Come Little Fairy

Little fairies like candy.
Their wings flutter at the sound of their crunch.
They swoon at their taste.
Their eyes grow wide when they are offered.
In this excitement,
a little fairy weaved from window to window.
She found a chocolate square,
half of a mint,
a piece of chewing gum,
and a few grains of sugar.
The little fairy was not delighted.
She had expected more from the village.
Their offerings were growing small.
It seemed they didn't care to feed the fairies.
She cradled her candy,
taking small helpings at a time,
and fluttered towards the dark wood to nibble,
but there came the candyman.
His top hat was black,
his suit was black,
his shoes were black,
and even his socks were black.
He had a green expression
like that of a ghastly cabbage,
but the sweetness he carried
was more or less, burst with color.
"Come little fairy! Come!"
The little fairy stopped to greet the man,
a polite curtsy and a flattering smile,
and the man mirrored her with a bow.
He removed his hat to free his grey hair,
but nestled in the ever so thin strands
was a peppermint twice the size of her own.
His teeth were rotten and his eyes were yellow,
but it was the mint that lured the little fairy.
In her excitement, she snatched it and giggled.
Her joy was favorable,
but the candy man was to be on his way.
When the little fairy offered him a gift in return,
he tightened his lips and said,
"Not to worry! I am the candyman!
I serve those who are worthy of sweetness."
And with this, the candy man was gone,
his long legs striding confidently.
The little fairy took her findings home
where her fairy sisters and brothers slept.
She awoke them for a feast.
As they gathered, they saw her large mint
and asked if they could share,
but the little fairy said,
“The Candyman gifted me this
and I am worthy of sweetness.
You have your chocolate,
your sugar,
your chewing gum,
and your share of mint,
so where is the need?”
Though the little fairies were not so happy,
their shares being smaller in size,
they went on nibbling and slept,
their stomachs half empty.
When the sun was above the horizon,
the little fairies came out of their cotton beds
and rushed into their little kitchen
for a much expected starved breakfast.
There was no scent of berry or lettuce
stolen from Mrs. Turner’s garden-
poor old thing.
There was the scent of something foul,
rotting and dead.
The smallest one wandered into the other room,
a small armchair and a fireplace,
and saw the large mint,
half eaten mind you,
sitting on the carpet.
Before the little one could taste it,
there was the smell.
Sitting in the armchair was a pale and lumpy creature.
It reminded the small one of a toad,
but it was shaped like a little person.
Its skin was green and purple and its tongue swelled.
Its teeth were rotten and its eyes were yellow.
It seemed to be dead as it did not move.
Its gaze did not shift from the window
and its ears were loose against its head.
Pus was beginning to flow from its mouth.
To the small one’s horror, the face was familiar.
Then, just then, its eyes flickered at the small one
and it began to rise.
The small one sent screams and wails to the others
and the candyman arose from the chair,
his moth wings fluttering,
and his teeth falling loosely.
The fairies could only tear their wings
trying to flee away.
Mrs. Turner came to the little house.
She was to demand that they stop stealing,
only to pause at the window
when she saw the green figure
sitting in the armchair,
his belly bulging and eyes peaceful.