The cottage sat in a small clearing, just large enough for the sun to illuminate it between the thick forest tree's. It was a simple home, but the garden was well kept and inviting, like one of those you'd see from a fairy tale story. Old looking thatch roof, check. Abundance of flowers in the garden out front, check. Stone path leading to the door, check. As Abbott wandered up to the door he heard singing coming from inside, and he smiled to himself. He rapped his knuckles against the door five times, and heard Laraya call to him. A moment later she opened the door, and gave him a pleasant smile. “Well hello boy, not much visitors I get out here, Come in!” She had a raspy voice and long gray hair that dragged along the ground. “I've been baking all day. Don't you like lemon cake?” she asked him as they walked past the kitchen. “We can sit in here” she continued without an answer from Bo. He noticed the kitchen was a complete mess. No, not just messy; dirty. The pots and pans had clearly been collecting dust for awhile, and there were trays of old uneaten treats sitting here and there. Abbott was uncertain about this woman. He thought she seemed a little senile to help him find his sister, but he took a seat on a chair in the living room anyways.
She lowered herself into an old rocking chair near the fireplace. She smiled, but didn't make eye contact with him. She seemed distant, and stared at a blank space on a nearby wall. Abbott turned to see what she was looking at, but there didn't seem to be anything in particular. “Are you ok” he asked her curiously. She smiled warmly, and answered him, “Haven't you ever seen a blind old woman?” Abbott's eyes grew large, and he looked at the floor in embarassment. “I'm sorry, I didn't know..” he started. Laraya waved her hand and replied, “Nonsense. We've bigger fish to fry.” He sat up straighter now and asked, “Can you please tell me where my sister is?” She laughed a hoarse tired laugh, and leaned forward slightly, “The water's may show where your sister is, but it will come at a price. Nothing is free you know. I will take you to the waters, if you are willing.” Bo considered her words carefully. “What price must be paid?” he asks slowly. “That is for the waters to decide. Come, come with me” she answered oddly. Bo's head flooded with possibilities of this price to be paid, but he knew one thing for sure, he must find his sister. Even if he had to do the unthinkable.
Laraya rose from her rocker, and shuffled across the room. “Well, what will it be?” she croaked. Abbott rose from his seat and decided to follow the old woman. She lead him down a long corridor, dark and dank, the floral wallpaper peeling in places. Twenty or more empty picture frames hung on the walls, and the lighting in the hall was dim. At the end of the hall was an old door, that creaked loudly as Laraya opened it. Rickety stairs led down into a cold, dark room. Laraya stopped at the base of the stairs, took out a flashlight from her pocket and handed it to him. It was very dark down there, so dark in fact, that the only thing Abbott could see was a few feet in front of him. How Laraya knew where to go in the darkness, was a pure mystery to Bo. For all he could tell, the room was empty. But, soon they came to another door. Abbott held the flashlight towards Laraya as he watched her retrieve a key from a chain around her neck. She extended her arm slowly, and reached through the air feeling for the door. When she located it, her fingers moved along the wooden surface until she found the keyhole. The lock clicked as it unlocked, and she placed the key back around her neck. “This way..” she mumbled as she stepped down onto a staircase.
Bo had seen staircases like this one before; a spiral type made of cold black iron. The base of the stairs opened up into a huge room...no, a cavern! Abbott didn't really need the flashlight anymore. An opening in the ceiling allowed a stream of light to faintly illuminate the space. The walls and floor were made of dirt, and he noticed a dampness surrounded them. The stream of light seemed to be shining on a small pond in the middle of the cavern. Laraya moved toward the center, and he followed along staring up at the high ceiling covered in sharp pointy rock-like shapes. Laraya heard that his footsteps had stopped. She asked what he was doing. "What are those pointy things on the ceiling?" he questioned. “Stalactites...” she said softly, “That's what it's called. Come.”
