The Mysterious Disappearance of Contessa Willoughby: Part Five
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Part Five
Reread Part Four if you wish to recall where we last left Contessa or continue reading.
Gallagher and Contessa descended below the roots of the oak into darkness. Contessa followed on her knees. She crawled along the path, listening to Gallagher scamper around in front of her when suddenly, she noticed a warm glow ahead. The light grew brighter as she approached it, and when she was hovering above the objects, she realized they were warm.
Noticing that Contessa had stopped, Gallagher shouted back to her, “They’re Solomon stones, magic stones that glow. We use them for light and heat because they won’t burn our trees. Com’ on now, we’re nearly there.”
They arrived at a small door, which Gallagher opened, then ushered Contessa through. Contessa was able to stand now, the ceiling of the burrow well above her head. She looked around. There were two tiny hand-wrought chairs made of twisted vines, and a sofa, upholstered in a worn, peacock blue velvet. Centered on one burrow wall, there was a fireplace filled with more glowing stones that cast orange incandescence about the room. Above the mantel hung a large painting of a tree. All sorts of animals perched on its branches: doves, foxes, rabbits, even a zebra. Just then, there was a clattering from elsewhere in the house.
“Gallagher, sweetheart!” a lilting voice called, "Is that you?”
Another squirrel, this one with a shorter coat and ears, appeared from behind a wall. When her eyes fell on Contessa, she crouched at the wall’s edge.
“Don’t worry, Nara, it’s just a young girl called Contessa I found wandering about the oak. She needs our help. But first, let’s get her some food and rest for the night. I’ll explain more to you later, me luv.”
Nara waved Contessa towards her, “Come, little one. You look weary.”
The trio emerged from a dark corridor into a large, brightly lit room. Piles of acorns in various shapes and sizes lined the walls. It appeared to be a sort of kitchen, but much simpler than anything Contessa had ever seen. There was also a small, round squirrel-sized table, a cupboard of sorts, and in the corner, a fireplace filled with more of the Solomon stones.
Nara hunched over a pile of acorns working quickly, cracking each shell and dropping its nutmeat into a large pot filled with water. When she was satisfied, she and Gallagher hung the pot from a hook over the stones.
“You can’t eat the nuts raw like we do. So I’ll boiling them into a mash for you.”
Soon, an earthy, buttery aroma began to fill the air. Contessa’s belly groaned. When Nara deemed the nuts ready, she removed the pot with Gallagher’s help and began mashing them with a large wooden pestle. She spooned the mash onto a platter on the table.
“Supper’s on Contessa,” Nara handed her a spoon, “It’s the largest we have. Eat up, luv.”
The first bite reminded her of Papa. Her grandfather had made something similar one autumn after collecting acorns from the big oak tree. “We’ll take just a few,” he said, “because the squirrels need them more than we do.” He liked to eat the things he foraged as a way to stay close nature. In the late spring, he made a tea of nettles, and in the summer, he often picked the leaves of dandelions and the colorful blooms of pansies. Her mother could never get Contessa to eat vegetables, but Papa could. He’d make her a salad with them, a “rainbow salad” he called it. She decided that rainbows tasted very good, actually.
She devoured the nutty mash while Nara and Gallagher cracked more acorns beside her. When they finished, Gallagher swept the stray shells into a pile with his tail. Contessa’s eyes began to droop.
“We should get her to bed,” Nara said to Gallagher. Together, they led Contessa to the sitting room with the fireplace.
“It’s the biggest space we have,” Nara said as they moved the chairs farther from the fireplace to make room for Contessa in front of it. “You can stretch out here by the fire, luv. We don’t have anything large enough to cover you, but the stones will keep you warm.”
“Will we leave tomorrow Gallagher?
“We’ll go first thing Contessa, but right now you need rest. We have a long journey ahead of us. You’ll need your strength. Come now, lie down.” Gallagher patted his foot on the ground. “We’ll leave you to it.”
Contessa obeyed. The ground was soft, more comfortable than any bed she knew. She closed her eyes.
“Thank you…” she started to say, but sleep caught the tail end of her words, and she fell silent. Gallagher and Nara left the room.
As she drifted away, she heard Gallagher speaking softly down the hall, “I think she is the one Percival believes can help us, Nara.”
“A child? Are you certain?”
