Ariel and the Wizzard's Magical Friends

By Charles C. Garretson

An exciting magical action and adventure book for all ages.

Ariel, who was born with Down’s syndrome, helps Queen Mookie, Polkadot, the Wizzard, his magical dog Wiggles, and the Toe family on their quest to recover a long-lost royal treasure.

The first book of a series featuring these magical characters and their friends. Not just a children’s book, but an entertaining read for anyone who enjoys mystery and magic.

• Language: English
• Publisher: The Wizzards World Publishing Company
• Release date: Jun 2, 2016
• ISBN: 9780997430417

Book preview

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ARIEL AND THE WIZZARD’S MAGICAL FRIENDS

Charles C. Garretson

An exciting magical, action, and adventure book for all ages.

Ariel, who was born with Down’s syndrome, helps Queen Mookie, Polkadot, the Wizzard, his magical dog Wiggles, and the Toe family on their quest to recover a long-lost royal treasure.

The first book of a series featuring these magical characters and their friends. Not just a children’s book, but an entertaining read for anyone who enjoys mystery and magic.

ARIEL AND THE WIZZARD’S

MAGICAL FRIENDS

Charles C. Garretson

Copyright © 2016 Charles C. Garretson

All rights reserved.

ISBN-10 (eBook): 0-9974304-1-9

ISBN-13 (eBook): 978-0-9974304-1-7

ISBN-10 (print): 0-9974304-0-0

ISBN-13 (print): 978-0-9974304-0-0

Publisher’s Note: The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional and or are used fictitiously and solely the product of the author's imagination. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, places, businesses, events or locales is purely coincidental.

Cover design: Randall McElwain

www.printersofpensacola.com

and

Robin Ludwig

www.gobookcoverdesign.com

Original cover artwork: Simonette Berry

Print Formatting: By Your Side Self-Publishing

www.ByYourSideSelfPub.com

No part or the whole of this book may be reproduced, distributed, transmitted or utilized (other than for reading by the intended reader) in ANY form (now known or hereafter invented) without prior written permission by the author, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal, and punishable by law.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016906972

Published by The Wizzards World Publishing Company

Dedication

To all the Up’s people of the world.

With love and kind thoughts to:

Michelle, Ashley, John, Lilah & Nicholas, and with gratitude for her tolerance and loyalty to Jenny M.

CCG

Acknowledgments

For their fantastic assistance in the publication of this book, I wish to acknowledge Dana Delamar and Kristine Cayne at By Your Side Self-Publishing (www.byyoursideselfpub.com). For her contributions to the book cover’s design, I wish to thank Robin Ludwig at www.gobookcoverdesign.com. For the original cover artwork, a special thanks to Simonette Berry in New Orleans.

Many thanks to Randall McElwain at www.printersofpensacola.com for his excellent design of the www.thewizzardsworld.com website and his assistance with the book cover’s design.

Not at all least, to Mookie for the inspiration and support for this rewarding project.

Contents

Preface

Chapter 1 Ariel

Chapter 2 Veggie Head’s Evil Plan

Chapter 3 The Wizzard Visits Polkadot’s Secret Studio

Chapter 4 The Confused Wizzard & the Coy Queen Mookie

Chapter 5 Ariel’s Aprons, the Queen’s Chariot, & Polkadot Flies

Chapter 6 Madam Pesto’s Problem & Rosket’s Solution

Chapter 7 Veggie Head, Dinkle Dunce, & Poke Salad

Chapter 8 Madam Pesto’s Diner, Veggie Gone, & Polkadot’s Flying Lessons

Chapter 9 Queen Mookie’s Secret Flying Lesson

Chapter 10 Ariel Draws, the Diner Progresses, & Veggie Head Folds

Chapter 11 Ariel Meets Azul

Chapter 12 The Diner & the Magical Mural

Chapter 13 The Wizzard’s Workshop

Chapter 14 Wiggles’ Grand Adventure

Chapter 15 The Magical Treasure Hunt: Marker One

Chapter 16 The Magical Treasure Hunt: Marker Two

Chapter 17 The Magical Treasure Hunt: Marker Three

Chapter 18 The Magical Treasure Hunt: The Last Marker

Chapter 19 The End of the Magical Treasure Hunt?

