by E. D. Baker
"They look like a lot of useless beauty tips to me," said Eadric. "How would any of these help us with this witch?"
"They're not all useless. Look, this could be a big help. Squeak Be Gone—squeaky hinges squeak no more. How about Grow Rite—grow the biggest vegetables in the marketplace! Easy Open—open any container without breaking a nail. Listen, they're so simple." Using my normal reading voice, I said,
Unlatch, unlock, undo, untie,
In the twinkling of an eye.
Open ye lock,
Lift ye latch,
Remove ye block,
Release ye catch.
A sound like thunder shook the cottage. A tiny whirlwind twirled debris around and around the room. Then, with a pop, every container in the cottage opened. Lids flew off boxes, corks flew out of bottles, shutters swung open, the door to the cottage slammed back with a crash, the bat's tether twitched loose, and every cage opened with a whoosh!
"Would you look at that!" exclaimed Li'l.
"Li'l, you're a genius. You were right about this book!"
"Ladies, the door is open! Don't just stand there talking!" said Eadric. "Let's get out of here before the witch gets back! Look, there go some mice."
Clifford and Louise had wasted no time and were already crossing the threshold. "Watch out, Emma!" called Clifford.
"Fang is loose!" shouted Louise.
"I'd forgotten all about the snake!" I gasped. "Where do you suppose he is?"
"Snake? What snake?" said Eadric.
"There was a big snake in one of the cages. His name is Fang," I explained.
"Of course it is," muttered Eadric. "What else would it be?"
"He's probably long gone by now," said Li'l. "He never was very sociable, so I doubt he hung around. I have to tell you, though, Emma, I'm proud of you! I knew you could do it as soon as you said you could read."
"So why didn't you have me read that spell right away? What if I hadn't read it at all?"
"I wasn't sure which spells were in that book. I just knew that they were simple spells and that a couple might have worked one way or another. I've never read them myself. You're the first creature I've met who could read."
"What about the spiders?" I asked, remembering the smallest of Vannabe's captives. "Are they still in their cage?"
"They were the first ones out," said Li'l. "I saw them going down a crack in the floorboards."
"What's that?" squeaked Eadric, pointing toward the fireplace, his eyes bulging even more than usual. Convinced that he was overreacting, I looked to where he was pointing. I must admit that if frogs could break out in a cold sweat, I would have done it then. Something still slopped around inside the barrel labeled Trash Can, but it didn't look any different than it had before. However, the lid had popped off the barrel labeled Trash Can't, leaving it open to the air. Three slimy tentacles writhed over the rim, probing the side of the barrel. I shrieked when another rose up and slapped the wall with a soggy squelch.
"Dang," said Li'l, fluttering her wings in agitation. "Looks like Vannabe's got herself two Trash Cans!"
I gulped and whispered hoarsely, "You mean one barrel was called a Trash Can't..."
"Because the trash couldn't get out of it. But it sure can now!"
"Which makes it a Trash Can!"
"Yup!" said Li'l.
"Another reason we should get out of here as fast as we can. Look at those things!" Eadric's lips crinkled in disgust when an unattached tentacle slid to the floor and oozed toward the table, leaving a slime trail behind it. "Let's go somewhere safe!"
"He's got a point," I said. "See you later, Li'l."
"Emma, before you go," called the bat, "take this with you." Li'l flapped down to the shelf beside Eadric and me. Wrapping a wing around the vial of dragon's breath, she dragged it to us. "Without this, she won't have any reason to look for other talking frogs."
"But won't she come after us if she thinks we took it?"
"She won't know we took it if she doesn't see us with it, now, will she? And she won't see us with it if we're gone when she gets back." Eadric grabbed the vial with both hands and dragged it to the edge of the shelf.
I waved good-bye to Li'l and followed Eadric. Together, we jumped to the floor, then quickly hopped to the threshold.
