Over the Whispering Mountain, behind the Falls of Tears, is the Forest of Laughter where the Pied Piper once dwelled. In the forest is a hill; on that hill sits a crystal castle. In the castle sits an ivory throne; on the ivory throne sits a child but not a child. She, unlike child or cub, is cursed to never grew old and remains young forever. In her courtyard sits a beast of great magic and power, the last of the white dragons. By the side of the queen sits the enchanted fox, the last one of its kind. To enter this kingdom you must still hold some of your childlike innocence.

Wendell woke. He was a little confused about where he was until he remembered the story that had been told to his court just a week ago. Across from him sat his friends Wolf and Virginia, who was very heavy with child, or cub, as both Wolf and Rebbeka said. Oh, how he loved Rebbeka. Wendell had decided that as soon as he found the right place he would ask her to marry him and be his queen. So deep in thought he hardly felt the hand on his arm or the head on his shoulder, he looked down on the beautiful half-wolf that he had fallen hopelessly in love with the night of Virginia's wedding. He could not believe that she would choose him over all of those handsome men at the party. He thought of the night they had met; of course he also had to think of his sister and her new husband Gavin and how happy they were. Wendell then remembered the reason why he and his friends were on this quest. They wanted to find the child queen and get her to join them against the trolls that were threatening his kingdom. He hoped that she would send the white dragon at least. He had heard of the white dragon's gentleness but also its intense magic. He did not know how they would approach the child queen; she also was a very magical being.

Wendell was now wide awake. He never thought that he would be going on a quest to seek the help of a queen that might or might not exist. It was almost dawn and the group had been travelling for almost three days. Tony had stayed behind to watch over the kingdom with the help of the council.

Wendell played with the ring that sat in his pocket. He had tried a total of ten times to ask Rebbeka to marry him but every time he'd chickened out. Wendell looked lovingly upon the half-wolf sleeping beside him amd noticed a lock of hair had fallen in front of her beautiful face. Wendell gently moved the hair but Rebbeka had already felt the movement of her mate and had awakened. She noticed him looking at her so she brought his face down to hers for a good morning kiss. Rebbeka laughed and Wendell blushed when they heard Wolf announce that it was a good morning. Virginia just stirred but did not wake up. She had been sleeping and eating more since her fifth month of pregnancy. Wolf figured she should wake up so she could talk with the rest of the family; he figured he would wake her up with a kiss. Virginia woke up a few seconds later and announced she had to go to the restroom and that she was hungry. Everyone in the carriage laughed as Wendell told the driver to stop for awhile.

The driver found a spot that had a small stream running through it so the horses could drink and the group could wash up. Rebbeka asked Wolf if he would like to join her on a hunt. Wolf loved hunting with his little sister, so he accepted the invitation. They went and told Wendell and Virginia that they would hunt some breakfast for the group and went off. Wendell always worried when Rebbeka went hunting; after all he was the man and should be the one to do the hunting and provide for the family. As if Virginia was reading his mind she told him that wolves were much better hunters than any human could be. Also, she informed Wendell that hunting not only brought in food but also closeness. The hunt was a way of sibling bonding and gave the wolves a chance to talk one-on-one.

After Virginia was finished talking, she made her way over to the nearest bush to relieve her self; then she waddled over to the stream to wash up. She informed Wendell that he should try and find some dry wood so they could cook the food when Wolf and Rebbeka returned. Wendell took the advice of Virginia and went in search of some dry wood. He thought of the week before when the mysterious storyteller had arrived at the palace and told them all the tale. Wendell remembered Virginia telling them all about a movie that had a child empress in it called The Neverending Story. Wendell didn't understand the concept of a movie and made a mental note to ask Virginia to explain it to him again.

Virginia and Wolf had decided to live in Wendell's palace shortly after Virginia was showing her pregnancy. He could not wait to become an uncle but there was another title he would give up his crown for and that was the title of father. But before he could claim that title he had to become a husband. He was already Rebbeka's mate but wanted to make it official in the eyes of humans. But that wouldn't happen until he found the courage to ask Rebbeka to marry him.

In the forest, Wolf and Rebbeka were talking of their human mates and how their lives had changed so much since they were young. Rebbeka told Wolf that Wendell was trying to ask her to be his wife but was too scared. Wolf laughed at this and told his sister that Wendell was scared; that he loved her and wanted to marry her but was scared that she would refuse him. Wolf told her that Wendell was a good man and would make a good husband; he just needed to be reassured that she loved him and would never leave. Rebbeka thanked her brother, then quickly caught the scent of a deer and went to investigate its location. Wolf remained behind a bit thinking of all that had happened in his life and how he loved the feeling of having a pack again. He thought of his brothers Grey and Copper who had joined the army of the Fourth Kingdom and were probably fighting filthy, smelly trolls at that moment. Wolf ran ahead to catch up with Rebbeka on the hunt of the deer.

Back at the stream Wendell and Virginia had gotten a fire going and now were sitting on a log talking about their wolven mates. Wendell told Virginia about all of his failed attempts at asking Rebbeka to marry him; that every time he was too scared to ask. Virginia asked him what he was so afraid of and Wendell answered that he was worried that she would not acccept the ring and would leave him. Virginia just shook her head and told Wendell that Rebbeka loved him; she chose him as her mate, so all he had to do was ask and she would marry him in a second. Wendell felt better and asked Virginia if she would like to see the ring. Virginia was confused about why he would bring the engagement ring on a quest. Reading her mind, Wendell told her that he'd always carried the ring long before he met Rebbeka. It was his good luck charm. Wendell laughed a little and said he had forgotten it the day he was turned into a dog. It was a ring that belonged to his mother and she told him to give it to the woman that he loved and that was exactly what he planned to do as soon as he got up the guts to do it.

They began looking around and noticed they could barely see the outline of the Whispering Mountain in the distance. They heard Rebbeka and Wolf clumping out of the trees carrying a buck and a couple of rabbits for later. Virginia laughed at the two wolves as they sang the sheperdess song and any other sheep song that popped into their wolven minds. Wolf had taken the liberty of skinning the kills before they returned, and for that Virginia was grateful.

