Not hearing any sounds that would indicate he was being followed, Archimedes turned and looked back. He could see the group clustered together, whispering. His sharp hearing picked up an extra male voice—unless the lovely blond had an incredibly deep voice for one so fair….
“What other options do we have? He seems friendly enough.”
“I think he’s adorable.” Rose looked over her shoulder to where the owl had disappeared. “I think we can trust him.”
Merriweather, who was concealed in the hood of Rose’s cloak, agreed with her charge. “I have heard the name before. It is an old name, a distinguished one.”
“I can’t think of anything else to do. I don’t want to call the vortex again until we know for sure this isn’t the right castle.”
“I think I would recognize my own castle, Wolf.” Irritated, Rose stubbornly folded her arms over her chest. Glancing up, she became aware that the owl had come back. “Shh, he might hear you,” she warned the wolf. Turning to face the impatient bird, Rose adjusted her hood slightly to keep the blue Fairy hidden. “We will follow you, Sir Owl. Lead on,” she commanded with a regal gesture of her hand.
“Yes, milady.” Archimedes briefly bowed his head, recognizing something unmistakably royal in her tone and words. “If you please. There is a hidden footpath this way. Keep alert. There are worse things in this darkness than a talking owl.”
The deer path they had been following for some time suddenly widened out into a pebbled walkway. The first hint of dawn had tinted the clear eastern sky pink as they emerged into a small clearing in the forest. They could hear the sound of running water off to the north as the mighty river Astolat made its way toward the castle. As the fog mysteriously vanished from this clearing—yet kept the forest behind them deep within its misty grasp—they could see a rock well with a wooden bucket precariously perched on its side. The smell of wood smoke came to their noses and drew their attention to a small, thatched cottage nestled into the gnarled roots of a huge oak tree.
When Rose gave a startled gasp, her companions turned to see what was wrong. She broke off staring at the cottage. “Oh, for a minute there, I thought it was the woodcutter’s cottage where I stayed as a girl! Merri, don’t you think so?” she whispered out of the side of her mouth.
A slight movement near Rose’s hair caught Wals’ attention as the fairy peeked out, still careful to be unobserved by the hovering owl. “Why, yes, my child, it is similar. What a lovely setting.” She ducked back out of sight with a soft warning. “But, take care, dear. There is more afoot here.”
Wals looked at the small house before them. “It’s so tiny. It looks more like part of Fantasyland than where someone would actually live. Don’t you think so, Wolf….oh, sorry. Never mind.” He trailed off when he saw the wolf close his eyes and slowly shake his head.
Their contemplations halted when the door suddenly swung open. They waited, but no one emerged. In fact, they couldn’t even see who it was who had opened the door.
Gliding silently through the open doorway, Archimedes went ahead of them. Once inside, he banked to the right, out of their sight.
After a moment more of staring at the doorway, a kindly voice called out to them. “Well? Mustn’t let the frosty air in. Enter. Enter.”
Not sure what to do, Wals shrugged his shoulders at his companions. Wolf took the initiative and padded slowly to the door, nose down, trying to get a grasp of who, or what, was inside. Smelling only avian, human, and some kind of food cooking, he slowly entered the cottage, followed by Wals and Rose. The moment she stepped over the threshold, the door quietly clicked shut behind her.
Their eyes quickly adjusted to the semi-darkness inside. As they looked around at the size of the rooms in front of them, a wide-eyed Wals turned to Rose. “How big was that tree outside? These rooms seem to go on and on. Look at the size of that library! Hey, is that a pool table? How….”
“What a perfectly lovely house.” Rose didn’t hear Wals as she looked around at all the cozy furniture and the piles of dusty books that covered most of the surfaces.
“Why, thank you, my dear. I like it myself.” It was the same voice that had invited them inside.
They turned toward the speaker, who silently chuckled at them. As one, their mouths fell open. Speechless, they couldn’t, wouldn’t put the name out there for all to hear. Doing so might make the impossible come true.