"Wait," I told Eadric. I turned back into the room and looked up at the shelf. The bat still stood where we had left her. Her head and wings drooped and she looked so forlorn that I felt like crying.
"Li'l, aren't you coming?" I asked.
"No," said Li'l. "I think I'm going to stay here. I've spent most of my life in this cottage and I don't have anywhere else to go."
"You could come with us," I suggested.
The bat's expression brightened momentarily; then she shook her head and frowned. "It's no good," she said. "I'm meant to be a witch's bat. It's what I've always been and it's what I'll always be."
"But she'll tie you up again!"
"Not in this cottage. Not after that spell. Nothing is going to stay closed or tied in here unless she finds another spell to reverse it. Now hurry and get out of here. I can hear her coming."
I hopped to the doorway and looked out. Although I could see all the way to the other side of the clearing, there was no sign of the witch. "I don't see her. How can you hear her all the way over here?"
"You're questioning a bat's hearing?" asked Eadric. "If the bat says the witch is coming, the witch is coming. Let's go. This thing is heavy."
But I still couldn't leave. "Li'l!" I called. "Vannabe isn't even a real witch. If you want to be a witch's bat, you can come live with my aunt. She's the Green Witch and she's much nicer than Vannabe. Come with us and I'll take you to meet her. I know you'd get along wonderfully!"
"I don't know, Emma. Are you sure about your aunt? Maybe she already has a bat."
"No, no bats, only a small green snake who's free to come and go as she pleases."
"Li'l, please come," said Eadric. "She's not going to move unless you do."
"All right, I'm coming!" said Li'l. "But you go on ahead. I have to get something."
"You heard her," said Eadric. "Let's go!"
With his arms still wrapped around the vial of dragon's breath, Eadric hopped out the door and into the clearing beyond. I hopped along at his side, turning around every so often to look for Li'l. We didn't stop to catch our breath until we reached the tall grass. "Do you see her yet?" I asked. "Do you see Li'l anywhere?"
"No, there's no sign of the bat, but look there! The witch is back!"
"Eadric, Li'l hasn't come out yet! If the witch catches her ..."
Vannabe saw the open door the moment she entered the clearing. With a shout of rage, she hiked up her skirts and ran toward the cottage. Even though we knew she couldn't see us, Eadric and I crouched in the tall grass, our hearts pounding in terror.
We saw Vannabe drop her sack on the ground and dart into the cottage. A scream rang through the clearing. Moments later Li'l shot out of the cottage at full speed with the witch close behind. Waving her broom wildly, Vannabe cursed and tried to knock the bat to the ground. When Li'l pumped her wings and flew higher, Vannabe gave up and hurled her broom away in disgust.
"Then get out of here, stupid bat! I don't need you anyway!" she shrieked, her face twisted in anger. Clenching her fists, Vannabe glared at the peaceful clearing as if it might give her the answers. "Who did this? Who freed my creatures and ruined my spell?"
"I guess she hasn't noticed that the dragon's breath is gone yet," I whispered.
Vannabe ran back into her cottage. A bloodcurdling scream rattled the window frames.
"I think she just noticed," said Eadric.
Movement in the cloudless sky made me look up. It was Li'l, zigzagging above the clearing as she searched for us.
"Li'l, over here!" I called softly.
Turning abruptly, the bat headed straight for Eadric and me.
"As soon as she gets here, do you mind if we get going?" asked Eadric. "
I feel a little conspicuous lugging this thing around."
"Sorry," I said. "We can go now."
Li'l swooped overhead and fled into the forest. We tried to follow as quickly as we could, but the vial of dragon's breath slowed our progress. It was an awkward object to carry and made hopping difficult.
"Tell me again why I'm hauling this stuff around," Eadric said. "If we're just taking it so the witch can't use it, why can't I put it down now and leave it here?"
"Think of it this way," I said. "This is the only container in the whole cottage that didn't open. It must be pretty strong stuff. We don't want just anybody to find it. And you never know, maybe we can use it ourselves someday."
