Chapter 40: George and Rufus Confront Talon

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“So what are we going to do?” asked Rufus.  “We can’t just stay in the castle with Catherine.”

“But why not?” asked George.

Rufus looked at him with his jaw wide open.

“No, seriously.  Why not?”

“Because she turned both our parents into frogs for starters.”

“I know.  But how is living out on the forest floor going to help our father.”

“It’s a matter of principle. We can’t stay in this castle and eat her food and drink her wine after what she did.”

“It’s not about that. We need to keep an eye on everything Catherine is doing so we can stop her. What better place than in the castle.”

“And just how are we going to stop her? You saw what happened, all of us together couldn’t stand up to her and Talon.”

“I don’t know.  We need time to think.”

“We’ve got to catch them off-guard somehow.”

“Like when they’re sleeping?”

“Maybe.  Although if I were them, I’d be expecting that, wouldn’t you?”

“Probably.”

“They’ll have some sort of defence in play, but they can’t guard against everything, so we need to probe their defences, and see where the weaknesses are.  And in the meantime, we stay in the castle.  Besides we’re princes of the castle.  We’re not cut out for life on the forest floor, and you know it.”

“It would be a transition.  But we could do it. We’ve trained as warriors after all.  We should be able to endure giving up our soft beds.”

“If we have to.  But let’s not be too hasty yet.”

“So what’s your plan?”

“I don’t have one yet. I don’t want to try anything the first night Catherine is in the castle.  She’ll be expecting it. So we just keep our eyes and ears open for the next couple days.  Try and observe as much about Catherine and her habits as you can.  And then, we’ll decide how to move against her.”

“What about Talon?”

“Talon we know.  Or at least I thought we did.  So let’s go have a talk with him right now.”

“I wish Dad were here.  He would know what to do.”

“I know.  But this is the moment he’s been training us for all these years.”

“Do you think he’s alright?”

“According to those two birds and the fly, he escaped  down the mouse hole with Midor.  Helen’s been waiting at the entrance ever since, but there’s been no sign of him.”

“If he’s with Midor then he should be okay.”

“Yes, although he’d never want to admit it.  He’s going to hate owing anything to Midor.”

**************************************************************************

George and Rufus entered Talon’s room.  They did not bother to knock.

Talon did not appear surprised to see them.  “I was wondering how long it would be before I received a visit from you two,” he said.  “I thought I would hear from you before the afternoon was up.”

“Why did you do it Talon?” asked George.  “We practically treated you like family.  Why did you betray us?”

Talon leaned back in his chair.  “George, George, George, where do I even begin?  First of all, I must confess I’m surprised you’re bringing up family.  Catherine is your Aunt, after all.  Do you mean to tell me that family cannot betray family?  Because your family history has a lot of betrayal in it.  But secondly, and more importantly, you may have practically treated me like family, but you never really regarded me as family, and you knew it.  You two would hold private councils with your father all the time.  Was I ever invited to them?  You deliberately kept me at arms’ length.  When you needed some sort of magic done, then you would call on me.  But I was always the servant, and never part of the decision making process.”

“Enough with your whining,” said Rufus.  “Everyone in this castle has a job to do, and knows their place.  Charles is never part of the councils either, but does he ever whine that we do not treat him like family?  You ate at our meals with us for decades, and you had exactly the same food that we did at the royal table.”

“What good is your food to a sorcerer?  Do you not think I could have fashioned the finest meals for myself if I would have wished it?”

“The quality of the food is not the point,” said Rufus.  “At least it was never the point to us.  The point is you dined with us every night.”

“And then besides all that,” continued Talon, “you sent the children to spy on me.  For shame.”

“That was only after it was clear we couldn’t trust you anymore,” said George.  “And it looks like we were right not to trust you.”

“Yes, you were very smart all along.  Congratulations,” said Talon.

“Come on George,” said Rufus.  “This is obviously getting us nowhere.”  And they left.

Chapter 39: In the Gnome Tunnels

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One of the first things Midor did, as soon as they had gotten past the narrow parts of the mouse hole, was to block up the narrow part behind them with dirt, effectively closing the tunnel.  John and King Carlyle tried to help, but John was unaccustomed to working with dirt, and King Carlyle’s frog arms weren't much help, so Midor ended up doing it mostly himself.

