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(Page 2 of 6) Killing Fairies by Querus AbuttuI didn't want to take the chance of diluting some of the flavor either, and so as I brought my container into the house I immediately went to the kitchen, grabbed a handful of flowers from my gatherings, took the lid off my Brown Betty tea pot, and pressed the flowers into the wire mesh tea strainer. Almost as quickly, I dispensed the sub-boiling hot water over the blossoms from my Japanese style hot water keeper, almost absentmindedly noting the curious high-pitched sound that tickled my ears as the water hit the blossoms. I then covered the teapot and waited.
How long does one wait for honeysuckle tea to brew? My mind began to dwell on the subject, and it carried with it a odd array of inner conversations within my temporal space.
Unlike Jasmine tea, which I'd seen made with a mixture of black tea and jasmine flowers, my homemade tea consisted of pure blossoms.
More time, or less? I wondered. Perhaps more.
I let the time pass as I emptied the dishwasher, put away the dishes, then washed the dishes that were sitting in the sink with Lemon Fresh Joy before putting them into the dishwasher along with a pressed powder square of automatic dishwasher soap and switching the machine on to the regular washing cycle. I eyed the steaming brown pot, as I wiped down the speckled blue and white Formica countertop with a damp sponge, then sprayed the counter with bleach, and wiped it down again to make it smell more sanitary. Additional minutes clicked by as I opened the windows to clear the bleach smell out of my nostrils and once again introduce the sweet scent of honeysuckle into the air. I then closed the white trimmed window, and gazed on the beautiful brown pot as I glided over to the cupboard to select a worthy teacup.
Picking up the teapot by the handle, I poured the essence of the flowers into my cup. The scent was heavenly. Placing the curve of the cup to my lips...tasting the tea the very first time...well, the flavor of honeysuckle exploded across my mouth, my tongue, and my inner cheeks. It was so much sweeter than I had ever thought it would be, previously believing that I might have to add some honey to it to enhance the taste. I was delighted to have my experiment work out just as I had imagined.
As I lifted the lid off the Brown Betty, and prepared to remove the wire mesh tea strainer, which held the blossoms,I glanced down at the wilted flowers and was immediately... HORRIFIED!
There, resting on top of the honeysuckle was what appeared to be...I mean, at first I wasn't sure, but then, well, ...I thought maybe a small dragonfly, or a white butterfly...until my right index finger reached down to touch it and move it around just a bit...and yes...there were two tiny legs, two tiny arms, two miniature wings...and all of those alabaster limbs were flat and lifeless.
In a panic, I sucked in what seemed to be a gallon of air and covered the body up again with the top of the teapot, furtively glancing toward my kitchen window. If there was one fairy, logically, there must possibly be more.
Had they seen what I'd done?, I wondered.
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