Andresen Waterfalls
Jon, Fred, and Casey sat in the deserted gym bleachers after their workout, drenched in sweat. Jon swore his friends to secrecy and then told them about Guinn.
“Holy guacamole!” Fred exclaimed. “Brett’s dad is a Fox Clan wizard?”
“No way,” Casey said.
“Not just any wizard,” Jon said, miserable. “Guinn Tanner is a cold-blooded killer.”
“Shouldn’t you tell Brett?” Fred asked.
“She’s probably safer not knowing,” Casey said.
“Quixoran won’t let me say anything to her at all.”
“Wow. So now Brett thinks you’re pond scum,” Fred said.
“Pretty much. And I’ve got to let her think that.”
Fred shook his head. “You fell on your sword to protect her. I couldn’t have done it, bro.”
“I don’t have much of a choice.”
“So… there’s nothing between Kira and you?” Casey asked.
Jon swallowed. “She and I had a stupid fight a couple of days ago, and we’re not even speaking to one another. How’s that for irony?”
As they left the gym, Casey had to explain to Fred what the word ‘irony’ meant.
****
When Rachel and Heather passed by with their lunch trays the next day, Fred gave them a megawatt smile. “Hey ladies, looking for a little conversation?”
The girls glared at Jon and curled their lips.
“No, thanks,” Heather said.
She and Rachel headed toward a table of cheerleaders. Casey and Fred exchanged a glance.
“Why the cold shoulder?” Fred muttered.
“The word is out I dumped Brett,” Jon said. “All of her friends are mad about it. I even had a couple of guys try to trip me during PE for revenge.”
“That’s horrible,” Casey said.
“You oughta deck ’em,” Fred said.
“Strangely enough, I kind of respect them for sticking up for her,” Jon said.
“We’ve still got a couple months left in the school year,” Casey said. “This hostility will get old, fast.”
“You think you could scare up some school newspaper assignments for me? Maybe I can rehabilitate my reputation with a few cartoons.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Casey said. “By the way, Brett’s father laughed when she told him you broke things off.”
“What a sleazoid that guy is,” Fred muttered.
“How do you know, Casey?”
“Brett told me this morning, when I asked her how she was feeling. She said his reaction freaked her out.”
Jon ground his teeth. “The man is a lunatic.” He glanced over at Casey, whose lunch was still untouched. “How are you doing, by the way?”
“My self-esteem is in the toilet, but otherwise, I’m okay.”
Fred used his fork to gesture toward his tray. “Loss of appetite is a sign of depression.”
A crooked grin lit Casey’s face. “No, actually it’s not that. After our workout yesterday afternoon, I can barely lift my arms.”
Jon and Fred burst out laughing. When she heard their laughter, Brett glanced over, a look of puzzlement on her face.
****
Jon installed a Spring Fling photograph of him and Brett on his home computer as a screen saver. In his history class, he took to sitting in the back corner of the room, where he had a clear view of Brett’s profile. Although he tried to pay attention to the lessons, he found the movement of her hair a terrible distraction. Finally, during a midterm review, Mr. Dace snapped his fingers in front of Jon’s face.
“Mr. Hansen, stay with me. Pretty girls will not be on the test, I assure you.”
Every girl in the class snickered, except for one. As he felt Brett’s eyes on him, Jon slunk down into his seat, pretending to be invisible. His string of bad luck was far from over, however. The following period, a tough quiz in chemistry made his head ache. That afternoon in art class, he discovered two of his best sculptures had been ruined in the kiln. Although he could redo them, he’d blown the deadline for an art contest. To top it off, after his next grueling workout with Fred and Casey, he found out he had a flat tire.
Wiped out, Jon barely managed dinner, homework, and fifteen minutes of drills before calling it quits for the night. He left the vanyean seed on his desk and stumbled into the bathroom to get ready for bed. When he returned to his room, he snapped off the lights and crawled under the covers. As he was drifting off, he fervently hoped the next day would be better. He slept without stirring for several hours… until a vivid dream intruded.
He stood in a forest of impossibly green trees, moss, and plants. Up ahead, several waterfalls sheeted down in the early morning light, creating a sparkling, ghostly mist. Unique, exotic birds perched in the trees, trilling sweet notes. Occasionally, one would swoop toward the pool at the base of the waterfalls as they plucked a fish from just underneath the glassy surface.
His fury boiled over.
He raised his hand toward the largest waterfall. As the eyes of his Fox Clan ring flashed, he blasted the cliff. Birds took flight in panic, although falling rocks smashed a few of the slower ones. A nymph appeared, with long flowing hair and beautiful features.
