brimstone witch 08 - death of a rainbow nymph Read online

  Luca opened the door in the tree trunk and said, “Normally, I’d be polite and allow you to enter first, but …” he trailed off.

  “But you’re worried there could be something terrible on the other side,” I finished for him. “In which case, I should go first seeing as I’m the one with the magic spells.”

  “But —” Luca began.

  I held my hand up to silence him. “No arguments. I’m going first.” To make my point, I gently tried to push him to one side. He didn’t move.

  Luca insisted, “I’ll go first.”

  “No,” I tried to push him again. “I will.”

  Stanley declared, “I’m going first!”

  Before we could stop him, Stanley ran through the opening and into the Enchanted Forest.

  Chapter 3

  I rushed through the doorway after Stanley. I almost tripped over him as he was standing just on the other side of the tree with his mouth open and his eyes wide. I called over my shoulder to Luca, “Watch out for Stanley!”

  Luca narrowly missed standing on Stanley’s tail as he came after me.

  I looked to where Stanley had his attention. My mouth dropped open and I’m sure my eyes became as wide as Stanley’s.

  The view in front of us was magnificent. It was like someone had turned up the colour on a TV set. Everything was brighter here and the sounds were louder and much more cheerful than in the human world or even Brimstone town.

  There was too much to take in all at once so I focused on the wide variety of trees first. Some had bright green leaves, others had gold and silver ones and their boughs were heavy with sparkling fruit. They swayed in the gentle wind, but not at the same time nor in the same direction. They looked as if they were dancing to their own tune. And if that wasn’t crazy enough, each tree had a face right in the middle of its trunk. Yep. A face with eyes, a nose and a mouth. Some of them had a covering of moss which made them look as if they were sporting beards.

  Stanley muttered, “Look at it all. Look how glittery those flowers are. And that noise. It sounds like someone is playing a flute or something. It can’t be the wind making that noise, can it?”

  Luca said, “It is. It plays different tunes all day long.” He put his hand behind his left ear. “The birds are starting to join in now.”

  One of the trees winked at me so I quickly looked away. I saw small animals scurrying over glimmering green grass. The sun sent dapples of gold and silver light across the ground in a floating motion almost as if it were liquid. There were several streams trickling under small wooden bridges. The water gently flowed over butterfly shaped stones in the river beds. Small, brightly coloured creatures darted here and there through low-lying bushes, laughing as they went. Many creatures were flying through the trees and calling out to each other happily.

  Stanley wailed, “The smells! There are too many of them. Flowers. Herbs. Grass. Moss! My poor nose can’t take it.” He put his paw over his eyes. “This is too much. My senses are going to explode.”

  I knew how Stanley felt. Everything was too magical, too bright, too beautiful. I felt like we were in the middle of a cartoon.

  Luca picked Stanley up and stroked his back. “It can be overwhelming, Stanley, but you’ll get used to it.”

  Stanley had his eyes closed. “I don’t think I will. My nose can’t take these scents all at once. I’m getting very confused.”

  I thought of the witch training I’d been going through with Gran. A spell came to my mind which would help my little friend. I placed my hand above his head and recited the words.

  When I’d finished, Stanley peeped up at me and said, “What happened? What did you do?” He sniffed. “That’s better. I’m only getting a slight whiff of flowers now. Thank you.”

  “You are welcome,” I told him. “I just dulled your senses a bit. Let me know if you want me to reverse it. I would cast the spell on myself, but I don’t want to miss out on anything.”

  Luca said, “Someone’s here to see us. It’s Mother Nature.”

  Despite being brought up to have good manners, I couldn’t help but stare at the striking woman who came towards us. I wasn’t just staring; I was gawping. The woman had long, brown hair which flowed all the way down to her waist. A garland of green, yellow and red leaves adorned her head. She wore a long, brown dress which was embroidered with plants, flowers and small trees. Lines of glittering gold thread linked the images together like a net.

