henfry and the hummingbird

In the small town of Ravendale, a young boy with a shining hope for the future lives with his knowledgeable uncle, who has been inflicted with a deadly illness. The young boy was named by his loving mother who died at his birth. Henfry idolizes his uncle who is sitting across from him in his recliner.

“You mustn’t worry for me, for I will go to a better place. This magical place is far away…” the uncle begins to the listening young boy.

“How far away, uncle?” Henfry interrupts with much eagerness as his uncle scolds him for making him lose his train of thought.

The uncle begins once more. “This place is farther than any place you have ever travelled. Past the Willow Woods and over the Mass Mountains, but once you have arrived, you will never wish to leave. For the food never diminishes and the water always flows. No matter what time of day, you will always feel satisfied…”

“When can I join you to this place?” the young boy breaks into the conversation again with a gleam in his youthful eyes.

“You are not ready to go to this place, Henfry. For your time has not come yet. You might not know when your time will be, but it surely will come one day. But my little nephew, my time is closer. I wished to stay here a bit longer to spend my hours with you, but we will soon see each other together in the magical place.” Tears brim his wrinkling eyes. “I have talked to your aunt who lives in the city, and she has agreed to care for you in my absence.”

“But uncle, I would rather go with you and your travel. I do not mind the trek that would lay ahead. I do not wish to stay with my aunt in the city, for she is cranky and always asks for me to do many long chores.”

The uncle sighs. “Hush boy, for you do not get to decide in the matter. You are to stay with your aunt in the city. Please try not to fight with your aunt, for she has matters of her own to deal with.”

Henfry crosses his arms across his chest and stands from the rug. “Uncle, you mustn’t leave, I wish to stay with you for eternity. I wish to grow up with you till I grow just as wrinkly and wise as you.”

The uncle smiles a cheeky grin as the boy’s eyes start to tear up. “My poor boy, I do wish to stay longer with you, but I have to go for this illness is encroaching on my health.”

The boy pouts. “Why can’t you be cured? I only wish for you to stay, there has to be another way for you to stay in my life.”

“Go play now, Henfry, for this conversation must end. I am deeply upset that this is happening, but nothing can be done for the illness to go away.” The uncle closes his eyes in the recliner as he takes his afternoon nap and the young boy scurries outside to the lake.

Henfry’s eyes tear up once more as he thinks about his uncle leaving him. The young boy does not truly understand where his uncle is going, but he is excited for the day they would be reunited. As Henfry sits on the pier of the lake with his feet playing in the water, a tear from his eye drops into the water. Once the drop touches the water, a lady emerges from the dark blue water and glides over to the young boy on the pier with tears flowing down his cheeks.

“Young boy, what seems to be making you cry?” the lady asks in the most angelic voice Henfry has ever heard. Her face matches her voice as Henfry stares at her beautiful features.

Henfry snuffles as he replies, “My uncle is due to leave me soon for an illness has struck him. I do not want him to leave my side for I will have to live with my cranky aunt in the city.”

The lady giggles at the little boy’s response. “Don’t cry young boy, everything will be better once more. I can help your uncle, but first tell me your name. For mine is Lady of the Lake.”

Henfry’s eyes light up as the Lady of the Lake seems to have answered his wishes. “Why my name is Henfry. Please tell me how I can save my ill uncle.”

The Lady of the Lake’s black hair is blowing in the wind with her white veil strewn back gliding behind her. “You are an eager boy, but this journey you must embark on is treacherous. For the only thing you need is the feather of silver hummingbird. In the silver laced feather lies magical healing powers that will surely save any person from a deadly illness. However, this task is not as simple as I portray it. This hummingbird lies in the Willow Woods, but you can get easily turned around with all the willow trees looking similar in height and shape. Luckily for you, my friends can help you with your journey. You will complete a singular task of finding an object for each of my three friends, and in return they will give you a gift to aid you in your journey. Do you believe that you can do this treacherous task my young boy, for your uncle’s life could be saved?”

Henfry smiles in delight and jumps to his feet, wiping the tear stains from his cheeks. “Yes of course! For my uncle I would do anything. I mustn’t waste another second, please tell me where I can find these three objects for your friends?”

