Returning to Elfhame

Pine needles snagged my hair, and cold air nipped at my nose and cheeks as I ran into the wooded area. The damp ground gave a little with each step, and I shivered as a bead of sweat ran down my neck. A line of perfectly spaced mushrooms caught my attention. I felt compelled to stop before I stepped over them. They arched in either direction as if to form a gigantic circle before me.

I've seen this before. A memory flashed before my eyes. My grandmother was smiling at me as her small hands gripped a book with yellowed pages. A drawing of a circle filled the bottom of one of the sheets. The memory was a wisp and dissipated as quickly as it came. What was it called? With a sigh, I walked into the ring and suddenly my heart fluttered, and a buzzing sensation sent goosebumps down my arms.

As I walked deeper into the woods, my ears stopped ringing from my mother’s shouting. Now, silence surrounded me, making the cool air colder. I pulled my sleeves as far down my arms as I could and wrapped them around myself. The argument I had with my mother replayed in my head.

“I don’t want to be here!” I screamed like a small child.

“What do you want me to do, Elizabeth?” She spat out my name with a snarl. Her breath was hot with liquor. “Tell me, since you’re so grown now, what do you want me to do?” Before I could answer, she lazily lifted a finger to silence me. “Your Nana is gone.” She sighed. “This house is all that I have left. This house and you. Please give it a chance.”

“No! I want to go home!” I knew I sounded like a toddler throwing a tantrum, but I didn’t care.

Tears stung my eyes as we proceeded to scream at one another like two wounded animals. Finally, she whipped around and grasped me by the shoulders. I pried off her fingers and ran for the door before she could say anything. A knot filled my throat as I slammed the door so hard I feared the glass might break.

Guilt caused my stomach to do somersaults as I ducked under a branch. My grandmother and mom were very close. My father had died when I was a child, and the three of us were all the family we had left. When my grandmother passed, she willed her estate in Maine to my mother, so we packed up and left South Texas.

I squeezed my eyes shut in an attempt to hold back tears. As I opened them again, my ankle twisted over uneven ground, and I fell forward. My palms stung as I toppled over. My head smacked against a flat stone. Black filled my vision.

When I woke up, my eyes adjusted painstakingly slow, and slowly made out that I was in a dark brown room. A fur blanket covered my body and flames danced in a fireplace at the foot of the cot. Where am I? I scrambled to my feet. Frantically, my eyes darted around the room. I have to get out of here.

A lime-green light illuminated a hallway. It flickered as it got brighter and brighter. Suddenly, a small orb darted into the room. I couldn't keep up as it dashed to the left and right. Finally, it hovered inches from my face. I could make out a tiny female figure engulfed in a green aura.

The light faded and the woman grew in front of my eyes. In a moment she went from the size of a large wasp to a full-grown adult. I stumbled backward, nearly falling into the fireplace before she gently grabbed my wrist and helped me steady myself.

“Are you okay, Elizabeth?” Her voice was calm as she looked me up and down.

I yanked my arm from her grasp. “How do you know my name?” Before she could answer, I growled, “Where am I?”

Her face lit up with a smile as she gently shook her head. For a moment, I felt sucked into her beauty. Rosy cheeks framed either side of her button nose. A long braid of dark brown hair rested on her shoulder, cascaded past her chest, and swayed at her hip.

“I know Amelia told you about us.” She cocked her head and studied me with large doe eyes.

My grandmother? The memory of the book came back, but clearer this time. I could see the top of the page. It read, “Fairy Ring, A door to The Otherworld.” I became overwhelmed with memories from the summers we stayed with her when I was a child. Little saucers filled with milk sat on every windowsill, and she would leave pieces of bread by the fireplace each night. When I asked her why, she responded in her faint Irish accent, “We must care for the fairies, and they will care for us.”

“Elizabeth?” The stranger's voice coaxed me out of my bewilderment.

“Where am I?” I asked again.

“In Elfhame,” she said with a hesitant grin.

“Take me back,” I demanded.

For the first time, her face contorted with sadness. She moved closer and went to rest her hand on my shoulder, but I took a step back and glared. I watched her contemplate what to say.

After a moment, she seemed to disregard her original thought and her smile returned, “Come with me. There are some things I’d like to show you.”

Every fiber in my body wanted to fight her, but I bit my tongue. I needed to know how to get out of here. She turned to the door and glanced over her shoulder to make sure I was following. “My name is Orla, by the way.”

