Flare-up (An Away From Whipplethorn Short Story) by Hartoin A.W

Author:Hartoin, A.W.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: dog, fairy, fairy tale, fairy book, fairy magic, fairy horse magic ogre adventure fighting battle epic king kingdom princess knight, dog adventure, fairy creatures, fairy adventures, fairy fairies fantasy childrens books flower fairies magic magical photo book picture book faerie animals whimsical illustrated frogs mushrooms pixie humor fairytale, fairy bargain, fairy fairies fantasy middle grade mg tween ya young adult humor, fairy adventure, fairy fairies
Publisher: A.W. Hartoin

We hovered outside Whipplethorn Manor’s dining room windows. The broken window was right there. We could’ve flown in, but Dad puttered around, making worried faces. He ran his fingers through his thick brown hair and sniffed his arm.

“Do I stink?” he asked.

Iris wrinkled her nose and I said, “A little, but maybe Mom won’t notice.”

“I think, perhaps, we should tell her the truth. I don’t like lying.”

“She’ll totally freak out. She’s already scared of things that never happen.”

Dad nodded. “Rogue fly attacks.”

“Mom says those are deadly,” said Iris.

“And rare,” I said. “When’s the last time we had a fly attack?”

“Fifteen years. That goofball Herbert Whipplethorn baited a fly with a bit of rotten peach and got a broken wing for his trouble. Totally his fault and he didn’t die.”

“What about troll testicles? Mom’s been going on about that for years,” I said.

“What’s that?” asked Iris, her little nose wrinkling once again.

“Don’t worry about it. You can’t get it, sweetheart,” said Dad.

“How come?”

“Cause you don’t have testicles,” I said.

“What are testicles?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but Dad cut me off. “That’s enough. She’s five. She doesn’t need to know.”

“I’ve known forever,” I said.

“You’re going to be a healer. That’s different.”

Iris crossed her arms. “Well, how do you get it?”

I flew in close and made a disgusted face. “By licking an infected troll.”

“Eww. Who would do that?”

“Exactly.”

Dad ran his hands through his hair one more time. “I know your mother can be overly cautious, but she means well.”

“She means to stop us from doing anything. Don’t make it worse,” I said.

Mom zipped up behind Dad and glared at me. “Don’t make what worse? Did you see a troll? Did you lick it?”

“Mom, even if I did lick a troll, nothing would happen,” I said.

“There’s always a first time. New diseases crop up. Just ask your grandmother.”

I groaned as Dad turned to face Mom. He fluttered backwards to get out of her sniffing range, but it wasn’t far enough. She craned her neck out and narrowed her eyes at him. “Was there a troll or not?”

“There were no trolls, Adele. Not even one,” said Dad, avoiding her eyes and looking super guilty. We had no hope. I guess lying well was something one had to be born to. Dad certainly hadn’t learned it.

“So what did happen?” asked Mom. “And I want the truth. These are our girls we’re talking about.”

I swallowed. The truth. The fire in the nose was the truth. Lucky for me, Dad didn’t know it. He definitely wouldn’t be able to lie about that. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to pull it off. I’d never lied about anything that really mattered before. Telling Mom I didn’t steal her hairbrush didn’t count.

“Well, Ambrose?” asked Mom.

Dad’s shoulders slumped. “We ran into some humans, but we’re fine.”

“You just ran into some humans. By accident? Really? You know how I feel about that.”

“Face it, Adele,” said Dad. “Humans are exciting. The girls and I like some excitement. Whipplethorn is so--”

“Do not say boring.

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