As it turned out, Catherine never bothered pursuing them down the hole anyway.  But of course they had no way of knowing that, so they had to be prepared for anything.

Then, they continued on through the tunnel.  John and King Carlyle stumbled around in the dark, but Midor seemed confident, like he knew exactly where he was going.  And as they followed Midor, the smaller tunnel soon joined up with a bigger tunnel, exactly as Midor said it would.  In this larger tunnel, they could move about freely.

What’s more, the larger tunnel had some sort of light source.

“Where is the light coming from?” asked John.

“It’s always light in the Gnome tunnel,” answered Midor.

“I can see that.  But I mean, what is the source of  the light?”

“Fairy dust,” Midor answered.

“Are the Gnomes magic?”

“No, but long ago they made an agreement with the fairies to keep their tunnels lighted.  Of course, that was thousands of years ago, when the fairies were still everywhere in the forest, instead of just living in fairy land, like they do now.  But the fairy dust remains.  And there’s enough fairy dust left over that they can keep lighting up the new tunnels that they dig.”

“I still don’t understand how they have tunnels right below my castle, and I never knew,” said King Carlyle.  “Does anyone know about this?  Did Talon know about this?”

“The Gnomes know.  And their friends know.  But that’s it.  It’s been a secret from even the castle sorcerer.”

“Then how did you know about it?” asked John.

King Carlyle groaned.  “Boy, I’ll save you some trouble.  Never ask Midor how he knows something.  He knows everything in this forest. Somehow.”

While they were still talking, they met a Gnome guarding one of the tunnels.  

“Dustin, it’s me!” said Midor.

“Midor?  How did you get so small?”

“Oh, the usual story.  There was a witch and an evil spell.  I need your help.  Can you take us to the central meeting hall?”

*******************************************************

Midor laughed when John told him about how they had searched for a Gnome entrance but couldn’t find it.

“They’re all over the forest,” Midor said.  “You just have to know where to look.”  He chuckled to himself before adding, “Admittedly they can be pretty hard to find for someone unfamiliar with the forest. They’re usually hidden by the mushroom clumps.”

“Yes, that’s what the mouse and frog told me.  But we couldn’t find any mushroom clumps.”

“Oh, well, you also have to know where to find the mushroom clumps.  They can be under a fallen tree, or by a hollowed out log.  They’re not hard to find once you know their secrets, but you have to know the forest well.  But once you get inside the Gnome tunnels, then it connects the whole forest together.

“And what do you mean by that?” asked King Carlyle, who was still hopping along behind.

“All the animals who made underground tunnels or burrows connect their underground houses to that of the Gnomes.  At least in this part of the forest.  So the mouse holes link up with the gnome tunnels, and the mole holes, and the badger hold, and all the underground animals can gather in the Gnome meeting hall.”

“Strange,” said John.  “The mouse I travelled with didn’t know where the entrance was.”

“Oh, Benjamin? He and his family are grass mice.  They make their homes in the grass thickets.  Besides, they’re not originally from this area of the forest.  They’re refugees from the Bear King’s kingdom.  I carried his father over mother over here myself years ago.  They stayed in my pockets the entire journey.”

“That reminds me,” said John.  “They were heading for the castle to try and help us.”

“We’ll try and get word sent to them,” said Midor.  “The Gnomes have a very good network all throughout the forest.  Isn’t that right, Dustin?”

Dustin the Gnome was still leading them through the tunnels.  “We do what we can,” he answered.

“How is David?” asked Midor.  “It’s been many years since I’ve spoken with the Gnome King.”

“You’ll see him for yourself soon enough,” answered Dustin.  “I’m taking you to the Gnome King’s throne room now.”

“The Gnome King?” King Carlyle said incredulously.  “I thought I was the only king of this part of the forest.”

“Your majesty, you did not,” said Midor.  “You knew that the bees and ants always organized themselves into their own kingdoms, and never respected outside authority.”

“Well, of course.  The bees and the ants. That’s different.  And I’ve always respected them, and never tried to impose my will on any of their colonies...err...kingdoms. Or whatever you call it. But I never imagined there was a Gnome kingdom as well!”

“Did you know that the Kingdom of Mora lays claim to the whole expanse of this forest?” asked John.  

