"That would be all for tonight." The fairy queen snapped her fingers and the magical diagram in the air vanished into shimmering glitter.
"The servants will take you all to your respective rooms." She said with a yawn. "Tomorrow we will start with your affinity manifestations and training. For now, take a good long rest. You'll all need it."
The table was now being cleaned up by the fairies wearing brown and drab robes, with the rest of them guiding the crowd of people to their respective rooms. Each person was assigned a fairy as a personal servant until the day of release came- a month from now.
"Hi again." Nico held out his arms to greet the sidecut fairy with red eyes.
"This way." She said, not taking his hand.
The fairies were guiding them through another set of double doors, this time heading to another set of spiral staircases up, leading up to a door that revealed winding hallways and narrow corridors from left and right to center. It seemed like a maze with one corridor leading to another, illuminated just enough by magic orbs fixed on the walls. The people were now getting separated from their newfound groups as they were taken to their rooms throughout the maze, going from left to right, and to ladders heading up or down. Siara and Kristine were the first to go, with the group waving them a quick goodbye. Next came Jason, who gave each of them a pat on the back before heading off to the left with his fairy.
"What a day." Nico grunted as they climbed another set of ladders. "You okay back there Kai?"
"Yeah." Kai said, without the usual active tone he had.
. . .
"This is my stop." Kai said, holding out a fist. "See you bro."
"Yeah, see you." Nico bumped his fist as they waved each other goodbye.
"Aight." Nico then turned to Andrei. "So how was your day going?"
. . .
"Seriously?" Nico let out a laugh. "That must've been a good one."
"Yeah." Andrei said. "I got that clutch on an eco round too. Best moment of my life."
The two were chatting along the narrow hallways as their voices echoed along, talking about the world they had left behind.
"Do you want to go back?" Andrei asked.
"I can't say." Nico replied. "But if this day was any indication of what is to come, then I'd take it straight on. Just on day one, I've met countless new people, with mystical events happening one after another. It's a literal fantasy world, complete with gorgeous fairies. Don't tell me you aren't a little bit interested."
"I am. But I keep going back to the thought of leaving my family, friends, and my girlfriend- they're waiting for me. I have things I hold dear back on Earth."
"Good for you." Nico said with a dry smile. "But for me, my life was a mess back there. Doing things over and over with responsibilities chaining me up. I kept hoping that one day something would happen that could just- wash away everything, you know? Just to get a clean slate. This could be the chance I was looking for."
Nico then clapped his face in between his hands to get a grip.
"Sorry, that came off as whiny."
"No, you have your circumstances."
"We all do." Nico said, his guilt starting to eat away at him. "I feel really bad for feeling this way, but I feel really happy being here, exploring new things in a whole new world."
They passed through a small wooden door and what greeted them was the cold, ghostly air of the night. They were now outside the giant tree on a suspended bridge, hundreds of feet above the forest floor as the moonlight shone over their skin.
Nico stared in awe at the night sky, finding a majestic moon bigger than Earth's; so big that it encompassed a fifth of the entire night sky. Stars dotted the night like grains of sand, twinkling red and blue like gems.
"Kai was devastated, and here I am grinning like an idiot."
. . .
After a few small talks and chatter, they went their separate ways- with Nico and his fairy left on their own heading to his room.
"What you said earlier," The fairy said as they were now ascending a set of staircases wedged in the bark of the tree, with her guiding the way. "You're very self-centered, aren't you?"
"Yeah, I know."
They continued to climb up the staircase with the cold evening wind brushing up against their faces and hair.
With no word between them since, they quietly ascended the stairs until they finally reached a carved room inside the bark of the tree, like a small cozy cave on a cliffside with an exquisite view.
"This is your place." The fairy said in front of the room, handing him a book, a piece of paper, and a small chime bell. "Use the bell to call me."
Nico examined the small bell on his hand. "This small thing?"
"Size doesn't matter." She said, heading back down the stairs. "Also, we fairies are sensitive. My ears will pick up the bell chime."
"Thanks." Nico said. "So, what's your name?"
She paused for a bit, but ultimately continued down the stairs without looking back.
"Aight, you do you." Nico raised his hands in surrender as he headed inside his room. He felt a tingling feeling as he stepped through what seemed like thin glass- an invisible magic wall that separated the inside and out.
As soon as he went inside, the cold air of the night was immediately nonexistent, replaced by the cozy warmth of the magic red orb taking the place of what was supposed to be fire in the fireplace across the room. A rug was spread across the wood floor, with another magic orb floating just below the ceiling, illuminating the entire room with a yellow-orange tint.
He plopped straight onto the bed, carved into the walls and strawn with silk-like materials, feeling asleep on clouds.
"I better not wake up to this being a dream."