The Winter Letter Read online

  “Just walk that way,” Forest said. Will ducked as Forest’s long branch-arm motioned down the small path.

  “See you two later! I expect stories,” said Ms. Lani as Will started down the path without a clue where he was going. After a few steps he turned to see what Forest was doing, but when he looked at the tree there were no longer any lips or eyes or mossy eyebrows. He turned back to the path.

  “BOO!”

  Will almost tripped over his shoelaces. Forest, or rather Forest’s face, was now smiling from a different tree along the path.

  “Whoa!” said Will.

  Forest laughed in his deep tree voice. “Get it now?”

  “Yeah, I think,” Will replied, and if you looked close, for only a millionth of a second, you would have almost seen the beginnings of a smile come across Will’s face, but like I said, only for a millionth of a second.

  Will and Forest walked and talked (except for with Forest it shouldn’t be called walking, perhaps tree hoping or root riding, you choose) and although he was moving from tree to tree he never missed a word or lost his train of thought. He spoke just like you and I.

  “So tell me about the trees in your world,” Forest asked after the two had been walking for a while.

  “Well, they look a lot like you do, except not yellow, and there are a bunch of different kinds.”

  “Yes, us Xylons have extensive family trees as well. Back on Earth, do you have any tree friends? Any oak or maple? Those maples are an outgoing bunch wherever they are planted.”

  “In my world trees don’t talk.”

  “What? Why? Are they shy?”

  “I don’t really know,” said Will.

  Forest pondered this quietly for a few minutes, then he looked down and started to say something, but stopped.

  “What is it?” Will asked.

  “I want to ask you something, but I don’t want to seem rude,” Forest answered.

  “Go ahead.”

  “Well, what’s it like to be stuck in one place all the time? Don’t you feel sort of trapped, not being able to move from tree to tre—I mean body to body?”

  Will laughed out loud. “I can move around!” Will jumped up and down to prove his point. “I thought you would feel trapped, not being able to walk and stuff.”

  “What do you mean? I can move faster than you!” Forest popped into three different trees within two seconds, and kept talking without missing a beat. “I can go from tree to tree throughout the whole world, not to mention the root world below.”

  “But you don’t have legs,” Will said, pointing to the base of Forest’s current tree.

  “And you don’t have roots,” Forest said back.

  “I don’t understand,” Will said.

  “Me either,” Forest replied.

  With that they both laughed hard, and within those deep belly laughs a lifelong friendship was born.

  As they went deeper into the woods the scenery became increasingly more beautiful. Will was not one to notice such things, but this place, as you will know if ever you visit, was different. The flowers always turned and watched Will and Forest as they passed by, and almost all of the other trees waved. Every pool and stream whistled steadily and the buzz of the insects made Will think of a gospel choir warming up. The only thing not amazing were the birds (which were almost as big as Will). As soon as one would see Will walking by he would call to the others, then they would all swoop down and try to sell Will needless pieces of wood and twigs.

  “You need this for your nest! Special price for you!” they would say. Each time Forest shooed them away with his long tree branch arms.

  Before long the two new friends broke the tree-line and came to an opening. Will walked out and peaked over the edge of a cliff much like the one in Ms. Lani’s backyard. “How do we get down?” he yelled back to Forest, who was obviously still at the tree line.

  “A journey all the way down the mountain would take weeks,” said Forest, “But don’t worry; we know a shortcut.”

  “We? Who’s we?” Will asked, but there was no need for Forest to answer. At that moment something big blew by, missing Will’s head by an inch. There was a flutter and a sputter, then a small boat with two small wings, pushed by a small propeller engine, floated down just off the edge of the cliff. Its pilot was a skinny little mole wearing a leather pilot’s jacket and large goggles that made his eyes look huge and his head look tiny.

  I know you’re thinking, how bizarre to see a mole flying a boat, just as Will was thinking, but as he began to be surprised he decided that by now being surprised was silly. This world was so very different from his own.

