Nou-nou unhooked her soul from the hook in the wall, slipped it over her shoulders before going to wake up her sleeping dune bug. Holding her tiny feather duster in one hand she hopped onto her beetle and kick started him. Mumbling mightily he took off to the periwinkle patch as directed. Nou-nou was there to dust the tiny blue periwinkle flowers. As she was almost one thousand years old she was on the light duty roster. Once finished, the rest of the day was her own. The periwinkles were silly wee things.
As her duster flew over their petals they giggled and wriggled in delight, sending pollen flying everywhere. Her task done, she hopped on the bug and flew to the neighbouring farm. Parked on the dung heap, beetle reveled in his good luck, made himself a hole and settled down for a warm dung-scented snooze. Nou-nou flew off to the barn, glad to see that Farmer George had left a small bowl of milk for the fairies. Being of a higher intelligence than the average human, he firmly believed in fairies, as did his little granddaughter. The man himself was settled in an old armchair under the cherry tree, having an afternoon siesta. Nou-nou filled her tiny bottle with milk and left it at the entrance to beetle’s hole so she wouldn’t forget it. Looking for some amusement, she flew quietly over to Farmer George and landed gently on his nose which she tickled with her feather duster.
“Rashashashhoohoohoo!” he sneezed and blew Nou-nou into the hawthorn bush, narrowly missing impaling her on a thorn. Startled, she checked that her wings weren’t torn. As she was doing this, she heard a plaintive cry for help. Looking up, she saw Big Burt, the spider, licking his lips as he contemplated the baby aphid caught in his web.
“Help me Nou-nou help me!” the baby cried piteously. Now, as you know, fairies must do one good deed a day. Pulling her wand from its holder, Nou-nou waved it with muttered incantations. She unwound the baby from the sticky web and tucked it in her pocket. She flew off to the rose bush, where a frantic Mummy aphid was calling for her baby. Reunited, mother and baby thanked Nou-nou profusely.
Nou-nou was tired and decided that she would go home. She yelled for beetle down the tunnel of his hole. When he appeared, she hopped onboard, tucked her milk bottle between her knees and exhorted beetle to fly back to Oak Tree Village.
Dusk was falling and fire flies were coming out. She caught a few to light her home that evening and with full hands landed by her door. She had pre-ordered a Chinese take-out from Wings Fairy Fong and it arrived just as she got home.. She took the food into her home and noticed that Aloha, her hummingbird friend, had left her a tiny egg. Supper and breakfast being provided for, a certain tranquility swept over her and she looked forward to her supper and a good night’s sleep in her walnut shell.
After all, tomorrow was another day.
