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In a far away land on a far away mountaintop lived a very powerful and very scary witch. Her home was in a cave deep inside the mountain. It was so deep that when she made her potions over her large cauldron, the smoke could not reach the outside. She only left her mountain when she needed to gather ingredients to make new potions and spells. One day, she was running low on the special roses she needed so she hopped on her broom and flew down to the kingdom below. Her purple cloak floated around her as she zipped across the butterfly fields and reached the beautiful, bright blue lake that glittered like a jewel under the sunlight. The witch didn’t notice the beauty of the fields or the lake. She only had eyes for the magical blue roses that grew by the lakeside. She jumped off her broomstick and started collecting the flowers in her potion bag.
Suddenly, she noticed something sparkling a few steps away. As she got closer, she realized it was a shimmering, golden feather. She had never seen a feather like this before. It shone brightly and was larger than most birds’ feathers. She picked it up and examined it. The magic in this feather was stronger than the entire field of blue roses.
“I need to find this bird,” she muttered to herself. Just then, she caught a glimpse of something scurrying behind the rocks by the lake. She ran towards the movement and lunged forward.
“Aha! I got you now,” she exclaimed. When she opened her fist she was shocked to see a small, orange lizard in the palm of her hand. The lizard was shaking with fright. “Please let me go,” he squealed anxiously.
The witch glared at him and said, “I’ll let you go if you show me where the golden bird is. “Th..there’s no golden birds here,” he stuttered. “Only the golden parrot that lives in the dark forest.
“A parrot is a bird, you silly Lizard,” she said angrily. “And you better hope you can find it or you might find yourself in my cave forever.”
The poor lizard scampered towards the forest with the witch following close behind. As they entered the dark forest, the trees loomed tall and wide all around them. Not a sliver of sunshine found it’s way between the treetops. It was completely dark and absolutely silent. No birds chirped here, no animals scurried about. The air was completely still, without even a small breeze rustling through the branches. It was an eerie and desolate forest. The witch felt chills slither down her spine. The utter darkness spooked her and she could hear her heart beating faster and faster in the absolute silence.
“Hurry up,” the witch hissed at the lizard. He ran down the small path winding through the trees and went deeper and deeper towards the heart of the dark forest. The lizard was so worried about the parrot. If the witch found him, there’s no telling what she would do with all that power. The witch poked him with her wand and he kept stumbling forward. He glanced around one last time, hoping there was something he could do when he noticed small lights flickering amongst the trees. The fairies were here! They would know what to do. He sighed in relief and continued down the path.
“STOP!” The witch shrieked at him.
In front of them, a small beam of light appeared. As they got closer, they realized it wasn’t a light. It was the glow emanating from the most magnificent parrot the witch had ever seen. It was almost half as tall as the tallest tree in the forest and as wide. He was pure gold and as they came closer, his glowing yellow eyes watched every move. He did not move a feather or appear afraid at all.
The witch cackled with glee and leaped towards him with her wand in her hand. She was so focused on the parrot she didn’t notice the fairies flying towards her. Just as she lunged towards the parrot she saw hundreds of tiny white lights fluttering around her. Before she had a chance to react or move her wand, she was lifted up in the air. She felt a light breeze around her as she was flown backwards over the treetops towards the lake. The last thing she saw were the parrot’s yellow eyes gleaming from the dark depths of the forest.
She was dropped onto the ground by the lake; at the very spot she had seen the first feather. “Stick to your blue roses,” a soft chorus of voices whispered as she was left there.
She felt the mild flutter of wings against her and shivered. Though the sunlight was blinding after the darkness in the forest, she felt cold and weak. As she struggled to get to her feet she caught a glimpse of the fairies of the dark forest and felt another wave of fear engulf her. She blinked and opened her eyes wide. She couldn’t see the tiny white lights or the entrance to the dark forest anymore. She stumbled onto her broom and flew up her mountain and burrowed deep inside her cave. The blue roses were much safer and the fear she felt inside that dark forest was not worth new adventures.
The witch continued her potions from the safety of her cave and her mountain. But sometimes at night while she slept, she dreamed about glowing yellow eyes watching her and shivered.