Cold Pixies Cave
By Andy Morris
“No, you go!” Henry stomped up the stairs. Just because she was older than him, Jo thought she could boss him around. So what if it was raining? If that was Wellington barking outside, then Jo needed to get him. It wasn’t his turn, it was hers. His stupid sister was being really unfair!
Mum shouted something from the kitchen about not arguing with his sister but Henry just balled his fists and exploded into his room.
He’d always had a keen sense of justice just like his hero Cyclops, leader of the X-Men. Cyclops wouldn’t let anyone push him around. He was strong, intelligent and fearless. Cyclops wouldn’t have been afraid to go onto the heath after dark. If Henry had mutant abilities like the X-Men, he wouldn’t have been scared to go out on his own either. However, Henry was just an ordinary boy and he didn’t want to risk bumping into the Cold Pixie.
Dad had told Henry and Jo about the Cold Pixie when they’d first moved into their new house on Beaulieu Common. The Cold Pixie was a fairy who lived in Cold Pixies Cave, one of several ancient burial mounds scattered about the New Forest. Originally the mischievous imp was probably called the Colt Pixie because it’s said to have been able to take on the shape of a horse and lead other horses and ponies onto marshes where they’d often drown. That’s why Henry never rode his bike near the old burial mounds and why he’d never go out there at night.
Wellington had got out again and he was barking at something, probably a rabbit. He was a particularly lively Springer Spaniel, and fast. So even if it wasn’t night time, it was still raining so hard that Henry would get soaked before he caught him. It was Jo’s turn!
Henry slammed his bedroom door. This provoked Mum to shout something about not going on his PlayStation for the rest of the weekend because of his behaviour.
Another bolt of frustration surged through him and he dropped to his knees, punching his bed. He spun around, glaring at his door and wishing he could fire an optic blast from his eyes, like Cyclops. He’d smash his door to pieces. Or, if he was Wolverine he’d destroy the door with his claws. No one told Wolverine what to do. But sadly, Henry was nothing like Wolverine. Whenever he imagined he was Wolverine, he’d always end up getting in trouble for it.
Frustration pulled him in all directions as he snatched up an X-Men comic and plonked down heavily on his bed. From underneath there came a scrabble of paws and a sleepy-looking spaniel pulled himself out from under his bed.
So that wasn’t Wellington barking outside! Well, after Jo had been so nasty to him and made him lose his PlayStation, he wasn’t about to tell her it wasn’t their dog out there. She deserved to go out into the rain. Eventually, she’d realise it wasn’t Wellington and, with any luck, Henry thought wickedly, Jo might run into the Cold Pixie.
It would serve her right!
Unfortunately, his sister never came home that night.
Mum and Dad said she’d slipped in the wet grass, bumped her head and drowned in a deep puddle. Henry had cried a lot, as had Mum and Dad. He wished he could turn back time and tell her Wellington was upstairs. Maybe if he’d gone out that night instead of her she’d still be alive and Mum and Dad wouldn’t be sad all the time. They were always sad these days and he wanted to help them feel better. Yesterday, when he made them cups of tea they smiled at him but he knew their smiles were fake because they had gone back to being sad again when they thought he wasn’t looking.
Henry needed to make it up to them. He knew what had happened to his sister hadn’t been an accident. The Cold Pixie had got her. That unseen dog they can sometimes hear barking on the heath was the Cold Pixie in disguise. It had stopped turning into horses and now turned into a lost dog. It would lure people out to look for it and then it would hurt them. They heard it barking every now and then but no one had ever seen it. No one believed Henry when he told them his theory either, but it was true. Henry knew with absolute certainty that he was right. He knew because whenever they heard the unseen dog barking, his dead sister would come and visit him later that night.
It was nearly midnight and Henry was lying under his covers reading a comic by torchlight so as not to wake Mum and Dad. The unseen dog had been barking that evening which meant he couldn’t sleep until Jo had appeared. He was becoming less scared of her now. The first few times his dead sister had come he’d been asleep and his screaming had brought Mum and Dad running. But, as they entered his room, she vanished. They didn’t believe him, not even when he showed them the patch of rainwater on the floor where she’d been standing.
