A Magical Test

 

Jordan looked hopelessly around at the endless expanse of trees and undergrowth. He didn’t want to admit it, but…

“We’re lost, aren’t we?” Johnny, the African parrot on his shoulder, cut into his thoughts.

Jordan tried to keep the fear out of his voice as he said, “Well, maybe. I just don’t recognize this place.”

Johnny clicked his beak. “Weren’t you paying attention?”

Annoyance flashed through Jordan. “What about you? We’re supposed to be doing this together.”

Jordan felt Johnny’s claws tighten on his shoulder. “Come on, you’re the wizard. I’m just your good luck charm.”

Shaking his head, Jordan said, “You know you’re much more than a good luck charm. I wouldn’t be a wizard without you.”

Spreading his wings proudly, Johnny said, “Of course. Thank you for acknowledging my importance.”

Jordan couldn’t stop the smile that crept over his face. “Well then, Mr. Importance, which way do we go?”

Johnny carefully arranged his feathers and thought. “What are we supposed to be looking for again?”

Jordan barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. “Just the magical spellbook that will teach us how to be wizards.” This was the first test to prove that they could use their new magic. If they failed, they would go their separate ways and Jordan would go back to his previous boring life. Looking over at his new friend, he felt his resolve harden. They may have only just met, but their friendship was deeper than any other he’d experienced. He was not going to lose that now.

Studying the dark trees around him, he looked for any kind of clue that would lead them where they needed to go. The strange forest let in very little sunlight, and rustling leaves surrounded them. “What do you think, Johnny?”

Cocking his head, Johnny stopped to listen. “Everything looks and sounds the same in here, but there’s got to be something we’re missing.”

An idea popped in Jordan’s head. “Why don’t you fly up into the trees and see if you notice anything different from up there?”

The weight on Jordan’s shoulder disappeared as Johnny launched himself in a burst of feathers. Jordan watched as the gray parrot flew high into the treetops. “See anything?” A shaft of sunlight blinded him temporarily, and he had to look away. He could no longer see Johnny anywhere.

After a few anxious minutes, Johnny’s gray wings finally reappeared and he settled himself back on Jordan’s shoulder. “The only things I could see were miles and miles of the same trees that surround us down here. This is obviously a magical forest, and we won’t get anywhere without cracking some kind of code or something.”

A magical forest? What were they supposed to do? How were they going to find a magical book in an ocean of trees? “Maybe we’ve got to use magic?” Jordan had no idea how to use his new magic, but it seemed the obvious answer to their problem. “You know how it felt when we connected? That felt pretty magical. Let’s try that again.”

“All I know is that you’re the one that drew me to you. Just do that for the book.”

Jordan thought back. How exactly had it happened? He had so desperately wanted to be a wizard. When he finally had a chance to call a companion, he had no idea how to do it. As the minutes passed, he’d grown more and more worried until finally he noticed something different. It was as though an invisible string had been tied to him and someone was pulling on it. Intrigued, he pulled back on the line and was astounded when Johnny came and landed gracefully on his shoulder.

Could he do the same thing again, but with the book? He looked within himself and saw his connection to Johnny. It already seemed stronger than when he’d first felt it. He kept searching and found… nothing.

“Why don’t you try calling out loud for the book?” Johnny’s sudden question made Jordan jump.

“Okay.” Feeling slightly foolish, he called, “I need the magic book!” Absolutely nothing happened.

“You should try that again, but feel for it with your magic this time.” Johnny’s eyes shone and Jordan wondered if he was laughing at him. But no, it was excitement in his eyes, and Jordan felt it too.

“Where is the magic book?” This time, when Jordan called out for the book, he looked within himself and waited for some kind of magical feeling.

At first, he didn’t notice anything different, but then a thought shot right to him… from the woods. Now he knew what to do. “This way.” Confidently, he followed the feeling, and he could tell immediately that he was going in the right direction.

Johnny flapped his wings in excitement, saying, “There we go! I knew I made the right choice when I came to you!”

Continuing to follow the magical pull, the two friends strode deeper and deeper into the woods. The feeling grew stronger as they walked at least a mile. Finally, they reached a small clearing, and Jordan knew this was it. Pulling aside some branches, he looked into a beautiful, grassy area and saw a book, sitting on a tree stump. Without any hesitation, he picked it up and knew it was what they’d been looking for.

The feeling intensified as he opened the book and a beam of light shot straight into the sky. A mighty wind built and grew and he threw up his hand to protect himself from the sudden tornado.

When the wind subsided, he was surprised to see a man standing in the clearing next to him. “Oh, well done Jordan and Johnny!” He shook Jordan’s hand while Jordan just gazed back, dazed.

“You two were the first ones to find your book. Congratulations on recognizing your new magic!”

At these words, Jordan found his voice again. “Thank you!” He grinned from ear to ear and felt the excitement from Johnny, too. They had done it! He was going to become a real wizard!

As he followed the man out of the clearing, Johnny whispered in his ear, “Good job, partner! I’m proud to be on your team!” The bird squeezed his shoulder affectionately.

Still grinning, Jordan reached up to softly stroke Johnny’s gray feathers. “Thank you for your help, friend.” For he knew that he wouldn’t have been able to find the book without Johnny. This was going to be a great friendship.

Haunted House

 

            Ned couldn’t believe their luck. The one time he didn’t have an umbrella with him and it had started to rain. Josh insisted that they keep going since they were already halfway to Toby’s house and should still get there before it got too dark.

            The rain dripped down Ned’s back and he shifted his pack uneasily. “How much farther?” It was raining harder, and he was getting wetter and wetter. Puddles sloshed and soaked his socks as he trudged through them.

            “It’s probably at least another three miles,” Josh answered slowly. “We’ve got to get out of the rain, though, and wait this storm out.”