In the crystal castle the child queen sat in her throne room with a smile on her face. She was going to have visitors. She watched the travelers through a pool of water in the center of the room. She than decided that the four travelers were going to need help getting to the hidden kingdom.

She whistled long and soft, and the enchanted fox, which at this point was in human form with her long bushy red tail flopping about, came to see what her mistress could need. The child queen told her friend that they would have company but they would have trouble getting to the palace. The queen told the fox to find them, tell them who sent her, and then bring them back. If the fox did this task well she would be given a day to just wander the forest alone. The fox bowed and left the room, then went to her own room to get a pack. She put a few clothes in it and quickly changed into a four legged fox so she could move faster. She then took off to find the travelers that the child queen had spoken of.

After they had devoured all of the deer meat, the group sat around the slowly dying fire talking and teasing each other as though they were all on a camping trip instead of a quest to find the child queen. Shortly after they began talking about the adventure which Rebbeka never got tired of hearing about, the driver interrupted the conversation to say they should get more distance covered before dark. They all got up, complaining, grumbling and with a couple of growls thrown in there for good measure. (They were just having some fun with the driver; he had been driving Wendell around since he was born.)

The old driver reminded the group of Tony and how much he would grumble. They all still missed him; he had always been there and it was hard getting used to not having him around. The driver knew they were all just having a little fun with him, so he got tough and told them to hurry, trying to keep a smile from creeping onto his face. Once all were into the carriage and it was moving, the passengers began teasing the driver, saying he was a spoil sport making them move, and all such teasing. The driver just told them to cut it out or he would turn the carriage around and take them all back to the palace. They all laughed at the driver for the phrase, and just began to think of other things to pass the time.

First they began singing a variety of songs; they sang the song Virginia sang in the Little Lamb Village about seven times before moving on to another song. The next song was Wolf's choice and he chose to sing the shepherdess song about five times through until everyone was tired of singing and just began to have a conversation. Rebbeka asked Wolf and Virginia if they had thought of any names for the baby and that sparked a long conversation with everyone saying their favorite names. Virginia stopped the conversation by telling everyone that the baby was kicking. Three hands came out to be placed on top of her tummy. The looks of Wolf and Wendell's faces made Virginia laugh; they looked like little boys that had just found something wonderful and exciting. The look on Rebbeka's face made Virginia make a mental note to have a one-on-one talk with her sister-in-law. Finally the driver stopped for the night int a wooded area so they would all be protected.

They all set out to get the site ready. Wendell and Rebbeka went out to find some firewood, Wolf set to readying the meat for cooking, and Virginia just plopped down on the ground and sorted the stuff that they would all need for the night. After about twenty minutes, Wendell and Rebbeka returned with some firewood, and the fire was started. After they had all finished eating and had cleaned up they began talking again of nothing particular, just talk.

When a rustling of the bushes came, all conversation stopped. Neither Wolf nor Rebbeka had caught the scent of anything; whatever it was, it was downwind from them. After a warning growl from Wolf, a woman stepped out of the bushes. She wore clothes similar to the ones Rebbeka usually wore, and had long red hair flowing behind her. Wolf was a bit confused by this woman because the only scent he could pick up was that of a fox. He whispered to Virginia this fact. Virginia took charge and asked the strange woman her name and what she was because the only scent her mate was picking up was fox.

The thought of being sniffed by such a handsome man made the woman giggle inside. Of course the blond one was not too bad, either. But even though she did not have as good of a sense of smell as a wolf she could tell they both already had mates. So she simply told the travelers her name was Apsala and that she was exactly what the wolf smelled: a fox. But not just any fox. She was the enchanted fox sent by the child queen to fetch them.

Wendell asked Apsala how the queen knew they were on their way to meet her. Apsala looked a little shocked that they did not already know but figured that they had not heard. So Apsala cleared her throat, finding a spot near the fire, and curling her tail around her legs (a fox tail is longer than a wolven tail) she told the travelers that the child queen could do magic, and that she also used tools like their magic mirrors.

"She uses a pool of water that is called the Pool of Wonders. The pool can do almost all of the things the mirrors can do and some of its own magic like telling the future, the past, and letting the child queen know when someone truly needs her help." Apsala mentioned that the pool could also see if a person had a pure or an evil heart.

Finally a question that had been burning up inside of Rebbeka since they met the fox came out. She asked why a child had been chosen to be one of the most powerful beings in the whole of the Nine Kingdoms. Apsala asked in a calm voice if any of them had ever seen a young child be tortured inside for revenge or if they had ever seen a child wish to destroy an entire race because of one little mistake in the past. Finally, Apsala told them all that they would be leaving at first light for the crystal castle.

As the group all lay around the slowly dying fire, Virginia lay awake. She was thinking of the look that Rebbeka had when she had touched and felt the movement of the baby. Had she really seen the sparkle of a secret in the half-wolf's eyes or was it just her imagination? Virginia told herself to talk with her sister-in-law in private as soon as she could. Virginia began to rub her ever growing stomach and to think of the life that was inside of her. She began to think of the fears she'd had when she first learned that she was pregnant. She'd had the fear that she would not be a good mother, and also she'd feared that her father would not accept the cub. That last fear had been quickly exterminated. She remembered the look of pride and of joy when Tony had accompanied her to the doctor when Wolf could not be there because of the moon. That had been before they had returned to live in the kingdoms.

Virginia began looking at the stars, thinking of the night in Little Lamb Village when Wolf was going through the moon madness and was mesmerized by the moon. Luckily they had waited the extra week before leaving to find the child queen; they could not have handled two moon-crazed wolves at the same time on a trip. Virginia thought about the past eight months and how much her life had changed. She remembered thinking that nothing exciting would happen in her life; oddly enough that was the day she had met Prince. She looked at her companions. Even though she was sitting up, Wolf had his arm around her waist. He was whining softly and wagging his tail. She saw that Rebbeka and Wendell had fallen asleep in each other's arms as though they did not want to let the other get away. She could see the outline of Apsala who was curled up in animal form next to the fire. She finally saw the carriage driver sitting furthest away from the fire leaning against a tree, asleep.