Outside, the unseen dog was barking again. Henry turned a few more pages of his comic, just glancing at the pictures now, not reading the dialogue. There was a movement outside his covers and he was instantly alert. He risked a peek at his clock. It was midnight, she always came at midnight. A moment later the ghost of his sister yanked the covers off him leaving him exposed in the middle of his bed.
This is how she must have looked when they’d found her, Henry guessed. Rainwater dripped from her soaking hair, running down her pale dead face. Her grey hoodie and jeans were also drenched. It was as if she'd jumped into a swimming pool fully clothed. He didn’t want to feel scared of her. X-Men didn’t get scared, but every visit reminded him that he wasn’t an X-Man.
Jo’s mouth was moving as if she was talking but she had no voice. She did this every time. At first, she'd just stand there mouthing silent words before walking off down the landing and disappearing. Then she started holding out her hand, beckoning him to follow her. This is how Henry knew she wanted his help.
Part of him wanted to help but another part of him just wanted her to go away. She was becoming more desperate, more insistent. Last time she came, she’d actually tried to take hold of his arm and lead him out of the room. He shuddered, remembering the cold clammy touch of her hand. His heart was now thumping in his chest. Jo came towards him and Henry automatically shrank away, shuffling to the other side of the bed out of her reach. He needed to do something. She would keep coming back until he helped her. The X-Men would help her and besides, he still felt responsible for what had happened to her. He’d tried to tell himself it wasn’t his fault.
If that dog hadn’t been barking, they wouldn’t have thought it was Wellington and Jo wouldn’t have gone looking for him! As he regarded his sister in the dim torchlight, something hardened in Henry.
It was that pixie’s fault and Henry wanted to make it pay. He wanted revenge but above all, he wanted to help his sister. Cyclops would want to help but he’d only use force if it was necessary. He’d never condone revenge. However, Henry reflected, Wolverine would do it.
Wolverine always did what needed to be done, even if it went against Cyclops’ orders. Henry looked up at his sister, at her outstretched hand where the ghostly rainwater glistened on her pale skin. She hadn’t moved but she was still talking. He couldn’t hear the words but the imploring look in her eyes conveyed the message. He made his decision – Wolverine was going into battle.
Henry was now old enough to use Dad’s air rifle and he hoped this would help him find the courage to stop the Cold Pixie. Quietly, so as not to wake anyone, Henry sneaked downstairs. He daren't switch on any lights so he had to feel his way around using the walls and furniture to guide him. Jo seemed to know he was trying to help and she silently watched him find a key and unlock the cupboard where Dad kept his gun. The gun was heavy but he could manage it. Carefully picking up a tin of pellets, so as not to make them rattle, he slipped them into the pocket of his pyjamas. Then he crept back to the kitchen and held his breath as he unlocked the backdoor.
Even though his thick dressing gown, he felt the cold nocturnal air. The rain had stopped and the night had that fresh scent that always followed a downpour.
Jo led the way through the back garden, out of the wooden gate and onto the dark, spooky common behind the house. Taking a shuddering breath Henry paused to take a look back at the house. Then, before he could change his mind, he hurried after his sister.
The night had transformed the New Forest into a haunting wilderness where unknown creatures lurked in every shadow. The silhouette of every tree was a monster, just waiting for him to get close enough to eat him.
Henry imagined metal claws extending from his hands like Wolverine. He gripped his gun tighter and followed Jo in wary silence. His eyes darted left and right, alert for any danger as his sister took him deeper onto the heath and further away from the safety of his bedroom. He didn’t want to be out here any longer than he had to be.
After a while, Henry became aware of a dog barking somewhere in the distance. It had to be the Cold Pixie. Henry dropped his hand to his pocket to reassure himself the pellets were still in there. Jo was leading him towards the barking and he realised they were getting closer to Cold Pixies Cave. This was where the pixie lived, and it was also where Jo’s body had been found.
