Magic on Changeling Mountain

Colin left and Carolyn went to use the bathroom before she got ready to go up to her parents. She collected the little bit of lint from her dryer screen and added it to the small baggie she kept pinned to the wall by her dryer. She hunted around the cottage for anything else the fairies might be able to use and then pulled on her coat. She was just about to leave the cottage when the phone began to ring.

“Hello?” she answered the phone.

“Carolyn? It’s Lucinda. Are you alone?” Lucinda asked.

“Yes. Why? What’s up?” Carolyn asked, surprised that she was hearing from her again so soon.

“I just wanted to make sure you were there before I popped in. Randolph’s bells might be great for alerting you that someone is coming but they don’t let you know who. Would you mind if I popped in for a few minutes?” Lucinda asked.

“No, not at all.” Carolyn replied and suddenly the line went dead and the bells began to ring. A few seconds later, Lucinda appeared in her living room.

“Oh, were you about to go out?” Lucinda asked.

“Just up to my parents to help get the Pence’s moved over to the Wainwrights place and to help my mom clean house once they are gone. What’s up?” Carolyn asked.

“Well, I had a vision of you and Colin on your wedding day and I’ve decided that I would like to help you with your wedding dress.” Lucinda said with a twinkle in her eye.

“Oh, Wow! Do you sew?” Carolyn said in surprise.

“Oh goodness no but take off your coat and I will show you what I saw. Just promise me that if you don’t like it, you will say so.” Lucinda said.

“Ok.” Carolyn said as she took off her coat and laid it over the back of the chair she was standing next too.

“Now stand still and close your eyes.” Lucinda said and then waved her wand. Carolyn felt a slight tingling all over her body and then Lucinda said. “Ok, you can open your eyes now.”

Carolyn took a deep breath and opened her eyes, then gasped in surprise and delight. The full length mirror from her bedroom was in front of her and in its reflection she could see herself in the most beautiful wedding gown she had ever seen.

“OH! Oh, my! Lucinda, it’s gorgeous! I love it!” Carolyn said, as she tried to turn to see the back of it.

“Hang on a sec.” Lucinda said and waved her wand again. In the twinkle of her eye, Carolyn was almost completely surrounded by mirrors and she could see herself from all four angles. Her head turned from one side to the other as she looked at herself from every angle. The dress was everything she had ever dreamed of and more. “It’s made of the finest Chinese silk and Italian lace that’s ever been made. I saw a dress very similar to it in a magazine years ago. I had a vision of you earlier wearing it on your wedding day. Have you set a date yet?”

“No, nothing definite yet. Sometime in the early spring. I have never prayed for winter to hurry up and pass as I have been doing since Colin proposed. I’ve always dreamed of getting married under a willow arch covered with blue and white flowers. Colin has found us the perfect place, now we just have to wait until the weather warms up enough to melt the snow away and for the flowers to bloom.”

“Well, I hate to burst your bubble but from my experience, garden weddings are great in the summer months but in the spring, not so much. Too much rain and mud. That beautiful gown will be brown from the knees down. Is there a reason you don’t want to get married in the church?”

“No. I wouldn’t be opposed to it at all and I’m sure Colin wouldn’t be, especially if it meant we could do it sooner.” Carolyn grinned at her.

“Well, it’s up to you and Colin. Make sure you let me know if I can be of any help at all. I love weddings and can’t remember having ever known any two people who are more right for each other than you two.” Lucinda said.

“Well, you are guaranteed an invitation. You didn’t happen to notice what kind of dresses my maid of honor and brides’ maids will be wearing did you?” Carolyn grinned at her.

“Who are they going to be? I mean, I can guess that Tammy will be your maid of honor but who else will be standing up with you? And who is standing up with Colin?”

“You are right about Tammy but also my sister, Donna and my former assistant and good friend, Cindy will be my bride’s maids. Colin’s co-worker and Tammy’s fiancé, Stuart, will be Colin’s best man and his ushers will be his brother, Kenny, and his long-time friend and Cindy’s brother, Ralph.”

“I think Stuart will be a good thing for Tammy. She needs to know that someone loves her unconditionally.” Lucinda said. “I’m sorry to say that her parents have a few things to learn about having a full grown daughter. I think they expected to come back to the child they had to abandon. It’s taking them a while to get used to the fact that while they were gone, she grew up.”

“Wow, is that ever the understatement of the year. But they seem to love her and she’s finally standing up for herself, so I think they will be ok.” Carolyn said. “I do have a question about all that’s been going on lately. When you guys came the first time, we had new magical creatures show up because of the use of magic. Won’t what you guys did this morning attract more?”

