by John Hosh
A thin, straight, silvery-blue line shot from Euphonius’s wand. The line touched Chloë. She glowed blue. The wand chirped. The line and Chloë’s glow disappeared. Chloë was again a troll in a very big witch’s costume. Chloë waddled swiftly to the cloak. She threw herself upon it.
Chloë’s head touched the troll that was wearing a wizard’s garments. Instantly she became who she usually was. At the same instant the troll that she had bumped became a young man. Chloë shrieked. She wrapped her cloak over her face. She scrambled to the wall.
The newcomer was thin and pale. Two summers older than Euphonius, the newcomer was a little taller than Euphonius. The newcomer had long black hair, a short, scruffy black beard and a thin black mustache. The newcomer grunted, “Awff!” His right hand pinched his nose. He stood. Licking his lips, he stepped toward the wall. He wiped his mouth by using the back of his left hand.
His left hand upon his nose, Euphonius pointed his wand at Chloë. He twanged, “Metamorphose into a troll.” Out of the wand shot the thin, straight, silvery-blue line. It touched Chloë. She glowed blue. The wand chirped. The line and the glow vanished. In an instant Chloë became a troll once more. She threw herself upon Euphonius’s cloak, where she found the troll that did not have a wizard’s garments. Within moments the two trolls bumped heads. The trolls did not transform.
Euphonius pointed the wand at Chloë. He twanged, “Paralyze Chloë.” One score of blue sparks, as a swarm, arced from the wand onto Chloë. She became motionless.
Euphonius twanged, “Anagotize Chloë.” The blue hand and the blue arm flowed onto the ground and forward until the hand was underneath Chloë the troll. The hand grew as long as, and as wide as, she was. The hand raised Chloë slowly off the honeyed cloak until she was half a pace above Euphonius’s cloak.
Euphonius twanged, “Spasticize Chloë.” The blue arm pulled Chloë toward the wand while Euphonius backed eastward. The wizard most recently saved by Chloë’s kiss turned into a falcon and flew away.
Euphonius twanged, “Katatithenize Chloë.” The blue hand lowered Chloë to the ground at Euphonius’s right. He twanged, “Analeptize Chloë.” The wand retracted the blue arm and the blue hand. When the blue hand disappeared, a thin, straight, silvery-blue line grew out of the wand. The line touched Chloë the troll. She glowed blue. With a chirp from the wand, the line and the glow disappeared. Chloë appeared as her usual self.
Euphonius called, “Aegis.” Aegis hurried to Euphonius’s left side while Chloë picked herself up and hurried behind Aegis and Euphonius toward the wall. Euphonius pointed the wand at the troll on his cloak. “Microsize troll,” Euphonius commanded. The blue hand and the blue arm flowed out of the wand and onto the ground. The hand and the arm slithered toward the ravenous troll. The hand slipped over Euphonius’s cloak and underneath the troll. The hand’s index finger elongated until its tip touched the troll’s head. The thumb elongated until its tip was under the troll’s feet. The thumb’s tip and the index finger’s tip closed the distance between them. The troll shrank to the length of a wand. “Anagotize troll,” Euphonius ordered. The blue hand broadened. It slipped under the troll and lifted it until it was half a pace above the cloak. “Spasticize,” Euphonius ordered. The blue hand and the blue arm pulled the miniature troll toward Euphonius. When the troll was near the end of the wand, Euphonius tucked the wand under his left arm. He caught the struggling troll with both hands. “Aphiemize,” he ordered. The blue hand released the troll. The wand absorbed the blue arm and the blue hand.
Euphonius said, “Aegis, take my wand. Put the troll to sleep.”
With his left hand pinching his nose, Aegis took the wand from Euphonius’s armpit. Aegis pointed the wand at the troll. Aegis twanged, “Hypnogenize troll.” Half a score of blue sparks burst from the wand. The sparks pounced onto the troll’s head and vanished. The troll’s eyes closed. The troll quit struggling. The troll purred.
Euphonius held the troll as far from him as his arms reached. He inquired, “Who wants to kiss it?”
Stepping back from Euphonius, Aegis twanged, “I pass.”
Euphonius asked, “Jono, how would you like to have a go?”
Jono twanged, “No, thanks. I need to see how to do it first.” He backed away from Euphonius.
