Once upon a time there was a tiny little village deep in the
mountain forest called Peat Haven. It was a very special village because it was
home to forest mosslings, tiny people grown from the very bark and moss that
carpets the floor of the deep woods. Mosslings were shy, magical creatures.
Their magic, which was not as broad and powerful as that of their close
cousins, the mountain fairies, was limited, only able to transform the basic
elements of the earth. Mosslings used this magical ability to break down the
rocks in the forest into lush minerals and dirt so that the thousands of
flowers in the forest can grow tall and strong. The flowers in and around the
village of Peat Haven were among the most beautiful in all the world.
The Mosslings’ magic, however, was the envy of the Grogs, a
cruel and harsh group of cave-dwelling ogres who lived beneath the mountain.
Grogs craved all things sparkling and shiny and desired to enslave the
Mosslings. They desired to use the Mossling magic to transform cave rocks into
shiny precious jewels.
Fortunately, the queen of the forest fairies, Queen
Angelica, loved her near-cousins and the beautiful flowers they produced.
Mossling flowers were used as decorations all across Queen Angelica’s kingdom.
To protect the Mosslings from the Grogs, the fairy queen placed a powerful
magic barrier around Peat Haven and the surrounding flower fields. Only those
who knew the magic password could penetrate the barrier. Speak the password
once and the barrier came down, allowing safe travel out of or into Peat Haven.
Speak it again, and the boundary returned, protecting Peat Haven once more. All
young Mosslings were taught this password and were warned to protect it with
their very lives, but they were also taught to be very careful, because when
the barrier came down, Peat Haven was vulnerable to attack. For this reason,
the Mosslings mostly stayed within the safety of the barrier.
There was a mischievous young Mossling in Peat Haven named
Verdie. Verdie, like most Mosslings, loved mushrooms. Verdie, however, loved
mushrooms so much that he would go out every day, searching far and wide
throughout Peat Haven, looking for the largest and plumpest mushrooms he could
find. Often he would go near the edge of the magical boundary, because many
mushrooms grew there.
After a time, however, Verdie began to notice the mushrooms
outside the boundary. There, Verdie saw mushrooms growing all across the forest
floor. To him, the mushrooms on the other side of the barrier looked larger,
plumper, and more luscious than those in Peat Haven. Oh, how much he wanted to
leave the safety of his village to gather those mushrooms, but he knew that
would be very dangerous. One day, he approached the boundary, looking longingly
at the mushrooms on the other side.
“It would only take me a moment,” he thought to
himself.
Convinced he could gather the mushrooms safely, he spoke the
password to lower the magic barrier and dashed quickly through. Grabbing a
small handful of mushrooms, he ran back across the boundary as quickly as
possible to the safety of his home. Once across, he spoke the password again,
returning the magic barrier. “That wasn’t so bad,” he said.
Unbeknownst to Verdie, a young Grog named Kerr was also in
the area exploring the forest, looking for shiny stones and gems. He saw
Verdie, and watched with curiosity as he lowered and raised the magic
barrier.
The next day, Verdie came back and did it again. Then again
after that. Each day, Kerr watched from a distance. On the fourth day, Kerr
devised an evil plan to trick Verdie into revealing the magic password. When
Verdie approached the magical boundary that day, Kerr was standing there
waiting. Verdie stopped dead, and his eyes went wide like saucers when he saw
the young ogre.
“Don’t be afraid,” said Kerr, “I’ve been watching you, and I
want to help you pick mushrooms. Come on out and we can do it together.”
“No, no,” said Verdie, and he ran away.
Poor Verdie knew he should look for mushrooms somewhere
else, but the call of the delicious mushrooms across the boundary was too
great. The next day Verdie crept slowly to the boundary, approaching with
caution, hoping perhaps that Kerr would not be there. This time, however, not
only was Kerr there, but he was holding a large basket of mushrooms that he had
picked just for Verdie.
“See,” said Kerr, “I’ve already picked them for you. All you
have to do is tell me the password so I can give you the mushrooms.”
“No, no”, said Verdie, and he ran away.
Day after day he came back to the boundary, looking
longingly at the mushrooms that Kerr had picked. They were so plump and lush.
He wanted them so badly. Then one day, he came to the boundary. As he did each
day, Kerr said, “Just tell me the password and I will give you the mushrooms.”
Except on this day, Kerr added, “I won’t tell anyone the password. It will be
our secret.”
Verdie hesitated. Grogs couldn’t be trusted – unless perhaps
it was a promise. To Mosslings, a promise was the highest form of covenant. One
must never break a promise. To do so would mean disgrace before your people.
“You promise?” he asked. “You won’t tell anyone?”
“I give you my word that I won’t tell a single soul.”
Convinced that Kerr would keep his word, he spoke the password and took the
basket of mushrooms.
“See,” said Kerr, “that wasn’t so bad. We can be friends
now, right?”
“I don’t know,” said Verdie. “Maybe you should go… but come
back tomorrow and we can talk about it then.”
Kerr left, and Verdie put the boundary back up. He sighed in
relief and headed back to his village, convinced that all was well in Peat
Haven. What Verdie did not know, however, was that Grogs had no soul. Kerr
could tell the password to as many Grogs as he wanted and never break his
promise to Verdie, which is exactly what he did.
