Origin Story: The Pixie and the Hermit

Pixie by Dean Spencer

A small cottage was once nestled inside a magical wood, surrounded by towering trees and lush foliage. It was a small, quaint dwelling, made of logs covered in creeping ivy. The roof was thatched with straw, and the windows where small and round, framed with thick wooden shudders. The door was rough hewn heavy oak and adorned with a brass knob in the shape of a dragon’s head.
Here lived a bandit who struck fear in the hearts of all the nearby villages. His name was Ewen, and he lived in a wooden cottage deep in the woods. He was especially proud of that knob. He took it from a trader who spoke a foreign tongue and had lots of exotic goods. Ewen took the best for himself and quickly fenced the rest for some barrels of ale.
Ewen was a fierce and ruthless man, and all who lived in the land knew him to rob and plunder from anyone who crossed his path, and he had a reputation for being cold-hearted and unforgiving.
But despite the fear he evoked, Ewen had a soft spot for one thing: pixies. He had always had a fascination with these tiny, mischievous creatures, and he often found himself helping them when he came across them in the forest. He grumbled a bit to himself as he did it, he did have a reputation to uphold. Perhaps it was their childlike nature that reminded him of simpler times when his parents were still there.
The woods were receding and the Elven magic that sustained their extreme growth was beginning to fade. This left fewer places for the various pixie groups to hide, less mushrooms to eat, and less frogs to licks. Poor little pixies.
One day, while out on one of his raids, Ewen came across a tiny pixie child who had been abandoned or left behind in the forest. Without hesitation, Ewen scooped up the little creature and brought it back to his cottage. After, of course, he finished raiding supplies from a local sheep herder. Great quality stuff, rock-bottom prices. Who could resist?
Ewen took to caring for the pixie baby with a fierce devotion. He called this pixie Nesta and struggled with finding food she would eat. He knew pixies stole his shoelaces, so did they eat the leather? No, Nesta just stuck up her nose. Forest creatures were always eating berries, how about these juicy red ones? No, they just ended up being thrown at the back of Ewen’s head whenever he turned around. Ewen could at least relate, fruits and vegetables were awful. That’s what food eats!
Well, it turns out that pixies are just like baby ducklings; they imprint themselves on whomever they see as their mother. A sort of instantaneous bond to follow their leader. And once Nesta bonded to Ewen she would do whatever he did. Not unlike human babies, Nesta drunk and pissed herself constantly. But unlike human babies she would not drink milk. Gross. But ale! Yes, that is good. Delicious drink and breakfast of champions. (editor’s note: this is parody and does not constitute trademark infringement. Suck it, mega-corps.) That’s what her mother Ewen did, so that’s what she did. Of course there would be steaks and hamburgers mixed in, variety is necessary in a well-balanced diet.
Once he got it all sorted, he fed her, clothed her (ah, that’s what the laces were for!), and even made a little bed for Nesta in his cottage. Only the finest wool in the kingdom for this pixie. He made a note to go back for more as she grew.
Nesta became more independent and started having her own opinions on things. And the most awful thing was just how plain this cottage was! Thankfully, she got enough fabric to make a shimmering gown of gossamer silk that played off the blue blur her wings left behind her as she flittered about. She looked up at the front door; herself being no larger than the palm of a human hand and thought the ornate doorknob was out of place with the boring oak door. (editor’s note: The views contained herein are the product of the characters themselves and do not reflect the views of the author. Plain oak is not boring. In fact, dragon doorknobs are tacky.)
In her hands, she summoned a delicate silver chisel alongside a wooden hammer. With precision she spun them around in her hands. She thought she looked like a badass and hoped somebody was around to notice. Nobody was. Bother, they never are when you need them.
Her disappointment passed and with a look of determination and focus in her eyes, she started her work. Her movements were swift and sure. Her chisel darted around, and the very air around her shimmered and pulsed in a strange and otherworldly light. As she completed each rune, it glowed a faint, eerie light which slowly faded as she moved onto the next.
Her wings buzzed with energy with bolts of lightning arcing between them. The door creaked and groaned under the pressure of the magic as it flowed inside each fiber. Nesta breathed heavily, her head dizzy yet she pressed on to imbue the door with a powerful and otherworldly energy.
Finally she collapsed on her back and admired her work. Her eyes twinkled and a triumphant grin grew across her face as she fully took in her handiwork.
She wasn’t quite sure what the runes meant, only that she was meant to make them. With a satisfied smile, she flew to bed and rested for 13 days.
Not once did Ewen say anything about the runes to Nesta. They never notice.
As their relationship grew, it had a profound effect on Ewen. Her playful and mischievous nature started to rub off on him, and he smiled and laughed more than he ever had before. His heart softened, and he started thinking about the greater effect of his life. Was he where he should be in life? Should he continue to raid and steal so much when he always took an excess of his needs?
Now of course he wouldn’t give up raiding completely. What a foolish thought. But maybe pull back. Just a bit. Can’t quit all at once, right? So he struck out to find balance. He would raid occasionally, but he also used his survival skills to help those in need. He helped farmers and merchants by leaving behind anything necessary for their business to continue. This, he told himself, was a more sustainable way forward.
As the surrounding kingdom became more prosperous, roving bandits flocked to the land and Ewen would protect travelers from their attacks. How dare they steal prey from him!
Even the townsfolk took notice. His raids were very precise in what they took and damaged very little infrastructure. Farmers would leave excess wool, cookies, wheat, ale or milk, and leather shoelaces easily found and Ewen scoop them up and be about his merry way. Why did he suddenly start taking shoelaces? He was becoming worse than those pixies! Hopefully that was all the feet related items they would go after.
The pixie had come a long way from the abandoned creature Ewen had found in the woods so long ago. It now followed Ewen around, proud of the man he had become.
As humans are wont to do, Ewen began to age. Strong shoulders, stout waist, and thick thighs slowly weakened. He was becoming frail, though he loathed to admit it. Normally, he would travel for days to find the right target to raid and haul it all back by himself but his endurance waned. All too often he craved the comfort of his own bed. A raggy blanket amongst the dirt no longer brought him restful sleep. His days of drinking and feasting were once all he needed to recover. But now aches mounted upon him, one after the other and they wouldn’t go away.
He realized he was not immortal, though he once felt he was. He knew he would not be able to take care of Nesta forever, so he decided to find it a home where it would be safe and loved. After a long search, Ewen found a family in a nearby village who were willing to take in the pixie.
Ewen said goodbye to his beloved companion, then set off on his last journey. He had one last quest to complete before his time was done.