Chapter 20 The Real End of the Magical Treasure Hunt?

Chapter 21 The Final Clues & Regasil Castle

Chapter 22 Exploring Chure, & Ariel’s Last Flight?

Preface

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I thought you might want to know a little bit about Ariel, who is one of the main characters in this story.

Ariel is an archangel name from the Hebrew, meaning lion of God. The archangel Ariel is also known as the angel of healing and new beginnings.

In English, Ariel is pronounced air-ee-1, and in Hebrew and most other languages, it is pronounced ah-re-el. Also, the nickname for Ariel is Ari.

In films, she is the main character in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. In the Grumpy Old Men movie, she is the Ariel Truax character. In Shakespeare’s play The Tempest, Ariel is the airy spirit.

Ariel is the name often given to British Royal ships, to five ships of the United States Navy, and a name of both no longer produced American and British automobiles. Ariel is also the name of a moon of the planet Uranus.

Thus, Ariel is a classic name for special people, and as such, I think it is most fitting that the Ariel in this writing somewhat appears to be an archangel, a lioness of God, an angel of healing and new beginnings, and a magical person with special abilities (a savant).

Our Ariel has what is often called Down’s syndrome, which was named after a British physician from Surrey, England, who in 1866 first described the condition to his fellow doctors. In the 1970’s, people in the mental health field of some self-importance decided to call it Down syndrome, leaving off the s, but the British, and many others, still use the term Down’s syndrome.

I prefer the term Up’s condition, because the words Down’s and Down may cause an unintended negative feeling within or toward the affected person and their family. As such, I’ve chosen, and hope others will consider, using the more positive and pleasant term Up’s. It is my hope that the term Up’s will be helpful to those affected, and, most importantly, to the other persons that the Up’s person is around daily, so that they understand that although the Up’s person was born with the condition, their appearance or difficulty communicating like others does not in and of itself indicate a lack of intelligence or skills.

During the course of Ariel’s adventure with the Wizzard and his friends, we shall see that the Ariels with Up’s deserve to be better recognized for their intelligence, emotions, humor, unusual skills, and other hidden human ways of doing things in their Up’s way.

—Charles C. Garretson

Chapter 1

Ariel

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My name is Ariel, which is the ancient name of an angel known as the angel of healing. Last Tuesday was thirteen years since when I was born with a condition people call Down’s syndrome. Since I am almost always a happy person, I choose to call my condition Up’s simply because it doesn’t have to make you feel down. I’m used to myself, how I look, what I can and cannot do because this is the only way I’ve ever been, and since I’m happy with myself, things in general, and I’m an up person, not a down one.

I know from looking in the mirror that I look a different from some other people because my head and eyes have always been larger than those of other people my age, and I’m a bit shorter than others my age, but so what? There are people a whole lot worse off than I am, who even I can help if they need or want it. I’m lucky to have what I have, which is a lot more than some people, as you will see later in my story. I have to admit that it does bother me, sometimes, when people stare at me or whisper about me, and don’t think I can see or hear them. I just wish they would realize that just because I look different from them, and because I can’t talk as well as they can, it doesn’t mean that I’m stupid or can’t hear just as well as they do. I try really hard not to let them know I hear or see them so they don’t feel bad about what they’ve said or done. I also try hard not to care what they say about me, simply because what is most important for me is what I feel inside, which is generally real happiness to be here, not what people who don’t know me think about me.

What I wish most is that everyone knows that I really do love everyone, except when they continue to be mean to me or treat me like I’m a lesser person than they are. I say to myself, every day when I’m out, Please just give me a chance by being nice to me, and I will reward you so much with my love of your being nice to me. I know that I have trouble showing people how much I care for them, because I can’t talk with my mouth like they can, but I try to make up for this with my gestures, movements, and the only other way I can show things, and that’s with my pictures. Thank goodness I have my mother, sister, godmother, and my other special magical friends, who help me to show the special pictures I create to folks. You’ll meet all of them as I tell you my adventure, which I’ll start real soon, I promise, but I just wanted to tell you a little about myself first.