  It was her face which had me mesmerised. It bore a mixture of intelligence, kindness, wisdom, understanding and a hint of sadness. She looked like someone you could tell all your problems to, even those you pretended didn’t exist. And not only that, she looked as if she’d sort your problems in seconds.

  My brazen cat leapt out of Luca’s arms and scampered over to Mother Nature. He stared up at her and said reverently, “You are beautiful. Can you pick me up, please? I want a closer look at your face.”

  Mother Nature let out a warm chuckle and scooped Stanley into her arms. She said, “It’s me who should be getting a closer look at you, Stanley. You are magnificent looking. Your grey fur makes you look distinguished and wise.”

  “You know my name?”

  She stroked his head. “Of course. I know everyone’s names.” She looked over at me and smiled. “Hello again, Cassia. We met when you were a little girl. You came here with your mum. She was a wonderful person and I was saddened to hear of her passing. You’ve probably heard this before, but you look like her. How are you?”

  She had such a kindness in her eyes that I wanted to tell her exactly how I was. I was going to tell her everything that had happened to me these last few years, and I’d include how unfair Gran was being to me about the whole Luca situation.

  Luca must have picked up on my impending speech because he grabbed my hand and announced, “We’re here to talk to you about something Esther saw in the sky. Cassia, do you want to explain?”

  A flicker of annoyance shot through me. I wanted to talk about myself, not Gran and whatever she thought she’d seen. Just as swiftly, I was flooded with embarrassment. I wasn’t here to burden Mother Nature with my woes and complaints. I was being selfish. I gave Luca’s hand a swift squeeze to say thank you before taking my hand away.

  I told Mother Nature what Gran had seen in the sky. I kept glancing at Stanley who was purring softly in Mother Nature’s arms. He looked quite at home there. I felt a tinge of jealousy, followed by shame about my jealousy. What was going on with my emotions today? Was there something in the air here?

  Mother Nature looked skywards and said, “You need to speak to Metise. She’s my chief rainbow nymph. If there’s something peculiar in the sky, she’ll know what it is. Where is she? She’s usually somewhere up high.” She looked back at us. “Cover your ears while I whistle for her.”

  She placed one hand over Stanley’s ears and then let out the loudest whistle I’d ever heard. I didn’t cover my ears in time and the shrill note shot through my ears and bounced around my brain. I could see Mother Nature talking to me, but I couldn’t hear a word she was saying above the loud whistle in my head. I quickly performed a healing spell on myself and my hearing returned to normal.

  Mother Nature gave me a concerned look. “Are you alright? I forgot how loud I am sometimes. I didn’t mean to cause you any harm. Do you need to see a doctor? I can summon one for you.”

  “No, I’m okay. Thank you,” I told her. It wasn’t quite true and I could feel a headache forming. It was going to be a big one.

  Stanley gave me a quick look and then said to Mother Nature, “Could you pass me over to Cassia, please? Thank you. Luca, can you take Cassia’s broomstick, please?”

  Mother Nature and Luca did as they were told and I was glad to have Stanley in my arms. He was such a comfort. He laid his head against my chest and purred. The pain in my head subsided.

  Mother Nature looked upwards. “Ah, here she is.”

  A creature landed nimbly in front of us and smiled.
She was smaller and much slimmer than me. Her short hair had flecks of red, orange and blue in it and her green eyes twinkled with mischief. “Hey there!” she declared. “How are you doing? Hi, Luca! I haven’t seen you for a while.”

  Mother Nature tapped the creature on the shoulder and said, “Never mind them, Metise. Have you been flying too high again? You know how I feel about that. You’re going to get hurt one of these days.”

  Metise put her hands on her hips and grinned. “I’ve been hurt many times, but I always heal. I have to practise. The higher I can fly, the bigger I can make my rainbows. I want the whole of Brimstone to see them! And the other lands too. Won’t that be something?”

  Mother Nature shook her head at the nymph. “Your rainbows are already perfect.”

  “Ah, but I want to make them better. I want them bigger. And brighter. And more exciting.” The light in her eyes was infectious and I felt myself smiling at her enthusiasm.

  I quickly introduced myself and Stanley, and then said, “How do you make the rainbows?”

