A lot of things went through Waverly's head; the first being that Lizzeth was still alive though pallid. It gladdened her that nothing fatal had happened to the girl, but it also brought up a lot of questions in her mind.
The voice of the Elf Lord snapped her back to present.
"Give the court a truthful account of what transpired between you and the accused."
Lizzeth stared at Waverly in a way that the latter could not translate. She was not sure if the servant was afraid, angry, thankful or resentful.
"I was bringing to the prisoner a food basket and wine in courtesy of Her Majesty, the Queen, as consolatory gifts for festivities of The Floom. I was going to take my leave after delivering the items when this Human said my name. It surprises me because I had never told her my name. She warned me not to go to the river when evening came. I never told her that this was my intention either. When I i questioned her on how she had known these things about me, she gave no reasonable answer and only pleaded with me further to put off going to the river. I left the prison and came straight to report the experience to Her Majesty."
"The council has heard you, Lizzeth. Young girl, do you plead guilty to said accusations or not?"
Waverly let her eyes drop and answered clearly. "Guilty."
"Very well. We will proceed to allow His Majesty. . ."
"Hamaliel." The King interjected.
"Your Majesty?" The inquisitor bowed.
"My Queen will say now something of importance in tis matter." Continued the King.
Waverly looked up, squinting to stare at the throne. Immediately, she noticed a second chair next to the King's. It was deep red and encrusted with precious stones on its head frame. A white haired woman sat on it, but her features were unclear.
The Queen's voice was even gentler than her husband's, and when she spoke, Waverly felt that she was being relieved of every single one of her crimes from childhood till that very moment.
"I would like for my servant to tell the court exactly what happened down at the river last night."
Waverly's gaze returned to Lizzeth quick enough to see the girl fidget and swallow nervously.
"You heard the Queen." Hamaliel prompted.
"I went down to the river with my fellow, Miniel. We wanted to watch the Floom that night." Lizzeth paused, staring blankly at the dividing board as if something dangerous was painted on it.
"Carry on, my dear." Hamaliel encouraged.
"After our swim, Miniel suggested that I return back to the palace and to my duties, and he to his. We had already left the river when I realized that I had forgotten my palace necklace. I entreated Miniel to wait for me while I went to retrieve it, but. . . there, I misstepped on the rocks and fell into the water. I hit my head and fell into a daze, and could not swim. I c-could have died, but Miniel came back to fetch me when he noticed I had taken too long. He pulled me out of the river."
Waverly suddenly understood why Lizzeth looked so pallid. She had indeed fallen in the river, but there was a second presence that had rescued her. Her chest fluttered – the vision had indeed happened, and because of her little twist, Lizzeth's life was saved.
The room was utterly silent, but the Queen's voice broke it rather soothingly.
"And what exactly did you tell me, Lizzeth, that this Human had pleaded with you to do before this happened?"
Lizzeth's bright eyes met Waverly's multicolored ones. "She pleaded that I take someone with me if I still intended to go to the river."
Silence dominated the room again.
"Did you say, Lizzeth, that the accused pleaded with you to take someone along when you visit the river?"
"Yes, Your Lordship." Lizzeth replied.
Inquisitor Hamaliel had an unbalanced expression on his face. "Well, a new development. It is assumed that the accused had some foreknowledge of the danger you were in, and it is our concern, and that of the King and his household to know how the accused has come to possess such foreknowledge."
The Inquisitor turned to Waverly. "Tell us, young lady, how did you know beforehand that the servant girl was in danger were she to go to the river, and how did you come by the knowledge of her name?"
Waverly felt her heart pounding. She could not reveal that she had had a clear vision about it. If she did, it would expose her as Zanaan and that was one thing she wanted to avoid by all means. Elves were good people, but she was not sure how fond they were of godly children. Although there was the exception of Brijjet, who had Elf blood in him and was fully acknowledged by the realm whereas in her case, she was purely Human.
Her eyes clocked to Brijjet.
There was no mistaking the look of concern that passed across his face. It was almost like he wanted to leap up to the dais and fabricate a believable story. Waverly thought hard. They had found one reason to tag her innocent and she could not afford to ruin it.
"Shew stones." She replied quickly, the idea solidifying in her mind.
"I beg your pardon?" Mash asked.
"I-I made use of shew stones to tell Lizzeth's fortune. I was under the training of a Gypsy before my arrival here in Alpgeton."
"And where is the evidence of these shew stones?" The Elf Lord inquired.
