The Fairy Diary Day 549 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

It had been a good day of hunting for the five goblins. The excitement of the chase still shone on their faces when they joined us around the fire. Before Merlin could question them about his summoning of Cluyjil, Glossom announced that they were returning to the canyonlands. And added the explanation that they needed to get back to the two baby dragons – Clemjil and Torjil – the anchors for their main dragon. 

The wizard put his question to them anyway and the chieftain of the goblins gave his consent. 

At this juncture Noralei took Glossom aside to talk. I knew she was going to request a dragon from them for the Caretaker of the Crack of Doom. 

Dunfallon and I accompanied Merlin outside and there in the falling snow he took out his beacon stone. He rubbed it – producing a purple glow that lit up the air around us, and summoned Cluyjil. 

Then with a knowing look he instructed me to write to the High Fairy – to get word to Tinadell that he may be called upon soon. 

The goblins had everything together, their dragons heavily laden, and bid us and Gibley goodbye. For the young goblin had asked and was granted permission from his uncle to remain behind. Gibley wanted to help us in our exploration for the source of the problem. 

Thankfully we still had Gibley’s hunting enclosure – where we settled in and I scratched out my note to his excellency. 

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The Fairy Diary Day 548 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

We talked and talked and talked. I think Merlin was becoming frustrated with our thick headedness. To help us understand he begged a strip of paper from the bottom of my scroll. And with it he made to glue the ends together. But he gave one end a half twist before attaching them. 

Then he begged to use my quill and with it he demonstrated that there was only one side – as he put my quill to the paper and drew a line – eventually the line came around to the exact spot where it had started. 

Dunfallon took the paper ring from him for a closer look. On it the line was clearly on both visible sides. 

The wizard simply stated, “Something similar is occurring in this situation.”

 Noralei was the first to ask if there were any way to send for Cluyjil – the better for us all to travel on further to investigate. 

Merlin separated out the necklace with the beacon stone from about his neck. And said, “I should be able to. But first we must confer with the goblins to make sure it’s use would have no adverse effect on their dragons.”

Thus, while we waited, my thoughts ranged about on many things, but they always came back to me wondering if this might be the problem that Tinadell is destined to remedy. 

The Fairy Diary Day 510 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Last night I wrote a note on the scroll to the High Fairy. Mostly it was an apology for the rashness of my actions. He wrote back to me this morning. He consoled me by accepting my apology and commending me for my actions after things went wrong. 

He also reported to me that Willie down in the castle dungeon has been highly agitated. His piercing screams have shattered the peace and calm of the castle. Finally Merlin had cast a spell silencing all sound from the chamber in which the Wisp’s cage is hung. 

The High Fairy requested that Dunfallon return to talk with his old friend. They are concerned that Willie is sensing something from the other side. The pixie did not want to leave while Rayjil was still in a weakened condition, but Gibley told him she is showing marked signs of recovery. In fact, the hole in her right wing is already healed over.

I suggested that he go and then return with Noralei. With everything coming together, I want her to be here to head up the expedition to the other side. I think we can count on Merlin and the High Fairy giving her the go ahead. With her ring with the green crystal and the beacon stone now around Cluyjil’s neck and those on my pendants I believe we were never more ready.

With a great sense of purpose, then, Dunfallon left on Conjil for Merlin’s castle.

The Fairy Diary Day 509 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

When I arrived at the repository Gibley and Dunfallon were waiting there for me with Conjil. No one said a word – for the bag with the beacon stone preceded me – pulling me along. They followed me in past the fairy guards who parted to allow us entry. 

The Caretaker met us and ushered us to Cluyjil. I felt rather awkward to reel the bag in and to fuss with it to free the necklace from its interior. But once the stone was out of the bag it flew from my grasp and lodged itself on the bony breastplate of the dragon. It was a bit of a struggle after that to get the chain of the necklace over Cluyjil’s head. But when that was accomplished, the questioning began. 

The chief question being – where was Rayjil? 

I told the tale of our encounter with the black bird and asked the Caretaker’s permission to strike the Crack of Doom. 

Lacking a dwarf on the team to wield the striker with us, we were uncertain of our success. Instead we doubled up on fairies by asking the Caretaker to help. 

There was a long wait after we rammed the the bell with the striker – longer than the first time we rang it. Then, out of the rising mist that threatened to block the moon from view, our dragon Rayjil came straight for us. And she appeared injured. 

We gathered around the shivering dragon. Her right wing bore a puncture that was ragged and bleeding. Gibley and Dunfallon dressed the wound and the Caretaker ordered some new bedding laid down for her. 

Cluyjil and Conjil laid down one on each side of their fellow dragon and kept her warm throughout the night. 

The Fairy Diary Day 508 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

I flew on. Aided somewhat by the beacon stone necklace which pulled steadily forward towards the repository.  Still, I stopped frequently to rest. In those times thoughts flooded in about what I had done. 

Had I lost sight of the big picture? Would Rayjil have been safely with us, if I had not run off with her? Might there have been some other way to convince everyone to go along with my idea?

I had to shake off those nagging questions, for now more than ever I must get to the repository. And not just to see to the pairing of the beacon stone with Cluyjil. I also needed to strike the Crack of Doom to summon Rayjil back from the other side. 

As I neared the Faerie Kingdom capital I had to resist the beacon stone which wanted to pull me straight over it. I thought it wiser to go around and thus avoid any further complications. 

