by Gill Vickery
‘Hello, Trader girl,’ the man said cheerfully. ‘I’m Hannes – what’s your name?’
‘Nadya,’ Tia said.
‘What are you doing on your own? I wasn’t expecting your people to arrive just yet.’
Her heart beat fast in excitement. If Traders were arriving she might be able to see her friends Kizzy and Florian. She explained her story to the crystal shaper.
‘Ah, you got lost on the grasslands – so you’re a land Trader. We’re expecting the Water Traders.’
Tia was disappointed that she wasn’t going to see her friends but still excited at the thought of meeting Water Traders for the first time; they travelled the rivers of Tulay and over great seas to other lands. ‘When are they arriving?’ she asked Hannes.
‘In a few days, we hope; that’s why we shapers are all busy displaying our best sunstones.’
‘What are sunstones?’
‘What do they teach you young people?’ Hannes said. ‘Water Traders and seafarers use them to find their way. Even in cloudy weather the sunstones gather hidden light and point sailors in the right direction. He reached towards the big crystal. ‘Look.’ He swivelled it so that the sun shone directly on it and brilliant beams of light instantly radiated from its core.
‘Oh, it’s beautiful!’ Tia said.
The crystal shaper looked proud. ‘This is my best one,’ he said. ‘I hope the Traders will give me a good price for it.’
Tia wondered if the price of little children working the dangerous mines was too high. She decided she’d seen enough of the beautiful crystals. She said goodbye to Hannes, went back to the sledge and pulled it all the way to the top of the valley.
Chapter Four
Yordis
Tia found Finn in the hollow, lying on his back and warming himself in the sunshine.
‘I came as fast as I could,’ she said. She explained about Halla, Yordis and the miners. ‘You were so brave, helping to free Magnus,’ she added. ‘It must’ve been very hard to keep yourself safe from the spell and lift the boulder.’
‘Yes, it was, though it’s easier to disguise myself now I’ve practised,’ he said.
Tia patted his snout. ‘Now we’ve just got to decide how to get that opal back and save all the children from the mines! What do you think the High Witch does to frighten people so much?’
‘The opal lets her change into whatever she wants. Perhaps she becomes a monster?’ he guessed. ‘A really horrible one.’
Tia shuddered. ‘She must keep the opal in the castle. I’ll have to get in there somehow.’
‘Be careful,’ Finn said anxiously.
‘I will.’ Tia jumped up. ‘I have to go – I’ll come back as soon as I know more.’ She waved goodbye and went back to Halla’s sledge. She worked fast and collected a big pile of branches. She knew how to tie strong knots and soon had the wood fastened down. She pushed the ball of leather strips into her pocket and sat on the edge of the sledge to have a rest before she started hauling it back to Halla.
A voice squawking above her head nearly made her jump out of her skin. ‘Run! Run as fast as you can!’
A jackdaw perched on a branch above her head, flapping his wings furiously to get her attention. It was the bird who’d helped her defeat the High Witch Malindra and steal the emerald.
‘Loki! You’ve come back!’
‘Never mind that – run! A bear is coming!’
At that moment Tia heard a great crashing sound, and the ground juddered as though something huge was tramping swiftly through the trees towards her. She leapt up and ran as fast as she could, jumping over fallen logs, scudding down paths, and all the time she could hear the dreadful thundering steps behind her getting closer and closer. Something caught at her jacket and jerked her off her feet. She landed on her back with all the breath knocked out of her. She was too terrified to do anything but lie still with her eyes tightly shut.
‘What have we here?’ said a harsh, deep voice. ‘A little Trader girl. I wonder what she’d taste like.’
Quaking with fear Tia opened her eyes. Rearing over her on its hind legs was a huge brown bear. It dropped onto all fours, poked its head close to Tia’s face and sniffed.
As it reached forward Tia saw a collar around its neck, almost hidden by fur, and in the middle shone a milky-white opal glittering with shifting flecks of every colour.
This was Yordis, High Witch of Kulafoss! She’d used the power of the opal to turn herself into a monstrous bear.
