A Fey Lord's Guide to Raising Monsters

Eogan gulps nervously while Aine quickly darts behind him.

"What might the two of you be up to? Young lord? Young lady?" the burly, suntanned man asks worriedly. His eyes are hidden by the rim of his straw hat.

Aine peeks her head around and mutters quietly while gripping her brother with enough force to turn his fingertips red: "We are going to the flower field to play." Although quiet, she makes it a statement, quite aware, despite her young age, that she has a certain more authority than the average child.

Eogan nods in agreement and gives Aine's hand a squeeze of encouragement. "That is correct. I wish to view the wildflowers, and Aine decided to come along."

The gardener laughs, "It is good to see younglings like you appreciate the beauty of flowers, but it is unsafe for you to go without an adult. Please wait here while I go get my daughter to accompany you."

Eogan and Aine look at each other and silently agree as the gardener walks off. As soon as he is out of sight, they run toward the path leading to the field.

Aine is giggling in excitement. "Big brother, do you think we will get in trouble when we get back home afterward?"

"I absolutely will since I am older and skipping a lesson, too." He gives his little sister a cheeky grin. "But I will say I dragged you along so you will not get in trouble."

As they run along the path, Eogan thinks about why he wants to go to the flower field. 'A few weeks ago, I began to have dreams about monsters and how to tame and raise them.'

A slight frown crosses his face. 'But taming monsters has been illegal for several centuries. I do not know why those dreams seem so real, but one of the monsters I saw in the dream was a sprite, easily found in wildflower fields if one knew what to look for. If I can verify whether or not the dream was correct about taming a sprite, then I will know if it was simply nonsense or if it means something.'

Ker-thud. He gets snapped out of his thoughts and suddenly finds his face in a mud puddle. Aine, running ahead of him, stops and turns around, "Big brother, are you alright? What happened?"

Eogan sighs and sits on his knees. He wipes off the mud as he answers, "I was thinking about something and tripped over my own foot."

Bright laughter comes from Aine as she helps him up. "You are funny."

Eogan turns his head toward the side of the path, trying to see into the thick grass. He thinks he heard someone else laughing quietly. After a few moments, he shrugs to himself and says, "Come on, Aine. The flower field is on the other side of this hill."