By The Water’s Edge

A few weeks later Hattie, Ruby and Piccolo had placed all the finishing touches to the lodging rooms. Beds were made, curtains were hung and lampshades were installed. In communal areas, work had begun with painting, sanding and staining. The old front desk was in need of a refresh and the room was feeling quite dated. Hattie had put together a plan but lots of work was needed to be done. In the dining and bar area, they had already removed the old furniture which was beyond repair with their skill level. The bar was getting the same, but more intense care as the front desk, along with the floor. Their days were filled with endless sanding to get the wood smooth and ready for staining. There was so much to do and they knew they were going to need help to get it in an ideal state for guests but the trio were slowly running out of funds. They really needed guests soon.

Back in the library, the largest room which filled the trunk of the tree was nearly complete. Most of the old books had been moved from the piles on the floor onto the shelves and the mountains of paperwork were slowly disappearing. Kiki and Lienna had worked out a good system to keep all the relevant information together. A filing system behind the library’s large counter had been organised and the pair had spent many hours transferring what they needed to keep from different sheets of paper into a smaller, more manageable format. One of the still untouched rooms of the Library was slowly filling with items that needed to be disposed of as Kiki did not like to see anything thrown away without being recycled. They just didn’t know what to do with it yet so it was all placed somewhere out of sight, out of mind.

One morning Lienna was sitting behind the counter working through the pile of paperwork she had chosen to tackle that day. As she looked up from her work she saw Kiki sitting and staring out of the largest window on the lowest level of the library. The little fairy was looking quite tired Lienna noted as she gazed at her dear friend. Everyone else in the Library was working above them on higher floors as the bookshelves were full on the ground floor. Lumi and Fumi were busy reading a book together and Alula and Kai were working hard carrying and placing books on the shelves. Putting down her work, the flower dragon slowly and gracefully made her way over to the guardian fairy.

Sitting beside Kiki, Lienna reached out for Kiki’s arm, drawing her attention away from the window. As the mother figure to the dragon family, Lienna had quickly become someone Kiki could confide in, especially if she needed comfort. Kiki looked up at Lienna and let out a sigh. “What’s troubling you dear?” questioned Lienna anxiously. Beginning to explain her thoughts, Kiki drew closer and rested her head on Lienna for support.

Kiki spent some time explaining to Lienna how everything began. Initially, Kiki had headed out of the village in search of friends and creatures to help her in the library. She had never planned for all of the things that had happened in such a short time. Kiki found friends, and lots of them a lot more quickly than she had anticipated. It brought her so much joy to see the village begin to grow again, stalls being built and the inn being restored, and yet she didn’t feel content. Without her realising it, Kiki had wanted to find friends, yes, but actually she yearned for a bit of adventure in her days. She had been cooped up in the library for so many years as a guardian and never left the village. All of the friends she had in childhood were given the opportunity to explore the forest when the village moved away, but not her, not Kiki. She had read stories of adventures, stories of legend and books about the history of the emerald forest and she yearned to know more about the forest she was surrounded by, not just in books, but by experiencing things herself. Apart from the one adventure she went on and found the dragon’s cave, she had never stepped foot outside the village boundary. For a while Kiki sat there with Lienna, confiding in her.

Lienna listened to her friend intently as they both sat looking out of the window. It was a beautiful day, thought Lienna, perfect for an adventure. As Kiki finished expressing her thoughts Lienna took the chance to respond: “Why don’t you go out today then? I can tell the forest is calling you out of here. You’ve been staring out the window all morning.” Kiki’s head snapped up from leaning against her pink dragon friend. “Oh I couldn’t. We still have so much work to do and what if something comes up that needs my attention, I…” she trailed off, fiddling with her hands and quickly making her way back to the front counter. Lienna briskly and elegantly made her way over to where Kiki had retreated. “We have everything under control here, look around at how much we have already done. We will be fine for a few hours. You can look at anything that crops up when you return” assured Lienna, guiding her purple winged fairy friend to the door. “Why don’t you go and see Ruby if you’re unsure of where to go? You always said she was an expert of this forest after all that travelling” she continued.  Kiki smiled back at Lienna before heading off to the inn to see Ruby. Just before the door closed, Kiki turned around with a wave and called out “Thank you!” to Lienna.