Mud squelched under his feet and he clomped through the wet field towards the ghostly barrow mound. His legs were cold and his feet were freezing. The bottoms of his pyjamas were soaking from the long grasses that lined the track. The unseen dog had stopped barking but as they came up towards the grassy tumult Henry could see something on the top of the small hill. There was a shape, black against the moonlight. It could be either a dog or a very small person bending down.
Electricity coursed through him.
This is it, Henry thought. He shifted the air rifle in his hands as he attempted to cock it. The creature on top of the mound had seen him. It had turned and was now was moving, coming towards him in a loping gait.
As he lifted his gun Henry noticed Jo was no longer standing beside him. It was at that moment that something occurred to Henry. He briefly wondered whether there could be more than one Cold Pixie living here, but it was already too late. In the spot where Jo had been standing, something else now waited. It was smaller than him, thinner. Its ears were pointy, its eyes dark and when it smiled its mouth was filled with tiny razor-sharp teeth.
Henry jumped backwards and the air rifle fell from his numb fingers. Wolverine would slash at the creature but he wasn’t Wolverine. Cyclops would blast it, but he wasn’t Cyclops either. He was just an ordinary boy. Too late, he realised he shouldn’t have come here. He didn’t have any mutant abilities.
The first creature was charging towards him. He stepped back into another deep puddle and almost lost his balance. The second creature, the one that had been Jo grabbed him, wrapping her skinny arms around his waist. The first pixie was a meter away. It jumped, knocking into his chest. Henry tumbled to the ground. Both pixies gave a high-pitched cackle of delight as they dragged Henry off the path to a spot where the marshy grass was flooded. The rainwater was as black as liquid night and together they gleefully pushed his head down into the freezing hole. Dirty water flooded into his mouth.
He coughed, struggling to get to his feet but they held him down. His lungs soon began screaming for air. He choked. Dirt and soil coated his mouth as water forced itself down his throat. His chest burned and his panicked mind cried out. He needed to breathe but more water surged into him. His hands and feet slipped on the wet grass where he struggled for a few more moments before lying still. Darkness crept over him, stealing any hope of him ever joining the X-Men, while the evil laughter of the pixies slowly receded into the distance.
Mum shouted something from the kitchen about not arguing with his sister but Henry just balled his fists and exploded into his room.
He’d always had a keen sense of justice just like his hero Cyclops, leader of the X-Men. Cyclops wouldn’t let anyone push him around. He was strong, intelligent and fearless. Cyclops wouldn’t have been afraid to go onto the heath after dark. If Henry had mutant abilities like the X-Men, he wouldn’t have been scared to go out on his own either. However, Henry was just an ordinary boy and he didn’t want to risk bumping into the Cold Pixie.
Dad had told Henry and Jo about the Cold Pixie when they’d first moved into their new house on Beaulieu Common. The Cold Pixie was a fairy who lived in Cold Pixies Cave, one of several ancient burial mounds scattered about the New Forest. Originally the mischievous imp was probably called the Colt Pixie because it’s said to have been able to take on the shape of a horse and lead other horses and ponies onto marshes where they’d often drown. That’s why Henry never rode his bike near the old burial mounds and why he’d never go out there at night.
Wellington had got out again and he was barking at something, probably a rabbit. He was a particularly lively Springer Spaniel, and fast. So even if it wasn’t night time, it was still raining so hard that Henry would get soaked before he caught him. It was Jo’s turn!
Henry slammed his bedroom door. This provoked Mum to shout something about not going on his PlayStation for the rest of the weekend because of his behaviour.
Another bolt of frustration surged through him and he dropped to his knees, punching his bed. He spun around, glaring at his door and wishing he could fire an optic blast from his eyes, like Cyclops. He’d smash his door to pieces. Or, if he was Wolverine he’d destroy the door with his claws. No one told Wolverine what to do. But sadly, Henry was nothing like Wolverine. Whenever he imagined he was Wolverine, he’d always end up getting in trouble for it.