Later that evening, after the sun had gone down, Verdie was
wandering in the woods, contemplating whether Kerr, the sworn enemy of the
Mosslings, could possibly be a new friend. Suddenly, alarms and cries rang out,
echoing through the woods. Verdie rushed towards his village to see what was
the matter, but as he approached, he could see hundreds of Grogs tramping
through the woods. They were catching Mosslings and stuffing them into
rucksacks they carried on their backs.
“Oh no,” he thought, “what have I done?”
Verdie hid himself under a pile of leaves and watched as his
entire village was captured and carried away to the Grog caves. They were all
gone – doomed to work for the Grog in their rock pits, turning stones into gems
–and it was all his fault. He sobbed all night long, but for fear of getting
caught, he stayed hidden under the leaves.
The next morning Verdie emerged from his leafy hiding
place.
“I’m so sorry,” he said to no one. “I never meant for this
to happen.”
He repeated this over and over as he wandered through the
empty village, wondering how he could make this right. As he reached the center
of town, he came to a small wooden statue of Queen Angelica that his village
had carved in her honor. He sat down beside the statue and began to sob.
“What am I going to do?” he asked the statue. “How can I fix
this?”
As he sat there crying, a winged figure appeared before him,
hovering silently, waiting for him to notice her presence. She was beautiful,
with golden hair that sparkled in the morning sun. Her wings were delicate,
glittering as they flapped rapidly to keep her hovering in place. She wore a
pale blue dress that came down to her knees, and she held a tiny scepter in her
hand. All around her was the aurora of fairy magic. At the moment, that aurora
was a soft, almost powdery, pale pink – like a cherry blossom. Verdie startled
and jumped up when he saw her.
“Your Majesty!" he exclaimed, for every Mossling knew
the fairy queen by sight.
“What is the matter, young one?” asked Queen Angelica. Her
voice was felt more than heard, like a whisper of music floating on the gentle
morning breeze.
“Oh, Your Majesty,” cried Verdie, falling to his knees,
clasping his hands in front of him, “I have done a terrible thing.”
“Tell me,” she said.
Verdie stood up and began his tale. As he spoke, the queen
looked around at the empty village, her pink aurora darkening subtly to a light
rose. Slowly, she lowered herself until her petite feet touched the ground and
her delicate wings folded up on her back. Before Verdie could finish, she
interrupted him.
“You revealed the secret password,” she said, “and now
everyone has been captured by the Grogs.”
Verdi looked at the queen with meekness, his hands still
clasped in front of him, but he swung them back and forth in a sheepish
fashion. “He…he… promised, and I just wanted those mushrooms so badly. I’m so
sorry.” Verdi then lowered his head and eyes.
The queen’s aurora brightened again as she waved her magic
wand. Magic dust swirled in the air, and two plump mushrooms appeared before
Verdi at the foot of her statue.
“Which of these two is better?” She asked, pointing to them
with her scepter. “Pick the one that is superior.”
Verdi looked at them for a moment and said, “I can’t tell
the difference. They are both the same.”
“Precisely,” she said, “one came from inside Peak Haven and
the other from outside. They are the same. Sometimes, something looks more
desirable simply because we cannot have it.” Once again, her aurora darkened,
this time to a darker, dusty rose. “You’ve made a terrible mistake, young
Mossling, and the consequences are dire.”
Queen Angelica paused, waiting to see how Verdie would
respond. Verdie fell to his knees again, this time grasping at her tiny feet.
“Oh, Your Majesty, isn’t there anything you can do?”
Suddenly, her aurora darkened even more – to a deep fuchsia.
“To bring back the Mosslings,” she said in a low, serious tone, “would require
very much magic — all that I have — perhaps more than I have. Would you have me
place the whole kingdom at risk to undo your mistake?”
“Please, oh please. They did nothing wrong. This was all my
fault. I will do anything. You can even take my magic if that will help!”
Queen Angelica was surprised at the bravery young Verdie
displayed, for Mosslings, being made from magic, cannot survive without it.
“Are you sure, Verdie, because if I take your magic, you
will fade back into the elements from which you were made.”
“Please, Your Majesty, do it, please. I have to make this
right. I cannot bear to live knowing my village has been enslaved because of my
mistake.”
The queen’s aurora turned dark purple as she waved her
sceptre in circles around Verdie’s head.
“Once done, this cannot be undone,” she said. Verdie nodded
for her to continue.
Slowly, the aurora around Queen Angelica turned from purple
to green as she took Verdie’s magic from him. Slowly, all around them,
Mosslings began to appear, having been transported by Verdie’s magic essence
from the Gorg caves back to Peat Haven. Verdie, however, was fading away,
returning to his base elements. By the time all the villagers had been
returned, Verdie was nothing more than a blanket of moss hanging across the
base of Queen Angelica’s statue. The queen put the barrier back in place, reset
the magic password, and spoke to the Mosslings.
“Verdie made a terrible mistake. His poor judgment caused
you to be enslaved by the Grog, but he learned his lesson and sacrificed
himself for your safe return. Remember him well,” she added as she flew up into
the air, trailing soft pink magic aurora behind her.
Now, whenever the Mosslings pass by the queen’s statue and
see the moss growing there, they are reminded that the mushrooms are never
plumper on the other side, and they honor the sacrifice Verdie made to learn
that lesson.
