Frogs and Princes

by Holly Hook

  A witch cursed me.

  Lawrence spoke with a tone that demanded that we ask no more. The old man bowed his head as if he'd gotten caught doing something he wasn't supposed to. I went to fake vomit again, but Lawrence continued before I could.

  Tell me where this Mary is. We need to see the book.

  The old man shook in the presence of Almighty Lawrence. "She lives here, but she left," he said. "The Queen sought her counsel and she's taken her wise book with her. They are meeting at the castle and discussing how best to stop Alric. Several members of other kingdoms have met there. I expect she won't return for some time."

  It was clear this Mary had a high rank in this village, maybe even in all of Fable. She had respect. She'd know how to get rid of Lawrence's curse.

  But could she help me and everyone else?

  She knew all the stories well. Maybe there was a way I didn't have to belong to Lawrence forever. There could be a loophole. Another princess who wanted him, maybe. One who was delusional. A gold digger.

  I know where the castle is, Lawrence said. It is another days' walk from here. Kingdoms are not large here in Fable. There are many. But my transportation will need a bite to eat.

  Shorty's face flushed red. We were nothing more than horses right now. Or slaves carrying him around on one of those hammock things. He must have had those before that witch cursed him.

  I might shake that witch's hand.

  The old man balked, then nodded. "Sure," he said. "Come on and I'll see if someone can whip you up breakfast."

  We followed him deeper into the village and past some chickens pecking at the ground. They scattered when we passed. At least these people and animals seemed real. I reached out and brushed my hand against the mud brick of a house to make sure it was solid. Check. The old man waved us into another house and there was a young woman near the stove who shared the same piercing gaze as the old man. His daughter, maybe.

  The old man helped her fry eggs and potatoes while Shorty and I waited at a crooked wooden table. My stomach cramped with hunger and my legs trembled with weakness. Breakfast included some fried eggs and potatoes. Shorty and I wolfed them down and the old man kept asking Lawrence how he had survived all these years and how he had gotten into the regular world. Lawrence was happy to indulge the guy in his story of how he hopped into my father's pack and hitched a ride to the other world. I don't know what portal he used, Lawrence finished. I was inside the pack, but he walked for a long time.

  He could be lying. Lawrence didn't want me to leave Fable. He never wanted me to see home again. Shorty grimaced at me as he continued to talk about himself. My people will celebrate my return, he said. They will dance in the streets. I will bring prosperity back to the Fox Kingdom. He omitted me or anyone else. I was glad he didn't bring Shorty's story up. The old guy would chase us out of the house for sure if he knew he had Alric's estranged son in his midst.

  The cramping vanished as I cleaned off the plate. Strength returned to my limbs. Lawrence didn't—or couldn't—touch the eggs or potatoes. I wondered if Lawrence would catch a fly that went past. He'd be too proud to do that in front of us.

  Then the sleepiness set in.

  I struggled to keep my eyes open, but I drifted off right there at the table. Shorty had to poke me twice to keep me awake, and I didn't even care. I must have slept little back in that old house. Lawrence was telling the old man about the witch we'd stolen the wand from and how Shorty and I had been too stupid to realize what she was while he had to find a place to hide. The old man leaned on the wall as he listened and his daughter bit her lip.

  I blinked and woke all the way back up. Shorty's face was turning red. He took a final, angry bite of potatoes and stood. "We need to get going," he said. "Thank you for the food. We appreciate it."

  Shorty stood and the old man glared in Lawrence's direction. At least the guy was smart and could see his true nature. His eyes had lost their excited shine, and the gruffness returned. "Be on your way," he said. "Good luck. None of us want Alric at our door or our village going dark. There are already too many dark spots around here. There's a bad one only two miles from here that grows a little bigger each day. You might have to walk through it on the way to the castle. The west road heads in that direction."

  "The dark spot might not be big enough to reach the road yet," the daughter said. "We can hope. Or no one will travel through there. That will hurt trade."