            Ned had thought that hiking ten miles to visit their cousin Toby had sounded fun when his brother Josh suggested it yesterday, but now he wasn’t so sure. They could stay for a day or two and go fishing together. Mom was all too happy to let them go. Both boys had made the trek several times before and there wasn’t much else for them to do since school was out. Ned thought longingly now of his cozy bed at home. He shivered as the rain soaked him through and the temperature started to drop. Even though it was still early, the day was growing dark as more clouds rolled in. He kept his eyes open for some kind of shelter where they could try to get dry. There wasn’t much out in these open grassy fields, but he saw something that made him sag in relief. “Josh! Do you see that light over there?”

            Josh looked to where Ned was pointing and saw the light shining from a window of a great, hulking house at the edge of the field. “Yeah, but isn’t that the old Morgan house? I didn’t think anyone lived there.”

            “It looks like someone moved in.” Ned shook his head to clear the rain from his eyes. “Let’s see if they’ll let us stay for a while.”

            Josh grinned at his brother. “Aren’t you worried about ghosts? Everyone says that the house is haunted.”

            A shiver went up Ned’s spine that had nothing to do with the rain. “I know what they say, but I’d rather face ghosts than die from the cold.”

            They crossed the field that was quickly becoming muddy and arrived at the doorstep of the old house a few minutes later. The relief of having a little shelter from the rain fought against Ned’s desire to run away as fast as he could from here. He was already thinking that this was a bad idea when Josh knocked and rang the doorbell.

            Deep chimes rang inside and the hair on Ned’s arms stood straight up as they waited for the owner to come to the door. After a few minutes, though, no one came and then the wind started. Being already wet and cold, the wind set both boys’ teeth chattering.

            “That’s it,” Josh said as he shivered violently. “Let’s go in. I can’t take it anymore out here.” He turned the doorknob and gently pushed the door open. It swung wide with a loud “creak,” and Ned followed his brother inside.

            “Hello!” Josh called out. “We got stuck out in the storm and we’re looking for shelter for a little while. Is anyone home?”

            The only answering sound was a steady “drip, drip, drip” as a puddle formed on the floor around Ned and Josh. A light shone from down the hall, and the boys headed toward it with Josh calling out, “Hello?” They reached a cozy sitting room where a roaring fire burned in the fireplace and filled the room with warmth. Nearly stumbling over each other to stand near the flames, Ned sighed as he felt the warmth seep into his bones.

He was just about to remove his pack when a flapping sound came from behind them. Spinning around, he noticed the large black bird standing on a perch on the other side of the room. It gave out a single “Caw!” that rang in Ned’s ears.

            “Cool!” Josh walked over to get a better look. “They have a pet crow.” He reached out to pet it, but the bird snapped at his hand and Josh jumped away. He eyed the bird with disgust. “They didn’t do a very good job of training this bird.”

            A second “Caw!” sounded out, and the boys turned to see another perch with three more black birds glaring at them. The light from the fire danced off their glossy feathers as they shuffled their wings. More caws sounded, and Ned was surprised to see that the room was now full of crows.

            “Where did they all come from?” For the first time, Ned heard the fear in Josh’s voice.

            “Let’s just get out of here!” Ned turned to go back the way they had come. Only… it wasn’t there anymore. He could no longer see any of the room around them as the crows flapped their wings and caws rang out. Ned’s voice came out a whisper as he said, “We’re trapped.”

            Josh stepped closer to his brother. “We’re just going to have to run through them to get out of here.”

            “Are you sure that’s a good idea? They keep multiplying!” The room swirled as black feathers occupied every space. Hundreds of crows stared at the two boys with what Ned was sure was malice.

            “No, but let’s go!” Josh covered his head with his arms and dove straight into the black birds. Ned quickly followed, afraid of being left behind. He kept his eyes on Josh’s pack straight ahead of him as he felt the birds come at them.

            After what seemed an eternity of wading through feathers, talons, and beaks, the boys finally found their way back to the front door and they crashed through it as they ran back toward the trail.

            With the sound of feathers and caws behind them, Ned dared to look back, and he was surprised to see that the field was completely empty. There weren’t any birds following them, and there was no house. “Hey, Josh, come here!”

            Josh’s voice answered right next to him. “What happened?” He looked over at Ned with blood on his face and hands where the crows had scratched and pecked at him. Ned knew that he couldn’t look much better.

            Without another word, the boys dashed along the trail, heedless of the rain that continued to pelt them and remind them of what they had just endured. They ran all the way to Toby’s house where their cousin was shocked at their appearance. Gasping, they told him about their experience at the old Morgan house.

            Toby’s shock turned to confusion. “But that house was destroyed by a lightning strike that burned it to the ground. It’s gone now.”

            Ned and Josh looked at each other with fear in their eyes. They knew what they had seen and been through. It seemed like that haunted house would remain haunted, even if the house no longer physically existed.

The Yellow Bird

 

            Beth let out a sigh of relief as soon as she was outside in the cool night air. She’d successfully made it outside without waking anyone up. Pulling her cloak tighter around her, she headed straight into the forest. Tonight was the night that she was going to prove everyone wrong.

            As soon as she reached the shelter of the trees, she threw back her hood and shook out her long, golden hair. “Hector, any sign of it yet?”

            The striped cat seemed to materialize next to her. “Not yet, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find, right?”

            Beth thought about the upper class’ failed attempt to find and catch the rare yellow bird. It should have been easy for them to just use their advanced magic, but they had been unsuccessful and returned empty-handed. Beth might not be in the upper class, but she was sure that she had more magic than all of them put together. The familiar hum in her veins announced that Hector had found something.

            Delighted by her quick success, Beth quickly darted closer to Hector. The cat’s eyes were riveted on the fluttering bird that moved through the trees, twenty yards away. “Good work, Hector,” she whispered as she quietly set down her supplies. It should have been easy to use her magic to bring the bird to her, but she didn’t know how to do that yet. If she tried, she’d probably light the woods on fire or something.

