Chance encounters
Percival Weasley was a perfectly happy child by all accounts of the word. A faun of nearly 11 living on his family's small farm without a care in the world. He knew not of love beyond his mother and father and he knew not of prejudice. He was an innocent young lad and playful too. Not to the point to cause trouble his wee brothers Fredrick and George caused that enough.
At such a young age his mother already trusted him to forage alone. He held this task with pride. His older brothers William and Charles hadn’t been allowed to forage in the forest alone until they were much older than he was. There was great fun to be had foraging. Searching every nook and cranny in the forest brought young Percival great joy. When his mother had asked him to go today he got ready at once.
He put on his new linen shirt. It was still quite big but he was growing so he knew it would fit someday. His brothers always wore a belt with their shirts to make it more flattering but he didn’t see the need. It looked perfectly fine as is. He had put on his leather satchel. It was useful for carrying things like apples he picked or the lunch his mother made for him. The rest could easily go into a basket. Unlike other fae, fauns had no need for pants or shoes so they didn’t bother spending money on them. Percival then put his mustard yellow cloak on and he was ready to go on his merry way.
He walked down the stairs into the kitchen where his mother had prepared a lunch to take with him. Along with a basket and the list of things they needed. He had shoved the lunch into his bag along with the list. His mother had kissed him on the cheek and he headed out.
He stepped out of their cottage and onto the stepping stone path that led to the road. He had bid adieu to his father and older brothers who were working on their farmland. With that, he headed to the forest.
Percival had always found the forest quite peaceful. His wee brother Ronald was always scared of it since he was a baby but Percival found tranquillity in the forest. Her many trees surrounding him made him feel connected to something bigger than himself. The birds flying around, the sun shining through the leaves of various varieties of trees, The ferns and wildflowers forming a path for him. If he had it his way he would live in the forest. But there was no time for dilly-dallying he had things to get.
He opened his satchel and took out the list to see where he needed to go. On the piece of paper, his mom had written:
Ten green apples
A bundle of wild thyme
A basket full of hazelnuts
Some cornflowers for your sister she wishes to learn how to press them
Percival put it back into his satchel and then went on the hunt.
He had gathered the green apples and wild thyme for his mother before and knew easily where to find cornflowers but he was at a loss when it came to hazelnuts. He thought he might as well get the things he knew before worrying about it. He headed off to the green apple tree just right off the trail.
Climbing wasn’t a fauns forte. Their deer-like legs were made for running and jumping but not climbing. Still, Percival knew that to get the best apples you had to reach the top of the tree so forte or not he wasn’t gonna settle. His brother Charles had taught him how to use a rope to climb it so that’s what he used. He had become quite skilled in the mode of collecting. Soon enough he had all ten apples his mother had asked him to get.
Next was the thyme. He knew there was a patch not far from here. He had found his way back to the trail. When he was walking he noticed the wind picking up speed.
‘Great,’ he thought. ‘Wind spirits were just what I needed.’ out of all the things he loved about the woods he hated wind spirits. They were all a bunch of gits who would stop at nothing for a chance to mess with a lowly faun like him. He remembered the first time he went foraging. They had built up enough force to throw him into a giant oak tree. He eventually got down at the price of a broken arm but ever since then he wanted nothing to do with the lot of them
He let out a frustrated huff and put his hood up. That way they couldn’t mess with his hair more than it already was. Anyway, he had to find the thyme. In a few minutes, he had found a wild patch. He had knelt down to pick it. He didn’t very much enjoy the laborious work it was but it was better than harvesting the barely or milking the cows so he didn’t complain. Once he picked it he tied it with the string he had in his satchel. Then as he was getting up he was knocked backward by a strong gust of wind, followed by whispers of laughter.
As joyful was young Percival perceived himself to be, he could get quite flustered and fussy at times. And he was definitely susceptible to these emotions when it came to those dastardly wind spirits. It was like they took pleasure in ruining other’s days. But again, there was no time to cry about it. He still needed the hazelnuts and the cornflowers.
