by Joanne Vruno
Chapter 12
Reality, my new reality, hit abruptly when I arrived at Grandma’s house in the morning. In her living room I found not only Grandma, but Lina, Berg, and, surprisingly, Silver, waiting to speak to me. Apparently the twin tomtes had shared my Saturday troll experience with them, and they wanted to hear about the troll encounter directly from me.
Grandma patted the middle section of the couch for me to sit, and soon I was nestled between Grandma and Lina, which gave me some comfort as I began the story. Silver sat across from me on a pillow, looking at me as I spoke, and Berg was on a chair a little to the left. After catching Silver’s eye, I decided to focus more on Berg.
No comments were made during my tale. As soon as I finished, Grandma hugged me and told me she was proud of me. Lina then patted my leg and commented on what a brave girl I was. Berg gave me a smile, while Silver regarded me with a straight face. I could not tell if she thought I had reacted correctly or not. Finally, after an awkward moment of silence, Silver spoke. “I think we need to increase your training, Aly. We’ve received a notice from our elf king, King Klas, to stay on high alert. It seems the Rock Elves have started more intense searches for us. We have also detected that currently more creatures are traveling through the area than in the past years. We all need to be extremely careful. There have been even more sightings of rock elves in North America in the past few months. We don’t know if they’re here scouting for light elves alone or being assisted by others. Trolls are usually too self-centered and enjoy human lifestyles too much to align with the rock elves, so I believe we have no extra threat from them. This isn’t to say they aren’t extremely dangerous, with their ability to read human behavior so well. They’ll always be a giant threat to any human who has the ability to see them. But they aren’t likely to team up with dark elves.
“I’m more concerned with dwarves working with the rock elves. They’ve had working connections for years. Plus, dwarves detest humans of all kinds and have little love for light elves because we have embraced humans. Our healers ran across a dwarf not far from here last week. They weren’t noticed and stayed hidden until the dwarf left the area. This is disturbing, though, because there hasn’t been a dwarf sighting here for ten years. Our birders—as we call our sentries who fly around on birds or sit and observe from a bird’s nest—have also noticed more crows in the area. Aly, you may not have been taught this yet, but crows have a history of working for anyone who can bribe them with shiny objects. Luckily, they’re noisy birds and large enough that they cannot move around unnoticed. When one of our scouts spots a crow, the elf immediately goes undercover in some brush where it can view the crows without their knowledge. Crows are very “readable” and easily give away their partners in mischief if they’re plotting something. This is known by most animals and birds that could become a crow’s prey, and this knowledge allows them to hide or retreat before a crow has a chance to attack.”
Silver looked over at Grandma, deep in thought. “Alice, I think we need to have Aly come to the village and start training tomorrow with Dolph. She needs to learn the calls, the animals, and how to take on an attack while out in nature. You and Lunt have done well training her not to react when she senses a mythical creature near her, but now it’s Dolph’s time to teach her some defensive moves. Unfortunately, I think we may need to have everyone in top shape for a confrontation. Berg and Lina, will you let the other tomtes in the area know to be on guard?”
Berg stood up, straight and tall, as if in a soldier’s stance as he proudly said, “I have it covered. I will tell Lunt to contact all the gnomes in the area also. If trouble comes our way we’ll be ready.”
“Is it safe for Aly to travel alone into the woods?” asked Grandma, a worried look on her face.
“Our guards will have her in sight at all times, Alice. We won’t let her go anywhere outside without watching her. Dolph will teach her the signal sounds tomorrow so she’ll know when to be alert. If you travel with her, there may be more suspicion. Right now she’s young and nobody would think she’s a guardian, but with you around they may wonder if she’s in training.”
“A gnome or tomte could follow her into the woods,” suggested Berg, also looking concerned.
I felt uneasy at the thought of traveling alone and turned to Silver for her thoughts on Berg’s suggestion.
After sitting in deep thought, she finally replied, “If Lunt’s willing, he can follow her at a distance for this week. After this week she should know all the signals and what they mean.”
It felt like we all let out a sigh of relief. Grandma put her arm around me and squeezed my shoulder. I looked at her and smiled, trying to look brave and capable. But inside, fear of the future was rising with all the news Silver had brought to our attention.
“Aly, all this week’s training has to be taken very seriously. Do you understand?” asked Silver.
I felt disappointed she still didn’t trust my actions. Hadn’t I reacted correctly around a troll? I turned and looked at her and nodded. I was afraid if I spoke, I might show my frustration. I’d messed up only once and had learned my lesson. Since then I’d given my all to training. Grandma and Lunt had praised my hard work, but not Silver. Maybe she’d notice how dedicated I was when she watched me train with Dolph.
Silver and Grandma went out the back door, discussing future plans. Lina and Berg both took the moment to tell me all would be fine. Elsa and Enar were going to be watching carefully over me at home, and the elves would whenever I was out and about.
Grandma soon returned by herself, and the tomtes said their farewell and left us alone.
“Aly, how are you doing with all this news? It’s a great deal to take in so early in your training.”
