The Hawkweed Prophecy by Irena Brignull

Author:Irena Brignull
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781602863019
Publisher: Weinstein Publishing
Published: 2016-07-19T04:00:00+00:00

Leo, in the meantime, was pretending his feelings weren’t hurt. He was fine that Poppy hadn’t come to find him; he didn’t need a thank you for all his help—he and Poppy, they were above all that. She would show up when she was ready and he was happy to wait until then. At least that’s what he told himself, over and over as though he were reciting lines from a speech that someone else had written. However, it was hard to say the lines with any real conviction when the disappointment of Poppy’s absence kept tripping him up and making him falter.

Leo spent a lot of his time beyond the graveyard walls, figuring this was still his place, and if Poppy happened to be there, then that was her business. He sat by the stream for hours, quiet in the solitude that until recently he’d found comforting but now just felt lonely, trying not to think forward or back, trying not to have any expectations. It didn’t work. His head kept turning at the slightest noise. It was always simply the rustle of wildlife in the bushes—a squirrel snapping a twig, a fox in a thicket, a bird’s cry splitting the air—but Leo couldn’t help himself but look, just in case . . . just in case it was her. And every night Leo left for the town, feeling foolishly surprised Poppy hadn’t walked through the old, creaking door in the wall with an apologetic smile on her face and a sheepish wave of the hand and that he hadn’t had the chance to forgive her instantly, despite knowing he should be more aloof.

Leo wondered why Poppy didn’t, at the very least, come to visit the cat’s grave. He worried she might have fallen into some kind of trouble. Yet deep inside he felt it was important that Poppy come to him this time. It wasn’t a question of turns, or pride, or resentment. Leo wanted the two of them to feel balanced, like they fitted, like they could walk in step and in time. It was so very tempting, though, to go to Poppy’s house or school, just to get a glimpse of her. But with his mind set, Leo waited, and the days ticked by and life just got slower and dimmer and grayer without her.

Ember’s clock, however, was ready, and at last Leo had a purpose. He set off for the dell, walking faster and taller than he had done in days. He pictured Ember’s face when she’d see the clock, and the thought made him feel brighter until his mind returned to the possibility that Poppy might be there and his face grew somber again and his step slowed. But, he reasoned, if they met today, it was not by his doing. It was beyond his control. Besides, it was Ember he was going to see.

As it happened, Poppy wasn’t at the dell and Leo didn’t turn around in expectation at any of the rustles or crackles from the woods, and when he left, he didn’t feel disappointed.

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