The Hunt of the Grimalkin (Erresuma Book 1) by Dani Swanson (read aloud books txt) 📕

our houses by the lake. We had lived by that lake for hundreds of years. The fairies put a sleeping spell on us and moved us to the middle of the forest where there are no lakes or brooks. They just moved us like we didn’t matter.”

The girls looked on to Moonbeam with a feeling of sorrow in their hearts.

“You see?” Robin questioned Thea in a whisper. “There are two sides to every story.” Robin gave Thea a look with a raised eyebrow. The group continued on in silence into the dense forest.

They walked for miles into the center of the darkest part of the woods where the sun barely shone through the trees and the singing birds were far away. The grass was worn away, and the ground was covered with dust and moss. Doug trotted happily to a clearing in the trees and then stopped with a grunt, and sat down on a pile of moss.

“We’re here! I found her!” Moonbeam yelled.

There was a flurry of ravens flying down from the trees with little elves on their backs. There were hundreds of them circling around the girls and the little cat. All of the massive trees had lights going up them, that looked like apartment skyscrapers. The elves started to tug on Fig’s ears and tail. With a mighty hiss he leaped up onto Thea’s shoulder; awkwardly trying to sit there as if he was a kitten and could balance there.

“Let him be!” Thea hissed down to the sea of green.

“Make room! We must see the king!” Moonbeam walked up to the biggest tree and pounded on the door where a female elf in a flowing dress of sky blue and golden hair answered the banging.

“You’re back!” she exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around Moonbeam.

“Starshine, this is Thea and Robin. They are the witches I told you about.” He exclaimed in a proud manner.

“Healer,” Thea stated coldly.

“Well get them into the house so we can save him. He’s fading fast!” Her grey eyes stared up at Thea with curiosity.

“I’m afraid I have to stab you one more time, Thea,” Moonbeam said as he plunged an arrow into Thea’s calf.

“Ow! You little…” Thea started to yell at the elf but she quickly started to shrink smaller with each word that escaped her lips.

Soon, she was the same size as the little elves. She had fallen amongst her clothes; now standing there naked. The same had happened to Robin by a small arrow in her foot. They attempted to cover themselves in the folds of their clothes. Fig had his hair standing on end and was hissing at all the elves; batting at them with his paw, sending them flying.

“What are you doing?!” Thea and Robin were screaming at the elves. Starshine had run out of the house with dresses in hand.

“I hope these fit,” she said sweetly as she reached out to offer the dresses to the naked girls. Thea shot an unsure glance at Robin.

“I told you I wanted to go to the market, this was your bright idea, mate.” Robin said snidely as she snatched the dress out of Starshine’s hand. The two dressed as quickly as they could. Thea went up to Moonbeam and grabbed him by the shirt collar.

“What did you do to me?” she yelled in his face.

“I have to get you into the house. You will go back to normal size soon, I promise.” Thea pushed him down to the ground and walked over to the house. “I shouldn’t even help you now! You could have just brought him to me, you idiot!” she yelled back to the elf as he was once again, dusting the knees of his pants, and sulking with a bruised ego.

The girls walked into the small door of the tree to the amazing palace of the elves. The floors glittered with gold tiling, and shining crystals lite the rooms. There were paintings of elf kings on the walls, and lavish furniture.

“This way, please,” Starshine gestured to the girls as she led them to the golden elevator lift that was being powered by a couple of field mice running on a track. It brought them to the top floor of the tree where there was the master suite. The Elf King, lying in his bed, was much older than the elves she had seen outside. He had white hair with a matching beard that was braided down his chest.  His crescent glasses set on the tip of his pointed nose, and a large bejeweled crown of gold upon his brow. He had a light sigh with each breath while he slept. Thea walked over to the Elf King and laid her hands on him as she had done with all the others that she had healed. Nothing was happening. No electricity through her fingertips. There was no orb surrounding them, and there weren’t sparks. Just the old man softly sleeping.

“I’m sorry,” Thea blushed. “It’s not working.” She turned to look at Moonbeam and softly shrugged her shoulders.

“You’re not trying hard enough!” Moonbeam shrieked at her.

“You have to help him!” Starshine cried. Thea was wracking her brain on what she was doing wrong.

Robin leaned against the wall and folded her arms in front of her chest. “He’s not injured, or sick, he’s just old. You can’t heal someone being old.” Thea looked solemnly at Robin and lightly nodded her head in agreeance.

“I’m sorry,” is all Thea could say.

They made their way out of the tree as they started to grow back to their normal size. They stood in the opening of their clothes and waited for their bodies to fill in the voids of the fabric.  They slowly filled out all of their clothes and grew back to the size that they originally were. The girls sat in the grass with their