Dad, busy in the kitchen, frowned. “We’ve been assured the fire source is not a concern. And you’re going to like Hobknocker’s. I’ve heard Hob is quite the ladies’ man.”
“I saw him last night at the Poacher’s Inn, surrounded by ladies. Two of you in one clearing. Chick Magnet Central.”
Dad smiled and ruffled her hair.
“Where is Galadriel’s Closet now? I want to get a pirate-wench corset.” Keelie took a sip of the tea and curled her toes with pleasure.
“They’re at the front gate. You should go down and say hello to Mara. They decided to rent costumes to mundanes, like that shop at the Wildewood Faire does.” The kitchen was so small that Dad was almost at arm’s reach from her bed as he assembled the supplies for a pot of oatmeal. The man lived off the stuff, though Keelie had to admit that the way he fixed it was very tasty.
“I promised Sean I’d meet him for breakfast, so don’t make any for me,” she said.
“Knot will eat your share.” Dad eyeballed the water level in the pot and turned up the flame. “I haven’t seen him around, but he’ll enjoy it even if it’s cold.”
“You know, I never got to see all of Wildewood,” Keelie said. “Between my hideous dragon costume and the faire shutting down early when the forest went nuts and the power plant exploded, it wasn’t the best experience.” She grabbed her third-best pair of jeans from the trunk, along with a T-shirt printed with cartoon-like panda bears.
“We’ll be there in a few weeks.” Dad’s voice was a pleasant rumble. “You’ll get a better look this time.”
Keelie flipped her curtain shut and yanked on her clothes, then rummaged under the bed for her shoes. Yesterday’s socks were hanging out of them and she jammed them onto her feet. Showers and clean clothes later- first, she’d go meet Sean, and then pick up Raven to head to the meadow.
“Don’t make plans to be out late tonight,” Dad called. “You’ll have an early start tomorrow. I heard the new admin wants us to rehearse the royal parade, and then the pirate’s parade. And I may be busy because I have to meet a tow truck driver in the campground. Someone noticed a big puddle of oil under the pickup truck’s engine.”
“Oh my.” Keelie fought a grin. She knew it was serious and possibly very expensive to have car trouble, but the thought of a tow truck dragging the Swiss Miss Chalet-their tiny, gingerbread-festooned house perched on the bed of Dad’s aged pickup-down the road was hilarious.
She stepped past her curtain and pulled it closed behind her, enjoying the familiar rattle of its wooden rings. “I think I might go down to the meadow this morning,” she said casually. “I want to check out where the Red Cap died.”
Dad filled in what she hadn’t said. “Because of the blood in the ground? There’s nothing around there that could be harmed by the taint.”
Keelie knew he was worried, though, because suddenly he was stirring the oats on the stove much faster. She bit her lip and hurried to the bathroom, shielding her mind because sometimes Dad could read every thought as it scrolled through her brain.
“Why don’t you take Lord Elianard with you?” he called. “He’s anxious to get started with your lore lessons again, and he can check if the goblin taint might be threatening the elven village.”
“Maybe.” She could sense the spread of the goblin’s toxic magic herself.
She did need to see Elianard sometime, though. Keelie thought of the enormous Compendium, which was basically a magical recipe book containing the collected spells and charms of generations of Dread Forest elves (they really needed to get it online). She would study it later.
Elianard would surely give her a huge lore lesson if he knew she’d planted an aspen branch right in the center of the disturbed earth where the evil Red Cap had died. The branch had immediately put out a leaf, and Keelie hoped it would thrive, but just this spring she’d learned a lot about what goblin blood could do to trees. If the little sapling was still alive, its roots would have drunk deep of the evil goblin’s blood-blood spilled by Keelie when she’d called up the combination of tree and Earth magic that had blasted the evil creature to fragments.
She was glad Raven would be there with her. She didn’t want to return to the site of her battle alone.
Two
“Okay, Dad, I’m headed to Mrs. Butters’.” Keelie kissed her father goodbye and trotted down the stairs. She started across the clearing toward the path down the hill.
A door closed nearby. “Hey, neighbor!”
She turned to see Hob walking toward her. He was even better-looking in the daylight.
He grinned at her. “Heading my way? If I don’t get a muffin in the next ten minutes, I’m going to eat a squirrel.”
Keelie laughed, and as they walked together down the hill, she couldn’t help wishing that all the mean elf girls could see her walking with this studly specimen.
“I can’t wait to see your shop,” she told him.
“Come by any time.” He shrugged. “My wares are not the caliber of your father’s, but they’re amusing.”
“Lots of people like masks and disguises.”
He looked a little startled, but then his smile broadened. “They do indeed, if they have a mischievous streak.”
“My cat should be your first customer, then.” The thought of Knot in a mask was funny. In a creepy way.
“No pets allowed. But you can buy the kitty a toy if you wish.” He bowed as they arrived at Mrs. Butters’ tea shop and held her fingers to his lips. “Milady, have a lovely day.”
“You don’t know how nice it is to meet a normal person here. Thanks for walking me down.” She curtseyed, and turned to see the women on the crowded deck of the tea shop assessing her. It made her day.
Take that, she told them silently, and went inside to get her tea.
Mrs. Butters’ tea shop was already crowded, even though the morning was barely started. The tantalizing smell of fresh-baked goods made Keelie’s stomach growl as she hopped onto the plain wooden deck that surrounded the little bakery. Sean leaned against the railing that ran along the back and sides of the deck, separating it from the forest. He was holding a mug and laughing with his jousting friends. They were all tall and muscular, but Sean was the best looking. Every female on the deck glanced at him, secretly enjoying his presence.
Keelie entered the little shop and waited while one of the burlap-and-leather-clad mud men ordered his breakfast. Mrs. Butters’ little brown face, like a living version of the gingerbread man’s wife, split into a smile when she noticed Keelie, and she placed a utilitarian white mug of hot water on the counter. Keelie put a dollar down and edged past the mud man to choose a tea bag from the assortment in a basket at the end of the counter. Today seemed like a “Sweet Orange” day. She tore the top of the little square paper pouch and tossed it into the recycling bin, then dunked her tea bag in the hot water and went to join Sean.
The jousters greeted her like an old friend. Since she’d spent the winter in the Dread Forest, they were as old as any other friends she had-with the exception of Laurie, who still lived in L.A. near where Mom’s house had been.
Keelie felt envious glares bounce off her back as Sean leaned over to kiss her. “Hope you didn’t buy any food,” he said. “We ordered extra muffins.”
Keelie examined the picked-over plate and chose what was left of a bran muffin. Breakfast with Sean had sounded romantic, but she hadn’t counted on the rest of the jousting team. After a few minutes of listening to their jokes and stories, she excused herself.
“Don’t leave yet. Are you coming to the practice this afternoon?” Sean put an arm around her waist and pulled her to him. He felt strong and safe, and she wished he could come with her to the meadow.
“I’ll be fine,” she said. “See you tonight.”
He placed a soft kiss on her rounded human ear, and she felt her other ear blush red all the way to its elven tip.
Mrs. Butters waved as she jumped off the deck and headed toward the meadow. Before Keelie even got to
