"You cannot save him now, Shylock."
Shy had devoured the book called The Faerie in less than one full day. Then he went back and reread it. Twice! It had so much information about fairies and their world. He had read some of the information from other sources during the school year. Much of what the book contained was new to him though, or directly contradicted what he had read. Shep had told him that this book held more truth than anything else that humans had gathered, but it didn't mean it was all true. Shy resolved that it was the best he had to go on though and he memorized as much as he could.
Even now, as the bus continued north from Duluth on the winding Highway 61, Shy had the book out and was studying goblins. Claire tried several times to see what it was that Shy was reading. Shy knew it made her crazy that he was reading. Usually she was the one with the book tucked under her arm for easy reference, and quoting it to all who would listen.
Shy hadn't discussed much of the fairy interactions that happened during the school year with Claire. Claire was extremely intuitive, however, and one day after the incident in March, where Shy had run into the schoolyard to help Shep, she had put two and two together. She knew he could see through the fairy magic, and had surmised that he was still having run-ins. After she had figured out that much, she would ask him pointed questions that he couldn't evade. So, she now knew that the Unseelie fey were still after the box. She said she wanted to help him, and after much pushing, Shy gave in… to an extent. He told her about everything except the book, and the incidents at the Mall.
Claire had been incredulous at finding out that Shep was a Pooka. She didn't outwardly express her disbelief, except to say that she still thought the dog had Lyme's disease. Shy knew that Claire had been in constant contact with Portia over the school year though, and Shy felt that Portia must have filled Claire in on most all of what happened last summer at the end of camp.
As always when he thought of the tall girl with curly long hair, Shy felt the little tingle of excitement. He had emailed her once or twice over the school year, to which she promptly responded each time. She had wanted him to call her, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. The questions from his mother on the topic of who he was calling would have been unbearable. He found that, as he remembered their experiences of last summer, he was really looking forward to seeing her again.
He was shaken from his daydreams by Claire swiping The Faerie from his hands. He didn't bother to fight for it. Let her read it, he thought. She was better at remembering details anyway. It might be good to spread this information out to everyone. The Forest cabin boys had gotten close to the Lake cabin girls by the end of last summer. Whatever adventures arose this summer, Shy was sure that they would be in them together.
He glanced past Claire, who was deep into reading The Faerie already, to the scenery along the highway. On the one side the endless Lake Superior glittered with sunlit jewels, on the other the lush summer forests and inland hills still dotted with spring wildflowers passed by. Shy watched an eagle soar high above the Sawtooth Mountains. He reflected on the rugged terrain, and realized that it was beautiful… and dangerous.
***
He must have drifted off, for when Claire poked at him to open his eyes, they were just pulling into the dirt parking lot that served as the Gateway to Camp Lac Igam. Shy stared at the faces carved into the posts of the old weathered sign, and realized something. Some of the faces were familiar! Many were creatures he had seen last summer with his newly found ability. He now recognized the fossegrimen, a goblin with its small tusks, a hippo-faced troll, and what looked to be a nisse, although it did not look like Tom T.
He had not thought a whole lot about the drab, hairy little creature that had waited on them, picked up after them, and in the case of Daniel and Shy, even saved them from trolls! He was sure that he would get an earful for not putting the box back last summer like Tom T had expected of him.
The bus came to a stop and Claire shoved the book into his ribs.
"Can I keep this for a couple days?" she asked. "It has got a lot of good info I need to read if I am going to keep an eye on you this summer. Shy?"
"Well…." He hesitated. On the one hand he was happy she was interested, on the other, he wanted to show the guys.
"C'mon… I will bring it back to the Lodge in a day or two. I want to finish it, so I can share with the girls. We are on your side, Shy… and we wanna help. Pleeeaasssse?"
"OK, but I wanna show it to the guys, so two days, OK? And take care of it!"
She nodded earnestly.
