Folksburywoods

“I remember the first time my grandfather took me to see them. I was so excited. “Angels,” he said. We were going to see angels,” Meeka remarked to her friends as they walked along the lake. Each year since that time, the granddaughter of a watchmaker would ride the tram…

“I’m going to tell Ms. Fidget that you were throwing rocks at Missy Barnes,” scolded Timothy Tattletales. “I see you stealing those apples, Jimmy Farnesworth, and you, Billy Kroger, I know you took farmer MacKye’s pumpkins last night,” hollered the tattler. If you did something wrong and were a kid,…

Nikolai swept the house, cleaned and put away the dishes, and added wood to the fire. Nikolai was a Domovoy, and he loved his family very much. Folks who don’t live in the Slavic lands are unaware of these house spirits and their importance to each family. The Domovoy protects…

Oh, Hello, my little friend, I must have missed you the last time I was here,” said the guardian. Stossel Nuburgh was the keeper of the Christmas Trees. “You’re the perfect size for the children’s orphanage in Bristol. Would you like to be their tree this year? ” Stossel inquired.…

Tomasina would do no work, not lower herself to chase a mouse or kill a rat. Tomasina was wise for a cat. She had read nearly all the books in the library. Tomasina was above fouling her paws with the dirt of a rodent. She would sit on her desk,…

“In times long gone, the Rompers would dance by the moon’s song under her loving silver light,” said the Archivist. “It has been a hundred thousand generations since then, and now we are sport for man. Allowed to live in cages or narrow strips of land until humans find need…

Silas lived in a hole in a tree. It was nothing like the holes the little harried feet men lived in. The hole was dark, dank, and cobweb-filled. He lived there alone and liked it that way. Silas was a keeper of things. Silas was on his way to enjoy…

When Nelly met Ned, it was love at first sight. The two have been together for two days, and for them, it is time to get “hitched up” as a couple. They talk about raising a family with twelve kids and a handful of critters out back for eating. Ned…

“I have to go away tomorrow,” said Kári to Guthmundr, the white snow bear, and Svanr, the boar. “But it’s not snowing yet,” Guthmundr questioned. “I know, I must learn to be a man. That’s what the elder told me,” answered Kári. “Will you come back?” said Svanr, lowering his…

Madmen speak of encountering the Snark, reptoids in South America’s Andes Mountains. It is said that once they have you in their sight, you are driven mad by the high-pitched whistle they use as a weapon. Some have escaped the Snark by leaping into the canyon river, which flows beside…

There are certain places in Appalachia that no man should go. While locals talk of a vile demon that lives in the woods, the truth is much scarier. The Scotts who migrated to the mountains were said to have mistakenly brought them from their homeland, where they were called Bodach.…

Lorelei relaxed in the bamboo forest, listening to Artix’s recent adventures among the humans. “They are easily fooled over wine, woman, or gold,” said the fox. “I thought it was power that man sought?” questioned the nymph. “Yes, power to obtain objects or power to control others. Man’s arrogance leads…

“I can smell them, the pines. We’re home, aren’t we?” whispered the matron. It had been a hellish journey, but they were back home now, time to rest. Muska’s mother was a seer who traveled from village to village reading palms, interpreting omens, and foretelling the future. Since Muska could…

It had been a disappointing day. Could the mine be petering out? Gojeck worried he might not be able to feed his family. All he knew was mining. He couldn’t compete with the younger farmhands, so how would he make a living? Tomorrow may be better, the miner thought. “It’s…