  “There’s the shortcut!” Forest yelled from behind.

  Will looked back over the edge, then at the rickety boat, then at the little mole. He swallowed hard.

  Seriously?

  Seven

  Baru

  The sun’s height was just right, as was the angle of the little boat’s flight, to make the ponds below look like pools of melted silver waiting to be cooled into a coin. The unsteady little keel descended over a thick forest that splashed against the foot of the mountain like water to an island.

  “Are any of those talking trees?” Will asked the mole, whose name was Tobby.

  Tobby glanced down quickly, then immediately looked back ahead. “Yes, yes, sir; many of them I imagine, I do.” Tobby steered to the left to avoid a flock of birds. Afterwards Will heard him mumbling in his high pitched squeaky voice.

  “What did you say?” Will asked.

  “Ahh, ahh, nothing. Those birds, they just always get in the way. That, that’s all.”

  Will looked over the edge as they sailed steadily over the forest. Every once in a while a little cart would shoot out from between trees, then disappear again like a mouse scurrying back to its hole.

  “What’s that?” he asked.

  “What, what?” Tobby glanced to the ground then right back again. “Oh, those are ground carts, those are. I drove one once, but when I heard bout this baby,” Tobby patted the side of his boat, “I sold my ground cart to buy it. Used to live down in the willows, but the wind sounds so much better up here! Friends didn’t like me leaving, but that’s that, it is.”

  “Where do you live now?” Will asked.

  “Over the mountains; over the trees; over the sea! I live up here. I have a hole where I refuel and take care of home things, but every other moment I spend in the sky. I breathe better up here. I mean whoever told moles to stay underground anyway? If my family would only try the sky they would love it! I once lived underground ya know, over by the Sudden Peaks.”

  “Where?”

  “What? What? You don’t know the Sudden Peaks?!”

  “I’ve never been here before.”

  “Where are you from?”

  “Nameless.”

  Tobby glanced at Will then turned and looked back ahead. He clearly had no idea what Will was talking about.

  “America,” Will restated.

  Still a stare and a turn and a confused look.

  “Earth!” Will half shouted, half laughed.

  Tobby snapped his goggled head around. ”Did you say Earth?“

  “YES!”

  Without hesitation Tobby reached over and pulled a lever. The flying boat screeched to a stop. “Hold on!” said the little mole.

  Will was just beginning to wonder where the screeching sound came from when the the little boat stopped flying and started an intense, cheek shaking fall, straight down. Will clutched the side of the boat with both hands to keep from falling up and out, and he screamed a high pitch girl scream until Tobby pulled another lever and the boat came to a soft stop.

  Will stopped screaming when he saw Tobby staring at him.

  “So you’re saying you have never been to Baru before?” asked the mole.

  Will looked over the edge. The engine had turned down and they were hovering in one place. He felt his stomach in his throat. ”No, I’ve never been to Bar-yu.
“

  “Baaaa-roooooo. Baru.”

  “Sorry.”

  ”Mr. Will, I didn’t know this was your first visit! Not many of us from Baru get to meet those from Earth. The closest we ever get are from books. Some Baruvians don’t even believe in Earth; they think it’s just a myth. This is such a great day, it is! Wait till I tell my family! Oh Mr. Will, you look confused, you do. Let me explain. The country you are in now is called Baru, like your Amerikar“

  “America.”

  “America,” Tobby repeated. “And this world is called Pugian. That’s Pooo–jee–ahn.” The little mole turned and dug in a pile, disappearing into it as he searched. When he emerged he pulled out a pair of goggles just like his own. He handed them to Will. “Check these out, I got them from the valley!”

  Will slid the goggles on, and instantly it was as if he was looking through two telescopes. Whatever he focused on with his eyes was automatically zoomed in on, and more, he could hear what he was looking at as if he was standing right next to it. In the distance was a mountain range. Beyond them waves of clouds crashed into a young sunset, each overtaking the one before like a rippling sea hanging upside down from the heavens.