Waverly was about to reply when another Elf handed a box of crystals to the Inquisitor. She figured that her room had been searched after she was evacuated. The Inquisitor took a short examination of them adjusting his glasses every now and then to peer closely at the spheres.
"Hm. Those are shew stones alright, Your Majesty." Mash said to the King.
"I see indeed." The King murmured quite audibly. "Well without delay further, the girl i declare is free of tis particular charge against her for it was proved without doubt that she attempted to save a life. It is honorable a thing to do and Elven tradition will permit us not to overlook it."
Waverly's pounding heart began to return to a normal beat, slowly. She felt a tiny wave of relief.
"What is your judgement in regards to all the other charges then, Your Majesty?" Lord Mash inquired.
"Those in favor of punishment of the accused for an act of disrespect?" The King asked.
A wave of hands went up in the air from both sides of the council. Waverly instantly panicked.
"Those in favor of a sentence of probation?"
Another show of hands.
"It is a tie, Your Majesty. Twenty against twenty." Lord Mash stated.
"You did not count my vote." The Queen said coolly with her hand raised. "I am still a member of the King's Council, if i do remember correctly."
Lord Mash smiled apologetically. "Of course, Your Highness. A sentence of probation it is and will be. Avinanti!"
Waverly understood that the court had just been dismissed. She did not feel entirely relieved as she was yet to find out what a sentence of probation meant but she was at least relieved to be going away from the palace. She had not even realized how hot she was the entire time despite the coolness of the court.
The dais returned to the ground and Waverly stepped off. Brijjet had been led back out of the room and so she did not get a chance to speak to him. A guard approached and removed the bindings on her hands then led her outside.
She was made to wait in the shrine room again while the person in charge of her punishment was being summoned. When the door opened, the face Waverly saw was one she least expected.
The Elf Queen strolled into the room with Chedor behind her. Up close, Waverly thought she looked more elderly than she sounded. She had a kind face and a warm smile that gave Waverly a staggering reassurance that everything would be fine. Her white hair was graced with a golden laurel and her luminous dress shimmered with every movement.
Waverly forgot to bow as the Queen stared at her. A pointed look from Chedor quickly reminded her of her manners. She staggered in the attempt to kneel and this drew a small laughter from the Queen.
"You are very charming." She said.
"Apologies for forgetting my curtsies, Your Highness." Waverly said quickly.
"Oh, it is alright. Those who always stand before common men and have no knowledge of a royal etiquette should not be scolded for not displaying it for they will only make a jest out of themselves. Chedor, will you excuse us for a moment?"
Chedor bowed and exited the room.
The Queen glanced searchingly at Waverly with a warm smile plastered on her face.
"I have taken charge of your punishment. Leave it to my husband to throw sentences around without thinking how they will be implemented. I would rather you be put to good use."
"G-Good use?" Waverly asked suddenly going numb. Her mind conjured up an ugly image of her grinding mill for the rest of her days.
"Yes. What you did for my servant was plausible and whether or not she considers this a coincidental kindness, i for one will not take it so lightly. You see, i believe that everyone has a light in them. It is what they chose to do with it that matters. Most would snuff it out, some would ignore it until it dies away and others would tend to it until it is a bright flame. I believe you are not quite sure what to do with yours."
Waverly was confused as to why the Queen spoke the way she did but kept utterly still and silent. It was obvious that Queen Daya was an exceptionally wise woman beside the known fact that her kind held an heritage for wisdom.
"I see a very bright light in you. A very bright one. You have tried to snuff it, you have even ignored it but you are yet to tend to it to see what it will become. What it will make you become. This is the reason why i asked to take charge of your sentence. I want you to tend to that light; let it grow and let it make you into who you are meant to be."
Waverly felt entranced by the Queen's voice such that the words seemed to be floating before her eyes.
"I have decided what your sentence is already." Queen Daya said breaking the spell over Waverly. "You will serve under the King."
Waverly blinked.
"Chedor."
The officer immediately came back into the room leading Waverly to believe he had been standing right outside the door, probably eavesdropping without effort.
"Your Majesty!" Chedor bowed.
"You will take this young lady under your wing. . . What is your name again, my dear?"
"Waverly, Your Highness."
"Ah, what a strange name. Very foreign indeed but all is welcome here." She turned to Chedor. "Place her in training with the rest of your young soldiers. I have a strong faith that she will be an improvement to your academy."
"As you wish, Your Majesty." Chedor said, although his face clearly translated his absolute hatred for the idea. Waverly was not a fan of the idea either but it was a lot better than treading mill.
