The Fossegrimen Folly

by Michael Almich

  If he couldn't find the nisse, Shy decided, he would try Tad. Maybe the counselor would talk to Gust, and they would let him go throw the box back. It would be nice to be rid of it, Shy thought. Safer too, he added to himself.

  With his spirits buoyed a bit, he told Tad he would see him at breakfast, and before Tad could tell him he had to wait for him, he jumped out the trapdoor.

  Shy hurried to the Hive. There was a slight breeze drifting through the forest canopy. Several of the boys were at the Hive. Henry and Ralph announced they were going down for breakfast, so Shy joined them. They zipped down to the clearing, and as Shy landed, Gust stepped from behind a tree. He nodded to the other two boys, and stepped up next to Shy.

  "You didn't forget about me did you?" He asked Shy in his raspy low voice.

  "What-do-you-mean?" Shy asked innocently. By staying in the cabins for the past few days, he had avoided his shadow.

  Gust just smiled.

  It didn't matter. Shy's mood couldn't be dampened by having the old man follow him around. In fact, he felt appreciative and safe, even considering the events of the other night.

  The three boys sat down at their seats at the table and joked as the other boys trickled in. Sawyer gave Shy a light punch in the shoulder as he arrived. Soon, it was time to eat. Shy returned Crutch's glare as he walked up to get breakfast. Sawyer was behind Shy in line, and Shy could hear him and Finn giggling. He turned just in time to hear Sawyer much too loudly say, "I know... what a shame… beat up by a girl..."

  "Yeah," Finn replied, smiling broadly, "I am glad that never happened to me!"

  Crutch immediately stood and lunged for the two, but they were too quick, and darted out of the way of the bigger boy. The Cave counselor immediately took Crutch by the arm, and wheeled him out of the Lodge.

  Evidently the two had been tormenting the Cave bully for the past couple days.

  Shy found he was smiling, and immediately tried to hide it, but he was definitely smiling inside. He looked at the others in line, and they were all smiling too. Henry gave him a thumbs-up sign. Throughout his stay here at camp, his friends had defended him continually and made him believe in himself. They had probably been planning this all morning.

  Now a new thought occurred to him as he grabbed up some extra crispy bacon with the tongs. Camp was almost over! His happy feeling for the day began to dim. It was great here, with all his new friends. He was brave and courageous, but back home he would still be the same Shy. Or, would he?

  He saw Claire frowning at him, and Portia smiling at him, as he walked by their table on the way back to his. He smiled back at Portia, and thought to himself, no, I won't be the same old Shy. Then and there he decided he would be different. He would take the confidence he had gained here, and try to use it back in school!

  Clancy got on her megaphone as they all ate. She loved that thing!

  "Children, children…. If I could have your attention…"

  Shy perked up, but the other boys at the table continued the arguing with each other, and teasing Henry, like they usually did while eating. In fact, Shy noticed that not many kids in the room were listening to Clancy, even with the megaphone amplifying her voice.

  Suddenly a piercing whistle ripped through the Lodge. Everyone was instantly silent. Gust pulled his fingers from his lips and gave Clancy a slight bow. She, in turn gave him a slight smile, and then returned to her megaphone. Shy felt something, there, between the two of them. He wondered if they liked each other. Maybe they were actually boyfriend - girlfriend. The thought really creeped him out.

  She began to speak again.

  "Children, I know you are all excited for our Camp games to begin in several days. Unfortunately, I need to announce a change in plans. Due to some unforeseen events, the night geo-caching event has been cancelled."

  Shy looked around, wondering if he had heard correctly. They couldn't do this! That was his event! He was good at it! It had to be because of what happened to him several days ago. He stood up to protest, but Clancy locked eyes on him.

  "I am sorry for those of you who have been looking forward to this, but recent events have made it too risky for us to allow activities alone after dark. Please realize the prize for the camp games will be the same. Other than this, the Camp Games will go on as planned. Remember the last day of camp is Parent Day! That is all the news I have for you at this time."