Pushing open the inn door with an excited ”Hello”, Kiki was greeted by Piccolo who was sweeping sawdust into a pile on the floor. The little mouse gave a small wave and asked Kiki who she was here for. After hearing it was Ruby the guardian fairy was looking for, he scurried off to fetch Ruby from the kitchen. Returning with the red fairy in tow, Piccolo headed back to his cleaning as the fairies talked together. Ten minutes later, now with directions, Kiki made her way out of the inn with a loud “Bye for now” and headed off.

Kiki’s wings fluttered behind her as she flew through the village. She had asked Ruby for directions which would take her somewhere close enough to the village, but exciting enough that she would feel like she had been on an adventure. With these requirements in mind, Ruby had given Kiki directions which should take her to the river that ran through the Emerald Forest. To most inhabitants of the forest, or any town nearby, visiting a river didn’t seem like anything out of the ordinary, but it was very special to Kiki. She had never seen a river, as silly as that might sound, because she was always in the village or working in the Great Tree Library. She wondered what the water would be like. Would it be clear enough so she could see the fish swimming? Would the water be cold or warm? Would it be deep or shallow? Kiki had so many questions but right now she really needed to focus on where she was going.

Kiki tried to follow the directions Ruby had given her carefully, but she kept on getting distracted by pretty flowers, new plants and the beautiful effect of the sunlight peeking through the trees, creating a dappled pattern on the forest floor. Eventually she forgot most of the directions she had been given and had to follow her instincts alone. The forest she had been warned to be dangerous as a young fairy was in fact beautiful. Around forty five minutes later and quite a few wrong turns, Kiki found herself by the river. Although she was sure she hadn’t gone the right way, Kiki found the river quite easily; she was just slightly further away than Ruby had intended her to be.

Finding a rock on the river bank, Kiki sat down to take in her surroundings. The water shimmered in the sunlight as it gently meandered through the forest and the rippling water splashed against the muddy bank. Looking down, Kiki could see a shoal of minnows darting beneath the crystal clear water. Dipping her fingers into the water, an icy chill ran through her as the coldness of the water touched her skin. A mixture of tall reeds and bulrushes clustered by the bank of the river making it quite hard to tell where the water began and the bank ended. They rustled around her, swaying in the gentle breeze. It was so peaceful, Kiki thought as she looked out along the river.

After resting for a while, Kiki heard a splashing sound from further up the river. Taking a closer look she spotted a small animal swimming up the river. Its head could be seen bobbing out of the water every few minutes with a splash before it took a breath and dived back under. This constant diving made it hard to tell what creature it was at first but as it swam closer she noticed it was a slender otter. Kki was excited to meet someone new and gave a small wave, smiling to the otter as it drew even closer to the rock she was sat on. The otter looked over in her direction, noticing her before skilfully swimming over to the bank beside her.

“Hello Miss Fairy, how are you today?” beamed the otter as he crawled out of the water onto the grass. The otter had webbed feet and sleek brown fur which glistened in the sun from being in the water. Its long wiry whiskers twitched with joy at the sight of someone to talk to. “Hello, I’m Kiki, it’s lovely to meet you! This place is wonderful!” replied Kiki with a flutter of her wings. The otter introduced himself as Oscar before asking if the fairy would like to see his treasures. Expecting gold, Kiki excitedly agreed before the otter slipped back in the water to collect a bag he had left on the other side of the river. Swinging her legs in excitement, Kiki waited patiently for her new friend to return.

Oscar soon came back with his valuable finds for the day. They were all packed neatly inside a blue shiny satchel which shone in the light of the sun. Sitting down next to the rock Kiki was perched on, Oscar started to retrieve things from inside his bag of treasures. “This is my net for fish and larger items. It’s not really a treasure but it is very important to me” he said, pulling out a large net bag. Kiki smiled as she saw the otter’s tail swishing back and forth in the grass with excitement. Oscar loved sharing his finds with others and so this moment made him very happy. Before long the grass was covered in a variety of items the little otter deemed to be treasures. There were shells of all shapes, colours  and sizes, old coins, smooth pebbles, broken pottery and glass bottles. To some creatures, these would not be considered treasure, but simply rubbish. However to Oscar, each item was treasure. Kiki listened to the otter talk through every item, where he found it and what he liked best about it. It brought her joy to hear Oscar enthusiastically talk about each item, thrilled he was able to find beauty in the little things.

