“Where are our clothes?” I asked.
“I don’t think we were this far down the stream,” Cassidy answered. “Look, the path is back there.” We started walking back up. Our clothes were nowhere in sight. Foreboding filled me.
“Did we put them closer to the trees, up there maybe?” she asked.
I shook my head. “No, they were definitely here in the grass.”
“Do you think an animal took them?”
“What kind of wild animal would take all of our clothes?”
“A smart and talented one?”
“Haha,” I said.
“Well, it can’t be a person because we would have noticed anyone walking around out here,” Cass responded. “Or anything big, at least.”
We both stopped and stared at one another, wide-eyed.
Anything big. Oh, crap.
“The Clourichaun!” we both said at the same time, and Cassidy threw her head back with hilarity at the possible practical joke.
“It’s not funny,” I said, which made her laugh even harder. I looked down at my satiny black bra and matching panties, which thankfully covered my whole bottom. But they clung to my every contour, and I really did not want to be seen like this. Cassidy darted around peeking behind tree trunks.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are!” she sang.
“Let’s break up,” I suggested. “You look upstream by the falls. I’ll look around down here.” She agreed and bounded away as if we were playing hide-and-seek.
I crossed my arms over my chest and walked into the trees, standing very still and listening for movement. After a full minute I heard the faintest sound of a high-pitched chuckle. I swung my head to the right where the sound came from. I saw nothing.
“I know you’re there,” I said, feeling foolish. “You may as well come out.”
Another minute passed and then, like a blur, a foot-high man darted out of the trees toward the grass. I took off after him, sprinting. I don’t think he expected the speed of my long strides because he grunted in surprise when I dove on my stomach and snatched him around his middle. I held him tight, careful not to squash him into my chest. I lifted him close to my face as I lay on my stomach, propping up on my elbows. He wiggled furiously like a worm and I recognized the brown curls.
“Rock, you little jerk! Where are our clothes?”
“Aargh! You’re squeezing the life outta me bits and pieces!” he cried.
I did not loosen my hold.
“If you don’t tell me where my clothes are I’m going to crush your tiny bits and pieces.”
A sudden burst of magic caught me in the chest and violently forced my hands apart. I blinked, and found myself unsteady, sprawled on top of full-grown Rock, who lay back on the grass with his hands behind his head, giving me a lazy grin.
“What’s that ye were saying about tiny?” he asked.
“Oh! You perv!” I struggled to roll off of him, but he grabbed me around the waist, chuckling. When I pushed him he grabbed my wrists instead.
So, funny guy wanted to wrestle, huh? No problem. All of my athletic skills surfaced and I twisted my arms hard toward his thumbs, breaking his hold on my wrists. We were sitting up now and I swiftly brought my legs up between us, giving him a kangaroo-kick to the chest that sent him backward before I swung my legs under myself and crouched, ready. Rock was still laughing in between spurts of coughing as he rolled around, clutching his chest.
“Blimey, what the blazes?” The voice came from the trees.
I glanced up and saw a flash of red hair. McKale stood there staring back and forth between the two of us. Oh, no. This probably looked bad.
Cassidy’s soft footfalls came running up the bank. “You found him! And I found these.” She held up our clothes, out of breath but happy, and then looked over where I kept glancing. “Oh, hey, McKale!”
He sputtered something incoherent and covered his eyes to shield against her near-nakedness.
“Rock stole our clothes when we were swimming!” I pointed to the rascal Clourichaun, who was still on the ground, enjoying the view. McKale lowered the hand from his eyes and glared hard at his friend.
“And aren’t ye glad I did, Kale, m’boy?” Rock nodded his head toward me.
McKale’s eyes traveled over to mine, and then slid slowly downward, landing with an abrupt halt on my boobs. He looked like a child who’d just accidentally discovered his Christmas gift. I allowed him two more seconds of gawking before crossing my arms and breaking the spell. I wanted to be flattered, but I was too busy being angry.
I stomped to Cassidy and began pulling my clothes on. She and Rock were making silly eyes at one another.
“Get your clothes on,” I told her.
“Would you relax? It’s the same as a bathing suit.” She cocked her hip in defiance and Rock cocked an eyebrow.
“Now,” I said to her. She sighed and begrudgingly began pulling on her clothes.
Without looking back at Cassidy and Rock, I headed toward the path where McKale stood. He took up silent residence beside me as I speed-walked. It took five minutes for me to slow down and relax.
“Sorry about Rock,” McKale said. “Bit of a gobshite, that one.”
“You don’t have to apologize for him. He’s annoying, but I know he’s harmless.”
“Eh, mostly. Yer sister should still take heed. Rock is like a brother to me, but he’s unpredictable an’ self-serving.”