The morning light seemed to bring cheer upon the forest and all its inhabitants as it filtered through the still-dripping trees. The sound of the river flowing past its new bridge was quite relaxing, but overcome by excited chirping and twittering. Birds flitted through the warm, moist air around the waterfall, their colors flashing like living rainbows. This excitement was unusual; birds such as these stayed hidden in fear for the majority of the day. But this new being had somehow brought a new sense of security and happiness; fear and sadness were washed away as easily as the drought of the many months before. The sun’s warmth seemed more pleasurable, its light less blinding, the breeze less dry and arid. It was obvious to the simple-minded songbirds that the reason for this glorious change was the creature basking in the sun near the foot of the waterfall.
Around this being, the mist shone with hundreds of glittering rainbows, as if it radiated its own light. Its shape was closest to that of a human’s, slender with deeply tanned skin. The curve of the creature’s body proved that it was in fact female; the shape from her waist to her thighs was perfection, resembling an hourglass. Her legs and arms were long and slender, but had hidden strength under that dark, flawless skin. Her strong but petite hands stretched into long, slender nails that shimmered like the scales of the fishes that swam in circles by her feet. Small shoulders curved gracefully into a slender neck, both of which were draped by silver-white locks of pin-straight hair. It seemed to be made of starlight as it glimmered in a fan around her aristocratic face; a small nose, curvaceous rose-red lips, and naturally arched eyebrows. Dark lashes brushed her pink cheeks as her angled eyes stayed peacefully closed.
Yes, this seemed to be a human perfection, but with a closer look, humanity was an obvious impossibility. Her ears curved to points, like that of the fabled elves, and a gem was inlaid between her brows. At first glance, the stone seemed to be a deep purple, but as sunlight reflected off of it, more colors gleamed brilliantly on its surface. As she yawned, her red lips pulled over her straight ivory teeth, revealing vampiric fangs. The only explanation for these characteristics was that she is fae.

After her cat-like yawn, she sat upright, and with her eyes still closed, stretched her arms and back, then her long legs. Then she relaxed and rested back on her hands, crossing her bare legs and lifting her face to the sun. As she did so, a different bird flew towards her; a large swan. The bold beauty landed directly in front of her, fanning its slender wings and arching its long neck. Like her hair, its feathers were pure white and shimmered in the sunlight. The gem between the fae’s brows gleamed independently as the swan approached her and settled calmly in her lap. The fae opened her eyes, once again proving she could definitely not be considered human. Swirling with bright rainbows, her eyes were hypnotic and breathtaking. Her dark lashes were a perfect contrast, making the bright, swirling iridescence glow.
Those impossible eyes locked with the swans, and a flood of memories poured like water into the fae’s mind. [Growing from a newborn to a mature adult; learning to fear humans and the creatures of the night; finding refuge in water. Through the swan’s twisting memories, she experienced its courtship and the beauty of its kind; the responsibility of raising and caring for young.] The fae understood all this, and as the swan withdrew, she expressed an unexplainable aura of gratitude to it. She blinked, finalizing the withdrawal, and stroked the swan’s wings lovingly. At her touch, a few of the feathers gained a lavender tint along with a diamond-shaped patch of silver feathers on the bird’s forehead. Then it rose, slowly entered the river, and drifted away. The fae watched until it was out of sight, then rose and extended her arms and lifted her face to the sky. Her waist-long hair shifted as if a soft breeze pulled at it, then suddenly started whipping about her as the amethyst-like gem shone brilliantly with its own light. She closed her colorful eyes as she went into deep concentration to finish her first transformation.
Knowing her new form as if it had always been hers, the fae followed in the other’s footsteps and proceeded to the river. She quickly went to where the current was the strongest and calmly let it carry her along. Studying her surroundings, the fae felt a weak pull of another mind as it subconsciously called to her, and was pleased to find she was going straight towards it. Her reflection caught her attention for the first time, and she studied herself in slight confusion. Assuming she’d be an exact imitation of the other swan, her appearance was startling. The other’s feathers were smooth and flat until the base of its wings; the fae had a crest of rainbow-tinted feathers that fanned out from behind her bright eyes. As the fae lifted her wings and examined herself, she realized her wings were larger, and their feathers more sturdy and tinted as her crest. Shuffling those peculiar wings, she looked up as that other mind suddenly and sharply tugged at her.