Reaching the center Abbott noticed that the pond was actually more like a pool that was surrounded by a stone bench. “Are you ready?” Laraya asked. He gave a slightly uncertain nod. She then walked over to the edge of the stone bench, and around to the far side of it. Abbott followed her curiously. She took from her pocket a small gray rock and felt around along the stone. When she came to a divet in the bench, she placed the rock into it. A brilliant blue color shot out from the spaces between the stones and the whole bench spun in a slow circle. It came to a rest with a bang sound, as though something had been unlocked. Mist sprayed up from the water and danced in the air. Thousands of tiny water droplets hung suspended in the air above the pool. Abbott stared at them in disbelief. After a moment he noticed they began forming something, like stars make up a constellation. Before him the misty droplets had formed some type of large sea creature. It floated above the pool in a serene way and a soft voice came from it. In a voice, warm as the coo of a dove it said, “State your name. Seven questions answered, then, revealed the secrets of your heart; begin. Abbott stood awestruck for a moment, then straightened up tall and announced, “Abbott Winterdale here, and Laraya...um I'm not sure of her last name actually.” Laraya laughed softly for a moment, “Boy, she already know's I'm here. I'm always here when she's been woken.” He smiled and realized that the creature was probably very used to Laraya. “Oh, yea. I suppose you're right. What's her nam-” he started, but was interrupted by the creature.
“Hail you from where?” its voice called. “Well, I come from New Hampshire but now I live in Idaho with my aunt and uncle. Well that is unless my grandparents force me to live with them” he rambled. “Your years thus far?” she asked. Bo thought for a minute, then realized the creature was asking his age. “Oh, I'm 9” he replied. “Have you any markings?” the next question was asked. Abbott shook his head, and answered, “Nope.” Next she asked, “Prepared are you to leave your lives former routine?” Abbott scoffed slightly, “I pretty much already have done. But, yes I am prepared.” The creature leaned a little closer, and furrowed her brow. She then asked, “Would you kill for what you seek?” Bo stood in silence. He rather preferred the questions about his age and where he lived. Kill another to find Arista? He had never thought of this before. “I...I suppose I would if she were in danger, and it was the only way to save her” he answered finally. She raised her eyebrows slightly, and leaned in further still. The misty figure was now inches from his face. She spoke slowly this time, and asked, “Would you die for what you seek?” Abbott swallowed hard and nodded. While he had no intention of dying for a long time, he would if it meant it would save Arista. He shuddered at the thought of what horrible place she could be trapped or held prisoner. The creatures nose was so close to Abbott's nose now, that he could feel the coolness of the mist dancing across his nose. “Seek you what?” she whispered. He felt quite cold now, and little goose bumps rose over his skin. His eyes met the creature's and stared into his eyes. The creature was certainly making him uncomfortable, but he couldn't break his gaze. Without an answer from him, the creature leaned back. “I see...” she said softly, “Look into the mist, your desire is revealed.”
Bo blinked, and strained his eyes to make out a shape in the mist. The creature dove into the pool, and an eruption of water shot out. It swirled around like a tornado, going faster and faster. Suddenly Abbott was able to see something forming, like a picture on a tv screen. A nearly translucent porcelain colored hand could be seen being placed against a stone wall. One of the stones lit up blue in a strange pattern, like some kind of odd language. The stone wall changed into a type of portal leading into an underground room. It was cozy, and had a small stove, bed, and bookshelf. In the center of the room a rope ladder hung from the ceiling. Now he could see the back of a white haired girl. She wore a dress that seemed to have a type of glowing white aura around it. Tiny stars were sprinkled across the dress, and they too seemed to slightly glow. He watched as she begin to scale the ladder. He watched until her white tights and shoes could be seen no longer, as she disappeared in to the ceiling. Now the scene changed and he seemed to be looking at a river bank with many tree's paralleling it. From one of the tree trunks, a small door opened, and the white haired girl could be seen emerging from it. Her hair hung in her face blocking Abbott from seeing her features. She spun around to face the other direction, and he knew it was her. Piercing, almost glowing blue eyes shone bright against her porcelain skin.
“How beautiful she is!” Laraya exclaimed. This sudden outburst from Laraya startled Abbott, and he glanced over at the old woman. When he looked back into the spinning water, the scene had disappeared, and Arista was gone. The water fell and the pool grew very still. “Why did you do that?!” Bo shouted angrily, “We could have found out where she was going! ...Hey, wait a minute. I thought you couldn't see!” Laraya smiled and answered, “I can always see the desires of the heart that Reverie shows people. Though, I don't get many visitors, so there isn't a lot to see. It's the only time I can see anything, so you know how special it is to me.” “Reverie, that's her name? What is she?” Bo asked curiously. “Yes. She is an old spirit. A spirit born long ago from a young man's broken heart. It is said that a young gentleman fell in love with a beautiful girl. One day she was caught in a stampede of wild horses, and was severely injured. The young man stayed by her side as each day her life slipped further and further away. The young man held her hand as she drew her last breath. Moments after she died, the man slumped over, killed from a broken heart. Their spirits lingered above their bodies, and shared their first kiss. When that happened their spirits combined, and Reverie was born” she explained eerily. “Weird.....” Bo whispered, “Ok, well can you help me find Arista? We don't have much to go on, but I know she's by a river, with a special tree. That's a start.” “Yes there is such a tree...I can point you in that direction. Just know that by the time you get there, Arista won't be there. She will have moved on to somewhere else. I don't know how much that will help you..” Laraya told him. Abbott figured it was more than he had to go on previously, and agreed to accept Laraya's help.
