Kerka's Book (4 page)

Aunt Tuula handed me a mug. “With Britta gone, I'm the only full fairy godmother in our branch
of the Pax Lineage, and so I'll remain until someone from your generation completes a quest in Aventurine.”

“Who?” I asked. “When?”

“Britta wanted you and your sisters to learn the lessons of the Pax Lineage together,” Aunt Tuula went on. “However, since Biba is so much younger, the beginning of your training was delayed.”

“We learned our first Kalis dance move just over a year ago,” I said, “when Biba turned seven.”

“You and your sisters have done extremely well, considering,” Aunt Tuula said with a sad smile. “But all you have are the most basic dance moves.”

A shiver shot up my spine. “What do you mean?”

“Come into the living room, where it's more comfortable.” Without further comment, Aunt Tuula picked up her mug and walked out of the warm kitchen.

I followed with my Kalis stick in one hand and my mug in the other. I had done okay, even well, when I was with Birdie in Aventurine, but it had not been my quest. Was I somehow not prepared for my own mission in Aventurine? Birdie was from the Arbor Lineage, and her green magic was so strong that she had traveled to Aventurine with only half of
the Singing Stone, the talisman that helped her family's girls get to Aventurine in their dreams. Birdie knew the names of a million plants and spoke Latin, so she had been, in some ways, prepared for what happened in Aventurine.

Powerful gusts shook the window panes in the living room and seeped through the smallest cracks. Aunt Tuula set her mug on the coffee table and began pulling the curtains against the draft. Slipping my Kalis stick under a large throw pillow, I snuggled under the Scottish plaid blanket on the sofa, as I waited for Aunt Tuula to speak. I held my mug in both hands to warm them. I hadn't told Aunt Tuula that I had been to Aventurine already, because … well, I wasn't sure why; it just wasn't something I wanted to talk about with anyone but Birdie. I wondered if I should have said something, and if it was too late to speak now.

“There, that's better.” Aunt Tuula sank into one of the chairs and picked up her mug.

“Will
you
help me with my Kalis training, Aunt Tuula?” I couldn't hold back any longer, and I didn't give her time to answer but plunged ahead, making my case. “Aiti died before she taught us the last basic Kalis dance move. I know it's the hardest, and I want
to make sure I learn it correctly. I promise that I'll work hard and practice every day, even if I have to give up soccer.”

“I have no doubt,” Aunt Tuula said. “Your determination to survive and succeed will serve you well in the challenges that lie ahead.”

I shifted uneasily and set my mug on the coffee table. The words of praise had an undertone of something not quite right.

“But you are still underprepared.” Aunt Tuula rested her elbows on her knees. She suddenly seemed worried to me. “Turning thirteen is a big step for every girl, the moment when she crosses the threshold between childhood and early womanhood.”

This was not what I wanted to hear. I knew I couldn't stop time, but I was determined to put off growing up as long as possible.

“When Rona turned thirteen, your mother told her more about our family and our special heritage.” Aunt Tuula paused again to clear a catch in her throat. “Britta told me years ago that if anything happened to her, I was to tell you the same things on the eve of your thirteenth birthday.”

“That's today.” I had to catch my lip in my teeth to keep it from trembling.

“Yes, it is,” Aunt Tuula said gently. “Listen,
Kerka. The things your ancestors learned can guide you through the trials that lie ahead. I already told you about Great-Great-Grandmother Elsa and the elf. But there is more to know.”

I put my head on the large sofa pillow and fell asleep to the soothing sound of my aunt's voice, holding on to my Kalis stick.

Part Two
Hurricane

3
Into Aventurine

I didn't want to wake up, but the ground was hard despite the dry leaves.

Leaves?

My eyes snapped open. The light was dim, and I was lying in a forest clearing, staring into the soft brown eyes of a squirrel.
Where am I?
I thought for all of two seconds before I knew the answer: I was back in Aventurine!

The squirrel sat on its haunches, chewing a nut and staring back at me.

“Hello,” I said to the squirrel. I didn't remember ever seeing a squirrel the last time I was here.

