The morning bell rang at six am and George battled with his eyelids to get them open. When he eventually succeeded it felt as though someone had thrown grit in his eyes. George pulled on his clothes yawning uncontrollably and joined Ruby at the dining table for breakfast. It took all of the young boys strength to stay awake and keep his face out of his grey boiled porridge. George filled Ruby in on what had happened with Mr McClary as she fixed him with a murderous glare. The small girl was not impressed that he had gone without her to see the caretaker and George realised he would be in her bad books for a quite a while.
He explained the plan to get into Miss Grimm's room he and Mr McClary had devised the night before. At twelve o'clock that day Miss Grimm was due to have a meeting with Mr McClary. The caretaker was showing her the dam security system he had built in the woods. He had built a diversion for the river that ran through Slaven's grounds. When the school was threatened with an inspection he could now lift the dam that he had built and flood the road leading to Slaven. The inspectors would be prevented from coming onto the school grounds. Miss Grimm could continue to run the school in the way she wanted and the children would continue to be mistreated.
Mr McClary had explained that he would keep Miss Grimm out in the woods for as long as possible while the children searched her room. Ruby would be able to use her premonitions to make sure no one was around but George had kept this part of the plan out when he had spoken to Mr McClary. Everything was set, George just needed Ruby to agree to help him. He looked at her pleadingly.
"It looks as though the men have got it all worked out," Said Ruby after a pause, a certain amount of smugness at the corners of her mouth. "the elf and the wolf save the day."
George was well aware that he was going to have to grovel for quite a long time to get Ruby to help him. He had never seen her quite so annoyed before.
"No, the boys need some female intuition," George said pleadingly, "and you are just the person for the job! Will you help? I totally understand if you don't want to, it is an extremely dangerous situation."
George's last comment was aimed just right, he knew she wouldn't be able to say no to him now. He had basically called her chicken if she did.
The small girl turned red with anger, it coloured her marble white skin in an Instant tinting even the tips of her ears.
"Oh so I'm good enough to ask when you NEED me! Otherwise you can just run around making plans that involve me without asking and expect me to follow you around, what do you think I am? some brainless loyal puppy!"
Ruby folded her arms across her chest and stuck out her chin. It was all the wayward boy could do to keep his face straight but if he laughed at her now she would be mad for even longer, maybe even forever so he kept it together and put his arm around her.
"Please don't be mad Ruby I need you." He told the porcelain girl.
Ruby's icy exterior melted. "Ok," She finally relented. "but next time you make an idiotic plan that will probably get us either maimed or killed I want to be in on the planning."
"It's a deal," George conceded. "and again, I'm sorry I didn't come to get you."
The morning dragged as the children counted down until twelve o'clock. Finally the lunch bell sounded and they nervously walked to the canteen. The magical orphans picked up their trays, received their grey sludge from the cook then sat down at the table. George pushed some grey meat, which was only identifiable as meat because it had a bone sticking out of it, around his plate. He was way too nervous to be hungry. Ruby was doing the same thing with hers. They both looked up as they saw Miss Grimm walk down the hallway with the uncomfortable Mr McClary in tow. He nodded his grizzly head in George's direction as he passed by.
"Right Ruby red," Directed George. "its time."
Ruby nodded. Miss Pratt was in charge of the dinner hall today, the flabby teacher was stuffing food into her face whilst looking around with her saucer eyes. She didn't once look down at her plate and yet was instinctively able to pass the fork between it and her mouth with great accuracy.
"Miss Pratt is going to drop her fork. We have twenty-two seconds to get to the door while she picks it up." The entranced girl advised her eyes ice blue and faraway.
The children watched Pratt intensely and eventually the fork clattered to the floor. She bent to collect it and by the time she had sat back up and cast her eyes around the room George and Ruby were out of the door.
The twosome crept past the many classrooms which lined the long corridor, just as they were nearing the entrance to the tower Ruby grabbed George's sleeve and yanked him in through one of the open doors. They stumbled in their haste and landed in a heap on the floor. George and Ruby crawled under one of the desks just in time to see Miss Banks huge shiny boots striding past in great haste.