  “Those are the Sudden Peaks. Beautiful from up here, they are,” Tobby said.

  Beyond the mountains there was a great city surrounded by a shining silver wall. The walls were so tall that the city could only be seen partly, and only then because of how high Will and Tobby were floating. Small brown and blue roof tops lined the graham cracker streets, which were arranged in circles that grew smaller towards the city’s center, like an archery target. In the bulls eye sat a castle glowing the golden hew of honey. The palace was different from the walls, in that it looked more ancient, while the walls looked new. Far above the wall were three tall towers of different heights.

  Behind was the mountain they had flown from. The mountain was larger than any of earth and was made up of only three peaks. The center peak was the tallest, and the other two, which sat slightly behind it on the right and left, were about the same height. Mid way up each mountain faded into the clouds.

  To the left and right oceans took the horizon. Zooming in, Will could see one fish after the next shoot out of the water and cut back flips. Each time they broke through their watery sky they whistled a short tune until their trick was complete and there whistle bubbled back into the sea.

  Directly below was all trees. There was an open field on one spot, a large lake, and a river, but everything else was green, yellow, and brown. Will slid the goggles off and the detail of the forest disappeared.

  “Hey Tobby, does anyone live down there?”

  “There are a few people, and many Xylons, but whatever you do stay away from those woods. The Foot Forest is not safe. Raiders have been in this area for years. They raid villages, take children, and if they had the chance they would take you too, they would, especially since you’re from Earth.”

  “Really?”

  “Oh yes, yes,” Tobby answered, then he raised the engine, slid his goggles back on, and the flight resumed. Will kept looking around, wondering what else was beyond his sight. After a few quiet minutes he had a thought.

  “Where are we going?” he asked.

  “To the city,” Tobby answered, without looking back. He was busy, yet again, dodging a group of blabbering birds.

  “We’re going now?” Will asked.

  “Yes sir, can’t keep the King waiting! What an honor it is to be requested at the palace!”

  At the mention of the King Will felt uneasy. All the talk and thoughts about meeting King Mel were a lot easier than the actual moment when he could be facing the man who may have killed his parents. What would he say? What would he do?

  “Tobby, can we stop for a little while?” Will asked.

  “What, what Mr. Will?”

  Will stood up and spoke over the engine. “Please, can we stop?!”

  Tobby glanced back at Will, who was rocking the little boat quite severely as he moved around. “Please sit down Mr. Will, you’ll turn us over.”

  “I don’t want to go to the palace yet. Let’s wait a little while.”

  “But that’s where Forest said you wanted to go sir,” Tobby replied. He was glancing back and forth between Will and the sky ahead.

  “I know, but now... I need to think. I just don’t know—”

  At these words Tobby turned all the way around for the first time while in flight. Through his big goggles he could see Will’s fearful face. “Okay, okay, Mr. Will. We’ll wait a while, we will. Just please sir, sit down. It isn’t safe. I’ll set us down once we’re out of the forest. Is that okay?”

  “Yeah, thanks,” said Will. “I just need some time.”

  Tobby nodded, then he turned around to the sudden up close and personal view of a squawking bird’s beak. The little mole ducked just in time to save his tiny head, but before Tobby could speak it slammed into Will’s chest. The boat rocked. The bird flapped. The boy tripped.

  “AAAHHHHHHHHH!” screamed Will just before he tumbled over the edge. At the last moment he grasped the saxboard and held on for dear life. The boat flipped onto its side. Tobby, who was just small enough, fell onto the inner wall of the shell.

  “Hold on Mr. Will!” Tobby yelled as he caught Will’s wrist and pulled with all his might. Tobby’s tiny arms were doing more work than they ever had.

  “I’m slipping!” screamed Will.