“Great, the first object you must find for my friend Winifred is the hair of rat. This must be the smallest rat you can find, you must remember this, boy. Next, for my friend Miriam you must gather water from a rushing waterfall. But the waterfall must be the loudest waterfall you have ever heard. Lastly, my friend Fia must acquire a dirt, but not just any dirt. The dirt must be from the coldest mountain in Mass Mountains.” The Lady of the Lake looks at Henfry’s eager eyes and watches as he sways on his feet.

“Is this all? For I believe these tasks mustn’t take me too long to complete. When can I begin my journey?” Henfry asks quizzically to the Lady of the Lake.

“Whenever you please, young boy. You will be able to find Winifred on the edge of Willow Woods. Miriam will meet you at this pier and Fia lives at the antique shop in the town center. Now run along Henfry, for you must hurry as your uncle’s light dims as the days go on.” The Lady of the Lake, with her final words spoken, descends back into the lake.

Henfry stands on the pier debating whether to tell his uncle of his plan, but decides against it, for he believes his uncle would not allow him to go on such a dangerous adventure. Henfry, with his heart ready for an adventure, runs towards the town center. As Henfry encroaches on town center, he ponders where to find the smallest rat. In remembering a colony of rats lived in the alleyway next to the bakery, Henfry pivots towards the alley way.

As Henfry enters the foggy, dark alleyway, he hears a slight noise. It is not the normal sound of the dripping pipes or the rattling from the trash cans. This noise is the sound of scuffling from tiny claws. It is coming from the cardboard boxes in the corner. In hopes of it being a rat, Henfry slowly approaches the dewy boxes. Peering into the top, about seven rats come into Henfry’s view. The rats stare up at Henfry with quizzical looks.

“Why aren’t you a small boy?” one rat speaks to Henfry. Henfry jumps back at the sudden voice coming from the rats. The rats start chattering about how young Henfry looks.

Henfry peers back into the boxes and with a whisper asks the rats, “You can speak?”

“Why of course we can,” one of the bigger looking rats responds. “What brings you along this alleyway, for everyone knows rats lie around every corner?”

Henfry grins as he remembers why he came to the alley way. “I have come to save my uncle. For he is stricken with a deadly illness and the only cure is a feather from a silver hummingbird.”

“Why that is terrible,” another rat speaks up. “Is there any way we can help? Because a bunch of small rats seems very unlikely to help you in this particular matter.”

“Actually I need one of your hairs. If this is okay with you?” Henfry replies. “But this hair must be from the smallest rat in your colony.”

“The smallest rat you say? Why that would be me,” says the smallest rat, sitting in the corner of the box away from the others.

“Oh sir, would you mind if I pluck one of your hairs from your body?” Henfry asks with eagerness in his voice.

“Surely not.” The smallest rat walks over to Henfry and extends his back towards the young boy’s outreached hand. Henfry plucks one of the hairs and smiles as it shines in his hand.

“Why thank you, for I will forever be grateful for your act of kindness that you have shown me today. Is there any way I will be able to make it up towards you in the mere future?” Henfry asks.

The rats look up at Henfry and the biggest rat speaks again. “Do not worry, young boy, your time of need is not a place for us to be hindering you. Please take this as a gift with nothing expected in return.”

Henfry smiles and thanks the rats once more as he walks out of the alleyway. Henfry heads towards the next place to which the Lady of the Lake commanded him, the edge of Willow Woods. With delight, Henfry heads towards the edge of Willow Woods to find Winifred.

Henfry spots a broken down, eerie shack lying at the edge of Willow Woods. Thinking this must be the Lady of the Lake’s friend, he walks towards the shack. As Henfry opens the door, the creaking from the hinges can be heard for miles. The shack is lightened by a single dangling light bulb from the roof. Henfry scans the shack to notice lots of bottles with strange colors of liquid and dolls scattered around the floor.

“Who is entering my shack without a warning?” A voice is heard from the corner of the shack as an old lady comes into view, with her clothes torn, rocking back and forth in a rocking chair.

“I do apologize for my eagerness is making me act unmannerly,” Henfry responds, while the sounds of the rocking chair fills the room.

The lady looks at the young boy and shakes her head. “The Lady of the Lake did not tell me how young you are, boy, for this adventure is dangerous to boys your age.”

“I am not afraid. My uncle needs to be saved, and I am the only one who can achieve this journey that lays ahead of me,” Henfry responds heroically.

