Emerald and the Elf King

by Becky Biggs

  Across the cavern, Porter groaned on the floor. Emerald wondered how hard the troll had hit him. She didn’t see any signs of blood, but he definitely didn’t seem to be doing too well.

  “We snuck back into the cave and, well, it wasn’t hard to find the trolls what with their smell and the noise they were making,” Maple continued, wiping her bowl clean with a chunk of bread. “Didn’t really have a plan other than to demand your release.”

  “Thank you,” Emerald said softly. “I’m sorry I got you into this mess.”

  “Well, we wanted adventure, didn’t we?” Maple whispered cheerfully. “Can’t get much more adventurous than being captured by a group of trolls. Did you want that?” Maple gestured at Emerald’s untouched bowl of food.

  Emerald smiled and pushed the bowl to her friend. At least one of them would sleep with a full belly.

  “Did you tell them who you are?” Maple asked suddenly, stopping mid-bite to look at Emerald. Emerald was confused.

  “Yes, I told them I was the princess of Medina,” she responded. “They just laughed at me.”

  “No—I mean who you are to Elyria,” Maple said, her hushed voice growing more excited. She put down the bowl and turned as much as she could toward Emerald.

  “Elyria? My godmother?” Emerald asked, but Maple was already clearing her throat and waving at Mavis.

  “Excuse me! Um, Mrs. Queen Mavis?” Maple called. Mavis swung her head around angrily.

  “Whadda ya want?” she growled.

  “Oh, just a little thing really,” Maple responded sweetly. “I was just wondering if you knew who my friend here is.”

  Mavis rolled her eyes. “Yes, she’s a princess from some kingdom that doesn’t even know what tallyweed is,” Mavis said sarcastically.

  Maple turned surprised eyes on Emerald. “You don’t know what tallyweed is?”

  “Well, no, I mean I do now, but . . .” Emerald flushed a bit. She would bet there were plenty of other people—her parents included—who didn’t know what tallyweed was.

  “You are correct, Mrs. Queen Mavis, that Emerald is a princess,” Maple said, turning back to Mavis and ignoring Emerald’s embarrassment. “Princess of Medina. You might not have heard of her kingdom, but surely you know her godmother. The Wise Woman?”

  A sudden silence fell across the trolls and a look of panic filled Mavis’s face.

  “She’s Elyria’s goddaughter?” Mavis said, swallowing. “A human goddaughter?”

  “Yes,” Maple said, smiling triumphantly. “And she’s expecting us at her cottage very soon.”

  Chaos suddenly broke out in the cavern as the trolls began arguing about what they should do. Some started throwing stuff into canvas sacks as if they wanted to run away. Others held up their knives and insisted the best thing to do was to get rid of the evidence. One of the trolls curled up in the corner in the fetal position, rocking back and forth.

  “SILENCE,” boomed Mavis. The trolls, Emerald, and Maple alike all froze. Someone dropped a metal bowl and its clatter echoed through the cave like the clash of a dozen knights in full armor. Mavis glared around and everyone gulped guiltily. She then turned to Emerald, suddenly all full of rainbows and smiles.

  “Elyria’s goddaughter, eh? Well why didn’t you say so in the first place?” Mavis said as sweetly as she could with a voice like gravel. “Perse, untie Princess Emerald and her friends,” she directed. “They are our honored guests.”

  After Perse took the ropes off Emerald’s ankles, Emerald rubbed them and then jumped to her feet.

  “Porter!” She ran across the room to her injured friend. He was still groggy and half-unconscious but seemed to be slowly waking up. Maple joined her momentarily.

  “Does anyone have water?” Emerald asked. Mavis snapped her fingers and two smaller trolls brought over an urn of water and a grubby cloth.

  “How about some tallyweed tea?” Maple asked. Mavis looked as though she was about to protest giving away this precious resource, but Maple quickly added, “I’m sure Elyria will be glad to know how you helped her goddaughter’s injured friend.”

  Sighing, Mavis nodded to Perse and he ambled away to make the tea. Meanwhile, Emerald dipped the rag in water, squeezed out the excess, and put the cool cloth to Porter’s forehead. His eyes fluttered as he tried to focus on the image in front of him.

