Francene and the Mussel Fairy

By Jan Bannerman

Life is about change, but for Francene, change was almost insuperable. After the loss of her best friend, her mother, Francene struggled to find purpose and direction. The thoughts of her difficulties in school and her inability to read at her grade level were a continual embarrassment only offset by certain skill sets.The constant in Francene's life was change. Being alone was temporary. A glistening pearl and a small displaced boy would soon offer camaraderie, adventure, and mysteries of the past.When prospects of a frog hunt are preceded by legendary tales of Miguel Vasquez the glassblower and the absence of Francene's father, the wheels are set in motion for an adventure.Inspiration strikes when Francene inadvertently finds the Vasquez treasure glowing in the mud of Boggs Pond. When frogs talk, something has gone astray, especially when the specter of the "Most Serene Highness" "Captain General" Santa Anna appears. He is angry. The week of San Jacinto Day in the classroom is truly a learning experience. Celebrating Texas independence from Mexico at the Battle of San Jacinto was not Santa Anna's shining moment. He was not impervious to the Texans' heated vengeance and shouts of "Remember the alamo. Remember Goliad."What do a displaced boy, a mussel fairy, a glassblower, a cook, a kidnapped explorer, and a scientist have in common? Rosita's Wrath--an epic plan with an assist from the specter of Santa Anna. After a purported, phenomenal Saint Elmo's fire guides the Vasquez treasure to the depths of the Gulf via an electrical storm, the treasure resurfaces twice.When "whispers from the wind" reach the parrot woman, the epic plan and "the day of the animals" begin marking the end of a "well-known secret"--sort of.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781685705756

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Francene and the Mussel Fairy

Jan Bannerman

ISBN 978-1-68570-574-9 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-68570-575-6 (digital)

Copyright © 2022 by Jan Bannerman

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Francene Finds a Mussel

Chapter 2

Back at the Lodge

Chapter 3

Willie's House

Chapter 4

Sunday Dinner

Chapter 5

The Photograph

Chapter 6

The Great Frog Hunt

Chapter 7

Francene's First Day

Chapter 8

Captive Cache Ranch

Chapter 9

The Journey of the Children

Chapter 10

The Plan of the Children

Chapter 11

On the Road to Tampico or Thereabouts

Chapter 12

Rosita's Wrath

Chapter 13

The Day of the Animals

About the Author

Francene

and the

Mussel Fairy

Jan Bannerman

Chapter 1

Francene Finds a Mussel

The sand was warm on the surface from the early morning sun. Francene's toes pressed downward until the warm sand gave way to the cool, moist sand underneath. Her toes wriggled as she sank her feet lower into the sand. As she faced the lake with the sun to her back, she listened to the small waves trickle into the shore. She was alone. Engaged in thought, she wondered what it would be like now that her best friend was gone. Francene's best friend was her mother. Now that her mother had died, she wasn't sure what would happen to her nor could she imagine what life was soon to be like.

Changes would soon be taking place, and Francene was not sure how she would have to adapt. Her mother would not be there to read to at night. Francene had trouble learning how to read in school when she was younger. Her mother had always been there to help her. She was frightened of school knowing her previous struggles, and she was frightened of the future. It seemed that when Francene had reached fifth grade, her vocabulary did not match the books she must now read in school. The last book she had read to her mother was about a puma. Francene had loved that book. She loved stories about cats. She actually managed to finish it cover to cover with some understanding. But Francene knew that the next book would be difficult, and the next, and next.

Francene felt ashamed and embarrassed that she could not read at her grade level. Admitting her difficulty to teachers was impossible for Francene. It never took a teacher long to spot Francene's difficulties with reading. Each time Francene was asked to recite or read from the pages of a book, she would suffer immense embarrassment by mispronouncing words and stumbling through the text. At times, she would turn beet red, her hands would shake, and her voice would quiver, especially when she invented book reports about books that were never written.

Francene was truly a bright child even though reading was difficult for her. Now, there would be no one to help her struggle through her studies. Francene did not even want to think about the next book or returning to school on Monday. Agony upon grief is such misery. Instead, adventure filled Francene's mind. Francene thought of all of the adventures she had been taken on by her mother.

Francene's eyes followed a larger wave that a cool spring breeze gust toward her. The gust made a strand of her long blond hair tickle her face. She had forgotten again to brush her hair, and again, it was in tangles. Each morning, her mother had always helped Francene brush through her tangles and braid her hair. Francene's braids looked like five different shades of spun gold. Francene would now have to brush and comb her own hair, by herself, despite the tangles.

