The Changeling Princess (10 page)

CHAPTER 18

I made a date with Wade for Tuesday evening to listen to his police receiver. We usually parked in Peyton Park. It was close to home and it was a great place to go for a walk. Wade was fiddling around with the receiver when he picked up a police call reporting that there was a robbery in progress at the Parkway S & L Bank.

“
This is our chance to do our thing, Wade.”

“
I assume we’ll travel there as Mists?

“
Of course, it’s the only way to fly.”

I reached for Wade
’s hand and turned into a Mist. I made myself invisible and then we drifted outside through the car window. The bank was only four miles away and we were there in two minutes.

We drifted down to the ground and quickly sized up the situation. The police had the bank surrounded and no one was going in or out. We drifted under the bank door and floated toward the rear of the bank. There were four armed gunmen with hi-caliber rifles and about fifteen hostages lying face down on the floor. I assumed the gunmen were waiting for their demands to be met before taking any action. We materialized at the far end of the bank behind a panel outside one of the offices. I talked to Wade through my thoughts.

This is a good opportunity to use your power of suggestion. I’ll back you up with telekinesis if there’s a problem.

Wade nodded his head and went into deep concentration. One of the gunmen placed his gun on the floor and said out loud,
“Why am I doing this? My mother would be ashamed of me.”

Another gunman followed suit and eventually all four of the gunmen laid their guns of the floor. I used my power of telekinesis to march the robbers out the front door. Police officers rushed into the bank and all of the hostages rose to their feet. It was then I noticed Ms. Forbes at the other corner of the bank, writing something in a book she was carrying. She looked at me and smiled before she turned into a Mist and disappeared. Now I knew what she meant when she told me that Mists did a lot of observing and recording.

The situation was well in hand, so Wade and I returned to Peyton Park. We materialized in the car and I was trying to control my excitement. “That was simply amazing, and you deserve a medal, Wade the way you handled those bank robbers. Your power of persuasion is extraordinary.”

“
Thanks for the compliment.”

“
You have to admit we’re getting better and better at this. I think that’s a plus.”

Wade crinkled his nose.
“I love your positive attitude.”

“
What about my charming personality?”

I was laughing as I reached across the seat and kissed Wade on the cheek.
“Let’s go for a walk.”

The park was beautiful at night. There were couples strolling side by side and the atmosphere was enchanting.
“I love the park at night,” I said. “It’s so peaceful and so romantic.”

Wade smiled.
“It certainly is. I bet a lot of men proposed to their wives in this park.”

“
Wade Wilson, I think you’re becoming a romantic.”

“
So, when are you going to ask me?”

“
Ask you what?”

“
Ask me to marry you.”

“
What gave you that idea? Besides, it’s the guy who does the asking.”

“
I was told that in the Changeling Clans, it’s the girl who asks the guy to marry her.”

“
That’ not true.” Wade did his best to keep a straight face, but I knew he wasn’t serious. “You’re teasing me again, Wade.”

Wade didn
’t answer. He took me in his arms and kissed me. I loved being in Wade’s arms and I kissed him back.

“
I shouldn’t have done that, Janis. I don’t know what came over me.”

“
It wouldn’t have happened if I didn’t want it to happen. It’s just that this isn’t the right time to think about a relationship.”

“
You’re right. Besides, you have multiple personalities. I never know if I’m going to be dealing with Janis, Darcy, or the girl who showed up at Anna Millburn’s pool party.”

“
Which one do you like best?” I asked teasingly as I ran my finger over Wade’s chest.

“
I like Janis. I can always have you morph into one of the other girls when I get bored.”

“
Bored! Is that what I am, boring?” I suddenly realized that Wade was teasing me again. “You’re a stinker, Wade Wilson…a low down dirty stinker.”

Wade took off running and I chased after him. I caught him near the water fountain and tackled him. We rolled around on the grass and began laughing out loud. When Wade kissed me again, I realized just how much I loved him. I knew it wasn
’t the right time for a relationship, so I’d just have to wait and see what life had in store for us.

*
* *

The weekend was drawing near and I had a new project. I
’d decided to make a sword and a shield to teach Wade the art of sword fighting. Janis French wasn’t skilled with a word, but the Ivarrs have had centuries to develop their skills.

I decided on a shield that was two and a half feet wide and three feet long. I wanted the shield to resemble a
“school crossing sign for children” turned upside down with the narrow portion at the bottom. I planned to make the shield slightly curved and add two handles on the inside for gripping. The advantage of a shield made out of air was that it was lightweight and stronger than steel. I’d just have to be careful not to make the edges on the sword too sharp. I didn’t want something that could cut down a tree with one swipe.

I was getting to be quite the artist when it came to shaping force fields. I
’d learned a lot of shortcuts and I was really fast. I made two shields and the project took me less than twenty minutes. The second half of my morning project was to make a set of swords.

I fashioned the swords to be thirty-six inches long, with long handles so we could grasp them with both hands. The design was similar to the gladius sword used by Roman foot soldiers during the reign of the Roman Empire. With the proper training, Wade
’s sword would be extremely deadly in close combat.

I did one last test by morphing into a Mist while holding onto my shield and sword. To my delight, I was still holding onto my weapons. The ability to do that might come in handy someday.

