind. Fish would swim below them, nibbling on their corners to see if there was anything edible on them. Aili progressed past one large lichen covered boulder, and there on the other side stood a girl about the same size and build as she, a bit more chunky it seemed, and so wholly opposite her she just knew who it had to be.

They'd never been properly introduced, these two forest spirits. However they had seen one another from afar - generally keeping their distance because the season demanded it. The air crackled around Aili, and it crunched around Waneyta. The ice spirit looked up sharply, noticing how hot the air had gotten.

"Oh - you surprised me!" She exclaimed, her voice a bell choir ringing softly in the air.

"I could say the same of you," Aili replied, her own voice was restrained and a bit edgy. "What are you doing out here already?" But she knew the answer to that already, the cold last night must have brought the frost spirit out early.

"It was too warm to sleep, and too chill to sit idly," Waneyta explained. "It is odd though, I've never seen the forest in such a state - almost never, anyway."

"The north winds blew cold, last night," Aili nodded. She sat on the boulder's lowest rippling bulge, a nest of lichen and moss cushioning her. "I am Aili, what's your name?"

"I am Waneyta," the white-haired and frosty-winged sprite said. "You're quite colorful," she added, smiling. "I've barely seen you around."

"I think I've seen you working in the early mornings, before," Aili commented. They chatted about each other's daily activities, about the Humans nearby, and how unusual it was that they were both up at the same time. They both knew of other spirits, hidden deeply now but who would come out during their respective times of year. The bright green tinted Spring fairy who could sing flowers into opening; the hardy and haughty Summer spirits that romped with the young bears and cats. They both admitted fearing the mightiest of them all, the Winter spirits, whose very glance, it was said, could freeze anything solid. Yes, even spirits had their own myths. They weren't sure it was true, but from the little they'd both seen while awakening by accident in the middle of another season, it might as well be so.

As day grew into evening, the chill on the air became apparent once more. "It will be an early Winter," Aili said, her hair shorter and dimmer in the cold night air. Her companion seemed brighter, but not happier.

"It's true, I think. But that means... less time to be here, less time for both of us. I wonder why it's so, it's been shorter and shorter like this, haven't you noticed?"

Aili thought back, and it was true, there were times when she remembered the Autumn lasted so long she was exhausted by it. But more recently, particularly after the Humans brought their vehicles and set up their farms nearby, it felt like her time was all but cut short, she'd barely begun when Winter raised his head.

Neither of them blamed the Humans, particularly for the way weather changed. The fact that the forests were now more sparse, that they burned out of control on the hottest days, that they died of rot that came from far-distant lands... Those things, they could lay blame. Perhaps Winter simply had had enough and was going to put an end to them once and for all.

The spirits didn't much care for that thought, either of them. Aili described the Humans' habits, Waneyta hadn't seen much of their daily activities since she was mostly nocturnal. Plus, any sensible Humans stayed indoors after dark, this close to a still-wild wood! There were animals large enough to harm a Human, though they never pursued the spirits. Perhaps distantly they knew that the fairies were friend to all life. Perhaps fairy meat tasted bad.

As the days progressed farther into the Fall, Aili and Waneyta challenged one another to duels - could Waneyta cause all the leaves to drop from a hybernating tree, before Aili could cause all the green on a tree to vanish?

At long last, Waneyta's waterfall froze over, crusted just a bit one night. She gleefully gathered Aili who stayed a bit of a distance away - lest she melt the hard-won frost. But it did seem that the days were even shorter now, more trees were bare than had any green left - and then the first snowfall came.

It didn't last, but it was a strangely chilling reminder (no pun intended) that Winter was early. Even the Humans knew it, they had already harvested, a bit early, and their fields lay fallow now. It disappointed both of the fairies, because their fun was pretty much coming to an abrupt end.

It was made more abrupt by the huge storm that blew in, suddenly, from the mountains. They saw him, Winter himself, and he looked terrifying and angry.

Even though Aili had chosen her favorite tree first, it still had yet to lose all its color and leaves. She could coax life out of a tree, even if it meant a little death too. So she would keep that tree busy with life for a bit.

