Once Upon A Time (8) Winter’s Child by Cameron Dokey

Author:Cameron Dokey [Dokey, Cameron]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: SIMON PULSE
Published: 2009-04-15T14:00:00+00:00

ELEVEN

Story the Seventh

In Which Grace Sets Out in Search of the Horizon and Discovers More Than She Bargained For

Kai’s footprints traveled north. The direction was not surprising.

The Winter Child is taking him home, I thought. Back to the place where her long journey began. Why?

I pondered this, and a thousand other questions, late into the night. Common sense suggested I should be getting a good night’s sleep so I’d be fresh when I set out the following morning. My brain insisted this was the best course of action. My heart rebelled.

My heart whispered that common sense already had been proved wrong, for common sense had not believed in the Winter Child. It reminded me that Kai and the Winter Child already had a day’s head start. Who was to say where they might be by now? Though Oma had told us Deirdre’s story for as long as I could remember, I had never heard anyone speak of what might happen to a person who chose to journey beside the Winter Child.

Kai was in her world now. Even more, he had chosen this for himself. Would he cease to age so that he and Deirdre would stay perfectly matched until her task of mending hearts was done?

The trouble with common sense was that my heart had too many questions my mind could not answer. So, in the end, I listened to my heart. Instead of curling up beneath my blankets, I spread out a selection of my belongings on top of them, trying to decide what to pack for my journey. It was not as easy as it sounds. I might have known where I hoped to end up, but I had no idea how to get there. I had no idea how long it would take.

Let’s see if common sense can work on this, I thought.

I was going north. That meant cold. But, in spite of the weather at the moment, I knew winter already had given way to spring. It might be cold where I was going to end up, but along the way it would be warm.

I walked to the wardrobe that stood in the far corner of my room. From it, I selected my second-warmest cloak: the green one I often wore for rambling in the woods. I laid it on the bed. Beside it on the floor, I added my sturdiest pair of walking boots, followed by several pairs of socks. The boots might have been heavy, but they would last. And they were well-worn. No blisters, no matter how far I walked. I knew the socks were sturdy and in good repair. Oma and I had knitted them ourselves.

I will need a second dress, I thought, wishing, not for the first time, that I could wear boys’ clothes. I chose my third best, one made of sturdy, serviceable calico. It would be a good choice when the weather grew warmer, and it would not take up too much room in my pack in the meantime.

Food to last for several days.

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