The Frog Collector

Chapter Eight Part 1/3

That afternoon Mirian was restless sitting in a chair at the entrance to the house. Every moment she looked in the direction the princess had left.

"She's taking her time. But she'll arrive sooner or later", she said reassuringly and went into the house to make herself something to drink from the magic table.

Emily was in the garden, but this time she was not tending to the plants. She was also restless, always looking northwest from there hoping that Mirian would not notice her concern. Until she saw, in the distance, a silhouette appear among the trees. It was the princess who had entered the invisible wall. Emily saw that she carried a cloth of the same color as her clothes in her hands and fearing that it was the black flowers, she signaled for the princess to go to her and not to the witch's house. The princess saw Emily's signal and gestured for the girl to calm down. Emily did not understand and lamented that the princess went towards the house.

The princess appeared at the door to the astonishment and joy of Mirian, who soon put her drink aside. Agatha was panting, dirty, with part of her clothes torn and a little bloodied, but this mattered little to the old witch who only had eyes for the cloth in her hands.

"You did it... give it to me!", said Mirian, reaching out to take the cloth.

But the princess pulled it to herself and said in a tired tone:

"Tell me first where my beloved is and what he has been transformed into".

"I need the flower, dear. To make the magic", said the old woman annoyed.

"Use the one you showed me before. I brought you many others", said the princess, showing several black flowers she had brought in the cloth.

Mirian's eyes sparkled.

"Ohh... I haven't seen this many in a long time... All right!", exclaimed the woman, who at first was not very happy.

The witch took the crumpled flower in her pocket, removed the yellow part from the center, and ate it. She closed her eyes, looked up, and was silent for a while. Agatha waited for the witch to touch her, but the woman didn't and finally said:

"Oh yes... He's turned into a fox, dear. He is two hours away from here in the north lying under an ancient oak tree".

"I see...", said the princess, bowing her head.

"Now give me the flowers", said the witch.

The princess handed her the cloth that had been improvised to hold the flowers. Mirian took it and, with a huge smile on her face, placed her hands on the flowers and lifted them into the air, letting them fall back onto the cloth. Then she went to the edge of the invisible dome that held her there.

To be continued...