All Text, Music, and Illustrations, including Paintings, Photographs, and 3D models, Copyright © 2022 by Jim Robbins.
Mother of Sylphs
INVASION OF THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN
Vocals by the Awesome Krysten Ortiz
(Snoring by Moi)
The moment Mother let those fairies in the garden,
I saw the skulking shadow of a troll.
Before I could say, "I beg your pardon,”
It commanded me to pay a toll.
“I just want to sniff the handsome roses,”
I whimpered as I backed away in fright.
“I only want to chew your little toeseees!”
A gremlin lunged to take a teeny bite.
I screamed and scurried toward the door
blocked by mocking elves whom I abhor.
A swarm of sylphs lifted from the hellebore,
finding hair and ears and nostrils to explore.
Gnome
Goblins beat on drums of water
while a gnome cut loose a raucous snore.
The troll jumped on the teeter-totter
and made a phoenix soar.
If Mom can’t make the beasties leave
She'll see a change that'll make her twitch:
If they won't all just behave,
I'm going to turn into a witch....
MR. MELLIFLUOUS'S MUSICAL ADVENTURES
Vocals by the Fabulous Krysten Ortiz
While Mommy and Daddy were having a discussion in the kitchen, Claire turned into a fairy and chased her kitty into the back yard. Then she heard music drifting to her from some far-away land. Suddenly a swallowtail appeared in front of her and fluttered just out of her reach. It was so bright that Claire tried to grab it right out of the sky, but it flitted away. As Claire was chasing the swallowtail, she tripped over the kitty and plunged headlong to the ground.
After a moment, Claire slowly sat up and shook her head. The swallowtail was gone. She stumbled over to the fence and pushed as hard as she could. A board swung loose, and Claire squeezed through. She glimpsed the swallowtail in the meadow and dashed after it.
Around the same time, unaware of the little girl galloping through the meadow, I was wandering through the nearby forest, and suddenly I came upon swallowtail butterflies flitting from tiger lilies to columbine to blue larkspur. Then, unable to believe my eyes, I suddenly became certain that a few of them were not butterflies but fairies with swallowtail wings. As someone who long ago dismissed fairies as the products of some fevered brain, I was startled and fascinated, so I dashed after them, but they fluttered away, and after awhile—I am not sure how long—I came upon a tiny man in a brown, cone-shaped hat.
“Who, who, are you?” I stuttered.
“I am Mr. Mellifluous,” the small man shouted. “And you, you must be an owl.”
“No, my name is Peter,” I responded, shaking my head.
“Are you shaking your head because you are not really Peter, or because you don't believe that I exist?”
“I don't know,” I retorted in disbelief, frowning.
“Obviously, you don't know much,” Mr. Mellifluous scolded, “and that's probably why you are trespassing on my land.”
“Nobody told me that this land belongs to you, and I didn't notice any signs,” I objected.
“Nobody obviously doesn't know anything either,” Mr. Mellifluous replied. “Nevertheless, you are here, and you must make a choice. I strongly recommend that you go back to where you came from. If you do not turn back, you will meet monsters and have adventures with magical creatures and fantastic people and godlike beings. Since you are a big human, I doubt that you would want that!"
Suddenly, I noticed a little girl standing a few feet away, staring quietly at Mr. Mellifluous. Noticing that I had shifted my attention, the small man turned and saw the girl. "What is your name, child?" the little man squeaked at her.
"Claire," she replied. "What is your name, kind sir?"
"I am Mr. Mellifluous, child," he smiled. "It's refreshing nowadays to encounter a human with manners. That is so rare nowadays among humans. You certainly don't find that kind of civility manifesting in the big, clumsy ones much anymore." He gazed in my direction.
Turning back to Claire, he exclaimed, "I can see that you make music with your heart. Not many human folk can do that anymore!”
Mr. Mellifluous continued, "Since you make music with your heart, you shall join the fairy folk!"
Suddenly a fairy with blue wings waved a wand over her head. Claire lifted off the ground and discovered that she could fly!
Then Claire turned into a tiger fairy and roared. She made scary music with her heart. The other fairies screeched and lashed at her with their claws. Mr. Mellifluous muttered, "Oh, dear." He put his hand over his mouth and shook his head. Claire and the other fairies rushed away with the wind.
“Don't worry. She will be fine here for a while. She is just going to have some fun. You, on the other hand, are a different matter." He looked me straight in the eye. "Every creature in this realm has magical powers that can influence you without your knowledge. They might use their powers to unbalance you or trick you or break you into pieces or steal everything from you or seduce you into doing something evil. These powers might look like people or magical animals, but as a human you will not be able at first to see their true nature: They might be monsters who dwell in shadow or Gods who dwell in light and harmony and abundance.
“Even if you can quickly tell the difference, you will probably not know how to deal with them. I am warning you! Even though you may learn to manifest the god-like qualities of harmony, abundance, and magnificence, you will experience many difficult trials along the way. I will be your guide for awhile if you choose to continue, but you must turn back now if you can't answer this simple question in the affirmative: Do you know yourself?”
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