“I can’t say for sure that it won’t but at least nothing evil will be able to get in. I was surprised that centaurs were the first to show up. Have you guys seen anything more since them and the fairies?”

“No one has seen the trolls themselves but several people have complained about a smell they can’t identify and a few have said that someone is stealing their chickens but otherwise, no, thankfully. A few people were not happy about them showing up but my dad has been trying to make them understand that we should be counting ourselves lucky that we have been able to live here this long as the only magical creatures. Funny, I never thought of us as being magical until all this happened.”

“I think everyone has some degree of magic within them, even the ones we think of as “humans”. We are just lucky enough to be blessed with more of it and choose to use it instead of denying or hiding it. Well, I’d better get back to my house. I didn’t get much sleep last night.”

“Well, I can’t say thank you enough. I do love the dress! Do you think you can unzip me before you go? I can’t wait to show it to my mom and Tammy.” Carolyn said as she looked at herself in the mirror from her bedroom again. She hadn’t even noticed when the other mirrors had disappeared while she had been talking to Lucinda.

Lucinda waved her wand and suddenly Carolyn was back in the clothes she had on before and the dress and her mirror were gone. “Don’t worry, dear. The dress is hanging in your closet and the mirror is back in the corner in your bedroom.” She said as she crossed the room and gave Carolyn a hug. “Let us know when you have the date set and if you need any help, don’t hesitate to let us know.”

“Thank you so much!” Carolyn replied. Lucinda smiled and then faded away, to Carolyn’s amazement. Seeing someone disappearing like that would never cease to amaze her. She couldn’t wait to show Tammy her dress and called her right away.

“Girl, you have got to come over here! You are not going to believe what Lucinda gave me!” Carolyn said. She didn’t even try to hide her excitement.

Tammy appeared a minute later. “What?”

“I don’t think I will ever get used to you being able to do that.” Carolyn said.

“I know just how you feel. It still amazes me to see you transform into a panther. So what is it that Lucinda gave you?”

Carolyn grabbed her hand and pulled her into her bedroom and over to her closet. She opened the door and Tammy gasped when she saw the gown that Carolyn pulled off the rack. “Oh Carolyn! It’s beautiful!”

“Oh Tammy, I was excited about getting married before but now I’m even more so. Lucinda brought up a very good point that I hadn’t thought about before too. Springtime may sound like the perfect time for a wedding but she was right that it does rain a lot and with the snow being so recently on the ground, there will be a lot of mud all over the place, especially under the trees. This beautiful gown will be ruined if I have to walk through grass and mud.”

“So are you thinking about moving it up or away a little longer?” Tammy asked.

“Well that all depends on what we find in Canada. Colin’s parents have been living up there. He said they haven’t checked in with him or his brother or sister and he’s worried. He said if he doesn’t hear from them by this weekend, he wants me to go with him to try and locate them. If we end up going, do you think you could apparate us there and back? It would surely save us on the airfare.”

“Sure. When do we leave?” Tammy said. That was one of the many things that Carolyn loved about her, was her willingness to help no matter what was asked of her and she was always up for an adventure!

“Well, Colin said he would wait till the weekend to hear from his parents, so I would say at the earliest Monday but I’m not sure. Poor thing, he’s really worried about them and I can’t say I blame him. I’m so glad my parents are not wanderers. I don’t think I could handle not knowing where and how they are for months on end.”

“Now you know how I was feeling.” Tammy said.

“Oh, hon, I know not knowing them was awful for you and I’m so glad you finally found them, or rather they found you. How are they feeling, by the way?”

“Oh, they are on the mend but I’ve got a feeling they are going to stay for a few days and I think it’s because they feel safer here.”

“Do you think they are afraid of your aunt?”

“No, not so much afraid as dreading having to face her. My mom doesn’t want to have to battle her sister but if she’s still a black witch, then that’s almost inevitable.”

“Can’t say I blame her. I don’t think I could fight Donna in a battle to the death.”

“I’m going to try to convince them to move away from there, which I don’t think is going to be hard to do since everyone they ever cared about is no longer living there. Now the question is where will they move? One thing for sure is my apartment is definitely not big enough for all 3 of us and I’m getting tired of sleeping on the sofa. It’s OK for a night or two but this is going to get old fast.”

“Well, you know you are always welcome to come crash here.”

“I know and thanks but I can’t keep imposing on you. I think it’s time for a sit down heart to heart and some serious decisions have to be made.”

“Well, I wish you luck. Let me know if I can be of any help. Well, I’m going to head up to my folks’ house and see if I can help my mom. The Pence’s are going to move over to the Wainwrights today. If I know my mom, she is going to wash the bedding for every bed in the house.” Carolyn said.

