Blue Fire and Ice

by Alan Skinner

  Crimson smiled at Bell. ‘No. Why should we? It’s perfectly natural.’

  Bell was their friend but he didn’t quite see it that way. He thought it best not to say any more on the subject.

  ‘I’m sorry I let you down last night,’ said Reach, sipping her coffee.

  ‘What are you talking about?’ Bell’s voice sounded very kind to Reach at that moment. ‘Let us down? You didn’t let us down!’

  ‘If it wasn’t for you, we never would have got hold of her in the first place. And everyone knows that Sky isn’t as strong as you,’ added Grunge. ‘And whoever that woman was, she was strong, too, Reach.’ Grunge rubbed his shoulder. Leaf was going to have a nasty bruise. ‘Still, she was no match for you.’

  Crimson looked at the young ballerina. ‘Reach, how did you manage to dance like that? You’ve never been able to do that. It was perfect.’

  ‘It was you and Grunge,’ replied Reach, and she gave them a little smile. ‘When you told me to close my eyes going down the ladder. Everything felt … right. I wasn’t dizzy. I could sense everything. So, I closed my eyes and it just happened. I didn’t even try. It just happened.’

  Grunge smiled. ‘Lucky for us you did.’

  ‘Reach, what did she look like?’ Crimson was hesitant. In some ways she wanted to forget it all for the moment but she couldn’t get the woman’s words out of her head. ‘I heard you tell Bell that you saw her face. Who is she?’

  Reach shook her head. ‘I don’t really know. I only saw her for an instant and it was dark and she had that hood. She seemed … ordinary. Not mean or evil.’

  A silence followed Reach’s comments until Bell decided they needed to forget about last night for a little while.

  ‘Where’s that pup of yours? I haven’t seen her for a bit.’

  ‘She can’t get around as fast as she usually does, so she’s lying low,’ replied Crimson. She called the puppy. ‘Calamity!’

  ‘Ah,’ said Reach. ‘Whose legs?’

  Calamity waddled into the room, her penguin feet shuffling. Between her penguin hindquarters and her puppy neck, was the long thin body of the meerkat. She yelped a sharp hello to her friends and tried to bound over to Crimson. Penguins don’t bound very well and Calamity fell straight on her nose. She rolled over on her back, with black webbed feet and little meerkat paws pointing straight in the air, and grinned.

  Reach knelt and rubbed behind the puppy’s ears. ‘Hello, Calamity. I think you’re right to lay low for a while. I don’t suppose that the dogs in Beadleburg are any more ready for you than they are for us. Not the way we are at the moment.’

  Calamity looked down at her body. ‘What do you mean, “The way we are at the moment”? What’s wrong with me? Maybe she means I need a bath.’ She rolled over and sat up to check.

  All four felt the familiar tingle and then each was engulfed in the same shimmering haze that had come upon them a couple of hours earlier. The haze held them for a few seconds and then disappeared. Calamity, who had been balancing on Penguin’s broad feet, lost her balance and rolled over.

  The Muddles didn’t seem to notice. None of them commented, not even Calamity, who picked herself up and raced from the room, making sure her legs had come back in the same condition as when they left.

  ‘Well, I never …’ thought Bell. ‘I imagine it’ll take a while for me to get used to that.’

  ‘More coffee?’ said Reach, as if nothing had happened. Bell nodded and sat back and smiled. There was a lot to like about Muddles, he decided.

  *

  No fires burned in Beadledom that night. The patrols came back just after dawn, tired but happy, joking and wishing each other a “good morning’s sleep” and “sweet daydreams” as they went to their beds. One of them was startled and thought he must have already started dreaming when he saw a young scout wearing a bright blue uniform with green trim whizz past on a bicycle that seemed to be covered in graffiti and had a large surfboard on the back. He shook his head and walked into his house, informing his waiting wife that these were indeed strange times they lived in.

  Leaf spotted the fire station without having to ask directions. She steered the bike into the drive, leaning right over as she had seen Wave do. Coming to an abrupt stop, she rang the bike’s bell.

  Reach came running out of the fire station’s bright red doors.

  ‘It’s Leaf!’ she yelled to the others. ‘Leaf’s here!’

  Crimson, Grunge and Bell heard Reach’s yell and emerged from the fire station.

  ‘Hey, Leaf!’ said Grunge. ‘You must have given Wave a big bribe for him to let his bike out of his sight!’