  “Wha . . .Where?” he mumbled.

  “Shh,” Emerald replied. “Take your time. Everything is okay.”

  Porter groaned and put a hand to his head.

  “Think you took a pretty good knock,” observed Maple.

  “Don’t worry. The tallyweed tea will fix you right up.”

  Though he certainly didn’t seem to be in any hurry, Perse returned in a short while with a steaming cup of hot tea. Emerald wrinkled her nose when she smelled it. It had an aroma of rotting meat. “Smells horrible but works like magic,” Maple promised. Emerald nodded at Porter who was now sitting up with his back against the cave to support him. He took the hot cup with trembling hands and, wrinkling his own nose, took a sip. His reaction said it all—it must taste just as bad as it smelled.

  “Drink it all and you’ll feel much better,” Maple urged. Sighing, Porter pinched his nose shut and finished the tea in two big gulps. His face turned a greyish green and he held his fist to his mouth as though he might not hold the tea down. Finally, though, he took a deep breath and smiled.

  “Wasn’t so bad.” He grinned weakly. “My head is already feeling better!”

  Relieved, Emerald turned back to the matter at hand—getting out of the cave and finding her godmother.

  “Thank you for your help,” Emerald said to Mavis sincerely.

  “I’m afraid we should be on our way. Could I trouble you for to guide us out of here?”

  “Of course,” Mavis said. “Can’t leave now, though. It’s the middle of the night. Wouldn’t do tuh let Elyria’s goddaughter wander around in these woods before sun up. First thing in tha morning we’ll set yas on yer way.”

  Emerald nodded in agreement. She didn’t really fancy heading out into the woods in the dark, even if the alternative was sleeping in a cave with a bunch of grumpy trolls.

  “First light, then,” she said.

  “Ya can take my bed,” Mavis said.

  “Oh, no, I couldn’t,” Emerald began to protest, but Mavis raised her hand.

  “No arguing, princess. Yer our guest. Ya’ll sleep in my bed,” Mavis said gruffly, gesturing for Emerald to follow her. Emerald looked down at Maple and Porter. Maple shrugged and Porter waved them on.

  “You two go. I’ll be fine here,” he insisted. Emerald began shaking her head, but Porter interrupted.

  “No arguing, Princess,” he said softly with a twinkle in his eye. He and Emerald smiled at each other then Emerald turned to Maple.

  “Okay, let’s follow Mavis,” she said. The two of them followed the leader of the trolls into a fairly spacious chamber off the main cave room. They were surprised to find that Mavis had a pretty comfortable looking bed. It was a feather mattress piled high with quilts that, although worn, looked clean. Two big down pillows were perched at the head of the bed.

  “Yas should be pretty comfortable here for the night,” Mavis said as she turned to look at Emerald and Maple. She shrugged at the surprise on their faces. “It’s nice to sleep on something soft after a hard day in the caves,” she explained simply.

  Emerald and Maple nodded.

  Mavis peered closely at Emerald. “I’m guessing yer parents don’t know where ya are, do they?” she asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.

  Emerald shook her head no.

  “Don’t keep them wondering too long.” Mavis looked thoughtful. “Children don’t know what they do to their parents. I have a son, ya know. Harry. Haven’t heard from him in almost a year.”

  “I’m sorry,” Emerald said solemnly. If trolls could cry, Mavis looked pretty close to it. Next to Emerald, Maple shifted uncomfortably.
r />   Mavis shrugged again and quickly regained her composure.

  “Had a fight with him before he disappeared,” she said.

  “Wish I could let him know I’m sorry. Ya’ll tell him, won’t you? If ya happen to run into Harry out there? I know it’s a long shot. Just want him to know I’m sorry.”

  “Yes, absolutely,” Emerald said. Mavis nodded and turned to go out. Over her shoulder she said, “See yas at first light. Sleep well.”

  After Mavis was gone, Emerald and Maple looked at each other.

  “Well that was . . . interesting,” Maple said. “I didn’t have her pegged as the sentimental type.”

  “I hope she finds her son,” Emerald said, with true concern and a bit of guilt. “And I hope my parents aren’t too worried. I should send them a message.”