  "It grows by a little every day," the old man said. "When I checked it last, it was getting close to overtaking the road. Large spot, too. I suggest you walk through it as fast as you can."

  "We will," I say. I thought of the ravens who tried to eat Lawrence. Had they succeeded, this whole area would already be dark. "What are dark spots?"

  "Areas of evil. Pure evil," the old man said. "They've been forming since the dark part of Fable has got stronger. Sometimes they form when evil beings stand in one spot for too long. Other times they happen for unknown reasons. The darkness is a disease spreading through the world."

  "Good to know," I said. I remembered how the ground around the old witch turned dark when she stood at the pond. My mouth was dry, and I vowed to get a drink out of the well before we left. I eyed the floorboards at Shorty's feet. They were unchanged. The boards remained new and the straw stuffed between them stayed fresh. No dark spot was forming around him. On his shoulder, Lawrence turned to check for the same thing.

  I felt bad for checking. Shorty didn't want to be like Alric.

  Shorty moved as if scared one would form under him. "We should go," he said. "Thanks for the food."

  And he headed out the door, Lawrence in tow.

  "Thanks," I said, and followed.

  We stopped by the well and Shorty stood back as I turned the crank to bring a bucket up. We took turns taking drinks from the bucket and then Lawrence had to swim inside. When we were all hydrated, Shorty turned in a circle. "Which way again?"

  I saw his point. Four roads split off from this village.

  To the west. The castle is there.

  We made our way to the edge of the village. More people were stirring now, all the way from small children collecting eggs to old women in aprons and black dresses. We got stares now. Lots and lots of stares. My jeans were grass stained and had some spiky things stuck on them that must have come off some plants. Shorty's were the same. We must look like aliens walking through a world like this.

  But I was not dressing up. I refused. It would be a T-shirt and jeans for me all the way. And if I had to wear a dress it would be an old one for a peasant girl. None of this princess stuff. No tiara. No pearls.

  "I'm sick of walking," Shorty said once we reached the mouth of the new road.

  This one was more worn down and had a lot less weeds. Shorty and I walked single file down a groove that must have gotten carved by years and years of wagons going back and forth. We were getting into more civilization, at least. No more wilderness. I wondered if the witch was still following us or if she had another way around. I was glad Mary wasn't here. The witch would search that village for her.

  And we had to avoid anything reflective at all costs. We'd taken a risk drinking out of that bucket.

  Shorty was searching the surrounding trees, but bright green walls boxed us in on both sides. I was glad for the thick foliage. Shorty let his shoulders sink after a while. The guy tensed all the time now.

  He had so, so much on his shoulders.

  And so did I. We both had huge burdens to carry.

  But now I was glad he was here. It helped to have someone who understood. Who got what I was dealing with. I imagined Shorty was glad I was here, too. That I would not judge him by where he came from.

  Lawrence stayed quiet during the walk until I asked Shorty how far the castle was.

  The frog prince answered with glee. We will arrive in less than a day. You will see the magnificent castle. The people in the Fox Kingdom know how to treat royalty.

  "Are we there yet?"
Shorty asked.

  "I think you'll ask that a lot," I said. I hated the thought of going right into Lawrence's home. It was his turf there. If that was where he got freed from his curse, I would already be there. Franco would still be back in that pond. I might never get back out again. Lawrence might be too good to keep promises.

  And what would happen to Shorty? Lawrence knew he was Alric's son.

  But we had no choice but to keep going.

  We walked for maybe half an hour when I spotted it up ahead.

  "Shorty," I said. "There's the dark spot the old guy was talking about."

  We stopped in the road. Lawrence said nothing.

  It was clear in the sun. I thought I was staring at some black and gray river at first, but when I looked closer, the truth became clear. Way up ahead, the grass turned almost black on each side of the road and the trees here appeared even deader than the first horrible spot we'd gone through.

  A crow took off into flight and headed away from us. Lawrence tried to scramble inside of Shorty's shirt, but Shorty grabbed him and gave him a look of death.

