I followed the fairies and they took me to Neverland

[Samuel Sykes]

Commissions were slow at the moment, so Sam had left his small balcony greenhouse well tended to go hunting for rarer ingredients in the evening. He found it fortunate that he enjoyed Herbology just as much as he did Potions. The Herbologist who disliked Potions could sell their work, but the Potions Master who disliked his plants was forced to pay exorbitant prices for quality goods.

There was twelve-thousand square kilometers of forest to traverse, and Sam had many delightful evenings spent watching deer and harvesting nightshade by the full moon. The particular evening, a delightfully cold l'hiver half-moon, Sam had found fairies, and he whipped out his sketchbook and stayed still and silent while he sketched them frolicking through the snowflakes. The entire glen he was nestled in was filled with their twinkling lights, and he knew that they knew he saw them, and swore they danced all the merrier for his watching. There were squeaks and titters at the introduction of a new fairy brood, and the entire glen started to move off further into the woods. Sam was terribly disappointed, but they seemed to have found something interesting.

Sometimes when he watched fairies, they moved to mushroom rings that they allowed him to harvest after they were done merry-making, so he collected his sketchbook and crunched through the snow after them. The lights grew brighter until he was wincing and shielding his eyes at the gaps in the trees. Why, there must have been thousands of fairies to make such a light! But no; the little flying imps merely hid and gossiped at the edge of the light source, which was an enormous circus tent surrounded by a field of smaller tents, right here in the middle of French woodlands.

Sam gaped and stood at the edge for a long time. Gypsies wove in and out between tents, carousing and laughing, and no one paid him any mind (or so he thought) though he was bumped into frequently. Sam realised that he was walking through the tents, now, turning his head this way and that to take in the bizarre and fantastical sight. The sights, smells and warmth of the La Grande Tour Circa seemed more than an illusion, but Sam was almost sure he'd walked into a glamour or been hexed.

Unnoticed by him, a few fairies had hidden in the folds of his clothes to hitch a ride through the camp in the shadow of his large frame. Some of the circus troupe noticed, however, and giggled to themselves as loud and unashamed as the fairies. Eventually he found himself in the heart of the camp where a large bonfire blazed, members of the Circa lounging around baking things over it, drinking, arguing or blatantly making out. By this time, Sam was sure he was dreaming, so he didn't find any of this particularly odd, although watching passionate partners lip-locked in front of him without a care in the world was fairly embarrassing.

His eyes were drawn to the center of them all; a truly colossal man with shoulders as wide as the woman next to him was tall. He thought woman, but really she was just a very large fairy. She shimmered in the firelight and flapped her wings with little twitches of her shoulders, so thin and perfect that she looked as though she'd blow away in the breeze. The fairy was trying to climb the giant's shoulders, and the giant was just barely allowing it as he was trying to stir a pot of something over a smaller fire next to the stack.

In reality, Sam was the oddest inhabitant of them all. He was sensibly wrapped in winter gear and carried a satchel, his forgotten sketchpad and quill hanging lax in his hands while bright fairies hovered between his legs and under his ears where it was darkest, so that they would shine the brightest. This was the loveliest fairy glamour he'd ever seen.​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

Mariposa The Fairy Queen danced circles around the fire, still fully in costume and scattering glitter in intricate turns as she laughed. It was such a wonderful night for a fire, and the adventurous contortionist couldn't imagine a better climate for this. It may have been chilled but the bright roaring fire kept everyone warm as they sat with their friends and lovers. The blonde twirled repeatedly, grabbing the hand of one of her circus mates, and twirling herself around him with giggles. To the side their fire dancer Pon, was toying with an instrument that made wonderful noises - insisting that as long as she was playing music Mariposa wouldn't come over and distract her. She was not wrong.

The glitter covered woman danced over to their strong man. "Zimbruuuuu!" She called out, elongating his pet name with a whine. "No one will dance with me, won't you?" She asked, though he seemed to be concentrating intently on the pot of whatever he had been making. The blonde, not keen on being ignored huffed loudly. "Fine! I'll just sit down." Of course with Mariposa it was never as simple as really sitting down. With lithe and graceful movements she used the man's muscles and clothing to climb atop his shoulders and take up residence there. Once she was higher in the sky she reached out and caught small fireflies that were stirred whenever wood was poked in the fire. It was her favorite thing, it was almost like small fairies were dancing before her eyes.

As the blonde continued to watch, contented to lean on the man's head, she saw something a bit large and covered from head to toe in clothing enter her line of sight. She cocked her head to the side for a moment staring, before seeing flickers between the man's legs of hiding fairies. Assuming this must be a friend she dismounted quickly and ran to him, unafraid that he was much larger than her. After all, if he was to try and harm the fairy woman, she was sure anyone from La Grande would have something to say about it. As she made her way over to him the ground crunched beneath her feet, which were bare save for the anklets and toe rings that jingled with her movements.

