At the end of the path, Gobo and Lou found two buildings, and a fountain. The minute they got close to them, however, the plants around them began growing, and roots covered the doors. The fountain began spraying water from four different sides, and hard. Gobo stepped forward, and was blasted with the fountain, which pushed him away.
"There's no way we can get past that!" he shouted, sputtering.
"Not without a little maintenance," Lou said, looking at a set of doors on the ground in front of the fountain. She bent down and tried to open them, but they were stuck.
"You need some leverage," Gobo said. "And I know just the thing to help you!"
Gobo saw a crowbar in front of the fountain, where the water wasn't shooting out, and grabbed it. He stuck the end of it into the tiny gap in the door, and pried them open. There were several sets of faucets inside. He began turning them, and slowly, the water stopping shooting out of the sides of the fountain, and began flowing from the top of it. Not only that, the roots in front of the doors slunk back into the ground, and one of the doors opened. Lou went to investigate, while Gobo went to the other door.
"Locked," he said, as he tried to open it. He looked around, and saw a key. He picked it up, stuck it in the lock, and opened the door.
"Hello?" he called out, as he walked inside. "Anybody home?"
There was no answer. Gobo looked at the staircase that lead upstairs, but it was too dark up there to see. He began to get a little nervous being in this house by himself, so he ran back outside, and ran into the other building to find Lou. Inside the other building, there was some kind of tank, and a large water wheel. Nothing was moving.
"What's going on?" Gobo asked.
"The tank closed as soon as I walked in here," Lou said, shrugging. "I think that rope over there will open it, but neither of us can stand here all day holding it open."
"You're right," Gobo said. Then he found a plate laying on the ground. "Maybe if we tie this plate to the rope, it'll be heavy enough to hold it open."
Gobo and Lou picked up the plate and tied it to the rope. Unfortunately, the cover of the tank didn't open.
"We're going to have to find something heavier," Gobo said. "We could put it on this plate."
"Like a rock?" Lou suggested.
"Yeah. Let's go out and see if we can find one."
The two Fraggles ran outside, and began looking around. Gobo found a large rock, and picked it up. Lou took a look outside of the building, and found a switch on the wall.
"I wonder what this does?" she asked. She pulled it, but nothing happened. She also noticed a piece of string that was connected from the water mill to the house next to it.
"I wonder what that thing's for?" she asked.
"Figure it out later," Gobo said. "Help me with this rock, Lou, it's heavy!"
"Oh yeah, sorry," Lou said, and she helped Gobo lug the rock into the water mill. The two Fraggles placed the rock on the plate, and the tank cover opened, spilling water into the wheel, causing it to turn. Then the two Fraggles went back outside.
"Now what?" Gobo asked.
"Call it a hunch," Lou said, walking over to the switch. She pulled it down, and sparks began flying from the string between the two buildings.
"What's that?" she asked. "It kind of looks like the Ditzies."
"Maybe that's the light source for the house," Gobo said. "It was awfully dark in there. Let's go see!"
Gobo and Lou walked into the house, and Gobo noticed nothing had changed. It was still pitch black upstairs. Lou walked over to the other side of the room, and found a door. She tried to open it, but it was locked. Gobo found a key on the floor, picked it up, and tried to unlock the door, but it wouldn't fit.
"Now what?" he asked.
"I don't know," Lou said, looking around the room. She saw a picture on the wall of two Silly Creatures, but neither she, nor Gobo, recognized them.
"What's this thing?" Gobo asked, looking at something black sticking out from behind the frame. He pulled it out, and found a round, black disc.
"What's that?" Lou asked.
"I've seen the Silly Creature with one of these things before," Gobo said. "It's called a record. They put it on a weird machine called a record player and music comes out of them. Personally, I don't think it'll ever catch on."
"I'll say it won't," Lou said. Then she spied something on the opposite wall. "Hey, Gobo, look at this! It's some kind of panel."
Gobo looked, and noticed there were three bulbs on the panel. One of them was glowing. He turned one of the circles on the panel until a line connected with the glowing bulb, and lit up.
"Maybe if we connect the two bulbs, something will happen," he said.
"Worth a shot," Lou said. "Go for it!"
Gobo immediately got to work connecting the lines across the panel to the bulb that had a drawing of a staircase with an arrow pointing up. Once the lines were connected, Lou saw some light coming from upstairs.
"You did it, Gobo!" she shouted. "Come on, let's see what's upstairs!"
Gobo nodded, and followed the purple Fraggle up the stairs. There wasn't much in this room, except for a lot of books, some bottles of strange liquid, a fireplace, and a strange box with a weird cone on it.
"What's that thing?" Lou asked.
"That's a record player," Gobo said.
"Actually, it's a gramophone," Marjory's voice said. "And it's magical."
"Oh, hi, Madam Heap, I was wondering where you went," Gobo said.
