Winter of the Ice Wizard

winter jacket and his backpack. Then he slipped quietly down the stairs and out the front door.
    Annie was waiting on the porch. The February air was chilly. Frost sparkled in the grass as the sun rose over the Frog Creek woods.
    â€œReady?” asked Annie.
    Jack nodded and zipped his jacket. Without another word, he and Annie hurried up their street and headed into the woods. They ran through the long shadows of early morning, between the bare winter trees. Then they stopped.
    The tree house
was
back, just as Jack had seen it in his dream! It was high in the tallest oak tree, shining in the cold morning light.
    â€œWow,” breathed Jack. “Dreams
can
come true.”
    â€œYep,” said Annie. “Teddy! Kathleen!”
    No one answered.
    â€œI guess only part of this dream came true,” Annie said sadly. She grabbed the rope ladder and started up. Jack followed. Annie climbed into the tree house. “Oh, wow!” she said.
    â€œWhat is it?” said Jack.
    â€œThey’re here!” said Annie in a loud whisper. Jack climbed in behind her. Their friendsTeddy and Kathleen, apprentices to Morgan le Fay, were sitting under the tree house window. Wrapped in heavy woolen cloaks, they were both fast asleep.
    â€œHey, sleepyheads!” said Annie. “Wake up!”
    Kathleen blinked and yawned. Teddy rubbed his eyes. When he saw Jack and Annie, he gave them a wide grin and leapt to his feet. “Hello!” he said.
    â€œHello!” cried Annie. She threw her arms around Teddy. “We both dreamed you were here.”
    â€œAh, then our magic worked!” said Teddy. “Kathleen suggested we send dreams to let you know we were here, and it seems our magic sent
us
to dreamland as well.”
    â€œBut now we are all awake,” said Kathleen. “And I am very glad to see you.” She stood up, drawing her cloak around her. Her blue eyes sparkled like seawater in the dawn light.
    â€œI’m glad to see you, too,” Jack said shyly.
    â€œAre you taking us on another Merlin Mission?” said Annie.
    â€œNot exactly,” said Teddy. “Merlin has a most important mission for you. But this time, we will not be going along.”
    â€œOh, no!” said Annie. “What if we need your magic to help us?”
    Teddy and Kathleen looked at each other and smiled. Then Kathleen turned back to Jack and Annie. “Morgan thinks you may be ready to use magic on your own,” she said.
    â€œReally?” said Jack.
    â€œYes,” said Teddy, “but Merlin is
very
cautious about sharing magic powers with mortals, even with two as worthy as you. He is also wary of magic being used outside the realm of Camelot. Nevertheless, Morgan has convinced Merlin to let you prove yourselves. You will be tested on four missions.”
    â€œBut we don’t know any magic,” said Jack.
    â€œRemember what I told you on our lastadventure?” said Teddy. “If we all work together—”
    â€œAnything is possible!” said Annie. “But you just said you weren’t coming with us.”
    â€œThat is true,” said Kathleen. “And that is why we bring you
this.”
She reached into a pocket of her cloak and pulled out a small handmade book. She gave the book to Annie.
    The cover of the book was made of rough brown paper. Written on it in neat, simple handwriting was the title:

    â€œYou made this for us?” said Annie.
    â€œYes,” said Kathleen. “One line of each rhyme is in Teddy’s language, and one is in mine, the language of the Seal People.”
    Annie opened the book to the table of contents. She and Jack skimmed the list of rhymes, and Jack read some of the entries aloud:
    â€œFly Through the Air Make. Metal Soft.
    Turn into Ducks—”
    Annie giggled. “These are so cool!” she said. “Let’s all turn into ducks!”
    â€œNot now,” said Kathleen. “You must use these rhymes very sparingly. There are only ten rhymes in the book, and each can only be used once. They are meant to last you for four journeys.”
    â€œFour?” said Jack.
    â€œAye,” said Teddy. “Merlin has agreed that if you can use our magic wisely on four missions, he will teach you the secrets that will allow you to make magic on your own.”
    â€œOh, boy!” said Annie.
    Jack put the book of magic rhymes in his backpack. “So where are we going on our first