“I hate having to pick up firewood,” Frank whined to his friend, Gordon.

“Me too. Let’s go pick up branches out of the small gate.”

“Didn’t the new alchemist claim all that land?” Frank asked.

“I don’t know and don’t care. That forest is closer, and nobody goes there because they don’t like hiking up the mountain side or being near the haunted stone house.”

“I don’t like being near the haunted house or hiking up the mountain either,” Frank replied.

“Whatever. Are you coming with me or not?”

“Yeah, I’m coming with,” Frank answered. The two teenagers headed towards the small gate.

*

“Hi Frank. Hi Gordon,” Woya greeted the boys as they passed her house.

“Hi Woya,” Frank replied.

“Hey Woya,” Gordon returned the greeting smiling at the chief’s daughter.

“Where are you two off to?”

“Gathering firewood,” Frank answered.

“Want to come with us?” Gordon asked.

“Wait. Why are you heading to the small gate if you’re gathering firewood?” Woya asked.

“It’s closer and should have more dried branches that we can pick up.”

“And what about the new alchemist? He’s staked out a land claim starting at the old rundown fence going through the woods to the stone cottage and maybe beyond it according to my dad,” Woya replied.

“We’re not worried about him or his claim,” Gordon said.

“We should be. What if he’s a killer? Nobody knows him and only my dad has talked to him much,” Woya argued.

“You worry too much, Woya,” Frank replied.

“Frank is right. The alchemist is only a few months or a year older than we are at most. If he was a nutjob, we can handle him,” Gordon added.

“What about his familiar?”

“A pixie?” Gordon scoffed.

“Your mother is correct. Pixies are pests,” Frank said. “They can’t actually hurt people.”

“Do you want to come with us or not?” Gordon asked. Woya was indecisive and looked it. “Well, if you’re too chicken to disobey your dad…”

Woya glared at the two boys as Frank made clucking sounds. She pushed past them and started walking to the gate. She threw the pair a challenging look over her shoulder. “What are you two waiting for?”

“We’re coming,” Frank said starting to walk. Gordon laid a hand on his shoulder stopping Frank.

“Thanks for giving me an edge.”

“What do you mean?”

“Clucking at Woya like that wasn’t good for your desire to court her,” Gordon explained tapping his friend on the back before starting after the chief’s daughter.

“Crap. He’s right,” Frank said to himself before jogging to catch up.

*

“April!”

“What is it May?” April asked her fellow pixie.

“There are three humans have exited the village and walking towards Lilly’s Jase’s claimed land.”

“What do they want? What are they doing?” April asked.

“I don’t know,” May replied with a shrug before landing on the oak branch beside her friend. “I flew here just as soon as I saw them coming this way.”

“So, you don’t know what they are doing?”

“Nope! Should we tell Lily?”

“Not without knowing what the three humans are doing or even if they crossed the stakes and border,” April replied.

“They did!” another pixie yelled while flying towards the duo.

“Thanks Cherry!” April and May chorused.

“When I left, the girl, who is the chief’s daughter by the way, was arguing about wanting to go to the cottage to ask for permission while the boys were saying they just wanted to pick up firewood and go home,” Cherry added.

“Let’s run the humans off and then we’ll tell Lily. Her and the elder did make an agreement for us to help protect the land,” April told the other two pixies after giving it some thought. The other two gave her matching grins.

“Should we zap them?” May asked holding her left hand up where sparks played across it.

“Or should we get a bear to chase them?” Cherry asked. May and April frowned.

“When did you get so bloodthirsty?” April asked.

“A bear would kill them and get Lily and Jase into trouble,” May added.

“I’m not bloodthirsty!” Cherry retorted. “I just want to see the humans poop their pants.”

“That’s just as bad!” April and May replied at the same time. Cherry grinned and shrugged her shoulders.

“How would Jase and Lilly get into trouble if a bear chases the humans?” Cherry asked.

“Didn’t you say that the girl was Woya?” May asked.

“If that is her name, yeah.”

“That’s how they’ll get into trouble. Her mother will blame them even if they don’t have anything to do with the bear.”

“Oh. Yeah, that makes sense,” Cherry conceded. “Forget about the bear then.”

“I have an idea. Let’s go and I’ll explain on the way,” April said lifting off into the air.

*

“I don’t like this,” Woya complained. “We should ask the alchemist for permission to be on his land.”

“Relax,” Frank said. He was trying to be cooler around the girl he liked. “It’ll be fine.”

“You could always go ask the alchemist yourself,” Gordon replied. “That is unless you’re scared of the haunted house.”

Woya frowned and looked away. Frank grinned and gave his pal a thumbs up. Gordon muttered a curse as he bent down to pick up a branch. He had just made the same mistake Frank had a few minutes earlier.

*

“Is everyone ready?” April inquired.

May looked over the other pixies and their mounts sitting in the trees around them, receiving nods. She nodded to herself before answering. “Commander, we are.”

April turned her head and looked over her troops on the left. She did the same for the right. All the pixies were suddenly wearing camouflage. She mounted her pigeon. “Then let’s do this.”

*

“Why has it gotten so quiet?” Woya asked.

“What do you mean?” Frank asked.

“There is no more birdsong or even insect noises,” Woya answered.

“She’s right,” Gordon said glancing around. “I just hear a slight rustling of the wind in the leaves.”

“Maybe it’s a bear or cougar,” Frank nervously muttered. He whipped his head left to right looking around before spinning in a circle to look behind himself.

“I knew we shouldn’t have come here! Let’s run home,” Woya exclaimed. The three of them froze when they heard laughter.

*

“There are no cougars or bears near here. They don’t like humans,” May said to nobody and everybody. “What is here is much worse.”

“That’s right! We’re worse than predators,” Cherry said to laughter from the other pixies.

“Charge!” April shouted.

*

Birds exploded from the trees cawing, cooing, and making every other sound they made. Woy and the boys looked up in fright.

“Take this!” April cackled as her pigeon released its load.

“What the heck?” Gordon asked wiping his face. Looking at his hand, he frowned. He had wiped away bird droppings.

“That’s disgusting! Frank yelled as he looked at his own hand.

“The birds are bombing us!” Woya exclaimed as more and more birds did their business over the three humans. “I’ll never get this out of my hair!”

“Pixies are riding the birds!” Gordon shouted catching a glimpse of a tiny figure riding a crow.

“Second wave, it’s your turn!” April ordered. The second wave of crows carrying pecans, acorns, and small pinecones stared dropping them onto the humans.

“This is what trespassers get!” Cherry shouted.

“Let’s get out of here!” Frank said.

“Yeah. Let’s run,” Gordon agreed. The two friends started running back towards the village as Woya started running towards the stone cottage.