Her attention was concentrated on Rebbeka and the look when she finally fell asleep. She had a strange dream: They were all in the dining hall, but the table was a circle like a round table. In a row sat Wolf, herself, Wendell, and then Rebbeka. The rest of the chairs were empty, but had food and drink in front of each. Each setting was different; each chair had a different decoration on it. The one that Virginia could remember the most was the one that had the feather pen and paper carved into it.

When Virginia awoke it was first light out and everyone else was packing and readying to be off to the palace. She remembered something about taking the carriage as far as the base of the Whispering Mountain, after which they would proceed on foot. Moments after she finally sat up and was about to proceed with her normal morning rituals, she saw a cat. It was not a normal cat - this cat was as tall as her knee and had fluffy long hair the color of snow. The large cat was just sitting there, not moving anything other than its fluffy grey tail. Virginia quickly got the attention of Wendell and asked him what it was. Wendell was surprised to see the cat and told her that it was very rare and was called a Giant's kitten. He told her that they usually will not show themselves unless they have a gift for a traveler.

The cat began to walk toward the group calmly. It walked straight to where Wendell and Virginia were talking. In a very feline voice it asked which of them was the Lady Virginia, then, turning toward Virginia, it spoke again saying that it had a gift for her. Virginia, overcome by curiosity, asked the great cat what it was. The cat let out a very high meow and out of the bushes, one by one, came fourteen little kittens the size of a normal kitten. The great cat told her to choose three of its children to take with her: one for the child queen, and two for the cub. Virginia chose a black kitten with a white tail for the child queen, and a white one with a black tail and a dark grey-and-white tiger-striped one for the cub, thanking the great cat as it left with the remainding eleven kittens.

After all of the equipment was loaded onto the carriage top, Wendell, Rebbeka, Wolf and Virginia all crawled into the carriage with the three kittens. Apsala had elected to ride on the top with the driver so she could tell him what directions to take. Wendell had gotten tired of wearing those uniforms and elected to borrow a outfit from Wolf, complete with the a long coat. Rebbeka thought he looked very handsome dressed in comfortable clothing. Wendell's hair was also becoming in desperate need of a cut, but Rebbeka liked it a little shaggy. It gave her something to run her fingers through.

Rebbeka was extra quiet this day; she was thinking of her little secret. She knew Wolf knew and she was almost certain that Virginia knew also, so the only one that did not know yet was Wendell. Rebbeka was worried about telling her secret to Wendell. What if he became angry with her? What would he say when he found out? She would tell him; not yet but soon. She still had a little more time before she really had to tell him. Until then she would love him and memorize every little wrinkle of his brow when he was worried, or the crooked little smile he got when he had a surprise for her. Oh, how she loved the surprises that he came up with - they were never large and extravagant; they were simple and sweet. The last surprise had been a note tied to her wrist with a riddle on it. She'd followed the riddle to another and another until she'd finally arrived in the garden where Wendell was waiting with a picnic lunch for two. She would always cherish those little stolen moments. They would go on walks in the forest behind the palace or would go on little cozy getaways to the royal hunting lodge.

Rebbeka sighed at the memories of how loving he was. Maybe she should tell him. Maybe this was the thing that he needed to ask her to marry him. She made a vow right there that she would find the right place to tell him her secret. Maybe she was destined to tell him at the palace of the child queen; Rebbeka had always heard that she could see into one's heart and bring out anything that was troubling that person. Wendell was her knight in shining armor, her Prince Charming, so she could not bear to cause him pain. If he was unhappy she would simply leave and return to the pack.

After all of that, Rebbeka looked up to see Virginia and Wolf playing with the kittens. Wendell was working on some speech that he probably had to give. Because she could not help it - she loved him - Rebbeka tapped Wendell on the shoulder, and when he turned to face her to see what she needed, she pulled his face close to hers and gave him a sweet little kiss just to remind herself that he loved her.

Before they all knew it, the carriage was stopping. They were now at the very base of the Whispering Mountain. Apsala informed them that no one wanted to travel through the mountains at night so they would sleep there and continue before dawn the next morning. They would be at the Falls of Tears by dusk and the crystal castle after dark the next day.

Virginia finally asked Wendell why the great cat had given up her kittens for them. Wendell answered that all animals love and have great respect for the queen, and that kittens of a Giant's kitten are very rare and have magic in them so they are a great gift for a powerful queen. "Besides, have you met many little girls that don't want a kitten?"

After receiving the answer from Wendell, Virginia asked Apsala who the child queen was. Apsala looked up from the spot were she was brushing her tail with a bone comb, and told the group the tale: "The child queen at one time was a very happy little girl of six; she had a daddy and a mommy. One day her mommy died and her daddy became very depressed and sick. Her daddy went and hired a witch to cast a spell on the little girl so she would stay a little girl for always and never leave him. Her daddy became more sick and did some very bad things. A few years later her daddy lay dying in his bed, and with the last bit of his own magic gave the little girl the magic, the pool, and the castle. Instead of using her magic power to kill and cause pain, she developed her power so she could do good. Because of her good nature the white dragon came to live in the palace garden, and other magic creatures as well. But the child queen made all promise to serve her and if they did well they would be rewarded and could live in peace and happiness for the rest of their days."

It was Wolf's turn to ask a question. He asked who the father of the little girl had been and what her name was. Apsala told them all that the the name of the child queen was Anderella, daughter of the Pied Piper. Wendell had heard that the piper had a wife that died before he took the children but never knew that he had a daughter. Wendell asked what the piper had died of, to which Apsala replied, "A broken and lonely heart."

Wolf had two questions for the fox that shared their meal and fire. The first question was, "Why didn't the witch didn't just turn the queen back into a normal little girl and let her grow up?"