"Now it is time for the waters to decide what price is to be paid. Climb into the water and float on you back" Laraya instructed him. Abbott did as he was told, pulled off all but his underwear, and dipped a toe into the water. It was surprising warm as he entered the pool, and began to float on his back. For a moment everything was fine, but soon the water started growing colder. His body began to shiver with cold from the water. He didn't know what was happening, and tried to get out of the pool, but he couldn't move. The waters temperature felt like a thousand needles piercing his skin, and he wailed in pain. His thoughts raced through memories, and events of his life as the water stabbed at him. Blood began lightly trickling into the water, as he tried to break free. "Stop, Please!" he screamed.
Calmly Laraya answered him, "The waters have chosen pain as your price, there is only one way to stop it." The water pierced his side hard and he gasped for air and called, "Any...thing!" His mother came into view in his mind. Staring into space as she sat in her bed, she seemed like she was in some kind of trance. Suddenly she screamed a high pitched shrill scream. Convulsing on the bed violently, then clutching her heart, she fell over dead. Her body instantly turned to ash, which flew into the air and out the window. The water gave a final jab into Abbott before subsiding, as it grew warm once more. Tears flooded his eyes, and he tried to move, but still no luck. Laraya then took a glass vile from her pocket, and gathered some water from the pool. Moments later ashes appeared over him, and he stared in disbelief. They swirled around before floating into Laraya's glass vile. She put a cork in the glass jar, and shook it gently. Then she popped the cork off and drank the entire contents. Her hair instantly grew about six inches, and her skin became smooth and youthful. Her eyes remained in their eerie state, and it was apparent that she was still blind.
Abbott sunk under the water and thrashed around, quickly getting to his feet. He rushed over to the edge of the pool calling out angrily to Laraya, "Why did you make me do that?" He climbed out of the pool and wiped his face. "You're blind! What do you care if you look young? My mother....My mother is DEAD because of you!" he shouted in with rage. But Laraya smiled, "No dear boy, your mother is dead because of you. I played no part in the decision of the waters. You agreed to pay the price to find out more about your sister, which you have done. You now know that she is indeed alive. My features matter not to me, though when one calls upon Reverie and the waters collect their price, I am rewarded. The waters reward me with a youthful body, allowing me many more years of life. I thank you for your contribution to my longevity." Abbott stood in complete silence, he dared not speak for he knew the words he spoke would do him no favors. His skin was wounded from the water, but he showed no sign of weakness at its pain. A few more tears snuck out of the corner of his eye, but he stood with his fists clenched, and didn't even acknowledge them. "I know you're upset boy, but sometimes sacrifices must be made if you wish to find what you seek. Your mother was a sad soul, she was unhappy. Her life was spent as a burden to your father. Her soul will find its peace, and you can seek your sister. Here this will heal your wounds" Laraya soothed as she pulled a hot towel from a notch in the wall.
After he was dried and dressed, Laraya motioned for him to follow her once more. On the walk back upstairs his head reeled with what had just taken place. Guilt and anger plagued his conscience, while hope and joy danced in his soul at the knowledge that his sister was alive. Hundreds of emotions pulled his heart in every direction, and his head began to pain him. Back upstairs Laraya explained what direction to head to get to the special tree. “You should stop by my daughter's house. She is Fluxian also, and will be keen to assist you in your journey. You should know, she's a bit of a wild card. She's not like most Fluxians...she's very liberal in her views. You might have to do a little convincing, but she will prove to be helpful to you” she told him. She offered him a snack to take along, but judging by the disarray of the house and the kitchen, he politely declined. In a short while Abbott was on his way, trapezing through the thick forest tree's once again.
