Princess in the Rough

Echo

“What did you think of the parade?” I beamed at Amber as we walked over to a monumental oak tree, casting an assortment of shadows over the large area of the park it grew in.

By the time we sat down with our backs on the bark, I had to force myself to frown so I could give my cheeks a break. Amber did the same.

“Best, day, ever!” She shouted, probably not caring what the other people thought, or maybe she forgot we were in a public place?

“Glad you liked it. Now we’ve got to get back to work.” I sat up and started drawing in the dirt with my finger. I drew an awful castle to represent where the wizard was probably located and then drew a tree a little away to represent where we were now. “All we have to do is figure out how to get to the castle. Maybe if we go down the street where the parade was.”

“We could ask someone.” Amber stated plainly.

“Are you volunteering?” I asked her and raised an eyebrow. I hope she was because I sure wasn’t.

“No.” She mumbled and crossed her legs. “Let’s just go with your idea.”

Just then the young woman from the carriage, probably the princess, walked up to us, US! As in me and Amber! I started to panic. What did we do? Are we not allowed in here? Can she tell I’m not from this world?

“Hello, young ladies. I am Sorceress Zavana Nightfall. Who might you be?” She asked and flashed a perfect smile. I looked to my left, where Amber was sitting but she wasn’t there anymore! I looked in all directions until I saw her sitting in a very, very high up branch in the tree. How she got way up there so fast is beyond me.

“I’m Echo, my friend up there is Amber. Why have you come to talk to us? Are we in trouble?” I asked her, worried.

“Oh, no, you’re not in trouble. I saw you during the parade, and I’m guessing you’re not from around here, are you?” I grinned sheepishly. Was her first hint the clothes?

“Not really.” I admitted, sweeping my hand over the dirt to destroy my artwork.

“The two of you look exhausted. Would you like to come to my workshop for some hot chocolate?” She asked kindly. Amber stared down at me, as if expecting me to say something.

“We would love to.” I finally said, getting up off the ground while Amber jumped off the tree branch she was on.

“Thanks.” She whispered to me.

Not too long after I found myself in the top of the back, left spire; in other words, the sorceress’ lair. It was a cozy place. It was almost like a combination of a humble cottage and a witches lair.

Shoved into a corner was a messy bed with a nightstand next to it. There were a few potted plants here and there, none of which I could identify.

Zavana led us to a three person couch with a coffee table in front of it and two armchairs on either side.

Then she crouched next to a stove with a small pot filled with a dark brown substance, hot chocolate, resting on top. After stirring for a bit, Zavana said something under her breath and three mugs floated toward her. She poured the hot chocolate in them and handed one to me and another to Amber.

“What’s this?” Amber asked and eyed the delicious liquid.

“It’s hot chocolate, made with cocoa beans.” Zavana answered, taking a sip of her own mug.

“And, it’s safe to drink?” She said and watched me gulp down the steaming drink, I didn’t care if it was burning my tongue, this was the best cocoa I have ever had!

“Of course dear!” Zavana chuckled and wiped the cocoa mustache off her upper lip. “Now tell me about yourselves. There’s something different about you girls; and no, I didn’t just get it from your clothes.”

“Can you read minds?” I asked, feeling as though she had.

“I wish. That would help a lot, prevent many wars and other terrible things brought on by man.” She sighed, a distant look in her eyes. She was staring at the wall behind us, so I waved my hand in front of her face to get her attention. “Yes? Oh, sorry. I must’ve spaced out for a bit.”

“Do you know where we can find the wizard?” Amber asked and took her first sip of her hot chocolate. She jumped back and nearly spilled it all over herself. “Hot!” She exclaimed.

Zavana flung her head back and laughed, flicking her hand while doing so to clean up the mess. “I’m so sorry dear, you’re a riot. There is no wizard.” She said, wiping the tears from her eyes. “That old geezer died a long time ago, about, ten years to be exact. I replaced him as the kingdom’s sorceress.”

“Oh. We need a wizard, right Echo?”

“Not exactly, in Cinderella, there was a fairy godmother, not a wizard. So I suppose she could help.”

“Cinderella? Oh, you mean Cinder, she’s a doll! Not one kinder woman in all the land, well, Winter White is very kind as well, those two are the best of friends.” Zavana walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a beautiful quill, an ink bottle, and a book that looked similar to my story book! “Now what do you need help with?” She asked and sat down between us and placed her book on the table.

“Werewolf, a nasty one too. He’s taken over a poor wolf family’s father, we ran into him on the way here.” I explained, taking my storybook out of the bag Amber made.

“Oh yes, that is a very common accident. Let me see, did the transformation take place during a full moon?” She started flipping through pages.

“What do you mean?”

“Did they join bodies during a full moon?”

“I think so, Echo’s the one that heard the story.”

“Let me think. The wolf said there was a flash of lighting, a werewolf bite, and two blood curdling howls. He didn’t say if it was on a full moon, but he did say the wolf changed back to his father on full moons.”

“All the signs lead to it being on a full moon. If an animal gets bit by a werewolf during a full moon, then there’s a chance that the werewolf and the creature will join bodies. That’s how other species of werecreatures came to be. Werejaguar is the most common.” She stopped at a page in the middle of the book. The Three Little Pigs. It was in the same place as mine!

“I have that story!” I flipped to the page where I had last seen it, and it was still there, in all of its making-no-sense glory.

“Show me the cover of your book please.” Zavana asked seriously, closing her book. The covor read: The Fairy Tale Trials.