  ‘Hiya,’ Leaf said to them all. ‘I’m so glad to see you!’

  ‘It’s great to see you, too, Leaf. But what are you doing here? And so early!’ said Crimson.

  ‘I was up with the larks and ready before they had even left their nest,’ said Leaf proudly. ‘Wave said I should leave early, so I did.’

  ‘You certainly did,’ laughed Grunge. He remembered Bell. ‘Oh, Leaf, this is our friend, Bell. He’s the fire officer here. He’s just returned from patrol and stopped by to see if we wanted some breakfast with him. I don’t imagine you’ve had yours, have you?’

  Leaf shook her head. ‘Pleased to meet you, Bell. I’m Leaf. I would love breakfast. Riding makes me so hungry!’

  ‘Well, come with us and then tell us over breakfast why you’re here,’ said Grunge.

  Leaf hopped from the bike and kicked the stand down. She grimaced.

  ‘Shoulder sore?’ Grunge asked, a bit sheepishly.

  Leaf smiled, catching on. ‘Not too bad, Grunge.’ She held up the hand with the short but perfectly manicured nail and they all laughed.

  Over one of Brew’s fine breakfasts, Leaf told the others about Wave and the strange woman. They all listened silently until Leaf had finished.

  ‘So, Wave thought it might have something to do with you being here, and that you should know,’ explained Leaf, helping herself to another waffle.

  Bell’s relief showed on his face. ‘It would seem that our strange fire lady has given up, at least for now.’ He smiled a wide, full smile at Leaf. ‘Thank you, Leaf. You have brought us very good news.’

  Crimson was pensive. ‘Leaf,’ she asked, ‘is that exactly how Wave described her hair? Shiny as polished red metal?’

  Leaf nodded, having just put a large portion of Brew’s lovely waffle in her mouth.

  ‘Is it important?’ Grunge asked Crimson. ‘Does it mean something to you?’

  Crimson shook her head. ‘Yes … no … I don’t know, Grunge. I think it is, but I’m not sure why … Oh, I’m being silly. I think Bell’s right. For a while, at least, there’ll be no more fires. Now we can concentrate on finding out why someone wanted to do this in the first place. And who that someone is.’

  Grunge poured himself another cup of coffee. ‘It would seem it isn’t the Myrmidots after all. She didn’t head for Myrmidia.’ He frowned. ‘But where did she go? There’s nothing but the High Mountains and there’s nowhere to go there.’

  Crimson finished her coffee and put her napkin on the table. ‘I don’t know, Grunge. But I think we had best report this to Bligh and Brian. And then we have somewhere to go.’

  ‘We do?’ said Reach, surprised. ‘Where?’

  Crimson smiled. ‘Home. Let’s go home.’

  Chapter 7

  The Book of Meddle

  Bligh shook his head ruefully. ‘I fear we haven’t heard the last of our strange woman.’ He looked at the Muddles and gave a little smile. ‘But I think you’re right. It’s time for you to return. It will please many of the Beadles when you have gone, I’m afraid. Life is less predictable with Muddles about.’

  It was Crimson who spoke for the Muddles.

  ‘We’ll be glad to get back to Home. And you’re right about the woman. Something tells me that she isn’t finished with any of us yet.’

  ‘Well,’ sighed Bligh, ‘let’s hope we have some pea
ce for a while at least. Come, I’ll walk down to the street with you. Mustn’t keep Sparkle waiting and Megan will be there to take Reach back to Home on the bus.’

  Bligh and the Muddles made their way from his office down to the street. Brian and Bell followed, with Calamity scampering behind. Megan was waiting outside the front door, Beadleburg’s bus polished, waxed and shiny as usual. She looked at Leaf, who had collected her bike and was getting ready to cycle back to Home.

  ‘Are you sure you wouldn’t like a lift with Reach and me?’ Megan asked the young scout.

  ‘And miss the chance to ride Wave’s bike? No way!’ Leaf declared. She hopped on the bike and waved to everyone. ‘Bye!’ she cried and sped down the main street of Beadleburg towards Home.

  ‘Goodbye, Reach,’ said the High Councillor as the young ballerina boarded the bus. ‘It was a pleasure to meet you.’

  ‘Thank you, Bligh,’ replied Reach. ‘Goodbye, Brian,’ she said, waving to both. It was hard to resist the charming young ballerina’s smile and Brian managed one of his own.