            No, she was going to do this the old-fashioned way. Pulling out the box that she had made earlier that day, she set it on the ground and then poured a neon-green liquid into it. Trying not to breathe in the horrid stench of the liquid goo, she set the spring that would close the box on the bird as soon as it was inside.

            Once the trap was set, Beth stood up with satisfaction. She might not be great at using her magic yet, but she was a true wizard when it came to making potions and concoctions. Her best friend, Katie, loved to tell the rest of the class about how rad Beth was at potion-making.

            A smile appeared on Beth’s face as she thought about Katie. Only Katie ever used old words like “rad.” She couldn’t wait to go back and show her friend what she’d done. She might not quite be a true wizard yet, but maybe she could be wiz’rad.’

            All Beth had to do now was wait for the bird to come in and trigger the trap. The special goo inside was designed to lure the magical bird. It was an incredibly difficult potion to make, but if it was done right, the bird would smell it from miles away and come to investigate.

            Hector wound himself around Beth’s legs as she waited. Scooping him up into her arms, she felt the purrs radiating from his chest. If Katie was her best friend, then Hector was her family. The two were magical partners for life.

            A fluttering of wings announced the approach of the bird. It headed straight for the box and dove inside. The lid snapped shut with a little click. “Gotcha!” Beth carefully put the wiggling box back into her backpack as Hector watched.

            “Well, that was easy. Now take me back where it’s warm.” Hector stretched and arched his back before he sprang up onto Beth’s shoulders.

            Beth chuckled as she rubbed Hector’s ears. “Yes, your majesty.” They started back the way they’d come, moving silently through the darkness, except for the rattling of the box in Beth’s backpack. They had nearly reached home when a great rustling sounded behind them and Beth whipped around to see what it was. Her eyes widened with fear and she ran pell-mell down the path.

            A huge swarm of yellow birds caught up to Beth easily. Hector darted away with a yowl, and Beth tried to protect her head from the birds’ sharp beaks. She soon found herself sprawled on the ground while her backpack was torn away. All she could see were yellow feathers as more than a hundred of the birds quickly tore the backpack apart. An unpleasant smell filled the air and she knew the birds had found the vial of the potion that Beth had used to lure and trap the bird earlier. In a matter of seconds, the potion was gone and the crowd of birds went to work on the box. They easily opened it and finished off the potion inside before the whole flock disappeared back into the forest.

            With her mouth hanging open, Beth could only stare as she realized that her plan had failed. “Looks like your potion was stronger than you thought,” Hector said as he padded back over to Beth’s side.

            A stern voice rang out from the open door behind Beth. “Young lady!”

            A feeling of dread settled over Beth as she stood up to face her teacher. Ms. Markham glared furiously back at her. She knew she was in trouble now. She didn’t even have the bird to justify why she had been outside at night. With slumped shoulders, Beth picked up the ruined remains of the box and her backpack, and she and Hector followed Ms. Markham inside.

            As they walked through the open doorway, Hector said loud enough for only Beth to hear, “I guess you won’t be wiz’rad’ today.”

Dragon Birding

 

            Ted clutched his binoculars as he waited breathlessly for another hoot of an owl. He had to make sure that he had really heard it the first time. Yes! There it was! He hurried over a small stream as he drew closer to the sound and searched the trees above him.

            Finally! Hours of stumbling around in the dark had paid off! A large, snowy owl was perched on a branch high above the ground. Looking through the binoculars, he made certain that it was indeed a snowy owl before logging it in his bird book. Maybe he could even capture a picture of it before it flew away.

            He carefully took his camera out of his backpack and searched for the owl through the lens. As soon as he snapped the picture, the great bird took off through the forest. What a beautiful bird!

            Glancing at his watch, he was startled to discover that it was almost midnight. Ted was familiar with these woods, so he wasn’t worried about getting lost, but he hadn’t expected it to take him so long to find the owl. Quickly packing up his backpack, he started back through the forest.

            He had just reached the trail that would take him back to his car, when he spotted an orange glow that seemed to be coming from the treetops to his right. Curious, he brought up his binoculars to see what it was.

            What he saw nearly took his breath away and made him wonder if he was even more tired than he thought. Was that… a lizard of some kind? Fiddling with the knob on his binoculars, he brought the creature into focus. It was like a dragon the size of a bird. It was perched calmly on a branch, just like the owl had been.

            As Ted watched, the creature opened up its orange wings and flew off into the night. Its scales were glowing and looked like a beacon, calling back to Ted.

            Forgetting how late it was, Ted immediately started after it. If this was real, he had to get a picture of it. No one would believe him when he said he had seen a dragon in the forest. Heedless of branches tearing at his clothes, he ran as fast as he could, trying to catch up to the orange light.

            The forest grew closer around him, and the glow grew fainter. He willed his legs to move faster as he forced himself past dense bushes. He realized he would have to give up when the glow completely disappeared. Bitter disappointment threatened to overtake him until he spotted a clearing just ahead.

            With one final effort, he exploded out of the bushes that were holding him captive. Breathing deeply, he looked up and saw… a dragon. This wasn’t the small bird-sized dragon that he had seen through his binoculars. This dragon was at least ten feet tall and staring right at him.

            Ted nearly collapsed when the dragon spoke. “Why are you following me?” There was anger in his voice and in his eyes.

            Ted gulped. “I-I-I thought you were…something else.”

            “What exactly did you think I was?” Menace filled the clearing as the dragon waited for Ted’s answer.

            Ted could feel the blood leave his face. “A f-f-flying lizard of some kind?”

            A low growl sounded deep within the dragon’s chest and turned into a scornful chuckle. “You see a glowing dragon, and you think I’m a lizard?”

            “Well, you were smaller back there!” Ted felt panicked. Had he upset the dragon? How was he going to get out of here?

            The dragon continued to chuckle and laugh, and the feeling of menace disappeared, replaced by the dragon’s good mood. Ted looked back behind him, wondering if he could safely escape while the dragon continued to laugh. His legs felt like lead, however, and he stayed where he was, unable to move.