Winifred stands up and heads towards all the bottles sitting upon a wobbly table. “Did you bring what was requested of you?”

“Of course.” Henfry pulls out the rat hair from his pocket and hands it to Winifred’s wrinkly hands. Winifred praises Henfry for retrieving the rat hair.The young boy then watches as she dips the hair in an orange liquid. As she brings the hair to the light, the hair seems to stiffen like a needle.

“All done,” she replies and hands the hair back to Henfry. Henfry starts to poke the point of the hair but is stopped by Winifred’s grasp. “I would advise not to do that. For you are to only prick the silver hummingbird when the time comes. Now run along, for cleaning needs to be done around the shack.” Winifred wobbles over to her rocking chair and sits back down.

Henfry ponders over how Winifred was able to transform the rat hair into the strength of a needle, but shrugs it off as he sets out for his next quest. Henfry heads towards the loudest known waterfall in Ravendale. The trek does not take long for Henfry because he sprints down the path in a hurry. When the waterfall comes into Henfry’s view, he grabs the container from his backpack and fills it up. This seems to be the easiest task, Henfry thinks as he leaves the trail and heads back to the pier.

When Henfry arrives at the pier, he sits down in the same position as when the Lady of the Lake appeared to him. Henfry waits quietly as he watches the water flow. Minutes turn into hours as Henfry sits on the pier waiting for Miriam to show up. Henfry’s thoughts turn towards his uncle. He thinks about how if he fails to gather the silver hummingbird’s feather, he will have to live with his aunt in the city. But he pushes these thoughts away as he patiently waits for Miriam.The sun has set and the moon starts to rise as Henfry grows tired. Henfry tries to stay away, but his eyes slowly shut as exhaustion from the day sets in.

As Henfry lay asleep on the pier a lady from the lake appears. She swims over to the sleeping figure and lays her hand on his shoulder to wake him from his slumber. Henfry awakens to a beautiful lady in front of him.

Henfry mumbles to her as he sits up, “Who are you?”

“I am Miriam. How long have you been waiting dear? Did the Lady of the Lake not tell you I appear once the moon is at the highest point in the sky?” Miriam asks the young boy.

Henfry shakes his head as he notices Miriam does not have any legs. “Where are your legs?”

Miriam laughs. “Did she forget to tell you, I am also a mermaid? I bet she did not tell you Winifred is a witch and Fia is a fairy. She always forgets to mention these things.” Miriam shakes her head with a smile on her face. “Now, young boy, did you bring me my water from the rushing waterfall?”

Henfry takes out the container and hands it to Miriam. Miriam sets the container on the pier as she reaches into a pouch slung across her waist. She pulls out a substance that looks like sugar and drizzles some into the container. She then swirls the container and hands it back to Henfry. “Here you go. This should help you lure the silver hummingbird straight into your hands.”

Henfry accepts the container. “Thank you for the help, this is greatly appreciated.”

Miriam nods as she waves Henfry good-bye, sinks back into the water, and swims away. Henfry watches as she disappears in the distance, then he turns around and heads for the next object.

Henfry sets out towards Mass Mountains. This path is more difficult than the waterfall, but Henfry perseveres as he gets closer to the edge of the coldest mountain. Once he reaches the edge he gathers the dirt. Then Henfry heads back to the town center is search for the antique store. By the time he reaches the antique store the sun is already rising from the horizon.

Henfry enters the store and sees a man standing at the counter cleaning off some old jewelry. Henfry walks up to the counter and asks the man if he knows a lady named Fia. The man only nods and points to a small wooden doll house sitting on the edge of a table. Henfry walks over and knocks on the door.

A tiny woman swings opens the door. “Why aren’t you a young boy?” A tiny voice speaks as she flies out of the house and towards Henfry.

“Are you Fia?” he asks.

“Of course. Have you brought what the Lady of the Lake told of you?” she asks as she holds out her hand.

Henfry digs through his pockets and pulls out the bag filled with the coldest mountain's dirt. Fia smiles as she thanks Henfry and disappears back into her house with the bag. She returns a moment later with nothing in her hands.

“Well you best be on your way, if you want to save your uncle,” she replies and Henfry scrunches his eyebrows in confusion.

“Do you not have a gift in return for me?” he asks.