He headed east and reflected on the events at Laraya's. He couldn't believe it...all this time Arista had been alive! When everyone had given up, he hadn't! There was more to what happened to Arista, so much more, but how would he ever find her? An hours walk took him to a cliff side, and across the way he could see some type of cabin or hut semi-hidden in the bushes. "Wonder if that is Laraya's daughters place?" he thought aloud. With no way to get to the other side, he decided to head south to find out if it led around to the cabin. It did not. After a little ways he realized that it may never lead to the opposite side, and so he decided to crawl down the large rocks that bulged out from the side of the mountain top.
A short ways down he noticed it was becoming increasingly harder to climb down, but he kept at it. The next rock seemed a bit far but he thought he could jump it. He readied himself and sprang from the current rock he was on. He landed it perfectly, but as soon as his feet hit the next stone, it began to crumble under his feet. Quickly he searched for something to grab hold of, and his hands found a thick root just in reach. Now the rest of the stone fell away leaving him hanging onto the root for dear life. The closest rock was too far to reach, even if he swung himself over to it. His nerves began making his palms sweaty, and his hands began to slip from the root. Anxiously he glanced down at the almost fifty foot drop, and knew he would never survive the fall. "This is it.." he thought, "I've made it all this way just to die."
A sturdy rope fell from above and hung temptingly beside him. "Hey stupid grab the rope!" a voice called down at him. With out much choice Bo had no option but to grab hold of the rope. "Hope whoever's up there doesn't mean me any harm. Although, anything would be better than falling to my death I suppose" he mumbled to himself. Climbing the rope was really hard work, the coarse fibers stung his hands as they slid across its rough surface. But, Abbott gave it all he had, and soon enough, he reached the top.
"What the heck are you trying to do, get yourself killed?" a girl with jet black hair asked him. She tightened her ponytail and untied the rope from a large nearby rock. This girl seemed "normal" to Abbott, not like those other water folks, or the fire people that wore those strange outfits. She had on hiking boots, khaki shorts and a t-shirt that read May I Help You? Bo smirked at her sarcastic t-shirt, but tried to hide it. "Well? Do you speak?" she asked, her dark eyes searching his for an answer. "Uh...Hi. I'm Abbott, Bo for short. Thanks for saving me by the way. I was looking for a way over to the other side of the cliffs, to that cabin" he replied tripping over his words a bit. "What do you want with my cabin? Where you heading?" she pressed. "Well I'm looking for some people. Brietta, Dovie, Arista and some girl, Laraya's daughter..." he trailed off realizing he never did get her name. At this the girl bursted out laughing, and Bo looked on in confusion. "Haha! Hold on, you are looking for Arista, the moon princess? The one from the sky? And you think....haha! You think she's just out here running around in the woods?! The Fluxian's would have destroyed her by now if that were true!" she giggled as she fell to the ground.
"HEY!" Bo shouted irritatedly, "Who are you?" The girl calmed herself and got to her feet still wearing a smile, "The names Pasha. Put 'er there. Just so you know I don't condone anything the Fluxian's are doing. I think they are going about things all wrong. Mother always got her undies in a twist because I wouldn't call myself a Fluxian. I says to her, I'm a foster. I'm no special elemental being, I'm just a regular teen, same as anyone else. Sheesh...how is the old hag?" Pasha asked. She stooped to pick up a walking stick, and surveyed it carefully. "Wait so you're...you're Laraya's daughter? Oh wow! Can you help me? She said you could help me!" Bo said excitedly. She scoffed, "FOSTER daughter, and yea I'm the closest thing she's got to having a kid of her own. By the way kid, I already helped ya. Later" With that she turned and walked away.
"Hey, wait! Please help me find my family" Bo pleaded. "Not real good with families bud. Not in the business of finding families. I figure, no body can break your heart if ya don't give it to 'em in the first place" she answered without stopping. "Yea well, fine! Laraya said you weren't gonna help me anyhow. I'll find them on my own! And, if Arista is a princess of some kind how's she gonna like it when she finds out how you treated her brother? Too bad, maybe you could have even gotten a reward or something from her for helping me" Abbott huffed marching off in the opposite direction. Pasha stopped in her tracks and turned toward him. "Hey, Bo. You know I was just messin' around right kid? I mean, you and me are gonna be thick as thieves, I can tell! I always liked red-head kids. They're just really cool people to hang out with" Pasha blabbered. Abbott raised an eyebrow in disbelief, "Yea, yea. Now, which way do we head?"