  “I’m sure your godmother can help,” Maple suggested.

  “Now, don’t know about you but I’m ready to try out this bed.” She jumped into the pile of quilts and stretched luxuriously. “It’s actually pretty comfortable.”

  Emerald slid into the bed next to her and had to agree. It wasn’t quite her bed back at home, but it was cozy. She lay her head down on the pillow and, within minutes, was out.

  ***

  The next morning, she felt herself being gently nudged awake. At first, she thought she was back in the castle being awakened by Viola.

  “It’s time tuh go, Princess,” said Mavis in her gruff voice. Emerald rubbed her eyes and slowly the room came into focus. The ruddy brown of the cave walls was lit by a torch held by a sconce on one wall. Without a window for light, Emerald wondered how the trolls could tell day from night.

  “Hope you slept well,” Mavis said. “We’ve got fresh bread for the journey. Best get ya on your way soon if ya want to reach Elyria’s by nightfall.”

  “Are we that close?” Emerald asked in surprise.

  “Just about a day’s walk I’d say.”

  Emerald turned and shook Maple awake. “Maple, get up. We need to go.”

  Maple grunted and rolled over in the bed. “What time is it?” she asked groggily, squinting as she opened her eyes.

  “Just past sun up, I’d say,” Mavis responded.

  “Not sure how you could tell,” grumbled Maple. She definitely wasn’t a morning imp.

  A few minutes later they joined all the trolls and Porter in the main room in the cave. Emerald and Maple accepted hard but hot rolls from one of the trolls. They ate them along the way as they made their way back through the cave. It was a long walk, but finally they emerged into the bright light of the morning sun on the opposite side of the tunnel to where they had entered.

  “Here’s a couple more rolls for the journey,” Mavis said, handing a bag to Emerald. “And some tallyweed in case yas need it. Hope there’s no hard feelings.”

  “Thank you,” Emerald said, accepting the rolls and tallyweed gratefully. They’d lost their other bag in the confusion of the trolls capturing them. “No hard feelings. If we see your son, I’ll tell him you miss him.”

  “Thanks,” Mavis responded awkwardly. “Good luck.”

  She snapped her fingers and the trolls spun and marched back into the tunnel. Emerald turned and looked at her friends.

  “Let’s go find my godmother,” she said.

  Chapter Fourteen

  A HAPPY REUNION

  “Are we there yet?” whined Maple, petulantly kicking a stick in her path. She, Emerald, and Porter had been walking for hours, following the guiding stone. The bread the trolls had given them ran out after lunch and now it was getting close to dinner time.

  “Do you see a cottage?” Emerald replied testily. She was just as tired and hungry as Maple, but she was also doubting her ability to lead. Mavis said her godmother’s cabin was no more than a day’s walk from the cave, but the sun would be setting soon and they still hadn’t seen sign of any kind of habitation. She was starting to worry they’d taken a wrong turn.

  “Are you using that thing right?” Maple jumped up to try to see the stone in Emerald’s hand.

  “How should I know?” Emerald snapped, unable to hide her exasperation. “It’s not like it came with instructions. Do you want to give it a try?” She held the guiding stone out in an open hand to Maple. Maple eyed it but shook her head.

  “Ladies!” exclaimed Porter, throwing his hands into the air.

  “Arguing with each other isn’t going to help.”

  “I’m just so hungry,” Maple cried as she dramatically flopped down on the ground next to the path and flung a little arm over her head.

  “You’re always hungry,” grumbled Emerald, but she and Porter also stopped. She felt bad about her outburst. She wasn’t really mad at Maple. She was actually angry at herself. What was she thinking running off without any experience or the backup of Medina’s knights? Maybe she should have tried harder to convince her parents to let her help Maple and to push back her engagement.

  “It looks like we’re going north,” Porter said thoughtfully, looking around at the trees and sky.

  “How can you tell?”

  “Well, the sun for one thing.” Porter pointed at the fading golden light visible through the canopy of leaves above them.

  “It’s setting off to our left—the west—so we’re walking north. Most of the moss is also on that side of the tree,” he said, pointing in front of them. “Moss mostly grows on the north sides of trees.”