It was time to get off. As they piled out of the bus, Shy saw several of the other boys were already standing around talking. Shy immediately moved off to join their little group. Sam, Sawyer, Ralph, and Finn were standing around Henry, who was gesturing dramatically.
"I don't believe that Gust is gone… I just can't believe it."
"Hey guys," Shy said as he walked up.
"Shy!" Henry yelled and to Shy's surprise came over and gave him big hug.
Sam and Finn gave Shy the head nod, and red headed Sam rasped out, "Hey Shy."
Ralph quietly nodded to Shy and Sawyer punched Shy right in the arm.
"That's for not emailing this year," Sawyer softened the punch with a smile.
It was true, Shy had at first procrastinated the emailing. Then, once he had heard about Gust from Tad, he had decided he didn't want to be the one to explain to everyone.
"Didja hear about Gust, Shy?" Henry didn't even wait for an answer as Shy shrugged his shoulders. "He never showed up after the camp games last year!"
"Who didn't?" Daniel shouted as he exited the last bus, ran up, and jumped on Shy's back.
Henry sighed loudly. "Gust! Gust is gone! Clancy had a memorial service for him and everything… didn't even invite us…. Now, they have some dorky replacement. Some professor."
Daniel looked at Shy, and Shy nodded slowly. The smile had disappeared from the tall dark-haired Daniel's face.
"Where is the new guy?" Daniel asked. "Gust's replacement?"
"He already went over the bridge with one load of bags," Sawyer chimed into the conversation. "Gust brought all of them over at once last year. This guy is a pretty little flower… we better water him…" As he made that strange statement, Shy saw him pull out a handful of water balloons from his pocket. He looked at the circle of all six other boys, a devilish smile on his face, and said, "Gentlemen, it's gonna be a goooood summer!"
The friends looked around at each other and smiled.
Just then, Clancy took out her old, beaten up, red and white megaphone and spoke to the campers, "All right campers! Welcome to Camp Lac Igam! Follow me, single file now."
With those words, they crossed the mist covered river gorge on the creaking rope bridge. Shy wondered how much weight the dry, weather-pounded rope could hold. The rope was rough to the touch, and the stray pieces broke off as his hand brushed them. It was as thick as Shy's calf though, and he decided he was sure it would hold up. At least, he hoped it did!
Shy turned his attention to the other campers as they crossed. He looked up and down the line. New faces blended with the old, and Shy realized that he hadn't see Crutch yet. While he was certainly not friends with the bully, knocking him down on the first day of school last year had certainly changed Crutch's attitude towards him. They had even passed in the halls several times without Crutch attempting to knock Shy's books out of his hand.
He thought he caught a sight of Portia's bouncing locks far ahead, but wasn't sure. No doubt she was catching up with the girls that had returned from last summer. He was excited to make new friends, but really happy to see all his Forest cabin boys from last year. They seemed like the same old guys except Finn had gotten taller, Sawyer had gotten thicker, and Sam's voice seemed to have gotten deeper. Daniel had the same confident air and smile, and Henry certainly hadn't stopped talking. In fact, Shy thought with a smile, he could hear Henry singing from the back of the line.
When they were almost across the bridge, Shy flashed back to the previous summer. It was at that very spot where they had encountered the flying creature. It had bashed the rope and screamed its horrible scream at several of the boys. Ralph had almost fallen off the bridge! They then reached the other side where, later in the summer, Shy had been grabbed by the creature and subsequently discovered its weakness… it was ticklish!
Next was the short hike to the courtyard of the Lodge. There, gathered in a huddled group, were the four cabin counselors. Shy instantly saw Tad and Mad Meg, sporting flame red hair. The other two counselors appeared to be new. Shy certainly did not recognize them from last summer.
Something seemed strange to Shy. He saw a man up by the Lodge, struggling with the cart of bags. The counselors were darting looks at him and whispering. When they saw Clancy leading the campers up to the courtyard, however, the four counselors split up and prepared to call out names.
