The sun outside the cabin window is high in the sky the next morning. I'm still in bed. It's Saturday; there are no classes, so I intend to hide under the covers all day and cry about Pierce and feel sorry for myself. One minute I'm furious with him for lying to me. The next, I'm wondering if maybe he had a good reason. I want there to be a good reason, I really, really do. I was awful to him because I was so mad. But I can't stop thinking I should've given him a chance to explain.
Outside the window, I think I see a flash of pale skin and dark hair running through the redwoods, but it must be my mind playing tricks with me. Pierce was expelled.
I remember after the picnic when he was talking in his sleep. He said, "Don't go. I'm sorry." I knew then he was hiding something but didn't want to make a big deal about it. Then I think about the feeling of waking in his arms and the kiss that followed, and I'm undone. I'm doing some super impressive whimpering when someone rips the covers off of me. It's cold! I try to grab them, but Pickles has tossed them on to the floor.
"Pickles! Give those back!"
"You are not staying in bed all day long and feeling sorry for yourself. Come on. Get up."
"Go away." I cover my face with the pillow. She tries to wrench that away as well. As if a fairy godmother could wrestle a pillow from a mermaid! I pull really hard, and I hear a thump.
"Ouch!"
I sit up so fast, my head spins. Pickles is on the floor, legs in the air.
"I always forget how strong you are," she says.
I hop out of bed, muscles aching from my dealings with the great white seagulls yesterday; at least the scratches are healed. I reach down to help her up. "I'm sorry, Pickles. Oh, no, your hands are so clammy."
"It's okay." She sneezes.
Hades harmonicas. I get a good look at her. Pickles looks terrible. Her red hair is as bushy as Thunder's. Her skin is so pale, I can see faint outlines of the veins beneath. Her blue dress is on backward. Her nose is as red as coral. Here I am feeling sorry for myself while my best friend is clearly very sick. I am a terrible mermaid.
"Pickles, what's wrong?"
"The fairy flu, remember? It's getting worse."
I lead her over to my bed and sit her down. I get my blankets and wrap them around her shoulders. "Do you want some tea?"
"No, thanks. I've already had six cups today. Lily-Bella made them."
Lily-Bella is taking care of Pickles when it should've been me.
"Why is it so quiet? Where is everyone?"
"Outside. Cupid has a surprise for us."
"Really? Well, if Cupid says he has a surprise, it's bound to be weird. Every single thing that god does is a surprise."
Pickles gives me a weak smile.
"Yeah. He says you should get dressed quickly."
"I need to talk to my dad."
"I heard at breakfast that your dad and the headmaster are off at an important meeting all day. They'll be back tonight."
"Oh, no."
"What is it?"
"Pickles, we learned some terrible things last night on the yacht. I need to tell my dad that Sharkweather is the one dumping toxins in the bay, but he is being blackmailed by someone."
"Who?"
"I couldn't see him, and I didn't recognize his voice. I overheard him threatening Sharkweather. He said he wants more merfolk enrolled in the school, but Sharkweather said there were spies at the school and that the merfolk royal family is involved. Then the mystery man suggested he could use me, but Sharkweather told him that my father had arranged for a bodyguard. That's how I found out Pierce was only spending time with me because my dad hired him."
"You really believe Pierce was only with you because they paid him to be?"
"Uh, well ..."
"I thought you were smart. Pierce is crazy in love with you, you idiot."
"You're only saying this to make me feel better. Because that's what best friends do."
"Waverly Marie Fishwater, I would never do that. Best friends are honest with each other!"
"I'm sorry, Pickles. Of course, they are. I guess I'm afraid to hope that Pierce does care about me."
Pickles shakes her head. "Oh, Waverly."
"So now I don't know what to do about Sharkweather. There's a pickup of more toxic waste happening tonight near Pierce's Point. But I can't leave the school to investigate. And Pierce is gone."
"Waverly, there's nothing you can do right now."
"I wish I could tell my dad what I know."
"Leave him a note."
"Good idea."