Apsala said that the witch went to council with all of nature's creatures to discuss the fate of the girl. The council of nature's animals told the witch that the girl was to stay under the spell of everlasting youth, for she had a great destiny that she could not achieve if she grew up.

The second of Wolf's questions was, "What happened to all of the children that followed the Pied Piper after the villagers would not pay him?"

Apsala was growing very tired of all of the strangers' questions, but just took it as curiosity of what they may encounter on their quest. She simply answered that the children created a life for themselves in the forest and prospered.

After she'd finished answering the questions of Wolf, she laid down as though signaling that she would answer no more questions that night. Wolf and Wendell both took the hint that they would need all the sleep that they could all get, and they each went to separate sides of the fire to lay down to try and sleep. But Virginia had remembered the talk that she'd wanted to have with her sister-in-law.

Virginia told Rebbeka that she needed to talk with her, so they both decided that they would take a short walk so as not to disturb their mates. Virginia asked straight out if her assumptions were true and Rebbeka confirmed that they were. In the little cove of trees Rebbeka was able to express all of her fears and joys about the subject at hand. Virginia simply sat on the ground and listened to her sister-in-law. She comforted her when she began to cry. They talked happily of all of the things that were going to happen soon; Virginia told Rebbeka everything she knew on the subject, which was not much more then Rebbeka. Rebbeka listened to Virginia when she told her that Wendell would be happy - maybe a little surprised, but happy nonetheless. They talked about how and when Rebbeka should tell Wendell. They sat, talked, and cried for a long time; so long that they heard the morning birds awakening in their nests in the trees. It was morning and Rebbeka and Virginia had not slept the entire night, but they both figured it was a small price to pay for such bonding.

Following their scent back, Rebbeka led Virginia to were their mates slept. Wendell was just awakening and Wolf was completely awake, scratching his brow, obviously worried about the two of them. Wolf had smelled the two of them off in the woods but used his best judgement and left them both alone. He knew what Virginia was probably talking to Rebbeka about. But he was very happy when he smelled the two of them returning from the woods unharmed. He would have to inform them both of the dangers of going into the forest alone at night in their condition.

The last remainder of night was still in the sky when the group, including the driver, started to climb the mountain. Wolf, not wanting to alarm Wendell that anything was amiss, told him that Rebbeka would need assistance up the mountain because she was never a good climber and might begin to fall. When Rebbeka began to object, Wolf flashed his eyes to show that he knew best. Wolf and the driver helped Virginia because of her gained weight; she could not climb as well as she had at Dragon Mountain.

By the time that the group got to the top of the mountain it was midday, and both Virginia and Rebbeka needed a rest but wanted to get to their destination, so they kept quiet about the rest that their bodies begged for - or actually demanded from them. The group kept moving on toward the crystal palace that so called to them. Soon they all began to realize why the mountain was called the Whispering Mountain. Though it didn't whisper words, it was whispering a song - it began to whisper the words to A Whiter Shade of Pale. They all just sang alone with the words and made up words as they went along to keep themselves amused.

As the group finally descended from the last bit of the mountain, the whispering stopped and they were free to walk on to the palace. The lack of sleep was beginning to catch up to Virginia and Rebbeka but they both kept trudging along, intent on reaching the palace before midnight. Apsala sensed that the two of them were tiring, and told them all that because they got away from the mountain so fast they could take a break and rest for awhile. But they only rested for about five minutes before Rebbeka told them all that they should get moving and that they could rest all they wanted when they reached the palace.

Fairies began to fly overhead. They did not intend to play any pranks on the travelers because they all knew the enchanted fox was in the service of the child queen and her magic was more powerful then any group of fairies. So they just flew around, being curious little buggers as always. Virginia was not surprised by the sight of fairies anymore. She had become used to the sight of them and often expected to see them. Virginia figured that if she tried to return to the Tenth Kingdom she would be as lost there as she had been here the first time.

The sky above them was bringing forth the colors of sunset and the moon was just a shadow sitting in wait for its chance to shine. A few early stars already speckled the slowly darkening sky. The air became much cooler and a gentle breeze was starting to rustle the grasses along the path. The breeze brought with it the smell of wildflowers and the smell of water from across the meadow. Virginia was trying to pull her trench coat around her but was not succeeding very well because of her large stomach. Rebbeka had not brought along a warmer jacket and was wearing the jacket that Wolf had taken when he first visited the Tenth Kingdom. Twilight was closing in on the travelers but they did not pay it any attention. All of their attention was on the sound that was coming to their ears - the sound of a waterfall.

Moments later they all took in the sight of the Falls of Tears. It came out of nowhere, but ended with a pool of water and a bunch of little streams coming from that. Purple and pink flowers, barely visible in the light, framed the rocks that formed the falls.

As the group got closer to the waterfall they all noticed the cave that was visible behind it. In the passageway, Virginia noticed the marking of a pipe with a rat sitting up in front of it scratched into the wall. Upon asking Apsala about it, Virginia learned that everyone in the kingdoms had a symbol to show who they were and she was looking at the Pied Piper's signature.

Minutes passed fast as the group walked through the cramped confines of the passageway. Wolf was whimpering because he did not like close quarters. Everyone took a deep breath when they exited the passageway from behind a giant boulder and found themselves in the most beautiful forest that any of them had ever seen.

Breaking the peacefulness of the moment, Apsala told them all that they would camp there and continue in the morning; they did not want to travel the forest at night. Not waiting for a reply from the travelers, Apsala found a patch of grass and laid down, soon becoming fast asleep. The others were all too tired to bother with a fire for the night, so they went to sleep. Virginia had the dream of the round table again but this time instead of a quill pen and paper she saw a pair of slippers and a rose on the chair.

When Virginia woke up she almost had to laugh. Wolf had some how climbed up onto the boulder and was using a silly water gun that he had bought in New York and was spraying it at Wendell who also had a water gun, compliments of Wolf, and was spraying back. Rebbeka was sitting up laughing at the childish behavior of her brother and mate, but Virginia noticed that Rebbeka had a water balloon for her defense. The only person that was not around was Apsala. Her pack was also gone.

