“Is that it?” I ask, looking back at the princess. She’s already walking away, toward the giant moon that’s so close it seems to sit on the horizon.
“That’s it,” she answers without turning. “Their dreams are free, and so are you.”
Here I am, at the end of my quest.
My Momotaro powers are gone forever.
I wait for sadness to hit. For anger.
Instead, a feeling of lightness washes over me, relief flooding my skin like a cool swimming pool on a sweltering day. My powers are history, but at least my family is safe. I wish I could call home just to make sure.
Home. How do I get home from here, anyway?
“Hey!” I yell to the princess. She whirls around, her kimono swishing with a sound of silk. “Is there some kind of magic carpet I can call?”
She wrinkles her long, patrician nose. “Magic carpet? What is that?”
I hold out my hands. “How do I get out of here?”
“Oh, you want to get home.” She puts one hand on her waist, thinking. “I suggest you leave the same way you came.”
That’s helpful. “By jumping off a cliff?” I ask. “Does it matter which one?”
She sighs, suddenly reminding me of Jinx. “It is not far. Let me show you.” Kaguya walks toward me. The way she moves reminds me of a large cat, too, with a lot of power under all that grace. She takes my shoulders and spins me forty-five degrees. “Twenty paces that way, you will come across a gully. Turn to your left, and you’ll see a cliff. That is it.”
“So it does involve jumping off a cliff.” I knew I wouldn’t like it. I turn and shake her hand. It’s as chilly as a jewel. “Thank you, Princess.” I dip my head, not really knowing what you’re supposed to do when speaking to royalty, but I figure that’ll suffice. After all, she’s not my princess, so I don’t have to bow, right? She wouldn’t even let me keep my dreams.
Her eyes widen a little in surprise. “You’re welcome.” She pumps my hand uncertainly in return, then more enthusiastically. A sparkling laugh comes out. “This is a funny gesture.”
“Not really. It’s polite where I come from.” I let go of her hand. Kaguya—Princess Kaguya—is only a little bit taller than I am. If I stood on my toes, I’d be looking at her eye to eye. “What do you do where you come from?”
“Do? About what?” She wrinkles her brow.
“When you greet someone. Do you, um, hug? Or bow?”
She laughs again, the sound like small wind chimes. “We do none of those things.”
“Oh,” I say, and regard her smooth face, wondering how old she is. Or how ageless she is. If she were human, she’d fit in at a high school.
Princess Kaguya smiles at me and touches my face. “You’re very young, aren’t you?” she says softly.
I clear my throat and frown. “Not that young. I’m no kid, that’s for sure.”
“You’re right. At a certain point in immortality, age becomes meaningless.” She gestures. “I will walk you to your cliff.” She moves toward the spot she’d pointed out, her kimono swishing and reflecting the moonlight, as if she’s a beam gliding over the earth. I follow.
And then, all at once, I remember the moon princess story that Obāchan told me.
A bamboo cutter discovered a miniature baby hidden in a living piece of bamboo. He raised her, and she grew up to be beautiful (naturally, isn’t that how the story always goes?). She fell in love with someone on earth, but then duty called, and she had to ditch her whole family and her boyfriend to go live on the moon, where she came from.
“You were found in a piece of bamboo,” I tell her. “I know the story.”
Her face falls, and I wonder if she’s thinking about that lost love. “That was a long time ago.”
How long? I wonder. Desperate to change the subject, I add, “My ancestor was found in a peach. So we both come from a plant.”
Kaguya’s expression smooths over. She raises her perfect eyebrow commas. “Interesting.” Which I know means she doesn’t find it interesting.
I close into awkward silence. Why did I have to say anything?
We continue walking for a bit before she speaks again. “I must admit, you impress me with your fortitude, young Musashi.” Princess Kaguya stops and bends so her face is near mine. Her eyelashes are long and black and appear to be studded with minuscule dark diamonds. “You were braver than I expected on your journey here. I hope you will continue to be courageous on your journey back.”
“Thanks, I guess.”
Fat lot of good it did me. If she’s that impressed, why can’t she give me my powers back? I blink. Her face is really close to mine. She’s not expecting to do something crazy, like kiss me, is she? I step back.
“So my story is still popular down here on Earth?” Kaguya straightens, leaving me a little…what? Disappointed?
“I don’t know about popular, but I’ve heard it.”
“Few have dreamed of it in the last couple of decades. I thought it was forgotten.” She strokes the baku’s head.
“You know what everyone dreams about, then?”
“Only the people I choose to observe.” Kaguya meets my gaze commandingly, and for a second, she reminds me of Mr. Phasis. “You can tell a lot about a person from his dreams.”