            Finally, the dragon’s laughter subsided. The look he gave Ted was still full of merriment as he said, “My name is Keef, and you know what I am now, right?” Ted nodded mutely, unable to say anything else. Keef continued, “Well, what’s your name then?”

            Finding his voice again, Ted said softly, “Ted.”

            “Ted, consider yourself lucky. No one else has been able to see me in over 500 years. It looks like you have the gift of dragon sight.”

            “What’s that?” Ted asked curiously.

            “It means you and I are destined to work together, because you’ve been born with magic. It appears that I am meant to be your teacher.”

            There was so much in this statement that Ted didn’t even know how to respond. He just stared at Keef in disbelief.

            Keef didn’t seem to be bothered by this. He spread his great wings as he prepared for flight. “When you are ready to accept your destiny, come and find me.”

            “How?”

Keef drew closer and touched a great claw to Ted’s chest. Ted couldn’t move because he was frozen with fear. Thinking that he was about to suffer death by dragon, he didn’t notice what was actually happening to him. A warmth spread through his chest that radiated outward to the rest of his body. When Keef stepped back, Ted was amazed at how alive he felt. His entire life now felt as though he’d been asleep through it all.

            Keef’s eyes glowed red as he said, “At the start of your magical journey, I give you an awakening of your talents. When you are ready to continue on this road, use these talents to summon me, and I will come.”

            With those final words, the great orange dragon lifted himself up into the sky with his powerful wings. He headed off to the east where Ted could see that it was nearly sunrise. Had he been here all night?

            Exhausted, Ted stumbled his way back through the woods to his car. It didn’t seem to take nearly as long as it should have. He barely remembered driving home, or throwing himself on his bed. He had a lot on his mind as he decided what on earth he was going to do. His last thought before he fell asleep was, “Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to learn magic from a dragon. I bet magic would help me find more birds.” With that thought, his mind was made up—he would go seek Keef again in the forest.

Fire Day

 

            Denise pushed the branches away from her face as she ran through the woods. This was the long way home, but she’d had a horrible day and didn’t want to be around anyone else. Tears threatened to spill out as she tried not to think about what had happened at school.

            She barely held back a sob as she thought about Rico and her ruined art project. How could someone be so cruel? She’d spent hours on her self-portrait with pastels and colored pencils. It had only taken Rico two seconds to set it on fire.

            Denise shook her head, trying to clear it of the awful scene. Mr. Fredericks hadn’t believed her when she told him what happened. Now she had to start all over, and she would only receive half credit for turning it in late.

            A groan escaped from her lips. Rico was beyond horrible. Why did he have a lighter at school in the first place? A whiff of smoke caught Denise’s attention, and she nearly stumbled over an exposed tree root. Quickly recovering, she saw a small fire directly on the path ahead of her.

            Her mouth dry, she could hardly think what to do. She grabbed her water bottle before she realized it was empty. Why was fire ruining her life today?

            Before she could do anything else, the fire suddenly burned itself out and she cautiously approached the circular blackened area. Right in the middle of the destruction, where the fire must have burned the hottest, was a tiny baby bird. It flapped its bare wings weakly and let out a tiny, exhausted squawk.

            Denise fell to her knees as tears finally spilled from her eyes. This was too much. How could this bird have survived? Where was its mother? She looked above her, expecting to see the nest that the poor thing had fallen out of, but the only thing she saw was clear blue sky.

            Fumbling through her coat pockets, she finally found her mittens and put them on. Slowly, she leaned forward and gently picked up the bird. The least she could do was get it away from where the fire had been. The poor bird was weak and barely moving. More of her tears fell and landed on the bird’s bare skin with a hiss as steam rose up.

            How could she leave this bird here now? What was she going to do? She squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to think. Nothing came to her and she sighed as she opened her eyes and looked at the helpless baby bird in her hand.

            She was startled to see that there were now tiny red and orange feathers covering its little body. Hadn’t it been completely bare before? But wait! As she watched, the bird lifted up its head and looked right at her with one golden eye. It didn’t look to be as weak as she had imagined, and there was intelligence in that eye.

            While she continued to stare at the bird, it started to grow. She swore it had only been the size of a golf ball before, but now it filled her hands. The red and orange feathers stretched and lengthened, and her hands were getting really warm.

            Denise didn’t know what to do. What was happening to this bird? Suddenly, the now handsome bird spread its wings and flew high up into the air. With her mouth gaping, she watched it until a brilliant flash of light forced her to look away. Momentarily blinded, she blinked furiously as she searched for where the bird had gone.

            There it was! It seemed to be coming back down, but was this the same bird? Its wings were enormous and the beautiful red and orange plumage made it almost look like it was on fire. Her eyes widened as it came in and landed directly on her shoulder.

            Hardly daring to breathe, she received another shock when it actually spoke to her. “Thank you for your kind concern,” it said as it unmistakably bowed its head.

            After she nearly jumped out of her skin, Denise managed to stammer, “Y-y-you’re welcome.”

            The bird tilted its head as it studied her. “What is your name?”

            “Denise,” she said weakly.

            “It is nice to meet you.” The bird nodded its head to her. “My name is Fiercefire. Because of your generosity, I was able to reach my adult form quickly.”

            Denise had no idea what to say. What had she done, exactly?

            Fiercefire answered her unspoken question. “Your tears were full of genuine compassion. Because of that, I name you a phoenix friend. If you ever need my help, you have but to ask.” Without another word, the great bird flew away and disappeared into the trees.

            Denise stood staring at the spot where he had disappeared. Was he really a phoenix? Were phoenixes real? She didn’t know how long she stood there, trying to figure out what had happened. It wasn’t until a stiff breeze blew past her that she realized she should probably get home to get started on her art project. It was going to take a while.