Her hazel colored eyes were wide in wonder as she approached him she could see the fire dance over his skin, illuminating curves of a face she'd never seen before. The 4'10" woman gave a curtsy with her fairy dress, which sparkled all over, made from enchanted plants to hold together for shows. "Privet." She greeted in Russian, something she rarely did, however it seemed the man before her made her forget her language skills. She glanced from one fairy to the other, the little winged creatures were whispering, and Mariposa stood on tiptoes, invading the strangers space to get a closer look at them. Shed' never seen them so close up. It seemed they did no appreciate, and flew to another area around the boy as she got close to them. Mariposa backed up and looked at the fire. "Come sit!" She spoke in her heavy Russian accent, grabbing hold of the man's hand and dragging him toward the fire if he allowed.

 

[Samuel Sykes]

He'd caught the attention of the big fairy, someone he was privately beginning to think of as the Fairy Queen, but she curtsied to him instead of waiting for him to bow, or something, and his little twinkling hangers-on shied away from her. Must be human, then. Still, she was otherworldly, and Sam looked a bit dazed as she spoke an unknown word to him and dragged him over to the fire. She told him to come sit and this, he was relieved to note, he understood, and he felt helpless to do anything but obey. They sat on the stomped-dirt around the bonfire, cleared of snow, and soon it became warm and Sam unwrapped his scarf from around his neck and removed his snow jacket. The fire went from warm to hot, and his sweater went, too, leaving him in casual track pants, boots and a plain green t-shirt.

"Um," said Sam, feeling eyes on him from all around, although whenever he turned, no one was looking at them. One set of eyes never left, and his light blue orbs met heavy dark ones as the giant watched them, specifically him, still stirring his pot. Sam swallowed. The fairies had gotten cross when their hiding places had been removed and had long since scattered, so he was left feeling rather exposed. The Fairy Queen was looking rather expectantly at him, so he focused on her, and seemed to find his courage.
"Bonjour," the Australian began, looking for signs of understanding. "Parlez-vous français? Or ... do you prefer English? My name is Sam," he explained, giving her a shy, awkward smile.​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

Mariposa giggled as the taller man followed her. it didn't take much, she thought, to be taller than her. It wasn't something she minded either. She often enjoyed riding on people's shoulder - friends and strangers alike - and made friends with anyone she could. The petite woman watched him sit, and watched her friends all exchange glances. When she noticed that this boy was staring behind her she turned toward Stefan and waved with a smile. "I've made a friend!" She said eagerly, before sitting down right in front of him, her knees tucked under but her rear on the ground - a position that looked impossibly uncomfortable.

Mariposa cocked her head to the side as he spoke in a language she knew to be french, but understood only one word. Once he switched to English she let out a twinkling giggle and nodded. "I am Mariposa, this is La Grande Tour Circa! We are having a party how wonderful for you to come and join us, Sam!" She said with a grin that could split her face in two if it got any larger. The contortionist looked over him, now able to focus more on his features than the fairies that were around him. She buried her face in her hands like a school girl and turned to Stefan again, wondering if he saw that Mariposa had met the one or not. The circus woman hugged her arms around herself by the fire to keep warm and while many people found it warm enough, the poor girl hardly had enough meet to retain the fire's warmth. "Why is it you've come to see us Sam? Our show is not longer on?" She asked. Her English sounded almost too formal for her - as it was the only way she spoke, having hardly any good English in her vocabulary. "Do you wish to join us?" Her eyes lit up with excitement at the question.

 

[Samuel Sykes]

The woman, or Mariposa as he just learned (beautiful) had the biggest, brightest grin he'd ever seen before, and he'd been school friends with Artemis Blackmoore-Yearling. She even smiled in the face of the giant, who merely shook his head slowly at her proclamation and continued to watch them less obviously than before. Sam took this to mean 'You're okay, until you try something'. The only thing he was going to try to do was figure out whether or not he'd fallen asleep in the woods or was actually sitting in some kind of snow-carnival with the most astonishingly effervescent young woman he'd ever met.

