Maya (standard:fantasy, 1151 words)
Author: Shadows Laugh	Added: Jun 12 2006	Views/Reads: 3220/2067	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
A little girl’s dream of seeing an elf comes true but in the most tragic way.

My name is Maya and I am seven years old.  A lot of people think me
younger because I am smaller than most girls my age.  That does not 
matter because Mummy told me that the sweetest things come in smallest 
packages and Daddy would have said that too if he had been here.  Mummy 
said the angels took Daddy but I know different, he danced on the end 
of a rope.  A lot of men come and see Mummy now but Mummy tells me that 
if they did not come we would have no coin.  They grunt like pigs and I 
hear Mummy cry a lot.  I do not like to see Mummy cry, she always says 
that she has dust in her eye and tells me not to be silly. 

You know, I have a job too.  Yes I do!  I work in the slave auction and
that is where I saw him.  The slave auction is not a nice place but I 
get a shiny coin every week and it helps keep a roof over our heads and 
food on the table Mummy told me.  It makes me sad when I think of him 
and sometimes I cry.  You see.  I saw an elf.  Mummy told me lots of 
bedtime stories about the fair folk who live in enchanted forests.  She 
told me they were very beautiful and very graceful and when they spoke 
it was like the ringing of a score of tiny silver bells. 

I remember it had been raining and the street was all muddy, carts were
getting stuck and by the time I got to the auction house I was muddy 
and wet through.  Mr Warpole gave me a clip round the ear for being 
late.  He has the biggest belly I have ever seen and the reddest face.  
He likes his mead and he has hairs coming out from his nose like big 
black spiders legs.  I stuck my tongue out behind his back and 
whispered a very bad word and picked up my wooden bucket and ladle.  I 
went about my work, wishing I was far away from this nasty place and it 
was then that I saw him.  I stopped and a man nearly tripped over me.  
He said lots of bad words.  Well he should have been looking where he 
was going.  My elf, I like to call him that sat huddled against the 
bars of a small wooden cage.  There are lots of these cages in the back 
rooms of the auction.  You see the slaves are kept in these before they 
are taken through to the main auction to be sold.  I thought I better 
tell you in case you have never been to an auction before.  He had long 
pointy ears just like Mummy had told me and long hair that I think if 
it had not been so dirty would have looked like pretty gold.  His hair 
covered his face but I knew he was an elf, I just knew.  His wrists had 
horrible big manacles round them and I think they must have hurt 
because his skin looked raw and was bleeding.  There was a horrible 
metal collar round his neck and it made me feel angry.  I was used to 
seeing people chained but this was not right.  I carefully put my 
bucket down and knelt by the cage. 

“Hello.”  I said, picking at the baddies on my arm.  He looked up and
Mummy told me it is rude to stare but I did, I could not help it.  He 
had very pretty eyes and they were not like mine, his were shaped like 
two large almonds and blue.  I love summer skies do you?  Well his eyes 
were just like that but they were so very sad, it made me want to cry.  
His face was more pointed than mine too and he had lots of bruises.  
You know, he still looked so very pretty to me and I wanted to give him 
a big hug.  He did not look well; he was shivering and looked as if he 
had a fever.  He smiled at me and my cheeks went red, yes they did. 

“My name is Maya, what's yours?  You're an elf aren't you?” 

He began to cough and silly me nearly forgot I had some water.  I
scooped some up with my ladle and held it through the bars to his lips. 


“It will make you feel better.” 

He drunk a little and that made me happy.  He smiled at me again. 

“Thank you Maya.” 

I felt my tummy do a summersault.  He had a lovely voice just like my
Mummy told me. 

“Shealar.” 

“Shealar.”  I whispered back, reaching my little hand through the bars
to take his hand.  His skin felt cold and clammy and my pretty elf did 
not belong in a nasty place like this.  He should be in forests of 
green, like the ones Mummy described.  I could not help it but I began 
to cry.  His clothes were all torn and I saw lots of dried blood.  I 


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