Butterfly Welcomes

TheCuriousSeed

Following is a tale that I hope you'll enjoy.

~When spring had sprung, several a chrysalis had been found hanging from many a branch of the trees. Usually, Animal Talents that could work with butterflies would check on the chrysalises and help the butterflies out when ready, but Daylily Sunspring, one of the most in-tune Animal Scouts with nature, decided better to start letting the butterflies emerge on their own from the chrysalises, only assisting if truly stuck.

~"Good morning!" chimed Daylily, who was stationed to check on the butterflies. "Today is a bee-you-tiful day for flight. Let's see who's ready to emerge."

~Daylily flew around and checked each chrysalis. Most weren't quite ready yet, but there was one impatient chrysalis with a butterfly inside fighting her way out.

~"C'mon dearie, you can do it!" cheered Daylily. "If you just keep at it, you'll soon emerge!"

~"What're you doing?" asked a new Animal Talent named River Tuliplace as she flew to see Daylily cheering on the impatient butterfly in the chrysalis.

~"She really wants to be the first to emerge," Daylily told River.

~"Not like that," said another new Animal Talent named Cypress Cedarforest as she flew to the chrysalis. "Like this." Cypress tried hugging the chrysalis, but the butterfly was stuck.

~"I'll ask one of the Elvas to help too," suggested Daylily. "And perhaps even ask Jessie and Robin too."

~"You do so while River and I free the other butterflies."

~"Not yet; the others aren't ready. I'll be right back."

~Elva Nightvalley and her sister Jessamine Islandsong, Jessie for short, were also stationed to help the butterflies and on their way there when the younger Elva, the one with white hair, alongside Robin, joined the pair. All four girls were headed to help the butterflies when they say Daylily.

~"Oh, goody!" exclaimed Daylily. "Time to check on the butterflies!"

~The five returned to the butterflies to see if any were ready yet.

~But none had emerged, not even the impatient one, and what was worse, three impatient Sewing Talents came with scissors intending to free the butterflies themselves.

~"Wait!" cried Daylily. "Don't open the butterflies' chrysalises! They need to work themselves out so they can fly!"

~"But this year's fashions are butterfly-themed," said one Sewing Talent.

~"Besides, they were struggling," said another.

~"Better if they do," said the younger Elva. "Freeing the butterflies too early won't ameliorate their situation."

~"Wowie, you are one stuck butterfly!" exclaimed Cypress.

~"I remember some Animal Talents using something slippery to help free the stuck butterflies," suggested River. "Snails might help."

~"Oh no, we don't want to get the butterflies too slimy to fly," said Daylily. "What they need is some encouragement and I can sense almost all of them to be ready to emerge from their chrysalises, especially the first one." Daylily flew to the first chrysalis and gave her a little kiss before the butterfly found the strength to emerge.

~"Oh, look!" exclaimed Robin. "She's beautiful!"

~"She's a monarch butterfly," said Jessie.

~Daylily went in order of readiness, giving each butterfly a gently hug to help.

~"Why not just go row by row?" asked the third Sewing Talent. "It'll be more efficient."

~But Daylily could best sense when each butterfly would be ready to emerge, ergo she directed each Animal Talent and Jessie, the only Tinker in the group, to the butterflies in order of readiness. "Remember, gentle hugs," she said. "They'll best encourage the butterflies to free themselves from their chrysalises."

~Little by little the butterflies emerged, from monarchs to swallowtails and every specie between. Finally, all were freed... except one, who kept struggling to free herself, but couldn't... and she'd been at it for hours.

~"Awww, stuck, dearie?" said Daylily, giving the last chrysalis a hug.

~Not enough yet, so each Animal Talent and Jessie hugged that chrysalis, but still not enough, so the three Sewing Talents tried too. The hugs were encouraging, but didn't help enough, and everyone had been hugging the chrysalis for quite a while. Their arms began to tire, so it was decided they'd check back later.

~After a tasty lunch, Daylily alone returned to that same chrysalis, but gasped as a different Tinker was about to free that last butterfly by opening the chrysalis.

~"Wait!" cried Daylily, flying to the last chrysalis. "Don't open her chrysalis!"

~"But the other butterflies have already flown off," said the Tinker, scissors in hand.

~Daylily motioned for space, then checked on the butterfly... she was more stuck than all the others because of some sticky substance on the butterfly herself that was definitely... "Banana slug slime?"

~"I thought it would help!" exclaimed a small Slug Talent named Emma Mapleheart, holding a young banana slug.

~Heidi, an incredibly strong Water Scout that was even smaller than Emma, flew to the last chrysalis and gasped in horror. "Oh no!" she exclaimed. "Poor dearie; she can't get out because she's been banana slug slimed! I'll try removing the slime so you can help her out!" Heidi managed to clean the butterfly by bending away the slime, much to the butterfly's relief. "I'd free her myself, but I'm much too strong to do so safely."

~Daylily then hugged the chrysalis gently, then the butterfly, with one last shimmy, finally freed herself, but shuddered in disgust!

~"That banana slug slime actually exacerbated the efforts of release, dearie," Heidi told Emma.

~"It did?! Oopsy-daisy!" exclaimed Emma. "I'd fly backwards if I could because I meant to ameliorate freedom efforts, not exacerbate!"

~All was forgiven and with the last butterfly freed, now, all the butterflies could freely fly where they pleased.

~A while later, the butterflies flew throughout the Spring and Summer meadows in their bright colours, displaying their sheer beauty. No prettier scene than the flight of lots of butterflies to put smiles on all the fairies' faces and in their hearts.