It was a bright, sunny day when Mina decided to go hunting and headed for the green path south of the village. With her grip tight on her bow and with many arrows in the quiver on her back, Mina took careful steps into the woods.

The sounds of birds accompanied her as she took the same route she always did, her feet light on the ground. Eyes wide open, she ventured deeper into the woods, determined to find her prey for the day.

She quickly turned around at the sound of rustling leaves behind her, only to find her long time companion – loyal dog Ray – staring at her with his tongue out, panting.

"Ray," Mina lowered her bow with a sigh. "I told you to stay at home. You scare everything off."

Ray whimpered at her stern gaze, taking tiny steps towards his favorite human and her hand. Mina's eyes softened as she crouched down and petted her dog, scratching behind his ears and kissing him on his nose. "Don't be like that," she whispered. "If you do as I say and go home like the good boy you are, you and I will both have delicious meat for dinner."

Ray wagged his tail, craning his neck up to look at Mina. Mina could swear he was smiling.

"So," Mina softly smiled back, "Do we have a dea–"

Ray's head snapped towards a direction as his ears stood up, alert as ever. Mina frowned, wondering what her dogs sharp ears caught. 

"What is it, boy?"

And with that Ray took off. He ran and ran into a direction Mina had never been to before, a place where on her map was marked as a dark area in the forest. Cold and dangerous, with thick, poisonous trees. Mina ran after Ray, worried for her dog as she followed him to the area she had always avoided before.

"Ray! Stop!"

With her hunting bow in one hand and the arrow in the other, Mina was panting when Ray finally came to a halt. Mina looked around and noticed her surroundings were nothing like what was horribly described on her old map. It still looked pretty much the same as the other part of the forest, minus the birds. She couldn't hear them singing anymore. Instead a much, much more beautiful voice rang in the forest, the wind gently carrying it to Mina's ears. 

The voice was soft and sweet. Mina closed her eyes and listened, trying to figure out where the beautiful melody was coming from. Ray was faster, his ears standing up before he began running again. Mina had no choice but to follow. 

The singing stopped and as Mina turned around a tree, she realized why. 

A girl with beautiful shiny red hair drifting down her back– so long that it rested gently on the grass, sat under a willow tree, petting Ray who seemed to be enjoying the attention to no end.

Her back was turned to her. Curious, Mina took stealthy steps towards the stranger. Not because she wanted to sneak up on her, but Mina was used to walking like this in the forest. It was a habit.

Unfortunately, the girl didn't know that.

A single loud step and the girl's head snapped back, fear swimming in her wide doe eyes as she looked at Mina. Her gaze trailed down on the bow and arrow in her hands and she subtly tried to move back, watching every move Mina made.

Mina was just as startled. "I-I'm... I'm not going to hurt you. L-Look," Mina slid her arrow back in the quiver and slowly put her bow on the ground to show she meant no harm. "It's okay,"

Mina might have been better with her words if this fairy wasn't the most beautiful being she had ever seen.

"I'm sorry if I scared you," Mina began, keeping her eyes strictly on the girl's emerald green eyes. "Ray and I heard you singing and–"

The girl seemed to relax a tiny bit. "Ray?" She stared down at the dog contentedly snuggling up beside her. "Is he yours?"

Mina smiled. "He's my friend."

As if he knew they were talking about him, Ray cocked his head and barked before running over to Mina.

Mina crouched down and scratched his head lovingly.

Gathering her long dress, the fairy stood up. She still looked alert, watching Mina closely. The tips of her long ears peeked out of her wavy red hair that reminded Mina of fire.

"Do you live here?"

The fairy nodded calmly.

"Isn't it scary to be out here? All alone?" She asked, standing up and carefully walking closer to the fairy. She could hear the birds starting to sing again, and she took that as a good sign.

"No," the girl replied, her kind eyes and the slight hint of sadness in her voice causing Mina to doubt if she really was telling the truth. The fairy had no reason to lie, but something told Mina otherwise. "I have the tree to keep me company. And the animals,"

"It's a beautiful tree," Mina pressed her lips together, gently pushing the hanging branches of the willow tree aside.

The stranger in the woods had a melancholic smile at her comment.

As she took another step, Mina noticed that the fairy didn't mind her drawing closer.

It was strange. Something about the fairy drew her in. Something about her fiery long hair and cute ears. Something about her green eyes shining like expensive jewelry Mina had only ever dreamed of buying. Were all fairies this enchanting?

"Are you a hunter?"

Mina chuckled, "Not really, no. I'm more of a farmer, actually."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Mina leaned back against the willow tree, right next to the girl she met a few minutes ago. "It's been quite a harsh season though I'm afraid. A frost has settled over all crops in the village, they're bound to die soon. Which is why," Mina pointed at her bow that was resting on the ground a few feet away, Ray sniffing it. 

"Only hunters come to this part of the forest," the fairy said as she watched Ray, her voice soft. "I can't say I like them. Most of them, if not all are considerably rude."

"Good thing I'm not a hunter then." Mina tilted her head, showing the fairy a tight-lipped smile. 

Looking at the human next to her, the fairy ducked her head with a shy smile. "Yes, I suppose."

Not allowing the silence to fall over them for more than a few seconds, Mina spoke, "I'm Mina."

Bright green eyes caught hers, and Mina held her breath as the fairy stood up straighter. She was tall. "Tzuyu."

A breeze tickled Mina's face, the hanging branches swaying gently. "Tzuyu." She tested the fairy's name out and smiled. "That's a very pretty name."

The fairy, Tzuyu, blinked a few times and grabbed her long ears. "Thank you."

Mina looked away at the sight of the slightly blushing fairy, feeling her own cheeks flush. "It's um," she smiled, stepping away from the tree and walking towards her bow. "It's gonna get dark soon. I should be going."

Tzuyu didn't say anything, her eyes following Mina's movements as the human picked up her bow and reached down to pet Ray.

Their eyes met, forest green staring into warm brown.

"You can come with me," Mina offered, her heart beating quickly at her chest because of the deep connection she felt with the fairy. "You don't have to stay here. I have a house not far. It's small b-but warm and– "

Tzuyu looked at her and shook her head with a half-hearted smile. "I cannot leave this place,"

Mina bit the inside of her cheek nervously. "Of course. I understand." She briefly glanced down at her dog before shyly looking up at the fairy again. "Can I... Would it be alright if I came back? To visit you, I mean."

A wide smile bloomed on Tzuyu's face and for a moment, time seemed to stand still for Mina, the single dimple on the fairy's cheek catching her off guard. "I wouldn't mind," she said kindly, tilting her head to the side, waves of her flawless red hair falling and covering half of her face.

And perhaps, it was at that exact moment Mina had fallen in love with the enchanting fairy.