Fablehaven I (38 page)

spinning and getting hauled in the wrong direction. The

naiads started rocking the boat again. Thanks to the low

center of gravity, Kendra found that leaning was enough to

prevent the boat from capsizing, but the naiads were relentless.

They tried to distract her by banging the bottom of the

vessel and by waving at her. The boat pitched and rocked

and spun, and then suddenly the naiads would heave in

earnest, trying to catch her off balance. Time after time,

Kendra reacted quickly, shifting her weight to spoil their

attempts to flip her. It was a stalemate.

The naiads did not show themselves. She heard their

laughter and glimpsed their hands, but never saw a face.

Kendra decided to quit paddling. It was getting her

nowhere, and wasting energy. She resolved to exert herself

only to keep the boat from tipping.

The attempts grew less frequent. She said nothing,

made no response to the taunting giggles, ignored the

hands on the side of the boat. She simply leaned as needed

when they tried to tip the boat. She was getting better at

it. They were not able to tilt it as much.

The attempts stopped. After about a minute of no

activity, Kendra started paddling toward the island. Her

progress was soon halted. She quit paddling immediately.

The naiads spun her and rocked her some more.

She waited. After another minute of tranquility she

paddled again. Again they pulled her away. But less eagerly.

She sensed them giving up, getting bored.

On her eighth try using this technique, the naiads

apparently lost interest. The island grew closer. Twenty

yards. Ten yards. She expected them to stop her at the last

moment. They didn’t. The front of her paddleboat scraped

against the shore. Everything remained still.

The moment of truth had arrived. When she set foot

on the island, either she would transform into a cloud of

dandelion fluff and drift away, or she wouldn’t.

Almost indifferent at this point, Kendra leaped out of

the boat and landed on the shore. There did not seem to

be anything magical or even special about it, and she did

not turn into a cloud of seeds.

There was, however, a barrage of laughter from behind

her. Kendra whirled in time to see her paddleboat drifting

away from the island. It was already too late to do anything

without jumping into the water. She slapped herself on the

forehead with the heel of her hand. The naiads had not

given up-they were trying a different strategy! She had

been so distracted by the prospect of becoming dandelion

fluff that she had not hauled the boat out of the water as

she should have. She could have at least kept hold of the

rope!

Well, one more favor to ask the Fairy Queen.

The island was not large. It took only about seventy

paces for Kendra to walk around the edge of it. Her tour of

the perimeter revealed nothing interesting. The shrine was

probably near the center.

Although the island had no trees, it had many shrubs,

many of them taller than Kendra. There were no trails, and

pressing through them was irritating. What would the

shrine look like? She pictured a little building, but after

crisscrossing the island a few times, she realized there was

no such structure.

Maybe she had not turned to dandelion seeds because

the island was a hoax. Or maybe the shrine was no longer

here. Either way, she was stranded on a tiny island in the

middle of a pond full of creatures who wanted to drown

her. What would drowning feel like? Would she actually

inhale water, or just pass out? Or would the demon get her

first?

No! She had come this far. She would look again, more

carefully. Maybe the shrine was something natural, like a

special bush or stump.

She walked around the perimeter of the island again,

more slowly this time. She noticed a thin trickle of water.

It was strange to find a stream, no matter how small, on

such a tiny island. She followed the stream toward the

center of the island until she found the place where it came

bubbling out of the ground.

There, at the source of the spring, was a two-inch-tall

statue of a fairy, finely carved. It rested on a white pedestal

that added a few more inches to the height. A small silver

bowl sat in front of it.

Of course! Fairies were so tiny, it made sense that the

shrine would be miniature as well!

Kendra fell to her knees beside the spring, directly in

front of the small figurine. The night was very still.

Looking to the sky, Kendra noticed that the eastern horizon

was turning purple. Night was coming to an end.

All Kendra could think to do was pour her heart out in

complete sincerity. Hello, Fairy Queen. Thank you for letting

me visit you without changing me into dandelion

seeds.

Kendra swallowed. This felt weird, talking to a diminutive

statue. There was nothing regal about it. If you can

help me, I really need it. A witch named Muriel is about to

set free a demon named Bahumat. The witch has my

Grandpa and Grandma Sorenson prisoner, along with my

brother, Seth, and my friend Lena. If that demon gets out,

it will wreck this whole preserve, and there is no way I can

stop it from happening without your help. Please, I really

love my family, and if I don’t do something, that demon is

going to, he’s going to-

The reality of what she was saying hit her like a great

weight and spilled out as tears. For the first time, the fact

that Seth was going to die fully entered her mind. She

thought of moments with him, both endearing and annoying,

and realized that there would be no more of either.

