Night had fallen while we were inside the tent, but the glow from the lava pit cast an otherworldly light over the arena. Instead of taking the tunnel through the mountain, Grumble Belly avoided the crowd by flying straight up. I was convinced that we were going to fall off his back at any moment, but he carried us safely through the mountain passes and over the forest, his great wings beating with a strong and steady rhythm.
It was a beautiful night with the stars twinkling overhead, the pale face of the moon nearly full and the crisp, clear air washing away the smell of Ralf's salve. If it hadn't been for the whump of the dragon's wings, it would have been silent as well.
Ralf must have given his father excellent directions, since the big dragon carried us directly to the trees where the spider's web had hung. It was dark in the woods, making it hard to see much of anything. The moment the dragon landed, Eadric sprang to the ground. I hopped off the dragon's back, too, not wanting to stay there by myself. "If you'll wait, I'll make a light," I said, hearing Eadric stumble in the dark.
"Don't bother," said Grumble Belly. He closed his eyes and concentrated until his stomach made a grumbling sort of sound, like an old man makes when his bones are aching. Taking a deep breath, the dragon exhaled with his mouth partly closed, letting out a thin tongue of flame and the now-familiar cabbagey smell. The flame created enough light to illuminate the nearby ground all the way to the lowest branches of the closest trees. It went out when he inhaled, lighting again with his next breath, illuminating the area in a pulse of light, dark, light, dark. It was helpful, but not perfect since I could see Eadric for a moment, and then he disappeared as the flame went out.
"Ow!" said Eadric. I could see him now, standing by a tree and rubbing his forehead, apparently having run into a branch. Staring at the ground by his feet, he said, "I know Ferdy is around here somewhere."
"Grumble Belly," I said, taking a step back when the dragon's huge head swung around to face me, "would you be able to carry us if we were humans?"
"Easily," the dragon answered.
"Then I think it's time we stopped being frogs." Since it had worked so well the first time, I used the same spell again—with a small adjustment.
I wish I might,
I wish I may,
Have the form
I want today.
Let me choose
Which it will be.
A human form
Is right for me.
My magic felt different now. While it had taken a lot of effort and concentration before and I had to hope I was saying the right thing each time, now I knew when it was right, and it wasn't just because the spell was similar to the one I'd said in the tent. Now I could see what effect my words would have before I said them. This time when I said the spell, the change took place in an instant and I didn't feel queasy afterward. Powerful magic definitely had its advantages.
While Eadric shuffled through the dead leaves, searching for Ferdy, I tried to remember where he'd been standing when we turned into frogs. I knew where I'd been and he'd been right. "What's this?" I asked when my foot hit something hard. I knelt down to brush the leaves aside and uncovered his sword, only a few feet from where he'd been looking. Eadric reached for Ferdy, then stood up, holding the sword at arm's length.
" I 'm sorry I left you, Ferdy," said Eadric. "I didn't mean to. Please forgive me."
Ferdy didn't stay silent for long.
I'm never one to hold a grudge.
I never can stay mad.
I'll never be the kind to judge.
To see you makes me glad.
"Ferdy's better than a faithful hound," I said. "A sword that forgiving won't chew up your shoes when it's starving for attention."
"He is a good sword, isn't he? I'd say he wasn't such a bad purchase after all."
The trip home took only a few minutes. We were within sight of the castle when Grumble Belly said, "I'd drop you at your front door, but that would bring out all the guards. Is there somewhere out of the way where I can let you off?"
"Over there," I said, pointing to the tower on the left. "That's where my aunt lives. She won't mind if we use her window. In fact, she'd probably like to meet you."
"Another time, perhaps." Grumble Belly dipped one wing and swerved toward the tower, gliding up to the window silently.
"Thanks for the ride," I said, jumping onto the ledge.
Eadric checked to make sure that he had his possessions with him before following me through the window. "Thanks," he said.
Grumble Belly smiled. 'You saved my son's life and became his friends. Here," he said, snapping off the tip of an already cracked claw and depositing it on the window ledge. "If you ever need me, hold this in your left hand and call my name. Dragons don't forget their friends."
Eadric and I stood by the window, watching the dragon's silhouette winging through the night sky. A shout went up from the guard on the next tower, but Grumble Belly was already too far away for an arrow to reach.
I picked up the dragon's claw and tucked it in my pouch, intending to examine it in the daylight.
The door to the storage room creaked open and a small head peeked out. "Is it gone?" Li'l whispered, peering around the room.
"Yes, Li'l," I said. "The dragon's gone."
"Thank goodness!" said the little bat. Li'l leaned forward and peered at me. "So, did you get the dragon's breath and the feather?"
"We got it all! I have the dragon's breath right here," I said, patting my pouch.
"And here are the feathers," Eadric said, handing them to me. I was carrying them to Grassina's workbench when he pointed toward the back of the room and whispered, "Who's that?"
A pale figure seemed to be floating toward us, and I thought it must be one of the castle ghosts until she stepped in the puddle of moonlight shining through the window. It was my mother, her hair streaming loose around her shoulders and down her back, her long, white gown brushing her ankles and reaching past her fingertips.
I pointed at the witches' lights, lighting a half dozen or so.
"You're back," she said, sounding relieved. "Is Grassina with you?"
"You mean she isn't here? But she knows we have to turn Haywood back within the next few hours!"
"Haywood! I wish I'd never heard that name. He's made her forget everything, and now she isn't even here when we need her so desperately."