Frustration pulled him in all directions as he snatched up an X-Men comic and plonked down heavily on his bed. From underneath there came a scrabble of paws and a sleepy-looking spaniel pulled himself out from under his bed.
So that wasn’t Wellington barking outside! Well, after Jo had been so nasty to him and made him lose his PlayStation, he wasn’t about to tell her it wasn’t their dog out there. She deserved to go out into the rain. Eventually, she’d realise it wasn’t Wellington and, with any luck, Henry thought wickedly, Jo might run into the Cold Pixie.
It would serve her right!
Unfortunately, his sister never came home that night.
Mum and Dad said she’d slipped in the wet grass, bumped her head and drowned in a deep puddle. Henry had cried a lot, as had Mum and Dad. He wished he could turn back time and tell her Wellington was upstairs. Maybe if he’d gone out that night instead of her she’d still be alive and Mum and Dad wouldn’t be sad all the time. They were always sad these days and he wanted to help them feel better. Yesterday, when he made them cups of tea they smiled at him but he knew their smiles were fake because they had gone back to being sad again when they thought he wasn’t looking.
Henry needed to make it up to them. He knew what had happened to his sister hadn’t been an accident. The Cold Pixie had got her. That unseen dog they can sometimes hear barking on the heath was the Cold Pixie in disguise. It had stopped turning into horses and now turned into a lost dog. It would lure people out to look for it and then it would hurt them. They heard it barking every now and then but no one had ever seen it. No one believed Henry when he told them his theory either, but it was true. Henry knew with absolute certainty that he was right. He knew because whenever they heard the unseen dog barking, his dead sister would come and visit him later that night.
It was nearly midnight and Henry was lying under his covers reading a comic by torchlight so as not to wake Mum and Dad. The unseen dog had been barking that evening which meant he couldn’t sleep until Jo had appeared. He was becoming less scared of her now. The first few times his dead sister had come he’d been asleep and his screaming had brought Mum and Dad running. But, as they entered his room, she vanished. They didn’t believe him, not even when he showed them the patch of rainwater on the floor where she’d been standing.
Outside, the unseen dog was barking again. Henry turned a few more pages of his comic, just glancing at the pictures now, not reading the dialogue. There was a movement outside his covers and he was instantly alert. He risked a peek at his clock. It was midnight, she always came at midnight. A moment later the ghost of his sister yanked the covers off him leaving him exposed in the middle of his bed.
This is how she must have looked when they’d found her, Henry guessed. Rainwater dripped from her soaking hair, running down her pale dead face. Her grey hoodie and jeans were also drenched. It was as if she'd jumped into a swimming pool fully clothed. He didn’t want to feel scared of her. X-Men didn’t get scared, but every visit reminded him that he wasn’t an X-Man.
Jo’s mouth was moving as if she was talking but she had no voice. She did this every time. At first, she'd just stand there mouthing silent words before walking off down the landing and disappearing. Then she started holding out her hand, beckoning him to follow her. This is how Henry knew she wanted his help.
Part of him wanted to help but another part of him just wanted her to go away. She was becoming more desperate, more insistent. Last time she came, she’d actually tried to take hold of his arm and lead him out of the room. He shuddered, remembering the cold clammy touch of her hand. His heart was now thumping in his chest. Jo came towards him and Henry automatically shrank away, shuffling to the other side of the bed out of her reach. He needed to do something. She would keep coming back until he helped her. The X-Men would help her and besides, he still felt responsible for what had happened to her. He’d tried to tell himself it wasn’t his fault.
If that dog hadn’t been barking, they wouldn’t have thought it was Wellington and Jo wouldn’t have gone looking for him! As he regarded his sister in the dim torchlight, something hardened in Henry.
It was that pixie’s fault and Henry wanted to make it pay. He wanted revenge but above all, he wanted to help his sister. Cyclops would want to help but he’d only use force if it was necessary. He’d never condone revenge. However, Henry reflected, Wolverine would do it.
Wolverine always did what needed to be done, even if it went against Cyclops’ orders. Henry looked up at his sister, at her outstretched hand where the ghostly rainwater glistened on her pale skin. She hadn’t moved but she was still talking. He couldn’t hear the words but the imploring look in her eyes conveyed the message. He made his decision – Wolverine was going into battle.
