A/N-Thanks so much for the reviews; you give me confidence!

4. In Which Shiara and Daystar Are Mad at Each Other

and We Meet Someone Small

The first leg of our journey passed uneventfully. We stopped in a sunny clearing for lunch—those bottomless sacks produce some pretty decent food—during which Shiara continued to ignore Daystar. Instead, she paid a surprising amount of attention to Olemer, of all people. I guessed she was trying to make Daystar feel bad, and she seemed to be succeeding. He kept trying to start speaking to her (probably an apology) but she would cut him off with comments to the other prince.

Olemer looked quite pleased with the attention and didn't hesitate to enumerate his many daring deeds and describe the monsters he'd killed. I wondered why he couldn't just set off on his own and brave the millions of dangers to find the Royal Stick if he could kill three nightshades with one hand behind his back and so on...

It's a wonder Shiara could tolerate all that nonsense; she must have been really mad at Daystar. I still didn't understand what made this argument last so much longer than the others they'd had, when she would accept his apology within five minutes.

"So what is it we're looking for again? The royal scepter?"

"No, the Royal Stick."

I glanced at Shiara through slitted eyes just quickly enough to see her barely suppress a laugh. But Olemer was completely oblivious, caught up in his tale.

"You see, it was an heirloom of the royal family, passed down from generation to generation and used to see if the supposed heir to the throne really belonged there. No one these days is exactly sure how it worked, but we know that about a century ago, during the war against the evil King Batro, it was hidden to keep it from his clutches..."

Shiara's attention was wandering. Olemer kept going on. And on. And on...

"And then we must make our way through the Pass of Doom guarded by the—"

"I thought you said you didn't know where to search," I pointed out.

"Well, you see..."

"Yes?" I prompted.

"The thing is, I know where we should go, I just don't know how to get to the where. You know?"

"Actually I don't."

"The legends say the hero Janar traveled through the Caves of Terror, across the Lake of Catastrophe, and through the Pass of Doom, but I don't know where any of those places are."

"Wow, those sound like a lot of dangerous places. Will there be fish?"

"Fiddlesticks?!" I exclaimed. Everyone looked at me. I wondered why I hadn't smelled him long ago, but the Forest can do strange things like that.

"I heard Scorn talking about all the fun she had on her adventure, so I wanted to come along."

"Fun indeed," I muttered. Only Fiddlesticks could be so confused.

"Now that you've joined us you might as well stay," Morwen told him.

"Thank you," he purred, then added questioningly, "Will there be fish?"

"I'm not sure, but if we find any I'll let you know."

Olemer wore a peeved expression at being interrupted. "As I was saying, the Pass of Doom is guarded by the Deadly Demon…"

"These Northerners are certainly very imaginative," Shiara whispered sarcastically out of the side of her mouth to the nearest person, who happened to be Daystar. He was about to reply when the fire witch realized who she had spoken to and abruptly turned her back, pretending she hadn't said a word.

"Ooooohhh, you are in trouble!"

Daystar jumped about five feet, which is quite a big jump for a human, and spun around to find the source of the voice emanating from just behind his left ear.

A lavender fairy hovered there, batting her long lavender eyelashes and fluttering her sparkly lavender wings. Her silky lavender hair flowed down her back and she wore a gauzy little gown--lavender--that fit her three-inch lavender body perfectly. I wondered if she tasted as good as the butterflies she so greatly resembled. Except for the wings; wings are always too papery.

Fiddlesticks seemed to have the same thought; he stared at the fairy appraisingly and licked his mouth (cats don't exactly have lips).

The fairy didn't notice either of us, being too preoccupied with Daystar to see anyone else.

"You must be on a very dangerous journey!"

"Absolutely!" Olemer hastened to agree with the fairy, who remained totally oblivious to him.

"But I'm sure you will be able to handle anything!" she said, again addressing Daystar.

That time Olemer just nodded, obviously quite smitten with the little thing.

I couldn't quite figure out Daystar's reaction to all this; his expression read something between confusion and disgust. But when the fairy casually asked, "Do you suppose I could join you?" instead of the firm refusal I expected, Daystar first glanced at Shiara, who was obstinately ignoring the proceedings, though sparks erupted from the ends of her hair. Then he hardened his expression and said, "You're quite welcome to come."

I glanced around and caught Kazul's and Morwen's worried looks and the two big flaming tears that ran down Shiara's cheeks.