In ancient times, man was more in tune with Nature, and the delicate balance it requires in order to survive in a manner that is beneficial to all plants and animals. There were spring fertility festivals, summer celebrations, harvest festivals in the fall, and winter festivals meant to hurry the cold season along. Man knew that he was not the only creature that mattered, and that there were unseen beings that took care of him, as well as the world around him, in order to insure that the balance between life and death was kept.
Man then discovered science, and all things that he could not explain were dismissed by the rational mind, and labeled "supernatural", never realizing that all things are natural, even if they defy explanation or the principles understood by Man. He abandoned his respect for Nature, preferring to dominate it rather than exist along with it, and the balance was lost in a din of construction as cities wiped out our forests and millions of animals, fairies, and elementals were displaced.
As I rose from a long winter's sleep on the first warm day of spring, I knew that it was time to stop hiding from humanity and start taking some of the rituals back, including the worthiest of these upstart creatures, or we would surely be doomed as a whole. Spring was here, and while the ancients understood that this was a time of renewal for all plants and animals, a time when mating was key to keeping the balance, and a time when the celebration of life itself was most important, modern humans were barely aware of the passing seasons. This was no longer acceptable, and it was with a hopeful fire burning in my soul that I found the pair, worthy of my attention.
I spotted them at Gabby's Alligator Farm, a small zoo and wildlife rehabilitation hospital located in the middle of Glades County, a largely uninhabited savannah in southwest Florida. The zoo was a fine place, though such places had rarely met my approval. Here, local endangered species' were kept in hopes that they might reproduce, and the alligators, living in a large enclosure at the farm's center, were only the beginning. There were Florida panthers, black bears, swamp birds, and other creatures native to the area in enclosures that surrounded the alligator enclosure down little natural paths, creating a sunburst pattern. The clinic was full of animals injured by cars or other irresponsible humans, and they would either be set free, or granted a life of comfort within the walls of this nature loving establishment.
Her name was Phoebe, and she was what they called a veterinary technician, which I learned through quiet spying was a doctor's assistant, and much like a registered nurse. Her path in life was a good one, and she looked perfect for my purposes, with a petite, compact figure that knew not the meaning of idle, a childlike face set with dark eyes, and a head of full, curly brown hair which she kept in a thick braid down the middle of her back.
He too was a technician, and a mouth watering specimen of a male. Golden brown hair was streaked blond by the sun, and his green eyes were as kind as his smile. Evan was well built, but not overly muscular like some of these overblown specimens that believe being too muscular to not be able to put one's arms to one's side is attractive.
Over the course of the day, I watched them, working in the clinic with an elderly doctor while younger humans led the occasional tourist around the zoo, explaining to them the unique habits of each animal. Phoebe spent a good portion of her day medicating and hand feeding a baby hawk who had been hit by a car, and occasionally, Evan helped her, though it seemed that his aid was reluctantly given and reluctantly accepted. It became more and more apparent that the two did not get along, and though it was but a small obstacle for a fairy, it was an obstacle nevertheless. If they did not conceive before midnight, I would have a harder time establishing the balance again in a year, when things would undoubtedly be more out of their natural "whack", to use a modern human word.
The child produced by the worthy on the first day of spring would be gifted with the natural ability to see fairies, and would eventually bring about the balance. Phoebe and Evan, despite their obvious dislike for one another, were the only natural choices, for they respected nature, and worked to preserve it in the best way that they could. Aside from that, they were beautiful people, and their child would outshine them. Despite the arguing I was witness to, I was determined that these two would be joined on this very day.
She was sitting in the doctor's office, eating a sandwich, and he had joined her with his own lunch of a burger and fries for lack of anywhere better to be. I watched through the window as they conversed, the tension between them nearly tangible.
"Did you order the Ketaset we need for the panther?" She asked him through bites of her sandwich. "We have to clean her teeth tomorrow."
"It already came in this morning," he replied, tensing. "I'm not as useless as you would have everyone believe."
"That is not fair, Evan. The last time, you said you would order it, and we had everything ready, but nothing to put the cat down with. If I had been the one to forget, you would have made it a federal issue, so get off my back, will you?" She had set her sandwich down, and her nearly black eyes were burning.
"Yeah, okay, Phoebe. It's not like I'm the only one that's made mistakes around here. You act like you're the doctor around here, and he eats it up because Doc's got a huge stiffy for you."
