She gasped with delight

And we are at the end! Longish today but all wrapped up.

Sophie swung about, heart thumping.

An enormous green giant filled the cavern entrance. He held Pixie in one massive, calloused hand, and Fairy in the other. Their heads lolled, their eyes were closed.

Dead? Sophie turned to Janet. Simon remained on the throne by the healing green stone. All three stared at the horrific sight while the Goblin King danced in front of the giant demanding the monster release the little folk.

‘You’re dead!’ Janet cried.

The giant rumbled what might be a laugh. ‘You think there was ever only one of us? You think you can reduce my mate to ashes with dragon fire and I will not be revenged?’

The Goblin King slipped behind the giant, jabbing with his sword at the swollen legs. The giant ignored him.

‘You.’ The giant flicked a gaze to Simon. ‘Leave my spells be. I will decide when and how they will be used, and right now they work their magic to slowly destroy this accursed forest, until naught is left but this cave.’

‘You destroy more than this forest!’ Simon reached for the healing stone. ‘We need this to save forests, creatures, and people.’

‘No!’ The giant stretched towards Simon, over the heads of Janet and Sophie.

Sophie shared a glance with her cousin, and they drove their swords upwards, hard, into the massive creature’s huge belly. At the same time, the Goblin King slashed at the monster’s ankles.

‘Aaggh!’ The green giant stumbled, dropping his captives who fell to the stone floor and lay silent, still.

Sophie could not think of them, not yet. She and Janet thrust again, and again, and the giant fell to its knees, arms clasped to its stomach, green fluid pooling on the stones below it.

Dragon breathed fire again, and Janet and Sophie leapt out of the way, scooping up their fallen companions as Dragon’s breath consumed the giant in one scorching blast … leaving behind a smoking pile of sickly green ash.

‘Look!’ Simon cried.

With the green giant’s death, the destroying spell grew dull, darkened, until it appeared as worthless as a sand worn pebble found on a beach. The healing spell blazed brightly, and fell of its own accord from the stone throne into Simon’s waiting hand.

Simon jumped from the throne and hurried to Pixie and Fairy, cradled in Janet and Sophie’s arms. Laying the stone first on Fairy’s heart and then on Pixie’s, he stood back. Sophie stared into Fairy’s white face, and gasped with delight when a faint pinkness tinged tinged her cheeks.

‘Yes!’ Janet cried when Pixie opened his dark eyes and blinked at her as if wakening from sleep.

***

Janet’s heart lifted as they flew on Dragon over the forest to the castle. The trees were rapidly returning to their normal late summer green. Birds called loudly, and here and there she glimpsed fairy folk and pixies dancing among the wildflowers blossoming at the base of mighty oaks. This forest was saved. But what of the forest in the other world, and the willow?

‘Do you think Mum is recovering too?’ Sophie murmured.

Janet squeezed her cousin’s arm. ‘Let’s hope so, although I suspect we need to get the spell back to the Planning Office before everything is put right back there.’

The companions stopped at the castle long enough to eat and to say a temporary farewell to the king and queen.

‘Next time,’ the queen said, ‘bring your mothers, our daughters, with you. We long to see them.’

Janet conjured an image of her practical, no-nonsense mother riding Dragon over the magical forest, and smiled. ‘We will,’ she promised.

‘Once my mother is recovered,’ Sophie added, with a frown.

They returned to the other world where the willow waited. Dragon, the Goblin King, Fairy and Pixie stayed within its sheltering branches while Janet, Sophie and Simon hurried to Sophie’s home.

To their delight, Sophie’s mother was sitting up in bed, her cheeks flushed, her skin healthy. Leaving Sophie to tell the whole tale, Simon and Janet carried on to the Planning Office.

All seemed normal. The receptionist nodded at Simon as he led Janet through the inner door, and did a double take, squinting at this straight young man with the thick beard and pushed back shoulders as if unsure it really was the pasty, unassuming planner she knew.

Janet pushed quickly after Simon and the two walked with purpose among the desks, where no one glanced up, and on to the Planning Office.

Inside they found Beefy, freed from the cupboard and poring over a large scale map of the area. He looked up, glowering at their entrance.

‘You dare to come back here?’ he blustered.

‘Yes,’ Simon said. ‘There’s something we need to do.’ He pulled the healing gem from his pocket, took the three steps to the map and placed it gently over the forested area.

Beefy scowled harder. ‘What the hell …?’ His scowl softened, turned into a smile of wonder. ‘Yes, of course,’ he whispered, and his eyes were dreamy as an enchantment. ‘Exactly what we need here.’ He turned to Simon, a happy grin spread across his red-hued face. ‘An AONB. That’s what we should do here.’

‘Yes.’ Simon returned the smile and winked at Janet, standing on the other side of the desk. ‘We must proclaim the Forest an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and protect it forever.’

‘That,’ Janet said, ‘is what this AONB spell is all about.’

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