“What?  That’s ridiculous.  The King of Mora doesn’t know how vast this forest is.”

“And yet he believes he rules it,” said John.  “We believed it ourselves until several weeks ago when we set off into this forest.”

“Yes, the point is a good one,” said Midor.  “There are many things in this forest that no one knows about.  It is foolish to claim that you rule them all.”

****************************************************************************

Dustin led them into the great gnome hall.  It was much bigger than the rest of the gnome tunnels, and was clearly designed as a great meeting palace. As Midor had told them it would, it proved to be a meeting place for many of the animals.  Badgers and hedgehogs and moles all travelled through this hall, and many of them were talking to the gnomes.  They all stopped to gaze in surprise when they saw Midor walking through.  “What’s happened to you?” they asked.

“An enchantment.  A witch.  Catherine is back in the forest,” Midor answered.

“But how?  Didn’t the human king, Carlyle, drive her out?” asked one of the hedgehogs.

“Behold, King Carlyle, formerly a human,” said Midor, gesturing to the green frog hopping behind him.  “Catherine has transformed him into a frog.  And she has taken the throne.  We have come to ask the gnomes for their help.”

“Come and sit with me Midor,” came a voice from across the throne room.  It was the King, seated on his throne.  

“Your majesty,” Midor replied, and Midor beckoned for John and King Carlyle to follow him.  They crossed over to the King’s side of the room, and sat on the empty stools facing the King.  

“You know, Midor,” began the Gnome King, “That I am grateful for everything you have done for me and for my people, and that I would refuse you nothing that is in my power.  But I also know the ancient forest law, and that throne belongs to Catherine by the right of succession.  When Carlyle drove her from the castle, we did not complain, of course.  She was a bad and wicked queen, and we were grateful to see her gone.  So we did not interfere.  But we did not help him.  And we certainly can’t help him regain the throne now.”

“I understand, King David,” Midor answered (for that was the Gnome King’s name.)

“However,” the Gnome King continued, “we will do everything we can to undo the enchantment that Catherine has placed you under.  And for your friends as well.  We will seek out whatever magic or magicians that we can find to get them to change you back to your normal size.  In the meantime, you are welcome to stay with us for as long as you need to.  We have spare rooms and spare beds for both of you, and we can find some nice soft mud for the frog.”

“A nice soft bed will be fine, thank you,” croaked King Carlyle.

“Your majesty,” Midor said gently to the frog, “Frogs do not recline on their backs the same way humans do.  You will not find a bed suitable for sleeping on in your present state.”

“I prefer a bed all the same,” said King Carlyle in a bit of a testy voice, “But far be it from me to argue with my hosts.  If soft mud is what is designated for me, then soft mud is what I will sleep in.

  “Prepare a soft fluffy feather bed for the frog king,” said the Gnome King, clapping his hands, and several gnomes ran off to do just that.

“But you must be hungry.  You can eat before you sleep, if you wish.”

Midor bowed.  “Thank you, your majesty.”

“We’ll prepare a light meal for you now.  Then I imagine you’ll want to rest and revive your energy.  Then there will be a big feast in your honor tonight with lots of singing and drinking.  Be sure to rest up now to conserve your energy for it.”

“We will, your majesty,” Midor answered.

“A feast? A rest? Singing and drinking?  I don’t think you realize the gravity of the situation,” King Carlyle complained, mostly directed to Midor.  “Catherine is in the castle.  You remember what happened the last time she controlled the throne.”

“I do, your majesty,” Midor said.  “But there’s nothing we can do about it tonight.  Besides,” he added in a softer voice, “We must be gracious guests.  We are going to need the assistance of our hosts very soon.”

Chapter 38: Catherine is Queen

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        It may be wondered where the rest of the household was during all this commotion.  And the answer was that they were in other parts of the castle.  Some were in their rooms, some were in the dining halls, and some of them were just in a different part of the castle altogether.  The commotion in the courtyard was not by itself enough to draw others over.  A certain amount of commotion in a castle this big was not unusual.

But eventually, hearing the commotion continue to go on for some time, Benevois started to make her way to the courtyard to see what was going on.  And her daughter Vivian was close behind.

They arrived just about this minute, and saw the huge snake trying to get down the small mouse hole.