“We swear to you, Wizard, we do not know where Lialia has gone!”
Unmoved, he raised his hand toward the next waterfall. As it fell, more nymphs materialized from the mist and began a keening cry. His heart untouched, he destroyed the next waterfall, and then the one thereafter. One brave nymph tried to engage him in battle but after he killed several of her sisters, she dissolved into the mist, defeated…
Jon’s body jerked as he awoke. He’d nearly convinced himself it was just a bad dream until he remembered the vanyean seed not three feet away. Guinn has destroyed the Andresen Waterfalls. No matter what the cost, the Fox Clan wizard would pull down all obstacles in the pursuit of his objective.
The alarm clock read four a.m., which was past dawn on Dragon Isle. Although he had school in a few hours, Jon threw on some clothes. He stuffed the vanyean seed in his pocket, located his transporter cuff, and transported directly into Quixoran’s tree house. He was disappointed to find his grandfather wasn’t there. Forlorn, he sat at the bottom of the stairs to wait.
Cressidia appeared. “Are you all right, Jon Hansen?”
His eyelids were stinging with emotion. “No. Where is he?”
“Quixoran was called away by some friends in need.”
“The nymphs of the Andresen Waterfalls.”
“How did you know?”
“I saw it. I saw it all.”
Cressidia waited with him for Quixoran’s return. Her presence was so comforting he dozed off. He awoke when his grandfather gave him a slight shake.
“Jon, wake up. What are you doing here?”
Hollow-eyed, Jon gave him the vanyean seed.
“I don’t want any more dreams about Guinn. He’s a monster, and we’ve got to find a way to stop him.”
Quixoran passed a hand over his own tired eyes. “We will, Jon. I promise you.”
****
Jon’s birthday was approaching. He wasn’t in a particularly festive mood until Quixoran made an announcement to the apprentices at breakfast one Saturday.
“I am declaring a Dragon Isle holiday on the occasion of Jon’s seventeenth birthday. We’ll have a party to celebrate.”
Murmurs of excitement greeted the news. During the rest of the meal, apprentices exchanged animated suggestions about party activities, games, and food. The level of enthusiasm cheered Jon greatly. The day he turned sixteen had been the worst day of his life, but this party promised to make up for it. He planned to invite Fred and Casey, of course, but he felt more than a stab of regret Brett wouldn’t be there.
After breakfast, Dorsit met Jon, Max, and Ronny at the beach for a class in transformation. Dorsit demonstrated how to transform sand into glass, and then the trio split up to practice. Although the technique wasn’t difficult, each apprentice had mixed results. Max was stuck on forming long straight strands of glass, like overgrown swizzle sticks. He couldn’t shape them into anything recognizable, and the more he tried, the thinner and more tangled the strands became. Finally, he was left with a mass resembling cotton candy.
“You should use sugar, Max. Then at least we could eat it.” Since Ronny had graduated to making glass animals, her remark had a slightly smug tone.
“Oh yeah? What kind of animals are those supposed to be?” Max asked, giving her efforts a pointed look.
“Real tactful, Max,” Jon said. “They’re obviously poodles.”
Ronny’s eyes became little slits. “This one is a unicorn. That one is a dragon.”
Max and Jon winced.
Dorsit cleared his throat. “That’s a nice freeform glass bowl, Jon.”
“Thanks, but I’m trying to make a sphere.” Jon laughed. “Guess I won’t be demonstrating my transformation technique at the party.”
“By the way, I’m going to Castle Ytherium tomorrow. I’ll invite Kira to the party, if you like,” Dorsit said.
Jon’s smile slipped. “That would be a complete waste of time, Dorsit. I’m sure Kira Szul has a thousand things she’d rather do.”
“Bitter much?” Max muttered to Ronny.
“I heard that,” Jon said.
“It’s up to you, young wizard, but I feel certain Kira will be delighted to attend if the invitation is issued at your particular request.”
“Don’t go putting words in my mouth, Dorsit. If you want to bring her as your guest, though, go ahead.”
Max, Ronny, and Dorsit exchanged a glance.
“Jon Hansen, you have as they say on Yrth, a head that is hard,” Dorsit said.
Max and Ronny laughed.
****
When Jon transported home late Sunday night, he discovered his father had been called to the hospital. Nevertheless, he was pleased to see Charles had stopped by. He was in the kitchen having coffee and dessert with Mrs. Hansen and Sela. Jon helped himself to a piece of luscious strawberry pie and launched into the plans for his birthday party. Mrs. Hansen made him stop until she found a pad of paper on which to take notes.
