Crystals-Part 10

Old Noddy was not in his garden.

“Well Rinna, what do you suggest we do?”  Cherry asked.

Rinna looked around.  “I know he has a library!  He let me borrow a book once.”

“All right, let’s go.”

*

The two elves flipped through pages and volumes of books.  Rinna kept getting distracted by the intricate bindings and exotic titles.

“Something helpful would be good to find,” Cherry said as Rinna pulled out Aqueous Animals.

“Of course,” Rinna put it back, causing another book to fall.

“Cherry!”

“What?”

“Does Historic Royal Escapes sound helpful to you?”

“Yes!” Cherry took it and flipped through.  Illustrations of everything from summer camps to romantic beaches covered the pages.

“This looks promising,” Rinna pointed to a picture of a mountain.

“I guess the winter royals don’t have much in the way of ‘escapes’.” Cherry said as she looked at the picture.  White walls and light wooden flooring with little in the way of opulence greeted her.

“At least we have a destination!” Rinna said, pointing to an annotation in the margin: Wynter’s place when she wants to be alone.

*

“Your highness, our search parties were unsuccessful.  I am sorry.”

Princess Autumn raised her head, revealing puffy, bloodshot eyes.  “Keep looking.  She is out there somewhere.”

“Your highness,” the guard bowed, and left.

Princess Autumn sighed.  Going without sleep was not good for her attitude.  Every hour, another need appeared, and she grew angrier at Wynter.   She massaged her temples and sighed again.  There is work to be done.

*

Hello!

Aren’t you glad it’s May?  Our trees are finally blooming. ❤ !

Final exams are almost done, too!  Hope all of your lives are going well right now.

What’s your favorite season/month?

❤ ,

IrishAG

Crystals- Part 9

The other princesses formed search parties as quickly as possible.  Having relinquished their power, the previous princesses could only advise vaguely.  The girls were on their own, cut off from any higher authority.

Sommar was shivering outside, handing villagers warm blankets and inviting them inside for efficient fires and body heat.

I won’t last long in this weather, she thought, watching the search parties go into the mountains.

*

Rinna Clearwater was sobbing in a corner when her best friend Cherry Blossom found her.  “Oh, come on Rinna.  It’ll all be okay.”

“No it won’t.” Rinna sniffled.

“Hey!  Wrong attitude!  There are search parties out there, and we have guards here to keep us safe.”

“But-but-but…” Rinna hiccuped.

“All right,” said Cherry, frustrated, “You know what?  We’re going to be our own search party.  That’s right!  You and I are having an adventure.  You were close to Eegrek.  He must have a few leads.”

*

The two commoner elves sneaked through the confusion, grabbing supplies.

“Are you sure we need all this?” Rinna asked.

“You’ll thank me-puff- when we’re prepared.” Cherry said, shuffling through a shelf full of items.

“You’re sure you know where to go?”

“Pretty sure.” Rinna grinned.  “He never wrote this, but he said no one knew more about breaking spells than Old Noddy.”

“Who?”

“You’ll see.”

“And you didn’t think to tell me this earlier?”

Rinna shrugged and looked around Eegrek’s room.  “We didn’t learn anything from these books.”

*

Wynter found the place she’d been looking for.  Perfect.  She snapped her fingers, and her sleigh and horses fell into the snow, disintegrated.

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Hello community!

Stories help us to thrive in hard times, and I hope this helps you!  🙂

What are some of your favorite books?

❤ ,

IrishAG xoxo

Crystals- Part 8

Autumn Kingdom Guard

“Lady Autumn, I mean, Princess,” a guard said, “Princess Wynter is gone.”

Autumn was panicked.  “I’ve only been princess for a few hours!”  Coming to herself, she thanked the guard and encouraged extra diligence.

The party was rapidly cancelled, worried guests pouring into the night.  Princess Autumn followed them.  Snowflakes were swirling with the leaves.  Autumn stopped in her tracks.

“What is it?”  Fleurette asked.

“There has never been snow in this kingdom before.”  was the faint reply.

Sommar placed a hand on Autumn’s shoulder.  Autumn breathed deeply.  “We’ll think of something.  We will find Princess Wynter, and speak with her.”

“Your highness, this is an act of treachery!” exclaimed a guard.

Treachery.  The word slapped the chilled air and hung there.

“We will consider it.”  was all Autumn said, dismissing the guard.

“At least she can’t have gone far.”  said Fleurette.

“Oh yes, she could.”  replied Sommar darkly.

“Enough!” Autumn said.  “We will deal with this like we were taught, like princesses!”

