Only thing I own in this story is Marie the Wandolier.
Ch. 5: ElmiraWe left King Roland's castle, discussing the groups of people we'd seen…but once again, we were stopped by the princess. "You tricked me Buddy! You know I hate spiders, now, you're gonna pay!" she snarled at Buddy, who had turned a ghostly white. The princess started inching towards him, fists raised, but Lyndsay leaped out in front of him, spreading her arms out to shield him. "Back off, Butter. If anyone's gonna pound him for something he did, it's gonna be me!" *gasp*
Butter ran right into Lyndsay, and the two started to fight. Buddy put his hands over his eyes, too scared to watch. On the other hand, Ginny and I couldn't take our eyes off of them. But the fight was over faster than it had started. Lyndsay had pushed Butter down to the ground, scraping her knee in the fall. Then, the water works started. "Waah! Look at my knee! I'll never be able to use it again! *Sniffle*", she whined while limping back to the castle. (Drama queens, oy!)
All of a sudden, Buddy jumped into Lyndsay's arms (aww!). "Thanks, Lyndsay! I owe you big time!" he squeaked. She put him down, and they both blushed. "I'd hope you'd do the same for me too, Buddy." She nudged him. After that, we'd reached Elmira's farmhouse. Ginny knocked on the door, but no answer. "Wait, she may be out back. It's lunchtime for her pigs, Porkz and Pigglez." (LOL) Sure enough, we walked to the back and there she was, throwing the "food" into the pigs' trough. Her dirt-brown hair was tied in a very messy bun, and her apron was covered in mud. She turned around to refill her bucket, and she spotted us. The dirt brown eyes behind the glasses just glared at me.
"WHY ARE YOU JUST STANDING THERE?!? PICK UP A BUCKET AND FEED THEM! I'm going inside to freshen up." She shrieked, and went inside. "Charming, isn't she?" I laughed. "I HEARD THAT!" we heard from inside. "We might as well do it…she's not coming back out now that she's inside." "We'll do it, Marie. Just sit down and relax." Lyndsay told me, relieving me of my "duty". Buddy, Lyndsay, and Ginny each filled the trough until the "food" was seeping out of it. I, however, went inside to see if Elmira made all the changes she told me she would do if I ever left…and she did. My "room" was converted into a small study and my little knick-knacks were gone. Guess she didn't hesitate to forget me.
"WHY AREN'T YOU OUTSIDE?!?" Elmira shrieked when she saw me inside. "Lyndsay said they would do it. I'm sure they're done by now. I came inside to see the old house again. It's been a while since I've been here." I explained. After I explained it, Ginny came through the door. "We're gonna go down ta th' river ta wash off, and then we're gonna go get Roxie." "Alright, go ahead." I felt bad for them, being covered in dirt while I was still clean.
"Which island is she from?" Elmira inquired. "Cowboy Junction. Her friend, Roxie, is kinda the reason why we came back." "Hmm?" "Roxie's cows have been stolen. We're not sure why, but we've found two clues." I said, showing her the doll and hair ribbon. "We'd like to know if you can tell us what you know about this doll. I know you have books on this kind of thing." "Yes I do. Hand me the doll." I gave her the doll, and she immediately began examining it. It had a pink dress with a heart on it, and its orange hair was tied into pigtails with blue rubber bands. Its eyes were shiny, black marbles and its cheeks were a faint pink color. "This doll, it's a very old one. Isn't in existence anymore. Whoever owns this doll must've gotten it as a gift, as it's still in mint condition." She told me, showing me all its features. "Wait! It still has a tag! Under its dress!" I noticed. Elmira went straight for where I saw the tag: DressCo. "DressCo? Isn't that the company that's going bankrupt? Why would someone be carrying that doll around?" I asked. "I'm not quite sure, but it might be because this doll is now considered an antique doll. It could be worth millions today." She explained to me again.
"Thanks, Elmira. You've helped us out so much!" I said, hugging her. "You're quite welcome. Now leave." She said. I left the farmhouse to see where my gang was. Actually, they were coming up the hill to get me. "Roxie! You're cured!" I said. "Yes, Barney gave me some green drink, and it worked immediately." She told me. "So what did Elmira tell you about the doll?" Lyndsay asked. I told them all about what Elmira told me on the way back to the ship. "So that doll's a collectible now?" "Yes, it could be worth millions."
"Well, we'd better start heading back before it gets dark," Ginny pointed out, "We don't wanna get lost, ya know." We all headed back onto the ship, and Barney came outside to see his boat in action once again. The last thing I saw was him, waving at us. Then, I could see nothing but the choppy, blue waves of the ocean.