The Lonely Guardian

The Emerald Forest was a place of mystery for many. Some brave adventurers had at one time taken a trip down the river that ran through the middle of the forest, but the densely packed trees lining the bank had deterred anyone from ever venturing deeper. Tales had been passed down through generations of people going missing, never to be seen again; tales of large creatures who dwelt there, waiting to pounce on anyone who came near. At the east of the forest were the Snowy mountains and then the icy town of Crystal Slopes, to the west were the glistening waters of Sapphire Lake and the bustling Claymont city. If you were to head to the south of the forest you would find the town of Pearly Shores, a beautiful seaside destination for all. The forest was surrounded by attractions and towns; all routes seemed to circle the forest and never go through.

What everyone didn’t know was that the forest was full of life. For many years, hidden from all, a small village was nestled near the centre. It housed a community of fairies and a few of their most trusted friends who lived and worked together in harmony. Each year a new fairy was picked to become a guardian of the Great Tree Library and it was a dream job for many. The library had been built into the largest tree centuries ago and was the treasure of the village. It was thought that the library held important, secret books that held great power. These books needed to be guarded so that they didn’t end up in the wrong hands. What nobody expected was that the village population would dwindle as no new fairies were born. Most of the remaining inhabitants moved away and only the guardians were left behind. Soon, only one guardian remained. Since she was little, her beautiful blonde hair was cut short so it didn’t get in the way while she read. Her skin was like porcelain and she wore a short pink dress over a beautifully full white petticoat and had a white bow tied around her waist. She had always loved this dress as it reminded her of one of her favourite stories. With a love of the prettiest things and flowers, she topped off her look with a cute pink flower in her hair.

It had been 2 years now since Kiki was left to look after the Great Tree Library after her last remaining elder passed away. She had only been a guardian for a couple of years before it was all left in her hands. She had been chosen at a very young age due to her love of books and because candidates were scarce. It had been tradition for fairies to be guardians and no other species had yet been given the opportunity to become one. It was only a year after her appointment that the village became empty. At that time, very few people were left and they all decided they needed to move to one of the bigger towns as they needed more opportunities. Over the following year Kiki learnt all she could from her elders about the running and upkeep of the library and she grew quite close to them. Unfortunately, many of the other guardians had grown quite old and over time they had to leave until it was only young Kiki remaining.

With so little help to go around, Kiki no longer had the time to enjoy the books she loved so much.  Her daily task was battling mountains of old, unorganised paper work and messy bookcases in need of organising. As more fairies left the library, tasks they had been in charge of were left unattended and books piled up on the floor without a proper home. Although the mess and lack of care for the books annoyed the young book lover, she always had to focus on the task she was working on so she didn’t get overwhelmed. She knew for sure, however, that this task was too much for her to do alone. Her small body sometimes struggled with the large books and so it always seemed to be the paperwork she went to first.

Despite the hours of work each day, she was lonely. She longed for someone’s company, someone she could share her favourite stories with and someone to share her days with. Almost nobody knew of this hidden spot in the forest now and those that did never seemed to visit her. She yearned for friendship and a thriving community once more. When she looked out the window at the empty buildings, she wished they could be filled again with creatures chattering and laughing. What she wanted was a village of friends who helped one another and were there for each other.

One sunny morning as the birds were chirping, Kiki woke and realised she needed to take action. She understood her job as a guardian and the traditions her elders had taught her but she knew something needed to change. This library was so important to her and she wanted others to enjoy all the wonderful books it held but she could not do all the work alone - she needed lots of hands and strong friends to help her. It no longer mattered if they were fairies or not; this library needed saving. Although she was afraid to leave the library alone, she needed to go on an adventure to find people to help, people she could trust, friends she could share her day with. So there, on that very morning, she got herself ready and went off on her first adventure. What she didn’t realise was that this would be the first of many.