There was an awful silence that nobody dared break. Casimir put his hands over his face and stood perfectly still, looking totally bereft.
“We’re very sorry, Prince Casimir,” Neil said quietly.
“Really sorry,” added Clara.
Casimir dropped his hands and looked at them both steadily. He sighed and gave a somewhat shaky smile. “Come,” he said as calmly as he was able, “I can do no more here. I must take you back to the hill. Your parents are anxious to see you.”
Clara felt Kabad tug desperately at her tunic and looked down at him. Her face softened. She knew that she couldn’t leave him behind. The other water goblins had turned out to be little more than particularly horrible bullies. Really nasty creeps, she thought. They’d been jealous of him when they’d found out what he’d done and from then on had made his life miserable, sneaking up on him and pinching him when they thought she wasn’t looking. Indeed, they’d been so horrible to him that in the end he hadn’t dared leave her. As she prised his frantic fingers from edge of her tunic, his face crumpled in an agony of fear and apprehension. “Don’t leave me here,” he pleaded desperately. “Please, Clara!”
“Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you, Kabad,” she said reassuringly. “Neil and I would like you to come home with us, wouldn’t we, Neil?” she said.
“Yes, of course,’ he said, smiling. “There’s a nice loch quite near our house. You’ll like it there.” There were hisses of anger and envy from the other water goblins but Neil ignored them and looked hopefully at Nessie. It was up to her. What if she wouldn’t let them take Kabad?
“Is that all right, Nessie?” Clara queried. “Can we take Kabad with us?”
Nessie, totally taken up with Arthur, nodded quite happily. What was one water goblin, after all? As far as she was concerned, they could take a couple of dozen. One would certainly never be missed.
Neil met Casimir’s eyes and grinned. “Is that all right with you, Prince Casimir?” he asked.
Despite himself, Casimir smiled as he saw the ridiculous grin that had spread over the little water goblin’s face.
“Quite all right,” he said.
Clara turned to Nessie and Arthur. “Goodbye,” she waved, “and thank you both!”
“Bye, Arthur!” Neil said. “Bye, Nessie! Take care!”
Casimir then held his hands over them, murmured the words of a spell and a startled Arthur and Nessie suddenly found that, in the twinkling of an eye, all their magic visitors had left.
32. Christmas Party
A few days after Prince Casimir brought Neil and Clara safely back from Loch Ness, the MacArthur decided to throw a party; a Christmas party. They were all there, except Arthur, who had decided to stay for a while with his Nessie in Loch Ness.
Neil and Clara weren’t sure if the MacArthur hadn’t had a hand in arranging the weather to suit the occasion, for it was a positively magical scene. Snow was falling gently and as the MacLeans flew towards the hill on their magic carpets, Edinburgh stretched beneath them like a huge Christmas card. Once inside, they gasped in wonder for the tunnels were lit by hundreds of fairy lights and the great cavern, strung as it was from wall to wall with Christmas decorations, lanterns and dozens of brightly lit Christmas trees, was a sparkling fairyland of light and colour.
“It looks wonderful,” Clara smiled, hugging Lady Ellan.
“I’m glad you like it,” she smiled, as Amgarad swooped down to land on Clara’s shoulder. “We’ve been busy as you can see! Actually, Archie, Hamish and Jaikie did most of it!”
Jaikie, perched at the top of a ladder, waved down to them as he fixed a star at the top of the tall Christmas tree that stood beside the MacArthur’s throne.
Lewis laughed and waved back. “I can’t quite believe it all, Neil,” he said, marvelling at the sight. “It’s fab, isn’t it?”
Kabad came shyly over wearing his striped pantomime clothes. Mrs MacLean had shortened them for him and they sparkled in the light of the torches. He had never seen a Christmas tree before and gazed up at it in wonder. What with the tree, the decorations and his fabulous new clothes, he was the happiest water goblin in the world.
“Is the Sultan able to come?” Sir James asked as he and the Chief Constable added some brightly wrapped packages to the pile of Christmas gifts under the huge tree.
“Yes,” Lord Rothlan answered, “he’s at Ardray at the moment with Prince Casimir. Sorting out last minute business and the like.”
Lewis heard him. “He’s gone to Ardray?” he said in astonishment. “But Ardray was destroyed. All that was left was a sort of pillar of energy!”