The park was rich in its new light-green spring growth. I had been lost in thought for several minutes. Penny was quiet too, tossing a stick now and then just for fun. Some people jogged by, and a girl was doing the rings.
“Maybe it’s time I learned to do the things a Sprite is supposed to be able to do,” I said. “Dulcy’s going to do her tests soon.”
Penny didn’t say anything for a while. Then she said, “When Dulcy first joined, I didn’t think she’d ever be able to do the tests. I was wrong. But Sandy . . .”
“What about her?”
“I don’t really know,” Penny said. “Somehow . . . she isn’t happy. She hasn’t been trying to learn any of the physical stuff, and . . . well, I’m not sure she’s happy with the magic either.”
I felt defensive. I had found Sandy. I sort of knew that Penny was right, but I didn’t want to think about it. Not everybody has to be great at everything. I’m probably the weakest one right now, at least physically.
“I think I should start training again,” I said, trying to change the subject.
“Can I join you?” Penny asked.
I gave her a funny look.
“Remember me and the water? I figure it’s time I put that mess behind me, just like you’re doing with drugs.”
“You really want to do it with me? I’ll probably be pretty slow and miserable at first.”
“Sure. Anyway, it’s phase three of our plan. Issa did most of phase two, getting you back in school.”
I felt hurt. She doesn’t really care. “I’ll do it alone if you only want to do it because it’s part of some plan!” I snapped. I felt hot and angry, but I felt terrible as soon as I said it, because I knew it wasn’t really true.
“Do it alone if you want, but just remember that we cared enough to make a plan, and that I wanted to learn to swim again last year, but I waited for you.”
I started crying.
Penny had her hands in her back pockets. “And remember that when I needed you,” she went on, “when I thought I was pregnant last year, you weren’t there. You were spaced out on a bunch of pills.”
“I’m sorry,” I said through my tears. “Damn it, I hate that part of my life.
You’ve always been there for me. I’m sorry, Penny. Please believe me.”
“I do believe you, Ariel. Just don’t say I’m doing something just because of some plan. I made the plan, with the other Sprites’ help. I slept in your room all those nights you were sweating and puking. Your school didn’t have a plan, other than to throw you in with the dummies. That social worker didn’t have a plan, other than to haul you away like so much trash. Even your parents didn’t know what to do. The whole real world was ready to throw you away, Ariel. They couldn’t . . . or wouldn’t . . . do the right thing. Luckily for you, Wood Sprites aren’t part of that real world.”
With tears in my eyes, I managed to say, “You’re the best friend in the world, Penny.”
“Shall we start with a little jogging? Just as far as you want.”
Tears still on my face, I suddenly smiled. “Okay!”
For the first time in more than two years, I was jogging. I didn’t get far.
My sides started aching and my legs cramping. I slowed to a walk, exhausted.
“How far . . . did we go?”
“About half a mile.”
“I used to be able to go five or six miles!”
“I
remember.”
We started training together almost every day. It brought back memories
of our original tests, when we were just teenyboppers. It had been so easy then — we were slender and all muscle. Now Penny weighed 100 pounds and I was almost 110. I had been a lot lighter and stronger when I rescued little Ben from the tree. I probably couldn’t do it now. I longed for those days again — life seemed so much simpler. I didn’t even worry about boyfriends then.
Maybe I should have, at least a little bit.
Anyway, I didn’t know how to go back in time, but I did want to get strong again. We alternated between outdoor stuff and going to the pool. In the water, I had a very different problem than Penny. I had to gain my endurance back, and polish my rhythm. She was dealing with sheer terror.
But we both made progress. My one lap turned into three as Penny worked at the shallow end just to dip her head underwater. Back on dry land, I reached a mile jogging, but almost fell out of the easiest maple that had ever grown. Penny helped me down.
It was about the most humbling experience of my life, next to quitting drugs, to watch Dulcy do her first tests. She had worked for two years to get ready, sometimes alone, sometimes with Penny and others. I hadn’t been able to help her much.
She climbed more like an inchworm than a spider, but I didn’t laugh. I would have once, at least silently. Not now. I felt fairly sure I would gain most of my skills back, but right now . . . she was better than me. We all enjoyed the swing, and then Dulcy slowly climbed back up the rope.
The alder was particularly hard for her. At least half of her 120 pounds seemed to stick straight out from the tree. She climbed up about 25 feet and we all cheered.
After Dulcy plodded two miles, we ate lunch, and she kindled a fire for smores. I’d never be too old for smores, I decided.
Out at the swimming inlet, as Dulcy worked her way out to the channel buoy and back, Penny just stared at the water. As we were leaving, Penny whispered to me, “I need to come out here soon.”
Dulcy had never been super-quiet in the woods, but she completed her wild-area run without stopping. We encircled her with hugs and kisses. Then everyone looked at me. For a moment I was confused, but then I remembered
what to do.
“Dulcy, you have completed your tests for mastery of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. You are a Wood Sprite and our sister forever!”
The dark green leaves of summer were everywhere. I was working my running up to two miles, and starting to feel the friction and sluggishness slowly melt away. Penny and Michael and I were running one morning. We came up to the one-mile point, and all of a sudden a black-haired girl about 11
jumped out of the trees beside the road and ran up to us.
“Can I run with you?”
Penny looked at me. I couldn’t think of any reason why not. And I couldn’t spare the breath for more than one syllable. “Sure.”
“I think I know you,” she said as she started jogging. “Years ago. I think you taught me to swim.”
I searched my memory. Yes, but when? I couldn’t remember. It was so hard to think beyond the fog that had only ended a year before.
“Do you remember me?”
“I think so . . .” I gasped.
“I’m
Rachel.”
A smile formed on my face. I was remembering. “At the State Park!”
“Yeah.”
We were coming up to the end of the second mile. I slowed to a walk, and the others did with me. “When you were . . . busy doing something here, Penny! I met Rachel at the State Park and taught her t0 swim!”
“Hi, Rachel. I’m Penny.”
“I’m
Michael.”
“I can swim really good now,” she said. “I bet you’re super-expert by now.”
“No. I did drugs for a year. That messed up a lot of things in my life, including my swimming. I’m just getting my strength back now.” I was almost surprised that I felt comfortable telling Rachel about it.
“That’s okay. I’ll help you if you want. And you can tell me about drugs so I don’t do anything like that.”
“Penny was an even better swimmer than me,” I said. “She was always being challenged by high school and college swimmers, and she always won.”
“Neat!” Rachel said, smiling at Penny.
“But then I had an accident. I swam four miles, and then on the fifth, I almost drowned. Ariel saved me. I’m afraid of the water now. She’s helping me get over it, and I’m helping her run and stuff.”
“Why don’t we go attack some alder trees?” Michael suggested.
“Want to climb trees with us, Rachel?” I asked.
“Sure!”
It soon became obvious to us that Rachel knew, or could quickly learn, all the physical skills of a Sprite. We found out that she loved to read fantasy books, and that she was an altar server at church. All of the Sprites met in my garden a few days later, in a little clearing in the middle near the magical herbs, and we planned a day when we could all be with Rachel. Everyone agreed that she sounded promising, especially after hearing how easily Penny and I had opened up to her.
By Lammas we were all convinced, and we agreed to ask Rachel to join the Grove. Surrounded by baskets of vegetables, fruits, herbs, and flowers from my garden and others, Issa gave Dulcy a medallion with the Hebrew word Hokmah, which meant wisdom.