Chapter 47 - They Meet

            Narteb sat on the bench.  It was a beautiful sunny morning.  As in his perfect weather.  Sunny, without being too hot.  But as lovely as it was, he felt terrible.

            Pip, who was sitting on the ground beside him said, "What's wrong?"  That's the thing about best friends, they can tell if something is wrong, as if it was written in red ink on your forehead.

            "I don't know what to do," said Narteb, "We've been here for weeks.  This place is so busy, with so many people, but no one knows anything about reversing this spell.  Am I just wasting my time here?"

            "You know, it's always darkest before the dawn," said Pip, "At least you are doing something.  All you need to do is hold on for one more day!  Who knows what can happen tomorrow?"

            It was exactly what Narteb needed to hear, just when he needed it most.

            "You're so wise, Pip," said Narteb.

            "Not really," said his friend, "I just read it in a book somewhere.  It seemed like the right time to pull it out."

            "I feel better," said Narteb, "I can do one more day!"  He felt reinvigorated!  Like the feeling you get after you finish a really good workout!

            "Now that's the Narteb I'm used to seeing!" said Pip.

            "Let's do this!" said Narteb, standing up.

            Both boys bumped their fists together and then went running off towards the Crossroads town square.  They zipped and zigzagged their way through the crowd who were mostly meandering through their quiet morning.  The two boys on the other hand looked like two bottles of champagne shaken up and ready to pop!

            They found their way to their usual spot.  It was this large fountain in the middle of the square.  In the centre of the fountain was a few big white statues of men and women in togas, lazing about on a giant white rock.  They were probably depictions of Gods or something.  But that didn't concern Narteb right now.  He clambered up onto the wide rim of the Fountain, drew in a big breath and then bellowed out, for all to hear:

 

            "I AM NARTEB!  MY MOTHER WAS TURNED TO STONE! DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW I CAN REVERSE THIS SPELL?"

 

            As usual everyone in the town square stopped what they were doing and turned to look at Narteb.  There was silence.  This had been the response they’d had every day so far.

            After waiting for a few moments, Narteb drew in another breath and was about to shout out again, when he noticed something different happening for the first time.  There was a beautiful girl gracefully making her way through the crowd towards them.  When she reached the fountain, she and Narteb looked each other in the eyes.

            "My name is Skaife Ortega,” she said, “I have some information that may help you rescue your mother."