Although Tia was terribly afraid of the gigantic animal looming over her, a plan quickly formed in her mind. Because the bear was really Yordis, it would be able to understand human speech, but it wouldn’t know that Tia understood animal language. So, as it drooled on her jacket, Tia said, ‘If I’m going to be eaten I’m glad it’s by the most magnificent bear on Tulay.’
The bear blinked and cocked its head to one side. Tia tried to sound mesmerized with wonder as she said, ‘My people have told me stories of the great Skrimsli Bear but no one said how majestic and… and… beautiful you are.’
She didn’t really think the bear was beautiful: its breath smelt terrible, its teeth were dirty and its fur was mangy.
It sat down with an undignified thump and mused, ‘This morsel of Trader child amuses me – I may spare it.’
Tia risked standing up. ‘Not so fast,’ the bear said, planting a massive paw on her shoulder and forcing her down.
Tia dropped to her knees and muttered, ‘I hope I haven’t offended the great Skrimsli Bear somehow, as Prince Kaspar did in the old story.’
The bear scratched its rump. ‘I like stories.’
That gave Tia a lead. She said sadly, ‘I wish I could do what Prince Kaspar did and tell tales to this wonderful creature. It would be such an honour. What a pity she can’t understand me.’
‘I want to hear these tales,’ the bear snuffled. She stood up and waved a paw. ‘Oh, get up – you grovel like a grooming maid.’
Tia pretended to be astonished. ‘I think the Skrimsli Bear wants me to stand in her presence!’ She got to her feet and bowed. ‘O great and mighty one, it is an honour even to be in your shadow.’
The bear grunted, turned and lumbered off, the thud of its huge flat feet echoing through the trees. When the sound had died away Tia’s legs folded and she slid to the ground.
Loki flew down.
‘I’m not sure what you just did, but it was very clever,’ he said.
‘That was the High Witch Yordis,’ Tia said.
‘I thought it might be.’
‘Then why didn’t you help me? She was going to eat me!’
‘I’m a bird – what could I do against a bear? Besides, there was no point in our both being eaten.’
Tia couldn’t argue with that. ‘I haven’t got time to go back and tell Finn about Yordis. Will you take a message to him for me?’ she asked the jackdaw. ‘You’ll have to come back to town with me first.’
Loki agreed and Tia wearily fetched the sledge and began to haul it back to Halla.
Halla was annoyed with Tia. ‘What took you so long?’ she demanded.
Tia told her about being chased by the bear. Halla gave her a big hug. ‘You were very brave – and lucky! Here, sit down and eat while I get on with my work.’
Tia munched her way through bread and cheese while Halla stacked the wood under huge cauldrons of water and snapped her fingers to spark fire. While she waited for the water to heat up, she sat and made Tia tell her about the bear again. Tia described how the bear had caught her and then let her go.
‘I think the bear might have been the High Witch,’ she said cautiously. ‘It wore a collar with an opal in it. Do you think it might be one of the DragonQueen’s jewels of power?’
Halla nodded reluctantly. ‘If the Lady Yordis is interested in you, it’s best you get away from here as fast as you can.’
That wasn’t what Tia had planned at all! ‘Can’t I stay another night?’ she asked, trying to sound tragic
. ‘I’m so tired.’ She yawned.
‘All right, you can help with the washing today – that’ll keep you out of sight – and be off tomorrow in case Yordis’s guards do a sweep of the town.’
‘Why do they do that?’
‘To collect people to work in the mines, or worse, in the castle.’
Tia wondered how working in the castle could be worse than in the dangerous crystal mines but Halla had spoken so grimly she didn’t dare ask.
Chapter Five
Into KulaFoss Castle
When Tia had finished helping Halla she went to the stable room, exhausted from hauling hot washing in and out of the big tubs. Loki was waiting for her on the window ledge.
‘Have you done that message you want me to take to Finn?’
‘Not yet.’
She rummaged in her bag for her silver-tipped pen and wrote in her green book. She tore the page out, folded it small and knotted it to Loki’s leg with a piece of leather strip.
