The following morning, Rosalind woke up quite impatient and equally nervous to try her memory spell.
It was not a spell that either Rose or other Flower Fairies were supposed to know. It belonged exclusively to Forget-Me-Not Fairies, and one of them, a childhood friend of hers, taught it to her a long time ago, Rosalind explained to Celeste, Hans and Louise over breakfast. Back then, they used it for fun, to make their other friends, and Rosalind's Rose Elves forget things momentarily.
Even though it seemed innocent enough, the Rose Fairy said as the four of them walked down the beach, squinting their eyes against the strong sunshine and the cold wind, it was a serious spell and if carried out properly, and in its full extent, dangerous.
Moreover, and that's why she remembered it now, it was supposed to work the other way round as well and make lost memories return. But, Rosalind had never tried it this way, and when they finally entered the main tent, meeting Roza at the entrance, she looked really anxious.
They listened to the Rose Elf, who informed them quickly that Rolo and the birds left the camp at daybreak to explore the beach and the nearby cliffs. Then they all followed Celeste further inside, towards the long rows of beds.
"We have nothing to lose, Rosalind. You said it yourself, even if your magic won't be successful, it won't make anything worse. Just try it. Please. Let's see... the spider over there. He has been well enough to go home for days now, if only he remembered where he lives. Most of them are quite well, Rosalind, the swallow, the ladybird, the squirrel... If you manage to help them remember anything, you'll help them return to their lives, and they might tell us something about Blue as well. Any of them might have met him!" Celeste insisted.
"That's true, Rosalind. If it really is a safe spell that can not harm them, I think you should try it," Louise said.
"I agree with them. We need any information these creatures might provide," Hans added seriously, as he fished his notebook from his pouch.
"Fine. I'll do my best," Rosalind said, squaring her shoulders and taking a deep breath, then following Celeste to the spider's bed.
The Rose Fairy passed a few moments in intense concentration before she pointed her wand at the sleeping spider's forehead. After waving it around a few times in an intricate evolution and muttering a long stream of incomprehensible words, she stepped back and let Celeste wake the creature up gently.
"Good morning, how are you feeling today?" the Butterfly Fairy asked the spider cheerfully, as she most likely did every morning. She passed her patient a small tray with breakfast, which another butterfly, a girl with wings as large and white as those of angels, brought to her from an adjoining room of the tent. "Are you ready to go home?"
The little spider looked thoughtfully around himself before he said, "I... my name... is Hugh... and I have a wife, she'll be sick with worry! Celeste, I can remember!"
"Then you must thank Princess Rosalind." Celeste beamed at the Rose Fairy.
"Princess Rosalind! I... It's such an honour..."
"Please don't. I'm glad I could help," she said, approaching the spider again and kneeling by his bed to let him embrace her.
While the girls moved to the next bed, Hans was left with the spider, his notebook at the ready, to hear his story and see if the creature would tell them anything useful.
Soon they were joined by Blue's parents and more silent, white Butterfly Fairies, and by lunchtime, Celeste and a few more of those who possessed a magic wand were able to use Rosalind's spell to cure the memories of the ailing patients, while others kept trying to memorise it.
The magic was very complicated, and therefore, it was also exhausting. It was an early afternoon when Hans finally managed to persuade a very tired looking Rosalind to walk out of the tent with him and have a late lunch outside on the beach.
He wasn't so lucky with Louise, though. The girl insisted on staying inside and eating with the blue-green dragonfly. The poor old creature was so kind and gentle that her manners reminded Louise of her late grandmother, and now she wouldn't be separated from her.
So, leaving Louise in the tent with the patients and several white butterflies, he led Rosalind out on the beach, towards a small fire where Roza served meals for everyone who was hungry.
Rolo and two of their birds returned in the meantime, leaving Skylar on the cliffs as a sentinel. Now they were informing the inhabitants of the camp about what they discovered. There was no sign of the Wild Swans as yet, but there were huge storm clouds gathering on the horizon, far above the sea.
Dreading a new snowfall, Blue's parents suggested moving the tents upriver to a more protected place. Celeste and Rosalind were against the idea because they were afraid that the swans would not find them there. They proposed to strengthen and protect the camp instead by their magic.
When they finally agreed on what to do and Hans was about to show Rosalind-- who was so tired that she sat leaning into him, with her head resting on his shoulder-- his notes, a large crow landed nearby, making them all jump, and nearly extinguishing their fire by the strong gust of wind it caused by its flapping wings.
"Excuse me. Excuse me," It cawed as its passenger jumped off its back.
"Roslav! What are you doing here?" Rosalind exclaimed, recognising her cousin as she scrambled to her feet. "Did something happen?"
"Please don't be alarmed, Rosalind. One of your friends, a Tree Elf called Aspen, arrived soon after you had left. He said that it had snowed further inland, in the meadows, and also in the forest. A few flowers... did not survive. But your parents and friends are all well."
Rosalind nodded thoughtfully as her eyes filled with sadness. While the Blue Swallowtails approached Roslav, introducing themselves, then asking him a lot of questions about what exactly had passed, the Rose Fairy sat back down next to Hans and Celeste.
