As soon as Sargon's voice faded, leaving many of the Pixie Hollow fairies momentarily confused, a mischievous, bubbly voice filled the air, punctuated by light laughter.
"Hihihi~ How did you find me~?"
The air shimmered, and a large shadow stretched over them, revealing a figure hovering above.
A tall fairy appeared, her long orange hair waving magically as if it had a life of its own. Her lime-green eyes sparkled with curiosity and mischief. She wore a dress of large green petals, a shirt of white petals, and a jacket of black petals—an ensemble that made her presence impossible to ignore.
"Ah… it's Fufalla. Phew, she scared me," Sargon muttered under his breath.
"Hahaha, and here I thought it would be a Great Wandie," came a lighthearted whisper from one of the fairies nearby.
The crowd erupted in chatter.
"Hey, Fufalla! How are you?"
"You're not here to pull pranks, right?!"
"She better behave—it's a special ceremony, after all!"
The Pixie Hollow stands buzzed with excited recognition. From the noise, Sargon quickly deduced two things: Fufalla was a fairy, though not an ordinary one, and she belonged to a variant species called the Great Wandies.
She was massive—large enough to hold an average-sized fairy like a pet bottle—and her transparent wings shimmered as she hovered. Her magic clearly operated differently than the standard pixie dust.
Interesting, Sargon mused.
"Hihi, hi everyone! Sorry for dropping in like this. I was originally sent by Queen Tutupia to Queen Clarion, and I promised to behave, so don't worry," Fufalla said in one breath. "But you know me—I couldn't resist hiding. I've never attended a Never Fairy Arrival Ceremony before, and hearing that this fellow over here didn't come from laughter like us? I just had to see!"
She turned to Sargon, her gaze blazing with intensity, almost like a miniature solar flare.
"So tell me, how did you find me? I cast an invisibility spell—I'm usually impossible to detect, even by the strongest Great Wandies!"
Sargon, unbothered by her piercing stare, took a calm step back and glanced at Clarion, who looked exasperated. She clearly knew this fairy well, perhaps from prior warnings about her mischief.
"Well, I would—" he began, voice calm. "But first, remind me—what kind of fairy are you again? I keep hearing 'Great Wandie,' but what does that mean?"
Fufalla's voice rang sing-song: "Ah! We're Never Fairies too, but unlike you, we use magic spells—wish magic, to be precise. We cast wishes with our wands, hence the name: Great Wanded Fairies!"
Hmm…different fairy classes. And the ability to cast and grant wishes? This is strange. I didn't land in some Fairly Odd Parents universe, did I? Sargon thought.
"I see. Good to know. As for how I detected you," he said with a casual shrug, "I simply felt the air change."
The crowd was dumbfounded. Vidia and the wind fairies were intrigued, and even the Storm-talent fairies—who also manipulated the atmosphere—leaned in, curiosity piqued. The buzz about what talent Sargon might show grew louder.
"Thank you for the information, Fufalla. You're more than welcome to watch the ceremony—it's just a representation. We'll talk after it's done, okay?" Clarion said firmly, restoring order.
"Okay~!" Fufalla giggled, pulling a wand from her leaf-shaped purse. It was a long, black stick, shining like a gem in the morning light, and much larger than Clarion's own wand. With a wave, she muttered some words, and the wand's magic shrank her down to standard fairy size.
Sargon squinted slightly, analyzing the display.
"Now, could the representatives of the talents come forth?" Clarion called, ready to begin the ceremony.
The representatives floated forward. Clarion stepped toward Sargon, waving her arm. Pixie dust drifted gently to the floor, and toadstools sprouted in a perfect circle around him. Each representative placed an item or elemental symbol on a mushroom, and thanks to magic—whether from the representatives or Clarion—the objects glowed and floated in place.
"Now, Sargon, choose," Clarion gestured.
"Wait!" Fufalla's voice piped up. Everyone turned to see her fumbling through her leafy purse.
Where did she keep that? Sargon mused, briefly glancing at her. Charming, mischievous, undeniably beautiful.
"Aha! Found it!" she exclaimed, ignoring the stares of those around her. Excitement practically radiated from her as she floated next to Clarion.
"I've got an idea! Since Sargon here isn't a regular fairy, why not see if he can use a wand too?" she suggested, mischief in her voice.
Clarion frowned, noting the black wand in Fufalla's hand. It was twice as big and a bit longer than hers, clearly powerful. "Fufalla, only Great Wandies and mermaids can use these wands correctly," Clarion warned, trying to intimidate the fairy. The power in such a wand could be dangerous if mishandled, even sleeping it required precision.
"Come on, Queen Clarion! Aren't you curious if he can use it too?" Fufalla countered, fearless.
A hush fell over the gathered fairies. Sargon was an enigma—even the most seasoned fairies were intrigued by his otherworldly aura and power.
"Bring it over," Sargon said calmly, radiating confidence. He was curious too—he'd dealt with countless forms of magic, physical and immaterial, but this universe had its own rules, and he wanted to test the limits of his retained abilities.
"Hihi! I knew you were fun!" Fufalla giggled as she floated the wand toward him.
Sargon's girls flew toward her, Rosetta and the others greeting her warmly, while Tinker Bell, meeting her for the first time, waved cautiously.
"Hey, Fufalla. How are you?" Fawn asked.
"I've been good," Fufalla replied, her eyes never leaving Sargon.
The other girls exchanged worried glances, familiar with her unpredictable character.
"Fufalla, what wand is that?" Rosetta asked, her tone heavy with concern.
"It's from a great tree, struck by a bolt of lightning long ago," Fufalla explained cheerfully. "Queen Tutupia said it's powerful, but luckily it sleeps a lot. Just don't wave it around wildly, and everything will be fine."
A tense silence followed. Then, in a small, timid voice, Iridessa asked, "Uhm…does spinning around in circles count?"
The atmosphere froze for a heartbeat. All eyes turned to Sargon—and what they saw left them awestruck.
Around him, the items and elements floated and orbited like planets around the sun. Every fairy watching felt awe-struck. But what truly made Fufalla and Sargon's girls almost faint was that the legendary, all-powerful wand hovered among them, under Sargon's control.
"Uh-oh," Fufalla muttered, a mixture of fear and excitement dancing in her eyes.