The Queen left the room allowing Chedor to glare holes into Waverly's face.
"Come with me and do well to keep your mouth shut." He growled turning to exit the room and that was the beginning of Waverly's troubles.
There were a lot of downsides to Waverly's subsequent removal from confinement; she lost the privilege of seeing Cassiope, she rarely wrote to HalfHyde and her panoramic vision returned to normal.
Chedor took her to join the Tyros, a bunch of new intakes for the King's army. King Javan was losing no time in preparing his realm for any surprise attacks. Waverly wondered if King Asherah had brought word to the Elf King about the vision from Selene and the sign from Gayl because the amount of soldiers combined with the kind of training they received was beyond readiness for mere surprise attacks.
It relaxed Waverly to learn that Elves were fully engaged as they were the ones who normally tipped the scales of battle. But it was also a sad realization that only Elves appeared to be making attempts to defend themselves from impending doom.
The training ground was the busiest, most complicated place in the entire realm. It was located in Nael, a few ways off from the forest and the sea. The whole place could have contained a second realm with ease. There were many training devices laid out in the open, some huge and others minute. There was a wide field full of obstacle courses, a dug up labyrinth for track races and punishment laps as Chedor explained, a wrestling ring, two climbing arenas, a test battle ground, an aerobatic coliseum, a wash and mess hall and last but not least, the camp sites.
Chedor showed Waverly around and laid down the rules in one breath. There were tons of them but a particular one stuck to Waverly's brain like a fly on the wall.
"No use of external weaponry unless provided by your superiors, are we clear?" He growled.
Waverly nodded in agreement, looking down at Calaire on her wrist. She concluded right then that the blade would remain dormant for as long as she remained in the army.
Chedor left her to follow a group of young Elves into the camp. Wood Elves had their building nearest to the forest with trees literally growing out of them, Snow Elves had singular small houses surrounded by snow covered fir trees and frozen lakes while the mix-breed had normal residences. Waverly was thinking she would have to wait to be sorted into one of these when someone spoke behind her.
"You can stay in any axis you choose, it's really not a bother."
Waverly turned and came face to face with a girl. She held a heap of neatly folded clothes in one arm and a pair of heavy boots in the other with mud dripping off them. For a split second, Waverly recognized the stranger then forgot where she had seen her before.
"You can come stay in my axis subdivision if you'd like. We're gonna roast marshmallows tonight." She said with a shrug and walked away.
Waverly remained standing for a while then thought to move as the outside was getting more and more deserted. She retraced the stranger's path and found her way into the portion meant for Wood Elves. Although the camp sites were divided, there was mix of every breed of Elf everywhere. It seemed that the younglings did not quite agree with the concept of being confined to their natural habitat.
Boys and girls brushed past Waverly; chattering, laughing and doing random things. Some folded clothes into their bags, others made their beds which Waverly saw was divided into bunks. The camp itself was an extensive hallway with many small rooms built to face each other and a long passageway in the middle. Each room had a door and a dark colored curtain, some of which were rolled up displaying the captivating interior decor.
Waverly strolled along the passageway without an idea where she was headed. Once in a while she would receive a glare for peering into a room or a half smile in welcome. Everyone was busy and loud so it was quite difficult to go up to someone and confess how lost she was.
Suddenly, a hand tapped her on the shoulder and she flinched in surprise.
"Easy. There you are. I was wondering if you would sleep outside, there's tigers in the woods. Come on in."
The girl tilted her head indicating for Waverly to join her inside. The room was smaller than Waverly had expected and it was open at the roof but a large transparent board rested on the outside of the hole that was meant to act as a seal to prevent rain or anything other than light from getting in.
"I'm Havilah." The girl introduced swinging the hair out of her eyes. She pointed one by one to the other Elves sitting in their own bunks.
"That's Phyllis."
"Hello." Phyllis waved. Her short hair was a vibrant purple.
"He's Regent."
Regent looked up from his metal contraption and flashed Waverly a smile. He was the only Snow Elf in the room.
"That's Ceylon."
Ceylon did not move or shift his gaze from the dagger he sharpened. The muddy boots Havilah had been holding were stationed near his bed.
"And that is Grace."
Grace was bigger than everyone else. She stood up and took intimidating steps toward Waverly who remained rooted to the spot.
"So. . . " Grace began, her voice was thick but far from intimidating. "Youse the chick who called Cheddy stupid."
Waverly's left eye twitched. "Correct."
Grace glared at her for a long time then smirked "Youse got guts. That old knicker deserve worse than a child telling him hese dumber than hese own feet."