She asked him why he'd come, and he hadn't much of an answer for her. "I followed the fairies," he told her, rather inadequately. Now he sounded like a fruitcake.
"Um," mumbled Sam, blustering a little as he picked up his discarded sweater and offered it to the willowy fairy. She looked like she could wear it as a dress. Or pitch a tent and live in it. "I mean, I go out to harvest ingredients in the woods for potions. I saw the little creatures and they were attracted to the lights here, so I followed them. Er, what do you mean, join you?" He thought she'd said join. She had a heavy accent. Russian, he supposed. "Am I not already here?" This seemed like further evidence that this was a dream.​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

Mariposa chuckled at his answer. She didn't think him crazy for it though, she loved all fairies, and if she was to see some she would follow them to her death. Perhaps that was dangerous for the woman whom now required a chaperon to go places since becoming lost over five years ago. She had been found in town, with a police officer desperately trying to calm her as she cried - a bright red balloon tied to her wrist. The poor girl, since then, hadn't been allowed to leave the circus without someone who could keep up with her - which left them few options. If Stefan took her out he would simply carry her on his shoulders, which often earned strange looks. A giant and a fairy together was odd after all.

"You make potions! That must be exciting! What kind of potions do you make? Do they work? Are you good at them?" She asked, eagerly leaning farther forward with each question, unabashedly rushing through her words. She sat back a bit at his question and thought, processing her next English statement. "No I mean are you a performer. Have you come to join our performances? Are you a ribbon dancer? Or maybe you can do this!" Mariposa stood where she had once been sitting and grabbed her leg from behind her, pulling it up straight, toes pointed as she was taught to always do. "Can you?" She asked, oblivious that most normal humans couldn't do what she did.

 

[Samuel Sykes]

Sam stared. And stared, and stared. "N-no," he stuttered, looking slowly from her thigh all the way to her pointed toe in awe until he almost physically had to tear his eyes away. "No, I can't do that." He rubbed his face and shook his head to clear it, and then added "I'm really clumsy, actually."

Well, that wasn't exactly a flattering description, so he felt he had to amend his statement. "I make any kind of potion you can think of," said Sam without exaggeration. "They all work, and I'm very good at it. People owl me to brew or design new potions for them, and that's what I do." He smiled shyly and tried to figure out how he was going to broach his biggest question.
"So, is this a dream?" Sam blurted. Shoot, whatever happened to subtlety? "It's just 'cause I was hanging out with fairies, see, and they're well known for doing fairy tricks. A circus in the woods with a Fairy Queen running it seemed like a pretty good glamour, to me." Merlin save him if this was real. He'd just outed himself as a naive fool. Oh well. Mariposa seemed agreeable, and the circus inhabitants were merry enough. He wasn't there to join, but perhaps he'd be allowed to explore and sketch a few of the sights. Well, after the giant stopped watching him. He was giving Sam the heebie-jeebies. Desperate for a change of subject, Sam asked "Are you sure you won't take my jumper? You look cold."​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

The woman allowed her leg to slide back into place before once again sitting down in front of the man. "That's okay, I could teach you!" In her sitting position she now extended her legs in front of her and leaned down, elbows in the dirt and chin rested in her hands, looking up at Sam. She was so intrigued by his speaking of potions, unable to take her eyes off his lips as he spoke. Every word had her hanging by a thread as she wiggled her feet back and forth. Then he asked her a question and she sat back and laughed at him. She covered her mouth as she continued to cackle before finally calming herself.

"You are not in a dream." She moved forward a few feet from the man and innocently pinched at his cheek to prove she was correct. Her ace became a bit pink at the mention of Fairy Queen and the slightly embarrassed woman looked at the ground, picking at her leaf skirt. "F-fairy Queen?" She asked, looking up with a sparkle in her eyes. She shot another glance back at Stefan, whom was much like her father figure in the mess of people she called a family. "Your... jumper?" She asked, as if stunned he'd offer her an article of clothing. Normally when cold she'd snuggle up to a member of La Grande instead, but she had been told multiple times - incident after incident - that cuddling with a stranger was not okay. Her face was red, smile still large, and almost like a young school girl being asked to a dance she nodded shyly that she would like that.

 

[Samuel Sykes]

"Ouch," said Sam in surprise, not really hurt but simply startled. Well, he'd certainly felt her pinch. They always said that you couldn't feel pain in dreams, but he'd certainly had some whacky nightmares where he could have sworn things hurt; still, nothing was painful while Mariposa was laughing, and he decided that even if he was dreaming, he'd rather be here than reality if he got to hear that sound again.

As for his jumper, he couldn't very well help her into it like she was a child, so he picked it up and draped it tentatively over her shoulders. Thankfully it fell almost like a blanket over her, and he was pleased that he could be of some use.
"So," he began with difficulty, "What on Earth is a circus doing all the way out here, and who are all these people?"​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

The woman chuckled again as he spoke like her pinch hurt. It was frankly a bit cute, and at the thought her cheeks reddened and she looked anywhere but at him. It wasn't until she felt the warmth of his very large jumper on her shoulders that she looked back at him, a coy smile on her face as she did. It was so warm and she hugged herself now wrapped within something that smelled more of cologne than of fire smoke. With his question came another moment of silence as Mariposa tried to think of how to explain the situation.