  Shy had sat back down, not to draw attention to himself. He tried to understand why he was so upset by the cancellation. He looked around again. Several of the boys were looking at him. He looked down at his plate again, and quickly took a bite of toast. It wasn't fair. He was really good at the geo-caching…. He probably would have won! As bitter feelings welled up from his stomach, he tried to force them back down with food.

  Several boys tried to cheer him up, but he didn't want to talk. When he didn't answer, they soon went back to joking with each other. He finished his breakfast in silence because it gave him something to do.

  ***

  Later, back up in the Raven, he set out his blueberry muffin and waited. Finally, he saw a blur next to the small pine table and his vision snapped through the Glamour. There was the hairy little nisse. Tom T reached for the muffin, and his eyes darted to Shy as he gobbled. Something didn't seem quite right to Shy, though. It seemed like the little guy was leaning. As he moved, he limped. Shy looked closer and could see that his clothes were tattered places, more so than normal. The creature looked messy, where normally it was as tidy and neat.

  "What is wrong with you?" Shy asked. "What happened?"

  Tom T looked at Shy for a minute. He finished his muffin and said, "I told you they would come. You, with the sight, should see. Do you not feel it, can you not see?" He asked in bitter but gentle tones.

  "See? See what?" Shy asked, looking out the screened walls. "Has something happened? Has someone tried to get the box?" He asked as he rushed to his pillow. He could feel the box still in the pillowcase.

  "Daytime is not their battleground. They come at night…"

  "Who? Who comes?" Shy asked. "Please… just tell me what's going on."

  In a rare scene, the nisse sat on the floor, and stretched out his leg. "I defend these cabins every night. Every night since you brought that." Tom T pointed towards Shy's pillowcase with his staff. "Most that live in this land, and many that live in our homeland are choosing sides. Not many choose the side that you now stand on. I told you, Shylock, many of the fey do not want humans to have the recipe you now control. If humans were able to see us everywhere… how we live among them… they would surely try to eradicate us, or enslave us. You see, long, long, long ago we lived side by side with humans. But… they turned on the fey. They spread things that were not true. They began to hunt us. After many had died, the fey gathered. At that time many old, and some dark magics were combined. The Glamour was formed and shared among the fey. With it, we slowly disappeared from human sight, and memories. Now we live among you, yet you are unaware. If the potion gets out, we will again be hunted…" He sighed.

  Shy didn't know what to say. He had never heard this many words from the nisse at one time before. It was a lot to digest. The poor creature looked haggard and worn.

  "Why are you helping me?"

  Tom T looked up. "It is what I do. This is my home. I defend it and those in it. It is what nisse is. It is what we do…" His voice trailed off.

  "What should I do? Should I put it back?"

  The little shoulders shrugged. "If you try, you will surely die. They are waiting for that… for you to try. The recipe is power. There are different factions forming, Shylock. Some want it returned. Some want it to hold over the head of the other fey, as a threat… as power. Some simply want it returned, for things to return to the way they have been for eons."

  "Well…. What do you want?"

  "Me? I don't want. I just guard, protect, serve. I don't want. A nisse doesn't want. We just do…" He sighed again as he rests his head in his hands
and closes his eyes.

  "What should I do?"

  "I cannot answer what you should do. Only what you cannot do." He said as his eyes popped back open and he stood up. "You cannot leave the box and its contents here in these cabins. That option will surely fail. Be brave…. Be vigilant…. Beware!" With that the nisse popped up and was gone.

  Shy sat for a long time by himself. He didn't feel like his friends would believe any of this. They had barely seen more than an arm, or occasional short glance of the nisse, much less had a full blown conversation with him. What should he do? He could just take it home. That should be safe. Maybe he should still talk to Tad… or he could try to talk to Claire.

  He found himself day-dreaming on his hammock of asking Portia, and her helping him. That wouldn't happen, of course, but he found himself visualizing the conversation with her, over and over again.

  ***

  He must have drifted off. Tad startled him as he slid into the cabin.