            Walking home was a blur as thoughts raced through her head. She trudged upstairs to her bedroom and tossed her backpack against the wall. Pulling out a fresh sheet of drawing paper, she sat down at her desk. To her surprise, there was already another sheet of paper in front of her.

            Denise blinked her eyes and shook her head, wondering if she was imagining it. The sheet of paper in front of her was her finished self-portrait. This was the one that had been burned by Rico. But now, miraculously, it was not. It looked just as it had this morning.

            Leaning back into her chair, she wondered how this could possibly be real. Had today been a dream? Pulling out her phone, she saw it was definitely the afternoon of her project due date. Her project would still be late, but she couldn’t help but wonder. Did this have anything to do with Fiercefire?

            As soon as she had that thought, she felt a weight on her shoulder and a whisper filled her ears, bringing with it a warm heat. “Thanks again, Denise.”

Kidnapped!

 

            Mary was just climbing into the hammock in her backyard when her phone started buzzing. She sighed when she saw that it was Chief Johnson. Taking a deep breath, she answered, “What can I do for you today, Chief?”

            “I need your help with a case, Mary.” His voice sounded stressed.

            Resigning herself to giving up her nap, Mary replied, “What is it?”

            “A small boy has been kidnapped at an event where his father was giving a speech. There were more than a hundred people there, and no one knows what happened to him.”

            Mary was already grabbing her keys. “I’m on my way.” Hanging up, she whistled for Rover. “Come on. We’ve got a job to do.” The black crow flew down from a tree and landed on her shoulder. Together, they got in the car and drove over to the station.

            Mary often got called in to the police station for her special skills. No one protested anymore about having a bird there with her. Officer Hall greeted Mary and said, “The Chief’s waiting for you.” He led her through the station to where Chief Johnson was on the phone.

            As soon as he saw her, he finished up his phone call and got right down to business. He held up a photograph of a blonde-haired boy with a big grin on his face. “This is who we’re looking for. His name is Randy, and he was last seen wearing a green shirt and jean shorts.”

            Mary took the photo and looked at it carefully, with Rover leaning down to study it as well. “Where was he taken from?”

            “The small convention center downtown. We’ve been all over there, but we haven’t found anything.”

            “When did this happen?”

            “A few hours ago. I don’t need to tell you how important it is that we find him. The first twenty-four hours are the most critical in a kidnapping case.”

            “All right. I’ll let you know what I find out.” Without another word, Mary turned around and walked back out to her car. As soon as she climbed inside and shut the door, she said, “What do you think?”

            In a crackly voice, Rover answered, “Yeah, I’ll find him. Just tell me where to start looking.”

            Studying Randy’s photo again, Mary said, “Let’s go to the convention center. We’ll see what we can learn there.”

            Ten minutes later, Mary walked past the police tape at the convention center and studied the scene. She brushed her hand along the walls and over the seats and tables that were set up inside. Abruptly, she stopped and whispered, “This is where Randy was sitting.” She put both hands on the chair and closed her eyes. “A man in a pinstriped suit took him by the hand and led him out the door.” She walked through the door, pausing with her hand on the handle. “Yes, they came this way.” Walking quicker now, she stopped every few seconds to lean down and touch the pavement. When they reached a certain parking spot, she whispered, “They drove in a red convertible, heading north.”

            “On it,” Rover croaked, flapping his great wings and taking off in the direction she had indicated.

            Mary followed him in her car, using their bond as a guide. She could always tell where Rover was—that was one benefit to being a witch. She knew that he would get information through other crows and be able to find the boy. This city was full of the black birds and made a perfect spy network. She and Rover had solved many cases this way.

            Twenty minutes later, she pulled up to the train station, where Rover was waiting for her. “They’re inside here,” he said quickly. “I think they must be waiting for a train.”

            Taking out her cell phone, Mary dialed the number for Chief Johnson. Holding the phone up to her ear, she said, “He’s inside the train station. Get your men over here immediately.”

            Chief Johnson arrived with several other officers after a few minutes. They quickly found the boy and arrested his kidnapper. Not waiting to be thanked, Mary and Rover left for home. Once again, Mary climbed into her hammock, a smile on her face. “Good work, Rover. I think we’ve earned the right to take a nap now.”

            Rover only let out a single soft caw in reply. Both of them were asleep within minutes.

Beautiful Gems

 

            Jay flew over his usual hunting ground. His friends said that he had enough food hidden away already, but Jay was always on the lookout for more. Who knew when the bird apocalypse would happen and all the food would disappear? You just never knew.

            Jay spread out his handsome blue wings and let out his scratchy call. As a proud blue jay, he showed off his colors as often as he could. Hold on, there was something interesting! He flew down closer to see what it was.

            There it was! It shone in the grass and sparkled as the sun’s rays hit it. Jay landed next to the shiny thing and pecked at it with his beak. It was hard and definitely not food. He wondered how it would look at home. It wasn’t very big and he could easily carry it. He stared at it, admiring its shiny green depths. It was so beautiful! Truly an amazing gem!

            Jay carefully held the emerald in his beak and flew back to his home with it. When he reached the shrub where he usually roosted, he gently set down his prize. Where should he put it? He tried several different places before finally deciding to wedge it in the crook of his favorite branch.

            Jay hopped back to admire its beauty and the way it gleamed when it caught the light. He felt deep satisfaction and turned to fly away again when something else glimmered in the grass. Was this another gem?

            It was! But this one was red and possibly even more lovely than the green one. Jay picked up the glowing ruby and set it next to the green emerald. After admiring how well the green and red looked together, he turned to leave, when – lo and behold – there was another gem! This one, however, was a blue sapphire. “Oh, good. Now I have a gem that’s the same color as me!” His excitement grew.

            Soon, a rainbow of gems glittered from his hiding place. The next time he went to place a gem (this one was a dazzling diamond), Jay realized that there was no more room. Where else could he put it? Aha! The places where he had food hidden would be perfect. He began taking the gems to his food caches and replacing the food with gems. Food wasn’t so important when you had a lot of it, right?

