Green by Laura Peyton Roberts

to be had, isn't there? Plus, if you succeed, you'll be keeper. That's a powerful position, lass. Lots o' gold involved." I couldn't tell if the glint in his eyes was firelight or gold lust. "I'll help you now, and you'll owe me later."
    "Owe you what?" I asked warily.
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    Spreading his hands, Cain smiled sheepishly. "Can it hurt to have friends in high places, Lil? A body can't have too many friends."
    "Right." Not that I'd know that personally. "So how do we catch this pisky?"
    Cain opened his knapsack and took out five small bottles. Uncorking one for himself, he offered another to me. "Clover ale? Three should be enough."
    "I'll pass."
    With a shrug, Cain opened a pouch on his belt and removed a thin coin with a hole through its center. Gold glinted in the firelight as he flipped it over the flames to me. "There's a dymer," he said. "Piskies crave our shiny things even more than our ale. I've got some buttons too."
    Plunging his hand into a different pouch, Cain brought out a handful of the ornate silver buttons the leprechauns wore on their coats. "Can't understand for the life o' me why a creature would choose silver over gold, but these are piskies we're talking about. Their magic may be fearsome, but nobody said they were smart." He handed me the silver. "Place this bait around, right? Make it look tempting-like."
    I used the little lantern to find good spots for the buttons--one on a rock, two on a log, one balanced in the crook of a tree--before something occurred to me: "If piskies have so much magic, why do they care about
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    stealing buttons? Can't they just conjure up whatever they want?"
    "For all I know, they can, Lil. But piskies never use magic for themselves--some sort o' code they have. Folk say that's what makes them so tetchy when they have to grant a wish. Now hurry up with that bait."
    At Cain's suggestion, I set the dymer on a rock by the fire, where it reflected the flames in an eye-catching way. I placed the bottles of clover ale at the corners of our campsite.
    "Now what?" I asked.
    "Now we lie down and wait, don't we? If you're meant to be keeper, a pisky will show."
    "Okay, but ... When it does, how do I catch it?"
    Cain gave me an incredulous look, then burst out laughing again. "By gold and by glory, girl! You've got two hands, don't you?"
    "I'm just supposed to grab it? I thought we were using a trap!"
    His eyebrows drew together like a second, smaller mustache. "A trap? You're going to ask this pisky for a wish, lass. How angry do you want to make it?"
    "Yes, but ..." I flexed my empty hands in the firelight. They looked small and helpless. I knew they weren't coordinated. "It's just that I'm not very quick. Or strong. Or brave."
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    "Brave just means doing what you'd rather not. We all get pushed there sometime. Now lie down and pretend to sleep."
    Cain stretched out in the dirt. Reluctantly, I did the same on the opposite side of the fire. I had no blanket, but at least I had a pillow. I didn't expect I'd be sleeping anyway. The thought of catching a pisky with my bare hands had me wide awake.
    I hope they're slow , I thought, wondering what piskies looked like. Tinker Bell would be good. All frilly-skirted and sweet, maybe with a cute magic wand .
    I wanted to ask Cain, but he was already passed out on his back, his "pretend" snoring a little too convincing for comfort. The fire gradually died to orange coals. I curled up on my side, eyes fixed on the gold coin, with only Gigi's sweater and adrenaline to keep me from feeling the cold.
    Just like Tink , I reassured myself, repeating it over and over. I wondered if Kendall had gone to see that princess movie without me. No way her mother hadn't filled her in on that mess on my front porch, so maybe Lola had given in and gone with her.
    It's not like she'll want to see it with me now anyway , I thought miserably. She's sure to be mad at me for ditching her . Unless I was totally flattering myself. Kendall probably didn't even miss me.
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