I live in a small town named Bateau (ba-too), deep in the Cajun country of South Louisiana with my mom, whom everyone calls Madam Pesto. I also have a sister, Polkadot, who lives about thirteen miles away in a beautiful special magical place all her own. Polkadot has always been a fantastic artist, and she goes to a university just a few miles from where she lives, and studies art there.

My mom, Madam Pesto, and I live in a beautiful, comfortable wooden house that’s painted outside with my favorite colors of light turquoise with pink trim, and old dark green wooden shutters with a rusty tin roof. Bateau only has two roads coming in and going out, with one road running east and west, and the other, north and south. Both of them travel through a huge cypress swamp, sugar cane fields, rice paddies, and the bayous that surround our fantastic, friendly town.

My godmother, who you’ll meet soon and love, lives here in a huge house that backs up to a cypress swamp that is less than a hundred feet out of her kitchen door. You can get to it by following the path down to her long, slender dock. My mom or my sister take me over there to let me draw, or just look at all of the birds and other animals that live in the swamp and that come up into her backyard.

All of the animals are very nice to me, even the snakes and alligators, because somehow they sense I have Up’s, so they protect me. I sometimes wish I could take them with me everywhere to protect me from people who just don’t get it.

My godmother’s sunporch off her kitchen is where I, most often, meet my magical friends. The reason I meet them there more than at my house is because my mother is a little afraid of magic, and I’m not really sure if she believes in it. She plays like she does when she talks to me, but I really don’t think she believes. My godmother sure does though, so it is much easier on me, my godmother, my friends and my mother, that we do, see, and talk magic at my godmother’s rather than at home.

If you just can’t wait, I’ll tell you some of my magical friends’ names now. I’ve got to warn you that some of their names are not spelled as usual, and some have double letters in them, which is typical for people with magical abilities. They are: Polkadot, who’s my sister; the Wizzard; Queen Mookie, who’s my godmother; and the Wizzard’s dog, Wiggles. There are many other people you’ll meet, but these are the main ones with magical abilities.

My mom, Madam Pesto, who is a formally trained chef, stands tall and upright and always seems to have her apron on with her favorite tasting wooden spoon sticking out of its pocket. Her glasses are forever slipping down past her nose. She is always pushing them back up, but it appears that she’s holding up her two long slender fingers to her nose, so she can sniff her cooking. This is really the truth, because she would rather sniff cooking food than see clearly any day. Madam Pesto also has a habit, of which she is unaware, of scooping up a tiny bit of whatever she is cooking with her little fingernail and bringing it to her nose to smell it. If it smells as she thinks it should, she smiles; if not, she frowns, drops her hands, and adds some other something until it smells and tastes the way she thinks it should.

When my mom can get me away from my pictures, I help her by chopping up the herbs and vegetables from our garden, slicing the sausage, and preparing the wild fresh meats and seafood that the hunters and fishermen bring us just to get a taste of Madam Pesto’s food, which she always gladly gives them in payment.

Our kitchen is filled with pots, pans, spoons, a big chopping block, and a black cast-metal stove. There are rows and rows of spices, and the smell of fresh hanging herbs we get from our magic friends, some of whom live in the swamp. Every day, all day long, there is something simmering in a cast-iron pot or skillet that makes our cozy house smell deliciously spicy.

Mom and I decided that I would be homeschooled because of my Up’s and because there is no special school or teachers in Bateau for kids with Up’s. We quickly found that I could learn more here at home with my pictures, and my special kind of mind, which I’ll tell you about later. When I’m not helping Madam Pesto, I am usually at my big table in a corner of the kitchen, facing the cooking area, where I watch my hundreds of videos, look at pictures, or draw things, all of which help me to talk with people.

You see, my kind of Up’s makes it hard for me to read a lot of words, but the videos, pictures, and drawings help me with that problem. Since I don’t talk as much as a lot of people, I’m quiet most of the time around new people we meet. Some people confuse my being quiet with my being lonely, which is not correct. My videos, pictures, and drawing keep me excited, happy, and mentally sharp. They help me to say and show things to people that I would never be able to with Up’s.

