Ash and Tracey released their hands, and Tracey approached Makenna, who comforted him some more.
Ash picked up his sword and slipped it into his scabbard.
Makenna and Tracey watched as he stepped forward and searched the area.
Ash turned his head, and his eyes landed on them. "Are y'all ready to see the Aluna Village fairy sprites?"
Makenna and Tracey nodded. While Makenna was excited, Tracey was a little edgy about being on Coutarine Island after last year.
Ash smiled and said, "All right, then. There's only one way the sprites will come, though: through the power of a song and a magic pose."
"The power of song?" Makenna asked. "Oh wow!" She glanced at Tracey. "Tracey likes to sing! Don't you, Tracey? Not to mention, Ash, he has a very nice voice."
Tracey blushed. "Well, um…"
"Perfect!" Ash cheered. He lifted his hands and leaped up and down. "Come on, Tracey! You can do it! Bring on the fire! Show the sprites the power of song and an off-the-hook magic pose! Makenna's time to shine will eventually come, too."
"I can't," Tracey nervously spoke, but Makenna gently pushed him forward.
"Come on, Trace. You have a great singing voice. You need to let it show. Besides, doesn't singing usually calm you down?"
"Well, yeah," said Tracey, "but only when I'm alone. Not when people and animals surround me."
"There are only a few of us here," Raeven told him. "Remember, Tracey, we're all your friends. You can do it."
Ash crossed his arms and nodded at Merlin's apprentice, letting him take the stage.
A warm, ocean breeze soared through the tropical jungle and blew Tracey's hair.
He peered at the treetops and whispered, "All right, the power of song and a magic pose will call the sprites of Aluna. The power of song." Just with the thought of singing, he grew a little excited himself. Makenna was right. Tracey really did like to sing. He stole the stage in Mr. Gheesling's class the year before by singing "Ninja Go" in Italian.
Tracey cracked a feeble smile. Another ocean breeze gushed through his hair. It was there that Tracey began singing. Immediately after he did, a bundle of joy exploded through his body.
Tracey lifted his hand and pointed at the island's jungle. "Last year, things were much different. We were ready to say goodbye. But now, everything has changed, and we know how to live our lives."
Makenna and Ash grinned.
Tracey leaned down and ran his hand through the river Makenna drank from earlier. "Last year, none of this was here. This year, we are soaring."
Tracey marched and began exploring the jungle.
Makenna and Ash followed him, but Raeven stayed behind.
Gina rested on Tracey's head.
While he marched, he sang a little longer, but then he stopped and attempted a magic pose. Tracey wanted to make Ash the Wizard Fairy proud. He wanted to prove to him that he, too, could become a Wizard Fairy.
Green and purple magic surrounded Tracey, and he lifted his fists. Tracey acted out six quick, midair punches and lifted his hand over his head.
The magic surrounding him charged into the sky and exploded into a blast of green and purple sparkles that rained down.
Makenna said, "Wow!" and rotated her body to see every angle of the rain of sparkles.
Ash laughed and started to clap. "Well done, Tracey! Well done! You have completed my trial!"
Hearing that, a bewildered look crossed Makenna's face, and she turned to the knight. "What do you mean by 'trial'? Did it work? Are the fairy sprites coming?"
Even Tracey was confused by the word "trial," but then he heard a chime from the jungle's treetops. He, Makenna, and Ash glanced up at the trees.
Other sparkles headed toward them: the fairy sprites. Tracey did it!
Makenna nudged Ash and questioned, "What are those sparkles, Ash?"
"Just wait," Ash answered.
"Wait? I can't wait! I'm losing it here, Ash! This is so exciting!"
Ash glanced at Makenna and smiled sweetly, saying, "That is something you need to work on, Makenna."
Makenna gave him another weird look.
Tracey's sparkles soon vanished, and the mysterious new ones surrounded the three fairies instead.
Makenna gasped, and her blue eyes lit up. All around her, Ash, Gina, and Tracey hovered tiny fairies. They didn't look that much different from them.