But Waneyta reminded her: if the frost and ice hit it now, the tree - probably the whole tree, given the massive nature of this storm - would die. They had spent time there together, Waneyta dotting the nearby ash trees with frost to give a better view of the spectacular foliage. But now they both raced toward the tree, Aili was frantic. This was her tree, her grove, yes yes there were other spirits but she always had this tree...

The storm was incredible, so completely out of season it whipped all the dead dried leaves up into swirling blankets, and replaced them with an almost instant covering of icy snow. The wind wracked the fairies' bodies, as they stood with difficulty hovering above the flame-colored tree. "Please no," Aili cried, "please let me keep this one!" Her voice was whipped away from her lips, and Waneyta clung to her friend as closely as she dared, they were like fire and ice, but mostly... ice.

Though the rest of the wood became abruptly coated in freshly fallen hail and ice, and the fairy girls could hear the sudden cracking of treelimbs under its weight, the great storm ... paused.

All the Humans had gone inside at the first hint of this storm, an hour ago. That was good, because what they might have seen if they'd gone outside to look would have likely caused them to lose their sanity entirely. For the trees stood white and frozen, save one, and there were three impossible creatures there, above it.

"I ... hear you, little one. But this is the end for the--"

"No!" Aili screamed, "no! You can't! It hasn't been even half a season, yet, and we're not ready! This tree - my tree, it will die!"

"All things die," Winter said. He was massive, a thunderhead-sized man's face, but he was not as stern as he had been moments before. The lines around his cold, lightning-struck eyes softened into smoother curves, and he sighed. "You know this, my little children."

"But it would die in it's own time," Waneyta said, so quietly that it was almost only imagined. The lord of the Winter however, could hear all things. His eyes closed, he sighed again and thunder rumbled in the great distance under the cloaking clouds.

"Why must you kill it?" Aili asked, more confident now that her friend had coaxed a respite from the storm, "and the forest too? The whole land will suffer, you know that."

"The Humans have killed this land," Winter replied.

"These Humans stay on their tilled farmland," Waneyta pointed out. "They pick fruits that they have encouraged, and sometimes they hunt in the forest, but they have always done that."

"And these Humans," Aili added, "love this tree too. Should you kill it just because they love it? If you do, you'll be killing me too. I won't have any life left in me." Her spectacular fiery wings were all but transparent already, a faded yellow like the weak light of the sun that peeked through the thick stormclouds. "I know all things die. But... not now."

"Please?" Waneyta begged, "it will be too cold for me as well, there's no place for frost on top of ice."

As quickly as it had come, the storm abated, and Winter gazed down at the girls. "I have granted some places forgiveness from my wrath... This will be among them. Cherish this, it will always be thus."

And then he was gone. Half the forest remained coated in a thick snow, but - it wasn't as bad as all that. The trees withstood worse, before, and only perhaps a few were caught with their sap still flowing. Those would fall, and be replaced some day by new ones.

Or would they?

Once the snow melted, and the Humans were out and about again, even they noticed something a bit odd.

That one tree, still glimmering brightly with reds, oranges and golden leaves... while almost all the others were stark and bare. The evergreens held their boughs the same way a woman would lift a thick fur coat, with pride and vanity. The ground was hard with frost, but under that tree, grass still grew in fits and starts. The pile of leaves below it gathered daily, but there never seemed to be any lack of branches above.

Winter fully came, but only to the surrounding areas. The Humans got it into their heads that they could plant, they did so, and the ground yeilded smaller but healthy crops. The fairies danced with one another, still so happy even a month later, that their efforts had worked. This part of their forest would remain in its Autumn - forever. Even when Spring came, it merely gave the trees a chance to regrow their foliage - and then, whenever Aili touched one, it turned red-gold again. Instantly, and instantly, it would return to its normal state for the season.

"This is wonderful," Aili said, giggling at Waneyta who slid across a semi-frozen pond. It was only frozen because she herself knocked a little magic onto it, and it was frozen only as long as Aili didn't grace it with her magic!

The seasons turned, except for here. And thankfully, the Humans around didn't seem entirely inclined to challenge it. But one day they would - surely. The girls decided they needed some kind of ... incentive. Protection, perhaps. Some way to keep the Humans doing exactly what they were doing, just like the forest did exactly what it did. No more cutting down trees, no more farmland was needed. They had enough, and they would need to remain where they were.

