Page 29 of With the Potion in the Courtyard
Night descended fully, and the realm of Doodle transformed. Stars appeared overhead, glowing like stick-on jewels against a black construction paper sky. The world took on a dreamlike quality, but our mission kept us grounded.
"Jaylyn," We continued to shout, unwilling to give up, driven by the thought of our friend alone in this fantastical place.
"Come on," I said, gripping Robbie's hand for a moment before releasing it, needing the connection, however brief. "Let's find her."
And with that, we plunged deeper into Doodle, our determination undimmed by the encroaching darkness.
CHAPTER TWELVE
We were running as fastas we could through the pink stalks that waved in the wind. Our hands outstretched. Each time we touched a pink stalk, it made a beautiful sound, like a wind chime. And each stalk made a slightly different sound, which was music to my ears. Behind all that, was the sound of our laughter. I would catch glimpses of Robbie and Jessie with smiles brightening their faces, and I felt freer than I’d ever felt in my life.
Closing my eyes, I spun in the pink stalks, and a harmony of music rang out all around me as my hands danced along the surfaces of the stalks. I kept spinning and spinning until my stomach warned me that I couldn’t keep going like that. And then, like adrunken sailor, I stumbled forward and slowly started to run again. Only, this time, Jessie and Robbie were nowhere to be found.
At first, I kept running and laughing, trying to catch up with them, loving the music and magic of this place. But as more time passed, and I couldn’t see them, my running slowed until I stopped.
Listening, there was nothing. Just silence. No music from them touching the pink stalks. Nothing.
"Robbie! Jessie!" I called.
But only silence answered.
My gut churned, and I started walking, then running. "Robbie! Jessie!" I shouted, even louder than before.
Still, nothing.
How could this have happened? My thoughts ran back through the past few minutes, and I realized that I might have been running in the wrong direction from them for a while. So, how do I find them? Which way do I go?
I tried the finding spell with my wand, but it only made that strange electrical sound and wentnowhere. My heart raced. I couldn’t be alone in this strange world. I just couldn’t be.
Hours passed as I walked and shouted for them, but no one answered. More strange animals crossed my path, but my shouting scared them away. My stomach growled miserably, and I eyed some fruit hanging off a tree. I needed to eat, but I didn’t want to end up picking deadly fruit. I’d heard that people in the past waited to see if animals would eat something to know if it was safe, so I decided to do the same.
Sitting, mostly concealed by a bush with pink polka dots and blue stripes, I waited. Eventually, some orange birds came and began pecking at the fruit. When they seemed to still be in good health after another hour or so, I climbed out of the bush and tried the fruit.
To my surprise, it was good! It tasted like bubble gum mixed with skittles with a little syrup after taste. I ate my fill of the strange plant, then drank, what tasted like, chocolate milk from a tiny stream. When I was done, I felt a little better. It wasn’t the kind of lunch I was used to, but at least my stomach wasn’t hurting anymore.
I walked more, still shouting for my friends, as I watched the sun slowly dip further in the sky. A glow in the distance caught my eye, and I switched directions. In the clearly, there was one lone tree, yellow and beautiful, and what looked like some mix of a bird’s nest and a tree house. Outside the little home was a creature as golden as the tree. It had waves of yellow tentacles growing from its head and rolling down its back. Its face was human-like, but exaggerated, with huge eyelashes and big lips. Except, it was barely tall enough to reach my knee.
Yet, it was the first creature that seemed semi-intelligent since I’d gotten here, so I took a chance and decided to approach it. As I entered the clearing, the yellow beans in the tree, which glowed slightly, grew brighter, and the creature’s head shot up. It watched me as I approached, and there was something cautious about its expression.
"Hello," I called. "I mean you no harm."
It didn’t respond, so I kept coming closer. "I’m sorry to bother you, but I have friends here I’ve gotten separated from. They look kind of like me. Is there any chance you might have seen them?"
The creature titled its head, and it spoke, its voice childlike and innocent. "They went into the dark woods." Then, it pointed.
Just in the distance, the colorful trees and landscape faded away, and there was a forest of big black trees, with big black leaves. Everything beneath the forest was dark and shadowy, which wasn’t at all reassuring.
"Are you s-sure?" I asked, unable to keep the tremble from my voice.
It nodded. "Be careful in the dark woods. It’s easy to get lost. And scary things roam." Then, it turned around and hurried into the yellow tree, disappearing.
"Well, that’s comforting," I said.
Wrapping my arms around myself, I started toward the dark woods. Everything about this felt wrong, but this was my only hope of being reunited with Robbie and Jessie. I had to remember that as silly as this place seemed, there were unseen dangers… like getting lost.
It took me no time at all, and then I was under the shadows of the forest.Nothing seemed to move. Nothing except the trees seemed to grow. But the ground was uneven, like some great machine was tearing it up on a regular basis. I had to watch my every step in fear of stumbling.
As time ticked by, there was a sound. A breeze. A change that I couldn’t see. Suddenly, all the trees around me began to move, and the ground shook. Massive roots pulled up from the ground, and the trees began to walk.