  And worse—I couldn't see the other side of this dark spot. It explained why we had seen no wagons heading either way. No one wanted to go through this.

  "That looks nice," I said. "Like school."

  Shorty chuckled. The color was draining from his face. "Those dead trees. That's a swamp."

  He faced me and grimaced.

  Water.

  We were in trouble.

  I looked closer and agreed with him. The blackness on either side of the road was water. I'd seen lots of swamps back home and this one was no different. Just...more evil. Darker. Even the light was more grayish green than a normal swamp. A puffy cloud moved away from the sun and I caught a faint shine from within the army of dead, skeletal trees.

  "What do we do?" I asked. Alric could look through any of that if Shorty was right. He could have taken a position in front of his magic mirror right now. Mirror, mirror, on the wall. I couldn't think of a rhyme for wall that involved death and curses, so I left it there. And wasn't that from another story? Maybe Alric had the mirror because he'd murdered the evil queen who used it.

  Shorty faced me. "This looks like a big dark spot. We have to run right through, or Alric will figure out where we are. All dark spots are a little different. This is the worst one I've seen."

  "Isn't Alric far away?" I asked. "Shouldn't it take him forever to get to us when he figures out where we are?"

  "Not as far as I'd like him to be. The dark region is more to our south and only a few days away. But in these dark spots, it's easier for Alric to see us. And come through."

  "The reception here must work well for evil," I said. "Five bars. Wait. Come through? You're saying he can come out of reflective stuff?"

  "He used the magic mirror to send me to the regular world. It can also take you from one place in Fable to another. If Alric decides he wants to step through his mirror and handle this himself, he can. And if he comes through, well, I don't want to think about that."

  I felt like I would hurl up my breakfast. "There must be a way around that." I searched for the edge of the dark spot, but I could see none. It seemed to spread forever in both directions.]

  And worse, I couldn't see the other side of it. It would be a long run across. The dirt road rose above the water, but not high enough.

  Lawrence made a gulping sound. There must be another way.

  "Well, we have two crappy options," Shorty said.

  "Which are?"

  "Risking more raven attacks along with who knows what else, or running right through and making our sides explode. If we're fast, we might make it. I've seen Alric use the mirror. It takes a while for him to get a good vision on it. We might have two or three minutes to get across before he'll realize where we are. And that's if he's at his mirror right now."

  "I hope you're right." I sucked in breath after breath as we drew closer. Running was never my strong suit. Lawrence had it easy. He had to sit there.

  "I take it it's Option B," Shorty said.

  "Well, yes." The surrounding woods were thick. We'd get lost for days in there and might even starve to death.

  We walked closer and closer to the dark spot. I could make out lots of black, murky water now. The road ahead rose above the water and was still dry, but parts of it were getting muddy at the edges as if it were sinking into the mire. No wonder these people were worried about trade. I wouldn't bring a wagon through here now. The dark spot must not have been this big when the old man came here last. I couldn't believe the change in environment. We stood at some kind of threshold.

  And I still couldn't see the other side of this thing. Swamp stretched as far as we could see. "Lawrence?" I asked. "You have big eyes. Can you spot the other side?"

  Yes. You will need to run. Do not let Alric see where I am.

  We stopped at the edge, just out of a good view of the water. Trees blocked the way and Shorty and I looked at each other. There were no birds nearby. Nothing that could swoop down and try to swallow the frog prince.

  "You ready?" Shorty asked, stretching his legs out.

  “Ready.” I did the same, mimicking the girls I'd seen doing track practice at school.

  Shorty counted to three and Lawrence burrowed back inside his shirt. This time, Shorty let him.

  "Go!"

  And we took off.

  I felt like we’d gotten in a footrace. We crossed the threshold and swamp spread out on either side. The dread feeling socked me in the gut again and I kept going, sucking in breaths of the stale air. This dark spot was worse than the other one. More ancient. I caught flashes of green slime. Dead, wooden sentinels that were once trees.