The twosome stayed where they were until they had caught their breath and their hearts had stopped beating so quickly. When they popped their heads back up George noticed the grey and white fluffy cat creature sat on top of one of the desks at the entrance to the door. The playful ball of fluff was pushing a crayon along the desk with its outstretched paw. The cat looked directly at George and then pushed the crayon over the edge of the desk sending it clattering to the floor, never once breaking eye contact with the young orphan. The human tank stopped in her stride, she turned to look at the empty classroom she had just passed, cocking her head to one side. The large woman's nostrils flared and she turned her body towards the classroom door. Ruby grabbed Georges hand and ripped him from the ground in sheer terror. The stationary cupboard at the back of the classroom was slightly ajar and she pulled the boy inside just as Bank steamrollered through the open classroom door. Her black beady eyes glittered as she scanned the room. She stayed where she was for what seemed like an eternity, listening and watching with her heightened senses. The children thought that she would never leave, tears streamed down their cheeks as they pinched their noses and held their breath desperately. At last the monstrous woman gave up her search and left. The children released the air from their desperate lungs as they left the confines of the cupboard. Once again the mischievous feline had completely disappeared. Ruby picked the crayon up from where the cat had dropped it on the floor. "It was the cat again Ruby," exclaimed George. "It looked me in the eye and it pushed the crayon off the desk!" Ruby wasn't sure what to think. There was no way the cat had managed to slip out without Miss Bank seeing it and there was nowhere for it to hide in the empty classroom. Ruby put the crayon into her pocket along with a blank sheet of paper that she collected from on top of a desk.
"What did you do that for?" Asked George.
Ruby shrugged. "I have a strange feeling they'll come in handy."
The children made their way back into the corridor and then up to the tower entrance. Ruby led the way as they climbed the spiral staircase which arrived at Miss Grimm's bedroom. At the entrance to the door they found it ever so slightly ajar. A thick brown stick was effectively jamming it open, Mr McClary thought George. The twosome entered the room cautiously and immediately spotted the dragon carving at the side of the wooden bed.
"Look at all this stuff!" Said Ruby in amazement, staring around with wide eyes at the piles of antiques Miss Grimm had hoarded inside the large round room. George hardly noticed anything as he headed straight for the dragon.
"What do you think all this stuff is worth?" She continued as she picked up a particularly beautiful golden mirror. George wasn't listening, he had reached the dragon carving and he was pushing it to no avail.
"The dragon marks the spot." He repeated the Lord's riddle. "What does it mean? Ruby please can you look into the future, find out how we get the ring."
Ruby tried to use her power but nothing happened, she tried again but there was a blank. The pale girl screwed up her face and touched the dragon to help her concentrate, nothing.
"It's no good," She told George. "I just can't see what to do, I think something inside this room is blocking my powers."
George and Ruby searched around the dragon for half an hour, they tried prodding and poking it in a hundred different ways. It was no use, they just could not get it to do anything. Finally, frustrated from all of their wasted effort George grabbed the dragon head in both hands, put his foot against the wall and pulled as hard as he could. The young boy was straining so hard that his face turned beetroot.
Ruby jumped up from where she had been searching on the floor. "Stop!" She shouted. There was a terrible thudding sound of gigantic feet from the bottom of the tower steps.
George felt his fingers beginning to slip on the stone, before he could stop himself he fell backwards and landed on top of an ancient suit of armour. The six foot metal statue tumbled to the ground with a terrific crash.
Ruby picked a stunned George up off the floor.
"Banks coming." She informed him.
The tall boy nodded. "Let's go, we will just have to come back another time."
Ruby shook her head, "It's too late," she informed him in a high pitched squeak. "she's at the bottom of the stairs!"
George registered what was being said. They were trapped like rats with nowhere to escape. The stairs were the only way out of the tower. George mulled over the mad lords riddle.
"The dragon marks the spot."
He looked at the dragon carving, directly below it was a small raised circle in the stone, it appeared to be a naturally occurring flaw in the hand carved slab. "The spot?" he thought to himself.
George could hear Banks colossal steps on the stairs below them, he reached out and pressed the raised lump on the wall. It gave way beneath his finger. There was a sound of stone, sliding against stone and a large opening appeared in the wall.
The children looked at each other in astonishment then ran through the opening. As George turned around to look into the room behind him he saw the cat, it stared straight at him as it delicately washed a paw. The human tank charged into the room, just as the bricks slid to a grinding close. She picked up the gauntlet from the suit of armour that had disassembled around her feet and threw it in anger at the spot where the children had just disappeared.
George and Ruby could not see a thing, the room they had fled into was completely pitch black and it took a while for their eyes to become accustomed. The young Elf reached out and grabbed Ruby, with his free hand he felt around for the wall. When his fingers eventually met the cold stone George used it to guide him, feeling around with his feet at the same time so as not to trip. The children shuffled around as cautiously as the elderly and eventually they felt a step down.
They slowly descended, it took so long George wondered if it were some kind of trick and they would be stuck in the staircase forever. The steps turned constantly making the children feel queasy, then finally the darkness gave way to a soft green glow. Using the meagre light they were able to negotiate the rest of the stairs less dangerously. At last George and Ruby stepped into a round room at the bottom of the tower. In the middle of the room was a stone table and on top of the table was the ring. George recognised it instantly from the portrait of Ulva in Mr McClary's cottage. It was the gem in the ring which was giving off the green glow and the children stood looking at it in awe. Eventually Ruby nudged her companion and George snapped out of his trance. The small pale girl nodded towards the table and the young boy stepped forward taking the ring. It was the most beautiful piece of jewellery he had ever seen. The yellow green stone was set in a beautiful gold mount and the glow it cast filled the whole room with warmth as well as light. They used the ring to look around.