What really gets me super excited, with a huge smile on my face, is when I arrange a bunch of my pictures, video boxes, or drawings, and then I take someone by their hand over to my picture table to show them the picture story of themselves. I only do this for people who are nice to me. My picture story on the table always shows them, without me talking, how I think they are.

Almost always when I show it to them, and try to talk a little bit with them with my funny sounds, they are amazed, because they don’t realize that I really do remember everything that I hear, and remember every picture I see or draw, every video I see, and the pictures on the video box. My favorite moments are when they smile back, give me a hug, and say, Ariel, you are just amazing. I know then, for sure, that I have gotten them past my Up’s, and we both smile for hours afterward.

Once I heard my mother on the phone when she thought I was sleeping. She was crying a little bit while talking on the phone with my godmother and my sister on a three-way call. She said, Mookie and Polkadot, I think Ariel is a savant.

They both must have said, at almost the same time, Madam Pesto, what’s a savant?

She said, Well, girls, I had to look it up, after the Wizzard mentioned it to me last week when he brought me some alligator tail. A savant is a person who is brilliant, but in only one way, but in Ariel’s case, she just might be a magical savant, according to the Wizzard. I asked him, ‘Well, Wizzard, what do you think it is that makes Ariel brilliant like a savant?’ He just looked at me, and smiled in his mischievous way and said, ‘Madam Pesto, I know you see what Ariel does with her videos, pictures, and drawings all the time to help her talk to folks. Don’t you find it a little unusual that she remembers every single video, video box picture, and other pictures, and can draw whatever she sees almost perfectly? Even more amazing, have you noticed how she can put all of those things together in a few minutes, and show them to a friend or a total stranger, and those pictures can tell them how they really are? Don’t answer me now, just give it some thought.’

Then she said, Mookie and Polkadot, I was so shocked, I forgot to ask the Wizzard what made him think she was a magical savant, because he just walked away, leaving me there in the kitchen with my mouth open and no food in it for once. All three of them laughed at this, and they must have told Mom they had to think about this for a while and get back to her, because she hung up right after that.

One of the things that I don’t think that my Mom realizes is that, with Mookie, Polkadot, and the Wizzard, I have another way of talking because they understand me, just by the sounds that I can make. Even my Mom does not understand these sounds. I think they understand because of their magical abilities, but I still use my pictures and things when I talk to them, especially when my Mom and other people are around. The other people would be freaked out if they heard me making those sounds, and saw them understanding what I was saying.

Five days a week at supper time, I deliver Madam Pesto’s fantastic Cajun food to three older ladies in town, who claim they can’t cook anymore. They pay Mom very fairly for this service, because they know this is how she supports us. They love Madam Pesto’s food, especially since it is different every day and most every week. Ms. Toups, (toop-s), Ms. Meaux (may-u), and Ms. Steen (stee-n) are the names of the three ladies that I bring supper to Monday through Friday. They all live only a few blocks away, so I deliver their meals in my pink painted pull cart. I’m careful to keep their food covered with a clean dish towel to keep the bugs off and to help it stay warm.

Every time I make the deliveries, they remind me to tell Madam Pesto that her cooking is the best they’ve ever had. I always smile and promise to tell her as I wave good-bye and pull my cart down the sidewalk. One of the things I find funny is that they tell my mother they can’t cook anymore, but I hear Ms. Toups talking to Ms. Meaux or to Ms. Steen about what they cooked last weekend when I didn’t bring their supper.