They watched as Roslav's crow hopped towards the other birds and noticed how their little group was joined by Roza and Rolo, asking more questions of the large, friendly crow.
When Blue's parents finally retired back into their tent, Roslav sat down by the fire next to Hans and the two fairies.
"I want to help you, Rosalind. I'm coming to find Blue into the Snow Queen's realm with you. We must try to stop her," he announced.
"Then I want to come too," Celeste said."
When Roslav looked at her, shaking his head seriously, she added, "I'm Celeste, Blue's sister. Of course I'm coming."
"And he is Roslav, my cousin." Rosalind said. "But none of you are coming with me. It will be very dangerous, I should just go on my own and not risk anyone else's li..."
"What are you talking about?" Hans protested. "You could never make it alone. You need someone to help you."
"But what if... because of me..." Rosalind whispered at a loss for words. It seemed that the fairy, tired as she was at the moment, realised the dangers of their apparently impossible mission properly for the first time.
"Blue is my brother, Rosalind," Celeste said, taking Rosalind's hand in hers, "I love him as much as you do."
"I know that, Celeste. But your parents and your patients, they all need you here. And you, Roslav, instead of coming with me, should help them to protect this place and its inhabitants. They'll need anyone who can do magic here."
Roslav looked behind them, towards the fragile looking tents huddled at the foot of the cliffs, nodding. "Rosalind might be right," he said gently, looking at Celeste. "If we all leave with her, who will protect your camp?"
"But... the creatures are healing..."
"And there will be more of them to look after as soon as the Wild Swans land," Rolo said, appearing in front of them unexpectedly. "Skylar has just returned. She saw the swans on the horizon, they will be here by nightfall."
"Thank you, Rolo!" Celeste called, jumping to her feet, filled with purpose. "We need to prepare more beds..." With that, she was off, running back towards the main tent, her beautiful blue wings undulating like the sea in the cold wind.
Rosalind stood up too and walked in the opposite direction, towards the coastline. She stopped at the very edge of the beach, not noticing the cold, rushing waves reaching out to the tips of her shoes dangerously, while she observed the horizon where she could still see nothing but the churning, grey clouds.
"Rosalind, you should go inside and rest. The butterflies won't need your memory spell until any of the creatures the swans might bring will be cared for and feeling well," Hans said, reaching for her arm and pulling the fairy farther away from the water as soon as he and Roslav approached her.
"But, what if they'll bring... him, Hans? I must wait, and see... if Blue..." she whispered, her eyes swimming with worries and tears she did not want to shed.
The two boys looked at each other, understanding that there was no way to talk reasonably with the anxious fairy at the moment.
"I'll stay with her," Hans said after a moment of silence only interrupted by the whispers of the sea and the escalating wind.
Roslav nodded, "I'll see if Celeste needs help."
Hans, lost in thought, watched for a few moments Roslav's figure retreating towards the white tents that suddenly buzzed with feverish activity before he turned back to Rosalind.
"If Blue is not with the swans, Louise and I are coming to the Snow Queen to find him with you, Rosalind. You are not leaving us behind," Hans said, falling into step with the Rose Fairy, who was now pacing up and down the beach.
He understood that it was important that Roslav and Celeste remained here, where their help was needed. But there was no point for himself and Louise to stay behind, and Rosalind could not possibly cross the sea and find Blue all alone...
"I... shouldn't have brought you two into this world. If only I knew how unsafe this place would become... But... Louise... And I knew that you would not let her come alone... and now I put both of you into dang..."
"Rosalind," Hans said, putting his hands on both of her shoulders, making her stop in her tracks. "Tell me what this means. You all seem to know something concerning Louise, us... All this secrecy... It's about her health and the reason why she seems to feel so much better in your world, isn't it? I must know, Rosalind."
The fairy pressed the palms of her hands over her tear-filled eyes. Taking a deep breath, she let her arms drop again, then looked directly at Hans.
"If you love her, Hans, then you must help me persuade her to stay here when the moment comes for you to go back. Do you remember the moment when I told you that I can see your future? Well, her future lies here. There's... not much left for her in your world. I told her everything, and she understands, but... I'm not sure that she will choose to stay because..."
"...I can not stay," Hans concluded.
Rosalind nodded, her large dark eyes boring into his. "I know it is not an easy decision... for either of you..."
They both looked towards the tents, then attracted by a sudden bright light coming from that direction. Most of the inhabitants of the butterfly camp, all those who were fit enough to walk, were standing outside, admiring a softly buzzing cupola of what looked like a translucent curtain of pinkish-white, pulsating northern lights.
"Roslav's protective spell," Rosalind muttered, a hint of a proud smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "Only we, Rose Fairies, know how to do this."
"If it means that she will live and will be happy... then I'll make her stay," Hans said, oblivious to Rosalind's words, as he looked to a spot where Louise stood by the entrance of the tent next to Celeste, smiling and clapping her hands happily like all the other creatures.
Rosalind turned to him and watched his serious, thoughtful face for a while, her eyes filling with new tears as Hans' tortured thoughts reached her mind.
She pulled him into a tight, encouraging embrace. "Let's join them," she whispered, wiping her tears with the sleeve of her coat quickly, then taking Hans' hand in hers and leading him across the beach, towards their other friends.