It was the beginning of spring! Full of joy, Mr. Lund pushed aside the curtain and looked out the window.

Mr. Lund was of average appearance and height, had glasses with oval lenses and a slowly graying beard. His hair was unfortunately diminishing, but his belly was (also unfortunately) increasing. He had a gentle and friendly character, even if sometimes he was a bit grumpy.

He lived in a slightly crooked wooden house on the edge of a peaceful and friendly forest. This was just outside an old town, and was no more magical or unusual than any other, but always offered an experience or two.

Today, Mr. Lund was happy that it was finally the beginning of spring, but when he looked out the window, his joy was abruptly dampened:

It was raining cats and dogs!

This was, to say the least, very unpleasant, as he had hoped to go for a nice spring walk. For a moment, Mr. Lund was lost in somber thoughts, but then a smile appeared on his face.

"If I'm feeling gloomy now, it's going to rain anyway. Might as well be merry!"

So he spoke to himself, now full of cheerfulness again.

After a morning bath and a light breakfast, Mr. Lund dressed, took his umbrella and hat, and stepped out into the spring rain.

Between the town and the forest was a park, and this he wanted to visit. There was a pond there where Mr. Lund often watched ducks and swans, and there were also many pretty flower beds and sculptures. Mr. Lund hoped that perhaps the first spring flowers were sticking their heads out of the ground, and that there would be few people in the park, which would please him quite a bit.

The park was indeed almost empty, only here and there a few people walking their dog. Even in this rainy weather, the park showed all its beauty: the water running down the statues, the raindrops falling on the lake, a pair of ducks nestled in the bushes on the lake shore. The rain literally washed away the winter, and the whole park radiated peace.

Mr. Lund was walking happily along the lake when he suddenly noticed movement under a nearby park bench. Slowly he walked towards the bench, and when he had come within a few steps, he saw a small creature sitting underneath. It was about a hand's width tall, very petite, and had two shiny wings on its back. It was also completely drenched. Mr. Lund was surprised, because there, sitting under the park bench, was a small forest fairy, which had not been seen in the area for many years. In the moor in the middle of the forest lived moor fairies, but they were extraordinarily shy, so it was more than surprising to find a relative of them here.

He slowly approached the fairy, made a slight bow and spoke, "Greetings, child of the forest. Do you need help?"

The fairy looked up at him, wet from head to toe and with teary eyes.

"Do you want to help me? I got separated from my siblings and I can't find them again," the fairy replied in a trembling voice. "We were searching for a new place to live after our home was destroyed and we were driven away. On our journey, we were surprised by human children. The others managed to escape, but I was caught in a can and carried off by the humans, but they quickly lost their desire when I played dead. They threw the can away and I found myself here. Will you help me?"

Tears came to the little fairy's eyes. Mr. Lund was full of compassion for the delicate creature, he reached out to her and said, "Very much I want to help you. But first you must get out of this rain."

Mr. Lund carefully picked up the little creature and helped her climb into his coat pocket. Then he handed her his handkerchief (freshly washed) so that the fairy could dry herself.

"The first thing we need to do is find out where your siblings have gone," Mr. Lund spoke, making his way back home from the park. "The best thing to do, I think, is to ask the water lady for advice. She knows about some of the things that go on in the forest and the surrounding area."

"The water woman? Is that some kind of witch?" the fairy asked from her coat pocket.

"Oh no, she's not a witch," laughed Mr. Lund. "Although I do know a witch, a rather grumpy one. She lives in a swamp far from here in the southwest, along with her cheerful dragon. But that doesn't matter now. The water lady is the guardian of the forest lake, and ultimately of the whole forest. If your relatives are or have been anywhere near the forest, she will know."

And so Mr. Lund made his way back from the park back to the forest. Silently he strode along, the sound of the rain, which continued to pelt the umbrella unabated, helping him to think. The fairy in his coat pocket had by now stopped shivering from the cold and wet, which reassured him greatly. When he arrived at his house, he took out a shawl in which the fairy wrapped herself, and then he stepped into the forest and made his way to the dwelling place of the water lady.

The paths were soaked from the rain, the mud made progress difficult, and so it was already afternoon when Mr. Lund arrived at the forest lake with the fairy. He called out a few words in an ancient language, and at first it did not seem as if anyone had heard them. But then a figure rose from the water near the shore. It was the water lady, she wore a dark green robe, white hair framing a face that looked like that of a young girl. But in her eyes was the knowledge of centuries, like deep wells they were. Smiling kindly, she stepped out of the water, and with a gentle voice she spoke to her visitors:

"Greetings, Mr. Lund! What brings you to my lake on such a fine rainy day?"

He bowed politely and replied, "Greetings, honored water lady. Together with a fairy in distress, I come to you for advice and help."

With these words he carefully took the forest fairy out of his coat pocket, the fairy seemed frightened at first, but relaxed when she recognized in the water lady a kindred being. The fairy told again what had happened to her, and when the guardian of the lake had listened to all this, she stood for a moment thoughtfully in the rain.

Then she spoke to the fairy: "What happened to you is terrible. But I am glad that Mr. Lund found you and brought you here. Although I don't know where your siblings are, I know that the moor fairies will help you." Now she turned to Mr. Lund and said, "Since I cannot leave my lake alone, I ask you to take this fairy to her close relatives in the moor. I will send out word to the moor fairies that you two will come to them. The way to the moor is not an easy one, especially not in this weather, but I know you will walk it safely, my dear Mr. Lund."

Mr. Lund and the fairy thanked the water lady, he carefully stowed the fairy back in the pocket, said goodbye, and set off for the moor. The water lady waved goodbye to them, and then sent a messenger to the moor fairies so that they could await their guests.

The way to the moor was not easy, but Mr. Lund had walked it many times before, though not in such rain. It was already getting dark when he finally reached the edge of the moor, and fortunately now the rain was also slowly subsiding. Mr. Lund paused briefly to catch his breath, it had been an exhausting day, and he was not that young anymore. Then he looked around for traces of the moor fairies, and the little forest fairy also looked longingly over the edge of the coat pocket. Minutes passed that seemed like hours, but then a faint glow could be seen nearby. Slowly it grew brighter, quickly changing from red to green and blue and back again, and then several small winged creatures appeared, each holding a small umbrella. They were a little taller than the forest fairy and a little more robustly built, but otherwise looked very much like her.

One of them flew closer to Mr. Lund, saying:

"News has reached us that a relative of ours is in your care?"

Mr. Lund nodded kindly and helped the forest fairy out of his pocket. When the fairy flew up before him under the shelter of his umbrella and the moor fairies saw her, the one who had spoken to them gave a whistling signal, whereupon more soft fluttering was heard. Under the protection of several large leaves held over them by a couple of moor fairies, there came flying the lost forest fairies. The fairy who had arrived with Mr. Lund could not hide her joy and embraced her siblings laughing loudly. A great joy broke out among the fairies and Mr. Lund also joined in the joyful laughter. The moor fairies and the forest fairies thanked him many times, never would they forget his kindness. The fairy he had found in the park and brought here said goodbye with a kiss on his nose, which made Mr. Lund a little embarrassed. And with many thanks, they parted from each other, the fairies retreated to their dwellings in the moor, and Mr. Lund made his way home.

It had been a long day, and morning was already dawning when Mr. Lund arrived at his slightly crooked house. But he was happy, for the fairy had been reunited with her relatives and they had found a new home with the moor fairies.

And just as Mr. Lund put his key into the lock of his front door, the sun climbed over the horizon and lit up a cloudless blue sky.

What a beautiful start to spring.