"A magical gramophone?" Lou asked. "How does it work?"
Lou touched the gramophone, but the minute she did, a strange noise was heard, and pieces of the gramophone, as well as the hexagon pieces on the table it sat on, suddenly disappeared.
"I knew that was going to happen," Marjory groaned. "You two are going to have to put it back together, and replace the hexagons to see it's powers."
"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me," Gobo said, with a sigh.
The two Fraggles immediately got to work, trying to find the pieces of the gramophone, as well as the wooden hexagons. There were several locked boxes on the shelves, and keys scattered around. Gobo and Lou unlocked all the boxes, but they were only able to find one hexagon in any of them.
"I could get to hate Silly Creatures," Lou grumbled.
"I'm sure not all of them are bad," Gobo said, picking up a piece of the gramophone and putting it in place. "The one that lives in the room I go into doesn't seem that bad. I think it's these puzzles that are making you a little cranky."
"I think you're right. I'm just worried about Wembley."
"Yeah, so am I. I'm gonna go downstairs to look for the hexagons and the parts of this gramophone. You look around up here."
Lou nodded, and searched the rest of the room with the proverbial fine tooth comb, while Gobo did the same downstairs. Then, he went outside, and into the watermill, and found a couple of pieces there. Once he collected all the pieces he found, he returned upstairs, and found Lou, sticking the hexagons she found in place.
"I found the rest of the pieces," he said.
"Good," Lou said. "All I found were the hexagons, plus two more record things."
"Let's put it back together and see what happens."
Immediately, Gobo and Lou got to work putting the gramophone back together. The minute they were finished, pictures appeared on the hexagons.
"Well done, Fraggles!" Marjory shouted. "Now play the records and find out what the gramophone is magically guarding!"
"Yeah, but what are these pictures?" Gobo asked. "I mean, I recognize some of them, like fire, water, rain, the frog, and the tree creature, but what are the others?"
"This one is a cow," Marjory said, and the hexagon lit up, and a moo was heard. "That's what it sounds like. And this one is a cat, this one is a horse, and this one is lightning."
As Marjory described each picture, the corresponding hexagon lit up, and the two Fraggles heard the sound associated with it.
"Okay," Gobo said, taking one of the records and putting it on the gramophone.
"You know how that thing works?" Lou asked.
"I've seen the Silly Creature do it," Gobo said. "How hard can it be? You just put the needle thing on the record and wait."
Gobo took the gramophone needle, and placed it on the record. He heard a crackling fire, ocean waves, and a whinnying horse. Then the pictures disappeared from the hexagons.
"Uh oh," Gobo said. "I guess we have to match the sounds with the pictures. Let me see . . . . the fire hexagon was here . . . ."
"And the water was here," Lou said, touching one of the hexagons.
"And the horse was here," Gobo said, touching the hexagon. With each hexagon the two Fraggles touched, a small light on a drawer lit up.
Gobo put on the next record, and heard a frog, thunder and lightning, and rain. He and Lou immediately pressed the corresponding hexagons and the lights lit up. On the third record, they heard a cat meowing, a chirping bird, and a mooing cow. Once again, they pressed the hexagons, and the lights in the drawer lit up, and it opened, revealing a key.
"I'll bet this is the key to the room downstairs!" Gobo shouted. "Come on, let's go see!"
Gobo grabbed the key, and he and Lou raced down the stairs. Gobo stuck it into the lock, and opened the door, but it was too dark to see anything down there.
"I think I've found the switch," Lou said, flicking a switch, but nothing happened. "Darn it, it's not working. Maybe we have to go back to the panel and connect the lines again."
"You go do that," Gobo said. "I'll stay here."
"Okay."
Lou went back upstairs to the panel, and connected the lines until they were connected to the bulb with a picture of a staircase with an arrow pointing down this time. Then she went back through the door, and flipped the switch again. The lights came on immediately, revealing what looked like some kind of laboratory. There was a strange plant sitting on the counter.
"Great," Gobo sighed. "Nobody's here."
"I beg to differ!" a voice shouted. Gobo and Lou yelped, and jumped.
"Who said that?" Lou asked.
"I did," the voice said. "Over here on the counter."
Gobo and Lou looked, and found that the voice was coming from the plant.
"Hello," the plant said. "I'm Merrow."
"You're Merrow?" Gobo asked. "The fairy the Trash Heap told us about? But you're a plant!"
"Who are you?" Merrow asked, ignoring Gobo's remark.
"Two very confused Fraggles," Gobo said. "The Trash Heap said you'd help us find our friend, and . . . ."
"Hmph," the plant grumbled. "I've no time for mortals. Good luck with your search."
"But . . . . but . . . ." Gobo stammered.
"Let me handle this, Gobo," Lou said. "Excuse me, Mr. Merrow?"
"Yes?" Merrow asked.
"I'm Princess Louise of Fraggledonia, and this is my friend, Gobo," Lou said. "Our oracle, the Trash Heap, sent us to find you."
"The princess!" Merrow shouted, and bowed. "Of course! I'm very honored, your highness. I would be happy to help you and your friend!"
"I thought you didn't like telling people you're a princess," Gobo said.
"Normally I don't," Lou said, "but we weren't getting anywhere with you talking to Merrow. Anyway, Gobo, be nice to him."
"Would you please light a fire?" Merrow asked. "It's freezing in here!"
"Sure," Gobo said. "But we don't have anything to start a fire with."
"Here's a match," Merrow said, handing Gobo a match. "There are some logs outside."
"Okay," Lou said. "We'll be back."
The two Fraggles left the lab, and went back outside to the fountain. They gathered up four logs, and went back inside. They put the logs in the fireplace. Gobo struck the match, and tossed it in, lighting a roaring fire.
"Ahhh, much better," Merrow said. "You must forgive me, princess. I haven't been myself for awhile."
"Yeah, I believe it," Gobo said. "The Trash Heap said you were stripped of your magic, but she didn't say anything about being transformed! Are you going to help us or not?"
"Yes, well . . . ." Merrow said, clearing his throat. "I find it very difficult to focus on you two in the state I'm in. And besides which, I need the two of you to help me before I can determine whether or not I can help you!"
"Please forgive Gobo," Lou said. "He's just a little anxious right now, and neither of us were expecting you to be a plant. Tell us what we can do for you."
"Very well, princess," Merrow said. "My water hasn't been changed for who only knows how long! I could do with a chlorophyl cocktail. Would you make one for me?"
"Sure," Lou said.
"Yeah, okay," Gobo said. "Just one question, though. What's a cocktail?"
"Don't worry, I'll tell you how to make it," Merrow said. "There's a bottle of Liquid of Plant Life upstairs. Go get it and pour it into the flask. That's that big glass thing on your right."
"Got it," Lou said. "I'll be right back!"
Lou ran up the stairs, while Gobo stayed behind with Merrow.
"Are you sure you're Merrow?" he asked.
"You're awfully pushy for someone who needs my help," Merrow said. "If your friend wasn't the princess of Fraggledonia, I wouldn't even help you at all!"
Before Gobo could pluck Merrow's leaves out, Lou returned to the lab with the Liquid of Plant Life, and poured it in the flask. It immediately began changing colors.
"Did I do something wrong?" Lou asked, nervously.
"Not at all, princess," Merrow said. "Find an empty bottle, and pour the liquid in it once it turns yellow."
Gobo grabbed an empty bottle from the shelf, and turned a valve on the flask once the liquid changed to yellow.
"Good," Merrow said. "Now you need to heat it. You can do this by pouring the liquid in the other flask, and heating a candle underneath it."
Lou found a candle, and lit it in the fireplace. She stuck it in a burner base, and put it underneath the other flask, while Gobo poured the liquid in it. Heating the liquid up turned it green. Gobo transferred the liquid into another empty bottle, and poured it into Merrow's glass.
"Aaahh, thank you," Merrow said. "Now then, tell me again why you need my help?"
"Our oracle told us a fairy named Lilith cast a sleeping spell over our friend, Wembley," Lou explained, "and she told us we'd find the answers in Fraggledonia, since there's a path to the Fairy Realm here. When we arrived, everyone in Fraggledonia was asleep. Then we found out Lilith cast her sleeping spell over Fraggle Rock, and all the Fraggles there are under the sleeping spell, and we think Lilith took Wembley."
"We don't know where he is, or what she's going to do to him," Gobo said. "Or even why she wants him!"
"Hmmm," Merrow said, thoughtfully. "Lilith must be holding him in the Tower of Dreams. It's not an easy path, and reaching the Tower is almost impossible for a couple of mortals. Are you sure you want to go there?"
"If that's where she's keeping Wembley, then yes!" Gobo shouted. "Wembley's my best friend, and I'm going to rescue him, even if I die trying!"
"Me too!" Lou shouted.
"Very well," Merrow said. "I'll guide you. I have business with Lilith myself."
"She gets around, doesn't she?" Gobo asked.
"It won't be an easy trip, princess," Merrow said, ignoring Gobo. "You and your friend have to follow my instructions to the letter. I can communicate with plants, but you will no longer receive messages from your trash heap oracle."
"What?" Gobo asked. "But she's helped us so much on this journey! We can't just stop listening to her!"
"Isn't there another way?" Lou asked.
"I'm sorry," Merrow said. "But you can only have one guide, and I'm the only one who can guide you."
Gobo and Lou looked at each other nervously. They weren't sure about this at all, but they didn't see any other way around it.
"Okay, Merrow," Gobo sighed. "Let's go."
Lou picked up Merrow's glass, and she and Gobo left his house. They didn't have a moment to lose.