A girl close to her age and size, jumped up from a chair. "Carole. Didn't expect you tonight."
"Just got back."
"Hey Sylphwood." Lilly's twin brother, Zack, looked up from where he was lounging. "Got any--" He gawked as Carole stepped out of the shadowy hall and into the room. "Holy moly, what happened to your face?"
"Oh that." Carole pressed her cheeks. "Mariat tried out my whistle wand and the spell sort of blew up on us."
"Ouch! Remind me never to borrow that thing," Zack said.
"Is that why you're here?" Lilly ushered Carole to a kitchen chair. "Do you need some first aid?"
"I'm fine." Carole took the square of parchment from her pocket and placed it on the table. "What do you guys make of this?"
The twins crowded near. "What is it?" Lilly said.
"The answer to Professor Philamount's brew question."
"What was the question?" Zack said.
Carole shrugged and said, "I have no idea."
The twins studied the words written on the paper in silence.
"Fates uncertain," Zack finally said. "Well duh, the future's always uncertain. Doesn't take a genius to figure that one out. Who wrote this thing?"
"A pot."
"Oh. Not bad for a kitchen utensil, I guess."
"So does this mean the Conundrum was part of a larger war?" Lilly said.
"Apparently."
"I guess multitaskers aren't so wonderfully evolved, after all," Zack said.
Lilly gave her brother a withering stare.
"I didn't mean Carole. I was talking about... You know her parents, and those jerks at school. Anyway, what's the big deal about any of this? She gets a ringside seat at some cosmic two-for-one sale. So what? It doesn't change anything."
"It can't be that simple," Lilly said. "Maybe you're the key to the future, Carole, just like you were the key to ending the Conundrum."
"I still don't see why it's such a big deal."
Lilly gave Zack an incredulous look.
"What?"
"We're talking about war, Zack, a war that has obviously been going on for a very long time. Whoever caused the Conundrum didn't care if people got hurt, and Carole stopped them. And who helped her?"
Zack looked thoughtful. "Do you think they know?"
"Of course they know."
"Not about us." He stabbed at the parchment with his finger. "About this stuff?"
"Only if Philamount's one of them," Carole said.
"Ya think?"
"It would explain why he's keeping such a close eye on us."
"At least we know his side didn't trigger the Conundrum," Lilly said. "Else why get you to fix it?"
"And the witches trust him." Carole glanced at the wall clock. "Is it really that late? I'd better be going." She ripped the parchment it into pieces. "Could you take care of these?"
"Hand 'em over," Zack said, taking the paper to the sink and reaching for a match. The parchment burned fast.
"Things any better at home?" Lilly said.
"You should've seen my mother when Philamount told her about our trip. I thought she was going to have a fit."
"Well, at least you've still got your parents."
Carole thought back to last spring and how, contrary to Professor Philamount's forecast, her return to the Hub had been met mostly with indifference, and in her parent's case, suspicion. "I miss Hal," was all she said.
Zack washed the ashes down the drain. "Make an unscheduled visit. Use this place as your jump-off point. No one will know."
"Maybe." Carole went to the back door. "Let me know if you get any ideas about the reading. See you in the morning."
"First thing," Zack said with a sigh. "Wouldn't want to be late for nursery school."
The porch light was not lit, nor was there any light coming from the front window. Carole walked towards her house. She saw a small lump beside the door. "Runt? What are you doing here? You're supposed to be hanging out with the rest of the herd."
The tiny pig stretched, sat up and yawned. "Ret reet rit."
"Of course I appreciate the welcome, but you know my parents. Are you sure?"
Runt leaned against Carole's legs.
"Come on then, assuming we're not locked out..." She opened the door.
Inside it was quiet and dark. She walked past the stairway and into the kitchen, where she found and lit a candle. She placed it on the counter and watched the shadows flicker before sitting on the floor next to Runt.
"So, what's the news from the herd?"
"Rit ret riit reet!"
"Again? Was anyone hurt?"