I'm finishing up the note when I hear Cupid calling: "Waverly! Pickles!" I look up and see he's watching us through the open window of the girls' bedroom. I have no idea how long he's been there. "Enough of your little girl-fest. Time for my surprise. Never again keep a god waiting. You never know what wrath he might bring upon you." He waves his hand, and the dark green curtains are now a lime green Hawaiian print. "Fairy grove in five."
Before Cupid gets carried away with the Hawaiian theme and I end up in a hula skirt, I get up and rummage through the clothes on the floor. Since we're in a hurry, I say, "I wish I were already dressed."
Tears spring from her eyes.
"What did I say? Oh, I'm sorry, Pickles. I didn't mean to take advantage of you. I'll find something to wear."
"It's not that, Waverly. It's the flu. I've lost my magic. Please don't tell anyone, though. Not until I figure out what to do."
"No! You poor thing. How long will it last?"
She exhales. "Waverly, it's happening because I'm in violation of a major F.G. Law by dating Fintan."
"What?" I am aghast.
She points to her bed, where I find the F.G. Handbook. It's open to the page titled Fairy Flu:
Any fairy who breaks one of the ten major laws of fairy shall have her powers stripped, and shall endure the ravages of fairy flu, until said behavior ceases, and she is reinstated by a Level One Fairy.
"That's horrible, Pickles. It's so unfair."
"I broke the rules."
"You are the best person I know. The rules are wrong. No one else can tell you whom you should or shouldn't love. We need to change the law. Fight it."
"It's been like this for thousands of years. Even if the law changed, I'd be shunned by fairy society. My parents would disown me."
"You, my friend, are guilty of loving someone who is warm and kind and in love with you too. If that's a crime, then it's one you should commit. You can't break up with Fintan. He'd be devastated, and so would you."
"I know."
I scoop her into a one-armed embrace, smoothing her hair with the other hand. "We will figure this out, Pickles. I promise you!"
She pulls away and wipes her hazel eyes with her fist. She smiles, just a little. "You know what, Wave?"
"What?"
"I know this makes no sense. I know the law is strictly enforced. But somehow, I still believe you. If Waverly Marie Fishwater says she is going to do something, she does."
"I appreciate your confidence in me, Pickles. I can stir up a bit of trouble when provoked."
"I noticed." She smiles again, and I am so happy, I throw on the closest articles of clothing without paying attention to what they are. Jay the junco flies onto my shoulder. It's not until we are outside the cabin, holding hands and halfway to the fairy grove, that I notice I'm wearing a pink t-shirt, pink sweater, and a pink skirt. At least there are no sparkles!
After dropping off the note at Dad's cabin, Pickles and I walk down the path through the forest. Jay perches on Pickles' head. We find Cupid standing in the middle of the grove with Lily-Bella, Shelly, Fintan, Thunder, and Shelly, who's wearing her customary mask of unpleasantness. She's trying to communicate with me telepathically, but I close her off. I decide not to say anything mean to her, just in case she hasn't told her dad yet that I was on the yacht last night. She seemed to be kind of mad at him too, so maybe she's kept it to herself. But even so, I don't want her in my head.
The sunlight is magical, filtering through the trees. Birds are singing. The air still smells a little like smoke, but miraculously, none of the trees are even charred. Whatever Fintan is, he is truly a marvel. He walks over to Pickles, touches her forehead, removes his red sweater, and wraps it around her shoulders.
"Glad you could join us," says Cupid. "Nice pink, Wave." He winks. "Sure you wouldn't prefer a grass skirt?"
I purse my lips at him. "I am totally sure. What's going on?"
"Cupid won't tell us," Lily-Bella says, grinning. She and Thunder are holding hands, and I am delighted for them, but also maybe I'm a little jealous. "I think it's going to be dangerous!"
"I hope so," says Thunder.
The ground shakes. The trees quiver, and redwood needles rain upon our heads. Jay takes off and disappears in the forest. Even though the sky is clear, the sound of thunder rumbles through the grove. Cupid looks up and so do the rest of us. Something gold is flying straight at us. It's coming so fast, I can't make out what it is. It hovers for a moment over the grove, then plummets. We scramble out of the way, right before it lands with a boom. Dust and redwood needles fly. Once the dust settles, I can finally see what it is: a golden, jewel-encrusted chariot led by four winged, golden-horned unicorns. They whinny, flap their wings, and paw anxiously at the ground. "Flying unicorns?"