“It can only be a child…”
Contessa turned in her sleep. In her dream, she began to climb the tree that hung above the fireplace. She climbed higher and higher. he could hear birds cooing, and a horse neighing. When she reached the highest branch, she stopped. Her eyes landed on a house on the horizon. There was question about it. It was Papa’s house before the fire for there stood the old oak tree glistening green and swaying in the breeze.
∆
Have you ever woke up in an unfamiliar place? The moment you open your eyes, confusion sets in and the questions begin. What happened? What day is today? Where am I? This is how Contessa felt when she awoke after her first day in this new world. The last time she slept was in her bed at Papa’s house. The room with the yellow wallpaper, Teddy, and the mysterious rocking horse. When Contessa opened her eyes, the questions rushed in. There was a tiny fireplace beside her that glowed, a ceiling that rose high about her, and when she rolled over, the most charming dollhouse furniture she had ever seen. Was this a dream?
Then she heard music. Not the kind of music her mother listened to on Sunday mornings on the radio, all chorale singers and stringed instruments. No. This was of jaunty tune. There were two voices. One high and sweet. The other, low and warm. Suddenly, the answers to her questions came flooding in. I time-traveled. Today is the day I look for Papa. I am in Gallagher and Nara’s house. These revelations were strange to her, but now she realized not impossible. And if nothing was impossible, perhaps she would find Papa after all.
Contessa pushed herself up and brush the bits of earth from her dress. She walked towards the sound of singing where she found Nara and Gallagher engaged in a hearty duet:
Summer has come in, Loudly sing, cuckoo!
The seed grows and the meadow blooms
And the wood springs anew, Sing, cuckoo!
They stopped and giggled when they saw her. “Oh, wonderful to see you, love. I hope our singing didn’t bother you. She looks refreshed now Gallagher, don’t she?”
“Yes, yes,” he quipped, his cheeks a noticeable shade of red. “Com’ on now, dearie. There’s a plate of acorn cakes for you, just off the griddle. Nara’s made a stack of ‘em, so don’t be shy.”
Contessa lifted a coin-size pancake to her mouth and dropped it in. “These are delicious, Nara. I shall ask my grandfather to make them for me when we are home.” She paused. “If we ever find him.”
“Of course we’ll find him,” Gallagher’s nose twitched. “Don’t doubt yourself. You’ve come this far. We just need to get to the tree.”
“Can you tell me more about this tree? Nara, have you seen it?”
“No luv, I’ve never seen it, but I feel that I have. Gallagher knows so much about it.”
“Exactly how do you know so much about it?”
“Well, Contessa, me family is one of the families chosen to protect Druantia. That’s its proper name. Me mother chose me, and we will choose one of our children to do the same one day.”
“But how do you protect the tree if you are nowhere near it?”
“You can still protect things that aren’t near you, Contessa. I work with Percival. Other families have been connected through the tree for many generations. The news I report to him ensures its well-bein’.”
“How old is this tree Gallagher?”
“No one knows Contessa. We will only learn its age when it dies, so to us, it only matters that it lives.”
“But why must it live?”
Gallagher paced a few steps.
“Let me ask you this. You mentioned a special tree in your Papa’s back garden that burned in a fire. What made it special to you?”
“I don’t know. We often sat under it and talked, listened to birds or watched squirrels like you.”
“What else?”
“Well,” Contessa thought for a moment, “It made me feel special, connected to life.” “
And that, me dearie, is why the old tree is so special. It is the tree that not only gives life to all trees but also gives life to me and you. Now, we will have plenty of time to talk more about the tree, but we must be gettin’ on.”
“I’ve you lunches, ” Nara handed Gallagher a satchel and pointed to a larger one for Contessa. “Off you both go now.”
Contessa had nothing else to carry, so she followed Gallagher to the front door. Gallagher kissed Nara on the cheek, and she waved at them until they disappeared.
Contessa followed Gallagher back down the tunnel where they climbed through the roots of the tree into the light. Contessa winced at the sun. Out of the burrow, Gallagher set off ahead of Contessa, skittering and scurrying about at a joyous pace. Even though Contessa was feeling hopeful, a tiny tear trickled down her cheek.
Gallagher stopped. “Don’t you worry Contessa. The tree will help us. I promise.”
The truth was, Druantia needed them, too.
∆