The Phoenix Stone: Chapter 4

Isabel snuck into the castle when she got home. It was very late and she didn't want to wake anybody at this time of night. Isabel curled up under the covers and waited for morning. Elsa hid under the bed looking for a sandwich she hid there a year ago. Isabel thought about what the men said about Silas. " I wonder if it hurt, being turned into a lion." Then, Isabel yawned and fell asleep. Elsa, however, was too excited to fall asleep. She played with socks and had a fresh meal of mouse traps. Soon Elsa grew exhausted with boredom. She stared at the ceiling and counted the dead bugs that were around. She almost fell asleep when she saw a strange creature. It was a small brown fur ball with ears that were round and big compared to his little head. Its tail was long and pink, the same color as its little paws. The creature had a cute, little, pink nose that moved every time it took a breath. Elsa and the creature held a staring contest for a while. Elsa, puzzling what the creature was, and the creature, not daring to move. After a while, the creature realized there was no danger and moved around the room. The creature loved Isabel, and would often race around the room at night. Elsa was so startled when the thing moved, she yipped rather suddenly, waking Isabel. Looking down, Isabel saw the creature scurry across the floor. " Why Elsa! It's only a little mouse." Isabelle giggled and she picked up the creature. " He's so small." The mouse's ears perked up. " Look how independent he is. I know! I'll call you Maverick." Isabel gave Maverick a small piece of cheese and some nuts. Maverick greedily ate them up then begged for more. " No more Maverick." Isabel said and set Maverick on her night stand. Maverick used a piece of fabric for a soft mattress and he curled up on it. Isabel and Maverick yawned. Elsa went back under the bed. She peaked out and glared at Maverick. And then, to prove she was Isabel's favorite, Elsa curled up on Isabel's pillow and fell asleep. When king Ellis woke up, he went to check on his daughter Elizabeth. Elizabeth shared a room with Isabel. She always pretended she had a room of her own. A room with a large windowsill, big enough to sit in. And right next to her room would be Isabel's room. They would still be able to hang out, but have some time alone as well. But, when Isabel was gone overnight Elizabeth cried all throughout the night. Even asleep she whimpered. So you can imagine the joy of waking up to find Isabel sound asleep in bed, with Elsa on the pillow. Ellis was about to knock on the girl's bedroom door, when a smiling Elizabeth opened the door. "She's back daddy! She's come home!" All the commotion woke up Isabel, who climbed out of bed to see what was going on. When she saw her father, she ran and hugged him tight. “I missed you so much, Daddy!” Elis carried Isabel into the room, sat down on the bed, looked at Isabel, and asked, “Where have you been? Your mother and I were worried sick!” This is when Isabel told the whole story about how she found the tower.She told about getting lost, and finding the tower. She explained the strange man who told her about Silas. Isabel told everything except about finding the necklace. Isabel just said that the man gave her the map and sandwich. The necklace was safely hidden in a puzzle box that nobody could open, but Isabel. When she reached the end of her story, Elis had a worried look on his face. “I don’t want you to ever go out in the woods alone again. If you ever want to pick berries, or go exploring, you must take a maid or servant with you.” Isabel could see he was really worried about her. “Okay, Daddy. I won’t ever go out in the woods alone.” she reassured her father. And for the next few months, it stayed that way. But, of course, the woods were calling.