Exercise Your Imagination! Do you like stories with mystery and suspense? Well, if you do, keep reading and enjoy Eggcentricsagas. If you are just joining Eggcentricsagas, start from the beginning: A La Mano: Part 1-The Treasure
The matter settled; almost everyone was pleased. During the next week, Myrtle would spend the afternoons after school and have supper at their house. An only child, Zerlinda was pleased to have her friend visit. She wanted to hear the story of Moon Kingdom, so Myrtle was pleased. Janelle was working late all week and didn’t want to worry, so she pleased. Ravenna was pleased because she felt useful again. The only one that was not pleased was Magic. He was grouchy and exceptionally skittish.
Ravenna noted her big black cat wagging his tail as Myrtle told her, “Our family never had a cat, but a long time ago, Grandpa Herman had a farm dog. His name was Go Getum. Go Getum liked to be petted unless he was working the sheep or fetching the stick.” Approaching him, Myrtle asked the cat, “Why don’t you like to be petted, Magic?”
Reaching towards him, Myrtle added, “Go Getum liked to be scratched, especially his behind.” She withdrew her hand quickly when Magic turned and hissed at her before disappearing under the couch.
“Cats and dogs are different, honey,” Ravenna told her as she directed the girl away from the couch. “Cats come to you when they want attention. Magic will let you know when he wants to be scratched behind the ears. It’s best to not to bother him and, especially, avoid touching his tail.”
Myrtle pursed her lips and sniffed. “Go Getum only had a stump of a tail, but he wagged it when he was happy. Not mad.”
Ravenna patted the seat of one of the stuffed armchairs. “Why don’t you sit here,” she said and then motioned her granddaughter to the other chair, “and Zerlinda, you sit there.” Then, settling herself on the couch, she considered, “Now where was I? Oh, yes…”
“Cora and the Owl had finally caught up with the Raven as he sailed on the wind currents back to his nest. With a heavy sigh, the teenager looked at the craggy face and spotted the location of the bird’s nest. A deep bowl of sticks and twigs built into the sea cliff ledge high above. Then, setting her lamp on the ground, she plopped down onto a piece of driftwood. The princess took off her shoes and rubbed her sore feet, telling her companion, ‘No way. I’m not climbing up there. I don’t care what he has to say. Even if you think it is magic.’
Owl just shook his head in exasperation and flew up to greet the big raven. The girl could hear snatches of their bird talk; guttural rattle, tock-tock-tock, whistles, shrieks, hisses, coos, and deep soft hoots. The birds seemed to be arguing. Tired from her journey, the Sun Princess slid down onto the sandy beach and leaned back on the large log. Closing her eyes, she began to drift into sleep, lulled by the sound of the crashing waves.
The sound of a deep harrumph brought Cora back to alertness. She opened her eyes and there was the Raven. Her eyes wide, she sat up quickly. The bird with the glossy, dark feathers seemed much larger up close. Having gotten her attention, the Raven cleared his throat again. His shiny, purplish-colored, shaggy throat feathers, puffed up in self-importance, looked like a beard. His beady eyes studied her scornfully over his beak, that looked like a giant curved nose.
The bird reminded her of her boring royal schoolmaster, Sir Talksalot. If Raven was wearing pince-nez reading glasses, he could be his twin, thought Cora. Then she giggled at her idea. “
“Baba, what are nez… what did you say?”
“Pince-nez. They are old-time glasses, someone pinches on their nose with a chain attached. Do you remember the photo of my father, your great-grandfather, on my bedside table?”
Zerlinda nodded and turned to Myrtle. “Remember, I showed you the old man in the picture with the funny clothes, long beard and small, round glasses?” As the girls understood, Ravenna continued.
“Well, the Raven wasn’t used to addressing young women, much less giggling ones. He was the most intelligent and scholarly bird in all the lands besides Owl. Even if she was the Sun Princess. After all, I am being requested to impart my secret, magical knowledge to this one. A rather silly creature, he thought.
So, Raven cleared his throat once again, ‘Ahem.’ Glaring at her sternly, he said, ‘Young lady, your impertinence astounds me as I have been told that you require my assistance.’
Myrtle opened her mouth, but before she could interrupt, Ravenna supplied the information. “Impertinence means lack of respect.”