She shook with sobs. Hot tears streamed down her

cheeks. She let them come. She needed the release, to stop

trying to suppress the horror of it all. The tears she had

shed while fleeing the Forgotten Chapel had been of shock

and terror. These were tears of realization.

Tears slid down her chin and plopped into the silver

bowl. Her breathing came in ragged gasps between sobs.

Please help me, she finally managed.

An aromatic breeze drifted over the island. It smelled

of rich soil and new blossoms, with just a hint of the sea.

Her crying began to subside. Kendra brushed the tears

from her cheeks and wiped her nose on her sleeve. She

sniffed, amazed at how swiftly congestion could appear.

The miniature statue was wet. Had she cried on it? No!

Water was seeping from its eyes, trickling down into the silver

bowl.

The air stirred again, still redolent with potent aromas.

Kendra inexplicably sensed a presence. She was no longer

alone.

I
accept your offering, and join you in weeping.

The words were not audible, but they struck her mind

with such a forceful impression that Kendra gasped. She

had never experienced anything similar. Clear fluid continued

to leak from the statue into the bowl.

From tears, milk, and blood, devise an elixir, andmy handmaidens

will attend you.

The tears were obvious. All Kendra could picture was

Viola for the milk. Whose blood? Her own? The cow’s? The

handmaidens had to be the fairies.

Wait, what do I do? Kendra asked. How do I get off

the island?

In reply, the wind swirled for a moment, and then

gusted. The pleasant aromas vanished. The little statue no

longer wept. The indefinable presence had departed.

Kendra picked up the bowl. About the size of her palm,

it was nearly a third of the way full. She had hoped the

Fairy Queen would resolve the situation for her. Instead she

had apparently shown her a way to resolve the problem

herself. The telepathic message felt as precise as spoken

words. Her family was still in danger, but the spark of hope

was now a flame.

How would she get off the island? Rising, Kendra

walked to the shore. Unbelievably, the paddleboat was

drifting in her direction. It steadily approached until reaching

the island.

Kendra stepped inside the boat. It pulled away from the

shore spontaneously, turned around, and started toward the

little white pier.

Kendra said nothing. She did not paddle. She was

afraid to do anything that might disrupt the effortless

progress to the pier. She held the bowl in her lap, careful

not to spill a drop.

Then she saw it, a dark figure standing on the pier,

awaiting her return. A puppet the size of a man. Mendigo.

Her throat constricted with fear. She had worked magic

on the island! Getting the tears from the statue-that was

magic, right? Her protected status was finished. And

Mendigo had come to apprehend her.

Can you drop me off someplace else? she asked.

The boat moved steadily forward. What could she do?

Even if they dropped her off elsewhere, Mendigo would just

follow.

The boat was twenty yards from the pier, then ten. She

had to protect the contents of her bowl. And she could not

let Mendigo haul her away. But how could she stop him?

The paddleboat brushed up against the pier, coming to

a stop alongside it. Mendigo made no move to grab her. He

seemed to be waiting for her to disembark. Kendra set the

bowl on the pier and stood up, noticing that the boat was

being held steady.

When she stepped onto the pier, Mendigo moved forward,

but as before, he could not seem to grab her. He

stood with both arms half-raised, fingers fluttering. Kendra

picked up the bowl and walked around the limberjack.

Mendigo followed her along the length of the pier.

Why would Muriel have sent Mendigo after her if he

could not seize her? Did Muriel know she had communed

with the Fairy Queen? If so, the puppet sure moved quickly.

His being there was probably precautionary.

The problem it posed was severe. Evidently Kendra had

not actually worked magic on the island; she had merely

collected an ingredient. But in concocting the elixir the

Fairy Queen described and giving it to the fairies, she

would certainly be performing magic. The moment her

protected status ended, Mendigo would be on her.

That was not an option.

Kendra set the silver bowl on the steps leading up to

the gazebo. Then she turned and confronted Mendigo. The

puppet was more than half a head taller than her. I think

you work like Hugo. You have no brain and just do what

you’re told. Is that right, Mendigo?

The limberjack stood still. Kendra tried not to get

creeped out. I have a feeling you won’t obey me, but it’s

worth a try. Mendigo, go climb a tree and sit up there forever.

Mendigo stood motionless. Kendra walked straight at

him. He was trying to lift his arms to grab her, but was