Part 10 (1/2)

aYep,a said the other ogre. aNope.a aIam sorry?a Apple asked, confused.

Both ogres began to stumble over themselves in an attempt to explain.

aThey gotta thing up thereaa aThereas this stuffaa aJumpina and sum otheraa aBut itas a list you gotaa aEnough!a said a third voice.

Apple looked for the source of the voice. A bright green sprite stood on a Beanstalk leaf perfectly camouflaged. Her hair, wings, and stylish motorcycle boots were all the same color of green.

aWell, h.e.l.lo!a Apple began.

aIall stop you right there.a The sprite hovered directly in front of Appleas face. Her eyes were glowing green. aDonat try any flattertalk. Just go away.a aAh, camon, Amy,a one of the ogres grumbled. aWhy you gotta be so mean?a aYou!a the sprite shouted, darting straight to the ogre. aShut it!a The ogre bowed his head.

Apple took a breath. ah.e.l.lo, Amy, is it? My name is Apple White. Would you be so kind as to tell me why the Beanstalk is closed?a aSporting event up there.a Amy hefted the tiny MirrorPad in her hand. aAnd youare not on the list. There are rules, you know.a Apple groaned. She respected rules. Rules existed to keep everything going in the right order, on track, safely and securely, with as little uncertainty as possible. But here rules were stopping her from trying to get everything back on track.

Appleas mind raced. Shead read a book two years ago during Kingas Break, The Dust Trade During the Age of Djinn, detailing the historical economics of trade between magical creatures. Briar had made fun. aA book about dust? That has got to be the driest tale ever!a There had been a chapter on how the court of the sprite regent only traded in ideas, thoughts, or feelings, which made doing business with them awkward and confusing. Instead of a load of potatoes, they would trade something like athe satisfaction of a full wagon,a or instead of a diamond they would trade aa brideas beauty.a Well, it was worth a shot.

aIt is a pleasure to exchange thoughts with you today, Amy,a Apple said in what she hoped was the formal sprite manner.

The spriteas little eyebrows raised in surprise. Her lips cracked a tiny smile, revealing green teeth. aAnd with you, Apple,a she said.

Apple clasped her hands together. She was on the right track.

aI am thinking todayaa Apple said, gazing up at the clouds that swallowed the top of the Beanstalk. She needed to express her need to get up the Beanstalk and into the giantsa castle, but in the sprite manner. aa about transit, and pa.s.sage, and entry.a Amy smiled and flitted back to the leaf she had been sitting on when Apple arrived.

aAh,a said Amy. aMy thoughts bend toward duty, gates, andaa Her eyes flicked to her ogre companions aa frustration.a aPerhaps we could trade?a said Apple.

aWhat do you offer?a she said.

aI would take your frustration in exchange for pa.s.sage,a Apple said.

The sprite sighed and turned away. Whoops. Apple messed up there somewhere. What she wanted was to somehow make this spriteas life easier in exchange for the chance to go up the Beanstalk.

aBut I fear it would be a poor exchange,a Apple said, trying to recover.

The sprite nodded.

aI am feeling free, Amy,a Apple said. aRight now, I am feeling like I could take a break. Alone, away from large distractions, maybe to have a cupcake. I want to trade my freedom to you, Amy. You mentioned duty before. Your duty. Iall take that in trade. You can relax, and I think duty suits me.a The sprite brightened. She flitted up to Appleas cheek and patted it. aDeal. Let us also trade grat.i.tude.a Apple laughed in relief and happiness. aAgreed,a she said, and watched Amy fly off toward town. Probably to the cupcake shop. Hopefully she and the pastry vendors could work something out, because Apple was pretty sure they wouldnat take something like adutya or afrustrationa as payment.

With the sprite gone, a quick, friendly conversation with the ogres delegated the door-guarding portion of her newly gained duty to them, and she proceeded to the Beanstalk base. Ogres, Apple found, were often reasonable when treated kindly. A climbing rope was wrapped around it, and Apple clicked a hook onto the first link and began the long, arm-aching, stomach-trembling, dizzying climb.

aI. Donat. Like. Big. Weeds,a Apple breathed, wiping her hands, sticky with bean sap, on her skirt.

At last she breached the cloud cover and climbed up into noise. Ma.s.ses of people and creatures sat in towering bleachers, blocking her pa.s.sage to Giant Castle. And no giants in sight.

