Chapter Thirteen (part b)

Jennifer and Rachael and Jamie rushed out across the field, dashing this way and that as they followed the pendulum's advice. The grass grew higher all around them as they ran. Soon they could only catch a few brief glimpses of the rest of the field through the wavering grass. Then finally they couldn't see anything at all and they had to follow the pendulum blindly. It was agonizingly slow. Finally Jennifer stopped completely.

"The pendulum isn't moving at all anymore!" she said.

"What'd you do, break it?" demanded Rachael.

Suddenly the tall grass parted and the two dwarves appeared, yelling at the wolf and tugging on the rope they had tied around his neck.

"Come on, get going!" yelled the fat dwarf.

"We've been in this field for hours," shouted the one with the warts. "When're we going to get there?"

The wolf didn't even growl in answer. Slowly and patiently he turned and started off up the path the children had just made coming through the high grass. The dwarf with the warts was about to follow when he suddenly looked to the side and noticed Jennifer stand ing there.

"What're you looking at, fat face?" he growled at her.

Jennifer's stomach dropped away. She tried to answer but she couldn't say a word. The dwarf saw her discomfort and laughed. Then he turned to Jamie and Rachael.

"You guys know where the stones are?" he demanded.

"No," said Jamie nervously. "We're lost just like you."

"We ain't lost," shouted the dwarf with the warts.

"And don't you go following us either," yelled the fat one. "If you got yourself lost that's your problem!"

He tugged angrily on the rope and then both dwarves disappeared into the tall grass following the wolf 's lead.

"Maybe we should follow them," said Rachael

"No way," said Jamie. "I bet the wolf's just taking them around in circles to keep them away from the real place. Isn't the pendulum doing anything yet, Jenny?"

"No," she replied "It's still not moving at all."

"Oh, this is just great!" said Rachael. "The pendulum's busted and everyone's lost. We'll never get anywhere!"

"Yes you will," said a voice. "But shhhh! Don't tell!"

"It's a secret!" finished Jennifer and she laughed.

"It's the sprite!" cried Jamie and he laughed too.

They all turned around to see if he was right. He was.

'Are we ever glad to see you!" Jennifer told him.

Rachael was too surprised to know how she felt. She walked all around the sprite and inspected him very carefully from all sides as she tried to decide.

"Is there something the matter?" asked the sprite.

"She doesn't believe you're real," explained Jennifer.

"I do now, at least I think I might," said Rachael and she reached up to tug on one of the sprite's hair-twigs.

"What're you doing?" demanded Jamie.

"I just wanted to see if he was," explained Rachael.

"Perfectly understandable," said the sprite and he bent down and yanked on Rachael's hair.

"Ow!" cried Rachael.

"He has to see if you're real too," laughed Jennifer.

"Alright, okay; so everyone's real, we know that now," said Rachael. "So how do we get to the new-moon stones?"

"No need to worry, you're already there!" whispered the sprite and he held aside the tall grass so they could see.