Ch. 20

. . . Garglemouth dodged Rosemary. She fell forward and landed in the sand. She quickly got up and looked at him. She should of guessed that he would be fast, too.

“Okay. Let me think a little. I’m not strong enough to fight you like that, but I’m not good at any other spells besides the elements. I live in Prague, with humans. I can’t practice. I’ll try,” she said under her breath.

She raised her hands and yelled, “Ria!” Two bubbles came out of her hand that were supposed to be air and floated to the surface where they popped.

Rosemary thought for a moment and then yelled, “Erif!” A jet of hot water came out, but Garglemouth just swept his hand and it went to the side.

If that wasn’t going to work, she would have to try something else. Rosemary lifted her hands again and said, “Thrae!” Sand shot out of her hands. It hit Garglemouth, but it just slid off with the water.

“You will have to do better than that. There is only one more spell you can use. Use wisely,” Garglemouth warned.

Rosemary had forgotten that she only could use four. She sat down on the ground and stared at a fish that was swimming by. It was working hard against the water.

Water! She could use water! Garglemouth would never expect that. But she would have to use it differently just hand some spout out of her hands.

Rosemary stood up again and yelled, “Retaw lortnoc!” The water around Garglemouth was still. He tried to move his arm, but the pressure wouldn’t let him. He was defeated.

There was another swirling vortex and Bubblespray came back. She said to Rosemary, “Well done. I would never have thought of that myself. You are ready for the next test. My sister, Wavespin, will give it to you. She wrote it, and you have to solve the riddle. She will be here in a few minutes. I can’t give you hints this time, except that you should take everything literally. Good luck!” And then she was gone in another vortex.

“Take everything literally? What does that mean?” Rosemary asked herself as another vortex appeared. Usually, merpeople were blonde. But this mermaid had black hair that fell to her waist.

“Hello. I am Wavespin. Are you ready for your riddle?” Wavespin asked Rosemary.

“Again, no. I am not. But it’s better to face it sooner rather than later. So you may read it,” Rosemary replied.

“Very well, here it is:
‘To pass the second task,
You must answer the question I ask.
What is the creature that flies,
And sleeps where strong magic lies?
This creature is little,
But actually not brittle.
To pass this test at long last,
You must look into your childhood past.’”

Wavespin smiled at Rosemary, when she finished. Rosemary just looked at her feet and thought to herself, ‘Okay, so the creature flies, is little and strong, and sleeps where there is strong magic. How will my childhood help me?’

Rosemary thought back. Way back.

* * *

“Bodoleck? Can you read me a story?” asked a four-year-old Rosemary. She had shorter hair, but it was still curly. Her bed was smaller and had a blanket with a flower pattern on it.

“I’m coming! Give me a minute!” called Bodoleck. His voice was higher, like a kids’ voice. And he was a kid. Only seven, and he was taking care of Rosemary.

Bodoleck came in, looking just the same, except he was shorter, less muscular, and his face features were a bit different. More like a seven-year-old.

“Okay. What do you want me to read to you?” he asked Rosemary.

“The book with the flowers, and the fairies!” Rosemary demanded. She looked at him with a gaze that was tired, but strong and commanding.

“Okay. Here we go,” said Bodoleck. He took a small book from the bed side table and opened it.

“Fairies. So small, so strong. They fly, and sleep in flowers. This story is about a young fairy, Heartleaf, and her sister, Dragonpetal,” Bodoleck began to read.

He continued reading. The story was light and airy, perfect for Rosemary. It described their adventures in the forest, and how they lost their way home to go to bed.

“ ‘I can’t live without my bed! It’s power is so great, so loving! Dragonpetal, I want to go home!’ Heartleaf complained. Dragonpetal looked at her sister, and said, smiling, ‘Don’t worry. We’ll get home. I promise. I think we just have to cross this river.’ ‘But Dragonpetal, I’m too tired!’ Heartleaf cried. Dragonpetal looked at a tree. It was dead, but the wood was still good. ‘I think I have an idea,’ Dragonpetal said. She took the branches and started working. Before long, there was a small boat to cross the river. It was shallow, so Dragonpetal could use a longer branch to keep it on track,” read Bodoleck.

Rosemary was on the edge of her seat, saying, “I know this part! I know it! They get across the river, and live happily, and sleepily, ever after!”

“That’s right. So, I’m done reading it to you. Good night!” Bodoleck said. He said the book down and left the room. Rosemary sat back down on her bed and quickly fell asleep.

* * *

Rosemary, in present time, smiled and said, “I’m got it! Fairies! Why didn’t I think of them before now?”

Wavespin smiled and left in another vortex. Behind Rosemary, Bubblespray came through another vortex, also smiling. She said, “Well done. Your mother loved fairies, so we thought it would be a good idea to have the riddle be about them.”

“So you believe that I am her, and that I’m not lying?” Rosemary asked Bubblespray, her smile now mischievous.

“I just know these things. Now for the third task. The shield. All you have to do is try to walk through it. You don’t have to do anything except think about the people you love, and keep your mind away from the ones that you hate. That is my hint,” said Bubblespray.

Rosemary looked at her and asked, “Really? That’s all I have to do?”

“Yes. The bottle is inside the shield. Once you get past the shield, you must take it. If you can touch it, then you are her daughter. If another shield appears, then you are not. I will stay and watch this time. It’s right over there,” said Bubblespray, pointing to the shield at her right, Rosemary’s left.

They walked over. As Rosemary was walking, her mind was on the ones she loved. Bodoleck, Medeleck, Susan, the creatures that she had met. And Michael. Mostly on Michael.

A few yards away, Bubblespray stopped and Rosemary kept walking. She was feet away. Inches. Centimeters. Millimeters. Touching . . .

She was through. The bottle was right in front of her. She reached out and grabbed it. The bottle was cold, yet warm at the same time. The bottle was black, but you could still see that there was a yellow potion inside of it.

Rosemary, still holding the bottle tightly, left the shield. Bubblespray, Garglemouth, and Wavespin were there to greet her. They were all smiling, and Rosemary was, too.

“I knew from the moment I saw you that you really were her daughter, Rosemary. I just didn’t know if Bodoleck had finished his instructions. Well done,” said Bubblespray.

A vortex appeared around Rosemary. She was leaving the scene, still holding the bottle. Soon enough, she was standing on the beach next to Michael, his face full of crumbs.

“Well?” he asked her.

Rosemary, without thinking, kissed him. She let go after a few seconds and took out her wings.

Michael just looked at her for a second, and then said, “I’ll take that as a yes, you’ve got what you went down there for. What is it, by the way?”

“I’ll tell you once we start flying, now let’s go,” said Rosemary. Michael climbed onto her back and they took off for Budapest, Hungary!