“I’m frustrated Silver doesn’t seem to think I can do it, and nervous about what comes next, but I’m going to try my best to handle whatever the mythical world sends me!” I declared with determination. I am going to prove Silver wrong! Her attitude towards me is going to change. I’m definitely going to see to that.
Grandma chuckled at my response and replied, “That’s my girl! Don’t let Silver discourage you. Just know I believe in you, and never stop believing in yourself.”
Grandma was right. I could not doubt myself in the next training session. Look how much I’ve accomplished already: I’ve met my first troll and survived the encounter. I just need to focus and stay strong during all the lessons. I didn’t want to let Grandma or Lunt down after all those hours they had spent training me.
Grandma brought out the books on mythical creatures, and we went through them again so I might familiarize myself with all the creatures in the area. All I could think of was: Am I going to actually encounter any of these? I guess time would tell.
Chapter 13
Leaving Grandma’s front door the next morning gave me a feeling of dread, as if I were a soldier going into unknown territory. Lunt winked at me from the corner of Grandma’s house, as I proceeded down the driveway. I let out a sigh, knowing he’d always be close. I kept telling myself: Be brave. Show no fear. You can do this.
I entered the woods and walked along the path, stopping several times to take photos of unusual tree trunks and clumps of wildflowers. I knew to not look conspicuous. I focused on what I remembered of the route and hoped I knew the way, as I headed up the hill off the path by the split trunk tree. I had no amulet to flash, so I wasn’t sure if I would walk past the village or right through it and trample the elves and their homes. I knew I was close as I hiked up the second hill. I heard the woodpecker tapping hard on a tree, and then, as if by magic, Dolph appeared out of nowhere. Today his clothes matched the color of the plants around him. Even his hat blended in and covered his white hair. He was camouflaged perfectly with the surrounding growth, and I would not have noticed him if he had not spoken to me to announce his presence.
“Aly, it’s good to s
ee you again,” said Dolph, as he extended his hand to me.
“I guess I’m in for some extensive training,” I replied, as I shook his hand.
Dolph just smiled at my statement. “You’ll do fine with it, won’t she, Lunt?” asked Dolph as he turned towards my protector.
“Yes, she will,” proudly affirmed Lunt, “She has been an excellent student so far. Aly, I’m leaving now but I’ll return in time to see you back to your grandmother’s.” Lunt turned and disappeared within seconds.
“Gnome speed—they can outrun anything on this planet,” said Dolph.
His comment startled me. Could Lunt really move faster than all vehicles or trains? That explained his disappearance today. I wondered right then what the speed difference was between gnomes and tomtes.
“Well, let’s get learning! Have you noticed the woodpecker knocking as you neared the village? It signals the village whenever someone comes or goes, be it human, animal, or creature. The number of taps tells us what’s near. When it’s you or your grandmother, the signal is nine taps. An elf or group of elves returning or leaving is four taps, animals are five, crows are two, and one tap is an unknown creature. The one tap may be repeated with a pause in between it to make sure all the village members heard the alarm, if the danger seems high. If we know the creature, like Lunt, it’s seven taps.
“The woodpecker taps are the village’s strongest alarm system for the possibility of danger. This is similar to human tornado sirens. We have elf scouts around the whole wooded area on alert at all times. Any human, animal, bird, or creature is seen as it enters our area. All of this activity is recorded on scrolls and viewed daily to detect any unusual behaviors or patterns of behaviors. The animals that live with us, such as the birds, chipmunks, deer, squirrels, and foxes, also are eyes and ears for us. They understand our purpose here benefits their lives, and so they work with us in many ways. Remember that when you’re in these woods, where our village is located. There are many eyes protecting you at all times. This is not always the case in other wooded areas. There, only the pair of elves assigned to you for the day are watching you. You won’t have any woodpecker tapping as an alarm, but you may hear one that’s hunting for food.”
I felt a bit relieved, knowing that Lunt’s escort to the village was only scheduled for one week. Silver may have been correct in saying I didn’t need it, but I was glad she had arranged it anyways. After seeing the two trolls, I felt I needed Lunt’s protection. I did not want another close encounter without help close by if needed.
Dolph walked me away from the village to instruct me on other forms of communication. As we walked, he used hand signals to elf scouts, unseen up in the trees. I would suddenly hear a bird call. Each scout had his or her own repertoire of calls, from a chickadee’s song to a cardinal, and each call had a different meaning. Some calls were to announce I was in the woods, while others indicated an intruder alert. None had the sound of panic in it, just an average bird call. Dolph explained they did not want to put an intruder on guard. Most intruders were humans passing through the woods and were harmless as well as clueless to the meanings in the call. The tree scouts repeated their calls if the intruder was an unknown creature.
“Do many creatures live around here?” I asked, wondering which ones I might run into.
“Several gnomes have taken to a human family’s yard in the area. Some of these gnomes are in homes of their ancestors’ families. A few are in the homes of humans who have the power to see them.”
“There are others like me?”
