Page 52 of Thirsty
The initiates repeated the phrase, and then set about their magic, intense looks of concentration on their faces. After a moment, a crow fluttered down from the sky and landed on one young druid’s arm.
“Did he...” Charlie asked. The crow flapped its wings a few times as it settled down, its black eyes sharp.
A moment later, a doe walked hesitantly out of the forest and came to stand by another of the initiates. “Very nice,” Jude said. The third initiate—the one who hadn’t successfully done any of the tasks—was still chanting quietly to himself, eyes closed.
Charlie gazed at the doe in awe, as it took a few more coltish steps forward. “Are they...creating them?” he whispered. “Calling them?”
“I’m not sure,” Lorenzo said. The doe nuzzled at the young druid who had summoned her, innocent and beautiful.
He was so distracted by its beauty that it took him a moment to notice the earth rumbling at the feet of the third initiate. He was still chanting in a low, muttered voice, standing with hands fixed over the ground as if he were trying to get greenery to bloom, as the others had. But nothing had yet emerged from the soil at his feet.
Charlie spotted it after a moment too. “What is he...”
The ground in front of the initiate churned and then broke, a small mound of earth being pushed up and out of the way. And something was emerging from the soil—not greenery at all, but something that looked like it was tunneling or crawling upward in rough, jerky movements.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Jude said, grabbing the initiate’s arm. It broke his concentration, and he complained as Jude dragged him off to the side. The broken soil at his feet had stopped moving.
“Uh,” said Charlie.
“I...don’t know,” said Lorenzo, but he felt unaccountably relieved.
Jude was scolding the third initiate, who had his arms crossed in a huff. A moment later the kid went back inside through the diner, and Jude returned to the group.
“Well done,” he said to the remaining two initiates. “I am proud to say that you are now full members of our order. Congratulations.”
The kids broke into relieved smiles. “So, um,” one said, “does this mean we can watch the movie?”
Jude sighed. “Come with me.”
They walked around the diner until they were within sight of the screen showingKiki’s Delivery Service. Jude stopped on a patch of grass that looked too lush and full to be a regular parking spot, and waved his arm widely.
As they watched, an enormous tangle of flowers, branches, vines, and roots emerged from the ground, and after a moment, fixed into the shape of a vintage car. The detail was impressive—sheets of interwoven wildflowers formed the sinuous curves of the car’s body, thick roots snaked under and around the car as the ducts and spoilers, and panes of whisper-thin ice served as windows. The doors opened just like real car doors as the teens squeaked and climbed gleefully inside, and after a moment, Lorenzo could hear the movie coming through on whatever served as the car’s radio.
Next to him, Charlie was agape. “Lorenzo, thank you for coming,” Jude was saying formally. “And Charlie, it was our honor to host you here tonight.”
“Oh, uh, thank you,” Charlie said. “This was great.”
Jude noticed his eyes straying back to the flower car. “Please, allow me,” he said.
With a wave of his hand, another earth-woven car sprouted up beside Lorenzo and Charlie. Charlie emitted something between a gasp and a giggle. “Enjoy the film,” Jude said, inclining his head and then walking back into the woods.
Charlie spared a moment to give Lorenzo an amazed, irrepressibly excited look before he hopped into the car. For a brief, ridiculous moment, Lorenzo thought of Dorothy, of all people. She would have liked nonsense like this—cars made of flowers and vines.
And she would have liked Charlie.
Lorenzo sighed and followed him. The car was just as impressive inside as it had seemed from the outside: their seats were soft, gnarled tree trunks, the bark hollowed out into the perfect shape for reclining, and at Charlie’s feet were several squat mushroom pedals. The honeycomb center console wassoftly glowing, and the flower doors snapped behind them just as precisely as a metal car’s.
“This is incredible,” Charlie whispered. “I can’t believe he made one for us too.”
“And we didn’t have to do any magic,” Lorenzo said.
“Well. Youaremagic,” Charlie replied, flicking a teasing look at him.
Lorenzo bit his lip. “I feel bad for that one kid,” Charlie added, looking pensive as he played delicately with a thin, almost translucent blue petal.
Lorenzo grunted. “It can be difficult,” he said. “With some of these older orders, when you’re not...”
Charlie frowned. “Not what?”
