Every time Elise visited her grandmother’s house, she knew there would be no happily ever after. Spending time with the old hag was always a gruelling task. Elise’s grandmother was unfairly strict and she would scold her granddaughter for any minor fault.
Elise had to do exactly as she was told. For a nine-year-old who wished to explore and play, Elise’s grandmother was a difficult person to cope with.
When Elise and her mother stepped across the threshold of her grandmother’s house, Elise had to stop herself from covering her nose. Everything inside the crumbling cottage reeked of burnt gingerbread and soft-boiled sweets. The curtains, the cushions, and even the cats stank of overbaked sugar. To escape the overpowering smell, Elise went out into the back garden to play.
As soon as she stepped out onto the back step, her grandmother was behind her. Once again, the old woman sternly reminded Elise she was only allowed to play near the house, she was forbidden to go anywhere near the garden wall.
Elise still had memories of when she was a toddler and her grandmother scolded her for wandering too close to the wall. Elise wondered whether her grandmother was worried the high wall would fall and crush her precious grandchild but despite the wall’s old age, the stones were fixed in place and showed no sign of falling down.
It was only when Elise was older, she finally realised it wasn’t the wall that unsettled her grandmother but rather the silent woodland that stood behind it. She often saw her grandmother looking through the kitchen window, staring at the forest with a guarded gaze like she was expecting an incredible foe to appear. Apart from the occasional haunting hoot of a night owl, Elise did not know what was so scary about the trees. The only animals she knew that lived in the woods were foxes, badgers and squirrels. Nothing sinister.
When Elise had dared to ask her grandmother about the forest, the woman had coldly replied,
“We must respect the old tales. They keep us safe.”
Elise did not understand her meaning but she did as she was told anyway and stayed away from the garden wall. She didn’t want to endure another scolding.
Whilst her mother and grandmother stayed inside, Elise planted herself at the top of the garden and tried to occupy herself with her grandmother’s old porcelain dolls.
Elise hated dolls. Their glass eyes were constantly staring like they were watching her every move. She wanted to play with her phone or listen to her music but she knew what her grandmother would say.
Such toys are not appropriate for little girls.
Elise grimaced at the sound of her grandmother’s voice and poked the doll in the eye.
Suddenly, in the corner of her own eye, Elise saw something fall into the overgrown grass behind her. Nervous of what it was and not eager to move closer to investigate, she craned her head to look. She hoped it wouldn’t move.
Elise sighed with relief as she saw it was only a pinecone.
Confused, she glanced at the wall and then back at the pinecone. The nearest trees were beyond the wall so it was impossible for the cone to have simply fallen from a tree.
“Hello. Hello, there.”
Elise followed the sound of the tender voice. A young girl, who appeared only a year or so older than Elise, peered over the top of the wall. With large eyes, pink cheeks and white teeth, the girl was rather pretty but there was something strange about her that Elise could not point. The girl asked politely,
“Would you be kind enough to retrieve that for me?”
The girl pointed at the pinecone.
“Er, okay,” Elise said, awkwardly.
She picked up the pinecone and shuffled towards the wall. She expected her grandmother to yell from the back door but there was no sign of her. Elise knew if she was quick, her grandmother would never need to know.
It had been many years since Elise had walked so far from the cottage. As she moved closer towards the wall, she noticed the grass was deeper and the ground was uneven. Elise also noticed there were many broken and sharp twigs in the thick grass. They looked liked small spears from a battlefield. It was strange how parts of the forest had managed to fall into the garden when there was a tall, stone wall between them. Elise stopped about seven steps from the wall, she looked up at the young girl.
“Thank you for bringing my pinecone back,” the girl smiled sweetly.
“What do you need it for?” Elise asked. With a forest of trees beyond the wall, she could not see why the girl needed this particular pinecone.
“I’m playing a game,”said the girl.
“Are you winning?”
“Almost.” The girl’s smile grew wider, showing all of her pearl white teeth, she chuckled, “Once I get it back, I will be victorious.”
Elise had never heard of a game involving pinecones before.
“My name is Dianthril,” the girl bowed her head politely. “Please, call me Di. What is your name?”
“Elise.”
“Elise...” Di repeated quietly, tasting each syllable, she grinned, “It is lovely to meet you, Elise.”
“Do you live around here?” Elise asked.
“Oh, yes. I live very close. This forest is practically my home,” Di gestured to the woods behind her.
Every time Elise had visited her grandmother, she had never seen any neighbours. She presumed nobody lived nearby.
“I didn’t know children lived here anymore.” Di said, her bright eyes drifted past Elise and towards the cottage and then back to the young girl. “I thought the old woman lived here alone.”
“I’m just visiting. Do you know my grandmother?”
Di nodded, “We don’t get on very well. I tried talking to another young girl, a long time ago and the old hag threw a broom at me.” Di winced, like the memory still pained her, “Since then, I never saw another child.”
Elise wasn’t sure what other little girl Di meant. Elise had no sisters and her grandmother didn’t have any other grandchildren. Elise wondered if Di meant her mother, when she was a little girl but that couldn’t be possible.
