Dear faerie, I wish only these things. That all the food I cooked turns out tasty and fulfilling, and I always have enough to share with those in need. -- Anon Guest
Banquet had saved the Faerie from the spider by eating the latter. This would disturb many to know, but Hellkin were wont to eat whatever they could get. It was the only way to survive one more day and probably how all the nasty rumours started.
Ze had been reaching for the bug when the creature struggled free and thanked hir. Blessed hir with three wishes.
"You saved my life and set me free. So I must grant you wishes three."
Banquet hadn't spoken to anyone since hir village threw hir out. Ze stared at the tiny creature in complete bafflement. "I get three wishes?"
"Yes. Three whole wishes. Almost anything you like. There are limits." The faerie had evidently given up on speaking in rhymes.
"And they won't turn sour?"
"Not this time," allowed the faerie. She decided to orbit Banquet's head. "You're a skinny one, aren't you? Bet you'd wish for a huge cake, or a barrel of sausages."
Banquet wandered on, foraging as ze went. When the night fell, ze would need a fire. Ze might try cooking some of hir finds. "Dunno what a cake is. And a barrel of sausages will run out in time... I want... I want to cook good food. I wish... that when I cook, that all the food I cook becomes tasty and fulfilling."
"Granted," said the faerie.
A tingling, twinkling magic sank into Banquet's claws, making them more nimble. More joined their head, filling it with ideas, with knowledge. With magic.
"Got a second wish?"
The forage in Banquet's basket wasn't enough for one meal. There was a high chance that another desperate soul might join their camp. This wilderness was full of Unwelcome souls seeking some kind of comfort. "I wish that I always have enough to share with anyone who needs it."
"Granted," cheered the Faerie.
More spells filled Banquet's head. How to turn a little into a lot. How to make something wanted from something unwanted. How to spin inedible things into delicious foodstuffs, and have it be nutritious.
Banquet had never known the word 'nutritious' before that day.
That night, ze set hir fire and began cooking what ze could find. The magic the faerie gave hir made it better than ze had ever known in hir life. Five others followed the smell to hir fire, and there was enough for all.
One, staring into forever, told the story of their starving sister who had died mere hours before.
"I have my third wish," said Banquet. "That I will be able to give food to those who need it."
The Faerie had a wicked smirk. "Granted."
There were so many hungry. All over the world. Banquet could not be everywhere at once... so ze split into thousands. With the same mind. With the same gifts.
Faerie wishes always turn out strange.
[Photo by Nicolas Picard on Unsplash]
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