Madam Pesto has a secret that she doesn’t know I know., because I heard her talking on the phone a few days ago to Mookie, and she said, Mookie, you know that I’ve always wanted to open up a small diner in Bateau, and when I was at the grocery yesterday, I heard someone say that Rosket was closing down his bicycle shop after all these years. It already has a pretty good kitchen, with room to expand in the back, because he cooks for himself there, and has his sleeping loft above the kitchen. When all of his bicycle stuff is gone, the space will be big enough for six or seven tables and six or seven counter stools that I could get the Wizzard to build for me. Ariel could come over with me, and have her picture table in the loft, and she could help me in the diner too. We might even figure out a way for her to help me take the customers’ orders. The way she can draw and arrange her pictures and things, I’m pretty sure we could work out some sort of a plan to take orders. Maybe I could get Clementine, who used to work for Ms. Toups, to come and help me in the kitchen. Clemmie, I bet, is itching to do something other than sit around and listen to her worthless husband complain, and she’s a great cook and dessert maker. What do you think, Mookie? Well, I didn’t hear what Queen Mookie answered, but Madam Pesto had a big smile on her face when she hung up the phone.

When I see Mookie and some of my other special magical friends in the next few days, I’m going to ask them what they think about this diner plan. If they think it’s a good idea, then I am going to see if they’ll help Mom with her dream to get Roscoe Sprocket—most people call him Rosket—to rent her the building when he moves out. It would great for me too, since I could meet many new people who’ll see that even though I have Up’s, I can do a lot they didn’t know I could. I know that I could show them that just because I look different, and have trouble talking, that doesn’t mean that I can’t do a lot, and maybe even some things they would never expect.

Chapter 2

Veggie Head’s Evil Plan

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My godmother Mookie is called Queen Mookie for reasons you will soon know. Queen Mookie lives alone in Bateau, way on the other side of town by the swamp like I told you. I think it’s far, but they tell me it’s really not that far, because Bateau is a small town, but it seems like a long way to me. Queen Mookie lives in the biggest house in town. It is two stories tall, with a big yard that has lots of trees and flowers. It once belonged to her parents who were from Europe, and who have a house in New Orleans, which is about three hours away.

Queen Mookie has a stepbrother, Veggie Head, who lives in a huge house in New Orleans that belonged to Queen Mookie’s father and mother. Veggie Head’s mother is Queen Mookie’s father’s second wife, whom he married after the Queen’s mother died years ago. Veggie Head is a mean, selfish, evil miser who is disliked by everyone, including his stepfather, and some think that his own mother, whom he mistreats, doesn’t really like him either. Everyone calls Veggie Head high pockets because he parades around downtown dressed in funny pants pulled way up above his waist and over his ankles. His only friend is a strange part-time professor/salesman named Professor Dinkle Dunce, who tries to teach creative writing at a small girls’ college in New Orleans.

While I’m talking about family with strange names, I need to tell you about how my sister Polkadot got her nickname when she was thirteen. When Polkadot went to New Orleans with her middle school class for a school trip, her life changed. The day she left for the school trip, she had beautiful blonde hair, but when she returned, she had lots of small, purple polka-dots dyed into it. The purple polka-dots in her hair were put in there by a voodoo hair dresser in the French Quarter. Polkadot told everybody that they were there to match her favorite white silk dress, which had small purple polka-dots in the fabric.

You’ve probably guessed that Polkadot’s favorite color is purple. After her New Orleans-hair-altering trip, she came to live with Madam Pesto and me. I think they are kind of neat, and I told my mom so, but she’s not so sure yet, she says. All of this drama happened before Polkadot went off to art college, where having purple polka-dots in your hair is normal, so it’s not talked about that much anymore.

Here in Bateau lives the most interesting person I have ever met: the Wizzard, who lives out in the huge cypress swamp that surrounds Bateau. The Wizzard is a close friend of my godmother, Queen Mookie, who he hasn’t seen for a while, even though his place out in the swamp is close to her house. Queen Mookie and the Wizzard have always thought fondly of each other, but I think they are afraid to become too attached for the silly reason that they are very much alike. The Wizzard thinks he is secretly keeping up with Queen Mookie through my mom, to whom he brings wild game, herbs, and other treats from the swamp. I am pretty sure she tells Queen Mookie that he asks about her, which I know the Queen likes, because I see her smile when mom tells her.

Mom said to me the other day that she had recently told the Wizzard that Veggie Head had offered her money to start her diner at the old bicycle shop downtown. She said that the Wizzard just shook his head as he smiled at her, but she didn’t know what that meant, and didn’t ask.