Shy looked back at the man unloading the bags. He had long hair, drawn back in a pony tail. He wasn't thin, but didn't give off that rugged aura that Gust had. The man straightened from the cart and turned to fetch the remainder of the bags from the parking lot. Shy sucked in his breath in surprise, as he recognized the man. It was his seatmate from the roller coaster at the Mall of America a few days prior!
Just then Shy heard his name called, and Sawyer pulled him along over to the Forest cabin group. He didn't have any time to consider Gust's replacement and the coincidence of recognizing him. The group was gathered when Tad called out one last name… a new name. Edgar.
A boy walked over with his bag slung over his shoulder. Besides having a really big nose, Shy thought, he seemed pretty normal. Shy watched as Tad diplomatically asked the boy what he liked to be called. Once they had settled on referring to him as Eddie, Tad gave him some quick background information.
"Eddie, I know you are going to like our cabins. These other boys were all here last summer, so they are already familiar. You and I will talk more about some of the other… ummm… peculiarities of this campground later today." He looked up from the new boy and addressed them all while grabbing Sawyer by the collar as he had already lost interest and began climbing the tree next to Tad. "Listen, guys, things have changed a bit from last year. I am sure you have all heard by now about Gust's disappearance."
At mention of the incident, all the boys became attentive.
"The rules from last year, about staying together, etc, etc, are still in place. I am pleading with you for no more sneaking around. The new guy, Moriarty, has already told us counselors that there will be a zero tolerance policy for rule breakers. Do you all know what that means?" He continued without waiting for an answer, "That means that you would have been sent home many times over last summer, Sawyer."
The boys looked at each other. Shy could tell that there was a hint of smiles on many of the faces. Finn was actively covering his mouth to hide his expression. Shy glanced at the new boy who was sullenly staring at his feet. Shy wondered if he was stuck up or just embarrassed at being the new guy. Already this summer was beginning to have a different feel.
The hairs on the back of Shy's neck began to stand on end, a distinctly unusual feeling in the oppressive early summer humidity. He left his ponderings of the new boy, and stole a glance over his shoulder. The new caretaker, Moriarty, was rolling the final cartload of bags up the path to the courtyard. Shy saw that his lips were moving. He continued to talk to himself until reaching his destination. Several kids from other cabins stepped up to grab their bag from the cart. Moriarty glared at them through his wire-rimmed glasses. He again began mumbling to himself and turned from the cart. His eyes latched onto Shy and he stopped mid-turn. Shy's stomach flopped upon itself and he quickly turned back to his group.
"… so because of that I have decided to keep the room assignments the same, with the exception that Eddie here will be staying in the Raven with Shy." Tad finished his speech.
Shy stared at Tad. Of course this was coming, he thought to himself, where else would the new guy go? Tad had told him last summer that he usually stayed in the Hive. That must be the plan for this summer.
All the other boys were looking at him. He saw concern on Ralph's face, and Henry's lip was raised in a sneer of disgust.
Shy abruptly made a decision that he would accept this new kid as a friend, or at the very least give it a good effort. He walked over and uncharacteristically put his arm around Eddie's shoulder.
"Raven cabin is ready to go." Shy stated.
Tad beamed, but Eddie shook off Shy's arm and stepped away. Shy looked at him, but he still didn't make eye contact. Shy then looked over to Daniel, who had his eyebrows raised in surprise. The tall dark haired boy just shrugged.
Tad caught the whole exchange and decided to get them moving. Soon they had made the trip up the hillside to the cabins in the trees, up the Elevator, and to their respective cabins.
Shy had barely showed Eddie the hidden slide entrance into the Raven, and hooked up his hammock, when he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Shylock you have caused us much distress. You did not return the box!"
Shy turned and his vision quickly snapped. There, before him, was Tom T. The short, ragged nisse looked to be in much worse shape than when Shy had seen him last. His drab colored clothes now hung limply from his body, and had been patched many times over. He had obviously lost some of his rotund belly, and was now leaning on his hooked staff.