“Talon, what is going on here?” said Benevois.  “What is that snake doing in the castle courtyard?”

“Oh, hello Benevois,” said the snake.

“Catherine!” gasped Benevois and Vivian at once.

“Talon, how did you do it?” asked Benevois.  “How did you change Catherine into a snake?”

“You misunderstand,” said Talon.  “I didn’t change anything.  Catherine turned herself into the snake.”

“Then how did Catherine--.”

“I let her into the castle.  Catherine and I have come to an arrangement.”

“I don’t understand,” said Benevois.

“I do,” said Vivian.  “I knew we couldn’t trust Talon after what he tried to do to Robert.”

“Talon, change me back,” Catherine demanded.  

Talon waved his wand, and Catherine changed back into a woman.  “Behold,” she said.  “Your rightful queen.  Restored at last to the throne.”

“You’re not the rightful queen,” Benevois snarled.

“But technically, she is,” said Talon.  “And you know it.  Your husband was the usurper.  Catherine was the eldest child.  The claim to the throne was always hers.”

“And since there’s only room for one queen in this castle,” said Catherine.  “You can share your husband’s fate.”  Catherine pointed her wand and uttered the incantation, and Benevois was turned into a frog.

Vivian screamed, and that scream brought everyone out of their rooms.  George, Rufus, Jason, Penelope, Helen, Sandi, Katherine, Robert, Henry, Grace, General Graten, the two dragon rabbits, and all the other children came either running in, or slowly walking down the hallway out of curiosity.

“Turn her back,” Vivian demanded angrily. 

“I will not,” said Catherine.  “She’s lucky I don’t eat her, like I ate her husband.”

Vivian cried in anguish upon hearing this, but Talon added, “Tried to eat her husband, you mean.”

“I’m not finished with him yet.  I know right where he is.  He’s not getting out of that mouse hole.”

The whole household was beginning to assemble, so Talon decided to make the announcement.  “There are going to be some changes around here,” he declared.  “Behold, your new Queen.”

“Your new old Queen,” Catherine corrected.  “I’ve reigned once before in this castle, remember.”

“I remember,” said Talon.  “Behold, your returning Queen, at long last.  You are all welcome to continue to live in this castle, as long as you recognize Catherine's rule.”

“And if we refuse?” asked Vivian.

“I am a gracious queen,” said Catherine.  “You can go on your way in peace.  But you must leave this castle if you refuse to recognize me.”

There was a lot of commotion.  George and Rufus began shouting.  Henry drew his sword.

General Graten, who had been standing near the back, walked up to Henry when he saw that Henry had drawn his sword.  He put his hand on Henry’s shoulder.  “Put it away, boy,” he said quietly.  “You can’t beat a witch with a sword.  You’ll only get yourself killed.  This isn’t what I’ve been training you for.”

Henry didn’t listen, and charged forward with his sword drawn.

Talon saw him coming a long ways away.  He uttered an incantation, pointed his staff at Henry, and Henry was knocked backwards by a very strong gust of wind.  The gust knocked him against the wall so hard that there was a loud thud, and everyone thought Henry’s bones must have been shattered.

Henry collapsed on to the ground as everyone ran to tend to him.  Both Alicia and Amanda both bent over him with worry.  Henry, it turned out, had not suffered any serious injuries, but he had had the wind knocked out of him, and he needed a lot of help getting back up on his feet.

“Anyone else?” asked Catherine challengingly.  “You’re lucky Talon saw him before I did.  I would have used a fire spell instead of a wind spell.”

George and Rufus marched up angrily.  “You have no right!” George shouted.

“Actually,” Talon said, “She has every right, and you know it.  She is the eldest child.  She has always been the legitimate heir to the throne.  Your father had no legal right to throw her out.”

George and Rufus both reddened in the face, but neither could think of a return argument.

“I know this is difficult to accept,” said Talon.  “But there is nothing you can do.  Catherine has all the ancestral rights of this castle.  By ancient law, this is her possession.  And I, in my position of the castle sorcerer, have reversed all the charms that I once laid to keep her out.  She is in the castle now, and in full possession of it, and all the magic of the castle, both hers and my own, is working on her side.  You can’t get rid of her.”