I get the feeling that she knows way more about me and my quest than she’s letting on. Well, there’s probably not much to do up on the moon, and I am the Momotaro. Was.
The baku, no longer scared, lifts her trunk to touch my hand. “Hey, girl.” I smile at the creature. The more I see her, the more I believe she didn’t mean me any harm. She was just doing her job. “How are you?”
Behh, she says, and lets me pet her chick-soft head.
“There is your cliff.” Kaguya points at a ledge that looks vaguely familiar.
“Fantastic,” I mutter.
“Time to go, baku-chan.” Kaguya bends and scoops her up in her arms. “Good luck, Momotaro-san.”
At least she didn’t call me chan. That’s what you use with a little kid. “Are you sure you don’t want to give me my dreams back?” I ask. “They’re not going to do you any good.”
Kaguya strokes the baku’s shoulders. “Don’t worry. Your dreams are safe.”
My shoulders droop. Safe. I guess I brought that on myself. I wish I could show her that I don’t mind not being safe anymore. That I’m responsible enough to control the powers. I bow to her. “Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Xander.” She reaches for my upper arm as if to stop me, though I’m not moving. “Your dreams are only one part of you. If you truly want to be the Momotaro, you must remember that your words and deeds are important, too.”
“My words and deeds,” I repeat. Well, I already performed plenty of deeds. “Why are words important? Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me.”
A small smile flits across her face. “Words are sounds of the heart, Xander-san. And they can hurt or heal. What you say to others—and yourself—matters a great deal.”
Kaguya releases my arm, leaving a cool imprint on my bicep. She takes a step back. I swallow and look over the cliff into blackness. I guess what people say does matter. But what does that have to do with being the Momotaro, which she’s not letting me be? Words don’t have anything to do with my Momotaro power. That’s all contained in my head. Isn’t it?
“Kaguya? I still don’t understand.” I turn, but nobody’s there. I search for her in the darkness, and all I see is the glowing white pearl of the moon.
I walk to the cliff without looking at the moon again. I kick a large rock off the ledge, watch it spiral down, wait for the thud when it hits land. It never comes. Well, that’s super.
I lie down on my stomach to peer off the edge. I don’t see anything below but darkness, and it might be better that way. Briefly, I put my forehead on the ground and close my eyes, wishing I was already home in bed. But without my imagination, I can’t picture it. My wishes are just regrets now. I wish
things could have turned out differently. I wish I’d been as strong as my father and grandfather believed I was. The thought that I’ll never be able to fight the oni fills me with dread.
Because there is no more Momotaro, thanks to me. Nobody to stand up to them as they wreak the havoc Dad warned me about.
We are warriors, not time travelers, Ojīchan says in my head.
I exhale. “You’re right, Ojīchan.” When I get back home and tell Dad what happened, he’ll figure out something. He’ll help me understand what Kaguya meant about words and deeds. He hasn’t done all that research for nothing. I stand up and stretch my neck from side to side. “The only path is forward.”
I take a deep breath and leap. This time there’s no great sensation of falling—it’s just a short hop, like stepping off a curb into the street. I land on my hands and knees, with my hands buried in slush. It’s still night wherever I am, the moon beginning to sink as dawn approaches.
I blink, trying to get my bearings. A chill wind blows through my hair and my clothes. “Hello?” I try to call, but it’s more like a stage whisper.
I’m alone.
Peyton and Jinx must have already gone home. I can’t say I blame them. Who knows how long they would have been stranded here, what with the wonky time thing.
But still…I kind of want to cry. I won’t, but I want to. There’s nothing to do but make my way back down, too. I don’t even care that it’s still dark. I just need to get out of here.
I get ready to stand, but my knee creaks in protest. I groan.
A nervous whinny sounds from behind me.
“Xander?” Peyton’s pulling me up, stronger than ever. “Dude!” His face is healthy looking again, his eyes bright, his hair plumage standing straight.
I grin and clap my hands to his shoulders. “Dude.”
Extending eight feet wide from behind his back are his wings. Glorious iridescent green and blue and gold wings. He flexes them, then flaps them in the air, whipping my hair back. Peyton grins from ear to ear. “The bird is back in town!”
“I knew you didn’t have those chicken legs for nothing!” We hug, back-slap, fist-bump, the whole nine yards.
“So that didn’t take too long. At least not in this world,” Jinx says. She’s standing behind the pink horse, stroking his mane as he nervously shifts. Apparently, my sudden appearance out of nowhere startled him. “It must’ve been pretty easy.”
“Oh yeah, totally.” I brush the snow off my hands. “Except for the fact that I didn’t get my dreams back.” I begin telling them the whole story.