The old man stood from his chair and walked over to the perch where Archimedes waited, the same look of amusement on his round avian face. “I see you brought me an interesting group, Archimedes. I trust they gave you no trouble.”
The golden eyes took in the gawking guests who still stood in the hallway. “No, no, no trouble once they decided to follow me. Shall I make the introductions?”
The owner of the cottage turned to face his guests and took a step toward them. Wolf instinctively went into protect mode and took a position in front of Rose, head slightly down and his back legs braced. He didn’t bare his teeth, but his intent was obvious. Rose, however, put a calming hand on his head. “I think it’s all right, Wolf. I think we’re in a distinguished presence.” She stepped around the animal and regally held out her hand. “I am called Rose. Most know me as Aurora. I’m delighted to meet you, Merlin. I have heard many songs from the minstrels.”
The wizard took her hand and lightly kissed its back. “Princess. Welcome to my humble home. I hope the songs were pleasant ones. One never knows…,” he trailed off as a mischievous twinkle came to his eye.
“Merlin!” Wals’ knees didn’t see able to support him any longer, so he sank down onto a wooden stool next to an overflowing, ancient desk.
“Yes? And you are?”
“I…I’m Walter Davis. My friends call me Wals.” His voice came out as a croak. Then, a sense of unbelieving overcame good manners. “How...how can you be Merlin? That’s not possible. He was just a matter of fiction. Wasn’t he?” He turned away from the smiling face to get confirmation from his friends. Seeing only looks of acceptance and belief on their faces, he closed his mouth and could only stare.
The blue robes turned and headed back into the living area, closer to the fire. The room seemed to grow longer with each step he took. As the day dawned around the cottage, the forest was still deep in the earliest hours of the morning. Light crept in through the windows making the necessity of the fire obsolete. So, it extinguished.
“Come in, come in, please, and be comfortable.” Merlin settled back into his chair with a small grunt of pleasure.
Rose happily complied, taking a seat closest to his chair. Wolf padded silently next to her to sit on a small rag rug, careful to keep his tail away from any popping embers. Wals, still stunned, remained where he was.
Merlin looked pointedly at the wolf and green eyes met blue in an unblinking stare. After a moment, the man had what he wanted and smiled. “Taŋyáŋ yahí. Welcome. You may talk freely here, sumanitu taka. None will bother you. But,” he added as a warning with an upraised finger, “only here and only with me. Do not forget that.”
In that moment of connection, Wolf had sensed something familiar, something long ago. Or, rather, was it something far in the future? He couldn’t put a name to it. Only that they had met before. “Philámayaye. Thank you.” Wolf silently wondered just how all of this had happened. “Owákaȟniǧe šni. “ In his confusion, Wolf reverted to his native tongue. He didn’t even wonder how this Merlin was able to know his language. He just knew he would.
“What is it you don’t understand?”
“What is it I do understand?” Wolf’s return words were spoken low and hesitantly. “Perhaps if you could tell us the year, it would help pinpoint where we are.”
“The year?” The request stumped Merlin. Confused, he looked over at his companion. “Archimedes, would you please check the calendar for these good folk?”
Archimedes sniffed. “I don’t need to check the calendar, Master. I always know the date, the time, the seaso
n….”
“Very well,” Merlin broke in with a tired sigh. “Just the relevant facts, if you please.”
The owl looked put out that he couldn’t regale them with more facts and figures than that. “It is the year 589 and in the rule of good King….”
“Thank you, Archimedes. Does that help you, wolf?”
The newcomers stared at the bird as if waiting for a more complete figure than that. He surely must have left off a number….
“Hmm, I guess not.” Merlin looked around at the stunned looks on their faces. He noticed a movement under Rose’s cloak, one that she had refused to take off even in the warmth of the room. “And, you, madam, you may come out as well. We are all friends here.”
In a dash of blue sparkles, Merriweather appeared and settled comfortably on the mantle of the fireplace. “Oh, that’s so much better. Thank you, sir. I don’t care for the darkness.”