So ... how? What could possibly keep the Humans from expanding into their now-magical forest? (As though the forest wasn't magical enough before then?)

They got their inspiration from the local Humans, themselves. This time of year (when it was actually that time of year, really - because now it was always that time of year) was when the Humans brought out their candles and burned leaves and piled up pumpkins and carved faces into them. Their lanterns glowed with a spooky, eerie cat-eye look, and even the spirits had to admit that it was plenty magical.

Halloween would arrive, the date anyway, within a week. The Humans even though they were few in number out this far by the woods, camped out and told scary stories to one another, dressed up and had parties and tried to scare each other using costumes. They dressed as princesses, which weren't scary at all; vampires, which were usually too contrived to be truly frightening; and even dressed as fairies. Aili and Waneyta both had the same idea at the same time... They would take a page from Human lore, and make it real if they could.

They had spent hours listening to the stories told around the crackling fire - in fact, both of them had delighted in aiding the spooky feelings that the younger kids had (and the older ones, those 'I'm too old for this because I'm 14' boys and 'How could I ever have been frightened of this story when I was 12' girls) by making the fire blaze or running a chill up a spine at just the right moment.

Owls in the half-barren trees beyond the farmstead hooted, the one residing in the barn answered back. Aili and Waneyta ... went trick or treating for the very first time.

They had grown accustomed to each other's presence, tolerating the difference in heat and cold and really the only visual difference was that sometimes, standing beside one another, Waneyta's hair and wings slumped a little melty, and Aili's flame-bright hair drooped a bit. They'd been following the few kids around, there was some kind of excitement in the air - a carnival of some kind had arrived, and even though it was well into the center of town, the fairies braved the all-Human area to see what it was about.

There, they saw "it". Just exactly what "it" was, was a ride that had a carving of a dragon's head on it, and it swung back and forth with a bunch of people seated in it's hollow center. Those people screamed, some laughing and some in true terror. Some of them even let their lunch go... That was no fun. But even so, many of those same folks went back for more.

"We have to have that," Waneyta said, staring at it. It was painted a rich purple shade, but it was dinged and had bits that had clearly been repainted or nailed back into place. There were other rides, to be sure, the fairies knew that you had to have a 'ticket' and perhaps 'popcorn' to eat for this journey. They were magical: they produced tickets out of leaves, procured popcorn by swiping a handful of uncooked corn kernels and popping them with Aili's own hands. Though they weren't truly wearing 'costumes', the pair of fairies attracted only positive attention - weren't they the most adorable little girls! Where had they gotten those costumes, and my that was a bit chilly and owch, that costume is pretty hot...

By the time Halloween came, the whole town was decked out - the fairies flew over some of the houses, mystefied at what they saw there. Neither had ever gone this far away from their forest, but they knew it would be safe. Sheets with eye holes cut out of them dangled from trees, music played and sound effects moaned. Families of people went from door to door, house to house, each of them carrying a sack.

".... They really like that stuff," Aili said, of the candy which the children were often forbidden to partake until later. "I wonder what it is?"

Fairies like these ate typically magical substances such as dew, honeysuckle, maybe an acorn or holly berry. They knew Humans created plenty of their own foods by mixing ingredients - the smell of pie, for instance, always caused Aili to drool and want to find out just what it tasted like. But they had never eaten this stuff, chocolate or caramel corn or gummyworms.

Just one night, just this once, they indulged the world of Humanity - bringing sacks they'd 'found' (well, they had found them in the woods, abandoned by someone who had probably been collecting nuts) and going around just after one particular group of children. They had no adults to attend them, but then they'd been seen briefly at the carnival too, so they must be local children, right?

That they were only tiny things helped a lot, and that they were polite, repeating the cheerful "trick or treat!" and curtseying when they recieved a handful of sweet-smelling goodies from a Human-held bowl. The night was crisp and chill but the day had been warm, tomorrow would be similar. They remained out and about, only as long as their Human counterparts did - they didn't want to risk being asked any questions.

"I wonder what the 'trick' thing means," Waneyta said, rooting through her bag as they wandered back to their trees. "Or maybe it's just those cloth things, what are they supposed to be, anyway?"

"Ghosts, spirits," Aili said, peering into her own bag to see which thing smelled of what.

"We're spirits," Waneyta said, "and ghosts don't look like that!"

