[Calann]: 135.Short stories.Meadow

Inspired by a drawing of [Kaimee]'s, titled 'Grass'.
---


In the break of dawn, a tiny giggling voice could be heard from the field of grass spreading behind an age-old forest. Dew drops sparkled when the rays of sun hit them, making the field glow in an ethereal way. A slight mist hung upon the scenery, gently caressing the fur of a rabbit that paused to sniff at the air, nose and whiskers quivering.

Sitting on the top of a four-leaf clover with its ankles crossed and a dazzling smile on its face, there was a tiny creature basking in the warmth of the first rays of the sun.

"What should Meadow do today?" it spoke softly, langurously. "Can't very well leave here, I did that yesterday and oh, how I got chastised for it..."

"The life of a grass spirit is very dull, now, isn't it? Wouldn't you like to be a wind spirit like us?" a playfully mocking voice came from behind. The grass spirit bothered not to turn; it knew the other spirit would reposition itself somewhere else.

"Oh, shut it, Breeze!" it snapped. It would not let the other spirit ruin its mood...

"You're just jealous, Meadow. J-e-a-l-o-u-s."

Then, the wind spirit was gone, having taken Meadow's bright mood with it. This was only temporary, though; as soon as it heard the birds start on their song, it was smiling again.

"Decided!" it said suddenly in its tinkling voice. "I'll go visit the tree spirits before anyone else wakes up, and then I'll talk grumpy old Daisy into dancing her ballet for me."

It stood up, stretching its long legs and arms, and looked around. Seeing none of the other grass spirits living in the field, it fluttered its translucent green wings a few times before sticking out its tongue and beginning to hop from one plant to another. It was still too young to fly; it had tried on the previous day with nearly disastrous results.

Humming a tune while moving forward, it didn't notice the other spirit standing on the way before colliding. Looking up from the ground where it had fallen, it smiled sheepishly at the older grass spirit gazing at it disapprovingly.

"Umh... Good morning, Daisy. How are you...?" it trailed off, cheeks bright with guilt.

"I'm sorry. I know we're not on the best possible terms with the tree spirits at the moment. Please forgive me. I only wanted to play with other young ones."

The other grass spirit sighed, cracking a small smile. "I do remember what it was like to be young, my child. Nothing but play never fit into my mind, either."

Meadow gathered itself to a sitting position, drawing its knees up to its chin. It was ashamed. Strange how the older spirit always made it see how stupid some of the things it did actually were. It had a lot to learn from Daisy and the other elders.

"But..." Meadow's head shot up as it heard the other spirit begin to speak again. "If you so wish, I can gather everyone around. We'll hold a little party, just for the sake of having fun."

The young spirit brightened. "Really? Oh, thank you, Daisy, thank you!" It dashed to embrace its elder, nearly knocking them both over in its enthusiasm.

"Anything for you, my dear child. You are the future queen after all."

Meadow wrinkled its nose at the word 'queen' and then laughed at Daisy's expression. "Come on, let's go get everyone!"

That evening, as on many others before and after, Meadow forgot about its future responsibilities as it played with its friends, with no worry for any of the days ahead.

The life of a grass spirit was too unsure to spend thinking.