  The dread grew. “Keep going,” Shorty said. “Don’t stop.”

  I glanced at the water. It was black. Grimy. The sun was weaker here. I pumped my legs harder and caught the wand trying to fall out of my pocket. I held onto it and its cold energy invaded my skin, adding to the terror.

  And the light on the water rippled and a dark shape formed.

  “Shorty—run!”

  “I know that!” He pumped his legs faster. I gasped for breath. There had to be an end to this dark spot. I couldn’t see it yet. My sides protested. Lawrence thought a curse. We were all in panic. If Alric stepped out—

  I forced myself to sprint faster.

  I was not meeting this Alric guy.

  Another glance confirmed that the dark shape on the water was blotting out more of the sun’s reflection. It was keeping pace with us. Alric was at his mirror right now. We must look like blurs to him. I kept my mouth shut. He might hear through the mirror, too.

  I could see it up ahead.

  The end. The light and the life. Green grass and living trees.

  “Go!” Shorty yelled.

  The air grew cold as if a wintery giant had exhaled at us and my whole body tingle with sharp, cruel energy. Dark magic. Alric was doing something.

  A loud crack sounded through the air.

  A huge, dead tree. It was falling over the road ahead.

  Shorty cursed. I grabbed at my left side, which cramped.

  The tree landed with a deafening crash. A dead trunk complete with moss and bright white mushrooms rolled towards us and stopped. Shorty jumped over it and his shoe caught bark, sending it flying.

  I followed. My leg scraped a cluster of the white mushrooms and a burning sensation spread through the front of my thigh. I ignored it and kept going. We were almost out of the dark spot. There was clean sunlight and green grass dozens of feet ahead.

  “Come on!” Shorty grabbed my hand and pulled me over the border.

  The dread feeling in my gut dissipated as Shorty and I crashed down together on fresh grass and dirt. We got back up and moved farther down the road. I glanced at the water of the dark spot and saw the dark, hooded figure growing fainter the farther we got from the swamp. We’d made it out. Alric had lost connection.

  Shorty and I col
lapsed back on the ground.

  I caught my breath. My sides felt ready to split. “That was close,” I managed. “Real close.” And then I laughed. We'd made it.

  “I agree,” Shorty said. He flopped down on his back, chest heaving. “I don’t think we can survive another dark spot if it’s any bigger than that.”

  Watch out, Lawrence thought. You almost crushed me.

  Dry forest surrounded us on all sides. We had reached safety. For now.

  Lawrence scrambled out of Shorty’s shirt and stood there on his shoulder as he sat up. He glanced down at something with his big, yellow eyes. They burned with disapproval.

  Then I saw. Shorty and I still held hands.

  “Oh,” he said, letting go. Blood rushed to his cheeks.

  I turned away.

  It was rushing to mine, too.

  I got to my feet and busied myself brushing off. That’s when I realized that the front of my thigh still burned.

  And the sensation was getting worse.

  “What happened?” Shorty asked.

  “I brushed some of those white mushrooms.”

  Shorty paled.

  “I take it that’s bad.”

  “Candice, the poison in those—it’s acid.”

  My heart sank, and I glanced down at my jeans. If they had holes before, they were worse now. The fabric on the front of my thigh just above my knee was smoking. White residue spread over the spot and it was liquefying.

  And the burn grew bad enough for me to curl my toes.

  I searched around for a body of water. Something. But there was nothing except for the swamp we’d left behind. I glimpsed the murkiness beyond the trees. It was deep, grimy and deadly.

  But the burn was worsening.

  I had no choice.

  Shorty shook his head. “Take off your pants!”

  “Are you kidding?” I asked. The burning turned into an inferno on my thigh and overshadowed the heat in my face. The acid was eating at my skin and the fabric of my jeans. It might eat all the way to bone and there was no hospital here in Fable.

  “Alric uses those mushrooms to make poisons. Take those pants off!”