Our Grandparents' House. Final Part.

Both of us stood there for a minute, then Peter spoke up:
“I’m Peter, and this is my sister Alice. We’re sent by Queen Adla and Princess Alda to rescue this valley from the evil ruler Yelrettek.”
The Gypsics still held their spears aloft, but from a wave of the hand from their leader, they lowered them.
“My name is Nalsa. I am the general of Yelrettek’s army. We all work against our will for him, we are basically slaves. Many of us have tried and failed to defeat him. We are always open to help. But first, we’ll take you to his lair.” Another wave of the hand, and the spears came back up again. The army led me and Peter across the valley towards the Hills Of Scispyg. We all trundled along for what seemed like hours. As we walked along, heads popped out from the windows of the straw huts, to take a look at the two ‘prisoners’ the army had ‘captured’.
Along the way, Nalsa explained to us that Yelrettek had placed a spell over everyone to make them think that the queen ad her daughter were evil. But over time, somehow a crack had began to show in the spell, and it was wearing off. Now, the Gypsics wanted Yelrettek defeated.
Eventually we reached the Hills. They were a lot bigger now we were close up, and were much further apart than they looked when me and Peter were still at the Whispering Wood.
Nalsa and his army led us to Yelrettek’s lair, which turned out to be a massive cave that was really dark inside. The only light was from a few flaming torches on the walls every centimetre or so. We walked for a further half an hour. My feet were absolutely killing me, but I knew I had to keep going, for the queen’s, and for the princess’s sakes. Finally, we stopped. Nalsa said to us: “Wait here.” Then beckoning to two of his soldiers, went off.
They came back, this time accompanied by a short, wizened little man, wearing a long purple cloak. I presumed this must be the famous Yelrettek, although he didn’t look very frightening.
“These are the two prisoners who want to steal your staff, Lord Yelrettek,” Nalsa was saying. He caught my eye, and winked.
Yelrettek glared at the both of us. Now, he looked very frightening.
“Take them to the dungeon!” He barked at Nalsa. “See to it that they stay there!”
With a wave of his hand, Nalsa and his army led me and Peter away.
“We’re not taking you to the prison,” Nalsa sad to us. “We’re taking you straight to where the staff is kept. There you an break it in two, and we will be free.”
“But what about Yelrettek?” I asked.
“Yelrettek doesn’t have his staff on him at all times. He only uses it when he’s performing really strong magic. Most of the time, he keeps it safely locked away in a room, and guarded. But the guards are on our side. They want it destroyed as well.
We reached a room with an iron door, flanked by two Gypsic guards. Nalsa explained the situation to them, and they let us into the room.
It was a beautiful room, furnished with golden carpets and golden walls. It was completely different from the rest of the place. In the middle of the room, stood a long golden stick, studded with jewels. Rubies, sapphires and emeralds. This had to be the staff.
“It is protected by a spell that nobody can touch it,” Nalsa said. “The guards just told me the password to release it.”
Nalsa spread his arms wide, and just as he was about to announce the password, an angry voice rang out across the room.
“So, attempting to sabotage my staff, are we?!!! I’m very disappointed in you, General Nalsa!!!”
We all turned. In the doorway stood Yelrettek. Nalsa’s face went white.
“L-L-Lord Y-Yelrettek,” he stammered. “The prisoners broke free, and escaped in here. I-I-I was trying to stop them…”
“Save it!!!” Yelrettek snarled. “I know your little game, Nalsa!!! I have suspected you for a very long time!!!” Yelrettek’s voice boomed and echoed around the room. “I knew you were on the prisoner’s side, Nalsa. So I followed you here. And what do I find? You’re helping the prisoners!!!” Yelrettek shot a finger towards Nalsa, and a white light shone from it. Poor Nalsa fell to the floor, dead.
“Anyone else dare to defy me?!!” Yelrettek dared. Everyone else stood silent.
Then suddenly, Peter shouted out: “YELRETTEK!” Then he ran towards the staff, and picked it up. In the meantime, Yelrettek, shocked, asked: “Stop! What are you doing?!” But before he could do anything, Peter had lifted up one leg, and smashed the staff onto it in two.
Yelrettek started to scream, then he exploded in a bright white light. When the light had disappeared, there seemed to be no sign that he had ever been there.
The Gypsics who had once been Yelrettek’s army, cheered and sang merrily. I hugged my brother.
“How did you know what the password was?” I asked.
“I heard what the guard said to Nalsa,” Peter grinned. “I’ve got very good hearing.”

It was much later on, Peter and I had gone back to the Whispering Wood to tell Queen Adla and Princess Alda our news. They both cheered and shook our hands in gratitude.
“Thank you ever so much!” The queen cried. “How can we ever repay you?”
Peter and I told them they were welcome, and they didn’t need to worry about repaying us.
“But we must!” The queen cried. “I know, my daughter is to become queen of the Gypsics now. Would you like to attend her coronation?”
“If it’s all the same, we would like to go home,” I said. “We’ve been in this land for a while now, and I don’t want to go home and find we’ve been gone for ten years.”
The queen was unable to hide her disappointment. “Very well,” she said. And she led Peter and I back towards the area from which we’d entered her land.

“Wow! Did that really happen?!” Charlotte exclaimed, when I’d finished the story.
“Yes, it did,” I smiled. “All of it.”
Charlotte frowned. “You told me your story had a good witch in it. But the witch didn’t really do anything. It was all you and Uncle Peter.”
“Well, Uncle Peter was the one who smashed the staff,” I smiled.
“And I can’t believe Great Grandpa was a wizard!” Charlotte cried happily. “Okay, I want to hear Cinderella now. The good witch in that actually does something. She makes Cinderella's dreams come true.”
“No, it’s time for beddy byes now,” I said. I stood up, and kissed my daughter on the forehead. “Goodnight Charlotte.”
“Goodnight Mummy.”
I closed Charlotte’s bedroom door, and went along to my bedroom. I opened the middle drawer of my chest of drawers, where my t-shirts were folded up. I dug right in the back of the drawer until I’d found it. The crystal ball that Grandpa had left for me when he died. I wanted to see how Queen Alda, her mother, and all the rest of the Gypsics were getting along.