"Well they don't know that, Humans hardly see spirits at all any more!"

"That's true... So... how are we going to get - that - here?" Waneyta commented as she pulled the only natural fruit out of her sack and smelled it. An apple, bright and red, locally grown of course. She'd try something else later, for the moment she was more interested in their plan.

"Well we can't just take it," Aili chided her friend, "I mean, it belongs to them, it's not even from here."

"Well we need something like it. We could make one," the frost-spirit said.

"But then some Human would come and want to steal it from us," Aili wisely reminded Waneyta. "What we need.... is something that looks like it, but..."

"We need a real live dragon," Waneyta said, still munching happily on the apple. She said it so casually, but to Aili, it was a revelation.

Where could they find such a thing? There hadn't been dragons since... well, a very long time indeed. In fact they were all but legend to even the spirits of the woods. They had precious little contact with other fairies, but perhaps it was time to ask around, perhaps one of them had seen one...

"We could ask him," Waneyta said, and Aili knew exactly who she meant: Winter himself.

Well, yes they could. But it would have to wait. For very soon after they came back to Waneyta's now-frozen waterfall, the moon rose, and they discovered chocolate.

"Oooh I don't think I can even move," Aili groaned, her stomach was still distended by the mass of candies and sweets she'd ingested the night before.

"Now I know why those mothers kept telling their children not to eat it all..." Waneyta echoed her friend. They both lay limply, exhausted, half-draped over the rocky edge of the little chilly waterfall.

"But it was so good!" Aili said, her voice a shadow of the night before, but still holding the same amazement. How could Humans have made such amazingly good food? And why had the spirit world been ignoring it so long!

"So this is how you thank me," said a voice, male, big... his. "By wandering into their very homes and eating everything you can stomach..."

Yet, his voice held no contempt nor even anger. Winter stood before them as a more Humanoid looking creature this time, a big man, with a big voice, a beard and full head of white frazzled looking hair. He held himself with an aged ease, and his face had humor dancing over it.

The girls could barely lift themselves to stand, even if they could stand without wobbling knees. Here was their sire, their creator, their father - all those things, though he did not truly help birth them as a woman birthed a child, he was their elder. Where the fairies and spirits of the woods came from, perhaps only he knew. He waited for them to stand, as much as they could with their bellies literally making them imbalanced. Their little wings didn't help keep them upright and they could barely hover magically.

"We're sorry," Aili said, "I didn't -"

"No, no, children," Winter chuckled, "I won't be punishing you today." He took a long, slow look around himself. The forest was still bright as ever, the sun was shining behind several wandering rainclouds. What a surprise, of course there would be rain today, but last night - none. He alone could see down to the Human village below. "I understand now, why you defended this place. It is good to have a change of pace." He sighed, "I will still choose to punish the Humans, slowly, for all that they have taken from us, but ... not this time. And your little escapade last night taught me as much as you, you know." He winked at them. They could hardly believe it, he was being so nice...

"We ... want a way to defend our forest," Aili said, meekly. "We saw a dragon-shaped thing, are there dragons left in the world?"

At that, Winter drew in an even longer, worldly breath. "There... are dragons, not many, and none that I would trust to guard your part of the woods, my children."

The fairies slumped - their stomachs forgotten (and magically emptied, whether it was their own lack of concentration on the matter, or Winter's intervention, who could say) - this was not good.

"However... there are dragons, not of this world."

Waneyta let her eye drift toward her friend, not moving her frost-haired head. She noticed Aili had done the same.

"Sir?" Waneyta said, "how do you mean?"

"It is exactly as I said, there are dragons here, which are not from here." He said simply, not expecting them to fully comprehend, after all, he had many, many millennia on their ages, and he spread over the whole world to see it, where they were yet young and only lived in this little corner of their old woods. "Perhaps I can simply show you, or better yet... Show yourselves," he waved his hand, and a shimmering, frost-rimmed icy mirror appeared in the air. To the girls, it was massive, to any Human it would have been as tall as a big man. In it, it showed not just the reflection of the brown-tinted world in which the fairies lived, but a darker, stranger place.

They did not quite know how to react. "Perhaps you will find your dragon, I will make certain you bring it back here safely, if you do. Go," Winter said, "go now, lest I change my mind, and you do not want me doing that."

