Previously on Adventures on Awe Island, Marie's surprise observations about the two dragon clues opened new possibilities as to what and where the oldest thing on Awe Island might be.
Will JJ and Christian agree?
Welcome to Adventures on Awe Island.
Chapter 5.
Dragon.
Part 2.
The following afternoon Marie put her detective's journal in her backpack, slung it over her shoulder and headed back to the library a bit early.
She told her parents she would be back before dinner.
It had been exactly one week since the library closed.
Deep beneath the building, behind a locked door labeled restricted, at the bottom of a carved stone staircase.
The rare books room had caught fire due to old electrical wiring.
Marie was anxious to see if anything had changed since the library had reopened.
Most importantly, Marie wanted to know if the secret spot, the book where they'd found the treasure map and the third riddle had been damaged, since it had been located in the room where the fire took place.
Walking through the first set of doors, she was greeted by the familiar scent of pine and the fountain gurgling away near the entrance.
Quickly, she headed through the second set of doors and into the main lobby.
She stopped and looked around, taking it all in.
Everything appeared to be unchanged, as if a fire had never occurred.
In fact, it felt quite anticlimactic.
Marie wasn't sure what she was expecting exactly, but she expected something to be different.
She headed to the information desk and saw Sal, the librarian, helping a patron.
Marie got in line to wait her turn for assistance.
Hi, Sal.
I'd like to go to the rare books room, please, she said in her most businesslike tone.
Hiya, kiddo, Sal greeted Marie.
I'm sorry, but that's not open yet.
They're still finishing repairs.
Marie just stood there for a moment.
She hadn't anticipated this possibility and was crestfallen.
Do you know if any books were damaged?
She asked, hoping for any information.
Some were ruined, but I'm not sure which ones.
We haven't been allowed downstairs yet.
The books in the affected area were sent out for restoration, if they were not too damaged.
Sal replied.
I think it's going to take about a week before the area is safe to go into.
They have to replace all the lighting and electrical down there and clean up the soot.
Oh, okay.
Thanks, Marie said sadly.
She was more worried than ever now.
Even if the secret spot hadn't been completely destroyed, if it had been sent out for restoration, perhaps vital clues, like the riddle written on the inside of the dust cover, would be lost.
Just thinking about it made her stomach lurch.
Marie was about to turn away from the desk when she remembered that she, JJ and Christian were meeting next and needed a place to talk privately.
I'd like to use a collaboration room please.
She said to Sal, pulling her library card from her pocket.
After signing out the collaboration room, she went back to the lobby to meet JJ and Christian.
JJ was already there waiting.
Upon seeing Marie, JJ smiled.
I brought my notes, she whispered to Marie.
Me too, Marie replied, just as Christian walked through the entryway doors and joined them.
He looked much more chipper than Marie felt, going so far as to hold his hand out in a thumbs up pose.
Marie was uncertain what inspired the gesture at this moment, but she made a thumbs up and pressed her thumb to Christian's.
JJ did the same so that their three thumbs met in the center.
It wasn't really a handshake.
At least, they hadn't called it that yet.
But to Marie, it felt like one, for lack of a better descriptor.
It was a symbolic gesture confirming that they were in this together.
What was that for?
JJ asked.
I've got great news, Christian said.
He opened his mouth to tell them right there in the lobby, but Marie cut him off.
Come on, I've got a collaboration room signed out already.
Let's talk there, she said, leading the way to the room they'd been assigned.
Once they were inside the room and could talk freely, Christian's upbeat mood had Marie and JJ smiling, without even knowing what they were smiling about.
Okay, so what's up?
JJ asked as she took out her notebook.
Marie also set her journal on the table and opened to her notes on Dragon.
If it was possible, Christian's smile broadened even wider.
I found out where dragon lives in the forest, he said.
Then in a victory chant, he said, what gives, what gives?
I know where dragon lives.
Bouncing his shoulders in time with the rhyme.
Oh my gosh, Murray said.
Of all the things Kristen could have said, she was not expecting this news.
That's fantastic.
How'd you find out?
JJ asked, voice awash in admiration and excitement.
My parents knew, Kristen said matter-of-factly.
They found Dragon's home on a forest hike a while ago.
So where is it?
Marie said, unable to contain her curiosity.
Kristen chuckled.
It's right at the center of the forest.
My mom says you take the hiking path that starts near the park and the pavilion.