When both Mookie and Veggie Head were in their teens, Queen Mookie’s father decided that he would pass the crown on to Queen Mookie, his child, and that no royal title of any sort would be given to Veggie Head.

My mom told me that his reason, and Veggie Head’s mother agreed, was that, despite all they had tried, Veggie Head remained a mean, evil, lying, miser who was completely dishonest in every way. Because of these personality defects, they knew he wouldn’t ever change, so he was not fit to hold any sort of title.

The King knew he had to put this decree in writing to make sure Veggie Head had no way to contest the decision. The King issued a Royal Decree stating his decision before he and his wife left on a planned voyage to Europe.

The King and his wife were going to Europe to visit the King’s country, which was located on the borders of Switzerland and Italy. His wife was not a queen, simply because she had married the King after the death of his first wife, the Queen. The King had inherited his title from his father and mother, the previous King and Queen.

Before the couple left for their trip, the King gave the Decree to his attorney for safekeeping, and it was only to be made public in the event of his demise, which was unlikely at his age of fifty-three. The Royal Decree said that upon his death, Mookie would be the only royal and Queen.

As fate would have it, the boat carrying the King and his wife sank on the way back to New Orleans, and they both perished. The memorial service for the King and his wife was held at St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, and was well attended by royalty from Europe and many famous and important people in America who were fond of the King.

A few days after the service, Queen Mookie and Veggie Head were told by their father’s attorney that the King had decreed that Mookie would become Queen, and was to inherit all of the King’s property. This was a great disappointment to Veggie Head, because he had expected that, surely, he would be made King, and would become very rich.

As Queen, Mookie was given ownership of all the royal assets, including the house in New Orleans, the house in Bateau, and the castle and lands in the kingdom in Europe. Veggie Head was given nothing; all he had was what he already had acquired by his evil ways, which was rather significant, but small compared to the Queen’s inherited wealth.

Veggie Head was so angry he could not contain himself upon hearing the news in the attorney’s office. In addition to having lost his expected title and money, Veggie Head found the news, which was to be made public the next day, most inconvenient because he was attempting to maintain the social position he had decided he was entitled to in New Orleans, where social position is of the utmost importance. He had suddenly gone from being the self-proclaimed heir to a royal throne to an ordinary person of little means, no title, and no property.

In an effort to calm Veggie Head down, the Queen, who was always cleverer than he was, proposed a plan. The Queen said, Veggie, (he hated being called Veggie) since you are so sad and angry about the decree, I am going to make you an offer that I’m sure you would never make to me if the situation were reversed. I’m going to let you remain in what is now my New Orleans home. In return for me letting you stay there, you will agree to never to come to Bateau, or have any further contact with me for any reason. If you have anything to tell me, then you will do it through my attorney, who will get your message to me. I will respond, if I feel it is necessary, but it is likely that I will just ignore it.

Queen Mookie knew that because of his greed, and his need to look and feel important in front of the couple of people who only pretended to be his friends because he was the stepson of the King, Veggie would quickly accept her offer. She said to him very slowly, so he would understand, I’ll allow you to live here in my house, and you can play whatever role you think you can get away with, but if you ever set foot in Bateau—and I promise you, I will know—the deal is off, and you are on the street immediately. The people in Bateau are aware of your greedy, evil, lying ways, and you will not be welcome there. Is there anything that I have said that you don’t understand? If so, tell me what it is, so that I can repeat it. Do you need time to call your friend Dinkle Dunce, so I can tell him, and he can explain it to you? Will that be necessary, Veggie?

Veggie Head, with a furious look on his red face and picking at a pimple on his cheek, which he did when he was mad, said, I agree. Have that lawyer over there draw up the papers, and I will sign them this afternoon. I have important things to do and friends to see.

The attorney started to respond, but the Queen raised her hand and said, You don’t have to wait until this afternoon to go do your important things and see your friends, because you can go ahead and do what you have to do right this moment.

Veggie Head looked at her with a confused look and said, What does that mean?

The Queen replied, "It’s really quite simple, Veggie. There will be no papers to be signed. I’m not going to give you