Merlin bowed his head in her direction. “You are most welcome, madam. Where are your other two companions? You usually travel together.”
Merri glanced somewhat irritably at the wolf who was intently watching the proceedings. “They await us in our proper time. Which this does not seem to be.”
Chuckling at her remark, their host turned to a small table at his side, set with a tea service made of the finest china. None had noticed it there before. “Can I offer you a spot of tea? My manners are becoming quite atrocious. Not used to company, you know. Well, I guess you wouldn’t know, would you?” As he poured the tea, he continued to chuckle at his joke.
As the delicate cups were handed around, Wolf briefly shook his head at the offered saucer.
“Well, now that we are all refreshed and up to date on, well, the date, perhaps we can get on to more important details,” Merlin announced as he stood and walked over to Wals.
Wals, having been silent since his previous outburst, held himself back from visibly shrinking as the wizard approached him. He had an unsettling urge to stand and thrust out his chest, which he, thankfully, suppressed.
“Perhaps, young man, you would like to tell me why I feel the presence of something quite familiar to me? It is something special, something I made for another which has been gone for a long time. Its presence is centered on you and only you. Do you know about what I am speaking?”
Wals did stand now, his sword banging heavily against his leggings. He was dressed as a prince, in an outfit borrowed from the Costume Department of his employer, Disneyland. Brown, knee-length boots, one size too large, encased his feet. As he wiggled the big toe of his left foot, it connected with an item he had hidden there, wrapped in the remnants of an old sock. In the other boot were four pieces of gold he had taken from the not-yet-buried pirate chest he had discovered deep in a cave on Tom Sawyer’s Island. With a swallow, he nodded, knowing Merlin wasn’t talking about the gold.
Rose, who had previously been wearing the item under discussion, had been turned into a white swan during the transfer from the eighteen-hundreds to Wals’ time period of the twenty-first century. Wals had removed it from her long, graceful neck and promised to keep it safe for her until such time as he could return it. She stood in her surprise, almost stepping on the wolf. “So, the rumors were true. It was yours!” she whispered, her hand going to her mouth.
“Yes, my dear. I made it myself. It was a gift for someone dear.”
Wals wasn’t sure what was expected of him. “Did you want it back? Or do you just want to see it again? We were wondering how the surrounding band of gold got to be shaped like a Hidden Mickey.”
“Hidden Mickey?” Merlin stopped and thought back. “I know not that term. The setting is something I saw before that was indicative of the circle of life and love. I sense the pendant has had a long, eventful journey. If it is here again, it has truly come full circle.” He chuckled as he turned to the princess. “Isn’t it wonderful how amazing life can be? Have you seen in the red diamond? Have you touched it?” He was eager as he leaned toward her as he spoke.
Archimedes gave a small laugh. “Who cannot touch it when they see it? A gem such as that makes men want to hold it, to possess it.”
“It doesn’t work for me,” Wolf admitted to the wizard.
Fascinated, Merlin looked at him closely. “Truly? Either now or as a man?”
Wolf shook his head but said nothing.
“Ah, that is most peculiar.” Merlin slowly stroked his beard as he intently looked at the animal. “Nor does it work for me. Perhaps we are much alike.”
His heart pounding, Wolf again remained silent.
“Did you make it for the lady?” Rose wanted to know as she walked over to Wals and placed a hand on his shoulder. She hoped it would have as calming an effect on him as it did with Wolf. Wals’ cold hand covered her warm one.
Merlin smiled warmly. “Yes, my lady apprentice, Nimue. I expect her later in the morn for another lesson.”
At the name, Wolf and Rose exchanged an anxious look. Both knew the name as the one who would later betray Merlin after she learned all his secrets. Apparently she was still a student, a fond student, if the valuable necklace was any indication of Merlin’s feelings for her.
“Did you want the diamond back, sir?” Wals still wasn’t sure where he stood in all of this.