Every time the path splits, you stay to the right.
And after three splits...
You come upon a really old oak tree growing next to a small cave.
Dragon lives in that cave.
Wow, Marie said, making note of Dragon's home in her list, along with the instructions about staying to the right at the three forks in the path.
JJ was also writing furiously in her notebook.
That sounds pretty easy.
Let's go now, she said.
Well, it's not that simple, Christian said.
Marie and JJ exchanged looks.
Why not?
Marie asked.
My mom says that if you walk at a good pace It will take at least an hour each way.
Christian explained.
An hour?
Oh no, Marie cried.
This was terrible news.
If it was going to take them an hour to walk there each way, plus the time they spend looking for the symbol, the odds of getting all the way there and back without any adults finding out seemed unlikely.
How are we ever going to sneak away for that long and not get caught, she said.
I don't know.
Maybe we can run and get there faster, Kristen suggested.
That's a lot of running, though, he concluded, making a face as he said this.
No kidding.
That sounds miserable and impossible, Marie said.
She stuck her elbow on the table and leaned her head in her hand to think a minute.
It seemed like every time they got a break in the case, there was something in the way of it.
She sighed and reminded herself that setbacks happened. to every great detective.
And that's when a detective's critical thinking skills were extra important.
But no ideas came to mind at the moment, and she sighed again.
Why don't we just ride our bikes on the path?
It'll be much faster that way, JJ said, raising a knowing eyebrow at her friends.
Christian did a dramatic face palm.
Of course, bikes, he said with a laugh.
We always just walk everywhere since it's so close.
Bikes are the perfect solution.
He smiled slyly, adding, and if anyone catches us.
We can just tell them we wanted to ride a little bit into the forest to see what was there and we got lost.
Marie regarded her two best friends with an admiring grin.
This was why it was so important to do this quest as a team.
Not only was it more fun with friends, But it also made it easier to problem solve together.
That's brilliant, she exclaimed.
The relief she felt having a solid plan of what to do next was palpable.
And the thought of seeing where Dragon lived and hopefully finding the symbol there was incredibly exciting.
When do you want to go?
She asked.
After a quick check of their schedules, they ascertained that the next afternoon they all had free was once again Thursday.
That would be a big day.
They would ride their bikes to school in the morning and tell their parents they were going to the library after school for a few hours before dinner.
But instead of going to the library they would actually ride to the park, find the trail and bike all the way to Dragon's Cave as fast as possible.
Marie really didn't like having to wait so long, but this was something they had to do together.
It felt like a really important step.
When Marie ate dinner with her parents that night, she asked them if she could ride her bike to school on Thursday and go to the library with JJ and Christian afterward.
She assumed their answer would be yes, because it usually was.
Except this time, it wasn't.
I'm sorry, sweetie, her mom said.
You can't go this Thursday.
You need to come home right after school because we have plans, remember?
That's the day we're going out to dinner with some colleagues of mine that are visiting from out of town.
And after dinner, we're going to see the new play at the Playhouse.
Marie had completely forgotten about these plans.
No, she said emphatically.
I don't want to go.
Do I have to?
Marie usually didn't argue with her parents, but she was really looking forward to finding where Dragon lived and she didn't want to have to wait even longer to go looking with JJ and Christian.
What's gotten into you? her dad asked.
You were so eager to go when mom told you about it a few weeks ago.
They have a daughter your age, added her mom.
I'm sure she really wants to meet you.
I know, Marie said hesitantly.
Truth be told, she had been very excited about the plans when her mom had mentioned it.
She really enjoyed meeting kids her own age, and going to see productions at the Playhouse was one of her favorite things to do.
Marie had simply forgotten that this Thursday was the night they were going.
You can ride your bike to school another day, her dad said.
Okay, Marie agreed begrudgingly, pushing some of her green beans on her plate back and forth.
She didn't feel much like eating anymore.
After dinner, she messaged Christian and JJ.
Can't go Thursday.
Can you go Friday?
The answer was no.
After going back and forth a bit, they concluded that the next possible day they were all available was the following Thursday, 10 whole days away.
They agreed to go then.
10 whole days.
10 whole days.
A great detective, did not wait 10 days to explore important leads in their case.
Marie told herself despairingly.
That seemed like forever, but she didn't see any way around it.
On the following days leading up to Thursday, Marie was anxious, feeling like the entire adventure was slipping away from her, while she sat around and waited to go to some boring dinner and play.
