It was late, and the magical town was asleep. Only two small faeries flew quietly through the empty streets into the forest. And what a forest it was! Gigantic trees, sweet flowers and plants constantly changed their colours and shapes. It was so beautiful, there in the moonlight, so mesmerising! But our faeries, Lily and Aurora, didn’t look around. They hurried, for there was little time.

Suddenly they stopped, looked around and entered a strange hollow ringed with large old stones. There Aurora took her magical wand and began making a circle in the air while whispering the words of an ancient spell. Her silvery eyes reflected the sparkle of magic in the air, and a circle of pale, golden light appeared where her wand moved.

Aurora sighed in relief and put the wand away again.

They could see wonderful stars and planets moving through the heavens within the circle. But they were followed and surrounded by trails of strange grey shadows. Like snakes, thought Aurora.

The faeries frowned.

“They have grown even thicker,” Lily whispered with large eyes.

“Yes, and larger,” Aurora agreed sadly. “But I think I can get through right there,” pointing with a delicate finger. “Or at least, I will try.”

“Please be careful,” Lily asked softly.

“Of course, my dear. You know me – I always am.”

“Yes, that’s why I am worried.”

Aurora smiled at her sister, then closed her eyes for a moment to focus her mind and began on the journey. She flew as fast as she could, but the shadows moved into her path, and she had to give up and return to Lily.

Aurora’s eyes were full of tears and sorrow, and her big sister hugged her and stroked her silky brown hair, singing a gentle lullaby.

“Oh, Lily, what a bad dream that shadow was! It was like I was walking through a huge gloomy sick room. There were small beds, each one with a drop of light hovering by its side, but they could not save anyone because all of the beds were empty, as if the patients were childhood dreams that had been left behind.”

“Oh, my dear, how dreadful. Maybe we should go home and forget the whole crazy idea,” Lily said.

“No!” Aurora replied. “I need to find a way.” And then she focused again, searching and searching until she finally smiled and flew off again, fast as a shooting star. This time she almost got through, but then again, another shadow sneaked into her mind. It was butterflies! So many beautiful butterflies! But … there was something wrong with them … And when she looked closer, she gasped and had to turn back.

She was shaking and shivering all over, and it took a long time for Lily to calm her little sister down again.

“With each move of their wings,” said Aurora, drying her tears, “they awoke memories, and so many of them were filled with terror and pain. And when I turned back from them, this gigantic butterfly was waiting for me! I tell you, it had the sharpest shark teeth you ever saw, and its eagle claws were stretched out to catch me!”

“Oh my God!” said Lily. “You will stay home now, you hear me!” she cried helplessly.

“But if I can’t get through, then the Flower will wilt, our world will die, and Earth will be left to the shadows,” Aurora said, hiding her face in her hands.

“Yes,” Lily agreed sombrely. “But we will find another place to live. And Earth will find a way, with time.”

“Still, I want to try. Just one last time. Please, I cannot let this happen!” Aurora said stubbornly. And for the third time, she searched for a way through the shadows of darkness.

A moment later, she disappeared again, and this time she did not return.

Lily did as she had promised and went home to make a warm cup of strawberry tea. On her way, she went by the town square and stopped by the magical Flower. It was partly transparent now and had begun to wilt. How long since it had bloomed? She could not even remember the last time its petals had opened.

The Flower required neither water, nourishment, nor light from the sun. All it needed was the joy of beauty from Earth. And so, like busy bees collecting nectar, the faeries went there to gather it in their small heart-shaped medallions to bring to the Flower.
But then the shadows had come, making the trip impossible.

Lily sighed. Oh, how she wanted to fall on the ground before the Flower and cry loudly and helplessly. But her little sister needed all the help and strength she could get, and so Lily filled her heart with hope and trust, for Aurora had such strong magic in her and was so good at finding beauty. If anyone could do it, it would be her!

And Lily forced herself to smile and went home to make strawberry tea for her dear sister.

Aurora, meanwhile, had found a cosy little place in Denmark called Brøndby Strand. It was deep winter there and pretty cold. Even though the faerie had appeared in human form and was very warmly dressed, she was still freezing, for she was used to much higher, pleasant temperatures in her world.

But when she looked around – she forgot all about freezing. Because what she saw there was unbelievably beautiful! She stood at a wide sandy beach looking out over a large bay. Fantastic ice plates covered the coastline, their rims sparkling like crystals in the sunlight! The slow, peaceful waves rocked them softly up and down, turning them around in a gentle dance of tinkling beauty. And the birds! There were so many! Swans and crows, seagulls and ducks, resting on the dancing ice plates and searching for food in the small areas of open water.

As she looked, the sun began to set, and everything was covered in a glory of amber! The world shone and glowed in golden colours! Her small medallion was almost full of energy when her alarm started to beep, warning that her temperature was getting dangerously low. She should leave immediately and travel home!

The sky was pink now, and the frozen sea was the deepest blue she had ever seen. Just one more minute, she thought to herself. One more …

And yes, just a little later, the medallion began to shine in all the colours of the rainbow. She had completed the task! She smiled happily and tried to fly.

She tried again. And again. And again. But her wings drooped and couldn’t carry her. She was too cold.

“Oh!” she exclaimed. “This cannot happen! If I die here, it may take me a thousand years to find my dear home again, and who will save the Flower then? Or Earth? It’s unfair!” She fell to her knees and cried bitterly.

But nobody came to help. Nobody could.

At last, she stood up, took off her shoes, and went into the water. She had seen other people doing that, laughing and whooping with joy, and she wanted to experience that at least once before she died.

The water was burning cold. But when she went out of the water again, a sudden burst of warmth fired through her body, awakening every single cell within her! Jumping up and down in surprise and joy, she bowed to Mother Earth in gratitude and with a flurry of her shiny, transparent wings, she flew home.

It was nearly dawn in her realm now. She flew as fast as she could to the Flower, knelt before it and placed the heart medallion on the ground. With trembling fingers, she opened it and whispered, “let the beauty save the world …”

For the longest moment in her life, nothing happened. But then, a soft, colourful light began to run up through the Flower’s stem like a magical river. The petals began to move, and then, as if waking from a long slumber, the head of the Flower lifted, and it began to open again, shining with the most beautiful Light in all the world. Magical creatures ran out of their homes in delight!
She felt a touch on her shoulder. She turned around and saw Lily standing there. With tears in their eyes, they hugged each other. “You did it! I am so proud of you; you actually did it!” Lily exclaimed. And together with the other faeries, they flew up into the air, circling and dancing, basking in the magical Light radiating from the Flower throughout the entire Universe.

It was so wonderful and magical that you could never describe it with mere words. But once the Light of this Flower touches your heart and spirit, it will stay with you and illuminate forever more the path of your life with the beauty of love, peace and happiness.

Wishing you a wonderful adventure, dear friends!

Attributions

Story, music and video by Elena Voroniouk © 2023 all rights reserved.
Editing: Ruben Mannstaedt.

The impulse to write this story was the visit to a very dramatic exhibition, ‘Butterfly!’ at Arken Museum for Modern Art. The centrepiece of the exhibition – at least in my mind – was the sculpture of the same name, created by Esben Weile Kjær.