*

Wynter had quickly conjured ice horses, and an attached sleigh.

“Hyah!” she drove them away.  Snow gathered on the ground, and Wynter’s tears were frozen on her cheeks.  No one will find me.

****************

Hello!

I’ve been experimenting with editing real-life photos and putting them in photostories.  What do you think?

Hope you’re all doing okay and enjoying Crystals!  Do you have a favorite character?

❤ ,

IrishAG

Crystals- Part 7

“Princess Wynter?”  Fleurette looked all over the palace.  No one knew where she had gone, or when she’d be back.

In the side corridor by the ballroom, she heard sniffling.  A brief search revealed a young elf, crying behind a flower urn.

“Oh, sweet pea,” Fleurette knelt beside her, “What’s wrong?”

The elf raised her head and pointed.

“The corridor?  I know, the dark is scary.  When I was little, I needed a glow worm.  He lit my room.  And see?  The moon lights the corridor even now.” she rose and opened a heavy curtain.  “Just like my glow worm.”

The elf did not stop.  Fleurette looked about the corridor, following the finger.

A frozen gnome gleamed in the moonlight.

*

“Artfully, dreadfully frozen!”  Sommar said to Autumn when Fleurette had brought the news, “Only one could have done this.”

“You don’t think…”

“Who else has ice powers?”  Sommar challenged.  “And he’s our only contact with Queen Elaina!  Do you think that is a coincidence?”

*

Wynter stumbled out of the palace.  Get out, get out, get out.  They have power here.  She ran to the stables.

Above her head, snow began to fall.

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Hello all!

Hope you have all been safe + healthy!  Did you know that today is National Close Friends day?

Here is a virtual rose, with love from the IrishAG site!  Spread the love, and feel free to use the above image.  😀

What did you think of this installment of Crystals?

❤ ,

IrishAG

 

 

Crystals- Part 6

Hey readers!  Just a quick reminder: this story is based on The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen.  The other installments, if you haven’t read them already, are in this order:

1. Prologue
2. Part 1
3. Part 2
4. Part 3
5. Part 4
6. Part 5

Okay, back to the story!

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“Hello Fleurette!” Autumn said, coming up after a particularly tiring dance.

“You seem flushed.”

“Of course!  You can’t tarantella without a little exhaustion.  If I was a human, I’d go straight to Italy.  Fashionable cities, dry heat…”  Autumn extended her arms, eyes closed as if she could feel the breeze.

“Oh, but Elfwyld is ever so much nicer than the human world!  Just think, there would be so many humans, you wouldn’t know them all!”

“That’d be the wonder of it.  Everything new and different.  But it would be scary, at first.  There’s Sommar!  I’m glad someone got her to dance.  Where’s Wynter?”  Autumn looked around, but the ballroom was full of other elves.

*

The side corridor was cool.  The night wind breezed through the open french doors.  Noise from the ballroom was muted where Eegrek led Wynter.

“I regret to inform you of your parents’ deaths.”

“Wha- no!  They were going to meet me here!  After their business!”  Wynter felt sadness evaporate in the heat of her anger.  “They promised!”

Eegrek stepped back, not knowing what to say.  She overtook him in a stride.

“How did it happen?” she hissed, a tear slipping down her porcelain cheek.

“It was an evil trick, your highness.  An evil magic practitioner made a vision of suffering gnomes.  Your parents went to help them, and…” he made a helpless gesture.  “I am sure they have gone to their reward.”

“Oh yes.” she said chillingly, clutching an unfortunate leaf that had blown in and freezing it.  “Surely.  You gnomes, hmm?”

“Are you mad?”  Eegrek asked.

Wynter only smiled.

*******************************************

The plot thickens…

I never really liked the story of the Snow Queen when I was little… What are some of your favorite fairy tales now?  When you were younger?

❤ , IrishAG

Crystals- Part 5

“The ball was uneventful.  Fancy food and lively dancing, as usual.  I wore my green dress.”  Sommar planned to write in her journal later.  Her sister lived to hear of the world outside of the Summer kingdom, like Sommar lived for literature.

At the other end of the ballroom, Wynter noticed Eegrek nervously pacing, but decided not to mention it.  She was occupied, herself.  Fleurette wouldn’t leave her alone!

“Show me again!” she’d say, begging Wynter to use her powers like magic tricks.

Fleurette shouldn’t be a princess, if she acts like this.  Or maybe Spring Princesses are supposed to be like that… she thought grumpily.

Eegrek came up to her.  “Princess Wynter?”

