The crowd turned to her and Gabriella slowly stood up. She was about average in height at home but here everyone except Snail and the girl in orange were taller. She felt intimidated but excited at the same time, they were the proof. This whole place was proof, magic or another plane of existence, was large as life here! But what had happened yesterday, was that cockerel actually her man? They called him Prince but he had called himself 'Felix'. She knew the name was fake but still, clinging to what she knew, Gabriella called out to him.

"Felix! Where are you? I'm here, I remembered everything!" She cried.

"What did you remember, exactly?" Miss Mango inquired, staring straight into Gabriella's eyes.

"Um, hello. I, I remembered when we met and I know what happened with the fire but I'm not really sure what that smoke creature is. Sorry, my name is Gabriella, is Felix here?" She answered, with a slight stutter. Somehow most of Gabriella's fear was rapidly fading, after all those tests, nothing could prevent her from finding Felix.

"Felix, huh, that brat was roaming the town again. He always falls for a new name each time! His name is Prince here, although that isn't his true name either, he's sleeping off a serious amount of alcohol right now. I'm Miss Mango but you can call me Mama Mango, that is if you are the girl my boy fell for." She explained, taking Gabriella's arm and leading her to the now visible village.

"Seeing how you passed the barriers and you are able to speak with us, you must really love him. I was against this but we have rules here and love is the only thing that gets past them. Even with all the tests we put you through, I hope this fool will forgive us. Go and help Prince wake up, I can't bring myself to watch him acting so miserably." Mama Mango continued.

She gently pushed Gabriella towards the largest hut in the village, it was round and ordinary looking but neat and well cared for. She looked back at the smiling woman and noticed the other villagers grinning in the background.

"Go to your husband, Miss Gabriella! Have fun!" Snail giggled.

Turning back to the doorway, Gabriella peered inside and stepped forward. Inside, the hut seemed much brighter and larger than it should. It was split into rooms and the last held a bed holding a snoring man. A foot stuck out of the brightly woven bed covers and sandals rested on the floor nearby. A crumpled pile of clothes was shoved inside a basket, which looked to be the outfit from yesterday's party.

She reached forward and pulled back the sheet, revealing the man's face. Her Felix was a real flesh and blood human. Unable to resist the temptation, she stroked his sleeping face and rubbed the stubble along his chin. His eyes snapped open and the scent of alcohol disappeared in an instant.

Before she could step back in shock, Felix sat up and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his head on her breast.

Giggling could be heard outside but once Felix snapped his fingers all noise from outside was cut off. He looked up and pulled Gabriella into the bed.

"You're here, you came. I knew I was right! I love you. Did you see our wedding parade? I had to get changed quickly so I wasn't sure, I'm sorry for rushing but this was the only way we could be together. You broke through all the barriers!" He rambled, kissing her on the cheek.

"That was our wedding parade? What do you mean? I don't remember being told about that." Gabriella frowned.

"Is that alright? Mama Mango said I couldn't ask you, but you should accept and if you did, she would agree to our marriage. She has control of me until I find love, then I'm free from the village. I have so much to tell you, will you accept me? Be my wife, my soul mate and my love." He begged, cupping Gabriella's face in his hands.

"It's a bit backwards, getting proposed to after the wedding but there is no way I would let you go, especially after having my memory wiped and my body put through all this stress. I don't want to lose you again! Once I remembered everything, I had to find you!" She answered, with tears in her eyes.

He smiled cheekily and hugged her close. "Let's seal the deal then, it's time for the wedding night! Or at least what's supposed to happen on that night!" He whispered into her ear.

Gabriella blushed and nodded, he held her closer, kissing her earlobe first then working his way to her mouth. Even if this was all a dream Gabriella didn't want to wake up, there were no more words, only love.

Outside the hut the villagers grinned to each as the force of the barrier around the hut grew. It could mean only one thing and they were glad. They payed their respects to Miss Mango and left, one by one. Some took on their plant or animal forms, letting go of all their power. Others stayed by Miss Mango, offering comfort as she wept.

Their purpose of raising the being known as Prince was over but not all of them would fade away, he would need support in his growth. They didn't know everything but they hoped he would fulfil his destiny with the help of his human soul mate.

Miss Mango smiled sadly and stood with the help of Snail, she would return to her stable form until her boy was ready for the rest of his power. This was good, it was better this way as long as this worked. She walked to the village centre and stepped into a circle of soil, pushing her feet into the ground.

Soon a majestic mango tree stood in her place, putting the entire village under it's protection, the massive branches covering all the huts. Snail sighed and tunneled into the dirt between the knotted roots, shrinking until his hat became his shell.

When the happy couple finally emerged that evening, the village was quiet but Felix wanted to get some food for Gabriella. He called out to Miss Mango and Gabriella gasped as the massive mango tree in the village centre, shrunk into the form of Mama Mango. She smiled and tapped on the snail sitting at her feet, waking him.

