Jane watched with a dropped jaw as the goats jumped their way to the top of the cliff, finding footing where she was certain there wasn't. "Are these goats magic?" she whispered to Orson.

"Not that I'm aware of, though they are impressive!" he answered.

"How are we supposed to get up there?" Jane asked, even though she knew Orson didn't have any more of an answer than she did.

Just as they were ready to step closer, Myrtle's head appeared above them. "Look out down below!" she called right before an enormous coil of rope was shoved over the edge. It fell, uncoiling, to the bottom.

"What the—?" Orson began when a second rope joined the first.

"Let me go up and see what's going on," Shelly offered. She flew up the cliff face and disappeared over the top.

They waited for a moment, heads craned back and hands holding their hats on. "Where does a goat get rope?" Orson wondered out loud.

"And how did they get it tied off?" Jane countered.

Myrtle's head poked out over the edge again. "The fairy wanted us to tell you we've got stuff left by the last group up here! We can help you climb! See? No ledges!" She withdrew again, leaving Orson and Jane gaping at each other.

Shelly raced back to them, excited. "They have rope and wenches! If you find the ends of those coils, there are harnesses. I've seen humans use them before. You step into them like they're a pair of britches, then you can sit as the goats haul you up!"

Jane's eyes grew bigger and bigger as Shelly explained. "Wow!" She turned to Orson. "how lucky can we... be?" Jane's excitement faded when she saw Orson. Her friend was positively green. "Orson! Are you okay?"

"I—" he cleared his throat, "I hate swings. Fell out of one when I was little. Broke a leg, an arm and cracked my head. But worse than all that was the way my father yelled at me for being stupid enough to fall out." He shifted his weight. "That harness thing? Yeah. That's a swing. I'm going to fall out!"

Jane reached for her friend. "No, you won't! We'll make extra sure!"

Orson rubbed his chest as if it hurt. "Are you sure? I mean, I know we have to do this. I don't want you to go after the gold alone. But..." he glanced around before whispering, "I'm scared, Jane. More than a little bit."

"Do—do you want a hug?" she asked, at a loss as to how to help him.

"Maybe?" he said with a watery grin.

She embraced him and was surprised to feel him tremble slightly. She pulled back and looked up at him. "How do we make this better?"

"I don't know."

Shelly flew closer. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but overhear," she said politely. "While an apple won't make you braver or give you super strength or anything, it can help lessen the panic. Maybe that will help?"

Orson nodded enthusiastically. "I'm willing to try almost anything! An apple can't hurt."

Jane handed him an apple, and he sat down to munch. She ate a little bread and a handful of nuts as she sat with him, sharing with Shelly as the fairy rested on her shoulder. When he stopped, he'd eaten down to the core as much as possible. She held out her hand for it, wrapped it in another handkerchief she'd fished out, and dropped it into the bag. "To save the seeds," she explained.

"How are you feeling?" Shelly asked him.

Orson breathed a sigh of relief. "Much better. Calmer. I—I think I can do this now." He scrambled to his feet. "Let go dig out those harnesses before this wears off."

Jane smiled at him, and she felt some of the tightness in her insides lessen. He'll be okay, she knew. She trailed behind him, letting him take the lead and set the pace of getting ready.

Myrtle gazed over the edge at them. "You ready down there?"

Jane called up, "We needed to have a snack! We're looking for the harnesses now!"

"Great!" the goat called. "Just send the fairy back up when you're ready."

Shelly chuckled. "They've been really polite about how much I stink to them, but they just can't seem to call me by my name."

Jane frowned. "I'm sorry, Shelly. That seems so wrong."

"It's actually an improvement," explained the fairy. "And... I have a secret about it."

Orson moved closer. "What is it?"

Shelly whispered, "The fairies are why the goats are angry. We cursed them for being horrendous to us."

"What? Are you sure?" Jane whispered in turn.

"Yes, of course, I am," Shelly assured her. "It was my grandfather who did it. I won't go into details, but to say that grandpa nearly died is an understatement. They tried to kill him! All because he smelled bad! When he healed, he put a hex on them so that no one would ever understand them again. It meant they didn't have a place anymore. He took it from them, just like they tried to take from him."

Orson nodded. "I understand the desire. Are you going to tell them?"