“So this party is two weeks from today?” she asked.
“Yes, and it’s going to be an island holiday.”
“Wait, are you inviting the kids from Dragon Isle Village?” Sela asked.
“Of course. Dorsit and Max are going to design a disc golf course, and I’ll be installing a volleyball net next weekend.”
His mother grimaced. “I’ll need a rough head count, Jon. Otherwise I won’t bring enough cake.”
“Ooh, we have to have a treasure hunt in Grandpa’s garden,” Sela said. “And a piñata.”
“Those are really good ideas, Squirt,” Jon said. “I hope you’re going to come, Charles.”
“I wouldn’t miss it. Do you mind if I bring Lynn?”
“You’re kidding,” Mrs. Hansen said, wide-eyed. “Is that a good idea?”
“If she’s going to be part of the family, I figure she has a right to know I’ve got wizard relatives.”
“Are you saying you’ve popped the question?” Jon asked.
“Not yet,” he replied. “I need to get a ring first. Your mom says you might be able to find me a diamond on Yden.”
“I’ll get you one the size of a paperweight.”
“I want a diamond the size of a paperweight,” Sela said. “Can I go too?”
“Er… I was just joking,” Jon said. “It’ll be more like the size of your nose.” He made a move to grab her nose between his knuckles. Sela ducked away with a squeal.
“Why don’t I go with you, Jon?” Charles asked.
“You’re on. Lynn is a great girl. I’m very happy for you,” Jon said.
“Hey, would you be my best man at our wedding?”
“Really? Are you sure? I’d — yeah, it would be an honor.”
Jon’s mother gave him a triumphant glance as if to say ‘I told you so.’
****
The day of his party, Jon rolled out of bed early. His father and Sela weren’t up yet, but his mother was in the kitchen fussing with last-minute party paraphernalia.
“Fred and Casey should be here soon. What can we do to help?” Jon asked.
“If you take the piñata and the sheet cakes now, I think I can manage the other things. Charles and Lynn will be here in an hour, and then your father will transport the four of us at once.”
“I hope Lynn doesn’t completely freak.”
“She’s a level-headed girl. She’ll make the adjustment.”
“You don’t seem to mind transporting anymore.”
“The first time I did it, I was too worried about you to care. Now, I barely give it a thought.” She wrinkled her nose. “I still don’t like the smell of ozone.”
Fred arrived, lugging a box full of small plastic bottles. “Morning, Mrs. H. Nice to see ya.”
“Good morning, Fred. What do you have there?”
“Blowing bubbles. You know, for the kids.”
“What an excellent idea!”
“I’m impressed, Fred,” Jon said. “That’s good thinking.”
A few minutes later, Casey appeared, toting spray sunscreen and an odd hand-held device a little larger than a remote control. Jon peered at the markings.
“What’s that, Casey — a compass?”
“No, it’s my invention. I call it a magicometer.”
Jon and Fred exchanged a dubious glance.
“Huh?” Fred said.
“I have a theory I want to test,” Casey said. “Wizards can manipulate fields of energy on Yden. I should be able to measure that ability scientifically. This magicometer will help me take readings.”
Fred stared at him. “It’s a birthday party, Casey. Can’t you just relax and have fun?”
“Science is fun.”
“Let me know what you find out,” Jon said. “I should warn you, Casey. Dorsit threatened to bring Kira today.”
Casey shrugged. “I’m good. I figured it was only a matter of time before Dorsit and Kira started seeing each other.”
“I think they’re just friends. I mean, he’s way too old for her,” Jon said.
“Dude, I thought you liked him,” Fred said.
“Dorsit is great. He’s just not right for Kira.”
“They make a beautiful couple, though,” Casey said. “Even though I hate to admit it.”
Jon shrugged. “I don’t know why I brought her up. She won’t come to my party.”
****
Fred threw himself into the party festivities right away, directing activities and playing master of ceremonies. He got a group playing volleyball and started another group on a game of disc golf. Jon levitated the piñata over a vanyean tree branch while Finn tied the rope off.
“I still don’t understand this game,” he said. “What is the point of hitting the object while blinded? Why not just give out the treats directly?”
“I don’t know, Finn. I guess it’s more of a challenge this way.”
Sela and the Dragon Village kids had a blast with the blowing bubbles Fred provided. Except for Sela, none of the kids had ever seen blowing bubbles before.