‘Finn’s on top of the valley side,’ she told the jackdaw. ‘He’ll be glad to see you.’
‘We won’t be able to talk,’ Loki grumbled. ‘You know dragons and birds don’t understand each other.’
‘Never mind, I’ll come and talk to both of you when I can.’
Loki fluffed his feathers in annoyance then dived neatly out of the window and soared up into the sky. Tia flopped on the straw and was deeply asleep in no time. She didn’t even stir when Halla brought in the animals.
After breakfast next morning Halla sent Tia on her way.
‘Go to the end of the valley,’ the woman said, ‘and follow the river. After several days you’ll reach safety.’
‘Thank you,’ Tia said and set off. She waited until the washerwoman went back inside her house then scrambled up into the trees and doubled back towards the waterfall.
She looked up past the booming wall of water and wondered how she was going to get into the castle; there weren’t any steps or ramps leading up to it. The only link between the gate and the ground was a large metal tube made out of criss-crossed bars of iron. There was an open archway at the bottom.
Tia didn’t see how the tube could help her get into the castle – she certainly wasn’t going to climb up it!
She wandered nearer to the waterfall in case there was a way in behind it. Close to, the water thundered so loudly she didn’t hear the metal tube begin to rattle and clank as a rickety cage cranked down it.
She came to a little hut tucked away in a cleft of the rock. She looked inside but it was empty except for what seemed to be a very large, curled-up flag in one corner.
She followed a narrow, rocky path that led behind the waterfall but as a dense, freezing mist sprayed over it she decided not to explore any further until she could find something to cover her clothes so they didn’t get soaked. She turned, and took a step backwards in fright as she came face to face with four men in uniform.
‘Look at this, lads,’ one said as he grabbed Tia’s arm. ‘Our little bird’s flown into the trap – this is going to be the quickest sweep I’ve ever done!’
‘Sweep’ – these men must be the guards that Halla had told her about.
The man pushed Tia inside the cage. ‘You carry on with the rest of the sweep,’ he told the other guards, ‘and I’ll take our sparrow here to the Lady Yordis.’
He pulled a handle and the cage began to jerk its way upwards on a cable, swinging and banging on its way. ‘Hope you’re not going to be sick,’ he said, grinning.
Tia couldn’t speak for terror as the ground dropped away under her and the cage lurched up to the castle entrance. There was nothing between her and the ground except for a lattice of bars! She was so frightened that when they reached the castle entrance she felt as though her legs had turned to water: the guard had to support her as he marched her out.
Kulafoss castle was grimmer than Drangur, and so dark Tia found it hard to memorise where the guard was taking her as they sped through winding corridors.
Eventually he stopped outside a thick wooden door and banged on it.
‘Oi! I’ve got the Trader girl – let me in.’
The door swung open and the guard pushed Tia forward.
‘She’s all yours, Katinka. I’m off to report to the Lady Yordis,’ he said to the girl inside and left.
Katinka was a few years older than Tia.
‘You’re very small,’ she sniffed. ‘And your clothes are ridiculous.’
Tia bristled. She thought her Trader clothes were very practical and she liked the bright colours.
Katinka went over to a cupboard and pulled out some clothes including a skirt, a top and a jacket, all in a faded pink. ‘You can have these. Give me yours and I’ll take them to the laundry.’ She sniffed again. ‘You smell like you’ve been sleeping among animals!’
Tia glared at the girl but obediently went behind a screen and threw her clothes over it to Katinka.
‘There’s hot water in the basin by the fire. Get washing while I go to the laundry.’
Tia scrubbed away using the same kind of Traders’ soap as she had in Drakelow where she lived with her DragonMother, Freya. Tears came into her eyes as she felt a pang of homesickness. But there was no time to feel sorry for herself. She plunged her head into the water and rubbed hard at her gritty hair.
By the time Katinka came back Tia was washed and her hair stood up in damp, red-gold spikes. But she’d rummaged in the cupboard and found clothes she liked better than those Katinka had given her.
‘You can’t dress like that! You look like a boy!’ Katinka said.