“OK. Well, call me if you need anything.” Tammy said and then disappeared.

Carolyn pulled her coat back on, regathered up the things she was going to take with her and made sure the cottage was locked before she headed up to her parents’ house.

Sure enough, Angela was upstairs stripping the beds when Carolyn arrived and she could smell the laundry soap and from somewhere upstairs she could hear the vacuum cleaner running. She put her things down on the dining room table and pulled off her coat and hung it on the back of a chair before she went in search of her mother. She heard the vacuum cleaner shut off so she called out.

“Mom! Mom, where are you?”

“Up here dear, in Donna’s room.” Angela called back.

Carolyn ran up the stairs and walked down the hall. She could smell the lemon furniture polish that her mother liked to use. She found her mother putting clean linens on her sister’s bed.

“Why are you making Donna’s bed? Where is she?” Carolyn asked as she crossed the room to help her finish making the bed.

“She went with the Pence’s to keep an eye on the little ones so that Mabel can get that place set up. There are only 3 bedrooms in that place so they are going to have to add on but the little ones can bunk together for now.”

“Has the decision been made on who’s going to buy Wainwright’s place?”

“Looks like it will be the Pence’s since, so far, they are the only ones who have put in a bid on the place.”

“Do you think anyone else will bid on it?”

“No, not considering the circumstances.”

“Well, come on and sit down for a second and take a break. I’ve got something I want to talk to you about.”

“Ok. Is everything OK?”

“Oh yeah, in fact, when we are finished here, I want you to come down to my place to see the absolutely gorgeous wedding gown that Lucinda created for me.” Carolyn said and watched her mother’s face. She saw astonishment, disappointment and then happiness cross her features.

“Wow, when did this happen?”

“After everyone left this morning. Lucinda came back and she magically put it on me and oh, mom, you have got to see it. I can’t even describe how beautiful it is or how perfectly it fits.”

“Well, let’s go see it then. This can all wait till later.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. There will always be housekeeping to be done but my daughter only gets her wedding gown once.”

“Ok. Well, I’ll come back and help you finish up.”

They left the house and transformed in the front yard, then ran through the woods back to Carolyn’s cottage. She unlocked the door and let them in and Carolyn led the way into the bedroom. She opened her closet door and carried the gown out for her mother to see.

“Oh, Carolyn, you weren’t kidding. It is beautiful!” Angela said as Carolyn held the gown up in front of her and tears started to form in her eyes. “Oh, you are going to be a lovely bride.”

“Lucinda also brought up a good point about us waiting until spring. Even if we don’t get a lot of rain, the snow will have left the ground muddy. This beautiful gown will be ruined if I have to walk across mud or grass. Not to mention what it will do to these shoes.” Carolyn said as she showed her mother the shoes Lucinda had also created. They were satin covered with lace that matched the lace on the dress.

“Oh they are beautiful and you are right, they would get ruined. So what are you thinking?” Angela said as she sat down on the edge of the bed.

“Well, first of all, Colin is worried about his parents. They haven’t checked in with any of their kids since before Thanksgiving and he’s worried. He wants me to go with him up to Canada and see if we can find them ourselves. Tammy said she can apparate us up there and back. But when we do get back, I would like to have it as soon as we can get it set up.” Carolyn said, carefully watching her mother’s reaction.

“Well, you know I’ll worry about you any time you leave the mountain but I understand wanting to be there to help Colin in any way you can. But I’m going to ask you if there is any reason you feel the need to rush the wedding now?”

“No, not for what you are thinking. We haven’t yet because I’ve always wanted my first time to be on my wedding night and Colin respects that. I just want to get on with living my life with him. It seems like every time we try to plan time to be together, something comes up and we have to cut our time short. I haven’t even had time to talk to him about it yet but I’m sure he will agree with me, that the sooner we can do this, the better it will be. And yes, I do hear my biological clock ticking. I’m not going to say I want to have kids right away but I don’t want our not being married to stop us when I am ready. Does that make sense?”

“Oh yes, definitely. But don’t wait too long. Even for changelings, it gets dangerous for us to have babies as we get older. I so wanted another baby after Donna was born but Dr. Matson said I might not survive another pregnancy or that the baby would more than likely be born with a birth defect.” Angela admitted.

“Wow, I never knew that. Did you have a hard time with your pregnancies? Is that why we are all so far apart in age?”

“Well, I was sick all the time with you and Kevin. I lost a lot of weight and had to be on bed rest the last month. Your poor father barely left the house because he was so worried. Your aunt Karen came and stayed with us during that time and for about a month or so after I had you. Dr. Matson said it’s because I’m so small through my hips that the birthing process is harder on me than it will be with you, so I don’t want you to worry about getting pregnant.”

