Setting the Scene-

[Sketti]

Vendra held her hair with her left hand to stop it whipping her face. It was a poor day to be cleaning the top of the north tower, gray and windy and cold. The tower had been neglected for half a century, half as long as it had been unused. Now, with the Royal Court having decided to move the capital to Castle Antarah the space would be needed and she had been put in charge of tidying up the upper levels. The windows had broken at some point and the dust was piled high against the walls. Birds had made their home on the rafters under the roof and here and there were pieces of course glass strewn about the floor poking into her bare feet. The gusts of wind coming in through the window continually blasted her backwards and showered her with detritus. She got to the window, hoping that the remainders of the shutters could still be closed. Little of them remained. The sky announced that the storm would only get worse. Even the trees of the thick forest surrounding the castle itself were bent under the force of the wind. A glint among the tree tops surprised her, it twinkled continuously very much like a star. No one could possibly be out with this weather and even so, any lamp would quickly have been extinguished had it been left for some unknown reason on top of a tree which really made no sense. She bent over the edge as if she might see better that way. It kept twinkling but then started to move as though it were a little boat. She bent further out the window, not caring about the long drop to the ground.
"Watch yourself child!" someone grabbed her by the strings of her apron and pulled her back in. It was an old, pock-marked woman who's ugliness was contrasted by the richness of her dress, "Will o' the Wisp magic does not slow down the fall of their Desired."

[dwndrgn]

As I sit, contemplating my woes, a tiny arnet wanders up my leg. The light filtered through the leaves above paints golden dapples over the darkness of my skin and on the sheen of the arnet skin. It stops and looks my way. As I smile at it's tiny little face, it winks and scampers over my knee toward the roots of the tree I chose for my solitude. Following its path with my eyes I see it come to a stop on the knotty bend of a root. It looks back towards me and winks again before taking off to the other side of the tree trunk. Curiosity cuts through my gloomy air and I follow. Searching for the arnet among the tufts of grass and roots, I can hear the nearby brook, happily chuckling to itself. There, I've found the arnet, curled up under a big root, up against a tuft of spar grass, watching me. Smiling down over the arnet, I realize my melancholy has fled.

"Well, and that's a much nicer thing to see. I'm glad to have given you back your cheer. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

My mouth wide open like a fool, her voice cut into my startlement, "Are you one of those unbelievers who think that there's no magic in this world?"

As I pretty much collapse in astonishment, her giggle makes me smile again. My gloom well and truly gone.

[Faceless Woman]

The ocean sparkled jewel-like in the summer sun*, lapping gently at the honey-gold sands. The joyous calls of the dancing umbines contributed to the sense of sanctuary* that enfolded the cove, as did the multi-coloured wings of the tiny flitting fairies*. The air smelled of salt and sand*, but lacked the distingtive smell of dead fish and rotting seaweed that usually clung to the coast*, and the beach was almost unnaturally clean. Heaven.



*Yes, I have a problem. Hello, my name is Faceless Woman and I am an alliterationohollic.
Five times in one paragraph. I need help.