"We camp here, because the show is not far and we like privacy!" She spoke as if sure she'd gotten the correct answer. "And these people are my family, the circus. Stefan back there is our super strong man. And over there is Felix he does many things." She leaned closer. "Watch your pockets, he loves shiny things. Then there is Manny, he does ribbon dancing, and so does Espey. And Pon, don't bother her, she does the fire dancing and likes to set people on fire when they bother her." She looked around at the others. "Why not go introduce yourself! They love meeting new people!" Then an idea struc Mariposa and she stood, yanking on the man's hand. "Come, I can give you tour. We'll be sneaky!"

 

[Samuel Sykes]

Samuel boggled at the idea of introducing himself to so many people, but he couldn't say no to a tour. Even before he'd decided that this was real life (though a stunning contortionist wearing his jumper and holding his hand still lent itself to the idea that it wasn't), he'd wanted to walk through the tents and drink in the sights. Sam was towed after Mariposa, her tiny hand enveloped by his dinner-plate mits, and together they made the most un-sneaky pair on the planet. The Potions Master was not half as built as the giant silently following them (the real master of stealth, here), but Sam had a few inches of height on him, at six-foot-five inches. Posie was obvious in her own way, fluttering this way and that whilst trailing glittery and constantly bumping people with her wings.

When they trotted past the stables, Sam near demanded to go in to meet the horses, as well as Old Stinky the donkey, and that's where they found the wayward fairies who had hitched a ride with him into the camp. The fairies flittered away at the interruption where they'd been braiding horses tails into tangles and dropping straw into Stinky's water trough.
"Beautiful!" Sam remarked at the well-kept equines. "Do you do shows with them? Are there any more animals, here?"​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

Mariposa was oblivious to the chatter of the Circa members, and to Stefan slowly following behind them. All she was aware of was the way Sam's large hands felt encompassing hers. They were warm and a bit sweaty, but she didn't mind. As the two of them pased the stables she told him that they could go in, but not to tell anyone because she was no longer allowed near the horses without Felix or Robin - or someone responsible with her.

At his questioning she shook her head. "I am not allowed to preform with the horses, but other members do. Felix complains that my glitter gets in the fur and is too hard to clean." She made a small face at the notion, glitter made everything better in her mind. Mariposa still hadn't released the bigger man's hand, swinging it back and fourth as they walked, looking at the horses with him. Many of them were beautiful, and all were well taken care of - however Mariposa wanted something more. "I want a lion." She spoke honestly. "They say I am not ready for the responsibility. And then there was a time I rode a bear into camp. They were not happy with me for that."

 

[Samuel Sykes]

This woman was very beautiful, very glittery, and very strange. Sam squinted for a moment as though it would help him to understand the word 'bear' better, but it clearly didn't, because he had to ask "Um ... a bear?" She must have charmed the poor creature, who wasn't at all built for carrying people, but at least she was light and probably kind to it. Mariposa hadn't kept the bear, as far as he could tell.
Sam was distracted by a foal chewing a hole in his pocket, which made him nervous in case a mare came over and hassled him for being too close, but the horse's mother was nearby and eating oats placidly while she watched the two humans, so he allowed the chewing bemusedly and made a mental note to buy a second pair of snow pants.

Glancing at his watch, the potions master nearly choked when he realised it was past midnight, creeping up to one in the morning. He'd only left the house at about ten, but he rarely stayed up past eleven, and he had to navigate back home as well.
"Mariposa, I must go home," Sam told the contortionist, touching her shoulder gently to get her attention. "Will La Grande Tour Circa perform in the area? I would like to go to a show."​

 

[Mariposa Toviniski]

Mariposa grinned, and patted the horse nearest her absentmindedly. "Well of course! Pon took me out on a walk, I'm not allowed to leave without someone with me after all, and I found a bear - it's happened more than once. They're sweet creatures I promise. Maybe they'd let you ride them too! But I gave it some of the nuts and berries i had gathered! It was wonderful!" She chuckled. "But everyone got scared when it came into the camp. Then they made me take it back." The pout on Mariposa's glitter imbued lips showed her disdain for being unable to keep her wild friend with her - almost as if she didn't understand why it was.

The blonde headed faerie woman finally turned to look at her new friend. "Go? No! You could totally stay. It can't be that late!" Mariposa gripped the man's arm and looked at the watch he had before realizing it was indeed late. "Oh... It's past my bedtime..." She muttered, in disappointment. "But! You can come see us tomorrow. Maybe I can get you in for free! And you can watch me preform!" She spoke in an excited manner. "I wish you could stay though, there's so much I want to know about what it's like out there." Mariposa's sparkling hazel orbs upturned to look over Sam's features and she gave a large and earnest smile to him, excited to have met someone so lovely.