Moments later the enchanted fox returned to the clearing. She had changed from her travel clothes and was now wearing a pair of light brown leather pants with her tail sticking out, and a forest green tunic that had the picture of an oak tree and a pipe on it. Around her neck, Apsala wore a medallion with the same oak tree but the tree was on a base that looked like a maple leaf. Virginia almost asked the fox why she was so dressed up but thought she had better not ask.

After Wolf finally jumped down from the rock and put away the water gun they were off again. Apsala seemed to be more intent on staying in the front of the group than usual. Apsala was also acting very strangely - she was looking at each tree as if she were looking for something. She was also picking up various flowers on the trail.

About a half an hour later Virginia found out why she had been intent on staying in front of the group. As the group stepped into a clearing they noticed homes - not on the ground, but up in the trees. There were a maze of walkways and steps in the trees; a whole community in the trees. Rebbeka noticed that there was only one ladder in the entire clearing.

Not even three minutes passed when a women in her early forties came out of one of the tree homes, noticed them, and came running down the ladder. She embraced Apsala as though she was her mother. Seconds later the entire village came out to greet Apsala. Then a young boy not much older than four came running straight into Apsala's open arms. He greeted her as sister. It was then that the group noticed the little red tail sticking out of his trousers. Wendell noticed that the villagers were dressed in the same attire as Apsala; wearing the same tunic, but that the medallions that the villagers wore were different from Apsala's but also had the pipe on them with the maple leaf base.

The first woman that had greeted them told a young boy of the age of seven to go fetch her staff. The boy completely bypassed the ladder and just ran straight up a tree. Wolf thought this was amazing - they could have used this boy when Virginia was caught in the tree. Apsala told the group that the entire community could do the same thing; something about the pipe music of the piper made them magical also. Apsala introduced the travelers to the village of the pipe - these were the descendents of the Pied Piper's lost children. Apsala then asked if Virginia and Rebbeka would accompany her to the sacred spot, and they accepted the invitation.

As the three women neared the sacred spot, Virginia and Rebbeka noticed three headstones that they were walking toward. The largest of the three had the name of Jared. Next to it was a smaller marker with the name Samuel, and the smallest of the markers had the name Abbiegale. Rebbeka noticed how Apsala looked at the markers of the three people and had to ask who they were. Apsala took a little while to answer because she was crying, but answered in a small voice that it was her family: husband, son, and daughter, all killed by an evil creature that had since been killed also. Virginia understood now why Apsala had been so elusive about the piper's kids; she'd been hiding her pain and grief. The three women just sat in the front of the graves in complete silence, Rebbeka on one side and Virginia on the other side of Apsala as she cried and prayed.

As the three women sat there in perfect silence, a thought came into Virginia's mind. It had been destiny for Apsala to ask them to accompany her to this spot. They had only just met but all of them shared something - a thing that would always be there in the back of their minds, like the thorn in the paw of the lion. They had all witnessed the death of loved ones in one way or another. How could Apsala have known that the women that sat to her right and left would be the best choices to invite to the sacred spot? Apsala was still sitting there on the cold ground with her head bowed, saying a silent prayer for her loved ones and cursing the creature that had caused her so much pain. She knew what the creature was - it was a change thing - that was how it had gotten little Abbiegale. The little girl had always loved to go out of the hold and talk to the animals. The creature had changed itself into a little hurt bluebird so Abbiegale would take it back to the hold where it killed both the little girl and her brother. Apsala also knew that the creature had then changed into the spitting image of herself to seduce Jared, but it had not worked. The creature had forgotten the tail, and had not known that she always kept her tail out when in the hold. Jared had always known that, and had seen through the illusion, so it killed him. Luckily, the rest of the tribe had heard his screams and captured the creature before it could get away and had killed it on the spot.

Rebbeka sat to the left of Apsala, crying silently for the innocence that was lost at one time. She also cried for her parents. She wanted to howl her torment but knew that she should be respectful of Apsala and remain quiet. Maybe they could all take part in a cleansing ritual that wolves sometimes perform; she would suggest it to the fox when it was time to leave the sacred place.

They all remained in the same spot for over an hour when Apsala finally ran out of tears and took a deep breath to prepare herself to face the hold again. She did a strange hand gesture over the graves and spoke in a dialect that neither Virginia nor Rebbeka knew. Apsala stood up from her spot on the ground and gave the two women that had been there to comfort her a small smile to tell them it was time to leave. As they all walked back with arms linked, Rebbeka asked Apsala if the hold ever held a cleansing ceremony. Apsala told her new friend that she had heard of the rituals of the wolves and would like to experience one. Virginia spoke up at this moment to ask Rebbeka if they all could go through the ritual, she then informed Apsala that she and Rebbeka had lost people they loved deeply and were wounded quite deeply by the experiences. Apsala looked at her new friends in amazement that such strong women could have actually experienced such loss of loved ones. Rebbeka told Apsala and Virginia that the ritual needed to have three parties to it - the power of three was very strong.

Once they arrived back at the hold, Apsala told the leader that she would be taking part in a cleansing ritual and must not be disturbed. Under no circumstances was she to be bothered until they emerged cleansed. Rebbeka told the hold leader that a meal must be ready for them to eat when they were ready; Rebbeka told the hold leader all of the things that were required for the ritual. Some Wolf would fetch because he was the closest to the ones that would experience the ritual - he must get the wraps, or chatas, and the flower crowns, or kerdos. And then there was the white linen robe that each one of them would need for the meal. Also he and Wendell had to join in the hunt for the food; it was their duty as the males of the pack. After all was readied and the hold leader told Rebbeka that the linen dresses would be awaiting them in the outer regions of the bath house, the trio disappeared behind the heavy curtain into the inner regions of the bath house.