Percival had found a nice clearing and decided it would be a good place for lunch. He had taken off his cloak and his satchel. He grabbed his lunch his mum had packed for him. It was a piece of bread, a slice of cheese, some blueberries, and a bottle of ale. Almost everything was made on their own farm. He didn’t mind of course they didn’t have the type of money for other cheeses or ales and why would they waste it? Percival gladly ate his lunch.
He was just about done when once again a sudden gust of wind swept by him. It took the remaining blueberries and scattered them but it also blew his satchel, his basket, and his cloak into the creek behind him. Luckily the satchel wasn’t opened so none of the contents he spent the morning getting were lost but still now his cloak was wet. What good shall a wet cloak do for him?
He rushed to the creek at once to retrieve his things. As he was turning to get to it he saw a young boy already picking up his things from out of the water. He couldn’t have been much older than Percival himself was. He was wearing a shirt similar to the one Percival was wearing but his were tucked into a pair of light green breeches. He had worn a lavender purple mantle and a pair of shoes that were fashioned to look like leaves.
If there was anything Percival hated it was people helping him when he didn’t ask. It made him feel weak and helpless, two things he was not. He huffed over to the creek to get the rest of his stuff out. He didn’t want this strange boy meddling with his things. He had already grabbed the cloak but wasn’t quick enough to get the satchel and basket before Percival snatched it quite aggressively.
The boy was taken aback. He was only trying to help the young faun but he was clearly having none of it. He had a quite confused look on his face. No one had ever acted like this to him when he tried to help them before. Maybe it had something to do with the area. His friends had told him that people near the faun village always got quite mad at their tricks and were fun to mess with but he didn’t like making people angry and it was clear the boy in front of him was.
Percival wanted so badly to just go about his day and finish his foraging but the boy was still holding onto his cloak. He considered just leaving without it but he knew his parents would be mad at him. Wool wasn’t cheap after all. But the boy was just holding it, doing nothing else, saying nothing else. Just holding it as if he was teasing Percival, which only made him madder. He tried to take it out of his arms but the boy quickly pulled it away.
Percival glared at him in a way he never had glared at anybody. The boy was clearly messing with him once again. The boy had clothes and by the look of it he wasn’t poor either so what was the point if he didn’t need it? He had been pushed around by wind spirits but never had they tried to take something from him.
“Give me my cloak back.” Percival crossed his arms. He was trying to sound intimidating but his 11-year-old voice wasn’t on his side. “But why? It is still wet.” The boy replied back. “I don’t care. it’s mine, give it back.” “But you must let me dry it first. What use does a wet cloak have?” Percival was turning a visible shade redder.
“I did not ask you to dry it. I do not have the time to wait for it to dry.” He said, trying to grab his cloak again. “What is your issue? I only wanted to help.” “I DID NOT ASK FOR HELP,” Percival screamed. He had never screamed at anybody before but this boy filled with a rage unmatched by anything he had ever experienced. All he wished was to go about his day again
The other boy looked like he was about to cry. Never had anybody been this mad at him.
“Please if you just let me dry it I’ll leave you alone.” The boy pleaded. “Fine.” Percival huffed. At once the boy manipulated the wind to quickly dry the mustard yellow cloak. After the water fully left it, the boy presented it to Percival, who snatched it away and put it back on.
He started to walk away without another word but the boy continued to follow him. Frustrated and flustered, he turned around to once again confront him.
“I thought you said you were going to leave me alone,” Percival said quite bitterly. “If you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing alone in the woods?” “It’s none of your business and besides it appears that you are alone in the woods too.” Percival started walking away again.
“Are you always this rude to people?” Percival scoffed and asked, “What is that supposed to mean?” “You have been nothing but dismissive when all I have tried to do was be helpful.” Both of the boys stopped.