  "We have been looking for you. You snuck off after breakfast. Gust followed you up here easy enough, but said you haven't come down. Daniel wanted you to go running with him… What's going on?" Tad interrupted himself after seeing the look on Shy's face.

  Shy felt tears coming, but held them back. The stress of having a secret like this to himself became too much, and he just started to talk. Soon he was well into the whole story, from the fossegrimen and its riddle, to passing through the waterfall, to his recent conversation with the nisse. It all rattled out. Although Tad's eyes widened at many times in the story, Shy didn't see disbelief. Of course he would believe…. This was someone who had been taken by trolls back when he was at camp. After he was done telling the counselor everything he could, Tad inhaled deeply and let it out slowly.

  "I always knew there was something deeper here. Something was going on." He looked directly at Shy. "That is the reason I applied to be a counselor here, so I could keep coming back. I knew… I KNEW there was more." He rocked backwards from his sitting position and placed his arms out behind himself. "I need to think about what to do, who to tell… if anyone. Give me a while to think about this."

  Shy nodded. He felt immensely better now that he had someone to share this problem with.

  "You better stay in the Forest cabins, where we know you and the box are protected."

  Shy nodded again. He wasn't going to go anywhere.

  ***

  He avoided going running with Daniel by saying he didn't feel well. It wasn't really a lie. Thinking that trolls, flying scaly monsters, a shifty huldra, and a flaming stallion or two were all after him had given him a stomach ache for real. He started to feel a little homesick, and wished he at least had Shep with him. That dog always seemed to know when he was sad, or bored, or excited.

  All the other boys were getting in some final practice time before the Camp Games began. He had no reason to practice since he no longer had an event. He hoped Tad came up with a plan soon.

  In a way, he did. Later that day, Tad brought Claire and Portia up into the Forest cabins. It was their first time. In fact, as far as Shy could remember, it was the first time anyone had been allowed into their cabins. Tad had partially explained the situation to the girls, and they had readily agreed to keep the Elevator entrance secret. Portia had been especially eager to spend time with Shy. The three of them took long walks across all the rope bridges, hung out in the Hive, played games, and, when Claire wasn't looking, Shy would steal secret glances at Portia. He was very appreciative of their companionship.

  When it came time for dinner, on the first day, Shy decided to show them the zip line. He showed them how to fit the bar to the line.

  "That's all you do… just hang on." He concluded.

  Portia looked out the opening, to the forest floor far below. She looked frightened, and Shy wanted to say something comforting.

  "Don't worry, you won't fall," he said and immediately wished he hadn't. She turned to him with her big green eyes wide open. "I mean, you fly so fast that you don't have to hang on for long." Her eyebrows arched into her hairline. He looked to Claire for some help, but she had already fitted her bar onto the line and was ready to push off.

  "I think my dad would say, 'Geronimo!'" She yelled as she pushed out into the forest canopy and immediately began to gain momentum.

  Shy looked back at Portia, and didn't know what to say. His hesitation turned awkward. Finally, "Do you want me to go first?"

  She took a deep breath and courageously said, "No, I will." She grabbed the bar and began to fit it on the line.

  Shy stepped up to help her, for which she gave him an appreciative smile. He smiled back. They were standing so close that he could smell her hair. It was a fruity wonderful smell. The best thing he had ever smelled, he thought to himself. He felt the butterflies return to his stomach, and this time they sent warm fluttery feelings throughout his body. He wondered if she felt the same way. She must have sensed his stillness, because she turned to look at him. Then, the moment was over. She was ready.

  "Wait for me at the bottom?" He asked.

  She smiled and said, "Maybe!" The tall girl with the curly blond hair and green eyes pushed off the Hive, and screamed. She continued to scream as she descended quickly. Just as she was disappearing from his sight, he thought he heard her laugh. He quickly readied his bar to follow her.

  Soon, he was approaching the landing clearing. He saw the two girls talking with Gust, and wondered how the old man knew that he had left the cabins.

