Eldafaryn: True Tales of Magic from the Lives of the Silver Elves

First two sample stories in Eldafaryn:

Tesseract

We have been extending Eldafaryn, our realm. As our kin know, we have recently moved from a large two-bedroom apartment with a lanai (porch) to a small one-bedroom place with no lanai. However, Eldafaryn, our true Eald is a form of a multi dimensional Tesseract that folds and unfolds as we need it to do so. Like Dr. Who's Tardis, it is larger on the inside than the outside. Our bathroom unfolds to also be a room in our art gallery; our kitchen unfolds to be part of the art gallery, the ballroom, the museum of Elfin culture and magic, part of the exercise room, and part of the dining room. Our living room folds out to be a guest bedroom, a part of the ballroom, the art gallery, the museum, exercise room, and Silver Flame's office, an arboretum, etc. It does, however, take some time to fold up and to unfold, so for the past month+ we, with the help of about a dozen of the spirits that attend us, have been unfolding it so more of our spirit kin may abide here. Thus last week, a group of over one hundred elves, pixies, gnomes, leprechauns, faeries, etc. arrived and took up residence, with a couple of dozen more trickling in though the week, and this week we expect to have expanded to the point where another clan of 100 or so will arrive. We are so excited.
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Elf Haven

This is not the first manifestation of Eldafaryn (Elf Haven), of course. It started out in Southern Illanoi over 35 years ago as a very tiny dimension, however, over the years as we’ve relocated the physical portal that links us to it, and as more and more spirits have been attracted to and joined us, our Eald has grown to accommodate the increasing number of its residents.

Just yesterday, a young gnomish girl and three silver faery dancers arrived unexpectedly from Florida, sent by one of our rangers. The gnomish girl, originally of the Canadeyn clan, moved in right away. Since we have had at least two others of her tribe with us for years, both of which are male, she was welcomed immediately, and they were joyous to have her among us. As to the three silver faery dancers, well, there just isn’t enough room as yet, not until we unfold the Eald more, still they’ve taken to hanging around the dining room and making merry there, certain that the realm will unfold further in short order.

Alas, along with them came a hairy thing. We don’t quite know what else to call him. He is perhaps a troll of some sort, his large nose tends to lend credence to that supposition, but otherwise, he looks much like “Cousin It” of the Addams Family. Unfortunately, he just didn’t seem quite right for this Eald. Not that we have anything against trolls, mind you, other than their tendency to careen into things and break them because of their bulk. We, in fact, already have at least one that has been around us for a year or so who serves under our head gargoyle, although since our latest move he hasn’t as yet arrived, but quite possibly will this coming week.

Still, you just can’t take on everyone who comes along. Some just don’t work out. The chemistry is wrong and that’s just the way it is. Nonetheless, we let the “hairy thing” stay for the night and then took him to a spot where we expect he will soon make a friend and find a home with someone who really wants him. That’s what’s really important after all, being with those who love and appreciate you for who you truly are.

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Sample story from page 135:

Baby Spirits

"Shortly after Draco was born, Silver Flame began hearing babies crying in his crib, even when he wasn’t in it. There were three of them, each with a distinct sound to its voice, what Silver Flame felt was two girls and a boy, sounding each like a new born. She thought she might be crazy, after all she already believed in elves and faeries, so she didn’t want to tell anyone about it other than Zardoa, who saw them as lights hovering near the crib; but then a friend was over and heard it as well so she began to feel we weren’t just hallucinating."

"Zardoa told her these babies could be old friends of Draco’s trying to get into the world to be near him. He told her she might think about talking to these baby spirits, explaining why she couldn’t bear them hers’elf, having just had a baby, and having nearly died in the process. So she did this, but she thought that she could also take them where they might find homes."

"A few days later, she went to pick up her latest check from her counseling job. In the office there worked a woman named Kathy who had been trying with her husband to get pregnant for a couple of years with no success. After she handed Silver Flame the check, Silver Flame said to her, “Oh, by the way, I’ve brought you a baby spirit.” The woman laughed. “No, really,” Silver Flame told her, “I’ve brought you a baby,” and Kathy laughed again. However, a couple of months later, she found out she was pregnant and when she counted back she discovered that she had conceived that very week."

"Immediately after taking the spirit to Kathy, one of the baby girl’s voices stopped crying from the crib, and as it turned out Kathy had a girl. The boy spirit she took to another friend’s house, where many people came and went. The woman became pregnant about six months later and had a baby boy, but Silver Flame was never sure if it was the baby she took her, or if that baby found someone else who had visited the house before that."

"The third baby, the other girl, she could still hear crying after the second one left, so she took her for a few city bus trips. She would ride the bus with the baby spirit, hoping to run into someone the baby would be attracted to. It must have worked because after a few trips the crying stopped and she felt a great sense of relief."

"Some people who come to us are meant for us, but most we simply help upon their way. We elves and pixies have often been accused of leading people astray, but the truth is we ever try to help people find their way home. After all, that is where all of us are trying to go. Isn’t it?"