            “What are you doing? Why are you throwing away the food from your cache?” Barry asked Jay. Barry often followed Jay around, hoping for some easy food.

            “Isn’t it beautiful?” Jay asked, focused on the purple amethyst he had just placed in his cache. “I have to save it. You keep telling me that I have too much food anyway.”

            Barry glanced at the gem and said, “Hmm, it’s beautiful, but can I have your food?”

            “Yeah, sure,” Jay said easily. “I can always get more food, but no one else will have such an amazing collection of gems.”

            Barry ate Jay’s discarded food and then shrugged his wings at Jay’s odd behavior. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing.” He shook his head and went off in search of more food.

            Most of Jay’s friends saw him that day, slowly emptying his food caches. They were only too happy to take the food that Jay so carelessly threw out. Finally, at the end of the day, Jay couldn’t find any more gems. He sighed in relief and realized that he was hungry. He went to his nearest food cache and was surprised to discover only gems inside it. “Huh,” Jay said softly. He couldn’t believe that he’d thrown everything out. Surely, he had saved some food in another hiding place.

One by one, Jay flew to each of the places where he had previously hidden food. Each one was full of nothing but gems. He became panicked when he realized that he was totally out of food.

            Jay moaned to himself. It was now almost completely dark and it would be hard to hunt for more food. Jay went to sleep still hungry next to his shiny gems.

            In the morning, Jay woke up, ready to look for food. He gazed at his gem collection and was startled to see only dull rocks where he had carefully placed the gems the day before. “What happened to my gems?” he cried.

            Clay, another blue jay who roosted in the shrub next to Jay’s, heard him and said, “What gems? Those are the rocks that you placed there yesterday.”

            Dismayed, Jay flew off to check his caches. Each one was full of rocks. Bitterness and disappointment threatened to overwhelm him, but he flew off to find some food. At least he would do what he could to fill his belly. He visited the berry patch and ate as many raspberries as he possibly could. He saved a few to take back to his cache and was about to take off when something caught his eye. It was a dazzling blue sapphire. Jay looked at it, thinking. Finally, he shook his head and said, “Not this time.” He left with the raspberries in his beak. He wasn’t going to fall for that trick again.

Churros

 

            Flick dived off the telephone wire, heedless of the cries of “Wait!” that came from his parents. That man down there was eating an everything bagel, and Flick had just seen a big piece of it tumble to the ground. He loved bagels, and he wanted to get that piece before the other pigeons did.

            He flew behind the bench that the man was sitting on. Quickly, Flick grabbed the tasty morsel in his beak just as the man reached down to pick it up. “Hey!” he cried, batting at Flick.

            But Flick was already gone, flying back up to the wire. He landed with a smug smile, showing off his prize.

            “That was very dangerous, Flick,” Dad said sternly.

            “You’re supposed to wait for the human to leave!” Mom cried.

            Flick rolled his eyes while his parents scolded him. He didn’t see what the big deal was. He hadn’t gotten caught and this bagel was delicious.

            Flick often got into trouble. His parents said he was too impulsive – whatever that meant. He might be impulsive, but nothing bad ever happened. Usually, he ended up with some kind of treat. He thought he was smart for being the fastest.

            Later that day, they were heading home when Flick caught the unmistakable scent of churros. He veered off towards a garbage can, where the delicious aroma was coming from. It was one of those with a lid that latched shut. Flick hated those. Why did humans want to keep their garbage locked up, anyway? They didn’t want it anymore, so why not let members of the animal kingdom have it?

            Flick would have just flown away if it hadn’t been for the smell. Those churros smelled pretty fresh. The scent alone was almost as good as eating one. He landed on top of the latched lid and realized that it wasn’t actually latched. A paper cup had been wedged in the opening, preventing the lid from closing properly. “Yes!” Flick cried joyfully. He actually had a chance to get those churros. They were so close. Surely it couldn’t hurt for him to just pop in and out with a churro. He knew he would get a lecture later about being impulsive, but this was a chance that he couldn’t pass up.

            Flick inspected the lid a little more closely. The cup was holding it open a good four or five inches. He was sure he would be able to squeeze through. He stuck his head inside where the churro smell became overpowering, and then he saw it! An unmistakable half-eaten churro on top of the garbage pile. The can was only half-full, so he would have to go all the way inside to get it.

            Flick held his breath and squeezed himself through the opening. He nearly got stuck and had to kind of wiggle himself back and forth before he finally shot inside, bumping the cup inside as he did so.

            Suddenly, it was dark. Flick immediately cried as loud as he could, hoping his parents would hear him. He was panicked. He felt like the dark was a physical weight, pushing him farther into the garbage. He tried to fly, but without being able to see, he kept running into the sides of the garbage can.

            After a few minutes of thrashing wildly around, Flick lay on top of the garbage heap, exhausted. No one was coming to help him. He hadn’t even told his parents where he was going. He didn’t even notice that he was resting on the half-eaten churro until he laid his head down in despair. He took a small nibble and it didn’t even taste that good.

            Flick spent a long night inside the garbage can, alternately calling out for help and trying to escape. Now he knew why it was better to watch and wait instead of rushing into things. He made a promise to himself that he would always wait until it was absolutely safe for everything he did.

            Finally, light started to seep slowly through the cracks and into Flick’s prison. It was dawn, and his hopes started to rise. He heard footsteps, and there was the unmistakable smell of coffee. Maybe he would be found soon! He renewed his calls and started fluttering around more vigorously.

            There was an almost blinding flash of light as a hand opened the lid to put an empty coffee cup inside. Flick soared joyfully out and basked in his newfound freedom. He hurried home and found his parents, who looked absolutely frantic.

            “There you are!” Mom cried, nuzzling Flick affectionately.

            Dad put a wing around him and said, “Where have you been?”

