Chapter Text
May 10th, 1638
The Boiling Isles is a strange, yet fascinating place. Home to many creatures of all shapes and sizes; some docile, some not, some winged and some hooved, some humanoid, and many of them not. Those who call this place home are just as fascinating and just as strange. Witches they call themselves, all of them capable of performing fantastic spells with a simple swirl of their finger. Even the plants here are strange, many of them carnivorous and it isn’t an uncommon sight to see one devouring an insect that’s more than twice its size.
Yet, the longer I find myself in this strange land, the more I find myself longing for the mundane of my life back in the human realm.
“Philip!” His brother calls for him, pulling him away from his journal. “Philip, look at this,” his brother jogs over to him and sits before him, his hands clasped together in front of him as if he were a child holding an insect, his eyes sparkling just the same. Ever so carefully, he opens his hands, though not enough to release his catch, exposing a very small winged humanoid creature.
“Is that..?”
“A fairy!” He beams. “Like from Mother’s stories!”
“Hm,” Philip hums, watching as the creature squirms in his brother's hands. “Well, Edward, it seems you were right… They are real.” He sighs. “I suppose I should apologize for calling you a blockhead when we were children.”
“Yes,” Edward laughs, but it quickly turns into a pained yelp when the fairy bites his hand with surprisingly sharp teeth. “Ow!” he shakes his hand.
“You!” Philip jumps to his feet as the fairy flies off. “You can’t just bite someone!”
“Philip,” Edward catches his wrist before he could chase after the fairy. “Leave it be, it’s my own fault for being so rude to them.” He turns to the fairy and smiles apologetically. “My apologies! It won’t happen again!!”
“Hmpf!” The fairy turns up their nose and flutters away.
Edward laughs and leans back on the grass, looking up at a sky very much like the one in their own realm only darker in hue. “This place…” He sighs, and Philip knows that sigh. “I don’t think I’ll ever tire of it.”
Philip frowns. They’ve only been in this place for a short time, but already his brother is enamored with it. “Don’t you want to go home?” He asks. He’s got to steer him back on the proper path. “Back to Gravesfield?”
“Sure, I do,” Edward leans back, his arms behind his head and one leg propped upon his knee. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to learn all that I can about the Boiling Isles. This is the very adventure we used to pretend to have as boys.”
“I suppose,” Philip sits back down, one knee to his chest and the other stretched out, and he stares off into the distance. “I just worry about our safety, is all. Your safety, mostly, reckless as you are.” He laughs when his brother kicks him over. “You’ve nearly died three times since we’ve been here… And we’ve only been here for a week.”
“That’s what makes it fun.”
Philip hums and sits back up, turning his gaze to the town in the distance.
Yes. The Boiling Isles is a very strange and fascinating place indeed. And the longer Philip finds himself in this strange land…
The more he grows to loathe it.