On Thursday, Marie felt particularly restless and irritated.
Throughout the day, her thoughts kept drifting to the Awe Island forest.
She went home right after school, did her homework, and got ready to go out to dinner.
Then she clipped her belt bag over her shoulder on an angle.
It contained her journal and a pen in case she had any unexpected breakthroughs or ideas.
She wanted to jot down about the case.
Doing all of this made her lousy mood even worse because it reminded her of what she was missing.
She really just wanted to be with JJ and Christian, finding Dragon's Cave.
As they loaded into the car to go to dinner, Marie's mom noticed her daughter's sour mood and raised an eyebrow.
Please try to be cordial, she said to Marie.
This colleague is a friend from medical school and her daughter hasn't had anyone her own age to hang out with yet while they've been visiting.
You wouldn't want someone to be grumpy if you were visiting them, would you?
No, Marie agreed.
She still felt grumpy nonetheless, but resigned herself to the evening's plans.
They met her mom's colleague, Dr Barbara Schmidt, along with Dr Schmidt's husband Harrison and their 10-year-old daughter Saskia, at a local restaurant.
As they ate, Marie found herself pleasantly distracted. which helped to lighten her spirits.
Saskia was outgoing and cheerful and interesting to talk to and she didn't shy away from big topics.
I know I don't look like my parents.
That's because I'm adopted, she told Marie.
Marie was surprised by Saskia's openness.
She didn't seem sad or upset by the topic, just matter of fact.
Oh, wow, said Marie.
Do you know who your birth parents are?
Saskia shook her head.
I've never met them, and I don't know anything about them.
My mom says she wasn't given any information except for a sealed envelope that I can only open when I turn 13.
Whoa, that sounds like a pretty big deal, Marie said, unsure what else to say.
Marie didn't know a lot about adoption.
She hadn't imagined what it would feel like to be adopted and have another family out there in the world.
Saskia shrugged.
I guess it is, but that's still three years away.
As the two girls chatted more, Marie also found some things they had in common.
Saskia really liked art, and in particular, painting with acrylic paint.
Marie liked art too.
And Saskia loved animals.
Her family had a little dog named LD, which stood for little dude.
So named because he was a tiny dog. the big dog mentality.
Marie loved animals as well and hoped to have a dog of her own someday.
After dinner the group walked over to the playhouse that was just a few buildings over from the restaurant.
There was quite a crowd assembled out front.
This is a world premiere, her mom explained.
As they joined the queue to enter, marie looked up.
The name of the play was glowing in bright lights on the marquee obscuratus island.
Oh interesting title, marie thought to herself.
Walking down the aisle of the theater, marie noted that the setup was in the round, with the stage in the center of the room and seats arranged all around it.
The freeform platform was raised about a foot off the ground, but its size and shape made the stage itself feel like an island.
They had front row seats and Marie was so close to the stage she felt like she was practically on it.
She immediately tucked her playbill into her belt bag.
Although she usually liked to read the director's notes and the actors' profiles right away, she was having such a nice time chatting with Saskia she figured she'd read them later.
Soon, the lights dimmed and when they came up again, there were three teenagers on the stage standing facing out in different directions, with their backs to each other.
They looked like they were dressed for an adventure.
And so the story began.
To her surprise, the main character in this play was also named Marie.
Hearing her own name spoken on stage made Marie feel like she was part of the story herself, which drew her into the mystery immediately.
The play followed the three teenagers who were stranded on a mysterious island, Obscuratus Island.
As they explored the island, they met a variety of humans and creatures, some friend, some foe, and encountered strange magics.
Over the course of Act I, the teens solved an ancient mystery, fought a great battle and finally found a way to return home.
But just when the adventure appeared to be over, they realized they had to go back to the island because they had really only solved part of the mystery and fought one battle.
And there were more secrets to uncover, more dangers to face.
At this cliffhanger, the lights came up An intermission began.
Marie blinked a few times as her eyes adjusted to the brightness.
This story felt so real, so incredibly real.
It was almost jarring to return to the ordinary world.
Marie didn't want to talk, didn't want to think.
She just wanted to stay in the story and see what was going to happen next.
After a long wait, it's finally time for Marie, JJ, and Christian to go into the Awe Island Forest.
Will they be able to find the home of the young dragon and see if the strange symbol is there?
Find out when the adventure continues in our next episode of Adventures on Awe Island.
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