"Rit."
"The boars chase them off?"
Runt nodded.
"Who was it this time?"
Runt shrugged his shoulders.
"Probably Dalimar's gang. And you can bet Professor Hotspot will twist the story to make it look like you guys started it."
"Reet. Rit rit?"
"Mostly more questions. The werewolves aren't a problem anymore, but Mariat's got a bunch of bullies to deal with. In fact some of the witches believe the Conundrum created them. We've certainly run into more than our share, here as well as on Earth."
Carole yawned. "Anyway, I'm beat. I'll tell you the rest tomorrow." She picked up the candle and started for the stairs. "Let's try and sleep-in. If we're lucky my parents will leave before we get up."
Runt snorted.
--9--
Carole peered through the railing at the bottom of the stairway. Her parents were eating breakfast in the kitchen. Her mother looked prim and proper as always, and her father looked typically bookish. They were dressed for work, but seemed in no hurry to leave.
"Guess we can't put it off any longer," she mouthed. "Ready?"
Runt nodded.
Mr. and Mrs. Sylphwood looked up as Carole and the tiny pig entered the room. A series of expressions flitted across their faces.
"What happened to you?" her mother finally said.
"Nothing. Fell into a stream."
Her mother marched over and gripped Carole's chin. "Bruised and bloodied from getting wet? Tell me, what really happened? Who did this?"
"Nobody. It was an accident. I slipped off a bridge." Carole jerked free and went to the opposite side of the table where her breakfast was laid out.
"You see?" Mrs. Sylphwood turned to her husband. "You see, Baxter? This is what comes of her gallivanting about the cosmos, associating with witches. What possible good can come from such a questionable link?"
"Mariat's my friend." Carole pulled a jar of granola close and reached for a jug of juice.
"And we can certainly see the fruits of that relationship. You look like a ghoul. Celeste knows what other riffraff that Philamount wishes to expose you to. He has much to answer for, this time."
"Judith, calm yourself. It does little good to go leaping off before we've been presented with a complete list of the facts. I shall talk with Professor Philamount, learn all I can from him, and then we shall decide how best to proceed."
"I've already told you what happened," Carole said from behind a wall of breakfast containers. "I fell."
"We seek a more...complete version of the events."
"Right." Carole filled a small bowl with dried fruit and cereal and placed it on the floor.
"Must you, Carole?" her father said.
"Runt's got to eat."
"Which he can easily do on the back porch or with the rest of the swine herd. He's just an animal, after all."
Runt casually stepped on Carole's foot. She clenched her jaw and said nothing.
Judith Sylphwood dabbed the corners of her mouth with an embroidered napkin and composed her features. She smoothed out her dress. Despite the warmth of the morning, she was wearing a full length, laced-trimmed outfit. Her appearance was very Victorian. Apparently the style had once been the height of Hub fashion, and she was trying to revive the trend. "I must be off," she said. "We're meeting to discuss adjustments to the inspection schedule
. I trust you will see to this Philamount business, Baxter?"
"Directly my dear. Whilst on my way to the library."
"And don't forget, I've invited Snively for dinner this evening."
"Great," Carole muttered to herself.
"What was that?"
"Nothing."
"Correct. You will do nothing to provoke the man. Is that clear?"
"So long as he doesn't provoke me."
"Young lady!" Her mother's voice turned shrill. "I don't know what was considered acceptable behavior on that degenerate monobrain planet, but here we respect and obey our elders. Professor Snively Hotspot will be a guest in our home and is to be treated as such."
"I'll try."
"You'll do more than try. If you wish to remain under this roof, you'll abide by our rules. All of them." Judith Sylphwood left in a swish of material.
"Dear, dear, dear." Carole's father rose to follow his wife. "Until tonight then. Try not to be late, Carole."
"Snively Hotspot," she said to Runt with a heartfelt sigh. "This is turning into such a wonderful day."