"Red Velvet, Sprinkles, Mocha, 'Nilla! Come on, Cupcakes. Chill!" Cupid's voice thunders through the grove. "They're not unicorns, Wave, they're alicorns—winged unicorns. Very rare," Cupid says in a less frightening tone.
The alicorns' bright blue eyes look a little crazed, but they stand as still as marble statues.
"Cool landing," says Thunder.
"Can I pet them?" says Pickles.
"Can I fly one?" says Lily-Bella.
"What are these interesting sun carvings on the sides of the chariot?" asks Fintan.
"Can we just get this meeting started?" Shelly ties her hair in a ponytail. "I've got to do a pedicure before my date tonight."
I know she wants me to ask whom she's going out with, but I don't. I turn back to Cupid. "What's going on?"
"We are going to a special location to conduct the next Halloween Gala planning meeting. I'm getting rather bored being on campus."
"Uh, well, you all have fun," I say. "I'm not allowed to leave."
"Already talked to your dad, Wave," Cupid says. "Asked if it was okay for you to stay on the planning committee and come to the meeting today. He said it was a good idea. He thought it best if you stayed busy doing something 'productive.'" Cupid makes little golden finger quotes in the air. They dissipate after a second or two. "He signed a permission slip for you to get past Iridessa's wards."
"You're sure?" I narrow my eyes at Cupid.
"Yep." He pulls a square of parchment out of his pocket, flashes it at me, and then puts it away before I can even read it.
Do I trust him? "That better be real, love god."
Cupid smiles and claps his hands. "Glad that's settled. Everyone, hop in."
"Nice ride," says Thunder.
"It's not mine. It's my Uncle Apollo's. Now, get in quickly. Got to get this rig back before ..."
"Before what?" I say.
"Never mind."
Cupid opens a little golden door, and we pile in. The seats are covered with crushed purple velvet, and the floor is translucent glass. "Okay, Cupcakes," says Cupid. The alicorns paw at the ground and spread their wings. The chariot bobs a few feet in the air. Cupid jumps in last, gathers the golden reins, and yells, "Liftoff!"
The chariot leaps straight up, and once we're clear of the treetops, it launches into something faster than turboswim. I'm clutching the seat, and someone is screaming. Oh, wait, it's me!
The sky is a blur. So is the ground beneath the glass bottom of the chariot. The wind is rushing at us so fiercely, my long green hair flaps wildly.
"Control your hair," Shelly says, batting my hair away from her face.
"Sorry." I can feel her telepathically pushing against my brain. I increase my protections against her invasion. She looks so distressed; I almost let down my guard. But I don't because it could be a ploy on her part.
The chariot climbs so high it becomes difficult to breathe. We are in the stratosphere. I can actually see the curvature of the earth. It would be breathtaking, but since I can't breathe, I'll just say it's stunning. I'm feeling dizzy and worried I might black out, but before this happens, the chariot plummets. I'm screaming again. So are Pickles and Shelly. Fintan is stoic as ever. Thunder and Lily-Bella are grinning, and Cupid keeps turning back from driving the alicorns to look at Pickles and Shelly and me. He seems to enjoy our fear immensely. I stop screaming and glare just to spite him.
We are dropping toward a mountain shrouded in clouds. As we pass through them, the air becomes moist and smells of honeysuckle. In moments we land in a courtyard paved in black marble and surrounded by twelve golden temples. Between the temples are gardens carpeted with gold, red, purple, orange, blue, and pink flowers, marble fountains, and topiary shaped like the gods and goddesses themselves.
My jaw drops in disbelief. "What is this place?" I say in-between huge gulps of air.
"We're on Mount Olympus," Cupid says. "Quick. Get out. My mom's place is over there." We walk through the courtyard towards a golden palace with a marble statue of Cupid as a baby out front. "Ignore that stupid statue. Mom thinks it's adorable. This is why I rarely bring friends up here. Imagine bringing a date home, and your mother starts showing off your naked baby statues. Ugh!"
