Chapter 5

“Oh no!” Mariposa cries.

“Oh yes. Now everyone in the kingdom are worms,” I say.

Mariposa looks distraught. “But that’s not how stories are supposed to go. There should be a happily ever after and a kiss and –”

“And if you want to find out how the story ends you should stop interrupting me,” I say sternly. “Unless you want to go to bed with no dinner.”

Mariposa’s eyes widen at the idea of no dinner, or going to bed, so she zips her lips and lets me finish.

 

“Are you proud of what you’ve done?”

The Silver Sorceress turned at the sound of her sister’s voice and narrowed her eyes. “What do you think you’re doing here, Gold?”

“Saving the kingdom, Silver. What does it look like?” the Gold Sorceress replied calmly, and before her sister could say anything, she blasted a beam of light into the Silver Sorceress, knocking her to the wall. “I don’t normally approve of violence but someone had to knock some sense into you.”

The Silver Sorceress staggered forward, stepping on a few worms and wincing in pain. “I warned her to stay away from the Prince, but she didn’t listen, so she and the rest had to pay the price.”

“Little sister, you are clearly blinded by love and hungry for power,” the Gold Sorceress tutted. “But power won’t give you happiness, and it won’t give you love either. There are other ways, Silver.”

“Other ways? This is the only way to get them to listen! Being soppy and smiley won’t get you anywhere. You have to be firm and evil to convince them,” the Silver Sorceress said.

“Is that so? Well, little sister, you have much to learn, for no one would ever love or respect you if you are evil, nor would they listen to you,” the Gold Sorceress preached. “And that is why good always conquers evil.”

“Good people are weak!” the Silver Sorceress spat.

“We may be weak, but our hearts are strong and our blood is pure,” the Gold Sorceress said. “You used to be good, Silver. Why did you change?”

For once, the Silver Sorceress was lost for words. “I don’t know,” she said

quietly. “I thought it was better.”

“Well, look what it did to you. Your heart is crusted with frost, the warmth is

lost from you. All that’s left is an empty shell that turns people into worms.

But I have a feeling, somewhere deep down under the layers ice, is the sister

I know.”

The Silver Sorceress knew her sister was speaking the truth. “Gold, how can

you always see the good in people?”

“Because there is always good in each one of us, no matter how small,” the

Gold Sorceress replied. “Now do the honourable deed of changing these poor

people back.”

“I cannot,” the Silver Sorceress said. “They are stuck like that forever.”

“Not if I can help it.” With a wave of the Gold Sorceress’ hand, the writhing

worms morphed into beautiful little creatures with brightly coloured wings

that fluttered like heartbeats.

“These creatures will be known as ‘flutter-by,’ and they will forever begin as an ugly worm, but later change into something beautiful,” the Gold Sorceress said.

The Silver Sorceress gazed at the fluttering little insects in awe. “Butter-flies?”

The Gold Sorceress didn’t bother to correct her. With another wave of her hand, the ballroom lit up once again, and the shards of glass were rearranged into the windows, and the instruments began to play themselves a poignant tune as the butterflies flitted about in loops.

Among the crowd of butterflies was a pair that were distinguishable by the rainbow pattern on the female’s wings, and the male’s royal glow. They dipped and dived above them all, leaving a trail of gold dust in their wake.

For the first time in forever, the Silver Sorceress felt a wonderful elation within her, despite the fact that the one man she ever desired was now an insect, and turned to ask her sister what she was feeling.

“Happiness, my dear Silver,” the Gold Sorceress answered. “And happiness is as sweet as the taste of butterfly tears.”

The Kingdom of Farfalle became the kingdom of butterflies, and Mariposa and Papillion were the king and queen, living in the fields of flowers, feasting on the nectar and leaving trails of gold wherever they went. They were indeed very happy, for their love was spent together in long sweet moments that lasted an eternity.

 

“What about Moonstone and the horses?” Mariposa asks, fiddling with one of her braids so that the ends unravel, dappled sunlight making soft shadow patterns on her face.

“The Gold Sorceress set them free to gallop in the wild,” I reply, stripping a fallen leaf into shreds.

“And did the Prince and Mariposa kiss?” Mariposa asks shyly.

I nod, smiling. “I’m sure they shared their own little butterfly kisses.”

Mariposa falls back onto the grass, closing her eyes, an expression of bliss passing over her soft features. “That was a beautiful story, Mama,” she breathes. “Thank you.”

I pluck a couple daisies from the ground and scatter them over her face, and just when she opens her eyes, giggling, a colourful butterfly lands on her chest, rising and falling with her breaths, and I gasp.

“Look, it is Mariposa!” As soon as I say this, the butterfly darts off and Mariposa sits up. “Where?”

We both look up and find the butterfly fluttering away into the vast expanse of blue sky, and to our amazement, it leaves a path of glittering gold dust in the air, and as the wind chimes play an enchanting melody, the butterfly dances for us, captivating us in the moment.

The gold stars fall, and we catch the drops on our tongue, tasting the sweet happiness of butterfly tears.