A huge banner hung over the cloud field: Apple looked around, desperate to find some way around the crowd and to the castle.

A witch in black spandex and a pointy black hat was floating on a mop about ten feet above the crowd. She was standing straight up, holding the mop vertically, with one boot on the floppy business end of the mop, one hand holding the pole part. A ma.s.sive mirror broadcast her image to the crowd.

The witch shouted into a megaphone. aNext event: Fairy Balllla Balllla Ballll!a The crowd cheered, and four teams of two people ran onto the cloud field, each in matching bright outfits.

Apple heard a voice she recognized.

aWhat do you mean, he doesnat meet the height requirement?a Briar yelled. She was wearing a bright pink minijumpsuit and sporty wedge sneakers, her dark brown hair swept up in a ponytail. As always, crowngla.s.ses were perched on her heada”a sleek, aerodynamic pair today.

aRules,a said a plump, bearded man with a bird on his shoulder.

Apple moved closer and nearly tripped on Nate Nutcracker.

aWhoa,a she said, stumbling. aSorry, Nate! I didnat see you there.a aStory of my life,a Nate said, smiling to show he didnat mind, though his forehead was worried. He was also wearing a bright pink minijumpsuit.

aWaita you were going to compete with Briar, and they wonat let you becausea”a aStature,a said Nate, his tiny hands shaking.

aThatas not fair,a Apple said, her fists going to her hips. aAnd if thereas anything I donat like, itas unfairness.a aNo, itas totally okay,a Nate said. His nutcracker jaw was chattering. aIam actually rea rea relieved.a Still, Apple marched up to Briar, ready to give the referee a piece of her mind.

Briar stopped her yelled protests midsentence. aThere!a she said, pointing at Apple. aThereas my new partner!a aWaita what?a said Apple.

Briar grabbed Appleas hand, tugging her onto the field. aI had no idea you wanted to start doing hextreme sports, Apple!a Apple skipped erratically behind Briar, trying to keep up without tripping. aI, um, I donat. Actually, I just came up hunting for a giantas hair.a aReally? Gross.a aYeah,a Apple agreed.

aStand here,a Briar said, pointing to a small circle combed into the cloud field. aFairy Ball is a cool event. Youall be okay. Hey, Iam throwing a going-away party for Maddie tonight in my dorm. You must be there, of course. I know we all want to cry our eyeb.a.l.l.s out about it, but crying makes for lousy partying, so tonight we dance and sing and just spellebrate the wildest, maddest girl in all of Ever After.a aRelease the b.a.l.l.s!a shouted the announcer-witch.

Apple looked around. She had been hoping that Fairy Ball was some kind of ballroom dance-off, but there was no music, and everyone seemed to be lookinga up.

Apple looked up just in time to see a giant, silver, spherical blob plop heavily onto her and Briar. She felt slimy for a second, and then, pop!, she was inside the sphere, looking out onto the world through a s.h.i.+mmering haze.

aWaitaa said Apple. aIam here fora”a aA giantas hair, I know,a said Briar. aDonat worry, I can help.a aButa”a aGo!a the announcer yelled.

aRun!a Briar screamed.

aAah!a said Apple.

But she ran.

As Briar and Apple ran, the ball began to roll. It surrounded them like a rubbery coc.o.o.n, powered by the motion of their tread. Apple watched through the transparent curves as the other b.a.l.l.s pa.s.sed them.

aIsa ita a race?a Apple asked, panting.

aYeah!a shouted Briar.

The ball was surprisingly bouncy beneath her feet, like running on a trampoline. She laughed. aWhy is ita called a Fairy Ball?a Briar pointed to either side of them. aBecause of the wings!a Tiny gossamer wings were attached to the outside of the ball. Only they werenat spinning with the ball, just flapping once every time their ball seemed to make a complete rotation. Apple imagined that if the ball were spinning fast enough, it might actually fly.

aFaster!a Briar shouted.

Apple tried to pick up the pace, but she kept slipping on the unfamiliar surface. Three Fairy b.a.l.l.s cruised along in front of them. She hoped that Briar wouldnat feel bad about losing.

Suddenly the Fairy Ball in first place disappeared. It just dropped out of view.

aBriar?a she asked.