Kerka's Book by Jan Bozarth Page B

stopped behind me.
    â€œWe have reindeer provisions,” Queen Mangi said, as though reindeer visited the Kalistonia Fairies all the time. “Despite the shortness of time, it is important that I show you our realm. It should help you to understand some of your Pax Lineage.”
    â€œAre you sure it is okay?” I asked.
    â€œNot just okay, but necessary,” Queen Mangianswered. “You’ll see why. And you should have some time to eat when we’re done.”
    â€œBut I’m hungry right
now,”
Ardee said, planting her feet.
    â€œShh!” I nudged the reindeer with my elbow. Hunger gnawed at my stomach, too, but I’d rather suffer than be rude.
    â€œOf course you’re hungry,” Queen Mangi said graciously. “Reindeer eat twelve pounds of fodder a day, and you’ve had a very tough day.”
    â€œA very, very tough day,” the reindeer agreed.
    Queen Mangi hid another amused smile. “We’ll look for a good snack along the way. Just remember that most of the plants in these caverns are not food.”
    â€œPuffy pink things aren’t friendly.” Ardee shook her antlers and curled her upper lip. “They bite.”
    â€œPerhaps puffy pink things don’t like to be eaten,” Queen Mangi suggested, winking at me. She stepped onto a path of smooth round stones inlaid with precious gems.
    Ardee stamped her hoof but followed anyway.
    â€œPlease stay on the pathway,” Queen Mangi said. “We don’t want to trample anyone.”
    The path wandered between tall crystal stalagmites, curving this way and that and sometimes looping back. The pattern seemed random at first. ThenI noticed that all the ceiling stalactites had a matching floor stalagmite. Not a single structure had been removed, chiseled, or chipped. The paved pathway had been built around them.
    The queen paused in a large alcove where an underground spring of clear mountain water bubbled up into a crystal pool. Spotted brown frogs sat among reeds or floated on lily pads. Silver and black moths perched on gray-green lichen shaped like fans.
    â€œPlease, quench your thirst.” Queen Mangi swept her hand toward the pool. “Pod water gets stale after awhile.”
    Ardee plunged her muzzle into the pool and sucked in water with a loud slurping sound. No one seemed to mind. I drank from my cupped hand, wishing I could slurp. The spring water tasted like mountain air: cold, crisp, and clean. When we were full, Ardee eyed a patch of clover.
    â€œMay I eat them?” she asked the queen in a voice filled with longing.
    A chattering noise, like tiny squirrels scolding an intruder, came from the clovers.
    â€œThank you for asking before eating,” the queen told Ardee. “The clovers tell me that a delicious variety of reindeer moss grows nearby. Why don’t you eat some and tell me if that’s true, Ardee.”
    â€œOkay!” Ardee’s ears perked forward, and she stopped moping. “How far is it?”
    â€œIt’s not far. The Kalis stick nursery is just ahead.” The queen swept away down the path, and I jogged to catch up.
    â€œDid you say nursery? Are Kalis sticks
born?”
I had assumed fairies
made
my precious orange stick.
    â€œIn a way,” Queen Mangi said. “You’ll see.”

9
In the Caves of Kalistonia
    I don’t like it when people avoid answering a question they intend to answer later, but I kept quiet and just followed Queen Mangi.
    The path exited the crystal maze and went into a large garden. Moss, mushrooms, and fungi grew on rocks and under small fig trees with twisted branches. Blackberry vines grew in straight lines toward the ceiling instead of in tangles. They bent when a fairy wanted berries that were too high to reach. Young fairies carried water in hollowed-out gourds to plants that weren’t rooted near one of the springs. An older fairy clipped dead leaves and buried them to replenish