“But you’re welcome to stay on in the castle as my guests,” Catherine said sweetly.

“Thank you, no,” said George.  “I’d rather take my chances in the forest.”

Rufus grabbed his arm.  “Not so hasty George,” he said.  Then he said to Catherine, “Yes, we will stay.  We are still the royal family after all, as your nephews.  And you have no heirs of your own.”

“Clever boys,” said Catherine.  “Yes, I have no heirs.  So the line of succession will still go to you and yours once I’ve passed on.  All I ask is to live out my days as queen, and then, after I’m gone, you can succeed me.  Only… It’s not you, is it George?  Nor you, is it Rufus?  It’s Vivian who is the eldest.  The crown will go to her.  Are you trying to cut out your older sister, just like your father did to me?”

Vivian stepped forward at this moment.  “Indeed, yes, the throne does go to me.  But I don’t need your help Catherine.  When I am queen, I will throw you into the dungeon.” she said.  

“The only way you can become queen, Vivian, is if I die.  Which I will, someday.  Not for many years to come, but someday I will die, and the castle will be yours.  And at that time, if it makes you feel better to throw my old dead bones in the dungeon, you can go right ahead.  I certainly won’t need them anymore.  But, Vivian, until that moment, I am queen, and you will obey me.  You will all obey me.”

“Turn my mother back into a human,” Vivian demanded again.

“She’ll stay just like she is,” said Catherine.  “And I will not discuss the matter further.  Now, is there any more business?  Because if there is not, I have something very pressing to return to.”

Stuart and Sandi, the cardinals and Bartholomew the fly, who were still present, watching everything (they had retreated to one of the branches of the rose bushes to watch the family squabble play out), at this point shouted, “She’s trying to eat King Carlyle.  Don’t let her turn back into a snake.”

“Troublesome birds,” said Catherine.  “Where is my wand?  I’ll show you.”

“Catherine, you will not eat my father,” said Vivian.  “The moment you try to change yourself into a snake, I’ll step on your head.”

“Don’t you threaten me,” said Catherine.  “If I wanted to, I could change you into a frog as well.  But out of the love and respect I have for my nephews and nieces, I’ll not harm you today.  Fine, King Carlyle can live to hop another day.  If he ever finds his way out of that mouse hole.”

Chapter 37: Down the Mouse Hole

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Back in the forest, Midor and John were trying to find their way back to the castle.  Midor found a passing bumble bee named Carl (who, of course, Midor knew by name), and Midor gave the bee the names of several birds who owed him favors, and named the location of their nests.  Two birds came soon--Stuart and Sandi--both bright red  cardinals.  One picked up John, one picked up Midor.

“Goodbye Benjamin.  Goodbye Jacob.  Thanks for everything,” John called out as he left.

“We’ll meet you at the castle,” Benjamin called back.  “It sounds like you could use our help.”

“Always appreciated,” Midor shouted back.  “We’ll need all the help we can get.”

The birds held John and Midor in their claws.  One claw held each arm, and John and Midor each dangled below the bird as they flew through the air.  For Midor, it was not the first time he had travelled like this, although usually he had to rely on bigger birds.  For John, however, it was the first time he experienced flight, and he was terrified at first, and then, as he slowly overcame his fears, he gradually became thrilled by the sensation of zooming through the trees.

The birds flew at full speed, and it was no time at all before they were flown in the castle window. 

“Find King Carlyle,” Midor said, and the birds zoomed down the hallways, until they at last ended up on a window overlooking the courtyard down below. 

Midor couldn’t see King Carlyle, but he did recognize Talon immediately.  And he saw a snake slithering through the courtyard, which he realized at once must be Catherine.  And then, Midor saw a frog hopping desperately through the courtyard garden, and he knew immediately what had happened.

It was here on the window ledge that Bartholomew the fly met them.  “Midor, there you are.  I came here as fast as I could, as you instructed.  But as you can see, they’d already gotten here before me.”

“They must have used their magic to fly here,” said Midor.  “It’s okay Bartholomew.  I thank you for your help.  Now, we’ve got to stop that snake from eating the frog.  Can you fly down and distract that snake?”

“I’ll fly right into its eyes,” said Barthelemew.  “People hate it when I do that.”