Henry was now old enough to use Dad’s air rifle and he hoped this would help him find the courage to stop the Cold Pixie. Quietly, so as not to wake anyone, Henry sneaked downstairs. He daren't switch on any lights so he had to feel his way around using the walls and furniture to guide him. Jo seemed to know he was trying to help and she silently watched him find a key and unlock the cupboard where Dad kept his gun. The gun was heavy but he could manage it. Carefully picking up a tin of pellets, so as not to make them rattle, he slipped them into the pocket of his pyjamas. Then he crept back to the kitchen and held his breath as he unlocked the backdoor.
Even though his thick dressing gown, he felt the cold nocturnal air. The rain had stopped and the night had that fresh scent that always followed a downpour.
Jo led the way through the back garden, out of the wooden gate and onto the dark, spooky common behind the house. Taking a shuddering breath Henry paused to take a look back at the house. Then, before he could change his mind, he hurried after his sister.
The night had transformed the New Forest into a haunting wilderness where unknown creatures lurked in every shadow. The silhouette of every tree was a monster, just waiting for him to get close enough to eat him.
Henry imagined metal claws extending from his hands like Wolverine. He gripped his gun tighter and followed Jo in wary silence. His eyes darted left and right, alert for any danger as his sister took him deeper onto the heath and further away from the safety of his bedroom. He didn’t want to be out here any longer than he had to be.
After a while, Henry became aware of a dog barking somewhere in the distance. It had to be the Cold Pixie. Henry dropped his hand to his pocket to reassure himself the pellets were still in there. Jo was leading him towards the barking and he realised they were getting closer to Cold Pixies Cave. This was where the pixie lived, and it was also where Jo’s body had been found.
Mud squelched under his feet and he clomped through the wet field towards the ghostly barrow mound. His legs were cold and his feet were freezing. The bottoms of his pyjamas were soaking from the long grasses that lined the track. The unseen dog had stopped barking but as they came up towards the grassy tumult Henry could see something on the top of the small hill. There was a shape, black against the moonlight. It could be either a dog or a very small person bending down.
Electricity coursed through him.
This is it, Henry thought. He shifted the air rifle in his hands as he attempted to cock it. The creature on top of the mound had seen him. It had turned and was now was moving, coming towards him in a loping gait.
As he lifted his gun Henry noticed Jo was no longer standing beside him. It was at that moment that something occurred to Henry. He briefly wondered whether there could be more than one Cold Pixie living here, but it was already too late. In the spot where Jo had been standing, something else now waited. It was smaller than him, thinner. Its ears were pointy, its eyes dark and when it smiled its mouth was filled with tiny razor-sharp teeth.
Henry jumped backwards and the air rifle fell from his numb fingers. Wolverine would slash at the creature but he wasn’t Wolverine. Cyclops would blast it, but he wasn’t Cyclops either. He was just an ordinary boy. Too late, he realised he shouldn’t have come here. He didn’t have any mutant abilities.
The first creature was charging towards him. He stepped back into another deep puddle and almost lost his balance. The second creature, the one that had been Jo grabbed him, wrapping her skinny arms around his waist. The first pixie was a meter away. It jumped, knocking into his chest. Henry tumbled to the ground. Both pixies gave a high-pitched cackle of delight as they dragged Henry off the path to a spot where the marshy grass was flooded. The rainwater was as black as liquid night and together they gleefully pushed his head down into the freezing hole. Dirty water flooded into his mouth.
He coughed, struggling to get to his feet but they held him down. His lungs soon began screaming for air. He choked. Dirt and soil coated his mouth as water forced itself down his throat. His chest burned and his panicked mind cried out. He needed to breathe but more water surged into him. His hands and feet slipped on the wet grass where he struggled for a few more moments before lying still. Darkness crept over him, stealing any hope of him ever joining the X-Men, while the evil laughter of the pixies slowly receded into the distance.