“I was going to… really!”
Shy saw that Eddie had stopped attempting to hook up his own hammock, and was staring at Shy with his mouth hanging open. For some reason, Shy was irritated. He was irritated because he knew this scolding from Tom T was coming, and he was irritated that he would have to go through all the explanations for Eddie. It wasn't the new boy's fault though, so he took a minute to explain.
"Eddie, this is Tom T. He is the nisse for our cabins."
"Wh… who are you talking to?" Eddie stuttered out.
"It's Tom… Oh, forget it." Shy became quickly frustrated as he realized that it was going to take a long explanation and lots of questions before Eddie would understand. "Tom, can you show yourself so the new guy can see you?" Shy tried a new tactic.
He saw the nisse look over at Eddie, then back at Shy.
"So be it." The nisse said.
Shy heard Eddie gasp and jump back.
"What is th…that?" The new boy asked.
"Look, Eddie, Tad told you this wasn't your normal summer camp. Just watch and listen. He won't hurt you…. Unless you do something stupid."
Eddie took another step back, but said no more. Shy turned back to Tom T.
"With everything that happened at the end of camp, I just forgot. Plus, how can I even return it to the lake? I would get stuck there."
"You needed to find a way Shylock, but you failed. War is close, and they have Gustavus… Bleakness is all around…. Where is the box now?"
Shy was taken aback by the lack of ferocity in Tom T's words, the resigned tone. Things must have not gone well over the course of the last nine months. He glanced at his pillow, where the box was hidden.
Tom T saw his glance. "It is a danger to you and all while you still have it. I will do my best to protect it, but at some point I will not be able to any longer. Heed my words Shylock."
Shy then realized what Tom T had said previously.
"Wait a minute, what did you say a second ago? Do you mean Gust is alive?"
The nisse turned to go.
"Tom T! Is Gust alive?"
The little creature paused and turned only his head back to Shy.
"Gustavus is, or was, alive. He is a captive of the Unseelie. The forest near the lake is his prison. You cannot save him now, Shylock. Even if you find a way to return the box, it may be too late. Many have arrived. The forces arrayed against us are immense…. Do not go anywhere alone Shylock."
He was gone so fast that Eddie gasped again. Shy tried to slowly climb onto his hammock, and was promptly dumped on the floor. He needed to talk with the guys. He needed to bring them up to speed regarding the events of the school year, and that Gust might be alive.
"Just put your stuff on the table. We gotta go to the Hive." Shy said.
He opened the trapdoor and looked over at Eddie, who hadn't moved.
"C'mon," Shy said with a heavy sigh, "this is fun."
He jumped onto the trampoline net, but even the little burst of adrenaline from the drop couldn't erase the guilty feelings Tom T had raised. As Shy moved to the attached platform to wait for Eddie, he began to consider his options.
***
After a few moments Eddie had followed Shy out the trap door of the Raven. The brown-haired boy with the big nose hadn't yelled, or shown any sign of enjoyment from the unique cabin exit. Shy remembered his first time with a smile. Either this Eddie was really bored, really brave, or really shy. Shy had to admit that, last summer, his first few days at Camp Lac Igam had been pretty overwhelming. Eddie had a lot to learn, and accept, before he would feel comfortable here. As he led Eddie across the ropes and bridges to the platform outside the Hive, he began to wonder what this new kid was all about.
When they arrived at the platform outside the Hive, Shy picked up speed and made the big leap without a second thought. As he scrambled to get out of Eddie's way, he looked back. He saw the top of the boy's head as he leaned over the edge to inspect the forest floor, far below. Eddie looked up at Shy, thinned his lips, took a couple steps back and made the leap. There was no second guessing, no hesitation. As he watched the boy stand up from his landing and look back, Shy thought he detected a quick look of relief pass across Eddie's face. He's trying really hard to be brave, Shy thought to himself.