"The fairy sprites!" Makenna yelled. "The fairy sprites!" She ran to Tracey and grabbed his shoulders, violently shaking them. "You did it, Tracey!"
"Yeah." Tracey smiled. "I did, didn't I?"
"See?" questioned Makenna. "I told you singing would lift your spirits. Yippee! The fairy sprites! I'm looking at real fairy sprites! Me! Makenna Delling!" She leaped into the air and twirled.
Within the crowd of fairy sprites, a male one asked Tracey, "Is she always like this?"
"Only when she's excited," Tracey calmly responded. "I apologize about her, sir. She's still kind of a new fairy."
Where Ash stood, he lifted his hands and moved them apart in a greeting-like way. He shook them a little after that. "Aluna, sprites! I have returned!"
The sprites acted out the same greeting and said, "Aluna, Ash! Welcome back!"
Makenna observed the Aluna way of saying hello and tried it herself. "Um, Aluna." However, her hands became entangled.
Tracey chuckled and shook his head. "No, Makenna. You do it like this."
Makenna landed before him and watched intrigued, as did Ash and the fairy sprites.
Tracey lifted his hands and acted out the Aluna greeting. "Aluna! Now you try."
Makenna did. She moved her hands farther apart that time and waved them. "Aluna."
"Better," admitted Tracey. "Try again. Don't forget to shake your hands, too." He waved for the second time. "Aluna."
"Aluna," Makenna repeated.
"Not bad," Tracey tittered. "We'll work on it. 'Aluna' is how fairies say hello on Coutarine Island."
Ash watched the whole thing with a smile.
A sprite hovering beside him lifted her hand and whispered into his ear, "They make such a cute couple."
"They really do," Ash admitted. "If only somebody looked at me the way Makenna looks at Tracey." He brought his fist to his lips and announced, "Ahem!"
The fairy sprites turned away from Makenna and Tracey and looked at him.
Ash added, "We were hoping you could help us. We're looking for somebody."
"Looking for somebody?" another sprite questioned. "Looking for who?"
Ash glimpsed at Makenna and said, "Makenna, do you think you can tell them? I forgot."
"Forgot?" Makenna asked. "How can you forget? You're Ash!"
"True, but I have very short-term memory. Please, Makenna, can you do this for me?"
"Short-term memory?" questioned Makenna. "Since when did you become Dory? All right. Fine." She sighed and faced the fairy sprites. "Um, Aluna! We're searching for, um… Merlin the Great."
Behind her, Ash placed his hand over his face and shook his head.
"So, um," Makenna continued, "do you know where he may be?"
"Merlin the Great?" asked the fairy sprites. They looked very confused, as if they didn't understand Makenna.
Ash finally came in for her. "She meant to ask where we can find Evelyn so we can ask her where Merlin is."
"Oh, yes! Yes!" Makenna spoke. "Evelyn! My bad."
"Oh, Evelyn," spoke the sprites. "Aluna's Elder. Sure, you can, young fairies."
A female fairy spoke up. "For you to ask Evelyn where Merlin is, though, you must first follow us to her house in the village."
"Wait a minute," Makenna excitedly stated. "You mean we're flying to Aluna with you?"
Tracey touched her shoulder and explained, "That's the only way we're going to find Evelyn, Makenn."
"Sweet!" yelled Makenna. "Oh, my gosh! My heart is racing! I have never been to a fairy sprite village before!" She peered down at her transformation. "I should change into a dress. Oh, what am I talking about? All my dresses are home. Wait." Makenna faced the sprites again. "How will we get there? Don't you think we're a little big?"
Tracey opened his mouth, but Ash cut him off.
"What do you think, Makenna? Which spell should you use?"
Makenna looked into space, but it appeared like she couldn't remember the spell that shrank her.
After a minute or two of awkward silence, Ash gestured for Tracey to say not a word, and Tracey zipped his lips.
Ash drew his sword and gestured with his other hand for Makenna to watch him, and she did. Ash waved his hand, and a few sparkles escaped his glove's fingertips. They circled the blade of his sword, and Makenna observed as it started to shrink.