"We need to find the deed." Advised George.
"What does it look like?" Ruby asked.
George shrugged, "I don't know, a parchment with writing on maybe?"
"Sparky can you bring the light over this way." Ruby had noticed something funny about the stone behind her, it looked as though there was something scratched onto it.
The young elf illuminated the large granite slab. As he looked closer he could see that there were words engraved into the stone.
"I Lachlan McGuinness, being of a sound mind do leave Slaven castle and all of my worldly possessions to my soul mate Ulva McClary and my son Conan." Read George. The writing was signed at the bottom directly into the stone, and engraved with the McGuinness seal.
"What are we going to do?" Asked George, we can't take the stone with us. It's too big and far too heavy.
Ruby thought for a moment, she took the items she had borrowed from the classroom out of her pocket. She held the paper against the stone and rubbed it back and forth with the crayon. George kept the area lit with the ring so that she could see what she was doing. When the small girl had finished she rolled the rubbing, which was a perfect duplicate of the deed and put it back into her pocket with the crayon.
"Well done Ruby." George hugged the small girl as he congratulated her. "Now let's get out of here!"
George noticed a trap door directly beneath his feet. He lifted the handle. They expected it to be either locked or stuck but to the surprise of both children it opened easily. The hole dropped down about six foot, it was dark but George could just about see some water and muddy sludge at the bottom. There was a strange fishy smell coming up from the opening into the room and it made Ruby heave.
"Ladies first," George said, pointing to the trap door with an outstretched arm.
Ruby gave him a look that said, you must have gone completely mad. "There is no way on earth you are getting me down that hole." She informed him.
George shrugged. "Then you'll have to take your chances with Miss Bank."
With this last comment George grabbed the sides of the opening and swung down to the floor, his hand pressed firmly over his nose to block the smell of the fishy mud. He landed with a squelch, the thick slime got inside his shoes and splashed up his legs. Holding the ring above his head George looked around. From what he could make out he was inside a large cave.
"Sparky, what the hell are you doing?" The small pale girl sounded extremely annoyed.
"Come on Ruby." George shouted back. "We can't go the other way Bank will have us for dinner. We have to keep going."
There was a long pause, then before George knew what had happened a thin porcelain white girl had landed on top of him pushing him face first into the mud.
Ruby stood up and dusted herself off. "George, George, where are you?" She called.
George stood up, he was covered from head to toe in black smelly sludge. Ruby gave him a withering glance.
"You stink." She told him. "Stand away from me I'm going to be sick."
George resisted the urge to strangle her and held the ring above his head again. The twosome could make out a glimmer of light at the farthest end of the vast cavern, and they set off in that direction. The floor was uneven and they stepped carefully to avoid tripping. Trickling water could be heard and George guessed that the cavern ran underneath the stream, by his estimations they should now be somewhere near Mr McClary's cottage. Ruby stopped dead two meters from the opening.
"What's wrong Ruby." Asked George his voice filled with concern.
Ruby pointed at the gap in the cavern wall, "wwww wolf." she stammered, so quietly that it was barely audible. The small girl was too terrified to continue her sentence and pointed frantically at the gap instead, her eyes ice blue and bulging out of their sockets. George understood. He had hoped to give the ring to Mr McClary and avoid Ulva all together but he had no choice, this was the only way out of the cavern.
It wasn't a full moon, the young boy thought, trying to reassure himself, also Mr McClary had told him that the Ulva was chained. George continued to make his way through the cavern on the tips of his toes. Ruby shook her head frantically and grabbed his arm. George wrestled it back. He was so close to the next chamber that he could hear breathing from within. Ruby was silently pleading with him not to go through but George had made up his mind. He stepped down into the slightly smaller cave holding the ring before him.
Laying on the floor and blocking the exit, which promised daylight warmth and fresh air, was a huge black wolf the size of a Bengal tiger. The enormous creature opened it's golden eyes a slit as it heard George's footsteps on the stone. A low rumbled warning left the creature and it fixed the young elf in it's terrifying glittering glaze.
George attempted to clear his throat, which had tightened making it hard for him to swallow.
"Ulva?" George just about managed to ask, in a strange high pitched squeak of a voice he barely recognised.
The wolf cocked its head to one side but the lip remained raised showing George ample canines, the grumbled warning began anew.
"Ulva," George tried again. "I have found your ring, I have come to give it back to you. Mr Mc..... I mean Conan and I made a plan to get it."
There was a moment of silence, the wolf looked George directly in the eye. The hairs on the young boy's neck stood on end as his skin prickled with a primeval warning.