The Fairy Diary Day 507 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Up to this time I had not given the cloak of invisibility to Dunfallon, there not having been the need (and I had not wanted to chance feeding his penchant for pranks). But now I decided to use it myself – promising myself that I would hand it to him later. 

It covered most of me. No one saw my disembodied legs as I collected the beacon stone necklace and made my way around the castle down to Rayjil’s pen. 

She was more than ready for an adventure. 

Dawn was just breaking as we passed over Nonin-gal-dith. Shortly after that the bag attached to the saddle containing the beacon stone necklace began to levitate forward. And I smiled to myself as I took that for a confirmation that my idea was correct. The stone was choosing Cluyjil. 

At that instant something hit me from behind, knocking me off Rayjil. I had the presence of mind to snag the bag as I fell and out of the corner of my eye, saw the black bird flash by. 

As I floated to the ground I kept the dragon in view as she pursued my nemesis. She caught up to it and speared it with her talons and in that very instant they both disappeared from sight. 

The Fairy Diary Day 506 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

So, the debate raged as to what to do next. Merlin and the High Fairy wanted to appeal to Glossom and his clan of dragon handlers for the right to test other similarly talented dragons to bear the beacon stone. 

Dunfallon convinced Gibley that they needed to make more trials with Rayjil and Conjil. And to that end they enlisted Herblas to search out ceremonies or spells to employ in those attempts. 

Noralei joined the dwarf in the library to research any changes she should make to the setting for the gem in the necklace. 

Rumble stayed in his room – too upset to come out, and fed his despair in silence. 

I was the only one that advocated making the trial with Cluyjil. The others all denigrated the idea since they judged him unsuitable as he lacked the ability to turn transparent by himself. And we did not even know for sure if he could follow the lead of another bearing the beacon stone. 

To all their naysaying I reminded them that it was the stone itself that chose its dragon. 

And when still none listened, there was only one thing I could think to do. I stole the necklace and Rayjil and fled for the repository. 

The Fairy Diary Day 505 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

After their long meeting with Merlin, Dunfallon, Gibley, and Herblas emerged confident that the happy accident with the stones from the dwarfish mines has been beneficial in every way. The wizard is certain that their addition will place the assault team in a better position when confronting the Dark One. For they shall not only be counting upon the single gem. 

That decided, Merlin announced the time had come to pair the beacon stone with one of the dragons. 

Noralei and Rumble had completed the chain portion of the necklace and were ready to affix the stone to the setting. This time the dragons were kept sequestered in their pens. And held there until the necklace was completed in toto. 

Then, we all watched as Dunfallon led Rayjil into the courtyard where Noralei and Rumble presented the necklace before her. The stone and necklace remained motionless. 

I was astonished that the beacon stone had not chosen her. 

The pixie led Rayjil away and Gibley brought Conjil in. And again the necklace just lay there prone. 

My cry of dismay rose with the others in the courtyard. 

How would we save our world now?

The Fairy Diary Day 504 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Much to our relief, Merlin returned this morning. After checking a multitude of black bird sightings in and around Dromadil the trail had run cold. However, that fact was not what brought him back but rather the alarm sent out when Rumble opened the hidden cupboard. 

As it turns out it did contain the metals he had put aside with which to fashion a necklace for the beacon stone. And after examining the design Noralei had drawn for it, he gave a most hearty approval. 

That done, the wizard turned his attention to the swallowed gems. He questioned Dunfallon and Gibley about their charges – had there been any noticeable changes since the incident – in behavior or abilities – good or ill effects. 

All they could report was an increased appetite for fire plants. So Merlin advised them to keep an eye out for any changes in their fire breathing. 

The High Fairy spoke up at that point and said that Herblas might have learned something to illuminate the matter – and he prodded the shy dwarf forward. 

Herblas asked to look down the throats of the dragons. Dunfallon protested that he had done so already and found nothing in Rayjil. Still the pixie coaxed her to open her gullet, and there at the back of her throat – for all to see – the gem was lodged in a space in front of the igniter. A check with Conjil revealed the same. 

Merlin invited the dwarf and the dragon handlers to convene with him in his study. 

I joined Noralei and Rumble in the workshop to watch them as they got back to work- but found my thoughts wandering as to what else unlooked for would happen next. 

The Fairy Diary Day 502 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

To write that Merlin’s castle was a beehive of activity would be an understatement. After observing the owl yesterday I pitched in to help him in his duties. I kept the golden nectar flowing by tapping a fresh barrel and taking tankards around to my friends to refresh them in their endeavors. 

Dunfallon and Gibley passed the day exercising Rayjil and Conjil, emphasizing their coordination in flight. They were a marvel to watch whenever I passed over the parapet. 

When the High Fairy emerged from the wizard’s study, I took the opportunity to suggest that Noralei take on the task of forging a necklace for the beacon stone. His excellency agreed – with only a single caveat – that for the time being she confine herself to the metalwork. He wants Merlin here before trying the process of pairing the stone with a dragon. On that matter too I expressed my opinion that she should take the lead in those trials. 

In the meantime I broached another idea that he take Herblas into the library so he can delve into how the purple stones he has discovered should be used. 

When Rumble asked me what he could do, I  suggested he pitch in and assist Noralei as her dogsbody.  A role which he was ready and willing to perform. 

I had one task that I loathed doing. I took over from the owl his chore of feeding the Will’o’the Wisp. Willie snarled and raised a ruckus any time I drew near. His personality, never truly appealing to begin with, has definitely taking a turn for the worst. 

How I find myself longing for the return of Merlin.