Immediately the two had ice cold glasses of lemonade shoved into their hands by Tad. Shy grabbed his favorite hammock. He had forgotten how pleasant it was relaxing in the Hive, with the breeze through the black screens taking just enough of the edge off of the early summer heat and humidity. He stole a glance at Eddie, as Daniel came and sat next to him. The new kid was now standing alone, uncomfortably aware that many of the boys were staring at him.
"Eddie, here, grab this bean bag," Shy said as he kicked it across the pine planks. It slid over to his feet. He stared at Shy, and then took a seat.
"What's his deal?" Daniel leaned over and whispered in his ear. "Why the attitude?"
"I don't think he has one," Shy replied, also in whispered tones, "I just think it is probably a little much, you know? I mean we weren't best friends the first day last summer. He's just getting to know us."
"The other guys are already talking about him…. They don't like him… think he's stuck up."
Shy looked at Daniel. It almost sounded to him like Daniel felt that way too. Shy looked around the room and realized that the boys had broken into groups, whispering away like old gossiping grandmas. Shy didn't know Eddie really at all, but he now started to feel sorry for him. He would have to make sure to include him in everything. He would force him to fit in.
"Well, like I started to say earlier, you have all heard about Gust by now…" Tad interrupted their thoughts and whisperings.
The boys turned to face him, leaned back on their bags or hammocks, and waited for the expected story. Shy stole a quick glance at Eddie, he was leaning forward intently, expectantly. He must wonder what all of the fuss was about, Shy thought.
“Remember back at the Camp Games,” Tad began again, “Shy filled in for Daniel in the long distance race. Well, after all the events that Shy had been involved in, Clancy asked Gust to follow the race and make sure all were safe. He did that. What some of you don't know - I am not sure how much Shy told you all - the girl from the Shore cabins that started the race, Helen, was actually the huldra! The same huldra that Shy and Daniel ran into in the woods earlier in the summer. Huldra are shapeshifters, which means they can use their Glamour to take other forms. You know, they can make themselves look like different things. It is the strongest form of Glamour. Shy wasn't able to see through it because it is such powerful Fey magic. Needless to say, the huldra is very dangerous. It seems that it captured Helen and then changed into her form, so it could attack Shy during the race. You see, guys, that box you found - yes, I know about it - is very important to the Fey. The bad guys, the Unseelie, are after it. They want the recipe and they want the magic that the box contains… That reminds me, Shy, where is the box?"
"Hidden." He shrugged.
The boys were all staring at him, including Eddie. He had never told them about what had happened during the race. He had planned to email the story to them, but had gotten too busy. Or, maybe he just didn't want to write that much. Either way, he could see in their eyes the betrayal they felt. Sam looked away. It wasn't that he didn't want them to know, it was just that as soon as he had finished the race, they were called up in front of everyone and awarded the trophy, and then it was time to go. The opportunity to tell them what happened just wasn't there. He supposed they wouldn't see it that way, though.
"Tom T is watching it… protecting it." He said as he turned his thoughts back to Tad. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Eddie squirm forward in his bean bag.
"Well, I am not positive that will work for the whole summer, but for now, I guess it is the best option we have. So… back to Gust. In trying to keep an eye on the racers, Gust must have come across the battalion of goblins that the huldra had assigned to guard the captive Shore cabin girl, Helen. Helen told us that he jumped from the trees, grabbed her from her captors, killed two goblins and then led them on a wild chase. She described the goblins for us…" A little shiver ran through Tad at this point as he paused. "From what she said, they look like a cross between a cricket, a bat, and a boar. They have black armor, black tusks, and a black personality. She said they harshly spoke some broken English, just a few words, amongst their chittering. It was enough to get their point across. She said they were threatening to eat her… that they talked to her about how she was going to taste. Needless to say, Helen did not come back this summer.”
