“Don’t worry,” Frieda said, reassuring the children. Never mind that her own heart was beating at least as fast as Emi’s, which she could feel by her side. “As soon as your mother has run far enough, I shall call her and conjure her back. Nothing will happen to her.”
“Are you sure?” Leon asked as he wept on her chest.
Frieda did her best to smile, but it didn’t come through her eyes. “Of course, my love. Your mother will soon be back with you.”
“What will happen to the prince?” Emi asked. “Does he have to be a bear forever now?”
“We shall see.”
“But Mommy and the prince have fallen in love,” Emi said through her sniffles. “And now they’re separated. The prince isa bear, and Mommy will be back with us soon. How can that be, Frieda? I thought now they would be together forever.”
“Is that what you’re hoping for?”
Leon and Emi nodded. Even Marco started to nod.
Emi wiped the tears from her cheeks with the back of her hand and gazed up at Frieda. There was a look of despair in her big, brown eyes. “Fairy tales always have a happy ending!”
Frieda smiled. “And what can we conclude from that, my little angel?”
Marco looked up. “That it’s not the end yet!”
19
Hannah ran deeper and deeper into the woods. There was darkness all around her. Shadows were lurking everywhere, and an owl screeched. She searched for Maximilian but could find him nowhere. She had even run in the same direction, but she hadn’t seen him at all since he’d charged away from the hut.
Was he really a bear now? A full-fledged bear? Was there nothing left of the human being? Had the potion made the change complete? He had attacked her, had no longer recognized her...
Hannah was shivering as she rushed through the darkness. What should she do? Should she look for him? What good would it do? Would he recognize her if she talked to him long enough? Or would she be taking her life in her hands if she let him catch sight of her?
The air around her began to move, and a bitter wind arose. Something was flashing and sparkling. Hannah was frightened. Was it the forest gnomes again? Had they returned? She didn’t wait for any confirmation and sprinted onward through the woods. She needed to find the brick path, for only then wouldshe be safe from those strange creatures. But which way should she go?
She glanced to the left and the right as she ran. The branch of a fir tree struck her in the face, and she shoved it out of the way. There was still no trace of the brick path. If she stayed to the left, she might find her way back—back to the part she had made her way across with Maximilian before they had come to Mirabelle. And then there was that puddle where she had safely talked with Frieda a couple of hours ago. Hannah could call her neighbor for help through the water. There had to be a way to save Maximilian and get her back to her kids!
She hurried farther to the left, as fast as her legs would take her. The whooshing and whistling grew fainter and fainter until the noise vanished completely. But Hannah would not rest. The adrenaline was pumping through her veins, and she sprinted onward through the shadows.
The sound of splashing water made her stop. Was there a spring nearby? Her tongue was sticking to the roof of her mouth. But where were... oh, no. The bags of provisions were still lying in front of Mirabelle’s hut. She had nothing to eat. Her pulse quickened.
Hannah, calm down! Don’t panic!
Some water would do her good—and she could call Frieda! She decided to follow the splashing sound, and a short while later she came to a spring, where a jet of pure water was gushing out from the middle of a pile of rocks and feeding into a small brook. Panting, she fell to her knees and held her cupped hands beneath the gushing water. She took several gulps until her thirst was somewhat quenched. Then she splashed some water onto her face and arms and felt refreshed. After that, she leaned over the little stream.
“Frieda, are you there?”
She immediately heard her neighbor’s calm voice. “I’m here.” The stream turned into a sea of colors that reflected on the surface and swirled around until Frieda’s face emerged. Hannah’s children appeared beside her.
“Mommy, Mommy, are you all right?”
“Everything’s fine. No need to fear!”
“Where is Maximilian?” asked Frieda.
“I don’t know. He ran off, and I haven’t seen him anywhere. I need to find him. There’s still time. Or is the effect of the potion permanent, Frieda? But if that’s the case, how do I get back to you all?”
“No, it is not at all permanent. At the time, I weakened the curse so that it would take one hundred hours before Maximilian turned into an animal once and for all. The potion supposedly brought the transformation to its final conclusion, but Mirabelle is not that powerful. Such a stupid thing. She most certainly does not have the power to override the laws of magic.”
“What does that mean?”
“Right now, Maximilian is acting like a bear. The potion has suppressed his human side, but it will still remain until the hundred hours have passed. In this condition, however, it will be harder to break the curse.”
