Western Walkabout: The Witch, The Wood Elf And The Dragon – 7
“Forgiveness, lady,” the orc sergeant said. “We are humble orcs in the service of the Lady of the Wood. We are missing a precious member of her household and all the orcs are out taking part in the search.”
“That precious member, wouldn’t happen to be a young, beautiful, female dragon, would it?”
Richard Harris continues his love story for children over 40.
PICKING MULBERRIES
Skye and Woodward were picking early mulberries in the Bannister Creek reserve from a tree which grew over the fence from a private house.
Skye likes the mulberries for breakfast. Woodward pops the ripe ones in his mouth there and then because he believes they preserve his eye-sight. He has excellent eye-sight anyway, it’s in his family. Wood elves are like that.
The dragon, in her guise as Sapphire, was looking in the creek and reading a notice by the Water Corporation warning people not to eat the watercress because of industrial contamination in the creek from factories upstream in Canning Vale.
Skye felt a ringing slap on the side of her head and was knocked to the ground. A gruff voice, standing over her, said “Caught yer stealing fruit. Who do you think you are?”
Skye looked up and saw an orc sergeant. Two grunts held Woodward pinned by the arms against the fence. His mouth was red and bloody – but it was only from the mulberry juice.
A cold voice from the banks of the creek called out,” Get your filthy orc hands off that witch, and release that wood elf immediately.”
It was Sapphire, radiating menace. Her face was flushed and her feet spread, hands at her side.
The orc sergeant rushed at her, meaning to deliver another slap – his favorite attack – across her face.
Sapphire grabbed his outstretched hand, fell back, kicked him in the groin and threw him through the wild blackberries into the creek with a loud splash.
She turned to the grunts holding Woodward, “Get him out of there immediately, Shit-for-brains,” she told them.
The orc sergeant had risen from the water. There was watercress round his neck, in his belt, and caught in his boots.
The grunts left Woodward and ran to help their sergeant. Sapphire yelled at them,”Haven’t you read the Water Corporation’s warning, you idiots? Get that watercress off him. It’s dangerous. He is not to eat it.”
The grunts patted the sergeant down and presented him before Sapphire. He squinted at her, and blew out a bit of watercress caught in his mouth.
“You owe me your life,” Sapphire told him. “You can’t believe the favor I’ve just done you.”
She added,” Who are you and what’re you doing here?”
“Forgiveness, lady,” the orc sergeant said. “We are humble orcs in the service of the Lady of the Wood. We are missing a precious member of her household and all the orcs are out taking part in the search.”
“That precious member, wouldn’t happen to be a young, beautiful, female dragon, would it?”
The orcs were startled. They looked at each other. “Is there something we should know, miss?”
“Tell your Lady that the dragon has gone, never to return, and that she would be very wise to make friends with her sister, the fairy witch Skye, who stands here before you.”
“We meant no trouble, lady,” the orc sergeant told Skye. “We wouldn’t have hurt you.”
Skye, whose ear was still ringing from his slap, was not convinced.
“Of course, you’d never hurt her,” said Sapphire. “I would never tolerate that. If you lay a finger on her again, I’ll take the three-fold orc vengeance on you.”
The orcs gasped. Sapphire was threatening to kill them, their parents and their hatchlings, obliterating their line over three generations.
“There’s been some misunderstanding here,” said the orc sergeant. “I apologise for everything.” At his signal, all the orcs threw themselves prostrate on the ground before Skye.
“Get up, get up,” said the little witch. “I hate flamboyant, dramatic gestures. Why can’t you do something useful?”
“Like what?” said the orc sergeant, getting to his feet.
“Tell me something useful and orcish about mulberries.”
The orcs looked at each other. The younger grunt stepped forward and said “My grandma used to clip the mulberry leaves and make a tea with them. This was excellent for headaches.”
“Well done,” said Skye. “We all need to keep an open mind in this neck of the woods. I’m sure we can share the planet with each other.”
She gave each of the orcs a small bag of herbs and cast a sharpening spell on their weapons, that they would never be dull. To this day, along that creek, a lot of young orcs speak very highly of Skye.