Havilah chuckled then turned to face Waverly. "I believe Queen Daya brought you here. She's very kind. She believes we can all be great women someday."
Regent cleared his throat in a betoning manner.
"Um, women and men." Havilah corrected, suppressing laughter. "You haven't told us your name."
"Waverly."
"Why, were you born in the middle of the ocean?" Phyllis asked with a baffled expression.
"No."
"We had a Waverly here once. . ." Ceylon spoke for the first time in a flat tone with his face still lowered . "She drowned."
"Ignore him." Regent offered. "He's a sour puss."
"You're a dumb can head." Ceylon retorted and aggressively threw his dagger at Regent but the latter caught it by the hilt.
"Work on your aim elsewhere, Ceylon." Regent glowered and dropped the dagger.
Havilah turned to look at Waverly with a half but reassuring smile. "I'm sure you'll have lots of fun with us here."
Waverly suddenly remembered where she had seen the Elfin before. "It was you."
Havilah raised an eyebrow. "Me?"
"You strangled that snake up on a tree. And you were talking to. . ." Waverly pointed at Regent. "Him."
"Oh." Havilah exclaimed with a soft chuckle then her expression turned curious. "You saw that?"
"Yes." Waverly replied.
"What a funny fate that we would be in the same room now." Havilah stated. "You can have that bunk next to Phyllis. We have a big party tonight."
Waverly felt completely welcome that night. She had never tasted marshmallows before and thought that they were really good. Over a hundred Elves gathered around in the field to have fun. A bunch of snow elves made sleet pour from the sky and pretty soon, the Floom began to manifest.
Waverly's mouth hung open in awe as she watched the colors ignite the snow bathing everything in warm colors. Regent stood up and rolled up a glowing green snowball then tossed it at an Elf on the far side of the field. It whacked him right in the ear.
"Chicken!" Regent yelled into his hands which he cupped around his mouth to magnify the sound of his voice.
A yellow snowball came flying back. Regent ducked and it smacked Grace in the face.
"Bull spit." She cursed and rolled up a mountain sized snowball of her own. It blared red.
"Uh oh." Havilah exclaimed. The ball sailed overhead and landed on two people at once. Immediately, a snowball fight broke out. Colorful balls flew everywhere like cannons, a few found a resting place atop Waverly's head.
"So tell me, did you travel here as a wanderer or did you come to visit a relative?" Havilah asked plucking her marshmallow off its stick.
"I was hurt. Myself and a friend." Waverly winced as if uttering the word friend had cut her. "Chryselephants found us and brought us here."
Havilah's eyes bulged. "You rode them?"
"I do not remember but i guess so." Waverly shrugged.
"That is amazing." Havilah mused then recollected herself. "So, what do you think? Is it true that a war's coming?"
Waverly hesitated. A snowball whizzed past her neck. "It is possible."
Havilah nodded. "Yeah. I think so too. If there wasn't, the King wouldn't have sent that much Company out. And we wouldn't be here."
"Company?" Waverly asked.
Havilah glanced at her shortly. "Yes. He sent out a cavalry a few months ago, just to check on things. They came back with no news then the troops went and came back short of men. He's sent fleet soldiers too but they said they didn't notice anything strange. The Company came back with a different story."
"What story?" Waverly asked carefully.
Havilah shrugged casually. "They reported that children were missing in some realms. Someone or something was kidnapping them and ripping out their souls. They found hundreds of dead bodies. It was horrible. Then the attacks followed, the fires and the hostages."
"Do they know who is behind it?"
Havilah put down her stick and instinctively dodged a snowball aimed at her head. "I think not but whoever they are is trying to keep it quiet. I don't think that's working out so well. They trap locals in the town after scavenging, seal the borders and don't let anyone in or out. That way help can't come and people won't find out what's going on."
"It is terrible indeed." Waverly whispered.
"It is but i think it is smart." Havilah quickly raised placating a hand when Waverly's face paled. "I say so because these attacks tell us exactly what kind of foe we'll be facing soon. They're sly and secretive. Formidable and dangerous. If we're going to beat them or at least try to, we'll have to be double of what they are - wilier, stealthier, deadlier and more difficult to defeat."
Waverly gazed at Havilah as she picked up her empty stick and began to shove it into the dying flames.
"I think you should be our leader. You have a lot of brilliance."
Havilah smiled. "Thanks but i don't think i could ever lead, at least not this bunch."
"Why?" Waverly asked curiously.