  Time paused; everything went quiet; and Will watched his last two fingers give way at the same time, sending him tumbling, spinning, screaming, plummeting towards the forest. Every time his head and feet traded positions he caught a new glimpse of the approaching trees below. Would dying hurt? Would he see his parents again? A strange calm flowed over him like the first stream of a warm shower after a freezing rain. The fear disintegrated. He wasn’t too far from the ground, only a few seconds to go. He shut his eyes and waited.

  But then there was a squawk and a thud and feathers were floating everywhere.

  The impact jolted Will’s eyes open just in time to see a huge bird (who was just as surprised as Will) buck hard, slowing Will’s fall and at the same time directing him into the highest limbs of a tree below. The first limb caught Will cross-ways in the stomach and snapped, as did the second and third, but the fourth held. Will folded in half as he fell onto it belly first, spinning around like a drunk gymnast on the high bars. Once the trick was complete he slid off like a wet noodle.

  He was unconscious before he hit the ground.

  Eight

  Back Home

  “Oh, thank God!” Will said out loud as soon as he woke up. He was curled up in his bed, in his room, in his house, on his street. He jumped out of bed, ran from his room, and half fell down the stairs. The fire was lit and the house was warm.

  Will was thrilled. From the kitchen he heard his mother singing like an injured canary. Normally, this would have made Will cringe, but not today; today she sang as a cherub. Throughout the years, again and again, Will had been woke by this noise. A few times he had thrown a pillow; once he had stuck his head all the way into the pillowcase; and twice he had actually cried. His mom loved it.

  “Will, come out here and give me a hand! The sidewalk is covered!” a voice called from outside.

  “Dad!” Normally Will would not have liked the sound of those words either, but now they reached down into him and made him smile. Will hurried to the front door and slung it open. On the other side of the fence stood his dad, by the mailbox, with his back to the house. Will grabbed the rail to start down and cold bit him on the palm.

  “Don’t forget your gloves,” yelled his mother in perfect time.

  Turning, he rushed to the chest of drawers. One drawer, no gloves. Two drawers, no gloves. Three drawers, gloves. He grabbed a pair and pulled them on, just in time to wipe a fresh bead of sweat from his forehead.

  “Mom, the fire’s too hot,” Will shouted. There was no answer.

  He shrugged
and headed for the front door. As soon as he looked up he started back.

  Standing in the open doorway was a really tall man wearing old black boots, a filthy and faded black coat that fell in tears to his knees, and a black wide brimmed bowler hat. The man’s pants were shredded from the knee down, and he had on a dirty white and green striped shirt. The bottom part of his face was tan and smooth, but everything above his top lip was hidden beneath the shadow of his hat’s wide brim. Strains of black hair hung from underneath the hat, falling just below his chin on both sides.

  “What is your name?” the man asked in a low voice that sounded like it bumped up the back of his throat.

  Will said nothing.

  The man stepped through the door and reached out his left hand towards Will’s face. There was a large red ring on one of his skinny fingers.

  “Mom!” Will yelled as he spun to run towards the kitchen, but before he even took a step he stopped. Standing in front of the kitchen door was the tall dirty man and his scary hat. Will looked back at the front door. The man was still there; there were two of him.

  “Dad!” Will screamed.

  At the same time, in perfect unison, both of the men, or rather man, took a long step towards Will. Will would have screamed again, but a quick thought directed the scream from his mouth to his legs. He jumped over the back of the couch and grabbed the fire-poker leaning up against the mantle, swinging it quickly around at eye level.

  “Stop or I’ll—” Will froze. Before there were two of the one man, now there were more, a lot more, and they were all walking towards Will with one outstretched hand, rattling over and over again, “What is your name? What is your name?”

  Will couldn’t move. The fire-poker fell from his fingers to the floor. What was going on? Again, in unison, as if still only one person, each of the man turned the palm of their outstretched hand, placing their middle fingers and thumbs together.

  SNAP!

  The pop was louder than thunder living in the back yard, and with it the fire leapt from the fireplace, rising like a rearing cobra. “What is your name?!” the man screamed.