Kiki pointed to one of the pebbles laid out in front of her that Oscar had not yet mentioned “How about this pebble?” she inquired. “Oh I didn’t find that one today. That’s my favourite pebble” he replied, scooping up the smooth grey stone and passing it over for Kiki to hold. “Isn’t it just lovely to hold?” he exclaimed, his blue eyes lighting up.

This pebble was very special to Oscar and he had searched up and down the river for many days looking for the best pebble before he found it. His search began after a trip to Pearly Shores, a seaside town situated south of the Emerald Forest. The sandy beach was a popular location for many creatures who wanted to escape the hustle and bustle of Claymont City, or the cold weather of the Crystal Slopes. Reminiscing, Oscar began to tell the story of this treasured pebble to Kiki.

Whilst swimming in the ocean, Oscar had met a young sea otter named Marin and they quickly became friends. They spent hours of fun diving under the water together, splashing around and playing. After so many years swimming in the river on his own, Oscar had never found anyone to fully share the joy of diving under water with him. No-one could stay under water for as long as he could and they couldn’t see in water like him to enjoy the beauty found under the surface. Marin however, was able to keep up with him most of the time. She wasn’t able to stay underwater for as long as Oscar but she could stay submerged for around five or six minutes, enough for them both to have fun together.

Oscar learnt so much from Marin that day. He learnt how to open shellfish with a rock, the best diving spot for shells, and lastly all about Marin’s favourite rock. Marin had pulled her favourite rock out of her pouch under her armpit, much to Oscar’s surprise.  Oscar had wondered why he had collected so many pebbles but never found his favourite. He had asked Marin what made her rock the favourite but soon realised they had different criteria for the best. Marin’s favourite rock was based upon its ability to easily open shellfish, whereas Oscar liked a smooth pebble the best.

Parting ways with the promise of meeting again, Oscar made his way up the river towards his den. He was left with a determination to find the best, smoothest pebble in the river. One that would comfort him when he held it and bring him joy. It would be the perfect treasure to remind him of his sea otter friend Marin. After days of searching, he found this pebble and placed in inside a secure pocket of his bag. He was a little jealous he didn’t have a pouch of his one under his armpit like Marin but he was content to place in in a special place, always near to him when he went swimming in the the river.

As Oscar finished his story, Kiki stroked the pebble in her hands and gave it back to Oscar. “Thank you for letting me hold such a precious item” she said with a smile.  The otter carefully placed everything back inside his bag before he spotted a shoal of fish nearby. He quickly grabbed his net, and slipped into the water, leaving the net on the river bank nearby. Kiki watched as he deftly swam and caught the fish one by one, placing them in his net. She was amazed by how long he could stay under water and often found herself losing track of where he was until his head popped out of the water near the bank to place more fish in his net.

After some time enjoying watching the water ripple and listening to the quiet splashing of her friend in the water, Kiki’s stomach began to growl. Lunchtime had passed and it was now time for Kiki to head back for some food in the village. She waited for Oscar to swim over before she called out to him “It’s time for me to leave now Oscar. It was so lovely to meet you!”. The brown otter quickly climbed up the slope of the river bank and made his way over to Kiki. “A gift for our meeting” said Oscar with a grin, holding out a few of the larger fish he had caught. With a quick thank you, Kiki set off back to Kiki Lane.

The journey back to the village was harder and slower for the little fairy under the weight of the fish she was carrying, but it didn’t take her too long to work out where she needed to go. Soon she found herself on the outskirts of Kiki Lane. Her wings tired from the extra work, Kiki gently landed onto the floor, deciding to go the rest of the distance on foot.

A couple of roads away, Kemuri was working outside, preparing her coffee cart for the official opening the next day. She had been working hard to get it set up just right, finding the right placement for the menu, the coffee machine, the cups and decorations. Suddenly  the smell of fish wafted past her, stopping her in her tracks. Placing everything down, she quickly followed the scent through the village. Turning the corner, she found the source of the smell: Kiki was walking down the street carrying freshly caught fish. Kemuri’s tail quivered upright behind her in excitement as she quickly made her way over to Kiki.

“Let me help!” beamed Kemuri making Kiki jump. Kiki gratefully accepted the offer, pleased to be relieved of the load. “I was going to take them to Ruby at the inn” said Kiki, as she directed the little grey cat towards the old building.