  “Oh.” Emerald was grateful he knew about things like what direction they were moving just by seeing where the moss was growing. She also felt ashamed she didn’t know more of that stuff herself. Sure, she’d spent the last seven years seriously training how to wield a bow or shoot an arrow, but what good did that do if she couldn’t even find her way to the enemy in the first place? Maybe her parents were right after all. Maybe there were some things a princess or queen just shouldn’t do—like run off to fight an evil king without any sort of real plan or knowledge of how to survive outside a castle. She was starting to doubt she was really up for the adventure she’d set out upon. She sighed deeply and kicked a stone.

  “I think we have about an hour of sunlight left,” Porter observed. “We could keep walking until it gets almost too dark. Set up camp if we need to.”

  “Yes, that’s probably best,” Emerald said uncertainly.

  “Maple, do you think you can make it?”

  “I’ll try,” Maple said with a dramatic sigh. She pulled herself off the ground and pretended to steady herself. Emerald and Porter both rolled their eyes.

  “Okay,” the imp said. “Let’s go.”

  The three friends continued until the path was nearly invisible in the gathering dark. The guiding stone offered some light, but the deepening shadows of the woods felt like they were closing in on them. Plus, Maple had taken to moaning like a dying dog. They did manage to find a few wild raspberries as they walked, but it did little more than take the sharpest edge off their hunger.

  They stopped as a stream interrupted the trail on which they were walking. It burbled invitingly and the three travelers fell to their knees and gulped down the fresh, cold water.

  “What do you think about camping here tonight?” Porter asked before taking another deep drink from the stream.

  “Yes, let’s,” Emerald responded, storing the stone in her pouch. “Even if we don’t have food, at least we have something to drink.”

  “And I can’t make it a step farther,” Maple said, theatrically throwing herself on a pile of leaves a short distance from the stream.

  Emerald and Porter pushed some leaves together and lay down close to Maple. Exhausted from their experience in the cave and a day full of walking, all three soon fell asleep.

  ***

  Bright beams of sunlight peaking through the forest canopy woke Emerald the next morning. She stretched luxuriously, enjoying the fresh air and natural light. After the scare of being held captive in a cave and not sure if she would ever get out, Emerald’s appreciation of the o
utdoors had grown enormously. The freshness of a new day also recharged her determination to tackle the challenges ahead. She pushed herself to a sitting position and looked down at her friends, who were still sleeping. Today she would find her godmother’s cottage. She wasn’t going to let them down.

  Emerald quietly stood and walked down to the creek to get a drink of water. She knelt and brought cupped hands full of the cold stuff to her mouth. As she swallowed, she looked up across the creek. The trail through the woods seemed to be intersected by a smaller path—this one dotted with shimmery pink and blue stepping stones. She squinted through the trees and undergrowth to follow the path up to a wooden door attached to a small . . . cottage! A cottage! Was this her godmother’s house? It had to be.

  Emerald darted back to her friends.

  “Porter, Maple! Get up! We’re here!”

  “Five more minutes,” mumbled Maple as she turned over. Porter, however, sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

  “Where are we?” he asked in a sleep-fogged voice. He looked a little bleary, but Emerald figured it was from sleeping in some uncomfortable spots the last couple of nights.

  “My godmother’s cottage,” Emerald said, impatiently nudging Maple with her foot. “At least I think it is.”

  “Why dontcha check it out and come get me when you’re sure,” Maple muttered, covering her eyes with her hands to block out the sunlight.

  “Okay,” said Emerald. “But if my godmother has food, I’ll probably eat first. After all, I’ll need the strength to make it back here.”

  Maple’s eyes shot open immediately. The talk of food was all that was needed to spur her to life. She quickly jumped to her feet. “What are we waiting for?” she demanded. “Come on! Chop chop!”

  Emerald rolled her eyes and Porter chuckled, but the three friends gathered up their few belongings and jumped across the creek. Emerald got a better look at the cottage as they drew closer. It was pretty but definitely not ostentatious. The cottage was simply constructed of red brick. Beautiful beds of pink, white, and red ranunculus rested under stained-glass windows that were slightly open on either side of the door. A thin ribbon of grey smoke curled from the brick chimney—a sign that the inhabitant was surely home.