"Now you sound like my mother. I don't think she's ever thrown anything away in her whole life. If we start keeping everything we might use someday, we're going to have to build a wagon to haul it around. All I can say is, this dragon's breath had better be worth it. And what's this about taking Li'l to see your aunt Grassina?"
"We have to go there anyway," I said. "I'm not going to fool around anymore. This time I'm going straight to her tower at the castle. If she still isn't there, why, we'll find someplace safe to wait until she comes back. We know that the witch who cast the spell is dead, so Grassina is the only one we can ask. If anyone can help us, it'll be my aunt."
"I don't think you realize how dangerous a trip to the castle would be. It's a long way from here and even if you did reach it, the guards wouldn't allow you within the castle walls. Then, if you could somehow make it inside, the dogs would get you or the servants would squash you on sight. Are you sure you want to do this?"
"I wish you'd have more faith in me. I got us out of that cage, didn't I?"
"Not because you'd planned it that way!"
"It doesn't matter," I said. "It won't be any more dangerous for me to go to the castle than it would be to stay here."
"For us, you mean," said Eadric.
I shook my head. "You don't have to go with me. You said you didn't want to talk to my aunt. She's a 'spell-casting witch,' remember?"
Eadric sighed. "If you're going, then I'm going, too. I think this is a foolish idea, but I can't let you go on your own. I'll do what I can to protect you. Don't forget, I have an interest in your welfare. If Grassina is your aunt, she can't be all bad, and if she turns you back into a human, I want to be there."
"So she can turn you back into a prince as well?"
Eadric gave me a lopsided grin. "If she can. Besides, maybe I'll get lucky and you'll give me another kiss."
Eleven
Because we had arrived at the witch's cottage shut inside a musty sack, I'd had no idea that Vannabe had carried us from the swamp into the forest until I saw the towering trees that ringed the clearing. As Eadric and I passed the first weathered trunks, I realized that I hadn't the faintest clue which way we should go. Tall trees blocked the sunlight, leaving the forest floor dark and gloomy. We passed beneath an old oak, hopping over its gnarled roots and the carpet of decaying leaves from years past.
"This place is spooky," I said, glancing over my shoulder.
"I like the dark," said a voice, and we looked up to see Li'l hanging from a branch, huddled against the trunk of the tree. "It makes me feel safer. I think I was born somewhere around here, although I don't remember it very well."
"I have no idea how to reach the castle from here," I said. "Do you think you could fly above the trees and see if you can find it? That would help ever so much."
"If you really want me to, I suppose I could go look. But it's awfully bright up there ..."
"If you don't mind. It's the only castle around with green pennants flying from the turrets. You can't miss it."
Li'l nodded. "I'll be right back."
We watched her flap her wings and fly between the branches in fits and starts.
"Does she seem nervous to you?" Eadric asked.
"Very," I said, "but you can't blame her. This is the first time she's been outside since she was a baby. I think it would be frightening for her. So much of it will be new."
"And her flying..."
"Give her some time. Don't forget that she's been tethered to a rafter most of her life. I doubt she's been able to do much flying."
"I have to set this down," Eadric said, placing the vial on the ground and rolling his shoulders to work out the kinks in his muscles. "That vial is heavier than it looks. Of course, if you kissed me again, I might have enough energy to haul it around some more."
I sighed and shook my head. "I don't understand. Why do you keep asking for a kiss?"
Eadric shrugged. "Habit, I guess."
"Well, I guess I'm in the habit of saying no!"
"Rejected again," he said, quirking up one corner of his mouth in a half smile. "I must admit, I'm getting used to it."
Leaves rustled as a squirrel darted along the branch of a tree. We both glanced up, and I, at least, felt very small, dwarfed by the immensity of the forest. The trees where we stood were ancient, their trunks so thick that I couldn't have put my arms around them even when I was a human. Broken branches littered the ground, and here and there we could see where one of the mature trees had fallen, exposing a patch of the forest floor to the sun. Young saplings were quick to grow in such spots, greedily seeking their share of the sunlight. With our backs to the meadow, the forest seemed to go on forever. It would be easy to get lost in such a place.