As we walked outside of the wooden home, I became surrounded by some of the most beautiful people I had ever seen. A few reached out to touch my clothes and hair, but I swatted them away as we walked through the crowd. The whole town seemed to be buzzing over my appearance. Laughter, music, and the smell of sweet bread filled the air.

We walked through the town square and stopped at the steps of a large building covered in vines.

“This is the Great Hall,” Orla said as if we were on a tour.

As we approached, the doors seemingly swung open on their own. Floor to ceiling bookshelves filled the large space and orbs of every color dashed from wall to wall. The chaos ceased when we walked in and all the creatures grew to their full form. I felt naked as all eyes watched me. Whispers echoed throughout the room.

An older gentleman appeared from one of the side rooms. His gaze met mine, and a warm smile filled his face.

“Elizabeth," He cooed. His skin was tan and smooth except for a few crow’s feet framing each of his almond-shaped eyes. “We’re so glad you’ve returned.”

Returned?

“You’re mistaken. I’ve never been here before.” I scanned for exits in my peripheral.

He smirked and looked at me with eyes of recognition. Something about him did feel oddly comforting.

“Please sit,” He said, motioning toward a deep-red velvet chair supported by mahogany legs. It pulled away from the table on its own like magic.

I hesitantly sat down and positioned myself facing the door.

He studied my face, “Have you ever heard of a changeling?”

I recalled hearing a story about fairies who stole children and replaced them with changelings.

“Yeah, I’ve heard about y’all kidnapping innocent children.” I retorted.

“Oh, come now. That’s slander.” He sat across from me. “People used to bring their sickly children inside a fairy ring and leave them overnight in hopes that we would heal them. We would nurse them back to health, but as they nursed, they would change into something less human and more like fairy-folk. It had been some time since we received a child. That is until..." His smile spread from ear to ear and as if I knew what he was insinuating. When I didn’t react, he leaned forward. “Your grandmother never told you?” He seemed surprised.

My mind raced with possibilities causing my stomach to drop. “What?”

“You were a changeling — now a fairy! And you’ve returned! Earlier than anticipated, but you’ve come back nonetheless.” The room erupted with cheers and colorful spheres filled the air.

No. It’s not possible.

With shaky legs, I bolted towards the door. Orla tried to step in my way, but I shoved her aside. I could hear her yelp as I pushed past the entrance. Once outside, I sprinted as fast as I could towards the woods.

Everything was starting to make sense. I remembered my grandmother rocking me by the fireplace, telling me how I became very ill when I was only a few months old. She would say, “You were saved by the ring.” I never understood until now.

The string of mushrooms peeked through brush and low-hanging limbs. The fluttering sensation returned as I ran closer. As I tried to sprint over the line, I felt as if I ran into an invisible wall. I fell on my backside.

A woman’s voice called my name from behind me. I looked up to see a young woman I had seen in a black and white photo at my grandmother’s house.

“Nana?”

A sad smile formed from quivering lips. “Hello, Elizabeth.”

“How? Are you a…” My voice cracked as a knot filled my throat.

She nodded her head.

“Nana, I want to go home.” Hot tears streamed down my face and she wrapped her arms around me.

“You can’t, baby girl.” I could hear her holding back her own tears.

“Why not?” I sobbed into her chest.

“Because,” she sighed, “because when a changeling dies in the Elfhame, they don’t really die, they become a fairy.”

“How?” I whimpered.

“When you hit your head in the woods.”

I pushed away from her and stood to my feet. “But I can’t be dead.” I shouted.

“Elizabeth,” a single tear rolled down her cheek, “Look at your hands. Are they injured? Does your head hurt from hitting the stone?”

I looked down at my palms. There wasn’t a scratch.

“Can I go back?” I whined.

She shook her head.

“What about my mom?” I sobbed as I realized our last conversation was an argument. She had lost so much the past few days. Thinking back now, I realized the reason she wanted to move here was to feel closer to her mother. I couldn't resent her for that.

“She’ll be okay. She’s very strong.” Yet more tears ran down her face.

“Will she come here?”

She whispered so softly I couldn't hear her, but I knew the answer.

We keened at the border of Elfhame.

“Elizabeth!” The faint sound of my mother’s desperate voice echoed through the forest. I looked up into the maze of trees as she screamed, “Elizabeth!”