Ava in Fairyland [Illustrated]

AVA IN FAIRYLAND

by

T.K. Wade

SMASHWORDS EDITION

*****

PUBLISHED BY:

T.K. Wade on Smashwords

Illustrated by:

Coy Fields II

Ava in Fairyland

Copyright © 2015 by T.K. Wade

Thank you for purchasing this eBook. This book may not be reproduced, copied, or distributed.

Your support and respect for the property of this author is appreciated.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

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AVA IN FAIRYLAND

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Chapter I

Compartment Thirteen

Ava thought she was ready for the trip; that was until she noticed the wording of her ticket. Compartment thirteen? she said aloud. Oh, dear. That doesn’t sound very lucky. This compartment in which our little girl was to find herself in was on a train. You see, she was traveling from North Carolina to Tennessee with the intentions to visit with family, but now she was worried that she may have been given an unlucky cabin.

All aboard! cried the conductor as he stood just outside one of the doorways to the train. Ava gazed up at the man with worry, and he seemed to just make out that something may be distressing her. My little lady, said the tall man, is there anything the matter?

My ticket, replied Ava, assigns me to compartment thirteen. Does that not sound very unlucky?

I would think not, returned the conductor with confidence. I dare say that is the grandest room aboard this train!

Oh! Really? Why is that? asked the curious girl.

Why, continued the man, because when anyone ever is assigned to the room, they worry too much about the number and demand to be assigned elsewhere. For this reason, the room had seen almost no use and is the cleanest, most spectacular compartment on the entire train. In such a case, I would consider that number to be a highly lucky one!

The little girl smiled thinking that the conductor had spoken very wisely. I am sure you must be correct, for a room used very little should be almost as good as new. I think I shall be happy to stay there where others have been too superstitious to bother. And with that, she boarded the train in much better spirits.

Nearby, in the station, one might see a very peculiar man after just purchasing his ticket for the very same train as Ava. Now, I must take a moment to describe this man to you because of his very queer appearance. Firstly, he was quite portly. Additionally, he wore upon himself a large jacket which was a size too big for him. His head was decorated with a hat which was two sizes too small. He sported a mustache of surprising size which even curled upwards at its two opposing tips. And lastly, he carried with him a large bag patched with many different colors.

This large and strangely dressed man had heard the conductor’s cry of, All aboard! only moments after purchasing his ticket, and you may be sure that he made great haste to do just that! But in his hurried attempt to do this, he ran straight into a very big woman–I should point out that that she was much larger than he–and in so doing, both of them came crashing down rather awkwardly.

Our gentleman was swift to help the now screaming lady back upon her feet, and as he did so, he said to her politely, Goodness me! I beg your pardon ever so much! My name is Rupert Appleton the Third, and I shall be pleased to make your acquaintance as I am sure you shall be pleased to make mine!

To this friendly quote, Rupert was met with a heavy purse to his cranium. I certainly will not! the woman ejaculated. The very idea of you just running about in such a way! She then proceeded past him with her nose turned upward as those who put on such airs tend to do.

Poor Rupert rubbed his head and said to himself, Very well then. He quickly resumed his mission to board the train before it would be too late.

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Ava was indeed pleased with Compartment Thirteen. She had seen many of the other cabins, and there was simply no comparison. Thirteen was simply much nicer. She stepped inside and put down her yellow bag before taking a seat. Her bag was not the only thing that was yellow about this girl. Positively everything about how Ava dressed was as yellow as could be. You see, yellow was Ava’s favorite color. She often pondered what it would look like if her hair was yellow as well, but there was no denying that she would always be a brunette.

The train’s whistle sounded, and slowly but surely, the cars began to move down the tracks. Ava watched through the square window as the station drifted out of sight, and she realized that she was now on her way to Tennessee. The girl smiled happily enjoying having the entire compartment to herself; however, this thought was soon thwarted.

Rupert suddenly made an entrance into the compartment. He nearly stumbled in when his loose-fitting jacket snagged onto the doorway. In his attempts to fix this, his tiny hat slipped from his head. He somehow managed to catch it though.

Gracious! shouted the surprised, little girl. Who are you?! I thought I would be riding all by my lonesome!

Rupert was just as surprised as she. Oh! But is this not Compartment Thirteen? I suspect we shall be sharing it together.

Ava straightened out her yellow dress and nodded with understanding. I suppose so. Well, do come in. My name is Ava Paige.

Rupert set down his colorful bag and attempted to make a slight bow to the girl. He said to her as he did so, Well, how do you do, my dear Ava Paige? My name is Rupert Appleton the Third, and I shall be pleased to make your acquaintance as I am sure you shall be pleased to make mine.

Yes, indeed, was her reply. You dropped your hat.

It was true: in his attempt to bow, his hat had fallen to the floor. He quickly snatched it up and put it back on top of his large head. I thank you. It falls off quite a lot, so I am often inclined to reacquire it. Windy days can be especially bothersome.

I imagine so, agreed the girl. I would suggest buying a larger hat. It is much too small for you, sir.

Rupert slid the door closed and sat upon the opposite side of the cabin. He politely countered, That simply would not do. You see, this hat was a very special gift from my Great Uncle Paul. He lives in Wyoming, you see, and he had guessed at the correct size incorrectly. But I feel I must wear it simply as a kind gesture to him because he had heard that I was in need of a hat at the time. My Great Uncle Paul is a very kind man.

Ava smiled thinking the story to be very quaint. Did he also buy you that coat which is much too big for you? asked the girl. I saw how you got it caught on the doorway.

No, indeed, returned the large man. This coat was a gift from my cousin in Delaware who is named Gunther. It was originally his, but he wished to give it to me because I had settled one of his emergency debts. I felt it was my duty to do so, and I wanted nothing in return; however, he insisted that I take his coat. Now, I feel I must wear it to show that his kind gesture did not go unnoticed.

That is very kind of you to help out a member of your family, said the happy, little girl. I am traveling to Tennessee to visit my great grandmother. Do you have family there as well?

My dear, little lady, replied the man gravely, I have relations in all forty-eight states in the Union. As you can imagine, I travel quite a lot because my family is always looking forward to my visits. Even now, I am traveling to Tennessee as well to visit my second cousin Bryson. He promises me that he has procured a very nice gift if I shall come and see him. And although I told him I would be happy to come despite the gift, he still insists in giving me whatever it may be.

Ava giggled, for this Rupert was a very amusing man to her. She giggled and said, I am sure that whatever it is, it will be either too big or too small for you. The man crinkled his face and decided not to make any comment. Truthfully, he was hoping whatever it was to be of the proper size for a change.

The little girl then noticed the variegated bag that this strange man possessed. As poorly patched up as it was, there was still something wondrous about its many colors that caught the little girl’s attention. She decided to inquire about it by asking, Why do you carry about such a strange bag, Mister Appleton?

The man smiled slyly, for he always enjoyed being asked about this particular item. He placed his hands upon the mysterious item and said in a mysterious tone, Why, I cannot go anywhere without this bag you see, for you must understand that this is the luckiest item that has ever been given to me in all my years. Ava’s eyes grew with wonder.

Chapter II

A Bag, a Bunny, and a Fox

This bag, explained the Tubby Man, "was given to me by my third cousin on my mother’s side. His name is Larry, and he lives, even to this day, in California. He explained to me that it was quite old and had outlived its usefulness, and indeed, he intended to dispose of it. When I had expressed interest in its many patches of color, he offered to gift it to me for nothing at all. And you must know