  Sparkle snorted impatiently. ‘Are we going, or what?’ she said. ‘C’mon, Calamity, on the cart.’

  ‘Don’t blame me,’ replied the puppy, slightly indignant. ‘No one’s saying goodbye to me!’ Calamity jumped onto the cart and sat in the middle of the wooden bench.

  Crimson and Grunge said their goodbyes. Now that the Muddles were going, Brian found that he felt much more kindly towards them. ‘They’re not so bad, really,’ he thought. ‘Just …’ Brian tried to think of the right word, ‘… muddled,’ was the best he could think of.

  ‘Goodbye, Calamity,’ said Bell, scratching the Muddle pup behind the ears. ‘You’re always welcome at my fire station.’

  Calamity stretched her head, encouraging Bell to scratch her. ‘He’s improved,’ she decided. ‘Just a little to the left, Bell.’

  Sparkle trotted out of Beadleburg. The rows of neat, identical houses lining the neat, straight road disappeared behind them. For a few kilometres, Grunge and Crimson sat in silence, each with their own thoughts. When Beadleburg was already hidden from view by the hills, Grunge turned to his friend.

  ‘I’m sorry we let them down, Crimson. We didn’t do terribly well, I’m afraid.’

  Crimson was silent for a moment before she spoke.

  ‘I have a feeling we’ll have a chance to make up for it, Grunge. Something tells me we’re not finished with that woman yet.’

  Grunge nodded. He reached behind him and from his pack pulled out his flute.

  ‘Well, we should be at Home by lunchtime. How about some music?’ he asked, brightening considerably.

  ‘Sounds good to me,’ neighed Sparkle.

  ‘That would be nice, Grunge,’ agreed Crimson.

  ‘But nothing old,’ declared Calamity.

  Grunge positioned his fingers along the flute and put it to his lips. He blew firmly but gently. Not a sound emerged.

  ‘That’ll never catch on,’ yapped Calamity.

  Grunge tried again. This time, there came a high, wavering, high-pitched note from the flute. Calamity put her paws over her ears.

  For the remainder of the trip back to Home, Grunge played the flute. He played everything Crimson requested, and Crimson never recognised anything he played, but that didn’t stop them from having a very pleasant journey.

  By the time the first buildings of Home came into view, the sun was past its highest point. Crimson could feel Sparkle trot faster as the fire station came into view and she let the horse have her head. The mare trotted straight into the fire station and stood impatiently until Crimson had unhitched her from the cart. Free of the harness, Sparkle cantered out of the station with Calamity at her heels. She ran into her paddock behind the station and immediately rolled in the soft grass.

  ‘You’d never catch me rolling in the dirt,’ said Calamity, as she sat demurely watching Sparkle roll on her back. Nevertheless, she kept up a steady yapping of encouragement to her friend.

  While Sparkle enjoyed herself in the paddock, Crimson and Grunge unpacked the fire cart and put away the equipment. It felt good to be back though they had been gone just a few days.

  ‘We should find Wave and let him know we’re back and thank him for sending Leaf to us,’ Grunge said as he hung the fire coats on their hooks.

  Preoccupied with her own thoughts, Crimson didn’t hear him. Grunge glanced at her. His friend was sitting on the edge of the cart, one end of a long fire hose in her hands, staring into the distance.

  ‘Crimson?’ Grunge spoke gently. ‘Are you OK?’

  Crimson started and gave a half-hearted smile. ‘I’m sorry, Grunge, I was just thinking about that woman. Where could she have gone and why? Who is she?’

  Grunge shrugged. ‘I don’t know, Crimson.’

  Crimson slid off the cart to her feet. ‘I just know that we should be doing something. We can’t just wait for her to make the next move. We need to find out where she is.’ Crimson coiled the long hose. ‘We need to find out who she is.’

  ‘You’re still worried about what she said, aren’t you?’

  ‘Yes, I am,’ Crimson admitted. ‘It was so deliberate. She meant something by it and I want to know what.’

  ‘We’re nearly done here, so let’s finish up and go find Wave.’

  Crimson nodded. She coiled the hose and hung it in its place on the wall.

  ‘I suppose you’ll want to find out if they’ve finished putting new windows in your house,’ she said, a touch sadly.

  Grunge sounded a bit sad, too. ‘I guess I’d better. Anyway, I can’t stay here. Home doesn’t really need two fire officers. Besides, I don’t think I’d make a very good fire officer. Not like you, Crimson.’ He thought a moment. ‘But there’s no hurry. Tomorrow will do.’