Shelly scoffed. "No. Of course not. But, I might be convinced to tell them how to undo it."

"Oh! Shelly! You have to!" Jane insisted.

Indignant, Shelly said, "I do not. And neither of you can convince me to do it. But they can. I'll decide when all this is over."

They lapsed into silence, Orson working on his harness and Jane finally finding hers.

"Hey! I think I have it figured out!" Orson exclaimed.

Jane studied what he'd done and stepped into her, so it looked the same. They worked on some of the knots to make them fit tighter, then put some loops in the rope to use as handholds. Just as they had things worked out, Myrtle called down from above.

"Ready yet?"

Jane held her hat on as she looked up the cliff at the goat. "Yes! At last! Will you take Orson up first?"

"Will do!" the goat said before speaking to someone behind her. "Okay, ladies! Slow and steady! We don't want to yank his head off!"

Jane saw Orson swallow as the slack began to wind its way up the cliff. "Keep your feet to the wall, Orson!" called Myrtle. "Just crawl on up."

And that's exactly what it looked like to Jane. Orson crawled all the way up, lickety-split, with Myrtle's encouragement the entire way. It had taken more time to get ready than it did to get up the cliff. When he got to the top, Myrtle handed him another rope that he used to help him get up and over.

Jane's stomach fluttered when she realized it was her turn. She followed Orson's lead and was soon standing beside him, laughing at the thrill. "That was more exciting than even the beanstalk!"

Myrtle cleared her throat. "Well, this is as far as we can take you," the goat explained. "That cave over there leads right into the dragon's lair. Do be careful!" And with that, the goats scattered, leaving them alone in front of the maw of blackness in the cliff's face.

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"Jane," Shelly whispered, "get out the fairy light." They'd entered the cave and had let their eyes get accustomed to the dim light. But that had been three turns down the tunnel ago, and now things were truly dark.

"Fairy light?" Jane asked.

"Yeah. It's a lantern that doesn't need a candle," Shelly explained.

Jane rummaged through the items at the top of the satchel but couldn't find it. "I don't think I can get out things I'm not familiar with!"

"Here," Orson offered. "I know what they are."

Jane held the satchel open so he could reach in. He brought out a small lantern about the size of Jane's hand. He gave it to her, and she gasped when she opened the front window to let the light out.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Magic!" Orson and Shelly answered at the same time.

"Oh, right," Jane said, rolling her eyes. "I keep forgetting."

"Come on! Let's get going!" Shelly urged.

Jane held the lantern, and they inched forward, the tunnel getting more and more narrow as they progressed. Soon, they could only travel one behind the other, but they pressed on. The passageway began to climb. Jane wondered how much higher they'd be going.

She thought she was seeing things when she started to be able to make out things further ahead of them. After a turn or two, she didn't need the lantern, so she shut the window. In a few more turns, she came to an abrupt halt when the tunnel opened into a large vaulted room of smooth stone. Fortunately, Orson was paying attention, and, instead of stumbling into her, he gently guided her so he could join her.

It took Jane a moment to figure out what she was seeing. She gasped when she did; before them lay, in shadow, mound after mound of gold coins. An entire cave floor of it. She was so stunned she couldn't look away.

Just as she took a breath to say something, they heard a moan, faintly, coming from the dark off to their right. Orson immediately ducked and pulled Jane down with him. He put a finger to his lips, motioning for her to be quiet. She nodded, understanding exactly what he meant.

Shelly fluttered forward, pointed to herself, then pointed toward the continuing moans. Orson nodded, and they let their fairy friend fly away to investigate.

Jane's heart pounded even after Shelly flitted back into view. She landed on Jane's shoulder and motioned Orson in.

"It's the green dragon we saw! It is up in a side cave, curled up in the dark, crying. I think it's hurt."

Jane gasped. "Hurt? Oh no! I—I can't steal from something that's hurt! We need to help!"

Orson was positively bug-eyed. "What? You can't be serious!"

"Of course I am!"Jane told him as she took a step away.

Orson grabbed her and pulled her back. "You can't, Jane! It's a dragon. That drops people off the mountain!"

"I don't care!" Jane yanked her arm out of Orson's grip. "I have to help. You can stay here if you want."

"Jane—"

"Hello!" Jane called out across the cave, her voice echoing off the walls. "Hello! Are you hurt? Can I help?"

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