"Mama Mango, is something wrong? Where did everyone go? Why is this place so quiet?" Gabriella asked. "And did you really turn into a tree?"

"Child, we don't need to hold our human forms all the time, they are very tiring. Prince, my dear, come. We should tell your wife what she has got herself involved in." Mama Mango instructed.

"Sorry, my love. I didn't give you a chance to say no, if you are scared or want to run away, I won't stop you. If you think I'm a demon or a monster, I won't hold you back." Felix added, sadly.
Mama Mango tapped on a colourful woven mat and encouraged them to sit next to her while Snail grew out of his shell. She whispered in Snail's ear and he grinned, winking at Gabriella, before walking away.

"Hurry up Snail, you can move faster when you have legs!" Mama Mango muttered playfully, at his retreating back.

Felix grinned and held Gabriella's hand tightly, hoping she wouldn't be afraid.

"It's ok, my son. Gabriella is different, she won't be scared. Don't be upset dear, Prince has been looking for a wife for a few decades now and all of the others failed once they saw the village. He didn't marry anyone else, we did things differently this time. No-one except the person who truly loved him could pass all the barriers and see us." Mama Mango explained.

"Decades?" Gabriella frowned at Felix, looking for wrinkles.

"Sorry my love, will you hate me if I'm a lot older than you? I'm still young for my identity. I, I'm not a human like you but I can use a human form, is that alright?" Felix explained, hesitantly.

"I came here to find you because I love you, whatever you are, but I would like some answers. Do you really want to be my husband? I'm just ordinary, I don't even live here and I'll have to go back in a few days. What about my memories and that weird fire? Did that smoke creature hurt you? Tell me everything, please," Gabriella begged, desperately.

Other villagers trailed forward, bringing their own mats and sitting nearby, the woman in the green dress joined them with a basket of roasted peanuts and some bowls of liquid. She passed them to Gabriella and Felix only, which seemed unusual.

"First, have this while Weaver Bird cooks your meal. Don't worry Gabriella, only you and Prince need to eat human food. We can eat it, if it suits us but it is not necessary. Don't worry it's safe to drink, I purified the water myself, it's a drink made with ginger. This jug contains water, if the flavour is a bit strong." She explained offering the drink to Gabriella.

Felix finally relaxed enough to release her hand and helped place the bowl of peanuts on Gabriella's lap. He smiled shyly and clasped his hands together as Mama Mango started.

"Listen my child, to my tale of how this village came to be, is everyone ready? Yes, good. This is a story of the land and forest, where many creatures came to be, this is the tale of a garden.

Long before the creatures known as humans came to be, many living things lived in harmony, in a forest known as The Garden. Spirits tended The Garden and helped it flourish, for this place was the garden of life. A great being created all the plants and animals to cover the land with their beauty, in the hope that his love would be born.

The being was lonely so he waited longingly for his soul mate but he was disappointed for millennia. The spirits which tended the garden grew strong and took on the forms of the creatures they tended, becoming their protectors, caretakers and parents. The being saw their potential and decided to watch the humans which had developed from this careful tending.

Soon the spirit creatures found that human forms could be used to overcome many obstacles and the stronger spirits added this form to their selves. Some spirits could not hold any form but entered the bodies of those they tended to guide them. Soon the being saw that the creatures known as humans had become too powerful but instead of stopping them, he watched in the hope that one day they would grow into beings like himself.

In some way that did happen but the humans were too short lived and never gathered quite enough energy or enlightenment. Soon the being left the garden to seek out their progress and guide them but the humans became greedy. Some became more than others but the simpler humans consumed by jealousy and fear, overwhelmed them. He guided some humans back to the garden but instead of remembering their home, they consumed it. Many promising cultures and individuals were destroyed, but the being was not discouraged.

The purpose of the garden was to produce a being like itself, but the being had grown to love all the different inhabitants of the forest. Soon love and respect of humans grew to hate but the being still had hope. Although these new humans, invaders of the forest, were aggressive to some extent. They gradually calmed and some even fought the dangerous ones. This battle was simple, a throwback to times when they had to survive or die.

They needed someone more like them, a being capable of blending in with them and guiding them but also strong enough to destroy them if necessary, so the being created Prince. Taking a piece of itself, it formed the material into a seed which was enclosed inside a Mango pip and planted in the earth. Of course it was no ordinary pip, it was one of mine so he is also my son.

The being saw the destruction of the forest begin, so to protect The Garden and its child, it made some of the forest move to another place. It chose the stronger spirits as protectors and guides to our Prince, who grew to become the fine man you see before you. But there was always one part missing, a part of the mix that couldn't instantly be recreated. The human part, the knowledge and adaption contained in millennia of progress over time."

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Humans are destroying the world but some people are helping it become a better place. Maybe one day it could become a garden again. Please share your thoughts. It really helps me write.

What do you think Prince's purpose is?