"What happened? Is something wrong?"
"Of course something's wrong! King Beltran's army has almost reached the border. Your father is waiting for him there. If Grassina doesn't help your father, Beltran's wizard can destroy our entire army before a single arrow is shot. Emeralda, you told me that you'd learned a little magic. Do you know how to locate Grassina? We need her back here right away!"
"I'll see what I can do." It occurred to me that my mother had to be truly desperate to accept my magic so suddenly, which made me want to help even more. I searched Grassina's workbench for her dragon scale, but she must have taken it with her again. "I can use this," I said, finding her old far-seeing ball. Although she had a newer and more powerful one, that seemed to be missing as well.
"Eadric, help me find something personal of Grassina's that I can use to locate her. Try checking her comb or her pillow. If we're lucky, her cleaning spell missed a hair or two."
Unfortunately, Grassina's spell was too thorough. We didn't find any of her hair, but we did find a clump of Haywood's fur on the window seat.
"This will have to do," I said. "We'll see if we can find Haywood and hope that Grassina is nearby."
"I don't understand," said Eadric. "If you can find Haywood this way, why didn't Grassina try it? It has to be easier than whatever she's been doing."
"It depends on the distance involved," I said. "This won't be easy if he's too far away. My aunt is a powerful witch, but this may be too hard even for her. And remember, she had to eliminate all those false trails."
I already knew what I was going to say when I set the fur on Grassina's workbench and placed the far-seeing ball on top of it.
In the day or in the night,
In the dark or in the light,
Show me where the otter's gone,
Show me now before the dawn.
An image formed inside the ball, fuzzy at first, but it grew more distinct as we watched. The sun was high over a riverbank where an otter, his fur wet and shiny, slipped and slid across the mud. A shadowy figure was chasing him, but the otter was too wild to catch. Twisting around as the figure reached out, he snapped and bit, then scampered toward the water as the figure fell back, nursing an injured hand.
"Is that Grassina?" Eadric asked, squinting at the image. "Why is she so hard to see?"
"Because she isn't the one I asked to see," I said.
"Can you contact her?" asked my mother.
"I can do better than that." I was feeling stronger and more confident in my magic than I ever had before, and making up spells no longer seemed such a challenge.
"Step back," I said, "and stay out of the way. This might be messy." Taking the ball in my hands, I turned to face the center of the chamber.
Bring the otter to this room
So that he can be a groom.
Bring my aunt who's chasing him,
Keep them safe in life and limb.
The splat of something wet and heavy hitting the floor made me jump. Haywood had landed first, tumbling across my aunt's beautiful carpet and smearing it with mud. Grassina appeared next, sprawling on the floor with a whoosh as the air was knocked out of her. Stunned, she lay still for a moment, and I began to worry that she'd been hurt. She was shaky when she stood up, but I thought she looked fine until I noticed the blood dripping from her hand.
"Oh, my!" exclaimed my aunt, staring at us in surprise. "How did that happen?"
"Emma used a spell," Eadric began.
Grassina looked at him as if he was crazy. "Who?"
"Emma," Eadric said again. "She found you in that ball thing, and then she said a spell to bring you here. Queen Chartreuse said she needed you, so Emma—"
"Emma couldn't possibly do that. I don't know anyone who could bring two people over such a distance. There must be—"
Haywood was acting like any wild thing suddenly let loose indoors. He panicked, his claws digging into the carpet as he scurried from one end of the room to the other, trying to find a way out. I stopped listening to Grassina when he ran into the table holding the crystalline bouquet. The table fell over with a crash, and the bouquet would have been smashed on the floor if Eadric hadn't launched himself across the room, catching it with both hands.
"Good catch!" I said, and darted after the frantic otter. I chased him into the corner of the room, which I decided wasn't a good idea when he bared his teeth and growled. Backing away one step at a time, I pointed my finger at him and said,
Send this otter to the pond
Where I first met Eadric.
Do not Let the otter Leave,
By free will or by magic.
The instant I finished the spell, Haywood disappeared, leaving behind mud and the musky scent of wet otter. I heard Grassina gasp, and when I turned around, she was staring at me as if I'd grown another head.
"I'm sorry, but he couldn't stay here," I said. "He's too wild to keep inside."
"I know. I would have done the same thing. I just can't believe how much you've changed. The Emma I used to know couldn't have done that. And if you were really the one to bring us here—"
"She was," my mother said, surprising me by looking proud. "Now hold still and let me look at that hand." Muttering to herself, my mother made Grassina sit down and began to dab at her wound using water from the pitcher and a clean cloth. "You two can talk later," Mother added. "Grassina has to go help Limelyn. She said that when she came back—"
My aunt frowned at her. "I said that I'd help him after I took care of Haywood. I still have to turn my darling back, and I don't have much time."
"But Beltran's troops have almost reached the border," said Mother. "His wizard—"
"Isn't going to do anything until morning. Olebald isn't very powerful, so he needs to see what he's doing. He'll wait for daylight. As I said before, I'll go directly there once Haywood is changed back. Now if you don't mind, I have a lot to do."
"Do you swear you will on your honor as the Green Witch?" my mother asked, tightening the bandage that she was wrapping around her sister's hand.
"Ow!" yelped Grassina. "Yes, I swear! Now, get some sleep. You'll need to be rested for Greater Greensward's victory celebration." Taking my mother by the arm, Grassina led her to the door.
"All right, as long as you swear." Mother said, letting her sister push her across the threshold.