“I did not ask for help. I do not need help. Especially not from a wind spirit.” “I don’t know where you come from but I’ve been taught it’s polite to offer help to people who don’t ask for it.” The boy crossed his arms at him. “Well, I don’t appreciate it. I am perfectly capable of handling things myself which is why my mum lets me forage alone.” The other boys' eyes lit up when Percival mentioned foraging.
“Oooh I have never been foraging before but I have always wished to learn how to. Do show me how.” He pleaded with Percival. “Why would I do that? So you will know all the places and take everything from them?” His family has taken years to find the best foraging spots and he wasn’t about to give them away to this random boy.
“But please I wouldn't, I just want to learn how.” “I have said no plenty of times. Does that not mean anything where you’re from.” Percival said as he continued to walk away out of the clearing, leaving the boy quite dumbfounded.
The experience left Percival with quite a lot of dread. Whoever this boy was, he wasn’t someone Percival would enjoy spending time with. He had taken up so much time with his pushy nature and friendly disposition that it was rearing close to the afternoon and Percival still hasn’t foraged the hazelnuts or the cornflowers. He remembered where his brothers had shown him the hazel tree. It was in the clearing.
He had no doubt in his mind that the boy would still be there. But he had to get the hazelnuts. He had to swallow his pride and risk the chance to once again meet the boy. Once he entered the clearing once again, he saw the boy sitting on a stump looking quite sad. But Percival had no time for it. He would take ages to harvest enough nuts to fill his basket; it was no time for distraction.
Of course, the boy noticed his return but he didn’t want to anger him more than he already had. So he just watched him. Watch him climb up the hazel tree with his rope and carefully pick the hazelnuts one by one being careful not to slip. He thought to himself how much easier it would’ve been if he had helped but he had learned how the young faun thought about help. So it was better to leave it alone.
It had taken Percival quite some time to pick the hazelnuts. When he got done he noticed the sun was setting. It wasn’t a good thing at all. His parents had warned him to stay out of the woods at night. He never knew why but it was better not to test it.
As he descended he noticed the boy was still there. There must be some reason he was still there. It seemed ridiculous for it to be because of him. So he decided to show civility and ask him if anything was wrong.
“You don’t want to be in the woods at night. Are you waiting for something?” The boy looked up at him. “My friends have seemed to forget about me and I haven’t the slightest clue how to get out.” Percival had felt a little bad about the way he behaved before. He knew his reaction was uncalled for so he thought he should make it up to the boy.
“Well, you could walk home with me. I know the way out of the woods and after that, you can just follow the road into town.” Percival said and offered his hand to help him up. “Very well then. You shall show me the way out of the woods.” The boy said with a smile. And so the two went on. Out of the clearing and onto the path.
Most of the walk was spent in silence. Percival picked cornflowers along the way. The boy was quite confused about this. “Why are you picking those? Don’t you know that they are weeds?” Percival looked up at him with equal confusion. “They’re just cornflowers. My family loves them.” The boy laughed at this. “Why don’t you get proper flowers like lavender or roses?” “We do not have money for such frivolous things. And besides just because a flower grows wild doesn’t make it less of a flower.” Percival said quite defensively. The boy shut up after that. He couldn’t understand why this faun was so sensitive to everything.
Soon enough they found themselves out of the woods and back onto the village road. Percival turned to the boy. “If you follow this road you should find yourself in the village. I need to go home now but it was nice meeting you.” He explained quite cordially. The boy thanked him and went on his way.
‘What a strange boy,’ He had thought to himself. As they walked separate ways the boy had heard someone calling a name.
“Percy! Percy!” he heard a voice call as an older faun appeared on the road and ran up to the younger one. “What took you so long? Mum’s been worried sick.” “I got caught up with wind spirits but I handled it well and good, Charlie.” They continued to talk but by that time the boy was too far away to hear anything. As he walked towards the village he said to himself, “hmm, so his name is Percy.”