            Flick explained his night’s adventure to his parents. Now, in the daylight, it didn’t seem nearly as scary. He felt almost heroic telling his parents how he had burst out of the garbage as soon as the lid was opened.

            His parents were so relieved to see that he was all right, that they decided to celebrate. Dad said he knew of a special place, and they flew over to check it out. Flick was excited to find out what the surprise was.

            He was less excited when he saw what it was – churros. He tried to look like he was enjoying the churro fragments that they had found, but forever after that, Flick didn’t like churros. All the other birds thought he was crazy, but for him, churros were always associated with darkness and fear. It always worked as a reminder to take things slowly.

Singing Out Loud

 

        This is a perfect day for a hike, Liza thought as she walked among the trees. It was a gorgeous summer morning, and Liza wanted to finish her hike before it got too hot. She breathed in the fresh air with satisfaction as she climbed the hill steadily.

        Liza often came hiking out here. She found it so peaceful just to be among nature with no one else around. She had her music to keep her company, of course. She kept a playlist of songs on her phone that she used every time she went hiking. There wasn’t a lot of traffic on this trail, so she let the music play through the phone’s speakers.

        Often on her hikes, Liza would almost forget everything else except being outside and singing along to her music. The song, “Stargazing” finished as she reached a small rise and started on a section of trail that went down into a beautiful meadow. The next song that came on was “Life Is A Highway.” Liza turned up the volume because this was her most favorite song in the history of ever. She knew every word and belted them out as she walked through the meadow. Her spirits rose as the song went on. She found that she had more energy now and didn’t feel at all winded.

        The song ended, and Liza turned the volume back down, just a little, as “Shake It Off” came on next. She reached the end of her hike a short time later. A waterfall greeted her loudly, and she had to pause her music until she started back down again. She noticed a few robins flying around near her. She loved to watch birds in flight.

        On the way back down the trail, Liza continued to listen to her music and was in a great mood by the time she reached her car. She had probably seen at least ten different robins on the way back down. That was lucky, she thought, feeling energized and refreshed. She always considered it a good omen to see a robin.

        Her mood continued to improve when she turned on the car and “Any Man of Mine” was playing on the radio. She rolled down the windows and turned up the music as she drove away. When she got home, she saw another robin sitting in the middle of the lawn in the front yard. Huh, she thought curiously. We don’t usually see too many robins outside of the woods. More luck I guess.

        Liza unlocked the front door and let herself inside. Before she could shut the door, however, the robin that she had seen outside suddenly flew in through the open doorway. Startled, Liza tried to shoo the robin back out, but it perched quite calmly on the back of her sofa. Liza moved toward it to try to drive it back out, but it only fluttered up higher and landed on top of a bookshelf. Perplexed, Liza went to go fetch the broom.

        When she came back into the living room, Liza was shocked to find a man waiting patiently for her. Liza glanced back at the door, which was still open, and tightened her grip on the broom. She turned back to the man, who wore long blue robes that trailed along the ground. “Uh, excuse me sir, but this is my house. What are you doing here?” Liza asked cautiously. She put her hand on her phone in her pocket, just in case she needed to call the police or something.

        The man looked back at her seriously and said, “You’re what I’ve been looking for. I almost gave up hope of finding someone like you, so I had to follow you to be sure.”

        This wasn’t exactly what Liza expected him to say. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” she said worriedly. She had her phone in her hand as she said, “I’ll call the police if you don’t.”

        The man smiled kindly and said, “Don’t worry. I’m not going to hurt you, and the police can’t do anything to me anyway.”

        “Why do you say that?” There was a definite tremble in Liza’s voice now.

        For answer, the man disappeared and a robin took his place. Liza felt her jaw drop as the man reappeared and the robin disappeared again. “You did follow me,” she whispered.

        “As you can see,” the man explained, “I am not a normal human. I am a wizard, and my name is Calvin.”

        All Liza could do was stare at him as she slowly let herself sink down into the couch. The broom that she had been holding clattered to the floor.

        “Yes,” Calvin continued as he settled himself into a chair. “I’ve been looking for someone in this world who has the potential to learn magic.”

        “Magic?” Liza interrupted, coming out of her stupor. “This world? Where are you from?”

        Calvin chuckled as he answered, “Some place far, far from here. I came here by a magical portal. I belong to a society of wizards that are dedicated to teaching anyone with magical abilities. I’ve traveled all over this globe to find just a hint of magic, and I found you.”

        “Uh, I think you’re mistaken,” Liza said slowly. “I don’t have any magic.”

        Calvin shook his head and said, “Of course you do! You just don’t know how to use it.”

        “What makes you say that?”

        “The way you sang your songs. I’ve never heard so much magic coming out of one person before. When you sing, it pours out of you in waves.”

        “Wait, are you saying that I did magic? What kind of magic did I do?” Liza was sitting on the edge of the couch now, becoming more interested with everything Calvin was saying.

        “With training, you could become a greater wizard than even I,” Calvin said slowly. “Would you like to learn?”

        “How?”

        “Come with me, back to Treebird, where you will attend the finest magical school in all of the known realms.”

        Liza stared at Calvin. “You want me to go back with you to a strange place, and leave my home?”

        “Well, proper magical training will take years, but you can come back when you’re finished.”

        “There’s no way I’m going to follow a strange man anywhere.”

        Calvin looked at her with a twinkle in his eye. “Don’t worry, you don’t have to decide right now. Now that I’ve told you about magic, you’ll start to notice. That’s usually all it takes.” He took a flat clear stone out of a pocket inside his robes and held it out to her.

        Liza took it, slightly apprehensive. It was just a smooth rock, slightly bigger than her hand, with a flat surface. It didn’t look any different from hundreds of other rocks that she’d seen, until it started to glow and shine with an inner light. She gasped as a picture slowly appeared on its surface. It was like a cell phone screen. Liza gasped as she realized it was exactly the same picture as on her own cell phone. She was also startled to discover that she was no longer holding a rock at all, but a complete clone of her own phone.