She gasped. "Oh, right! The Shrinking Spell! Duh!"
Ash bobbed his head and returned the sword to its standard size. "Allow me to demonstrate it more regally now," he elucidated. "You'll like this, Makenna. Hopefully, you'll learn how to do this soon. I'm sure the Wizard Fairy will kindly teach you. Now watch." Ash smiled, stood up straight, and announced, "Shrinking Spell!" He twirled his sword and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Ooh," spoke the fairy sprites.
Ash did something similar to what Tracey did when he performed his magic pose. He threw back his hands and stomped his right foot.
Ash crouched down and tightly clenched his fist. Green and blue magic danced around him, and Ash jumped up, throwing his hands into the sky. And just like that, he, his sword, and his shield shrank down.
Makenna blushed. "Wow," she squeaked.
Ash, now two inches tall, hovered before her. "Wala!" he announced. "Well, Makenna, Tracey's completed his trial. Are you ready for yours?"
"Um," said Makenna, "I don't really know what you mean by that, but sure! As long as it gets us to Merlin and the wizard, I want to try the Shrinking Spell that way. What about you, Tracey?" She turned her head, but her eyes widened when she saw that Tracey had already shrunk.
He rested on Gina's back.
"Wait, Tracey!" Makenna yelled. "Did you just do what Ash did, too?"
Tracey shook his head and said, "No, I just performed the spell as it's normally performed. It's not easy to master that kind of skill Ash is showing you, Makenn."
"Oh, really?" Makenna placed her hands on her hips. "It didn't look that hard. Just watch me, Tracey. Okay, Ash, so you first kind of crossed your arms over your chest." Makenna did that. "Then you shouted 'Shrinking Spell!' and stomped your foot. Which one was it again?"
Ash chuckled. "Why don't you just do the spell how you would normally do it?"
Makenna sighed. "Fine, but it's not as cool."
"It doesn't matter. Just shrink so we can visit Evelyn." Ash waved his hand before his face and shook his blonde hair. Sweat sprayed off it.
Makenna closed her eyes and soon shrank to two inches tall. She gasped when she saw how far off the ground she was. "Whoa. I never knew how tiny two inches is." She, Tracey, and Ash were now all the same height as the fairy sprites.
Ash flew with the help of his flying magic, while Tracey rode on Gina.
Makenna soon called for Raeven. "Come on, Raeven! We're going to meet Evelyn of Aluna Village! Raeven?" Makenna searched the area, but she didn't see Raeven. "Raeven!" Makenna called. "What the heck? He's gone!"
On Gina's back, Tracey brought his hand to his chin and said, "Weird. Where could he have gone, though?" He and Makenna thought for a moment, and then they turned to Ash. Maybe he knew where Raeven was?
Noticing that, Ash held up his hands and said, "Hey, don't look at me. I didn't see him leave. Evelyn will probably tell us, though, where he went."
Makenna gasped and faced the fairy sprites again. "Please, you've got to take us to Aluna! I need to know where my bat friend went!"
"Bat friend?" one of the sprites asked. "All right, then. You have our word. Follow us."
Together, the sprites flapped their tiny wings and took off in flight.
Makenna rushed after them, desperate to know where Raeven was, and Tracey flew after her.
Ash temporarily stayed behind. He placed his sword back in his scabbard and smiled a mysterious smile. He surrounded himself with magic again and acted out another magic pose.
Through telepathy, he called to Raeven. "Raeven, Makenna and Tracey have headed off to meet Evelyn. Get Merlin ready."
After communicating, Ash opened his eyes and dropped his hands. Suddenly, from out of nowhere, his sword shook on his back. "Huh?" Ash asked. He drew it again and added, "What's wrong, Crusader? Do you sense something?"
Crusader's blade soon glowed a bright, golden color, and Ash peered down at it. The magic whispered something to him. "Do you really think so?" Ash inquired after a bit. "Do you really think they're ready to learn the Special Spells now? Makenna hasn't even passed the trial yet. Oh, all right. I get it. Thanks, Crusader."
