By Jamie Board

Chapter One: Secrets

The sun shines high above the beautiful vibrant oak trees in Fairy Wing Forest. They call it Fairy Wing Forest because at night when no one is around, butterflies with large glowing neon wings look like fairies as they flutter around each other. They all come in different colors, so the forest ends up looking like a giant disco party. Not many people visit the forest as much as they used to because they don’t want to disturb the wild life and the fact that you could get lost now that the trails have been taken over by nature. The trails would lead you in and out of the forest but slowly over the years, more and more animals made the forest their new home and the plants were determined to stay. 

The bench I sat on was once a beautiful shade of green, now rusty and the paint has been curling away, flake by flake. Normally people would feel disgusted by the ugly bench and avoid it at all costs but I didn’t mind. I have a nice view of a small pond with tiny green frogs with black spots down their backs. They hopped in and out of the water and played with the cat tails, bending at the will of their tiny bodies. The dirt beneath my worn out sneakers was moist like wet sand at the beach. Realizing I still had a twig in my hand from drawing in the dirt, I toss it aside and sat back, gazing at the trees that shined in the afternoon sunlight.

It’s a nice place to get away and just think all to yourself. But today I didn’t come alone. My friend Winter, whom I’ve been friends with since we were young, asked if I had anything planned and when I told him I was coming here, he coolly told me he would tag along. I knew he wasn’t a hundred percent into enjoying the forest air together. He’s not that kind of person. It was obvious his main reason had to be that he knew Spring will be there and he wanted to see her. Winter has had a crush on her since the very first day he laid eyes on her and ever since, he has never showed any interest in anyone else except her. Sadly for him, Spring is way out of his league. Growing up, she was always labeled as “The Popular Girl”. Every guy in our school tried to compete each other over her but her heart always belonged to Summer. Summer was also considered as a popular guy and was the top player on the high school football team. Winter didn’t care and even though he never admitted his feelings for Spring, it was written all over his face like a puppy that longed for attention.

Whispers passed through the air like a paper airplane. The trees’ leaves shook as they giggled over gossip.

“The snow kid has returned.”

“Oh? I bet he’s going to spy on her again!”

“How cute. Too bad she doesn’t care for him.”

I rolled my eyes. You would think trees would be wise and solemn but these trees were like a bunch of school girls or old ladies, pouring over what they thought to be hot information. Whatever passes the time I guess, it’s not like they can go anywhere.

Although our lives may sound normal, we —Winter, Spring, Summer and I, Autumn— are not. Our names speak for themselves which thankfully we go by human names in public.

At age five, a beautiful woman with long, flowing white hair who looked like a goddess, appeared in a dream of mine. She told me I had reached an age in which she believed I was ready to hear about my destiny.

She said, “You are here on Earth to protect life itself from whatever evil, should it ever come. You hold abilities beyond the humans’ capabilities but you should share it with no one and only to those of your kind. You are not alone. Three others live in your town and you will be united very soon.” She bent down and cupped my chin in her slender hands and said in a soothing soft voice, “I know this is a lot and most likely beyond your understanding but this book that I’m about to give to you will help guide you in who you need to be and will explain everything.” She let go of my chin and I couldn’t help but be excited that this random lady was going to give me a gift! She reached inside her long mustard coat and pulled out a book bigger than my hands. It was brown and covered in shiny gemstones of different colors. 

“Not a soul should see this except you, understand?”

I nodded immediately as my tiny hands grasped the book and I hugged it close to my chest as though it was a part of me. I stared at her in awe and I think my mouth was hanging open now that I think of it.

“In case your parents find it or anyone one else for that matter; when they open the book, the pages will be blank. But don’t worry, your parents already know of your gifts.” She said with a smile. “They were told the day you began to exist that you would be special beyond their imaginations. Your parents were chosen carefully. We wanted to make sure they were the kind who would be accepting of you are and who you will become some day.” She straightened herself up and took a step back. “It is time for me to go and I wish you well!”

My mind was racing with questions and I didn’t want her to go. I ran to her desperately and cried, “Wait! Miss Lady!” I clung to her coat  with one hand while holding the large book tightly against my chest.

She tilted her head with concern. “Yes little one?” 

“Will I ever see you again?” I asked while sniffling. I could feel tears flowing down my rosy cheeks. She bent down, matching my height and wiped the tears from my eyes.

“I’m afraid that remains unknown.” More tears filled my eyes and I quickly rubbed them away with my free hand. I felt ashamed to be crying in front of someone like her but I couldn’t help but feel like I was losing a friend.

“Don’t worry little one, you are strong and I have faith in you!” She pulled me close and kissed me on the forehead. 

The next thing I remembered was waking up to the bright morning sun pushing through my pink flowery curtains. My head felt fuzzy and I peaked under my covers to check if my dream was real or not. The big pretty book was lying heavily on my lap. I launched myself out of bed and quickly hid the book away, fearing of disobeying the nice lady.  

Thirteen years later and I still have the book. It’s not as large as I thought it was back then but it was definitely a thick book. Winter and the others had a similar dream but with the same information the woman gave me. And just like the lady had predicted, the four of us met the following year on our first day of school. We took one look at each other and knew that we would be a part of each other’s live for a very long time.

To be Continued…

If you haven’t read the Prologue, click here!