Help Wanted Apply By Dragonfly

By R.D. Mathews

Jack the leprechaun has a problem. He has been tricked out of all of his gold. He must find more or he will fade away into nothing. Lucky for him he is found by William and Charlie who agree to help him out. Join the adventure as they do good deeds for magical beings who reward them in ways you can't imagine.

This book is rated ages 9 and up.

• Language: English
• Publisher: R.D. Mathews
• Release date: Nov 10, 2011
• ISBN: 9781466021181

R.D. Mathews

Yesterday, upon the stair,I met a man who wasn't there.He wasn't there again today,I wish, I wish he'd go away...

Book preview

Chapter 1

The Frog

Note: Leprechauns- Small human looking creatures that have magical abilities. They tend to travel around looking for adventure. Leprechaun’s magic grows stronger when they receive a coin given to them on an quest.

It was the second day of summer and William Strong being your average teen decided that it was too nice to stay in the house. He grabbed his net and fishing pole then headed outside and down towards the stream. He settled in under the big willow tree and let his line hang down into the water. It was quiet here and he sat for awhile watching the cork bob up and down. Despite his best efforts to stay awake he fell asleep.

William awoke with a start something had made a loud splashing sound nearby. He looked around but didn't see anything. Maybe it was just his mind playing tricks on him. He took a deep breath and decided to get up to investigate.

He left his fishing pole where it was and went to the edge of the water. He peered down into the clear stream and saw only his own distorted reflection. He thought for just a minute that it was his imagination and he was just about to turn to leave, when suddenly a bright green frog broke the surface of the water right in the middle of his reflection.

He was so startled that he almost fell backwards. He managed to catch himself and watched as the frog swam up to the bank just in front of him. The frog was bright green with small black spots and shiny golden eyes. He had never seen a better looking frog before. He decided that he needed to take it home to show his friend Charlie.

William went back to where he was sitting and got his net. He went back and the poor frog was laying on the shore trying to catch it breath. It sat still and looked like it was somewhat distressed. Using the net he scooped up the frog and began walking back to his house.

Inside he put his fishing pole back in the corner near the door and took the net with the frog upstairs. He knew just where he was going to keep it. He had an old shoe box that was perfect. He put the frog in the box and cut some holes in the lid so that it could get air. This should do he thought until tomorrow when Charlie gets home.

Charlotte Thristlepot known by her friends as Charlie was excited that she was finally going to get to see William again. She would tell him all about her trip to the big city. She would show him her pictures and then tell him about all the great places there were to visit, then as a grand finale she would give him the snow globe that she had bought with a miniature city inside.

Charlie sat back and enjoyed the long ride home. They would get home late tonight and first thing in the morning she would go next door and surprise him. She smiled as she imagined how it was going to be as she stared out the car window.

She was excited and hoped that this was going to be a great summer. Next week she and William were going to go camping in the forest. It would be great spending time with him again. She wondered if he had missed her. She pushed the thought out of her mind and fell asleep dreaming of the great times they were going to have.

The next morning William awoke and jumped out of bed to make sure that the frog hadn't escaped. He lifted the lid on the box and a loud croak came out. He was a little startled but then laughed. He guessed that the frog was answering his question. William quickly got dressed and went downstairs to eat a quick breakfast before Charlie got up. He went into the kitchen and there was Charlie helping herself to a bowl of cereal.

Charlie got up and raced over to him. She threw her arms around William and gave him a big hug. After a moment she released him and they both smiled awkwardly. They had never really ever hugged before. She sat back down and waited for him to say something. She fiddled with her hands like she did when she was nervous. Finally he laughed and sat down at the table with her.

William sat the shoe box down on the table. He had felt funny having her hug him like that. He laughed hoping that she would laugh too. When she did he felt a little better. He sat patiently as she told him all about her trip to the city and smiled his best smile when she presented him with the snow globe.

After she was finished he thanked her for the wonderful gift and told her the story about the frog. She wanted to see it, but first she wanted to check out the clubhouse. William agreed and they took the box with them outside. They made their way up the hill to the tiny cave that they used for their club.