I packed the shields and swords in my car trunk, along with my backpack. When I got to Wade’s house, he was waiting for me, wearing his usual smile and singing as he got into the car. “Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to the mountains we go.”

“
Now you’re one of Snow White’s dwarfs?” I commented, trying to keep a straight face.

“
You’ve got to keep your spirits up, Janis, and that means having a good attitude.”

“
In other words, you’re making excuses for being silly.”

“
Let’s just say that being logical all the time isn’t any fun.”

When we arrived at the mountain parking area, Wade couldn
’t help staring as I unloaded the swords and shields from the trunk. “Whoa, what do we have here?”

“
I’m going to teach you how to use a sword. It can be a deadly weapon at close range.”

Wade picked up a sword and shield and began slashing the air like he was fighting someone.
“Do I look like a Roman Centurion?” he asked.

I kep
t a straight face. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen a Roman Centurion dressed in a checkered shirt and faded jeans.”

Wade stopped and looked at me.
“Boy, I really got stung with that one.”

We walked to the edge of the woods, wearing our backpacks and carrying our shields and swords.
“You do realize, Wade, that riding piggyback with all this equipment is out of the question.”

“
That means we have to do the Mist thing, right?”

I smiled and held out my hand.
“It’s time to fly.” The trip to the clearing took less than a minute.

The first thing I did after reaching the clearing was to make several force field targets and position them around the clearing. We started the target practice by taking turns trying to outdo each other using our energy beams. Our aim was getting better with each trip and we were turning into regular sharpshooters. I noticed that Wade
’s energy beam had gotten stronger since our last trip. This was a sign that his powers were still increasing. I was already making plans to find a larger space where Wade could practice his control over the weather. What we really needed was a deserted island in the middle of nowhere.

“
Okay, Wade, it’s time for you to learn the art of sword fighting,” I said with a grin.

Wade looked concerned.
“Have you ever used a sword and shield before, Janis?”

“
No, is that a problem?” I asked, looking confident.

“
So what you’re telling me is you’ve inherited the art of sword fighting from the ancient Ivarrs?”

“
That’s correct. Do you see that tree at the edge of the clearing with two large knots about two feet apart?

Wade stared at the trees.
“The really big one about fifty feet away?”

“
That’s the one.”

I picked up Wade
’s sword so that I was now holding a sword in each hand. I began spinning the swords in the air like an expert juggler putting on an exhibition. I tossed one of the swords high into the air, and then I waited a full second and tossed the other one into the air. When the first sword came spinning down, I grabbed it by the handle and threw it towards the tree at the edge of the clearing. In a split second, I reached out and grabbed the second spinning sword and sent it flying right behind the first sword. When the swords struck the tree, the blades landed in the center of the tree knots exactly two feet apart.

Wade was collecting his thoughts before he spoke.
“I would be honored to be taught the art of sword fighting by such a gracious master. If you will accept this miserable human as a student, I will do my best not to bring shame on your house.”

I tried not to grin.
“I bet you got that little speech out of a movie. Let’s retrieve the swords because we have a lot of work to do.

The first thing I taught Wade was the correct defensive stance and how to move his feet forward and sideways. After covering the basics, I introduced him to the rudiments of sword fighting. I taught him how to lunge, how to make short and long slashing motions, and how to combine them with the footwork he used earlier. Wade was a fast learner. He lost his balance only one time.

I pick up my sword and shield and faced Wade. “Now the fun begins.”

I stood in front of Wade and had him start with the lunging motion he
’d been taught. He’d barely extended his sword when I knocked it out of his hand. “You’re too slow,” I said. “Do it again and put some speed behind your lunge.”

Wade did as I asked, but I stepped to one side and knocked the sword out of his hand again.
“The point to remember is that your opponent is not going to stand idly by and let you stab him with your sword. It’ll take time, but you’ll eventually sharpen your skills to anticipate your opponent’s moves. In ancient times, the children of warring tribes were skilled swordsman by the time they reached the age of twelve.”

Wade grinned.
“That tidbit of information makes me feel a lot better.”

We spent another hour going over the fundamentals of sword fighting. I couldn
’t get over what a quick learner Wade was. He had a determination to succeed that was inspiring.

“
I think you did pretty well for a beginner, Wade.”

“
That’s because I had a good teacher. I’m going to get a whole lot better and make you proud of me.”

“
I’m proud of you already. You have the heart of a warrior and that’s something that can’t be taught.”

We cleaned up the area and put on our backpacks.
“I was thinking, Wade. Why don’t we just leave the shields and swords here so we won’t have to transport them back and forth?”

“
Sure, if you can think of a good place to hide them.”

I used my telekinesis and secured them on a limb high in the tree tops.

“Perfect,” said Wade, but I have another suggestion.”

“
I’m listening.”

The next time we come here, why don
’t you spread a thin force field over the ground? That would eliminate any chance of us damaging this area and it would be easier to clean up afterwards.”

“
That’s brilliant, Wade. You’re a lot smarter than I thought you were.” I tried my best to keep a straight face.

“
I’m not sure if that’s a put down or not. Now that we don’t have the swords and shields to tote around, do I get a piggy ride back to the car?”