Mount Olympus. Really? I can't believe I am here. I wonder if I could meet Poseidon? That would be incredible. "Where is everyone?"
"Big meeting down at Uncle Hades' place. Come on, we will need to finish our meeting and leave here before they get back."
"Don't we have to take care of the alicorns or something?" I say.
"No, they'll be fine. But I won't be unless we get out of here before Uncle Apollo returns and finds out I stole, I mean borrowed, his most prized possession."
He hustles us into the palace through tall doors decorated with heart-shaped rubies. The cavernous hallway smells like mint and rosemary. Our footsteps echo off of the walls and thirty-foot high ceilings. All around us are sculptures of Aphrodite and Cupid and oil paintings depicting couples in love. A pang of sorrow hits me in the gut when I see the pictures. I really miss Pierce, and I'm worried about him. Where has he gone? Why won't my dad tell me?
Thunder leaps up, trying to touch the ceiling, and nearly does. "This is incredible, man. Why are you living in a cabin when you could be here?"
"Live with mother?" he says in horror. "I would rather live with Uncle Hades than here. Would you want to live with your mother, wolf?"
"No way, dude. My mother still tries to carry me by the neck with her mouth. It's mortifying."
It makes me feel better that other people have the same parental issues that I do. Namely, the fact that they are so embarrassing.
"Come see my favorite room," Cupid says. He's practically jumping up and down. This can only mean one thing.
"Your bedroom, I presume?"
"How'd ya know?" Cupid says, grinning.
"Maybe we should have our meeting in the hallway," I suggest.
"No way." He looks at the paintings and shudders. "Not with all those people watching us. Come on; it's through here."
As we follow him, I notice that the eyes of the people in the paintings do seem to follow us. It's creepy and disturbing. I hustle after Cupid, not wanting to be left alone with the artwork. When I catch up with the group, I notice Shelly has lagged. She's lingering outside the door to Cupid's bedroom.
She grabs my arm. "I need to talk to you," she says.
"Come on, ladies." Cupid beckons from inside. "Time for our meeting."
Shelly sighs in frustration but lets go of me. We follow him into what looks more like a boudoir than a bedroom.
There is sultry jazz music playing, but I'm not sure where it's coming from. It's warm in Cupid's room. It feels like sunlight is hitting my skin, but the only sun is coming through a bank of windows at the far end of the room. They overlook a garden of red and pink roses. His room smells like cinnamon rolls. There is shag carpet, a chaise, a love seat, heart-themed flocked wallpaper, Hawaiian print curtains, and a giant round bed in the center of the room covered in dark red silk sheets, with pink pillows strewn across the top. All the other furniture is gold. There is a collection of bow ties pinned in rows that occupies an entire wall and another wall with posters of attractive humans—I think they are human celebrities, some in more clothing than others. A disco ball hangs from the ceiling, and there are lava lamps boiling in reds and pinks and yellows on every flat surface in the room.
Cupid stretches across his bed. At least he bothers to make sure his short toga is covering his 'bits.' Pickles sits in a wing-backed chair. Fintan is across the room by the fireplace, pacing, smoke streaming from his ears. A fire ignites, even though there wasn't even any wood in the grate.
Thunder and Lily-Bella are on the pink satin loveseat. Shelly takes the chaise close to the bed. There are no other seats. Cupid pats the bed. "Come on, Wave. Right here."
"I'll stand."
"Nonsense. Come on. I don't bite." I raise my eyebrows at him. "Okay, I do bite, but I promise not to bite you. Today." He wriggles his eyebrows.
I roll my eyes and sit on the edge of the bed as far from him as I can.
"Okay. I hereby call the second meeting of the Halloween Gala Planning Committee to order." A golden gavel appears in Cupid's hand. He uses it to hit the bed knob. "I am sorry that we have to continue planning without one of our members present." Cupid looks at me. I barely hold it together. "But we only have a month left, and there is much to do. I now deputize Pickles and Thunder to serve on the committee with us. All in favor?"