“Great,” said Midor.  Then he said to the cardinals.  “Can you drop John and I off down on the ground near that frog?”

Sandi and Stuart picked John and Midor up again, and zoomed towards the frog.  They dropped John and Midor down on the ground near the frog.  “Don’t worry your majesty, we’re here to help,” Midor said.  “This way, hurry.”

Meanwhile the birds Sandi and Stuart took turns zooming down and pecking at the snake, while Bartholomewkept flying into its eyes.  Catherine, in fury, struck out at first one bird, and then the other, but the birds managed to keep always just out of the way.  They were always close enough so that Catherine was tempted to lunge at them, but they always flew back at the last minute.  And then when Catherine tried to ignore them and continue slithering, then they would dive down and start pecking at her again.  As for Bartholomew the fly, he kept buzzing so close to Catherine’s head that she couldn’t even see where he was.  

While Catherine was thus distracted, Midor and John ran with King Carlyle.  “This way, sir!” said Midor.  “There’s a small mouse hidden in the garden here.  We can go down it.”

“I can’t hide in a mouse hole,” said King Carlyle.

“Please your majesty, trust me just this once,” said Midor.

“Trust you?  After what you did to my family?  I would sooner take my chances with the snake,” said King Carlyle.  He still retained his former voice, even in frog form, although his voice now had a croaky quality to it.

“Your majesty,” Midor said in desperation.  “I promise you, when this is all over, I will once again be your most humble servant, and follow your wishes in every detail.  But for now, your life is in danger.  I need you to trust me.”

“What good does it do to go down a mouse hole?  Catherine can just sit at the entrance to the hole and keep me trapped in there.”

“I don’t have time to explain,” said Midor.  “Follow me, please.”

Catherine, after having been distracted by Bartholomew, Stuart and Sandi, was now lunging forward and ignoring their attacks.  She was almost upon them.

Midor ran towards the mouse hole.  John followed, and King Carlyle, somewhat reluctantly, hopped behind.

When they got to the mouse hole, John and Midor were able to slide inside easily (being only 3 inches tall).  King Carlyle had been turned into a big green bullfrog, and the hole was almost too small for him.  He would have objected, but even he realized there was no time to argue now.  Catherine was one second away from striking.  He jumped into the hole, and John and Midor both grabbed one of his hands, and pulled.  After a brief half a second of King Carlyle being stuck halfway out of the hole, they were able to pull him down inside in the end.  

Catherine, however, was too big to follow them down.  She was a huge snake, about the size of a python.  Once they were down the hole, Catherine looked down the hole and hissed at them.  “You think you’ve escaped?  I’m just going to change into a smaller snake, and come after you.  And now you’re stuck in that hole.”

Catherine, however, could not change into a smaller snake without her wand.  And she had left her wand back with her human clothes when she had changed into a snake.  “Talon!” she called out.  “I need your help.  Change me into a smaller snake.”

Down in the hole, King Carlyle bewailed his position.  “Oh, why did I listen to you, Midor?  Now I’m stuck here.”

“No you’re not,” said Midor.  “We just need to get a little bit further.  We’ll help to pull you, your majesty.”

King Carlyle, being slightly too big for the tunnel, was still stuck inside unable to move, but John and Midor both pulled on his frog hands, and they eased him down the tunnel gently.  And then, slowly, the tunnel started to open up, and become wider.  And King Carlyle was able to hop along.  “That’s it, your majesty,” said Midor encouragingly.  “Now, keep going.  We need to keep going down this tunnel.”

“I can’t see anything,” complained King Carlyle.  “It’s pitch black down here.”

“Just a little bit further,” said Midor.  “We’re almost to the gnome tunnels.”

“The gnome tunnels?” said both King Carlyle and John in surprise.

“Yes,” said Midor.  “This mouse hole connects to the gnome tunnels.  We’re almost there.”

“So all this time, the gnome tunnels have been right under my castle?” King Carlyle asked in surprise.

“Indeed, they have been,” Midor answered.  

“Well, I’ll be,” said King Carlyle.  “And I thought the castle was secure.”

“Oh, it’s very secure,” said Midor.  “Who do you think has been guarding the courtyard from tunnelling animals?  And other creatures?  The gnomes have been protecting the underground of your castle for centuries now, by old tradition.”