  “With rainbow paint, of course.” Metise’s grin grew. “But any rainbow nymph can do that. We can all fly to a certain height and paint the sky. I can fly higher. I’ve been training myself to do so. I can fly high enough to make double rainbows. I nearly made a triple one the other day. I can make tiny rainbows too. Look.” She cupped her hands in front of her mouth and gently blew on them. A tiny rainbow appeared. It floated towards me and popped like a balloon.

  Mother Nature declared, “Metise! How have you managed to do that? Have you been swallowing rainbow paint? I hope you haven’t been that stupid.”

  Metise tapped the side of her nose. “It’s edible paint. I invented it.” She gave me a happy look. “I invent lots of things. I have to. I have so many ideas in my head and I have to get them out. I write my ideas down all the time! Would you like to see what else I’ve invented?” She pulled out a wad of papers from her pocket and opened them up.

  “Yes, please,” Stanley and I said at the same time. I peered at the top sheet and saw images of rainbows with notes and arrows all over them.

  Luca stepped forward. “We’re not here to talk about inventions, Metise. What do you know about shimmering arcs in the sky? Cassia’s gran, Esther, saw one earlier.”

  The colour faded from Metise’s face and she put the wad of paper back in her pocket. “Ah, that.” She cleared her throat. “Mother Nature, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.”

  Chapter 4

  “What do you need to tell me?” Mother Nature asked. “Metise, I know you’ve been keeping something from me. And I know you’ve been out flying on an evening when you should be resting after a hard day’s work.”

  Metise answered, “I admit I have been out flying at night-time, but I need to get stronger if I’m to make my latest venture a success.” She cleared her throat again. “I’ve been working on a new kind of rainbow. It’s made from invisible paint, but once I’ve placed the rainbow in the sky, it shimmers slightly so that it can be seen by certain witches.”

  “Like my gran?” I interrupted.

  Metise shot me a quick smile. “Yes, an experienced witch like Esther would be able to see it. I’m amazed she saw it from so far away. What did she see exactly? Could she read the message?”

  I frowned. “She didn’t say anything about a message. How is it even possible to put a message in a rainbow?”

  Metise broke into a wide smile. “It is possible! That’s what I’ve been working on. I put a message inside the invisible rainbow which can only be read by witches as experienced as your gran. You could probably read them too, Cassia. I’ve been working on this for a long time and I’ve almost perfected it. I can show you how it works.”

  “Yes, please,” Stanley and I said in unison yet again.

  Mother Nature held a hand up. “Just a moment, Metise. First of all, why have you been working on something behind my back? You know I don’t like that kind of secretive behaviour.”

  Metise gave her a meek look. “I know, but I wasn’t sure it was going to work. And I had to place the rainbows higher than normal and I knew you’d only worry about me flying too high.”

  Mother Nature cast a stern look at Metise and I could have sworn the sky darkened a fraction. She said, “We’ll talk about your unauthorised actions later. What I’d really like to know is why you are sending messages which can only be seen by witches.”

  Metise lifted her chin and there was a defiant note in her voice. “It’s because of the black magic. I know it didn’t come into our Forest, but it went into Brimstone town. If Cassia had been able to send an invisible rainbow into the sky, she could have sent a message to the witches in all the other lands. They could have taken action to help Brimstone. They could have prepared their own towns in case the black magic came their way. I know we can use the butterflies to send messages, but the rainbows can be used quickly and only witches would be able to see them.” Her head dropped and her voice became quieter. “I wanted to provide a warning system. I wanted to help. I feel so useless just making rainbows every day.”

  There was a silence. I shared a look with Luca and Stanley before looking back at Mother Nature. I was shocked to see anger on her face. I was even more shocked when the ground beneath us began to tremble. Was Mother Nature causing that to happen?

  Mother Nature’s hands curled into fists at her side. Her voice was tightly controlled as she said to Metise, “It is not your place to undertake such a venture. The safety of the Forest is my concern. The welfare of the citizens of Brimstone has nothing to do with you, and neither has the safety of residents in other lands. Metise, you’ve gone too far this time with your inventions. We will talk about this later. I need to calm myself down before I cause an earthquake.” She turned to us and gave us a sharp nod before striding away.