The ritual continued for three hours. The trio washed themselves and each other. After the cleansing of their outer shells was finished they sat on the floor in a triangle and each told her story. Apsala began, and at the end of her story they all hugged and Rebbeka said something in wolven language that roughly translated meant "Peace be the spirit." Virginia went next, telling the story of her mother once again. At the end they all hugged and Rebbeka said the phrase again. Rebbeka then told her story and Virginia, a fast learner, said the phrase for her. It was then that Rebbeka brought forth the flower crowns, and laying one on each of her new sisters, said another phrase that meant "Though they are gone in body, they remain with us in spirit." Apsala and Virginia took the final crown and laid it on Rebbeka's head and said the phrase for her. Rebbeka then howled the warning to Wolf that they would soon be returning to the hold, so that he could be ready to say the final phrase to them.

After helping each other tie the linen dresses, they exited the bath house to find the hold standing at large tables that were laden with food. Virginia had not realized how much food there truly would be. Wolf and Wendell stood up to say the final phrases to the trio, which translated, meant "Heart, head and spirit, we are with you in your grief." As they ate, Virginia noticed that she no longer felt the guilt of her mother's death weighing on her heart or her mind.

After all of the food was devoured, Apsala suggested that they continue their journey before the night came. Rebbeka and Virginia went to retrieve their clothes but realized that someone had taken them and was washing them, so they would have to proceed on the journey in their ceremony robes or stay behind and wait for their travel clothes. So they proceeded on in their white robes, hoping that they did not fall into a water puddle and ruin them. Apsala had offered them some of her clothes but nothing she owned would fit the two women for reasons that were obvious to everyone exept Wendell.

As they all walked on to find the palace, Wendell could not help but steal quick glances at Rebbeka. She looked - how would Wolf put it - succulent in the white dress that she had worn for the cleansing. He thought she looked just like a bride and someday, if he ever got the nerve, she would be. Wendell chuckled to himself at the thought of marrying his true love and living happily ever after. He had asked Wolf why the girls were going to be participating in a cleansing ritual without them. Wolf told him that the wolven culture has rules that a man and a women can not undergo the same cleansing ritual because a few of the parts of the ritual were changed for a man.

Virginia, Rebbeka, and Apsala were all walking together, talking about how they felt after the cleansing. Apsala told them that it had to have been fate that the child queen sent her to help them on their way, and in a great way sent her to relieve the grief that had been festering in her heart.

In the crystal castle Anderella was staring into the pool of wonders. She was giggling to herself because her plan had worked. She had indeed sent Apsala for two reasons - the first was to help the travelers through her magical land. And the second was because she had heard of the cleansing rituals of the wolves and wanted her friend to find peace from her pain and grief.

Anderella figured that they would be at her home after nightfall so she had better make beds ready for the night, three rooms to be exact. Anderella had more plans for the travelers but before she could carry out her plans she had to get the rooms ready. The two girls would need to rest as soon as they arrived, of course after a meal, and so would the man with the tail.

The journey from the hold of the tree community to the crystal palace was very fast. The group were all in high spirits and talking energetically. Rebbeka was still thinking of the talk she'd had with Virginia two days ago. Had her sister-in-law been right when she'd told her that Wendell would love her anyway?

Before they knew it they were standing at the base of a large hill with stairs going up it and at the top of the hill sat the crystal palace. It was huge - larger than the Palace of White easily - and as they began climbing the stairs, Wolf counted. As they walked upwards toward their final destination, he counted exactly one hundred steps.

Apsala opened up the front door of the palace and they all walked in. Apsala told them that Anderella probably had rooms and supper set out for them, so first they would go to the dining hall. They each sat at a plate that was already filled with their favorite food: lamb chops for Wolf, Wendell had pheasant, Rebbeka had lamb also, and Virginia had a New York style pizza. After all of the food was finished, Apsala came into the room and told them that rooms were ready for them to sleep. Wendell and Rebbeka were separated because they were not married yet, so they had to sleep separate. Virginia and Wolf shared a room because they were married. After changing into their nightclothes the group slipped into their beds and slept without dreams.

The next morning the group woke to find themselves in large feather beds that could have housed all four of the them and still have room for squirming. The beds were so soft it was as though they had been sleeping on a cloud. When Virginia woke she saw that the room that Wolf and she had shared was a very beautifully decorated room - it was all greens, purples and reds. When she looked into the dressing chamber she saw that the clothes she had worn to the castle were gone and on a hook by a screen was hanging a beautiful blue dress apparently for her to wear to see the child queen. Virginia first had to wash up using the basin of water that was surprisingly warm. She slipped into the dress and found that it was exactly her size in every way. Wolf came into the dressing chamber and found a purple suit with black pants with a slit in the back for his tail to go. After he washed up using the same basin water as Virginia, he started dressing and found his clothes also fit him perfectly without having to be altered.

Wendell woke to find himself in a red, blue and gold room. His bed was not quite as large as Wolf and Virginia's but it was still very large. Going in to the dressing chamber, Wendell made the same discovery that Virginia had made: his traveling clothes were gone and new clothes hung on a hook near the screen. His suit was like Wolf's, except for no slit in the back, and his jacket was white.

Rebbeka woke in her own room that was decorated with purple, yellow and silver. She also had a smaller bed and made the discovery that the rest of the group had made in their own dressing chambers. Her dress was deep red with green accents on it, and also fit perfectly to her body.

Once the group had finished their duties in their separate rooms, each exited to find the rest and found that they were right across from each other the entire time. Wendell could not keep his eyes off of Rebbeka. He could tell that she had gained a little weight, but figured that it was just a wolf thing before winter arrived. Virginia carried the little kitten for the queen and they all went to find some breakfast. Following Wolf's nose, they quickly found it.

When the group saw the table, Wolf almost fainted from the sight of all of the food: plates laden with bacon, sausages and ham, platters filled with eggs, toast and muffins, bowls full of fruit and oatmeal. And to drink, pitchers full of warm milk and apple juice, but the child queen was nowhere to be seen; they had not seen her yet.