Not far off, Brietta and Dovie marched through the forest. Dovie's shoes were covered in mud, and sweat dripped off the tip of Brietta's nose. “We'll never find him!” Dovie whined, “We've been walking for such a long time. Can't we stop for a few minutes?” Brietta sighed, “If we stop, he'll j-just be that much further away. Come on, I think I see a clearing up ahead.” The tree's soon thinned and the sounds of rushing water could be heard. “Shh...listen. I think we are near a river. C'mon!” Dovie said perking up. “Why are you so excited about a river?” Brietta called, chasing after Dovie. At the edge of the forest Dovie stopped quickly to avoid falling down. Brietta crashed into her, but caught her by the arm to pull her back. The edge of the forest dropped about ten feet, at its base sat the river bank. They carefully climbed down to the bank, and looked around a bit. “Bummer....this seemed like a good place to meet. I thought Bo would think it was a good idea too, and we would find him.” “Well the river stretches a long way, he could be anywhere along the river's edge. T-That's if he even thought to meet us here” Brietta said downheartedly as they walked along the river.
“What was that?” Dovie gasped as she stopped abruptly. “W-What, was what?” Brietta answered quickly, stopping along side her. Dovie pointed up ahead, and answered “Over there....I thought I saw a flash of light....you know like a flash light!” The girls exchanged looks, and took off running to catch up to where Dovie saw the light. “Bo! Hey, wait!” they called after him running faster and faster. No matter how fast they ran, they couldn't seem to catch him. As they rounded the river bend, they saw a wisp of silvery white hair disappear into the trunk of a tree. They quickly ran over to the group of tree's to investigate, but none of the tree trunks had any sign of a way inside.
“What in the world was that?” Brietta wondered aloud. “No clue, but I want to find out how to get in here” Dovie said pulling pieces of bark from the tree.” Brietta shook her head, “It's no use Dovie. It's getting too dark to see anything, even if t-there was anything to see.” Davita stopped, and slumped down against the tree trunk. She sighed heavily, “What are we going to do once it gets dark? Bo has the flashlight, and there is nothing providing any kind of light.” Brietta nodded, “I thought of that too. Do we have some matches? W-We could build a fire.” Dovie rummaged through her bag looking through the supplies she brought. Ho ho's, moon pies, twinkies, bread, a few apples, gingersnap cookies, and some peanut butter sandwiches. “You mean to t-tell me, all you brought was food!?” Brietta said angrily. Dovie shrugged sheepishly, “I was hungry when we were packing. Besides even if we made a fire, wouldn't it just attract unwanted visitors?” At this Brietta thought for a moment, and huffed, crossing her arms in protest. “Fine we'll walk as far as we can before it gets so dark we can't see, then w-we'll stop for the night” she compromised. She helped Dovie to her feet, and they trudged on a little further following the river.
Twenty minutes later, with no way to see through the darkness the two of them decided to rest for the night. The girls huddled together for warmth next to a huge rock by one of the tree's. The night brought a temperature drop, and they shivered in their sleep. Down the bank a few hundred feet, a strange looking man went from tree to tree inspecting it briefly, until he reached the spot where Brietta and Davita lay sleeping. He made some notes on a pad of paper, and stuffed it into his pocket. He ran both his hands through his dark colored hair, then rubbed his hands together quickly. His hands were suddenly surrounded by flames, but he didn't seem to be in any pain. He made a motion with them as though he was washing his hands, and the flame rolled into a ball. Collecting a nearby branch or two, he laid them not far from the girls. Next, he sat the flame ball onto the branches, and stood back to admire the small fire that was now glowing. The light from the fire danced along the girls faces, and Brietta's eyes fluttered open for a moment, but she instantly fell back to sleep. The man was nervous he would wake the girls, and so he climbed up the bank out of sight. He pulled a hammock from the pack he was carrying, set it up between the tree's, and drifted off to sleep.