If there was anything they were more sure of, they could hardly think of it. The fairies fled from one world to another, bringing with them only the thoughts of Autumn, memories of their woods, and hope.

Their world changed unimaginably when they first met their new companion. Uyadvha was her name, they knew it in their hearts. And so like the two of them together: she had the brilliant orange color of fallen leaves, plus the slick white of ice across her head and neck. And, like the two of them, she didn't really need her wings to fly, she couldn't truly fly. Though what she did do wasn't really flight, she danced across the ground and lept from branch to branch just like Aili could. Faster than Waneyta, and more distractable than Aili, Uyadvha scampered through the woods when they came home, eager to see her new digs.

Winter welcomed his favored fairies with a broad smile, "I knew you'd find the right one," he commented, watching as they settled back into their long Autumn world.

And not soon enough: when the rest of the world was experiencing a Winter like they'd never known, some enterprising - or sly - people began investigating their woods. Perhaps they wanted to invest in land, or build a resort, or a strip mall. Why, no one knew. But they saw this ever-Autumn wood as pure profit.

Aili and Waneyta caught wind of this when they heard the crunch-crack of footfalls and someone tumbling, on the uneven ground. "I can't stand this blasted place, why can't you just send me pictures?" Complained a woman. She was walking in high-heeled boots, so of course she was a bit wobbly to start. Her companions chuckled, and one of them pointed out Aili's tree.

"So?" The woman said, and then sort of did a double take. "It's... not dead?"

"Yeah," one of the men said, "that's exactly it. It's supposedly always like this. Been like that for three years now."

"So say the local yokels," the other put in, "one of their kids moved to college and my boy was curious. Sure enough, look at it. This place is weird, but... look at it!"

Aili and Waneyta gave this a bit of thought, hastily assembling themselves by Waneyta's rocky waterfall. "What can we do?" Aili whispered.

"We can send Uyadvha after them, give them a good scare. The one doesn't want to be here at all, and the other's just following that one's lead." Waneyta said, "just have to be careful not to hurt them too much."

Uyadvha had been watching this too, and felt from her caretakers the need to protect the woods. Quick as a flash of lightning, she sped over the dry leaves, not making a sound. When the trio started walking through the snow-covered evergreens, she took herself up to the boughs and gave a good hard heave against the tree trunk nearby. A huge volume of snow dumped itself onto the Humans, and Aili tittered madly.

But that didn't deter them from continuing their examination of the landscape. They were headed toward the Waterfall, and that just would not do at all. Uyadvha lurked in every shadow, bounding behind the group and then to the side, just as they turned to look. Finally she waited until they were they could barely glimpse the rocks, the ground was a bit sodden so she froze it solid. Their shoes stuck, and the woman complained bitterly about this latest event.

"I don't think it's anything to worry about, once a nice footpath has been leveled through here," said the one man, "it'd be perfect for camping and day resorts."

"Selling camping gear," the other reminded them, "it's a good profit year round, especially if this place is like this..."

Right about then, fire burst out from the log beside the Humans. It didn't catch fire, it literally blasted like a gout straight out from the middle of it. Of course, they couldn't move - until their shoes were left behind in the frozen mud. Aili and Waneyta aided the scary excursion that Uyadvha gave them, all the way back to the edge of the woods. Crackling piles of leaves blown on the wind, suddenly they'd burst into flames - and then stand frozen in the air making a rough pathway out of the forest. Uyadvha made sure to trip them up a couple times, piling up what looked like leaves but turned out to be a big stone in the way; dropping more snow on them as they passed under the right trees...

While it was all good fun, it was also with a sense of desperation. Aili couldn't lose her woods. They just had to convince these people to leave, forever. With their knees bloodied and their feet near-frozen, hair a mess and likely several personal items lost along the rugged path, the trio of Humans staggered back to their hotel room.

Maybe they'd remain away. If they came back, Waneyta and Aili knew it would be with more people. But... now they had a means to really quickly scare off those who hadn't the courage to stay.

Name: Aili (EYE-lee, means Light Bearer)
Gender: Female
Species: fairy / autumn
Age: ? Immortal
Abilities: cause plant life to slow, wither, change color - can also reverse this to a small extent; flight, wingless - she doesn't need her wings to fly, they're mostly decorational