She replies in a worried tone, “My bad, young boy, for I have a bad memory. A compass is what you get in return. But this compass is a special compass as I have gathered it from a giant many years ago. This compass points to a person's most wanted desire and leads them to it, for it will lead you to the silver hummingbird.”

Fia points to a compass lying on one of the tables. Henfry walks over and picks up the compass. The compass spins for a second and then points towards the direction of the Willow Woods. Henfry thanks Fia as he heads out of the antique store and into the Willow Woods.

As Henfry steps into the woods, chills run down his spine. The dark woods consume his vision. The trees stretch high into the sky, and the leaves rustle in the cold breeze. Henfry looks around in fright, but he shakes it off as he focuses on his mission. Henfry follows the compass as it leads him deeper into the Willow Woods.

After Henfry feels like he has been passing the same tree over and over, the compass begins to start spinning rapidly around. Henfry glances around to only see trees in the distance. Nothing but trees and bushes. He walks over to the bushes with berries, but as he gets closer he notices a silver hummingbird flying in the distance. Henfry briskly bends down to hide behind a bush.

He takes out the container filled with the special water. Henfry extends his arms to expose the container to the silver hummingbird, but the hummingbird does not even turn to his direction. Henfry ponders for a minute on what to do next. Then he smiles as an idea pops into his head. He pours the special water into his palm and reaches his hand out towards the silver hummingbird. The silver hummingbird stops in the air. The hummingbird appears to look around for a second before turning in Henfry’s direction.

The silver hummingbird slowly glides over to his hand and lands on the edge of his palm. Henfry stares at the beauty of the hummingbird. The silver feathers glimmering in the sun as the hummingbird dips his head to the special water.

Remembering his quest, Henfry slowly pulls the rat hair out of his pocket. A sense of guilt runs over Henfry as the hummingbird appears innocent and frail in his palm. He does not want to hurt the poor silver hummingbird. Then his uncle talking of the far away land creeps into Henfry’s mind. He must do it for his uncle. He carefully and slowly pricks the silver hummingbird. The silver hummingbird flies upwards at the sudden prick. Before the hummingbird can fly away, it falls limp as it falls into a deep slumber. The hummingbird descends to the ground quickly. Henfry rushes towards the falling bird. Henfry cradles the bird as the hummingbird gently falls into his hands. Henfry slowly lays the bird on the ground. He checks the bird for an injured wing, but the hummingbird seems to be healthy. Henfry then gently pulls one of the feathers off the back of the bird. Henfry grins as he holds the silver feather in his hand. The sun still shines down and making the feather glimmer.

Henfry carefully picks up the hummingbird to hide the bird from danger. He looks at the bush and notices a nest in between the leaves and branches. He almost did not notice the small nest. This must be the silver hummingbird’s nest, Henfry thinks. He moves the leaves and settles the hummingbird into its nest. With a quick check of his surroundings to make sure the hummingbird is safe, Henfry rushes out of the Willow Woods.

Full of eagerness, Henfry dashes to his house where his uncle sits with worry. As Henfry rushes through the door, his uncle is sitting in his recliner. His uncle looks as Henfry with worryful eyes.

“Where have you been, Henfry?” His uncle asks as the young boy rushes to the kitchen. Henfry grabs some water and starts boiling on the stove as he explains how he got the silver hummingbird feather. His uncle listens intently as Henfry boils the silver hummingbird. The feather dissolves and turns the water into a shade of silver. “Uncle you must drink this. It will save you.”

“Henfry, I will drink this, but you mustn't get your hopes up,” his uncle warns. He takes the silver drink from Henfry. The uncle gulps down the drink as Henfry watches with hopeful eyes.

The uncle sets the drink down and sighs as nothing happens. All of a sudden, the uncle feels a burst of energy and health surge into his frail body. The uncle cannot believe how this could happen.

“I am cured. This cannot be true. How boy? How did you do this?” the uncle asks. Henfry smiles as he hugs his uncle.

“Why, I will tell you the whole story, uncle.” Henfry goes on to tell his uncle about the Lady of the Lake, Winifred the witch, Miriam the mermaid, and Fiona the Fairy.

After the story, they rejoice together. Henfry was able to save his dying uncle. Henfry never forgot the Lady of the Lake and all she had done for him. The uncle always remembered the love that Henfry felt for him. Henfry and his uncle lived happily ever after.