‘Come,’ Faraid said, smiling. ‘Saurelon is waiting for us on the Isle of Elgol,’ and he pointed to a little rocky island a short way out from the beach against which the waves did not pound with the fury they showed elsewhere but, rather, lapped against the sheer rocky sides. It reminded Beth of a three-tiered cake; the lower one, always under the water, was dark brown and shiny with seaweed; the middle layer was fawn-coloured from the barnacles which encrusted it and set in amongst the fawn were little blue-black clusters of mussels, like currants. The third layer, on top, was dark green from sea mosses, lichens and mildews. At one end a group of black and white oyster-catchers was sitting on an outcrop of rock until suddenly they all took off uttering their shrill angry cries. Elegant long-necked cormorants flew fast and low over the water between Elgol and the shore and then vanished out of sight around the headland as quickly as they had appeared, and always, overhead, the white gulls wheeled and cried, floating on the air currents and circling high up in the blue sky.

The elves had now reached a spot on the cliff from which a steep, narrow path descended to the beach and they were already going down it.

‘Come,’ said Faraid again, and he led the animals to the path. At first it sloped away quite gradually over a bank of short grass but then suddenly it fell away very sharply as it took them down the rocky cliff. Faraid went first to lead the way and the others followed in single file as the path zig-zagged down along little ledges and outcrops. Warrigal flew down alongside them with a slight air of superiority for he was relieved not to have to use the path; in a number of places fresh water seeped out of the rock and ran across it leaving it very muddy and slippery and he watched as the others gingerly stepped across. Of all the animals Beth was the most frightened for she hated heights and at times, crossing over these treacherous patches of mud on the narrow path with a sheer drop on one side, the wind blowing at her from the sea and with only tiny little handholds in the cliff on the other side for her to hang on to, she was terrified, even though Nab, who had gone first, waited with a hand outstretched to grab hers as soon as she came within reach.

As they got further down the path the roar of the waves grew louder and they felt the presence of the sea like a great protective barrier in front of them. Their hearts quickened with excitement as they descended the last few steps and finally, with a sense of relief and joy, they jumped down with a clatter on to the rounded stones and pebbles of the beach. The sea looked very different at eye-level; up on the cliffs they had observed it as if they were looking at a painting but now they were in the painting, a part of it, totally absorbed in the sounds and smells all around. The limitless energy and strength of the sea seemed to fill them until they felt as if they would explode. They were seized by an irresistible urge to run along the beach, and suddenly Sam took off, racing as fast as he could down to the edge of the sea and then speeding away through the shallows where the waves broke on the shore. The others ran after him; Perryfoot racing Brock and Nab chasing after Beth. They splashed along through the water with the wind and salt spray in their faces until they reached the rocks at the end of the beach and then they ran back to where Warrigal and Faraid were standing waiting. Their eyes shone with happiness and Faraid laughed at them as they stood panting in front of him.

‘I am pleased that you enjoy the sea,’ he said, and the sound of his laughter mingled with the waves and the cries of the sea birds until it seemed as if the whole beach was laughing with him. He led them off in the opposite direction from where they had run and took them towards the rocks at the other end. The pebbles under their feet rattled as they walked and nearer to the sea they were still shiny and wet from the retreating tide so that, unlike the dull greys and blacks and whites of the large stones higher up the beach these smaller pebbles, worn rounded and smooth by the sea, shone like jewels. There were deep reds and greens, oranges and jet blacks; some were speckled or lined or were all black except for a broad or narrow band of purest white running around them or forming a circle or an oval at one end. Others were special because of their shape; perfect rounds or ovals or else shaped like miniature mountains. Nab and Beth kept stopping to pick them up and look at them, each one unique and precious, and wished that they could have kept them all. Reluctantly they threw them down, to be lost for ever to the sea.

Finally they reached the rocks and began to clamber over them. At first they were dry and the barnacles gave them a good grip so that the animals found no difficulty, but as the rocks reached further into the sea they became covered in brown and green seaweed which made them wet and slippery so that Perryfoot, Brock and Sam particularly found them very hard to walk on. They were used to the woods and the fields and they had no idea of the techniques to use in this vastly different world. Nab and Beth were able to reach and stretch so that for them it was relatively easy, but they had to keep waiting for the others to catch up or go back to help them, much to the animals’ distaste, by lifting them down or carrying them from one rock to another. Their pads, which were used to the earth, became sore and hurt from the sharp barnacles and sometimes they stood on a limpet by accident so that the conical shell stuck up into their foot painfully and they almost slipped in their efforts to get it off. Soon they were so far out on the rocks that they were able to look back on the beach behind them and see the waves racing past at their side. Between the rocks, the pools left by the sea got bigger and deeper as the tide came further in, and when they turned round, rocks which they had walked across had become covered by the water so that they were cut off and could not have gone back even if they had wanted to and the thought of this gave Nab a thrill of excitement. In the pools the seaweed swirled and danced with the rhythm of the sea and as they clambered round, little fish darted quickly for cover under its protective fronds. Some of the pools now were so wide that it was easier for Nab and Beth to wade through carrying the others and this they did; Beth anxious that the water would not go over her wellington tops and Nab enjoying the sensation of the swirling water round his ankles.

Eventually they rounded a large boulder and saw Faraid standing just ahead with a few of the elves gathered at his side. The rocks had come to an end and ahead of them was only sea stretching out to the horizon; a long straight line in the far distance which was tinged with gold where the sun had just started to sink down behind it. Then to their surprise, they saw the seals, their grey heads bobbing up and down in the water. The seals were equally surprised at seeing the animals and, being intensely curious, were unable to take their eyes off them and stared until, feeling they had overstepped the bounds of politeness, they swung round in the water with their backs to them, but then seemingly unable to contain their insatiable nosiness they turned round and began to stare again, their round black deep-set eyes peering out from shiny domed heads. Faraid called to them and they came up close to the rocks, whereupon the remaining elves clambered on to their backs and the seals sped off across the sea to Elgol.

‘Is that how we get across?’ Brock asked Faraid anxiously as he carefully made his way across to the rock where the others were standing. The elf turned and smiled.

‘There is no other way unless you can swim,’ he said, and the badger groaned inwardly.

‘I’ll carry you with me,’ said Nab, laughing, but Brock replied forcefully: