She pursed her lips. “I still think you’re delusional. I vote we go see the wizard.”
Kato wiggled in between us. “We should do both. If the book is there, we will need someone who can read the spells.”
“So Maker hut first, then Wizard of Oz,” I said with finality.
“Oz?” Kato and Rexi asked in unison.
I waved them off. “Griz and Crow were talking about keeping me away from Oz, so I figured that’s the name of the realm where the wizard lives.”
After gathering a few provisions, Bob escorted the three of us to the secret exit, also known as the way out for people without wings. He couldn’t come with us; he was in charge of everything until Kato came back—preferably on two legs again. After a quick private conference between the two of them—no, I didn’t eavesdrop—Bob came over and lowered his muzzle to my height.
“My lady, please continue to look after Lord Kato in my stead. He tries to hide it, but being the Beast King is not an easy task, and I worry his heart will harden to obsidian because of it. But already, I can see he has grown from his time with you.”
“He’s grown because he eats nonstop—”
Bob cut me off and swiped a giant paw across the floor, literally sweeping me off my feet and into a crushing embrace. “May your embers burn ever brightly and warm the hearth until your return.”
A sizzling sound came from the top of my head, and a big, wet drop landed on my shoulder. I couldn’t help but think that while it was really nice to be cared about, it would really suck if he cried me to death. But my hair was still flaming when he gingerly set me back on my feet and gave me a watery smile before flying back to keep his own hearth safe.
“Are you coming, Dot?” Kato shouted when he and Rexi reached the end of the obsidian tunnel.
I jogged the distance and joined them outside in the lush rain forest. “Wow, what is this place? It’s amazing.” For the first time in days, I felt at peace. Maybe because I was surrounded by so much green and it reminded me of home, but even our forests were nothing compared to this jungle.
“These plants are huge!” Rexi went to examine a red hibiscus that Bob would have had to stand on tiptoe to sniff.
I was not a small girl—I’ve always been tall for my age—but this place made me feel like a Munchkin.
Kato’s forehead creased, and the lines around his muzzle drew in. “It’s not supposed to be like this. Last time I was here, it was just an ordinary forest. It’s like somebody went around and sprinkled Miracle Grow Dust on everything.”
A strong gust of wind threatened to blow my skirt into a compromising position. Peering up at the shadow that crossed the sky, I discovered the source of the wind. A creature twice the size of Kato streaked across the first sun, long and wormy with all-encompassing butterfly wings. I dubbed it a butterpillar given the combo of the wings and eight-dozen hands and feet. It settled down in an open spot not too far from us and started smoking a hookah, blowing gray O’s with the puffs.
“Is that normal?” I whispered, still staring in awe.
“No,” Kato answered in equal awe. “I can’t say I’ve ever seen one of those before.”
As we tiptoed away, the butterpillar eyed us with curiosity, but he made no move to either eat or halt us—just slightly tilted his head in acknowledgment.
This time we actually had a map, so we headed northeast, back to Sherwood Forest.
“All this fresh air and walking can’t be good for me,” I said well into the afternoon, after continuous hours of trudging. The distance went by much faster by Air Chimera. Kato had insisted we go on foot, since a huge flying beast would be an easy target for the storm-cloud riding Griz.
For the first time, I really wished Verte had gifted me slippers rather than heels. “I think my blisters have blisters,” I complained.
“I know!” Rexi said, brightening. “We’ve got a beast of burden right here we can ride.”
The temperature around us dropped at least ten degrees, enough that my breath became visible.
“Guess that was a no on the ‘loyal steed’ thing.”
“Never,” he growled. “And even suggesting that I’m a horse or mule makes you an—”
Rexi drowned him out with the clinking sound of rummaging through her knapsack. She pulled out a small piece of chrome, a crinkly gold leaf, a seashell, a crumpled parchment sheet, some hot-pink panty hose, then finally, apparently, found what she was looking for—a teacup that looked exactly like the ones at Crow’s.
“Why do you have that?” I asked as she dipped the cup into the stream to fetch a glass of water. Just seeing that tacky porcelain rose again gave me the shivers.
She shrugged and sipped without looking my way. “I like to keep the realm clean by picking up and recycling things that people carelessly leave behind. You know, one person’s trash is my souvenir.”