Euphonius snorted. He brought the troll’s head carefully against his lips. Euphonius complained, “Awff.” He extended his arms. The troll remained a troll.
Aegis exclaimed, “Real trolls really smell; don’t they!”
“That they do,” Euphonius responded. He carefully lowered the troll to the ground, and stepped back.
Aegis asked, “Where are we? What’s going on?”
“Nox put you up here.”
Jono stepped closer to Aegis. “Nox is Magus,” Jono said.
“I don’t remember much,” Aegis related. “I remember landing. I restored Chloë. There was this ghost. A wizard took us inside his villa.”
“Nox turned you into a troll,” Euphonius said.
Aegis’s right hand patted his chest. “He must have taken my amulet.”
“I have it,” Jono replied. Using his left hand, he pulled a medallion with a leather cord from inside his cloak. He handed the amulet to Aegis. “I have your plate and your wand too.” Using his left hand, Jono pulled the wand and the plate from his cloak. Jono handed the objects to Aegis.
“Thanks, Jono,” Aegis said.
“Nox had your things in his room,” Euphonius reported.
While Aegis was putting the amulet round his neck and under his shirt, he asked, “How did you take my things from Nox?”
“Jono and I used a ruse to make him take off his amulet. I turned him into a hare. He’s in a cage.” Euphonius looked toward Chloë, who was glaring at him. He said, “Chloë, I’ll put you on the other side of the wall.”
Chapter 36 : Miranda
A few steps south of the wall that divided Nox’s island, Aegis, Chloë and Jono were standing near each other. Jono asked, “Aegis, do you know who that other wizard is?”
“His name is Ostrakan. He left school after Grade Three. He wasn’t friendly. I haven’t seen him for a long time.”
In his cloak, Euphonius became visible beside Aegis. He declared, “We could use some more brooms. Chloë needs one. Maybe Ostrakan needs one. There are cornelian cherry trees east — on the other side of the stream up there.” Euphonius pointed eastward. “Jono, I suggest you take Chloë and find two brooms. Let Chloë dig out a broom. She should learn how to do that.”
Chloë snapped, “What if I don’t want to?”
“Then you won’t be able to leave the island,” Euphonius retorted.
“Aegis will take me off the island; won’t you?”
Aegis replied, “I carried you as a miniature because it was an emergency. You probably did not like the journey much. You should learn how to find a broom.”
Chloë asked Aegis, “Will you go with me to find a broom?”
Euphonius said, “Aegis and I need to talk. Jono, find two brooms, please. Go along the wall. Cross the stream. When you have the brooms, follow the stream to the villa. If you cannot find the cherry trees, you haven’t gone far enough east. Chloë can come with us.”
Chloë snarled at Euphonius, “I’m not going anywhere with you; and you should know I’m going to tell that you made me kiss a troll.”
“You do that,” Euphonius retorted. “Tell everybody you wouldn’t help another wizard.”
Chloë gaped. She grumbled, “You’re not very nice, you know.” She made an ugly face at Euphonius.
Euphonius turned toward Aegis. Euphonius said, “Let’s go. Oh, Jono, if you find a tiny, very heavy, black or brown stone or a red one — like the stone in your amulet, pick it up. It might be an amulet-stone. You cannot have too many amulet-stones.”
“I will keep my eyes peeled,” Jono responded.
Euphonius and Aegis set off toward the villa. Jono tramped eastward. After a moment Chloë hurried in purs
uit of Jono.
****
Euphonius and Aegis reached the villa early in the afternoon. When the boys stepped onto the north edge of the plaza, a goat bleated behind them. The goat trotted up to the wizards.
“Hi, there,” Euphonius said to the goat.
Aegis pointed to the northwest along the trail from the house of Adonidas. He asked, “Who’s that?”
“It’s Miranda, I think.”
Miranda was a big, round, gray-haired woman. She had a thin, dark mustache but no beard. In a leather tunic, Miranda was making good time as she followed the path from her house toward the boys. She came almost to a stop when she was a few steps away from the plaza. Gasping, she took the last few steps and stepped onto the plaza. She shook her right index finger at Euphonius and at Aegis. Puffing, she tramped past the wizards. With her back to the table, Miranda planted herself on the table’s north bench. After catching her breath, Miranda turned toward the wizards. She frowned. She folded her arms in front of her. Miranda shouted, “And what do you have to say for yourselves?”