The squirrel scampered away when I sat up. I looked around and quickly recognized where I was: the center of the Willowood, where the Willowood Fairies live. The circular clearing in the middle of the
willow trees was filled with mist, and a soft light was coming from one side, as if the sun was just rising. Last time, Birdie and I had all sorts of crazy adventures just trying to reach the Willowood. Already being here had to be a good thing. The queen of the Willowood Fairies could tell me what my mission was, and I could get started right away.

I stood up to start looking for Queen Patchouli or any of the fairies, and I noticed my backpack on the ground. Last time I came, a special map was in my backpack when I arrived. I picked up my backpack and opened it. Except for my orange Kalis stick, which was tucked inside, the canvas bag was empty: no schoolbooks and no map tied with red string.

I'm not sure how Zally's magical map came to be in my backpack when I met Birdie, but I hoped it would show up if I needed it again. I had no doubt that I
would
need it. Zally, a girl around our age who drew the map and sent messages in explosions of sparks, had told us that the geography of Aventurine changes with every dream and every dreamer.

“Good morning!” The voice was a familiar one.

The mist cleared to make a path down the middle of the clearing, and I could see Queen Patchouli on the far side. She was standing in front of what looked like two giant toadstools while a pair of fairies
built a fire beside her. “Come, Kerka!” she called.

I looked down to brush dirt off my jeans. But I was no longer wearing jeans! Instead, bits of leaves and moss stuck to a long navy T-shirt with a golden bear on it, long navy shorts, white kneesocks, and cleats. It was the soccer uniform that I wore in Finland—maybe that's what I had been about to dream of before I was pulled into Aventurine! I smiled, thinking,
I'll have to tell Birdie about this
.

Then I really smiled when I remembered another cool thing about Aventurine. There was no need to brush dirt off myself—Queen Patchouli would give me clothes to fit whatever journey I was about to go on!

I shook leaves and dirt off the blue mountains and yellow stags that were embroidered on my backpack and slung the bag over my shoulder. As I headed across the clearing, I watched where I put my feet. Squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, and mice seemed to be having their breakfasts in the clearing. It was interesting: when Birdie and I were here, everything was covered with flowers; now there were as many small woodland animals as there were plants.

As I drew closer, I heard the buzzing of the bees that often circled Queen Patchouli. A net of morning mist swirled about her flowing emerald gown, and
sprinkles of starlight shone in her long hair. A shimmer of green was reflected in her huge iridescent blue wings, which opened and closed like a butterfly's. Long wind-chime earrings made a pure but quiet sound when she moved her head, making me think of the wind chimes at Aunt Tuula's.

The fairies tending the fire, like the queen, were human-sized and had large wings. One wore a blue-green gown that changed hues like water in sunlight, and the other wore a dress that looked as if it were made of yellow and orange rose petals. The rosy fairy scattered petals around the two gigantic toadstools set back from the fire. When Queen Patchouli sat on the larger toadstool, its dome sank to form-fit around her. The mist flowed up to rest on her shoulders like a shawl.

I do not have a shy bone in my body, nor do I flinch when facing the unknown … usually. Aventurine, however, does not follow normal rules, and I wasn't certain how familiar or how formal I should be with the fairy queen. Birdie had been the center of her attention during my last visit. I stopped two feet back from the fire and waited while the fragrant smoke washed over me.

“Sit down, Kerka.” Queen Patchouli patted the top of the smaller, spotted toadstool. “It's quite comfy,
which seems especially appropriate, since the circumstances are not.”

“They aren't?” I asked, taken aback. “Am I not supposed to be here?”

“Quite the contrary,” Queen Patchouli said. “Your presence is essential, but we'll get to that later. There are other matters to attend to first. Sit down.”

As I settled on the mushroom, it firmed up around me, and two fairies rushed over. One pulled my backpack from my hand and flew off. A glance from Queen Patchouli silenced my protests. I knew my bag with my Kalis stick would be returned, but not having it bothered me. The other fairy brought me peach nectar in a daffodil cup and a cake made of sunflower seeds, nuts, and berries held together with honey. It was a small snack compared to the feast the fairies had served on Birdie's visit. Perhaps Queen Patchouli knew I had eaten a hot cross bun with cider before I fell asleep.