Soon Apsala came into the room and, swiping a strip of bacon, told the group that Queen Anderella would see them when they were finished with breakfast. Half an hour later, after the last bit of bacon was eaten and the last drop of warm milk was drunk, the family sought out the throne room to see the child queen. They found it decorated with green and gold decorations and in the very center of the room was the Pool of Wonders that they had all heard about from Apsala. They then saw the ivory throne, like in the tale of the mysterious storyteller. Sitting in the chair with her feet dangling was a little girl no older then six. She wore a flowing dark blue dress, and on her head was set a delicate silver crown that looked as though if it was handled even the slightest bit it would break.

When the little girl saw her visitors she gave them the biggest smile she could muster and told them to come forward. Wendell and Wolf bowed to the queen. Even if she looked like just a little girl she was still one of the most powerful beings in the kingdoms and deserved the same respect as one. Also, they were there to ask for a favor and wanted to remain on the good side of the queen. The little girl giggled and told them that she would help; all that they had to do was to ask and she was at their service. Wendell's jaw dropped. How had she known that they had come on this quest for that reason? The giggle came again from the girl and she told the young prince that it was their destiny to search her out, but the quest had not only been for them to find her but to find a piece of themselves. It had started out just to find her but many things had happened on their journey.

Virginia believed these words because they were true; Virginia had found a healed heart on the trip, though she had not planned it, it had just happened. After thinking about her words, Wendell cleared his throat and began to tell the queen about the troll war and that they needed her help to defeat them and save the kingdom again. The little girl asked Rebbeka if he was always this long-winded. Rebbeka giggled and said yes but he was sweet anyway. Anderella turned her attention back to Wendell and told him that all he had to do was ask and the dragon and all of her magic were at his disposal. Wendell took the hint and asked the girl flat out if she would help them defeat the trolls. Anderella said flatly and straightforwardly that she would give the order for the dragon to fly and defeat the trolls in the morning. Virginia thanked the little girl, who was in fact much older than her, and whom she was respecting and looking up to every second that they were in her company.

Anderella told the group with a smile that she could see their future as Apsala had told them she could. She then asked if they would care to see what their future held for them. The group talked about it for about three or four minutes and told the little queen that they would like to see part of what the future would hold for them. Each person wished for certain things to happen as the little queen told them all to look down into the Waters of Time in the Pool of Wonders.

As the group looked into the waters of the Pool of Wonders as the child queen had told them to do, they saw that the water was beginning to ripple, and soon the picture of a table came into view. It was the same table that Virginia had seen twice in her dreams. The water rippled and showed the chair with the quill pen and paper on it. The chair swirled to reveal a girl of the age of sixteen. Her hair was long down to her waist in the bangs and as short as Virginia's was after her axe trim in back. Her eyes were deep green with blue speckles in them, but when the girl turned to continue her pacing they all gasped for they saw a tail. The girl was in a very luxuriously decorated room writing on a tablet of paper. The front of the paper had a title on it, Adventure in the Kingdoms.

By then the water began to ripple to show another chair. This time it was the chair with the slippers and rose on it. The chair began to swirl like the last time and showed this time another girl of sixteen. She, unlike the last one, was jumping and twirling about. Every time the girl did a twirl her long red braid that went past her waist would fly up. This girl also was very beautiful and she also had a tail flopping about as she jumped and twirled.

The water rippled to show another chair. This one Virginia had not seen yet. It had a picture of two paintbrushes crossing and an easel. The chair swirled this time to reveal a very handsome boy of sixteen. He had very shaggy black hair - it really did need to be cut - and his green eyes could pierce anyone's soul. The boy was sitting on a grassy hill with his tongue sticking out. He was holding a sketch pad and looked as though he were growling at the pad. Sticking out from behind the lad was a grey and black tail just like the two girls' before.

The pool rippled again and showed the other side of the table, and then rippled again to show another chair. This one had a bow and arrow on it. Also it had a crossbow on it, but the group did not want to revisit that fear. The chair swirled and showed a green meadow. A person was drawing a arrow in a bow. The person was dressed in a long green coat, black pants and a pair of tall boots. After the person shot the arrow and hit the bullseye, the person took off its hat to reveal a cascade of long sandy blond hair that reached the small of her back. She was a girl, her coat tied tightly in the front so she could shoot properly. She was wagging a dark grey tail behind her as she walked over to retrieve the arrow.

The pool rippled to show yet another chair. This one had the picture of a harp and a pipe on it. The chair swirled like all the rest to settle on a picture of a young man the same age as the others. He was sitting on a step with a flute to his lips; his hair was black but had blond tips, his eyes were dark green, and he had a tail also that was lying on the step beside him, tapping as though keeping pace with the flute.

The pool began to ripple and showed this time a chair that had two storybooks etched on it. The chair swirled and showed a girl with a black hair that was cut in the same fashion as Virginia's axe cut; this girl had pale blue eyes. The girl was sitting in the middle of a large circle of young children, talking to them. The children were giving her all of their attention. A tail was barely visible behind the young girl but was there.

Once again the pool rippled, flashed the number 12, and grew silent.

Virginia was speechless. They had asked to see a bit of their future, but this was ridiculous. Who were those kids? Wendell was just standing there in a daze, as was Rebbeka and Wolf. When Virginia finally snapped out of it and remembered the kitten for the child queen, the little girl squealed in delight at the sight of the kitten and before she walked off to play with it she told the group to explore the palace.

Wendell and Rebbeka decided to look at the gardens of the palace. Rebbeka could not believe how beautiful it was. The garden looked like a mountain trail complete with a cave that would make a nice den for her and Wendell. She had to tell him now so if he was not happy she could just stay here with the child queen. Wendell was thinking the same thing as he fumbled with the ring in his pocket. They both began to talk at the same time and nervously laughing, they argued about who should go first. Rebbeka was the one that had to go first, so she took a couple seconds to collect her thoughts and to tell herself he loved her and wouldn't abandon her.

