Prologue
“Lila, get into bed now,” her mother said, tucking the blanket around her daughter with a practiced tug.
“But, Mama,” Lila protested, curling up under the covers, “will you tell me the story?”
Her mother raised an eyebrow, a faint smile playing at her lips. “Which story, my dear? You ask for so many.”
“The one… the one about the Princess of the Fairies and the farm boy!” Lila’s eyes were wide, shining in the dim glow of the bedside lamp.
“Oh,” her mother said, pretending to think, “I’m not sure I remember that one.”
“You do! Please, please, please,” Lila begged, clasping her small hands together.
Her mother sighed, amused, and sat on the edge of the bed. “Very well, but you must listen carefully.” She brushed a strand of hair from Lila’s face and began:
“Once, in a kingdom where sunlight danced on the hills like liquid gold, there lived a princess of the fairies. She was kind beyond measure, her heart full of light, and she had the rare gift of seeing what others could not—what a person might become if given a little magic, a little hope.”
“Far away, in a quiet valley of wind-tossed fields, lived a young farm boy. He was brave, yes, but he was small and untested, and danger often came to those who tilled the earth without power to defend it. One spring, the princess visited him in a dream, and seeing the purity of his heart, she made a choice no one else could. She gave herself—her very life—to grant him the strength, the courage, and the skills he would need to protect his family and his home.”
Lila’s breath hitched slightly. “Did he—did he survive?”
“He did,” her mother said softly. “But the princess… she could not return. So the earth honored her. A tree grew around her, wrapping her in its trunk, its branches stretching wide as if to hold her forever. And every spring, from that tree, apples would blossom—apples that were sweeter and brighter than any other, for they held her blessing inside.”
The room was silent except for Lila’s soft breathing, her eyelids fluttering as sleep crept in.
“And that, my sweet Lila,” her mother whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to her daughter’s forehead, “is how the Princess of the Fairies watches over those who need her most.”
By the time the lamp was dimmed, Lila was fast asleep, dreaming of golden sunlight, brave farm boys, and a princess whose heart grew into a tree that touched the sky.
