The children woke in the middle of the night. There was a strange rustling sound coming from their desk.

“Listen,” the girl whispered in dismay, “there’s someone there!”

The boy listened for a moment, but the sounds had stopped – if they had ever been there. “Go to sleep, Olga. It’s a dream,” he answered – though not loudly, for he felt unquiet too though he didn’t want to show it. But just as he was about to turn over and go to sleep again, the sounds returned.

“Hey, who’s there?” he asked out loud, sitting straight up in bed and peering around the room. “Show yourself!”

The sounds stopped. But then, quietly, a gentle melodic voice answered: “I am Elvira. I am from another world. And I am not hiding at all. It’s just dark here, and you can’t see me.” At her words, the boy immediately turned on the table lamp, and as its golden light flooded the room, an elegant, beautiful girl appeared before them. He rubbed his eyes and stared in shock at the unexpected guest. She stood timidly at their desk, looking down at the floor.

“It’s nice to meet you, Elvira,” the girl said at last. “I’m Olga, and this is my brother Dima.”

“What are you doing here?” Dima asked, recovering from his surprise.

“I… I… am trying to break free of the spell tied to me through your frog drawing. But… I can’t do it…” Elvira said with a deep sigh.

“A real magic spell? It can’t be?!” exclaimed the shocked Olga.

“How else?” Elvira answered with feeling. “I have a special gift. I can open doors to other worlds. But, kwa-kwa, the girl next door, somehow discovered my ability. She wanted to go with me to another world. But I refused.” She paused for a moment, looking scared. “People say that Anna is a witch and that she likes black magic… And I think she was spying on me while I admired your beautiful drawing. I… the door to my world, I always leave it open so that I can go back. Somehow she must have cast a spell through it! Her magic has bound me to those frogs! And now, every day, kwa-kwa, more and more I croak like a frog when I speak…” she finished with sobs in her voice.

“When I get unwell, or in a bad mood, I walk in my fairy garden, and everything gets better again,” Olga finally said, after a long pause.

“In a fairy garden?” Elvira repeated her words in surprise, wiping her tears.

“Yes. It is a magical place, protected from all dangers. Beautiful flowers bloom there, and birds sing with joy! It’s so very beautiful, nice and cosy…” Olga said with a dreamy expression on her face.

“Can I visit this amazing garden?” Elvira asked, hopefully.

“Of course you can! You just need to find a quiet, calm place. Somewhere by yourself. Sit down – or lie down comfortably. Close your eyes and relax. And then say, quietly to yourself…

“Magic garden,
I come to visit you!
Surround me,
With your beauty.
Illuminate me,
With your gentle light.
From all troubles,
Hide me!

“And you can, before you fall asleep, ask the good dream fairy to tell you how to find a way out of the situation,” Dima added. “I once solved a math problem, in my dream, in that way!”

Elvira smiled and thanked her new friends for their help. Then she carefully repeated the magic words several times, to make sure that she remembered them. And after that, she wished them both good night and was about to go home, to her world. But Olga stopped her, gently touching her shoulder. “We have a day off tomorrow… Come to us right in the morning! Together we will discuss what anyone dreamed of, OK?”

“With great pleasure!” their guest exclaimed joyfully.

>> The story is continued in: “The Sun, the Sword and the Flower, Chapter 2” <<

Postscript

💖 Dear friends and guests of my blog, I hope you have enjoyed this, the first part of my new fairy tale, ✨ written for children and illustrated by their work! You can also read it in Russian or in Danish, with an alternate set of illustrations. 🎁

🍀 The drawings are displayed with animations and effects on YouTube. You will find the name and details, including any relevant links, for each of the contributors in the attributions sections. 🌈☀️

Please enjoy and have fun! 😃

Attributions

Story, Music & Video Art: Elena Voroniouk © 2020, all rights reserved.

Children’s Art (in order of appearance):
“Wheel of Faerie Tales” by Daria Losik
“Two Happy Frogs” by Maria Taratkevich
“Magical Garden” by Kyaraa

Video:
“Be Happy!” by Elena Voroniouk