“Well, there are others who have the ability to see creatures thought of as mythical because a family member was given the gift many years ago, but none have your powers. Your powers were a gift from the elf king. Powers granted from the king are more powerful, with many more capabilities, and have only been given to a few. Other humans were given the power of seeing into the mythical world, but that’s their limit. They have also been trained by their tomtes and gnomes to ignore other creatures just as you have. They have no knowledge of light elves, but we have knowledge of them. Their tomtes and gnomes report to us and are extra eyes and ears for us,” said Dolph. “You and your grandmother are the only two who know of our village. In all the world, only nine guardians know light elves exist. The other humans who can see creatures know that light elves once existed through stories from the past, but have no knowledge we’re still here.”
“Do you ever visit the other villages?” I asked, wondering how close they might be.
“Not in person, but we do communicate with them. You’ll learn about that later. All I can say is that you’ll have that ability also,” said Dolph. He smiled at me, reading my expression of surprise.
“There is so much to learn, Aly. It’ll be many years before you know it all. So now that you know about the calls in this wooded area, let’s introduce you to signals in other wooded areas, or for the outdoors in general. You’ll always be warned about possible danger so you can be on alert. The most common signal is the swoop of a songbird in your path. This will be at some distance in front of you. If we feel you didn’t notice the first swoop, the bird will repeat it. Here is an example,” said Dolph, as he made another hand signal. Suddenly a chickadee glided down close to the ground and then up again about twelve feet in front of me.
I was amazed by how natural it looked. Others around me would not consider that as unusual. It was as if the little bird had chosen to land, saw me and fluttered off.
“If an elf feels you may be in grave danger, a flock of five birds will make the same type of signal,” said Dolph, as he signaled with his hand, and five birds did a similar swoop. “We want you to be aware of what may be coming your way. This doesn’t mean you can completely relax, thinking you will always be warned. An elf could still miss a creature, especially a small one, like a tree sprite. Tree sprites have wings and can easily be mistaken for a large dragonfly or a hummingbird with their similar green coloring and their quick movement from place to place.”
I remembered Grandma’s warning about tree sprites and the yawn reflex movement to use when they were around. I felt a bit relieved, knowing at least I would be warned about most creatures. I also knew that, from now on, I could never enjoy the outdoors as I had before, as a child with freedom. I guessed sometime knowledge might not always be considered a good thing in life.
The rest of our lesson was Dolph instructing me on how to find the village from different directions. I took out the camera to remember unique landmarks, like the tree with two trunks, just as Grandma had taught me. If the village was in danger, I needed to know the closest route. I was curious about what I could do to protect it, but knew I would be told in time. The lessons all seemed to have an order in which they were given.
Lunt appeared out of nowhere to escort me back to Grandma’s, as Dolph and I returned to our starting point. Dolph smiled at me then, as if he was thinking the same thing I was: “gnome speed.” I smiled back and held out my hand to shake his before I turning towards the hills ahead of me.
The way back was much easier than the way there. I finally felt more relaxed with the knowledge Dolph had shared with me. I never saw Lunt once as I traveled to Grandma’s, though I knew he was near. As I approached the house, Lunt waved to me by the side of the garage and then disappeared. “Gnome speed,” I laughed to myself as I entered Grandma’s front door.
“By your smile I’d guess your lessons went well,” said Grandma.
“Dolph was very nice. He taught me about the woodpecker signals, the bird calls, and the bird swoops. I had no idea so many eyes were on me.”
“It’s a comforting feeling, isn’t it? They’re also watching when you’re by your home or my home.”
“I didn’t know that. I thought that was left to our tomtes and gnomes.”
“Elf scouts watch too. The signals are the same—-except for the woodpecker. Th
at is just at the village. Our yard trees could not take all that pounding. They’d eventually die. In the woods, the woodpecker can move around and the elves can heal the trees,” said Grandma. “Aly, guardianship does seem easier when you know all the facts, so hang in there.”
I gave her a hug to show I was all right as I said, “The walk back here seemed so much easier than the way there. Is it true that gnomes are the fastest things on earth?”
Grandma laughed. “I’m not sure of that but if Dolph told you that, it’s most likely true. I think tomtes come in a close second. Both are faster than our eyes can register. You’ll adjust to their abrupt appearances. I always look at it as a comfort. I know they’ll be there right when I need them. They’ll also become your most trusted and closest friends. They’re the only ones who will know your daily struggles and triumphs throughout your whole life.”
There was comfort in those words.
Chapter 14
The phone rang as soon as I stepped into the kitchen. I picked it up and said, “Hello.” Grandma was on the other end. “Aly, stay home today, preferably inside if possible. It’s June 21st, the summer solstice, a day when magical powers are at their highest. Promise me you’ll try to stay put. I don’t encourage misleading your parents, but if they insist you need to go out, pretend you don’t feel well. I’ll do the same. It’s for only one day of the year. Can you promise me you will do this?”
“I promise.” My mother walked into the room right then. I added, “Grandma, get some rest today. I’ll call you tomorrow to see if you feel better.”
“Grandma’s sick?” asked my mom.
“She told me she’s under the weather and is staying home and resting. I have to admit I feel a little funny today too. I think I may go lie down also.” I felt terrible saying that to my mom, but I knew then there would be no suggestions to go shopping or outside.