Tia looked down at the grey tunic and trousers she’d swapped for the pink garments. ‘I don’t care, I’m not wearing that horrible long skirt – I keep treading on it and falling over.’
Katinka pushed Tia outside and along yet more corridors till they came to grand door with a carved surround. The girl knocked timidly.
A loud roar came from inside. Tia knew it was the bear saying, ‘Enter.’ So Yordis was still in her animal form! Tia would have to pretend to be surprised at not seeing a human. Hesitantly Katinka, who’d only heard the roar and wasn’t sure what it meant, opened the door. She led Tia through a central chamber into a bedroom where she curtsied to the bear slumped in front of a fire.
Tia gave a gasp of astonishment and bowed extravagantly. ‘I didn’t expect to see you, O great Skrimsli Bear!’
The bear ignored her and grunted at Katinka, who ran towards a table and hurriedly picked up a tray of brushes.
‘The High Witch Yordis wishes me to teach you how to be a grooming maid.’ She rolled up her sleeves and Tia saw lots of bruises. Yordis must’ve done that – no wonder Katinka’s afraid of her, Tia thought, and felt sorry for the girl. She felt even sorrier for her when the bear batted at her several times for snagging brushes in her fur.
‘Now you try.’ Katinka handed a brush to Tia. Good luck, she mouthed silently.
Tia was used to grooming the Traders’ shaggy little horses with their long manes and tails and had no difficulty with the bear’s fur. Yordis waved Katinka away and turned over with a snort. Tia wanted to laugh as she went on grooming. This bear with its dirty, tangled fur was her aunt! What would she think if she knew that her niece, a DragonChild from Drakelow, was picking burrs and fleas from her coat?
The bear’s eyes closed and she began to snore. Tia grew bolder and brushed nearer and nearer to the collar; she wanted to have a close look at the magic opal.
All of a sudden the bear rolled over and pinned Tia to the floor with her huge paw. ‘Do not touch my collar, Trader brat,’ she snarled.
Tia could hardly breathe with the paw pressing into her chest. ‘I’ve done something wrong,’ she wheezed, trembling as growls rumbled deep inside the bear. ‘I’m sorry. Perhaps you don’t like to be groomed near to your collar?’
The growling increased.
‘I’ll be careful not to do it again, O great one,’ Tia said quickly.
The be
ar lifted her paw. ‘This girl’s quick to work out what I mean. She keeps her wits about her and she grooms well. I’ll keep her.’ She flopped down again.
Tia sat up and gulped in air. Yordis wasn’t very bright but she was dangerous and cruel. Tia was going to have to be very, very careful.
Chapter Six
Chimneys
When Tia had finished grooming the bear, she was taken for a meal in the castle kitchen. After that, Katinka showed Tia to a small room next to Yordis’s chambers. It had two tiny, sealed windows. An unlit fire set was set into one wall and a little alcove next to it had a washing area. There was just enough space for a bed and a wooden chest where Tia stowed her bag.
Katinka told her, ‘The High Witch says you have to stay here till tomorrow, then she wants you to tell her some story about a prince and a bear.’
Tia had forgotten about that! She sat on the bed, hoping Katinka liked to gossip.
‘Yordis can’t always be a bear. I mean, she must be a human being sometimes, otherwise she couldn’t tell you what she wants.’
‘The Lady Yordis chooses when to be herself. At those times she usually stays in her room.’
‘Why?’
‘You ask too many questions,’ Katinka snapped, and Tia decided not to ask where the High Witch kept the collar when she wasn’t wearing it.
‘I’ll bring you some food later,’ Katinka said, and left.
Tia got out her book and pen and scribbled down a map of the parts of the castle she remembered. She’d add to it as she learned more. Then she thought about the story she was going to tell Yordis next day.
Much later, the door opened and Katinka came in with a tray of cold left-over food and drink. Tia hoped she’d stay to chat but the girl only said, ‘I’ll come for you in the morning and take you to the High Witch,’ then went away.
Tia poked her fork into some cold meat. She was stuck in a room with windows Loki couldn’t fly through; how was she going to get a message to Finn?