"Elf," Growled the wolf, "I know not how you came to be here but I do not want or need your help. I have not answered to the name of Ulva for over two hundred years and I shall never answer to that name again. I will let you leave if you leave now and promise never to return."
George shook his head, he clenched his fists in determination and gritted his teeth.
"I have come to give you your ring." He answered forcefully. "What happened was not your fault. Lord McGuinness is to blame not you. I saw his spirit and he knew that he was wrong. the spirit showed me where to find the ring."
The wolf shook her head rapidly from side to side until it blurred.
"You are wrong, elf," The growling voice returned. "Ulva no longer exists, she gave herself up long ago. You know nothing of what happened two hundred years before you are merely a child. Go now elf I am giving you your final chance to escape."
"No!" Answered George. "I will not give up on you. I know that you are good. Take the castle back from Grimm. Make things better for yourself by helping the children who live there. Take your ring and become Ulva again, live your life how you were meant to."
The wolf crouched down it's ears flat against its head. Thick black fur stood on end at its neck and there was a low deep grumble in the back of its throat. George could see the chain around its thick main and realised too late that it was far too long to save him from the creature's sharp teeth. The terrified elf could feel the tension in the air and he could see it in the wolf's hind legs. The beast was about to pounce.
Without warning a small pale waif of a girl came charging into the cave. She held something gold and glittery in front of her as she screamed at the top of her voice.
The wolf was stopped, startled for a moment and then it shrank back in fear as it caught its reflection in the beautiful golden mirror the girl was clenching. The creature continued to retreat until its back was up against the wall and its tail firmly between it's legs. Ruby pulled the young boy behind her and the twosome made their way towards the exit. The mirror held in front of them all the time to keep the wolf at bay. They got halfway to the exit and George stopped.
"What the hell are you doing George?" Ruby asked, anger and frustration in her strained voice.
The boy ignored her, bent down and dropped the ring on top of a small rock within reach of the cowering wolf.
"I believe in second chances Ulva." He told her. "You can make amends, here is your ring, think about it."
"It's too late elf," Ulva's growl had become more of a whine. "I am grotesque. Please leave me. I cannot bear to have anyone see me like this."
George and Ruby emerged into the daylight, blinking in the welcome brightness of the sun. "You absolute idiot!" Shouted Ruby shaking from head to toe with fear, adrenaline and anger but mostly anger. "What were you thinking? You were almost elf steak!"
The boy shook his head. "Poor Ulva." his voice was almost a whisper.
Ruby's mouth opened wide with shock. "Poor Ulva?" She repeated. "What do you mean poor Ulva? That thing in there almost had you for lunch! How can you sympathise with it?"
"She spoke to me." George answered. "Could you not hear her speak?"
The stunned girl shook her head. "I heard a lot of growling that I understood to mean, yum yum elf for dinner but actual words? No, I think that was just you and your crazy elf brain."
George sighed. "I think she may be too far gone."
"Oh really?" The pale girl answered sarcastically.
George smiled, the return of the mega watt grin reassured Ruby. "I don't think she will use the ring. I hope she changes her mind but I don't think she will."
George filled Ruby in on the details of his conversation with the wolf. "By the way," He asked when he had finished. "where did you get that mirror from? And how did you know it would work?"
Ruby smiled with satisfaction. "I took it from Miss Grimm's stash," She answered. "I was going to use it to smash the wolf's head in but it worked just fine on its own. Now what Sparky?" The faithful girl enquired from her reckless companion. "Please tell me you have a plan to get us out from the middle of nowhere? I can't seem to use my power very well, it's as if something is blocking me."
George looked around then pointed into the forest. "I think Mr McClary's cottage is over there."
Fifteen minutes later George and Ruby found the caretakers home. They knocked on the door but there was no answer, George tried the handle, it was open. The children entered, there was no one at home.
George looked at his companion hopefully but Ruby shook her head, she still couldn't summon her magic. They settled down into the two armchairs by the fire and waited. The young elf and the small pale girl were so shattered that they soon fell fast asleep. The daylight began to slip out of the sky and darkness came upon the forest.
George and Ruby had been missing now for an entire afternoon and there was no way they could go back unnoticed. The night crept on and the children slept. At midnight Ruby stirred, she heard something rustling outside the cottage and saw the door pushed slowly inwards. The small girl remained silent and tried to keep her breathing regular. Something huge stood behind the chair, fixing the children with its golden glittering gaze. For the second time that day Ruby was looking at the most enormous wolf she had ever seen. This one was as large as a grizzly bear. The awful creature growled and Ruby tensed, she had a feeling she would need something a bit more substantial than a mirror this time, her eyes flicked to the poker. Could she get there in time? There was another growl and this time George sat bolt upright.
"Mr McClary!" He shouted at the huge black beast.