powerful magic to deal with their problem, Millie probably couldn’t help. Aside from her dragon magic, she had very little magic of her own. She could find lost items, but only if they were things she used all the time and had lost recently. She could turn the pages of a book with the wave of a hand, but only one at a time. She could even blow out a candle from across the room, but she couldn’t light it again unless she turned into a dragon. Millie wanted to tell the fairies that they’d have to return when her mother was home, but then she glanced at Poison Ivy again and knew from the curl of her lip that the fairy expected her to back down. The irritation she’d felt before flared into a spark of anger.
For most of her life, before Millie had learned how to control her temper, she turned into a dragon each time she got angry. Even now, controlling her temper wasn’t always easy. She knew that if she let little things bother her, even the smallest spark of anger could flare into full-blown rage. Millie glared at the narrow-faced fairy, then purposefully turned toward Moss. “If you tell me what the problem is, I might be able to help.”
Moss shook her head, and her cap slipped down over her eyes. She pushed it back with a rueful smile and said, “That’s very nice of you to offer, but I don’t see how you can possibly help us. It’s a plant problem, you see, and not a nice plant, either.”
“Is it one of your plants?” Millie asked, glancing from one to the next but letting her gaze linger longest on Poison Ivy.
“Don’t look at me!” Poison Ivy declared. “My ivy has nothing to do with this. I only came along to help.”
“There’s no need to act defensive,” said Moss. “I’m sure Princess Millie didn’t mean anything.”
“Ha!” said Poison Ivy.
“It’s not one of our plants at all,” whispered Trillium. “It’s a plant so nasty that it doesn’t have a fairy to watch over it.”
“That’s right,” said Moss. “No fairy wants anything to do with it. It’s new to the enchanted forest. We think some horrid person brought it here to stir up trouble. Thank goodness there’s only one.”
“It comes from a rain forest far away,” Poison Ivy added. “Too bad it didn’t stay there.”
“What’s so awful about this plant?” asked Millie. She was intrigued now. A plant couldn’t be that bad, could it?
“What plant?” asked Audun as he descended the steps behind her.
“Are you a wizard?” Poison Ivy said, looking Audun up and down. “Because we could really use a good one.”
“This is my betrothed, Audun, and he’s not a wizard.”
“Even so, I’m sure we can deal with a plant,” Audun told them.
Poison Ivy snorted. “Not this plant!”
Trillium tugged on Poison Ivy’s sleeve. “We could show it to them,” she said in a voice so soft that Millie had to strain to hear it.
“I’m not sure … ,” Moss began.
“Why not?” said Poison Ivy and sneered at Millie. “I’d suggest that you follow us on your broom, but you’re not a witch, so—”
“Would a magic carpet do?” Millie asked, anger building inside her again. “I’ll be right back.”
She left Audun talking to the fairies while she went to her chamber to fetch the carpet her mother had given her for her last birthday. It was also an excuse to leave the fairies for a few minutes. Generally, the only people who were rude to Millie were those who didn’t know either that she was a princess or that she could become a dragon at will. Moss had mentioned in Poison Ivy’s presence that Millie’s mother was a princess, so it couldn’t be that. However, there was a good chance that Poison Ivy might not know about Millie’s dragon side; Emma had been using magic for years to keep it a secret. Millie was tempted to turn into a dragon to show the fairy just whom she was dealing with—which was exactly why she couldn’t let herself do it. Once she was a dragon, the temptation to fry Poison Ivy
For most of her life, before Millie had learned how to control her temper, she turned into a dragon each time she got angry. Even now, controlling her temper wasn’t always easy. She knew that if she let little things bother her, even the smallest spark of anger could flare into full-blown rage. Millie glared at the narrow-faced fairy, then purposefully turned toward Moss. “If you tell me what the problem is, I might be able to help.”
Moss shook her head, and her cap slipped down over her eyes. She pushed it back with a rueful smile and said, “That’s very nice of you to offer, but I don’t see how you can possibly help us. It’s a plant problem, you see, and not a nice plant, either.”
“Is it one of your plants?” Millie asked, glancing from one to the next but letting her gaze linger longest on Poison Ivy.
“Don’t look at me!” Poison Ivy declared. “My ivy has nothing to do with this. I only came along to help.”
“There’s no need to act defensive,” said Moss. “I’m sure Princess Millie didn’t mean anything.”
“Ha!” said Poison Ivy.
“It’s not one of our plants at all,” whispered Trillium. “It’s a plant so nasty that it doesn’t have a fairy to watch over it.”
“That’s right,” said Moss. “No fairy wants anything to do with it. It’s new to the enchanted forest. We think some horrid person brought it here to stir up trouble. Thank goodness there’s only one.”
“It comes from a rain forest far away,” Poison Ivy added. “Too bad it didn’t stay there.”
“What’s so awful about this plant?” asked Millie. She was intrigued now. A plant couldn’t be that bad, could it?
“What plant?” asked Audun as he descended the steps behind her.
“Are you a wizard?” Poison Ivy said, looking Audun up and down. “Because we could really use a good one.”
“This is my betrothed, Audun, and he’s not a wizard.”
“Even so, I’m sure we can deal with a plant,” Audun told them.
Poison Ivy snorted. “Not this plant!”
Trillium tugged on Poison Ivy’s sleeve. “We could show it to them,” she said in a voice so soft that Millie had to strain to hear it.
“I’m not sure … ,” Moss began.
“Why not?” said Poison Ivy and sneered at Millie. “I’d suggest that you follow us on your broom, but you’re not a witch, so—”
“Would a magic carpet do?” Millie asked, anger building inside her again. “I’ll be right back.”
She left Audun talking to the fairies while she went to her chamber to fetch the carpet her mother had given her for her last birthday. It was also an excuse to leave the fairies for a few minutes. Generally, the only people who were rude to Millie were those who didn’t know either that she was a princess or that she could become a dragon at will. Moss had mentioned in Poison Ivy’s presence that Millie’s mother was a princess, so it couldn’t be that. However, there was a good chance that Poison Ivy might not know about Millie’s dragon side; Emma had been using magic for years to keep it a secret. Millie was tempted to turn into a dragon to show the fairy just whom she was dealing with—which was exactly why she couldn’t let herself do it. Once she was a dragon, the temptation to fry Poison Ivy
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