Head down, Merlin began to pace, apparently debating with himself on the question Wals had just asked. “Do I want it back? Do I? If they have it, haven’t I already made it and given it to Nimue? Has it come back to me for a reason? Is it to fulfill its journey with these good people? Do you still require the gem?” He suddenly stopped right in front of Wolf.
Wolf hesitated for a moment, thinking before he answered. “I need to give it to a friend again. He’s very discouraged and could use the vision of the future that it will give him.”
“You said ‘again.’ If the future is the same, it will come to you again,” Merlin pointed out.
“I’d rather not wait.”
Merlin’s face broke out into a wide grin. “Perhaps I will be around then and I can meet your distinguished friend.”
Wolf’s mouth opened as if to answer, and then he abruptly snapped it shut. How could he tell Merlin that he would not be around, that he would be betrayed by the one he loved the most?
Merlin saw the look of sadness that swept over the wolf’s eyes. The wizard already knew. With a silent sigh, he let that pass and asked instead, “This friend of yours. Is he worthy of the pendant?”
Wolf gave a single nod. “Yes. You would like him. He’s a true visionary.”
“Then I must be content with that knowledge.” He turned back to Wals. “No, Sir Wals, you must keep it safe for now. It has already done what it needs to do here.” With his head down, deep in thought, Merlin slowly returned to his comfortable chair. Realizing its comfort was needed, the fire had sprung to life again and cheerfully hissed over the logs that never burned. Hands steepled in front of his face, the wizard again stared into the flames. Archimedes came and landed on his master’s shoulder, and heads bent closely together, they began a quiet debate.
At the other end of the room, a whispering Rose had just finished telling Wals the legend of Merlin and Nimue. He hadn’t been familiar with the story.
“Then this really is Merlin, THE Merlin.” Wals still tried to wrap his head around the impossibility.
“Yes, Wals, we are apparently in the sixth century, the time of knights and kings and dangers beyond what you can imagine. We have to get back to our time and figure out what went wrong.” Wolf saw no need to sugarcoat their predicament.
“Then you’re saying that the castle we saw was Camelot? You know, King Arthur and Guinevere?”
Wolf looked surprised. “I guess it must be. I hadn’t thought of that.”
Knowing full well what they were discussing, Merlin roused himself and looked over at his guests. “Yes, the fair castle on the hill. King Arthur and his Knights are in a time of peace now. It is a good time for the land. A nice change,” he mumbled to h
imself.
“You can say that again.” Archimedes sighed as he flew over to Merriweather. She had busied herself with some of Merlin’s books. It looked like she was memorizing some of the passages. “Anything in particular I can help you find, madam?”
She looked up, surprised at the interruption. “Oh, owl. I didn’t hear you there.” She gave a small smile and tapped the passage she had been reading. “No, no, thank you, though. This is all quite amusing. Amazing what two centuries of progress can correct.”
Taken aback by the veiled reference that they were in a backwards time, Archimedes and Merri got into quite a spirited arm-waving, wing-flapping debate that was largely ignored by the others in the room.
Wals was still enthralled that he was so close to Camelot and King Arthur. “Oh, I would love to see King Arthur!”
“Ah, but you do not want King Arthur to see you,” Merlin dryly commented, crushing Wals’ enthusiasm as his meaning sunk in.
“We need to keep a low profile until we can get back through the passage, Wals.” Rose’s reminder threw more cold water on his enthusiasm. “I would love to see the ancient castle, too, but it’s best we do not.”
“Ancient!” Merlin echoed, affronted. “There has never been, nor ever will be,” he added, stiffly, “another castle as grand or as beautiful as Camelot. Ever!”
Rose, thinking of her own castle and her own well-appointed suite of rooms, said nothing and diplomatically smiled a charming apology.
After one more muttered, indistinct comment that could have been in Latin, Merlin got back to the needs at hand. “What needs you to get back, Sir Wolf? Anything I can do to help?”
Wolf! Happily Ever After? Page 3
