John, Benjamin the Mouse, and the rabbits Klangor and Starrof continued their journey. They were getting closer to the land of the fairies all the time. In addition to talking leaves (and talking rocks), they also now encountered talking mushrooms. And to their amazement, many of these mushrooms could even walk.
“This forest is getting more and more bizarre,” said John.
“This part of the forest particularly,” said Benjamin the Mouse. “This is the part that is next to the land of the fairies. Centuries ago, the fairies turned much of this forest into magic, and its effects linger still in the talking leaves and rocks.”
“The strange thing is,” said John, “We walked through this section before when we were with Midor. But I don’t remember any of this.”
“Ah, but you were too tall then,” said Benjamin. “A lot of magic is often overlooked by those too tall to notice it.”
“Perhaps that’s true,” said John.
They met several mushroom soldiers on their walk, and when they eventually got too deep into the mushroom kingdom, the mushroom soldiers formed an escort, which they were not allowed to deviate from. They had to simply walk alongside the mushroom soldiers.”
“We only want to get through the area,” John tried to explain to the mushrooms.
“We’re very sorry,” said one of the soldiers, “but we can’t take that risk. You may want to find out our secrets and give them to our enemies.”
“But what enemies does a mushroom have?” asked John.
“Plenty. Many animals would like nothing better than to invade our kingdom and eat us all up.”
Klangor and Starrof had initially tried to eat the mushrooms, even though Benjamin the Mouse told them that rabbit’s stomachs are not suitable for mushrooms. They had tried to attack, but the mushrooms had fended them off with little wooden spears. And even when Klangor did manage to bite one, the rancid taste was so awful that he immediately spit it out, and complained so bitterly that Starrof decided not to try any mushrooms. In John’s mind, the whole incident had proved how the mushrooms should have nothing to fear from them. But in the mushrooms’ mind, the attack itself proved that they needed to be all the more vigilant about their visitors.
They were brought before the King of the Mushroom Kingdom, where John repeatedly apologized for the behavior of Klangor and Starrof, and Benjamin the Mouse tried to explain that they were visitors, and didn’t know that a Mushroom Kingdom even existed in the forest.
The mushroom king eventually decided to grant them passage through his land, and even provided them with a small escort of his soldiers, who would help them make it to the land of the fairies. “There are many dangers yet to be crossed between here and there,” he said. “And these troops will help you negotiate the final stages.”
“What dangers?” John asked. But the mushroom king would say no more than that.
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