        Calvin laughed at her confusion as he said, “Every wizard has a different magical tool. The rock transforms into the tool that would be most beneficial and comfortable for that wizard. What it has become is only visible to you. Everyone else will see it as just a rock.”

        “No one can see that this is a phone?”

        “No, not even me.” He turned to leave, but then said, “You’ll be able to contact me through your tool. When you change your mind about coming to our school, let me know.” With that, he transformed back into a robin and flew out the open door.

        Liza finally got up to shut the door, and then sat down to look at her new phone. There were small differences from her old phone – new apps that obviously had to do with magic. There was contact information for Calvin at Treebird Academy.

        Over the next several days, Liza thought of nothing except Calvin and what he had said. Could she really do magic? Should she leave to become a wizard? While she wrestled with these questions, she got to know her new magical tool better. It might look like her phone, but it didn’t work exactly like her other one. She didn’t even have to use her fingers for navigation. She would just think about what she wanted to do, and it would be done.

        Her daily hikes had changed, too. She became more aware of her music and how it really did make her feel different. She thought of all the other things that she could do with proper magical training.

        When she finally contacted Calvin, his response was, “Well, it took you long enough. Most people jump at the chance to learn magic. Are you ready to step into a magical realm?”

        Liza took a deep breath before she said, “Okay, I’m ready.”

Soaring Squirrel Race

 

            From the moment Squeaky woke up on the day of the big race, she couldn’t contain her excitement. This was the first season that she would be allowed to participate in the “Soaring Squirrel Race.” She may be the smallest squirrel, but what she lacked in size she made up for in speed.

            Squeaky went outside to check the weather. “Perfect!” she exclaimed eagerly. There was a mild breeze that would be just right for flying. She checked over her flight suit, looking for any defects. Finding none, she put on her suit and started to run through the forest canopy.

            The race would be starting at Big Red, the tallest tree in the forest. Squeaky scampered up the massive trunk. Higher and higher she climbed until she reached the starting branch for the race. Some of the other competitors had already arrived and greeted Squeaky. She looked around at all the different sizes of squirrels and flight suits. The wings on the suits were of different kinds and colors.

            Squeaky chose an empty spot on the branch and looked down. The tree they were aiming for was more than 150 feet away and 60 feet lower than the branch on Big Red. Squeaky felt confident about making the jump. She’d had plenty of practice flying with Ollie. She looked to the sky, and there was Ollie now, flying toward Big Red.

            Squeaky moved over to give him room, and Ollie landed so quietly for such a large owl. “Are you ready Squeaky?” he asked her excitedly with eyes that sparkled mischievously.

            The small squirrel looked into the owl’s face suspiciously. They may have been best friends, but Squeaky knew when Ollie was up to something. “What are you smirking about?” she asked curiously.

            “Oh, nothing, nothing,” he said, trying to appear casual.

            “What did you do?” Squeaky asked, a little angrily. “If you’ve done anything that will ruin the race…”

            “Oh, don’t worry Squeaky, it won’t ruin it.”

            Before Squeaky could find out more, Bushy, the squirrel in charge of the event shouted, “All right, everyone! Line up!”

            Feeling a little apprehensive, Squeaky checked her flight suit one more time, and got into position in the line of squirrels. Ollie was her best friend, but he was also known for being a clever trickster. Who knew what he was up to now? She turned to watch as Ollie flew up to a higher branch and appeared to be settling down to watch the race.

            Ollie saw the squirrel’s eyes on him and he shouted, “Good luck, Squeaky!”

            Squeaky only pulled her attention away from Ollie when she heard Bushy yell, “On your mark!”

            Squeaky turned her focus back to the end tree, so far away.

            “Get set! Go!”

            Squeaky leaped off of the branch with an almighty jump. She kept her body as straight as she could to build up speed. Suddenly, she spread all four of her legs wide. The material in her flight suit caught the breeze, and she started to glide. She knew she’d had a good jump and angled herself slightly down to keep up her speed. Suddenly, from right next to her, there came a cheerful, “Well, hello Squeaky! I thought I’d join the race.”

            After the initial shock, Squeaky rolled her eyes and said, “Ollie, this race is for squirrels.” She maintained her focus on the tree as it seemed to rise up closer and closer.

            “Oh, I know that,” Ollie called out cheerfully. “But I can’t let you beat me!” With a great whoosh of his mighty wings, Ollie surged past her. Seconds later, he had landed gracefully in the tree and was there waiting when Squeaky landed next to him.

            Slightly put out, Squeaky turned to Ollie and said, “You know it’s impossible for me to ever beat you right?”

            “I just want to make sure that the record stands clear,” Ollie replied. “By the way, congratulations! After watching the race closely, I can say with certainty that you are definitely the winner.”

            Squeaky looked around in surprise. After landing in the tree, she’d been so focused on Ollie that she didn’t notice all the squirrels around her who were smiling and waiting to congratulate her. She looked back at a smiling Ollie.

            “I always felt that you did better when we trained together,” Ollie said, a little sheepishly. “I just wanted my friend to have the best jump possible.”

            Feeling a rush of gratitude to her best friend, Squeaky celebrated with the other squirrels. Now she was no longer just the smallest squirrel. She saw respect in the other squirrels’ eyes as they all celebrated with her.

            Afterwards, Squeaky and Ollie sat in a tree companionably, talking about the race. “So, Ollie,” Squeaky said with a grin. “Are you going to be part of the race every year now?”

            “Maybe,” Ollie replied happily. “As you know, owls are proud creatures, and we have to be the best at everything.” He paused and looked seriously at Squeaky. “Also, I have to be so serious around the other owls. You’re way more fun than they are. Thanks, Squeaky.” He threw a wing around Squeaky and gave her a hug.

            Squeaky returned the hug and said, “Well, it’s easy to have fun with your best friend.”