A fairy story of mine...

This is a story I wrote a little while ago. It was inspired by that picture on the left, which is one by Edmund Dulac(who also did that one on the right of my blog), which is called Meeting the Fairy Princess.
I hope you like the story. It's a story I might add to later, I mean it's like a kind of long-running story which could have chapters or could be left as it is.


Violet and the Fairy Gift

Once upon a time, but not that long ago, there lived a little girl called Violet who believed in fairies. She believed in them even when other people laughed at her and said they didn't exist. She believed in them even when all her wishes went unanswered. She believed in them even though there was no magic in her life, only an ordinary sort of everyday. She was sure that one day they would come to her, give her three wishes, and her life would change forever.

Well, one day Violet was out walking in the woods when she met an old lady. The old lady carried a covered basket. She came up to Violet and said, 'Good morning to you, my pretty one. '

'Good morning, Godmother,' said Violet. It wasn't really Violet's godmother, of course, but as soon as she set eyes on that old lady, Violet just knew it had to be her fairy godmother, come at last. 'I am pleased to see you,' she added. 'Have you come to give me three wishes?'

The old lady looked at her with eyes as bright as blue beads. 'I'm not that kind of a fairy,' she said. 'But I do have a gift for you in my basket.' She opened the basket and there Violet, to her surprise, saw three old books. The old lady looked at her with a strange smile on her wrinkled-apple face. 'Don't be disappointed, my dear,' she crooned. 'These are magic books. Whichever one you choose will come true, and that gift will be yours. So be careful what you choose.'

Violet picked up the books one by one and looked at them. One was called Riding the Back of the Wind. One was called The Speech of Animals. One was called Meeting the Fairy Princess. The books were plain, their covers rather battered. And inside, the pages were quite blank.

'How can I choose the right one?' cried Violet. 'There's nothing to tell me what they're about.'
'Really?' said the old lady. 'The titles say it all, my dear. Think about it. And choose carefully, for you only get one chance.'

Violet looked at the books. She thought that riding the wind must mean flying through the air. It could be useful but she didn't much like the idea of flying at the best of times. Then the speech of animals must mean being able to talk with and understand animals. Well, that would be nice too, she had always wanted to know what her cat Mrs Puss really thought, but it could be horrid too. You didn't really want to know what a fly thought when you swatted it, for instance! But meeting the fairy princess--now that would be something wonderful. And maybe then too she'd be able to prove to everyone that fairies really existed.

So she said, 'I choose the third book.'

'You have chosen well, my pretty one,' said the fairy, smiling, 'because this book is a gift that never stops giving. You will not only meet the fairy princess and be made welcome at her court, but you will have lots of adventures, and all your dreams and wishes will come true.'

Then the book flew into Violet's hands. And beautiful pictures started appearing on the pages--pictures that moved and shimmered. And she heard a soft voice saying, Come into our realm, dear Violet, come in and you will see what you will see..

Now Violet felt herself becoming smaller and smaller till she was as small as an illustration. And suddenly she fell right into the book, straight into the picture of the fairy court, with the princess Celestine waiting to greet her.