Arriving at the inn, Kemuri flung open the door calling out to Ruby, Kiki close behind her. At first there was no response, then a tiny grey head peeked out from behind a doorframe. “She’s in the kitchen” squeaked Piccolo, ushering them in. Despite still being in construction, every room was intriguing for Kemuri who had never visited the inn. As they entered the dining room, Kemuri stopped, amazed at the size of the space. Giving Kiki a wave, Hattie quickly hurried over, offering to give the striped cat a tour. “Go for it!” agreed Kiki, taking the fish from Kemuri and thanking her for the help.

Piccolo pushed open the newly oiled door to the kitchen with a smile. “Oh that works much better now!” commented Kiki, thinking back to when she first visited the inn. Piccolo grinned and nodded before waving goodbye. Ruby was hunched over, peering into one of the several wood fire ovens. “Delivery!” sang Kiki, placing the fish onto one of the large preparation tables in the middle of the room.

Ruby looked up in confusion, she hadn’t ordered anything. Seeing Kiki standing in the kitchen she realised her friend had returned from her adventure. “You’re back” she remarked flying over to welcome Kiki. Ruby had been testing out the different stoves and the Aga all morning to see if they were still working or needed any repairs. It was a long and boring task but it needed to be done before they opened and before Ruby could set everything up ready to use for the village meals.

Once again Kiki’s stomach growled with hunger. Ruby had already made and served everyone lunch a few hours before but she had specifically saved a basket of food for Kiki in preparation for her return. Hearing her friend’s stomach she laughed, remembering the basket on the worktop behind her and went to retrieve it. It was only when she turned back to place the basket down that she noticed the fish lying on the table. “Here’s your lunch Kiki. Oh! Where did these come from?” gasped Ruby in excitement. Ruby loved cooking with fish but hadn’t had any to use for a while whilst living in Kiki Lane. Different recipes swirled in her mind as she wondered what to cook for everyone that evening.

Kiki took a seat on the bench at the table, taking out her food and tucking in, watching Ruby work in the kitchen. After a few minutes Hattie swung open the door and entered ,with Piccolo close behind. Kemuri had now had a tour of the inn’s ground floor and had left to continue getting ready for her coffee cart’s opening. The three inn employees got back to work organising, cleaning and surveying the kitchen as Kiki sat eating her lunch. “How was the adventure?” queried Hattie as she began looking through the cupboards to see what they had. As Kiki ate her lunch she happily explained everything that had happened to her and the lovely otter she met.

With her food finished, Kiki waved goodbye and headed back to the library and her dragon friends. A bell rang as the library door opened and before she could call out her return two little dragons hurtled towards her in excitement. Fumi and Lumi were bouncing on the spot, eager to hear all about Kiki’s morning.”Tell us about your adventure Kiki! Tell us! Tell us!” the pair chanted, tugging at Kiki’s dress in anticipation. The rest of the dragons were not as vocal with their excitement but as Kiki sat down with the youngest dragons and started her story, she noticed Alula, Kai and Lienna creeping closer to work. As the story continued they all stayed close, not wanting to miss anything.

That evening the villagers gathered in the inn for the first time. Tables from different empty houses had been gathered together and placed in the dining hall for their meal as the Library had become too cramped. Ruby brought several dishes to the table before finally bringing out the evening’s special: fish pie. Tucking in to their food, the room was abuzz with noise. Creatures were talking about the inn and discussing plans; Kiki’s adventure was shared between everyone, excitement overflowed about the coffee cart and bakery opening the next day and everyone was complimenting the pie. The evening was a success.

As plates began to clear and the room quietened down the conversation turned to the otter Kiki had met that day. Everyone was very excited to hear of a possible new friend but Ruby was more interested in obtaining more fish. “Would everyone enjoy more fish dishes?” asked Ruby testing the waters. With everyone agreeing, Ruby turned towards Kiki with a suggestion. “Do you think Oscar would catch fish for us, or at least the inn? We would pay for it of course but having a supplier would make things a lot easier.” she asked as everyone nodded, agreeing it would be a great idea. The question took Kiki by surprise and she wondered how she hadn’t thought of it herself. Unsure of what the otter’s response would be, Kiki decided in that moment that she would head out to find Oscar again to ask him.