Aegis responded, “What?”
Miranda roared, “Look what you have done!”
Euphonius asked, “What?”
Miranda pointed at the goat. She snapped, “Look!”
Aegis asked, “Who are you?”
Miranda yelled, “You don’t know me!”
Euphonius blurted, “You are Miranda; aren’t you?”
Miranda barked, “Of course, I’m Miranda. Who else would I be — the goddess of love? Look at what your mischief has done!”
Euphonius queried, “Our mischief! What mischief?”
Miranda declared, “You’ve turned my husband into a goat.”
Euphonius exclaimed, “Is that Adonidas?”
Miranda shouted, “What am I telling you! Who else would it be — the god of cheese? Don’t you go playing any of your silly games with me. Change him back. Either you restore him, or you’ll get no more cleaning from us. We won’t put up with it; we won’t.”
Euphonius said, “No . . . we . . . that is, somebody else must have put a spell on your husband. When did this happen?”
“You know very well it was just a little while ago,” Miranda declared. “He came up to the house. He was bleating and carrying on. He was pulling at my tunic. So I followed him. And here you are. Why did you do this to him?”
“I told you,” said Euphonius. “It is not we who are responsible.”
“Liar. If not you, who was it?”
“I don’t know,” Euphonius said.
Ostrakan, in a black cloak, appeared in the doorway that was closest to the oven. Ostrakan pushed a chunk of cheese into his mouth. He slapped his hands together loudly. Both hands wiped his cloak’s front.
Euphonius called, “Ostrakan!”
Chapter 37 : Ostrakan
Ostrakan sauntered toward those who were gathered on the plaza. He asked, “Has anyone seen my amulet?”
Euphonius asked, “Do you know anything about Adonidas’s becoming a goat?”
“Ya, well, you see I told him if he didn’t find my amulet really fast, I was going to transform him. He didn’t; so I did.”
“Restore him.”
Ostrakan shook his head. Sneering, he said, “Nah.”
“If you don’t restore him, I’m going to turn you into a troll again.” Euphonius drew the wand from his cloak.
“You wouldn’t.”
“I’m counting to two. One.”
Ostrakan became invisible. “Calm down,” he called from west of the oven. “I was having a little fun. There’s no reason to have a fit.” From midway between the oven and the house, the invisible Ostrakan said, “I didn’t know you two were so close.” One moment later Ostrakan became visible in the doorway that he had used most recently. His left hand beckoned Adonidas. He called, “Come, Adonidas. Come inside and I will restore you.”
“I’ll come with you,” Euphonius said to Adonidas the goat.
Ostrakan stepped into the house. Adonidas trotted into the house. Euphonius hurried after Adonidas. A few moments later Adonidas, Ostrakan and Euphonius, in that order, stepped from the house onto the plaza.
Miranda exclaimed, “Praise our creator!” She ran to her husband with her arms outstretched. She held his face in her hands. She took him by the left arm. “Come along,” Miranda sang. “We’ll put some soup into you, and you’ll be as right as rain in no time.” Arm-in-arm, Adonidas and Miranda took the path that went to the northwest.
Facing the house Euphonius sat on the west end of the north bench. Facing the house Aegis sat beside Euphonius. Facing Euphonius Ostrakan sat on the west end of the south bench.
Ostrakan sneered, “Are you happy now? Do you know where my amulet is?”
Euphonius replied, “No.”
“Where’s Nox?”
“Don’t worry about him,” Euphonius advised. “He won’t bother us.”
“Is he coming back? Do we have to leave?”
“I think it would be a good idea,” Euphonius said.
Ostrakan pointed to the northeast. “Who’s that?”
Aegis and Euphonius turned toward the northeast. “It’s Jono and Chloë,” Aegis said. “Chloë’s kiss undid the troll charm. You might thank her.”
****
The shadows were pointing northeast when Jono, a few steps ahead of Chloë, carried one broom onto the plaza. He laid the broom against the east end of the table.
Aegis asked, “Did you have any problems, Jono?”
“No,” Jono replied. “Finding the brooms was easy.” He sat at the east end of the south bench. “I didn’t find any amulet-stones.”