“It’s kind of weird to watch kids who are used to magic be fascinated with ordinary bubbles made of plain old detergent, water, and glycerin,” Casey said.
Feeling festive, Jon wore his cowboy hat. He set up an easel in the shade of the vanyean tree, to sketch portraits or cartoons for his party guests. Fred bounded over.
“Draw me with a cape, like a superhero. And put a big F on my chest.”
“F for Fred?”
“Nah. Footballman.” He paused. “Wait a minute — is my alter-ego gonna bust off the page?”
“Things don’t come to life now unless I want them to.”
“Oh.” He struck a pose. “Make it good. I wanna give the picture to Ronny.”
Casey was engrossed with the magicometer. He spent a lot of time adjusting knobs and calibrating things on it, using Quixoran or Jon as a reference point. For the two Dragon Clan wizards, the needle was off the scale, but when Fred got tested, the needle didn’t move at all. Jon pointed the device at Casey and the needle actually blipped up slightly.
“Hey, Casey, you’re a little magical. Congratulations.”
“If he’s magical, I’m the Tooth Fairy,” Fred scoffed. “Get that thing away from me.”
Thereafter, Casey wandered around with his magicometer, trying to test people without them knowing it.
“Casey cracks me up sometimes,” Fred muttered to Jon. “You think his invention really works?”
“I don’t know, but he’s having a good time with it.” Jon beckoned Casey over. “Listen, don’t annoy Max with your magicometer. He’s liable to take a swing at you.”
When Jon’s mother and father arrived with Charles and Lynn, Lynn freaked out. Jon steered her over to a stool and Charles brought her a bracing cup of juice to drink. While Jon sketched Lynn’s portrait, he told her about the first time he’d transported to Yden.
“The whole fiasco scared me so badly I thought my hands would never stop shaking. Charles pulled me together, though. If it wasn’t for him, I don’t think I would have had the confidence to return.”
After Jon showed her the portrait he’d just drawn, Lynn seemed to relax.
“That’s beautiful,” she said.
“You can take it home with you later.”
Jon pointed Charles in the direction of the Waterfall Grotto and suggested he take Lynn there. “It’s the most romantic spot on the island.”
“Good thinking.”
As Charles and Lynn left, hand in hand, Jon rolled Lynn’s portrait up, slid it into one of the protective cardboard tubes he’d brought with him, and marked it with her name. He lobbed it into a basket with several other labeled tubes.
“I’ve never heard that before,” Kira said, over Jon’s shoulder. Startled, he nearly jumped out of his skin. He hadn’t realized she’d arrived.
“About the Waterfall Grotto?”
“No, what you said about your first time transporting to Yden. Was it true?”
“I might’ve glossed over the parts where I seem like a total loser, but yes, it’s true. Hello, Kira.”
“Hello, Jon Hansen. Many joyful returnings.”
“Thanks.”
Kira wore a pair of fashionable jeans and a pretty blouse with a laced-up front. The violet color was stunning with her eyes. After a long, awkward silence, Jon cleared his throat.
“Do you, um, want me to draw your, you know… portrait?”
He kicked himself. Why can’t I get a simple sentence out of my mouth?
“Oh, no. I would not want to take your time.”
“Sit.”
Kira sat. His attitude shifted as he examined her face with the objective eyes of an artist. With her exquisite bone structure, she was an excellent subject. Although he’d drawn her before from memory, he warmed to the task of drawing her in person. Jon selected a charcoal pencil and set to work. His concentration was so intense he blocked out any other distractions. A crowd gathered to watch him draw Kira’s portrait. Finally Jon sat back, satisfied.
“Not bad,” Max said. “Not bad at all.”
Casey just whistled. Feeling self-conscious, Jon moved over to a bowl of soapy water he’d put nearby to wash his hands. Quixoran clapped him on the back.
“Good work.”
“Thanks, Grandfather.”
Jon peered at the portrait and cocked his head. “It was tricky to capture the curves of the cheekbones and the movement of the hair.”
“The finished result is quite inspired,” Quixoran said.
Kira had come around to have a look. When she didn’t say anything, Jon tried to shrug it off. He picked up a protective cardboard tube to label it with her name.
“If you don’t want the sketch, Kira, I’d like to keep it for my portfolio.”
To his surprise, Kira threw her arms around him. “I love it, Jon Hansen.”
Casey stood nearby with a shocked expression. At first Jon thought it was because of the hug. Then he realized Casey was pointing his magicometer at Kira and the needle was off the scale.