Next morning he awoke to the sound of the girls talking, and peered over the edge of the ground down to the bank. “I already told you I have no idea how it got here!” Davita said grumpily. “W-Well I just don't understand. I know I didn't put it there! What if someone is following us?” Brietta said uncertainly. “If someone is following us, I don't think they mean us harm. I mean they had their chance to harm us last night if that was the case” Dovie pointed out. “Her words are true. You must take precaution with your camp” the stranger said, jumping down from a few feet above them. The girls gasped with shock at the surprise encounter, and Dovie nearly fell over. Brietta tried not to stare, and felt her cheeks grow warm. Dovie noticed her sister blushing, then looked back over at the man. He stood tall, and moderately muscular with deep set ocean blue eyes. Rich brown curls fell just past his ears, and complimented his strong jaw. He smiled at the girls as they gawked at him dumbfoundedly. “Oh this, sorry I'm a bit disheveled” he chuckled pulling his curly brown locks into a samurai style hair do. Playfully he furrowed his bushy brows, and posed in a ta-da type of stance. Dovie rolled her eyes, and Brietta was overcome with a fit of the giggles. Dovie gave Brietta a strange frown, then turned to the man and arrogantly asked, “...and you are?” She looked the man up and down, and determined that this stubbly bearded man in some type of odd attire that had definitely seen better days, didn't look like someone to trust.
Grinning at Brietta he replied, “I do beg your pardon. I've forgotten my manners, the names Parrow. To whom do I owe this honor?” He finished with a little bow and of course more grinning at Brietta. An annoyed Dovie stepped between them, “I'm Davita, but they call me Dovie. Where have you come from? Have you been following us?” Parrow looked happily surprised. “You're a fiesty one, aye? Actually no, I wasn't following you. I was- well nevermind all that. I was making my way down the banks and noticed you two had a terrible excuse for a campsite. So I gave you a fire, then I went up there and set up my hammock, as the hour was very late” he explained pointing to the small cliff above them.”W-W-Well...my name is Brietta. Thank you for looking out for us” she stammered almost uncontrollably. Before Parrow had a chance to speak however, Dovie butted in again. “You never explained where you are from? Don't you want to answer my questions?” she fussed throwing her hands on her hips. “I'd be glad to tell you all about me. But, first how about some breakfast? Also, your fires out again” he said cooly. He climbed up the ledge of the bank, and returned with a rucksack. He pulled from it some bread and a can of jam. “Bread is always better toasted in my opinion” he said almost to himself. Then the girls watched as his hands started turning red, brighter and brighter until an orange-red flame surrounded them. He again rolled the flame into a ball, and sat it on top of some twigs. “Oh my gosh....what th-” Dovie started. But, Brietta quickly interrupted her, “W-What she means to say is, how did you do that?”
As Parrow toasted some bread for them they sat talking about Abbott, and basically everything up until they were separated. Parrow offered to help them find their cousin, and as promised, answered Dovie's questions. “From what you tell me, you know about the books stories. So, you must know about the fire ones, the people of Thermo? Well I was born to a Thermic man, but my mother was just a common villager, with no known elemental skill. My father teased her about it often. He was a terrible man...he had a temper you see. The two of them would fight, and many times I had to treat my mothers burns. Finally she had enough, late one night she took me, and we left Thermo when I was about year 10. She told me we could never go back” he explained. “I see, what a brave woman she is” Brietta said sympathetically. “Was...She no longer lives. About a month after we left, someone came round banging at the door. My mother told me to go out the back door and go hide in the shed. A few moments later the entire house was covered in flames. I tried to get inside, but the flames were too wild. I ran off into the woods, been on my own ever since. The townspeople called it a random tragedy, but I knew better. I knew it was my father” Parrow finished. “Oh my! How absolutely dreadful! I'm so sorry about your mother” Brietta responded solemnly.
He gave a little nod in thanks, then began packing up his belongings. "What say we find your cousin? There are three places where he could be. The first, dead, which I find unlikely given what you've told me about him. The second, lost and wandering in the woods, the best of our choices oddly enough. The last, he's found Laraya, a dark water witch. This would be most unsettling. She can be cruel and cunning if her "guest" isn't persuaded. The girls exchanged looks as they too pack their things. "Do you think that's where he's gone?" Davita questioned. "I don't see how he would end up there. But, if there are Fluxian's wandering about, then it's likely they instructed him to go there" Parrow replied. "Oh dear..." Brietta said nervously. "Hey, chin up beautiful. We'll find him, and we'll find out where his sister is too" he told her looking into her eyes. "Ahem! Um, EXCUSE ME! Are we gonna go look for him or what?" Dovie asked as she tapped her toe on the ground impatiently. Parrow and Brietta gave each other a smile, and started along the bank of the river. Davita rolled her eyes and followed them as she slung her bag over her shoulder.