Francene would never hear her mother complain again about the tangles and the length of Francene's hair. Francene carried a cap in her back pocket given to her by her mother. When Francene grew tired of her mother's complaints, she would place her hair underneath her cap and smile in a challenging manner. Francene remembered how her mother would then let loose a smirk that would quickly change to an uplifted eyebrow as if to answer Francene's challenge.

Francene watched as the larger wave rolled upon the sand to leave behind a mussel. The mussel had turned end over end and laid flat upon the sand between Francene's feet. Francene, always playful at heart, set aside her worries and picked up the mussel. She had always loved to open mussels and use them for fishing bait. Francene had always had such good luck at fishing. Fried fish was a favorite of hers. Francene washed the grains of sand off of the mussel and wondered what color of the rainbow was inside of its shell. She wondered too if perhaps there could be a fresh water pearl inside.

Francene gazed upon the beach, searching for an old piece of shell to use to break open her mussel. As Francene searched, she wished that her mother could be with her as before and that nothing would change, but she knew deep in her heart that could never happen. But if she could just have someone to talk to and tell all of her troubles to, then things would not be so difficult. Francene wished for a friend who could understand her every thought and desire.

Francene felt the mussel move inside the palm of her hand. She unclasped her hand from the mussel as it began to stretch open. She had never seen a mussel voluntarily open, and her face was drawn closer to the mussel. As the mussel opened, water spurted in Francene's eyes, and she dropped the mussel. She reached down to retrieve it. But beside the mussel, a pearl lay glistening in the sun. Francene forgot about the mussel and quickly picked up the pearl before the wave took it from the shore. As Francene grasped the pearl, the wave swept the mussel back into the depths of the water.

Francene had never seen a lake pearl so perfectly shaped and large. Oh, if she only had someone to show it to. Oh, how she wished she had a friend to show it to.

Here I am, dearie.

Francene whirled about. The pearl turned to dust in her hand. Francene's eyes widened as she looked about.

Here, dearie.

Francene looked down in the direction of the voice. Mystified, Francene exclaimed, Oh, the sun has gotten to me. I've been watching too many cartoons!

I'm a mussel fairy. Be careful with that dust in your hand. I'm going to need that. And let me have that piece of leather coming off of your tennis shoe.

Francene, still dazed, looked into her palm filled with glistening white sparkles. With her other hand, Francene reached for the strip of leather suede coming apart on her tennis shoe and ripped it off and gave it to the mussel fairy.

Wings unfolded from the mussel fairy's back. Her wings crackled and spread outward as they glistened in the sun. They sounded crisp like the canvas sails of a sailboat catching wind. With a gust from a breeze, the mussel fairy caught the wind and flew upward to rest upon Francene's palm. The fairy gathered the dust and placed it upon her leather strip, folded it carefully, and put the dust in her pocket.

There stood the mussel fairy, looking up at Francene. She seemed no bigger than Francene's big toe. Francene, bewildered, asked the mussel fairy, You did come out of that mussel, didn't you?

Yes, I did, stated the mussel fairy.

I opened a box of raisins in the dark once. I ate them while I watched TV. They were crunchy. Then I noticed things flying about my face…small white flies. They hatched out of the raisins.

That's gross. I'm not a bug, dearie. And that managed to kill my appetite, thank you.

Sorry, but you do remind me of those little white flies, no offense.

Well, I'm not a white fly. I'm a fairy, fairy, fairy. Got it? A mussel fairy! And I come from the sea. You wanted a friend to share things with, and here I am. You better be careful of what you wish for. You just might get it. Got it?

I got it that time, said Francene assuredly, as she turned her head to roll her eyes. Francene smiled, turned her head back around facing the mussel fairy, and asked, Are you a good fairy or a bad fairy?

Kid, you're testing me. I read that book. I'll be just as good or bad as you let me. Remember, I'm your friend. The mussel fairy added, in a cocky manner, I'm someone to tell your troubles to as long as you don't have too many.

I live at the lodge up the shore a bit, mussel fairy. Come with me since you're my new friend. The sun is getting very hot. I may be having a sun stroke for all I know, and you may just be a dream. Perhaps if I cool off, you may disappear. Then again, if you don't disappear, then you're welcome to stay. Either way, I'm hungry; are you? asked Francene.

I suppose so, providing you are not having raisins, stated the mussel fairy.

Both laughed. It seemed they had an equal sense of humor, something Francene and her mother shared. Neither could resist a good laugh, nor a chance to test another's patience. Francene, aside from her needling sense of humor, was a very interesting young girl. Her mother had taught her, at an early age, to become an expert marksman and a very safe one. In memory of her mother and her mother's love of hats, Francene pulled her favorite shooting cap from her back pocket, wound her hair into a knot, leaned forward, and placed the shooting cap upon her head. Her hair was neatly covered. As Francene and the mussel fairy strolled up