We all say 'yes.' Am I really going to sit here and plan a party when there are so many more important things to worry about? But everyone is having such a good time. I don't want to spoil it. After we finish talking about the Halloween Gala, I'll fill everyone in on what we learned on the yacht. Hopefully, together, we can come up with a brilliant idea about what to do.
"Excellent. I understand the food committee met with some problems in the cafeteria and haven't come up with any solid suggestions. Anyone?"
"Pizza," I manage to say, even though party planning is not what I want to be doing right now. Cupid touches my shoulder, and I feel that sense of calm flow over me. "With garlic."
"Excellent choice. Anyone else?"
"Raw meatballs," says Lily-Bella, looking up at Thunder. He kisses her head.
"And blood," Shelly says, of course.
"Cupcakes too," says Lily-Bella.
"You know, I'm rather hungry," says Cupid. "Anyone for Chinese?"
"What?" I say.
"Takeout," Cupid says.
"You have takeout on Mt. Olympus?" I say. This is a human thing. I've heard people at the boardwalk talking about it.
"Wave, honey, we have everything on Mt. Olympus."
Ten minutes later, we are tucking into chow mein, sweet and sour pork, white rice, and a bunch of other things I don't recognize. I have no clue how to use chopsticks, so I've taken to spearing my food. The pork is sweet and salty and melts in my mouth. It is almost as good as corn dogs saturated with mustard! Turns out, I was starving. I barely chew before putting the next bite in my mouth. "Chinese!" I say with my mouth full. Everyone looks at me. "At the party. We must have Chinese food."
Everyone nods in silent agreement. Apparently, I'm not the only one who doesn't stop eating to talk.
After we're done, we launch into a discussion of locations. The scouts have found an abandoned warehouse not far from school that would be perfect. People start talking about the decorations and such, when I realize I need to use the bathroom.
"Out the door and to the left," Cupid says. I don't even bother asking how he knew I needed to go.
When I come out of the bathroom, Shelly is waiting for me. I try to walk past her, but she blocks the way. "Come on, Shelly."
"Waverly, please listen to me for just one minute. That's all I need. Look, I saw you and Pierce on the yacht last night."
She has my attention.
"Don't worry, I have told no one. As a matter of fact, I'm glad you were there. Look, I know you hate me, and probably for good reason. I've been horrible to you. And if you were me, I'd probably deck me and walk away. But you're a good person, Waverly. I know you are, and I really need you to help me."
"I'm not that good of a person."
"Waverly, they have my mother," she says, her voice cracking. "And I think they're hurting her. Please, I need your help to get her back."
"Who has your mother?"
"The DOT Corporation. My dad begged his boss not to hurt her. I don't know why my dad doesn't go after her. I tried to ask him, but he got furious and told me to stay out of it. I think Dad is too scared of his boss to do anything, but I want my mom back. Now."
"Why are you asking me?"
"Because, Waverly. You're smart. You're resourceful. You aren't afraid. Look, there's a pickup tonight. I heard my dad and his boss talking about it. A truck will come to deliver some barrels of toxic waste and pick up some empty ones. All we have to do is follow the truck when it leaves."
"I heard the same thing. But what are they making that produces toxic waste?"
"I don't know, but it must be something terrible. It's a top-secret operation. I can't believe my dad is involved in this. I am so mad at him right now."
"I am sorry, Shelly, but I'm on probation. I can't leave the school. If I get caught, Pickles will also be expelled. I'm sorry about your mom." I think of my mom, so far away; soon, she'll be giving birth. I remember the terrible vision I had of her being tortured. What if that's what's happening to Shelly's mom? How can I not help? But Pickles ... I don't want her to get expelled. "Maybe we can go back to the meeting and see if anyone else can figure out what to do."
"Waverly Marie Fishwater," Pickles says, walking toward us. "You are going to stop these criminals and help rescue Shelly's mom. Damn the consequences. I'm tired of adults and all their rules!"
"But ..."
Pickles sneezes. "It's okay, Waverly."
"You are the worst bodyguard," I say, hugging her. Shelly looks at us as if she has never been hugged in her life. Poseidon's beard, what if she hasn't? I gather Shelly into the hug, and from the lurching of her shoulders, I can tell she's sobbing.