“Well, I would have been too young to remember about Kevin but I do seem to remember that you had really bad morning sickness and for a long time with Donna.”

“Yeah. It was really touch and go with her. There was more than once that I thought I was going to lose her. I guess that’s why I’m so protective of her but she’s almost full grown now and I’m going to lose her anyway.”

“Oh, mom, you are not losing any of us. We are just continuing our lives away from home. We’ll all still be here on the mountain and before you know it, the house is going to be full of grandkids for you to spoil.” Carolyn said as she hugged her mother.

“Promise?” Angela said hopefully with watery eyes.

“Well, I won’t say I’ll be the one to fill it up but I think I can promise one or two.” Carolyn said with a grin and another encouraging hug. “Well, like I said, first Colin and I need to figure out what is going on with his parents but the minute we get back, we are going to be doing some serious wedding planning, so be prepared. Hopefully they will check in with him before the weekend and we won’t have to go at all.”

“Ok. Well, I do hope it’s just an issue of them taking some time for themselves and not that something has happened to them.”

They put Carolyn’s dress and shoes back in the closet and then locked up the cottage and went back to the Master’s house. Carolyn spent the next two hours helping her mother finish stripping and remaking the beds, dusting, sweeping, mopping and then starting dinner together. By dinner time, they were both exhausted and taking a well- earned break.

Angela pulled out a calendar and they looked over what dates would work for the wedding. Carolyn said she wanted to talk to Colin before they decided anything as Daniel, Kevin and Donna came home for dinner.

“Go on and wash up. Dinner will be ready soon. Carolyn, you are going to stay, aren’t you?” Angela said.

“Sure.” She replied as she followed her mother into the kitchen. “Don’t say anything about my dress yet, please. I want to take Donna down to see it too.”

“OK. I can tell your dad though, can’t I? You know we don’t keep secrets from each other.”

“I know but wait till you guys are in bed, please.”

“Ok. Mum’s the word.”

Carolyn helped her mom prepare dinner and everyone gathered around the table. As always, her father said grace and then said. “Well, I will say, it certainly is nice to have my whole family alone around the table tonight.”

“I take it the Pence’s won’t be joining us tonight?” Carolyn asked.

“Nope. We spent the whole day over there making sure they have clean beds to sleep in and enough food for at least two days.” Kevin said and Donna nodded.

“I don’t think that’s possible! I think they went through half of my canned goods while they were here. Too bad there’s not a witch among them that can replace it the way Amelia and Lucinda did.”

“I could ask Tammy to come take care of it for you. I know she’s been worrying about wanting to do something for you guys to repay you for your hospitality.” Carolyn offered.

“Well, I won’t say no because I don’t know how we are going to finish out the winter if she doesn’t. We’ve been helping not only the Pence’s but the centaurs and the fairies and it’s really cut into our food stores. I’m seriously thinking about plowing another field next year if this keeps up.” Daniel Masters told her.

“I sure hope it comes with someone to help with the canning.” Angela Masters said. “Although I will admit, I’m very anxious to use the new canning equipment Carolyn gave me for Christmas. Thank you again for that. The only one I had was great when I was just doing it for our family’s needs but with the way things are going, it looks like I’m going to need to put up more.”

“Well, I expect we may have to help out the centaurs for the first year but I’ve got a feeling they won’t allow much more than that and only because they have the little ones to think of. Kala’s baby may have been born late but there are two other younglings that were born in the spring and one that can’t be more than a couple of years old. They are a proud bunch, I give them that.” Daniel said.

Carolyn told her father about perhaps going to Canada and he said pretty much the same thing her mother had. Carolyn knew they were going to worry about her no matter where she went once she went out their front door and she was glad. She was helping her mom clean up in the kitchen when the phone rang and it was Colin.

“Hi, what are you up to?” Colin asked when she answered the phone.

“Just finished dinner and helped my mom clean up. What about you?”

“Just heading over to the diner for some dinner. How about coming and having a slice of pie with me?”

“Sure. See you soon.” Carolyn replied and then hung up and turned to her mom. “Colin wants me to meet him at the diner for dessert. “Is there anything else you need help with before I go?”

“No, I think I’ve got it covered. Thanks for all your help today! Tell Colin I said hello and be safe going home.” Angela said, as she gave her daughter a hug.

Carolyn said good night to the rest of the family and left, transforming as she jumped off of the porch. She ran through the woods back to her cottage and took a fast shower then changed her clothes before heading out to meet Colin.

She arrived at the diner just as the waitress was picking up Colin’s dinner dishes.