As they approached the cave they heard some thunder and decided to run the rest of the way. Safely inside they looked around at the dusty clubhouse. It was just big enough for the couch that they had rescued from the curb and a crate that they used for a table. It was definitely dirty and going to need some cleaning when they got the chance. The couch threw off dust when they sat down both friends sneezed and coughed.

Outside the rain was just starting to fall in a gentle pattern. William sat the box on the crate next to the lamp and Charlie watched in anticipation as he reached to take off the lid. A loud crash of thunder and a bright light from some lightning scared both of them. They held onto each other for a moment, then it felt awkward and they smiled letting go. William took the top off of the box to show Charlie and inside was the bright green frog. Its gold eyes stared up at them as if to question its fate. Charlie looked at the frog and smiled it really did have gold eyes.

It was indeed a very unusual frog. She and William had always like catching them and then letting them go. It was the brightest green and those gold eyes seemed to sparkle. She stared at the frog and the frog seemed to be staring back. There was another flash of lightning and just for a moment she thought the frog was a little man. She looked again and thought it must be her imagination. The frog couldn't possibly turn into a little man.

There was a loud crack of thunder and the wind picked up. The frog changed again. She knew it did. She looked over at William and the look on his face told her that he had seen it too. It was impossible. People were people and frogs were well frogs.

They both watched the box intently. Finally William shouted AHA! The box was filled with a light purple smoke and the frog had changed into a little man. He was about 3 inches tall and wore a small brown suit. He had a hat adorned with a black band and small brown shoes that were held together with some kind of twine. On his side was a small purse strapped to his belt. He looked up at them and it was obvious that he was scared.

Jack stared up at the humans terrified. Normally leprechauns were never seen by mortals. This wouldn't have happened if his gold hadn't been stolen by that evil troll. Without his gold he had to use all his strength just to glamour the humans into seeing a frog instead of a leprechaun. This was bad he thought as he paced around. He was sure going to be in trouble if he didn't do something. He tried to glamour them again, but the spell was broken and he was weak from trying to keep both of them glimmered for so long. At last he sat down in the box and let the giant humans decide his fate.

William and Charlie couldn't believe what they were seeing. This couldn't be possible. They stared at the little man until he sat down sadly. Charlie looked down into the box and asked the little man a stream of questions that William in his shocked state didn't even hear. The leprechaun looked up at her and took a deep breath.

Jack didn't know if it was going to help him, but he decided to answer the girl’s questions. He explained to her that he was a leprechaun and that all manner of magical creatures really existed. He told her to sit down and he would tell his story. Charlie sat down and pulled William who was still staring in disbelief down onto the dusty couch.

Jack started at the beginning. Leprechauns are in many ways just like mortals. They are born and die, but they usually live for hundreds of years. When they are of age they must go out and find gold. They do this by wandering around looking for adventure. Every adventure leads them to gold and the more gold they have the more powerful they become. Like mortals they have to eat and sleep. They also enjoy telling stories and solving puzzles. Once a leprechaun has had enough adventure they go to a magical place called the Glade and starts their own family.

William and Charlie listened intently as the little man told his story. They sat quietly as he spoke so that they could hear him through the storm outside. The little man finished telling them about leprechauns and then got sad. He sat down and began to tell them how he had lost his gold.

Chapter 2

Jacks Story

Note: Trolls- Creatures with brown fur and about the size of a monkey. They are very smelly and most other creatures avoid them. Trolls will eat just about anything, but prefer meat.

It seemed just like yesterday that Jack had set off to find his own adventures. In truth it had almost been a hundred years. He was still considered a teen by leprechaun standards. He hadn't had much luck with the whole adventure thing. He only had five pieces of gold to show for almost a ten years worth of work.

In desperation he had turned to a troll for a big score. Normally leprechauns never had any dealings with trolls, but he had to take a chance. Leprechauns saw them as untrustworthy and many certainly are. Jack was desperate and he had just heard a rumor that this particular troll had once stolen gold from a dragon.

Dragons are notorious for having large hordes of magical gold. They are also notorious for being very greedy. Unlike leprechauns they live far longer and have a very mean streak. They guard their gold better than they guard their own children. A dragon would