“The self-satisfied way in which the Raven uttered his statement reminded Cora again of her tiresome teacher, Sir Talksalot. So much so that she fell over in a fit of laughter. This confused and offended Raven very much. Looking at Owl, he declared angrily, ‘Well, I never!”
Playacting, Ravenna drew herself up and made a funny face of indignation as she said it, and both the girls burst into a fit of giggles themselves. By this time, Magic had ventured out from beneath the couch and had been fastidiously grooming himself. However, their raucous behavior caused him to once again retreat to his hiding place.
“Being a stuffy old bird, Raven had decided that he would not tolerate mysterious teenage humor. He waddled away to take off when Owl beseeched him to stay. Then Owl reprimanded Cora for her bad manners and made her sit up properly to listen.
Raven reluctantly turned back and said, ‘The one you seek will be found in Moon Kingdom across the sea. Tomorrow, you will find a boat on the shore with instructions inside.’ Afterward, he flew away in a huff.
Meanwhile, in the Moon Kingdom, the prince was having his difficulties. He and Hummingbird had arrived in the Sacred Grove.
‘There she is. Isn’t she magnificent?’ Hummingbird said to him.
‘She?’ Thaddeus questioned.
‘The Old Lady.’
‘I don’t see any old lady,’ the prince replied flatly.
Hummingbird could not tell if his attitude was one of boredom or weariness. They had walked a long way but, does this boy ever get excited? To inspire him, she brought her energy level even higher. ‘Her!’ To demonstrate, she zoomed across the misty clearing to a majestic Elder tree, flew around it, and then returned.
His brow knitted, Thaddeus asked, ‘That tree?’
‘Yes, the Old Lady of the Woods. I shall go greet her and ask permission of her fairy guardians for you to continue your quest.’ Humming away, she flew into the branches of the tree and disappeared.
‘Whatever,’ the prince mumbled to himself as he continued to plod towards his destination. He thought little of the fairies, and less of the unicorns. The lad liked gnomes, though, as they encouraged his games of mischief, such as throwing rocks at the foxes and squirrels.”
Myrtle chirped in. “He shouldn’t throw rocks at the animals. That’s what I heard my mom tell Mason. He got in trouble by hurting Magic. My mom made him clean the bathrooms. Even the toilets. He wasn’t happy.” As Ravenna seemed interested in her gossip, Myrtle continued. “She talked loudly to my grandpa too. She told him he should try to be friends with you. But grandpa said nothing. He just listened to her while he ate the apple pie you gave us.”
“Did he like the pie?”
“Seemed to. He ate two slices. Mason wanted a second piece, but my mom said no. She said that he would have trouble getting to sleep as it was.”
“Can we get on with the story?” Zerlinda asserted.
“What Thaddeus didn’t know is that a particular fairy named Noscere was peeking at him from behind the tree. She was a pretty, little fairy with hair the color of midnight and glimmering wings of pink and blue. Noscere knew the prince, as did everyone in the realm. The fairy thought him cute, but she also disliked him a little, as he was thoughtless. Many a time, Thaddeus had mindlessly trod upon the fairy folks’ mushroom houses and trampled the moonflowers on his forest excursions. Noscere, being naughty, thought that she might play a trick on the prince. So, she cloaked herself in invisibility, and when Thaddeus reached the base of the tree, he only noticed a fleeting sparkle here and there.
Thaddeus ignored it as Hummingbird was back. She flew close to his face and said, ‘The Treasure Hunter awaits you. It’s time to climb up.’
‘Climb?’ Thaddeus looked up at the towering tree. It seemed at least forty feet high.
‘Yes, m’lord.’
Although Thaddeus was mostly lazy, he was adventurous and did like to climb trees. Laying down his knapsack, he then checked his magical knife tied around his waist. Satisfied that it was securely in its sheath, the boy hoisted himself up onto one of the bottom branches. Urged by Hummingbird, on and on, he climbed upward into the highest branches. There he met the Treasure Hunter, a squirrel that he had aimed at once.
‘Well, well, we meet again, young Prince.”
Ravenna paused in her storytelling as her daughter appeared in the doorway. The mother told the children, “Almost time for dinner, girls. Please wash your hands and then set the table.”
Next: The Myth of Madame Mariposa: Part 10- The Book of Spells and the Crafty Pretender