--10--
Carole watched Runt make his way towards the other hogs at the base of the Celestial Nexus, wishing she could go with him. As it was she'd have to glide just to beat the school bell. Reluctantly, she turned from the herd and kicked into a sprint. She reached Hub Central in time to see the twins closing in on the front doors behind a couple of other stragglers.
"Lil, Zack, wait up!" Carole vaulted up the steps.
Zack grimaced as she drew near. "You look a lot worse in the daylight."
"Nice," his sister said. "Always one with the compliments."
"I said she looked worse. I didn't say it was worse."
"Forget it." Lilly held the door for Carole. "So?"
"Nasty as always and Hotspot's coming for dinner."
"Lucky you." Zack scowled. "He's probably come up with another brilliant idea for getting rid of us."
"I doubt it's a coincidence there's a town meeting coming up."
"Not to mention the Dive of Destiny," Lilly said.
"Give us a head's up, if you learn something," Zack said.
"Count on it."
They stopped outside a class door on which 'Preschool Plasticity' was printed in large colorful letters.
With an impish grin, Lilly opened the door and stood to one side. "After you, Zack."
Zack sneered at her before stepping into the quiet room.
"Zack!"
"It's Zacky!"
"Zacky's here!"
"Zackity, Zackity, Zack, attack!"
The room burst into pandemonium as a pack of preschoolers swarmed the boy, grabbing his arms and legs and pulling him to the ground.
A woman's voice rang out. "Children, Children, leave the poor lad alone. And as for you Mr. Deville, if you could manage to arrive a little earlier. It's hard enough to maintain order with this bunch at the best of times."
Zack's voice rose from beneath the pile of preschool bodies. "You want me to volunteer for more of this?"
Laughing to themselves, Carole and Lilly sidestepped the squirming mound and seated themselves on the plush rug, at the back of the room.
"All right class." The teacher, a pleasant looking woman in a pastel pantsuit, clapped her hands. "Why not show Zack what you've learned over the weekend."
"Me first, me first."
"No, me first."
"Jo-Jo got to go first last time. Professor Startling--"
"I will select from those who can sit with quiet focus and concentration."
A rush of activity followed and soon only Zack remained sprawled on the rug. Getting slowly to his feet, he limped over to where Lilly and Carole were still chuckling.
"Thomesan, you may go first," Professor Startling said.
A mousy girl stood up and made her way to the front of the room. "I learned to Tree-Tall." Her voice was just above a whisper and she spoke to the floor.
"Would you demonstrate, please?"
The girl made a very fierce expression, sucked in a huge breath and stood as tall as she could. Ever so slowly her body began to stretch, growing taller and thinner until she had added at least a foot to her height. Her face turned crimson with effort. Suddenly she hiccupped explosively, and her body snapped back to its regular shape with a loud pop.
"Ooohh," the class murmured.
Thomesan began to cry.
"That was very good, Thomesan, very good." Professor Startling rubbed the girl's back, encouraging her to return to the rug. "Remember class we must always breathe out slowly. Decompression pops can give you quite a nasty headache." She produced a lollipop and handed it to Thomesan. "Suck away on this. It'll clear your head before you know it."
The proffered treat effectively ended the tears.
"Now then, who's next?"
"Me...me...me!" A tussle haired lad waved his arms about.
"All right Gerald, what've you got for us?"
The boy jumped to the front of the class and spun to face the group, with his hands on hips and his legs spread wide. "I gots Long-Legs," he announced. He slid his feet apart, and then farther and farther apart. As he did so, his thighs turned wobbly and his bottom bounced against the floor like a rubber ball suspended between two thick elastic bands. "And it don't hurt either," he boasted between bounces.
"Well done, Gerald. And who should we pick next?"
"Zacky. It's Zacky's turn," the boy sitting next to Zack cried.
"Zacky! Zacky!" The rest of the class took up the cry.
"That will do, class." Professor Startling looked at Zack. "Mr. Deville, have you something to show us, today?"
"I might just," he said, as he stood.