"Because. . ." Havilah gestured dramatically to the rowdy field of snowball throwing Elves. "Meet the bunch."
They both burst into laughter.
That night, Waverly gazed up at the moon for hours unable to sleep. Her mind was racketing with numerous thoughts at once that it felt strangely loud inside her head. She felt happy seeing the moon again after so many nights in confinement but wished her mother would speak to her in one way or another.
"If you can hear me. . ." She whispered softly. "Find Jud. Please. Tell him. . . tell him. . ."
Waverly turned and shut her eyes unable to say more, hot tears dropping against her pillow.
The next morning or it felt like only a few seconds later, someone shook Waverly awake. She opened her eyes and found Phyllis staring at her full in the face with a look of panic.
"You're late. Chedor is mad." Phyllis said.
Waverly hurriedly prepared herself and joined the others in the training ground. Phyllis was right. She was the last one to leave the axis and Chedor was not smiling when she walked up to the line with every eye peering at her. Waverly realized with a slight twinge of embarrassment that she was probably the smallest and youngest person in the crowd as well as being the only Human.
"So. . ." Chedor began loudly, looking heatedly in her direction yet his voice was calm. The sun was high in the sky but it gave off a dull light that made the leaves in the cherry trees around them look pale.
"Already breaking rules on your first day? I see. Why don't you show us your sparring skills then if you're so eager to make yourself known?"
Chedor received a sword from another Elf standing next to him. He turned to face the crowd of trainees. His eyes clocked from one to the other then he threw the sword at a boy.
"You." He said simply.
The boy caught the sword and came forth. He was a good three inches taller than Waverly and had a sturdy build despite his young face.
"What is your name, young soldier?" Chedor asked.
"Thaw, Sir." The boy replied.
"Okay, Thaw. You. . ." He received another sword and threw it to Waverly who failed to catch it and got a cut instead. "will teach little miss important here, how to spar like an Elf."
"Yes Sir." Thaw said.
Waverly walked forward and stood opposite Thaw. The crowd gave them a wide circular berth. Waverly noticed that the ground was plain concrete and risking a fall would be dangerous to her skin.
"Whenever you're ready." Chedor said flatly.
Thaw struck first, wasting no time in knocking Waverly's sword out of her hands. In another second, he had his blade under her chin. Waverly realized that she was trembling from head to foot.
We have fought a god once. This is outrageous! A voice, probably Waverly 2, yelled in her head.
The students snickered and murmured to one another. She turned and found Chedor staring daggers at her.
"One more time. It seems she does not have the stuff it takes." Chedor said and the Elf next to him smiled. "Only showing off by drawing her own weapon against me.
"Spar harder." He growled.
Waverly picked up her weapon and came back to stand in her position. Her eyes inadvertently found Havilah's who nodded in encouragement.
Thaw came again but Waverly was ready. She side stepped and whacked him in the back with the flat of her blade causing him to stagger forward in the most awkward manner. A burst of laughter erupted. The sword in Waverly's hand was unusually heavier than Calaire and could easily fall out of her grip at any moment but she kept a tight hold on the hilt.
"Lose ye sword and ye head already ye has lost." HalfHyde had warned her time and time again.
Thaw made intimidating wrist movements with his sword and came in for the offense. Waverly paid attention to his moves and struck wherever he left an opening. The more they fought, the easier it was to spot the Elf's weaknesses. Waverly concluded that he had only looked intimidating and was not so great with a blade.
Her movements became even swifter; years of sparring sessions with HalfHyde manifesting in every blow, parry and thrust. She knocked Thaw's sword away and this time, it was her blade under his chin.
A single applause came from the crowd then quickly died out. Waverly did not need to look to know that it was Havilah.
She picked up Thaw's fallen sword and returned it to him, his face contorted in embarrassment and anger.
"That was boring." Chedor commented dismissively and moved from the metal structure he had been leaning on. "Fall in line."
The Elves rearranged themselves in long lines. Waverly went to stand behind Havilah, examining the cut on her palm.
"That was great. Where did you learn to fight like that?" She whispered.
Waverly's eyes were down. "My father taught me. He is an Elf."
For the rest of the day and the days that followed, Waverly became a target of mockery and jest for the others in camp, mostly the Wood Elves. Her luck with Chedor did not improve either as he used every opportunity he could find to embarrass her or make her look incompetent. Havilah was her only support system as even her other roommates sometimes jeered and sniggered whenever someone pulled a prank on her.
"Just relax. They'll tire out soon and leave you alone." Havilah regularly comforted.