“How old are you, Di?” Elise asked.
Di blinked like the question had taken her off guard but her confusion quickly vanished and was replaced with a slow smile.
“Do you believe in faerie tales?”
To be honest, Elise loved fairy tales when she was little. She loved the idea of fairy godmothers, charming princes and brave princesses but when Elise asked her grandmother to tell her a fairy tale, the old woman snapped,
“Faerie tales are not fun stories about living happily ever after. They are lessons, lessons everyone should learn from.”
On some occasions, her grandmother would tell her faerie tales but these were stories Elise had never heard of before and they were often sad and grim. One such story was about a little girl who ventured too far from home and in the end, she was gobbled up by a devilish creature.
Elise told her mother that her grandmother was telling scary stories but her mother just shrugged and said that’s what Grandmother was like. After that, Elise lost interest in fairy tales and when her grandmother told her stories, she tended not to listen.
“Not really,” said Elise. “My grandmother says fairy tales are lessons for people to learn from but I think they’re just made up stories for little kids.”
“Made up stories?” Di drawled as she leaned forward, “If faerie tales aren’t true, how could I be standing here?”
“What are you saying?” Elise asked, utterly confused.
“What I’m saying is…” Di watched Elise carefully. “I’m a faerie.”
Elise started to frown but as she was about to tell Di to stop being silly, she began to realise Di’s skin was a dull grey, her eyes shined almost violet and her sharp ears cut through her hair. Di was no ordinary girl at all, she was something else.
“You can’t be...” Elise gasped. “You must be joking.”
“I’m not joking,” Di laughed softly. “I truly am a faerie. I have magic. I can make wishes come true. I can make your wishes come true.”
“Really?” Elise could not quite believe what she was hearing.
“Of course,” Di tapped her nails on the wall like she was playing a tune. “Come over this wall and I’ll make all your dreams come true. Anything you ask for will be yours.”
Elise stepped forward, the idea of having any dream come true, well, was like a dream come true. However, as Elise looked up at the wall, she remembered her grandmother. Elise murmured, weakly.
“I can’t.”
“Why not?” Di’s smile was gone.
“I can’t go over the wall. My grandmother would kill me. Can you come over here?”
“Ignorant child,” Di snapped. “Don’t you think I would have already if it was possible?”
Elise flinched and stepped back, she felt the words as if they had been slapped across her cheek. Di seemed to realise she had gone too far, she cleared her throat like she was dispelling a small cough.
“I’m sorry, Elise.” Her voice was tender and sweet again. “Please forgive me. I would come over if I could.” Her eyes flicked over to the cottage and then back at Elise, “I understand you’re a good little girl and don’t want to upset your grandmother. Don’t worry. I won’t ask you to come over the wall again. However, can I ask for one small request? If it’s not too much trouble.”
“Sure,” Elise said.
“Can you return my pinecone to me?”
“Okay.” Elise smiled, she took a step back and raised her arm. She was an excellent thrower but before she had the chance to impress.
“Please, don’t!” Di cried. “Don’t throw it. That pinecone is awfully precious to me, it has something I need so desperately.” Elise looked at the pinecone in her hand. It seemed so ordinary. Di patted the top of the wall, “Please, can you come up here and give it to me? I’m not asking you to go over the wall, just climb up. Please, I would be forever grateful.”
Elise glanced back nervously to the cottage. She couldn’t see the haunting shape of her grandmother in the windows. Elise knew she was not going to go over the wall. She was simply climbing up, giving Di the pinecone and climbing back down again. Her grandmother would never have to know she was anywhere near the wall.
Wild ivy and moss seeped through the cracks of the bricks and despite their attempts to unsettle the brickwork, the wall remained strong. Finding a nook for her foot, Elise started the climb. Di watched her as she climbed up the stones. Elise did not realise how high the wall was until she made it to the top. She had to stop herself from looking down.
“There, I can see you better now,” Di murmured, her purple eyes narrowed as the edge of her lips curled into a wicked smile. Now she was closer, Elise noticed Di’s nails were perfectly sharp and beneath her smile, she was sure she could see many sharp, canine teeth. Eager to climb back down, she reached over the wall and offered the pinecone.
“Here it is.”
Di watched Elise’s hand, her eyes began to smile and her grin sharpened as she said quietly,
“It’s been such a long time since I’ve been this close to a child.”
Before Elise could react, a terrible scream wrenched her gaze back to the cottage. Her grandmother was running towards them, her grey hair flailed behind her as she cried something unintelligible.
“Do you know the purpose of faerie tales, little Elise?” Di’s whisper was cold against her ear. Elise turned to the faerie as she felt a hand latch around her wrist. The grip was tight like a trap snatching a rabbit. Elise dropped the pinecone in fear. Di did not care, her purple eyes were maliciously bright as she stared at the girl. “Faerie tales were created to keep little children safe from folk like us.”
Elise did not have time to scream as Di dragged her helpless body over the wall. As soon as she was over the other side, her eyes met thousands of grim eyes staring straight back at her and beneath them, she could see thousands of teeth, razor sharp and happy to meet her.