Lilly groaned. "Oh no."
"What?" Carole said.
"He's been wracking his brain all weekend, trying to come up with something for this class."
"Wasn't that the homework assignment?"
"You know we can't plasticate, Carole. The best we can hope for is a couple of gymnastic poses. He's up to something."
Zack cleared his throat. "Okay, now we all know how good I am at plasticating."
The kids giggled with delight, and even Professor Startling smiled.
"Well, I've decided to imitate a creature from my home planet, Earth." Zack reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. After unfolding it and smoothing out the wrinkles, he gave the paper to the closest child.
"What is it?" the little girl said.
"It's called a bullfrog. Pass it around. Let everyone see."
"A bullfrog?" The kids were all beaming.
"Yes, a bullfrog. Now frogs are interesting animals in that they're natural plasticators. When they start out they live totally in water, and they look like this." Zack produced another sheet of paper for the class. "When they look this way we call them pollywogs. Then they grow big and plasticate into bullfrogs that can live in water and hop about on the land. They make a great sound by swallowing air, sticking out their throats and swelling up their eyeballs. An action I shall now demonstrate."
The kids gathered close, giggling and whispering. Zack squatted and sucked in a great gulp of air. Then puffing out his cheeks and opening his eyes as wide as he could, he let loose with a huge belching, "Brraaaaaaaaaap!"
The kids fell over themselves, howling with laughter.
"Zack!" Lilly looked aghast. "Apologize at once."
"Why?" He blinked innocently. "I'm plasticating."
Around them, the room erupted in a chorus of burps and belches as the kids tried to become bullfrogs.
"Lookit, lookit, lookit me!" Jo-Jo called out. He was squatting on the floor with one eyeball bulging, and was struggling gamely to inflate the other one.
Some of the kids were running around with bloated throats. Others were hopping about on rubberized legs.
"Children, children!" Professor Startling called, trying to recapture her class's attention. "A little order, please."
Zack's demonstra
tion effectively ended that morning's formal plasticity lesson, though the preschoolers continued to work enthusiastically on becoming bullfrogs for the remainder of the class.
"That went extremely well," he said, as he and the girls made their way to their next class.
"Ya think?" Lilly glared. "You're just begging to give Hotspot more ammunition to use against us."
"Everything we do is ammunition against us. The man hates us for breathing the same air as him. I'm not going to roll over and die just because he wants me to. Besides, Startling's on our side. She said it herself. She's never had a more keen group of kids."
"Keep it down," Carole said. They had entered a corridor packed with seniors. As usual most turned to stare, some with simple curiosity but others openly hostile. Carole pushed through the crowd and turned into an open doorway. Zack and Lilly followed. The class was already full, so they were forced to sit in the front row.
The room smelled musty. Every square inch of wall space was tacked with archaic maps and charts. The many bookcases scattered about the room were stuffed full of dusty scrolls and texts. Seated at his desk behind a mountain of loose parchment and looking very much like a crumpled stack of paper himself, Professor Malamine had his nose buried deep in a scroll. He seemed oblivious to the noise of the room.
Zack rolled his eyes as he slid into his chair. "What useless tidbit of fossilized fact is Malamine going to choke us with today?"
As if finally realizing there was a class of students waiting for him, the professor rolled up the parchment and set it aside.
"So class," he wheezed, "I believe last day we'd reached the epoch of dimensional expansion. Does anyone wish to recap events for us?" He stood, and with his hands clasped behind his back, looked around. The room quickly became silent. "Anyone? Anyone at all? No? Well it--"
Carole raised her arm. "Excuse me, professor?"
"Yes, er...Ms. Sylphwood?" Professor Melamine seemed shocked that someone was actually speaking to him.
"I've a question, not so much about the epoch of expansion, but more about the transdimensional tunnels themselves. You never actually told us in which epoch they were constructed or why we started traveling between dimensions in the first place. Did we invent them, or did other beings show us how to make them?"
The Missing Link Page 7