Wendell was impatiently awaiting what his love was going to tell him and silently dreading that it might be that she was leaving the group and going to live here with the child queen. Rebbeka began with that she loved him with all of her heart and would do nothing to hurt him, then she told him that she had been trying to find a way to tell him for almost two months now but couldn't. She stopped and told Wendell to sit down just in case. She sat down next to him, took a deep breath and said that she was with cubs and they were his. Wendell's eyes bulged out and he sputtered and fainted. When he came to, Rebbeka was still sitting on the log that he had fallen off of, crying. Wendell thought that she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen at that moment and fell in love with her all over again. He was going to be a daddy just like he had wanted all of his life. Wendell comforted the half-wolf that had stolen his heart, telling her that he loved her and that he would always love her and would love the cub when it came. Finally Rebbeka stopped crying and asked Wendell what he was going to tell or ask her.

Wendell was already down on one knee so he stayed there and took a deep breath, reassuring himself that she was with child and would marry him. Finally taking the ring out of his pocket, he held it up to Rebbeka with eyes turned down because he was so nervous. He finally said to Rebbeka that she was his mate and if she would say yes to be his wife and mother to his child. It was Rebbeka's turn to faint but Wendell took it as a yes because of the smile on her face.

Wendell picked up his fiance after slipping the ring on her finger, and carried her off to lay her down in a bed to rest. On the way he saw Wolf and got a big hug from him after a growl and a warning not to hurt his sister. Virginia told him that she owed him a hug after he put Rebbeka to bed.

The next morning Rebbeka woke and thought it was all a dream, but proof that it was not lay in the bed beside her; she saw a mop of sandy blond hair that needed to be cut. Also she had proof that it was real on her finger - the gold diamond and silver ring was jammed delicately on to her left hand. She could not remember going up to bed, but apparently she had although this was not her room, but Wendell's. The lump that was lying beside her stirred and turned to face her. She could see the childness still in his face that had not been wiped away from his face by worry. She saw that he was beginning to get a little peach fuzz on his face and thought he looked so handsome. Their children would have one of the best men to be their father. She then looked once more and saw a glimmer of blue and realized that the man beside her was awake and looking at her, so she giggled and hit him with a little pillow. He in turn hit her with a little pillow and then threw the blanket over her and himself. They cuddled under the blanket for over an hour until they heard a tiny knock at the door.

Wendell bade them to come in. The tiny knock had come from a tiny person, no bigger than a two-year-old, but yet looking very wise. The tiny person had returned with the travel clothes of Wendell's and had known the girl was with him - that was why he'd knocked.

After eating a large breakfast, like the one they had eaten the first day there, the group went to pay their goodbyes and thanks to Apsala and the child queen. Apsala was nowhere to be found, but the child queen was in her throne room waiting for the group to come and ask her where the fox had gone. Anderella informed the group that the fox was off into the forest to do things that normal foxes did every day, and would not be back before they left.

After packing everything that they would need for the trip back, the group headed off to see if the plan of asking the help of the child queen had truly been worth the long, hard trip. They returned back to the Fourth Kingdom a week later to find Apsala waiting at the gate of the palace, worn and tired. The fox told the group that the battle was over. The trolls were back in their own kingdom and had even signed a surrender, after they had seen and tried to do battle with so many magical beings. She pointed to the trees of the forest behind the palace to find fifty or so people sleeping in the branches of the trees and in the courtyard they found the white dragon sleeping. Apsala soon left to retrieve all of the her people but before she left Rebbeka told her to return for the wedding.

Four years later, Wendell was sitting in his study doing some work on the wolf camp that he had thought up. The wolf camp would be a place that wolves would go to for the full moon, so that the villagers would feel a little safer. Wolf would be in charge of the camp because he knew what was needed during the full moon. Wendell then began thinking of his family and playing with his amulet. Virginia and Rebbeka had thought it would be nice if their family had their own symbol, so they'd designed it: a tear drop with a phoenix and a howling wolf on the inside and at the top, where the drop was pointed, was the White family crest. All of them wore this amulet.

Wendell's concentration was broken by a brush of fur against his leg. Upon investigating, he found a young wolf cub underneath the desk. This wolf cub was Fenil, Wolf and Virginia's son. The little boy had his tail out, wagging it. But the tail out did not bother Wendell because his own kids had tails, so why should all of the cubs keep their tails in around the house?

Wendell, after chuckling a little, asked the young cub what he was doing. The boy gave him the quiet sign and pulled him under the desk with him. Fenil then told his uncle that they were playing hide and seek and he was chosen as the hider. After about ten minutes Wendell and Fenil heard the sound that they were waiting for, footsteps in the hallway, which brought five other wolf cubs into the study. Soon Wesley, Wendell's son, and Rory, Wolf's daughter, came behind the desk and Wendell pulled them under with him and Fenil. Then, to investigate the disappearance of her brother and cousin, Kasandra came behind the desk and Wendell captured his daughter and pulled her under with the rest of them. Cindy (Wendell's other daughter) and Saydee ( Wolf's last daughter) took the longest to capture but soon they were under the large desk of Wendell's, laughing at the silliness of their father or uncle.

Wolf soon came into the study looking for his wandering students. He was teaching them the basics of wolfhood. He found them all underneath the desk with Wendell and said that they were practicing the art of denning. Wolf crawled under the desk with the rest of them; they were squished but still they were having fun. When they heard foot steps in the hall and Rebbeka yelling for them, Wendell gave them all the quiet sign. When she got close enough to the opening Wendell reached out and grabbed her foot. Rebbeka screamed and then started laughing; when Virginia heard the scream she came running as best she could, because she was pregnant, to see what all the commotion was about. Virginia began to laugh when she saw the sight of her husband, brother, and the cubs under the desk. She could barely stop laughing long enough to ask what they were doing under there, but started laughing again after Wolf told her that they were the captives of the merciless cubs, and Fenil repeated, "Yeah, merciless cubs, Momma."

Rebbeka, finally finding her voice, told the cubs that if they released their daddies they might get a story. All of the cubs scrambled out of the den, and after Wolf and Wendell were pulled out, the family rushed to find Tony so they all could listen to a story. It was decided that Virginia should tell the tale and also the story was chosen: The Quest.