"They're doing this cause you're smaller and well, shorter and smart enough to avoid trouble. Half the lot of them couldn't keep their hands by their sides if they can help it."
The following week was even sourer than ever. Waverly would go to her bunk and find unpleasant things in her bed; ants in her boot, roaches in her meal, ugly sketches of her mismatched eyes in her bag and bird droppings on her pillow. It was easier to pull this off as her bunk was stationed directly under the skylight of their subdivision.
"Don't think too much of it." Havilah said, sounding a bit annoyed. "I would put a dent in their teeth if it wouldn't get me bathroom duty for a month. I have allergies."
From time to time, Waverly was set against better swordsmen to diminish the little confidence she had in her fighting skills. No one really taught her anything new or made an attempt to improve her skill set. Chedor constantly threatened to report her lackadaisical attitude and tacky skills to the Queen and have them imprison her for life.
"If you cannot improve within the next season, to the guardhouse with you." He snarled.
A month passed and another with it. One month before The Floom season ended, Waverly received a surprise visit. A head passed through the wall of her room nearly shocking her to death.
The intruder gave a wide smile, a white and grey pigeon rested on her purple fingers.
"Hello, friend Waverly." Cassiope beamed.
"You came to see me." Waverly cried and embraced Cassiope in a tight hug.
"Yes. I have been looking for you, i have. No people to ask where you have gone. I waited in the room and you did not come back so i searched for you, i did, everywhere i did. Me and Goody."
Waverly stepped back and watched her friend explain. Cassiope lifted the bird for emphasis as she spoke.
"I went all around the forest asking my sisters and my cousins if they saw you but none of them did. Then Lilybelle told me, she told me you were taken to face trial. She saw you pass by in the moving horse cage. So she tells me to search the training grounds but the mean big Elves will not let me pass then i met those boys, i did. The two of them who look the same. One of them tells me you are in here and here i am."
Waverly raised an eyebrow. She did not expect Dermot and Diarmaid to be a part of Cassiope's story and it sort of stung that she had not bumped into Brijjet instead.
"Where did you see them?" Waverly asked.
"Outside. I mean, they are inside the forest and oh, they asked me to fetch you."
"Fetch me? What for? I will not be allowed to leave."
Cassiope bopped gently on her feet. "Yes. They mentioned that. Here!" She handed Waverly a sealed letter about half the size of a normal parchment.
Waverly flipped the letter over and over. The seal on it was gold with a four headed lion in the middle. "What am i to do with this?"
"Eat it." Cassiope giggled.
"Huhn?"
The nature spirit was taken aback, she placed a hand against her lip muttering to herself. "No, i do not think she should eat it. What did he say? Ooh, oh, submit it."
"Is it a letter to excuse me from training?"
"I guess it is so. You should come now. They are waiting."
Cassiope led Waverly to a building which she called money nation then later corrected to administration. There, Waverly submitted her letter and was permitted to leave the training ground.
Cassiope took her into the forest just past the camp site. They went deeper into it until the noise of the camp completely faded behind them. Soon they came to a wood where powerful oak trees grew in a circle allowing for space in the middle. Waverly was breathless by the time they arrived, she realized that Cassiope had simply floated to the camp and so she had not felt the distance.
"I wonder where. . . they got a letter of pardon from." Waverly said breathlessly, leaning against a tree. Something dropped heavily from above it and she gave a fearful shriek.
"It's easy if you can fake a signature and the royal seal." Diarmaid said, rising to his feet in front of her. He flashed a mischievous smile and she grinned back.
"There she is. I was beginning to worry that you'd decide to play the good card and refuse our invitation." Dermot added, walking toward them from a distance.
Waverly gazed at the brothers realizing she could no longer tell them apart.
"It's okay. I'm Dermot." Dermot said, reading the confusion on her face.
"He's probably lying." Diarmaid added with a shrug.
"It is good to see you both but why have you brought me all the way here?" Waverly asked.
"Isn't it obvious? We're dying to hear what landed you a trial." Diarmaid said.
"We've lived for years and years and nothing we've ever done has gotten us that much recognition." Dermot added.
"Is that all?" Waverly asked, lifting a eyebrow.
Dermot vibrated from a short laugh, a melodious sound Waverly found she enjoyed hearing. "Bloody no. We're going to have some wicked fun."
"Show you stuff you've never seen before and teach you new stuff too. We hear you're having a bad time in camp, those ninnies better watch out." Diarmaid said.
"Can i come along?" Cassiope asked.
"Yes of course. We definitely would need an audience." Dermot added and led the way.