  This was how Shy spent his time right up until the evening before the Camp Games were to begin. Shy knew it had to end, and was sad. He had gotten to know Portia much better. Claire had been seeking the attentions of Daniel recently, so Shy had more and more time alone with Portia, although, when not practicing, all the forest boys were around. They included Shy and the girls without a second thought. Much of the talk that evening surrounded the Camp Games.

  It was time for the big pre-games picnic at the Lodge, and the boys were one by one zipping down. Claire had gone off to look for Daniel, but had returned without finding him. He had not yet returned from his run, evidently, and Shy suspected he would go directly to the Lodge. The last of the other boys, Ralph, had just pushed off on the zip line, and Shy just grabbed a bar for Portia, when he heard a gruff voice behind him. They both turned.

  There was Tom T, fully visible to both Shy and Portia, based on their gasps.

  "I said… we need to find Thaddeus! Now… NOW!" The nisse said while hopping up and down. The little creature was obviously agitated.

  "I don't know where he is. What's wrong?" Shy asked

  "Is that your nisse?" Portia whispered warmly in Shy's ear. It tickled.

  Shy nodded, and turned back to the nisse, who was already heading out the wall panel bridge to look for Tad.

  "What's wrong?" Shy repeated, following him out of the Hive. Portia, curious now, trailed after.

  "The tall one. Daniel he is called. He has been taken. I could not save him. Trolls. Trolls. He needs Gustavus and Thaddeus…. YOU know what they are after." He stopped for a second and pointed his hooked staff at Shy.

  No, thought Shy, not Daniel! He raced to the Raven. He would just give them the box. Tad had not come up with a plan over the last couple days. At least not one he had shared with Shy. Now his friend had been captured! In the daytime! Shy had to do something. He intended to take the box and give it to the trolls in exchange for Daniel. Portia struggled to keep up with Shy. She was yelling questions after him. He couldn't take the time to answer.

  He leaped up the stairs two at a time, tripped the slide mechanism and dove into the Raven. Tad was there. He jumped at the sight of Shy tumbling in.

  "What?!"

  "Tom T said Daniel has been taken by trolls!" Shy screamed as he ran to his hammock. He ripped off his covers and found the pillow. Sliding the box out, he tucked it under his arm and ran to the trapdoor.

  Tad, shaking off his shock, grabbed Shy's arm. Shy pulled up
and glared at him.

  "When? When did he get taken? It's not even night yet! Trolls don't come out in the daytime!"

  "Tom T made it sound like it had just happened, and this is what they are after. I am gonna give it to them."

  Tad did not let go. "Shy, they will just take you too. They don't reason. You can't trade. They don't negotiate. We need Gust," He said as he began to move. He released Shy. "You need to go get Gust…. And put that back." He directed, nodding at the box.

  "No way. I have to help him! He's my friend!" Shy was near tears.

  Tad grabbed him again and spun him so they were eye to eye. His urgency was evident in the rigidity of the muscles in his arms.

  "Shy, we can't give them that back…. Not like this. We WILL save Daniel, but we need Gust's help. I need you to go find him!"

  "I can do it. I will find him. What should I tell him?"

  Neither Shy nor Tad had noticed Portia slide into the cabin. Tad spun on her. He looked back at Shy and seemed to make a decision.

  Turning back to Portia, he said, "OK. Run. Find Gust and tell him the trolls have taken Daniel. Tell him Shy and I went after them. Then find Clancy. She will keep everyone at the Lodge."

  Portia caught Shy's eye. He understood the look she gave him. Be careful, it said. He walked over to her quickly, and simply said, "Thanks."

  She nodded, and turned to the trapdoor, but Tad, who had now grabbed a rope and flashlight, stopped her just short of jumping.

  "And Portia," he said, "be careful!"

  She nodded, took a deep breath, and jumped.

  Tad handed Shy a small pack and indicated that he should hold it open. He threw in the rope, flashlight, a bottle of water, and a small bag of powder sugar doughnuts. Then he grabbed the pack from Shy and ran to the trapdoor. There was no hesitation before he jumped. Shy hustled after him.

  ***