FAIRY FROGMOTHER by Charlotte Henley Babb page 5/6
But Medori, of course, did not change. Maven expected a spark betwixt
her magic shielding and his, but the strength of it surprised her, as did
the other spark between the two.
The prince took Medori's hand and brought her to her feet, only barely
restraining himself from stealing a kiss. They gazed at each other, each
taking in the beauty of a human form they had never beheld at such range.
Even the other frogs sighed.
Maven felt a pang of envy for that look. She was much too old for that sort of carrying on—hadn't had a boyfriend since before she came across the Wall from Real, and certainly not since she became a Fairy Godmother. It wasn't done.
"How can you…?" he asked, holding her hand, taking in her every curve. He had never seen a young woman so close before, never looked so deeply into a woman's eyes. But he was a prince, strong of purpose, decisive. "If you will have me, I will have you as my bride."
"Yes, my prince," murmured Medori, the early rays of dawn shone in
her eyes. Maven croaked to get their attention. "Perhaps we should go to your mother first, then have the wedding," she suggested.
"For her sake," he said to me, "I will take you to plead for these
others. But only you, as I cannot abide these creatures." He glanced
around, shuddering. He handed Medori a saddlebag, touching her hand for a long second.
"Make a safe place for the Witchfrog, for we must cross a great desert to
reach my mother's castle. You must wear my cloak to shield you both from the sun."
Medori lined the leather bag with dripping moss from the creek bank
while Maven concocted a spell to keep them both cool inside the cloak; two
steamed frogs would not save the day.
Erwyn took Medori's hand, lifted it to his lips and kissed her palm as
he lifted her into the saddle. He didn't notice the thin webs between her
fingers.
"To pledge my troth to you, I will give you the magic stone," Erwyn
said, "but you must take it off."
Leaning over, Medori kissed his cheek softly. She lifted the leather
thong from around his neck and placed it around her neck.
"No," Maven cried from inside the bag, "the magic...!" Too late. The
stone glowed briefly, transferring the protecting spell to Medori and adding
the prince to the amphibian multitude. The frogs cheered as Erwyn shook his head and blinked, crawling away from his horse's hoof.
"My Prince!" Medori cried. She jumped down from the saddle and picked
him up. "Fairy Frogmother, help him!"
"Let me out!" Maven said. "I can't work from in here." Maven put a
short term spell of calmness on the horse.
Medori loaded Erwyn in the bag and climbed back up on the horse, not an easy task for a frog who has been a woman only for a couple of hours. And, of course, she didn't know how to ride.
Maven wondered if the horse had enough sense to just go home on his
own. She listened to the horse's story, but he had never been to the Queen's kingdom. Erwyn had traded for him at a tavern.
Rustling sounds came from the woods.
Nearby, a voice cried out, "There he is! Surround him, men!" The
queen's horsemen had spotted a figure in the prince's cloak. Quickly, Maven mumbled a spell to disguise Medori. The horsemen dashed to her side, scattering his green retinue.
"You must return with us, your Highness," said the captain of the
riders, tired from the long chase. "Today you must face the Queen, with a
bride or without."
Medori said nothing, but the Prince croaked from the bag, "I will
return, but I am fatigued from this long journey, and weak from lack of
sleep and food. Please lead my horse back home."
"With my own hand, your Highness," said the captain.
The horsemen cantered through the forest, leaving behind the group
of frogs who were unable to keep up. The frogs croaked sadly in the distance until the horsemen reached the broad meadows. Morning passed and afternoon came before the men stopped to rest the horses and give them drink. Jolting and bruised, Maven, Erwyn, and Medori sweated in silence.
The captain of the horsemen brought Medori a canteen of water. She
took it without a word and drained it, gulping the water almost in one
swallow. She handed it back to the captain, who stared at her pale hand.
Inside the saddlebag, Maven and Erwyn wriggled into the moss, trying to stay wet.
"Do you have a plan?" Erwyn asked. He looked sadder than ever, his
large eyes pale in the darkness. "She won't listen to reason."
"If she wants her son back," Maven said, "she'll have to reverse the
spell." At least, Maven hoped that was the case. And she hoped that Erwyn
would not hurt Medori when he realized what she was.
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