"Ash!" the knight soon heard Tracey call to him from behind. "Are you coming or not?"
"Yeah!" Ash called back. "Sorry!"
Crusader's blade stopped glowing, and he studied her as he turned and used his magic to fly after Tracey, Makenna, and the fairy sprites.
***
Raeven had snuck away from the three fairies and Gina. While he soared through Coutarine Island's jungle, he said aloud, "What if we don't make it? What if we're too late? What if Makenna and Tracey aren't taught the Special Spells on time? Then that means the Octopus Man will win, and both the Human and Magic Worlds will fall to destruction! Oh, what am I doing? Don't think negatively, Raeven."
Raeven soared between the trunks of two trees and escaped the jungle onto a beach. He took in a whiff of the tropical breeze and flew over the fluffy, white sand.
The beach had some logs washed up, but it was still breathtaking.
The Megabat looked further down it, and his eyes landed on a figure sitting on one of the logs. Seeming to smile, he flapped faster and headed toward it, calling, "Merlin!"
Sure enough, the figure sitting on the log was Merlin the Great. He had a long, white beard, wore a tall, blue hat, and a long, blue cloak. Both his cloak and hat had star designs, and he sported sunglasses.
Merlin heard Raeven call him and smiled. Hopping off the log, his blue shoes hit the white sand, and he turned toward the bat flying for him.
Merlin beamed and lifted his hands over his head. "Ah, well, if it isn't Raeven! Whoopee! He's here! He's finally here!" Merlin started to jump up and down, but his back cracked, and he reached for it. "Ah, me back! Me back! Yowch!"
Raeven soon stopped and hovered before him. He waved his wings in the Aluna greeting way. "Aluna, Merlin! You're not going to collapse and die on me, right? Oh no, you are! What are we going to do when you die? You can't die!"
Merlin straightened out his back and said, "Relax, Raeven. I'm not going to die. I'm just so excited that I can't help but dance!" He danced some more. "Are Makenna and my apprentice here yet?"
Raeven nodded. "They are, sir. They are currently traveling to Aluna Village to seek out Evelyn."
"Do they have my package?"
"They do, sir, and they're going to bring it with them when they come. Ash is doing really well with Makenna and Tracey. They have no clue what he's doing with them."
Merlin clapped. "Perfect! That's exactly the way we want it to be! To reward Ash for all his hard work, Raeven, I'm going to give him a little surprise when he brings Makenna and Tracey here."
"Really?" Raeven questioned. "What?" He flapped his wings and soared to the log Merlin used to sit on. Raeven landed on it and glanced forward.
He watched as Merlin faced the jungle and placed his pinkies in either side of his mouth.
He whistled, and Raeven jumped. "What are you doing?" he asked Merlin.
Soon after Merlin whistled, he stepped back when pounding horseshoes were heard. A large Palomino horse appeared from around the beach's point. She had a white mane and tail and dark brown eyes. While she wasn't tacked with a saddle, she did wear a red halter.
Raeven smiled at the sight of the horse and said, "Oh, wow! That's Harmony, Merlin!"
Harmony, it was, Ash's horse.
Merlin laughed and said, "Yep, it sure is, Raeven. I know how much the two love each other. Say, Harmony..." He approached the horse, and she stopped running. Merlin rubbed her nose and met her eyes. "Are you ready to see Ash? He's going to be here soon with Makenna and Tracey."
At the sound of Ash's name, Harmony whinnied happily and cantered away from Merlin.
He and Raeven observed while she danced on the beach.
Harmony soon fell onto the sand and rolled around in it.
Merlin laughed. "Yep, she definitely is excited."
Raeven seemed to beam. "I can't wait to see Ash's face when he sees her. His head is still wrapped around the idea that she'll be waiting for him when he gets home. Such a great horse."
Harmony continued to roll in the sand, leaving Merlin and Raeven to chuckle in the tropical atmosphere, eager for the next leg of the journey.