Carrying one broom, Chloë tramped onto the plaza. She laid the broom next to the one that Jono had put down. Facing Jono, she slid onto the east end of the north bench.
Ostrakan was watching Jono. Ostrakan growled, “What’s the reason for the green cloak and the sissy boots? Are you some kind of—”
Euphonius barked, “Ostrakan! One broom is for you.”
“I’m not sure I’m going to leave,” said Ostrakan. He swayed forward and back.
Chloë whined, “I’m hungry.”
“I am too,” said Aegis. “I could eat a buffalo. I’ll fetch some plates.” Aegis left the bench. He hurried past Euphonius and went into the house.
Euphonius took the gold plate from his cloak. He slid the plate toward Jono. Chloë seized the plate. She declared, “I’m first.”
Chloë took hold of the plate. She looked at it. “Let me see,” she said. “Fish would be nice.” A headless and tailless fish, the size of a hand, appeared on the plate. Chloë exclaimed, “No!” She stared at the plate. The fish disappeared. Chloë took her hands from the plate. “Maybe,” she said, “I should have roast duck . . . or a partridge . . . maybe a pheasant and some apple-slices and honey. No. I don’t want honey. I think I’ll never eat honey again. Maybe I should have some boiled turtle . . . or eel . . . maybe, yes, I will have some crab and bread and goat-cheese and olives. Or—”
Jono grumbled, “Pick something.” Chloë scowled at Jono.
Holding enough clay plates for everyone, Aegis stepped from the house onto the plaza. He walked briskly toward Jono. Aegis put a plate in front of Jono, another in front of Chloë, another between Chloë and Euphonius, another in front of Euphonius and the last plate in front of Ostrakan.
While standing beside Ostrakan, Aegis took his gold plate from his cloak. He handed the plate to Euphonius. “Thanks,” Euphonius said.
Euphonius put the plate in front of him. Euphonius looked into the gold plate. He lifted from the plate a half of a roast quail. He put the quail on his clay plate. Beside the quail, he put a bun and a pickle.
Aegis seated himself on Euphonius’s left. Euphonius slid Aegis’s gold plate in front of Aegis. In a few moments Aegis had moved from the gold plate to his clay plate a plateful of spare-ribs and a bun.
Meanwhile Chloë was dumping onto her clay pl
ate from Euphonius’s gold plate a bun, several cooked prawns and a carrot. Chloë shoved the gold plate toward Jono.
Aegis slid his gold plate toward Ostrakan. Ostrakan took Aegis’s gold plate and set it atop the clay plate that was in front of him. Wriggling and squirming, several handfuls of grubs materialized on the gold plate. Ostrakan seized a handful of grubs and ate them.
Jono took a leg of roasted grouse from the gold plate. “Somebody should invent something,” said Jono, “so we don’t have to eat with our fingers.”
Ostrakan looked at Jono. Ostrakan snickered. He mewed, “Afraid of getting your delicate little fingers dirty, are you? What are you — some kind of girl or something?”
Ostrakan’s snicker turned into a cough and then into choking. Ostrakan’s face turned red. His tongue shot forward. He gasped and coughed like an old man who had put his head too far over a fire. Ostrakan slid off the bench. Coughing loudly, he went down on all fours. A moment later Ostrakan was clearing his throat. He put himself on his feet. Ostrakan said hoarsely, “A pixie must have attacked me — probably a whole swarm of them. Did anyone see them?”
“I didn’t see anybody,” Chloë replied.
Ostrakan grunted. He returned to his seat.
To Jono, Euphonius responded, “Mentor said the Eastlanders use sticks to pick up food.” Euphonius stared at Ostrakan. “He didn’t explain how they did it.”
Everyone ate. When Ostrakan was finished eating, he put Aegis’s gold plate into his cloak.
Aegis barked, “Ostrakan, that’s not yours. Give it back!”
Ostrakan retorted, “What?”
“The gold plate, it’s mine. Give it back.”
“I want it.”
Euphonius was staring grimly at Ostrakan. Ostrakan growled at Euphonius, “What’s your problem?”
Euphonius asked Ostrakan, “Why did Nox turn you into a troll?”
“It was nothing — a disagreement. I don’t remember what it was about exactly. Nox, you know, he sometimes, well . . . he takes things too seriously. Anyway, he caught me off guard and, well, you know the rest.”