  ‘Tomorrow. Or the next day. You’re welcome to stay for as long as you like, Grunge.’

  ‘Thanks, Crimson.’ Grunge put a pair of black boots in a locker. ‘That’s it. Let’s go and find Wave. We’ll ask him to request a town meeting. We can let everyone in Home know what’s happened, and see if anyone has any ideas about our mysterious woman.’

  ‘Right,’ said Crimson. She gave a critical look around the station, especially at all the brass. ‘But tomorrow will definitely be a polishing day.’

  The pair walked into the centre of Home. Other Muddles welcomed them cheerfully, waving or calling out a greeting. It made them even more glad to be back to have their friends happy to see them.

  The Common was busy, as usual. There were Muddles picnicking, playing crickle, dozing in the sun or merely walking in the shade of the trees. Around the Songpost were dozens of Muddles, mostly younger ones, connected to the long post by the black wires of their ear pads. Grunge laughed, remembering how he had thought those wires to be a strange leash binding the Muddles to the pole.

  ‘Hey, Grunge! Hey, Crimson!’ two voices called out in unison. Crimson and Grunge saw Leaf and Reach walking across the Common, the young Muddles waving to them.

  ‘We’re just going to join Wave at the plantation,’ said Reach. ‘He’s tending the new trees. He says they’re some of the best young trees we’ve grown.’ Crimson wasn’t sure whether the young ballerina looked happy because she was glad to be home or because all Muddles loved the harvest season more than any other.

  ‘There’s not a Muddle nearly as good as Wave in nurturing young coffee trees,’ said Grunge.

  ‘He’s going to show us what he does, and then he’s taking us to the beach,’ put in Leaf.

  ‘He says this could be one of the best harvests we’ve had for a long time. We’ll have a wonderful Roasting Day Festival this year,’ added Reach.

  ‘Tell Wave we need to speak to him, please. Tonight,’ said Grunge. He turned to Crimson. ‘In the meantime, you and I had better start thinking of how to find out about our mysterious woman,’ he said.

  ‘And the connection between the fires and the old buildings,’ said Crimson. She gave the others a rueful look.
‘I wish I knew my history better.’

  ‘Why don’t you ask Patch?’ said Leaf. ‘Nobody knows history better than Patch. He’s always telling stories. I’ll bet he knows everything that ever happened in the Land. Or, at least, everything he wished had ever happened.’

  Crimson and Grunge exchanged glances and nodded. ‘It’s a start,’ said Grunge. ‘And Patch does know an awful lot of stories.’

  Crimson nodded. ‘Right, let’s go talk to Patch.’ She turned at Leaf and Reach. ‘You’d better run off and meet Wave. And don’t forget to tell him we’d like to see him.’

  The faces of the young Muddles brightened. ‘OK, Crimson,’ said Reach, ‘we’ll tell him.’

  ‘Come on,’ urged Leaf, grabbing Reach’s hand. ‘Race you back to the tent.’

  Patch’s house was at the north end of Home, at the point where the road curved to the west on its way to Myrmidia. As the road straightened, it dipped, then rose gently. The river still followed the road, gathering speed down the hill, then cutting a small gorge on the far side. At the top of the small hill was a short drive which led to a narrow wooden bridge across the shallow gorge. At the very end of the bridge, at the hill’s highest point, sat Patch’s house.

  The house resembled a small pirate galley, stranded atop the hill. The bottom half of the house was a rounded hull, with the bow facing the wooden bridge, which ran straight to the front door like a gangplank. Cut into the bow, the black, sturdy door was shaded by a small awning. The windows were a row of portholes along both sides.

  The deck that formed the roof of the house was slightly sloped and had a crow’s nest perched in the middle. From the crow’s nest Patch watched Crimson and Grunge walk across the bridge and knock on the door.

  ‘Ahoy, me hearties’ Patch yelled. ‘Come aboard and I’ll come down below decks to see ya.’

  They entered a small entrance hall. On a coat rack were hung Patch’s spare pirate coats, his second-best pirate hat and three spare pairs of pirate boots. They walked though the entrance hall and into his living room. It was a snug room, its wooden beams and walls giving it a warm, cosy feel. In the corner, past the fireplace, a circular staircase wound its way up to the crow’s nest. They could hear the thump of Patch’s feet as he came down.