“Yes, sir?” she tried to be polite.

“We need to talk, alone.”

She nodded, and noticed Fleurette chattering to someone else.

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Hi guys!!!

Oooh, leaving you in suspense!  I tried editing photos this time, to give the feeling of an evening, indoor ball.

What do you think Eegrek has to say?  🙂

❤ ,

IrishAG

Crystals- Part 4

The newly-crowned princesses had a ball that night.

“Oh Fleurette,” complained Autumn, “I hate dresses!”

“But you look so pretty in them!”  Fleurette gushed.

The gnome, Eegrek, had told Autumn to change into “more elven clothing”.  Autumn frowned in the mirror.

Sommar read in the corner, while Wynter gazed out the window at the flame-colored foliage.  She exhaled, creating a snowflake.

/

“Wow!”  Wynter turned and saw Fleurette.  “Do it again!”

“I don’t really do it on demand, usually it’s a more natural thing…”  Wynter protested.

“Please?”  Fleurette made puppy eyes.

In response, Wynter sighed deeply, making another snowflake.

“We should go down soon.”  Sommar interrupted.

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Crystals-Part 3

Outside of Fall Palace

When Sommar walked up the steps, only a solitary elf was at the top of them.  Which was good, because Sommar hated pomp.  The elf introduced herself as Posie.  Sommar saw someone watching her from the window.  She followed Posie to the Council, where the other Ladies were assembled.

I’m the last one!  She thought in dismay, grateful for her dark complexion that hid her blush.  As she sat, a gnome waddled to the middle of the room.

“Ladies of the seasons, we welcome you to the Fall Kingdom.  We hope this council will be friendly and fruitful.”  The familiar words washed over the Ladies, who had heard them addressed to the Princesses before them.  The gnome allowed for quiet murmurs of agreement.  “Today is special, because for the first time, all of the Season Princesses are replaced by an individual from their respective kingdoms with extraordinary gifts.  They are the ladies Fleurette for Spring, Sommar for Summer, Autumn for Fall, and Wynter for Winter.  As this pleases Queen Elaina, we will begin.”  His eyes skittered to the side.

All the ladies rose in a practiced way and formed a line to be crowned.  “Lady Fleurette, of Spring.  You have promised to live by our Season’s Laws and have completed your education.  I pronounce you Princess Fleurette of Spring.”

Fleurette almost did a happy dance.  “Thank you.”  She stepped away.

The same was done for Sommar and Autumn.  The gnome hesitated for a moment when Wynter approached.  I foresee darkness and chaos.  “As Queen Elaina wishes, so it shall be.” he mumbled uncertainly after proclaiming Wynter a princess.

 

Julia’s Last ‘Summer’ Picnic

Hey all!  Can you believe it’s already October 23rd?!?  Crazy!  Anyway…

A little while ago, I wanted  to take some pics using the cooler set, and this is what came out of it!

***

One day, Julia decided to take advantage of the beautiful, warm autumn day.  Coconut inspired her by going to her bright orange cooler and making sad, squeaky noises.  Julia was not ready for Summer to be over, so she tried to make a picnic that was as beachy as possible.

“Coconut?!?  Where’d you go?  You’re the one who whined by the cooler and started this whole thing!”  Julia said, a teensy bit worried and a whole lot annoyed.

“This sandwich is too big.  I’ll go get Josefina to have lunch with me!”  Julia said.

“Woof!”

“Don’t even think about eating them while I’m gone.  I think I’ll take you with me, you’ve caused a lot of mischief already!”

***

Hey readers!

So in this post, the picnic blanket was actually a napkin.  That’s what is so fun about doll stuff – you can use small human things for them!

That’s about it… see you later!

❤ , IrishAG

Josefina…

Hey guys!  I know, I couldn’t think of a good title for this one.

hair askew, she walks at dusk

quiet stepping, dodging corn husks

lively party, can’t go in

secret dancing to violin

climbing quickly up a tree

the setting sun not hard to see

watching dancers twirl right by

pretty as the painted sky

naming all the herbal dyes

no one sees the hidden spy

trying to remember her

wondering what she would wear

noting quickly darkening space

scuttling down at hasty pace

halted by the scent of flowers

mama-longing overpowers

comforted by lovely sight

hearing her name called in the night

running fast to Papa’s arms

sanctuary from all harms.

***

Another poem-shoot!  I didn’t intend to do this, but the photo shoot I took didn’t have a lot of pictures I wanted to post.  🙂

This was (loosely) based on a part of Changes for Josefina, one of her pre-BeForever books.

❤ , IrishAG