Lumi Sparklewind's Arc

Chapter 1 of 4

The forest had stopped laughing, and Lumi Sparklewind could no longer make a single flower bloom. She stood at the edge of the withered heart-tree, its bark gray and cracked. Once its magic kept all of Vinehollow blooming and full of joy. Now the branches hung silent. Lumi lifted her hand and whispered a bloom-charm. Nothing came. Her wings, once bright and sparkling, drooped dull against her purple dress. Her magic had grown thin, and she could not fix the tree without power she no longer had. She pressed her palm to the dry roots. "Please," she said. "Just one bud." The soil stayed cold. Lumi sat back on her heels. Whatever magic she had left, it was almost gone. She could keep pushing until she had nothing, or she could rest and gather more. So she chose to rest. Lumi flew home to her family's cottage, where old runes glowed warm along the roof and walls. This was the oldest magic place she knew. Her grandmother always said a night's sleep here filled a tired fairy back up. Lumi climbed into bed while the sun still hung low. She closed her eyes and let the cottage hum around her. She woke early, before the birds. Something felt different. When she stretched, tiny sparks jumped from her fingertips. Her wings glittered again, full and bright. Power buzzed under her skin. The cottage had done its work. Lumi laughed out loud, the first laugh she had made in days. She knew where to send this new magic. Lumi rushed outside to her butterfly, the sparkling creature shaped like a small dragon. He rested on a branch, wings folded and dim, drained just like the forest. He barely opened one green eye when she landed beside him. "Wake up," Lumi said. "The magic's back. I found it." She cupped her glowing hands around his body and let her power flow into him. His luminous wings began to shimmer. Colors spread across them, pink and blue and gold. He lifted his head. He beat his wings once, then again, and rose into the morning air. Everyone in Vinehollow knew what a rejuvenated butterfly could do. He carried magic from bloom to bloom, spreading it through the whole forest. He darted to a bare patch of ground and touched down. Where his feet landed, a cluster of yellow roses burst open, glowing soft and bright. Lumi clapped and spun in the air. But the roses made her stop. She flew closer and stared. Their glow was too much, too wild, brighter than any bloom she remembered. The petals trembled with power she had not meant to give. The butterfly was spreading her magic fast, faster than she could guide it. If she could not steer where all this new power went, it might wake more than flowers. Lumi hovered above the shining roses, thrilled and afraid at once.