  I said to Metise, “If it’s any consolation, I think it’s a great idea. It would have been useful to have that system in place when we first had the black magic in Brimstone. And if anything terrible happened in the town in the future, a message system like that would help us a great deal.”

  Metise looked after Mother Nature as she walked away. “I wish Mother Nature could see it that way. I didn’t mean to upset her. When I get ideas in my head, I have to act on them.” She turned her face back to me. “Do you really think it could be a useful system?”

  “I do. How far have you got with it? How does it work?”

  Metise moved closer. “I’ve invented the paint and I think I’ve got the mixture just about right. When a witch uses the paint, he or she will use a certain spell over the paint. That causes a rainbow to appear in the sky. I’m not able to use that sort of spell which is why I have to paint the rainbow in the sky. The witch casts another spell with the words he or she wants to convey.” She broke into a grin. “It’s great fun. I’ve been testing it out with a witch in one of the outer lands. I sent a message earlier. That must have been what your gran saw.”

  I said, “If you show me how it works, I could have a go at using it. If it’s successful, I could speak to Gran and Blythe about it. They could talk to Mother Nature. She might listen to them.”

  Metise’s face lit up. “Would you do that? Really?”

  I nodded. “Yes. I love the idea of invisible rainbows that only witches can see. We could use them for many reasons, and not just warnings.”

  Metise twirled around on the spot and punched her fists in the air. “Thank you! Thank you!”

  “Metise? What are you doing?” a creature asked as he walked past me. He put his hands out to steady Metise. “Careful, you don’t want to make yourself dizzy.”

  Metise flapped her hands at him. “Stop fussing. I’m just excited.” She jabbed her thumb at the creature who I now recognised as an elf. “This is Theodwin. He’d wrap me in cotton wool if he could and keep me at home all day.”

  Theodwin was tall for an elf. He had a serious-looking face which now creased in concern. “Someone has to w
orry about you, Metise. You take far too many chances with your health. You know what Mum says about your job. She says you’ll have to give it up when we get married. You’ll have to settle down and make a home for us.”

  Metise rolled her eyes. “I’m not having this conversation again. I’m not going to stop working when we get married. I’ve got too much to do.” She tapped the side of her head. “You know how my mind works. I have to get these thoughts out.”

  I couldn’t help blurting out, “Married? You two are getting married?”

  Theodwin thrust his chest out. He was quite skinny so that action didn’t have much of an impact. He said proudly, “Yes, Metise and I are soulmates. We are meant to be together. We will be wed as soon as possible.”

  Metise laughed and placed a hand on Theodwin’s arm. “Stop sounding so serious. We’ll be married when the time is right. I’ve got too much to do before any wedding takes place. You understand, don’t you?”

  Theodwin looked down at Metise and gave her a smile. Love shone from his eyes. In a softer tone, he said, “I do understand. I’d do anything for you, my love. Absolutely anything.”

  “Good,” Metise patted his arm. “Then you can be patient with me.” She turned my way. “Cassia, I’ve got some things to do now, but let’s meet up later and I’ll show you how my latest invention works.”

  “What latest invention?” Theodwin asked. “What have you been up to this time?”

  “It’s nothing for you to worry about,” Metise said. “I’ll see you later.” She gave us a broad smile before running away down a path.

  Theodwin sighed as he watched her go. He said, “She is such a handful. But she’s my soulmate and I would do anything for her, anything.”

  I know I shouldn’t have asked my next question, but I had to. “How do you know you’re soulmates? Excuse me for saying so, but you don’t seem well matched.” I felt embarrassed as soon as the words were out.

  Theodwin gave me a slow nod. “You’re not the only one to think that. I’ve always admired Metise from afar. She’s such a fearless creature. She’s always on the move and looking for her next adventure. I’m not like that at all. You can imagine my surprise when Cupid matched us up.”