"You know," said Eadric, "it might be a real help to have your bat friend with us. If she can scout ahead, she should be able to keep us going in the right direction."
"Even if she weren't able to help us, I couldn't have left her behind. No one deserved to be left in that awful place."
"I am glad you think so," breathed a voice that sent a chill up my spine. I turned my head toward the sound. Dead leaves whispered beneath the biggest snake that I had ever seen. Four black stripes ran down his gray and white body. A streak of black accented each eye. I froze, unable to move as the snake stared into my eyes. "What is wrong?" breathed the snake you not recognize me?"
"Are you ... Fang?" I asked through a throat tight with fear.
"At your service," the snake hissed coiling his length under him. "You mentioned our destination. I believe that you could use my company."
"Why would we want you along?" Eadric asked, his voice quavering.
The snake swung his head around to face my friend, looking him up and down as if appraising his next meal. "Because I know what lives in this forest. Witches have lived here for centuries, and the spillover from their magic has changed even the trees themselves. But you need not fear the magical beings, for they will see you as an animal and therefore one who belongs. Still, you would not make it through without me, for your indiscretions will soon attract the attention of predators. Without my protection, your journey is doomed before you begin."
Great! I thought. Even the snake is a critic! I swallowed past the lump in my throat and tried my best to look brave. "So you're not going to eat us?"
"I do not eat creatures who have helped me. You freed me from a cage so small I feared I would soon go insane. I owe you far more than I can repay by a simple trip through the forest. No, I swear upon my honor as a snake that I shall not eat you." Fang dipped his head to me in a gesture both elegant and noble.
It was up to me to set an example. I resolved not to let anyone see either my fear or the revulsion I felt at being around a snake.
"Does that include my companions, too?"
"Of course. I will—"
"Snake! Snake!" shrieked Li'l, flitting back and forth just above our heads. "Look out, frogs! That's Fang and he's going to get you! What can I do? What can I do?"
The poor bat was frantic and I began to worry that she might injure herself in her frenzy. Apparently, I wasn't the only one concerned, but the snake was more disapproving of the commotion than he was worried about her well-being.
"Would you be so kind as to do something about Li'l?" Fang said in a
voice that made my skin crawl. "She's drawing too much attention to us. If you don't stop her immediately, I shall."
I couldn't watch my friend risk her life, but trusting a snake went against all my instincts. Setting aside my misgivings, I waved my arms frantically above my head and shouted as loudly as I could. "Li'l! No! He's a friend!" I hoped it was the truth.
Li'l veered away in midflight and landed on the ground behind Eadric. "Has Emma lost her mind?" she whispered. "How could any snake be her friend?"
"Fang said he owes her a debt, so he's going with us. He promises not to eat us."
"Are you sure he can be trusted? He was always very polite, but he never seemed to want to be anyone's friend. How do we know this isn't a trick? From what I've heard, snakes are pretty sneaky characters."
"What do you suggest we do about it?" whispered Eadric. "He's bigger than the rest of us put together. I don't think it would do any good to tell him not to come."
"Maybe," said Li'l, "but we can keep an eye on him. We'll take turns watching him tonight. I'll take first watch."
"You won't need to wake me when it's my turn," said Eadric. "I won't be able to sleep with him around anyway."
"What are you two talking about?" I asked, although I'd already heard their conversation and feared that Fang had as well. I hopped closer to my friends while Fang raised his head and stared at them through slitted eyes.
"Nothing," said Li'l in a tiny voice as she noticed Fang watching her. She crouched down to hide behind Eadric until all I could see were the tips of her wings. "I was about to show Eadric my twine. It's my only possession and I couldn't leave it behind."