"She also told us though, that Gust carried her to a small crevice in the rocky face of a cliff. He told her to squeeze through the crevice as fast as she could and then run down hill. She did, and it led her directly back to us at the finish line of the race. As she made her way through the crevice, she said she heard terrible sounds of battle behind her. It ended with what sounded like screams from Gust.”
"We tried to look for him, but couldn't find any signs. We figured that the goblins, or the huldra, had covered their tracks with Glamour. Clancy waited a while, but eventually called in the authorities. There was a search, but nothing was ever found. They eventually called him a missing person." Tad paused. "Eventually Clancy found what Meg and I thought was a ransom note, but by the time she had found it, the deadline had passed… Clancy was oblivious to what it was anyway, so we didn’t fill her in… She simply wouldn’t have believed us… She didn’t believe Helen. She thought she was just a girl trying to get attention, someone who was making excuses for losing her event…”
Tad paused, and took a solemn breath.
"I miss him… he was kind of a mentor to me…"
Shy felt his own eyes begin to tear up as he saw Tad's become glassy. The counselor turned away and looked out of the screens into the forest. Shy found that he was twisting Gust's watch on his wrist. Gust isn't dead, he thought to himself.
Shy jumped up.
"Gust isn't dead!"
At that Tad turned back to the boys. They were all looking at him.
"Really… he's not dead," he said as he tried to emphasize his words by making eye contact with the other boys.
"Shy…. We will all miss him, but…"
"No! Tom T told me. He isn't dead. They captured him and brought him to the other side of the waterfall! The forest," he was yelling now, as he turned to Daniel, imploring him for support. "The forest that recoiled from me when I looked at it…. That's where he is! Tom T said he is still alive...." Shy quieted when he realized that he must sound hysterical.
"The nisse told you this?" Tad seemed to be considering the new information. "That's funny…. Do you remember the old man that I often run into at the Paul Bunyan General Store? You know, the one that told me the story about Fred and George, and the fossegrimen? I told you that story last summer."
Shy saw all the other boys were edging forward now; they were becoming interested.
"I saw that old man again, a week ago," Tad continued. "We had stopped in to the General Store for some supplies. He said that something was going on in the forest. He pulled me aside and said that he had heard a story of a captive in the forest, and a ransom. He wanted to know what I knew about it. I chalked it up to a senile old man, but maybe the ransom still holds… Shy, didn't you say that it seemed like time passed differently on the other side of the waterfall?"
Shy shrugged, "Dunno… it was day there but it was night here… maybe…"
"What if time passes differently,” Tad was getting excited now. "What if we could still ransom him? Or, better yet, rescue him? I need to talk to Meg. You all need to head down to dinner. Who will show Eddie how to use the zip line?"
The other boys looked at each other, but didn't volunteer. Shy couldn't understand what their problem was. He snorted and raised his hand.
"Good. Shy you are in charge of getting him down there then. Boys, you got about twenty minutes to be down to dinner. Clancy will introduce that goof Moriarty.” He paused, for a second, and then said, “ You didn't hear me say that, and you do NOT repeat it… understood?"
It was a sign of his excitement that Tad made the mistake of calling Moriarty a name, Shy realized. He looked at the others and saw a sly smile spread across Sawyer's face.
"Henry? Sawyer?!" Tad pressed.
Henry just raised his arms like he was surprised Tad mentioned him, while Sawyer smiled at Finn and said, "You betcha!"
Tad looked suspiciously at the two, but then continued, "She will also announce our Camp Games’ events for this summer. We have some kickin' events, so start thinking about which you would like to do."
With that he opened the cabinet, and grabbed a zip line bar.
"Wait Tad… I have more to tell everyone… about some stuff that happened this past year… stuff I learned." Shy said as he stopped the counselor.
"After supper Shy, we'll talk tonight. OK?" He didn't wait for an answer. He simply hooked up his zip line bar, and launched himself into the forest. As he zipped away, the boys heard him yell, "TWENTY MINUTESSSS!"