As I talk, Peyton uses a stick to draw me in the snow. At least I think it’s me. The sight makes my heart beat more calmly. He definitely has his dreams back.
Finally, I end the tale with the mysterious Princess Kaguya and how she seemed to believe she was helping me somehow by keeping my dreams.
“Xander, no!” Peyton grips my arm. “You’re the most important one.”
“No, I’m not.” I try to smile at him. I don’t want to tell him it was them or me. No use making them feel guilty. “It’s fine. I’ll be fine. I didn’t want to be Momotaro anyway. Guess I couldn’t handle it.” Deep inside my chest, disappointment wrestles with relief. It’s starting to really hit me. I have nothing, and here Peyton is with his wings. I feel like a tree that’s been hit by lightning, hollowed out and scarred.
“What about the oni?” Jinx comes out from behind the horse, clenching her fists. “Doesn’t she care about them? They’re going to take over the world for sure.”
“We’ll go home. Talk to my father. He’ll know what to do.” I speak with more confidence than I actually have, but as soon as the words come out of my mouth, I believe them.
She relaxes her hands. “Maybe. But what if he doesn’t?”
“He will,” I repeat firmly.
We stare at each other for a moment. Then Jinx closes the space between us in two steps, her arms out. “I’m sorry you lost your powers, Xander.”
My arms flail, pinned to my sides by her abnormally strong grip. I couldn’t hug her back even if I wanted to. I end up patting her spine awkwardly. “It’s okay, Jinx.”
She releases me, steps back. No tear in her eye, of course, but close. That’s good, because if the super-stoic Jinx cried on my behalf, I would definitely start bawling.
Peyton shrugs, the motion unfurling his wings. “So let’s make like a tree and leave.”
“Hardy har har. I can’t believe you left me to listen to his bad jokes, Xander.” Jinx punches me gently in the arm. “And you should have heard him crow when he grew his wings back. I’m still half-deaf.”
“Wait a second.” I stand stock-still. “If I don’t have my powers, Peyton, and your powers come through me, then how on earth do you have wings?”
Peyton meets my gaze as we both get the same idea. His mouth drops open, and his index finger pops up. “Maybe…”
Jinx hops up and down. “Maybe you do have your powers! Try it, try it!”
I attempt to think of something to imagine into existence. Anything at all. I look around the mountaintop. Nothing. “I can’t. I can’t think of anything.” My mind feels like a fuzzy television screen, and pain throbs at my temples and behind my eyes.
“Okay.” Jinx holds out her hand. “Glass of water right here, right now.”
That’s easy. I know what that looks like. A clear cylinder filled with clear liquid. Wait, that’s a memory, not imagination. Or are those the same?
Jinx’s palm remains aloft.
I sputter out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. “I can’t.” My head aches, my vision blurs for a minute, and I stagger back.
Jinx lowers her arm. “I guess that would’ve been too good to be true. Hey, are you all right?”
I double over, pressing my fingers to my head, trying to massage the pain away. “Not exactly.” I must be dehydrated. I always get headaches when I don’t drink enough water.
“Dude.” Peyton pats my back comfortingly. “Maybe we don’t understand everything about your powers. Or maybe the princess changed us when she returned our dreams.”
His silken feathers shelter me like an umbrella as they ripple in the breeze. It could be that Peyton’s wings are permanent now. He’ll be flying around San Diego, a glorious mythical bird. Think of all the sports he can do with those. And I’ll be Xander, stuck on the ground forever.
This feels even worse than the moment I gave up my Momotaro dreams. I know I said I wanted to be normal, but normal’s not all it’s cracked up to be, especially when your best friends aren’t. It’s like the time I lost a twenty-dollar bill—all my spending money—on a field trip to the county fair. I had to watch my friends eat ice cream and fried Twinkies without me, knowing it was my own fault for being careless. This feels like that, multiplied by a thousand.
Peyton continues patting my back. “It’ll be all right, Xander.”
I’m reminded of Princess Kaguya’s parting bit of random wisdom, about words. For a second, I try to believe my friend.
“I hope so.” I straighten up. The pain’s better now. I need to sleep for a few days, that’s all. “Let’s just get out of here. I want to check on my parents and Obāchan and Inu.”
“At last, a statement I can fully get behind.” Jinx picks up her backpack.
We finish packing and take the bridle off the horse. Jinx rests her forehead against the horse’s forelock. “Thanks.” The stallion closes his eyes, then nuzzles her.
Peyton takes a grain of rice from the monkey netsuke box and holds it under the horse’s nose. “You’re the best magical horse I ever knew.”
The horse sucks up the rice, chews the onigiri, then butts his head softly against Peyton. He turns, whinnying, and runs down the mountain, back to his herd.
“Oh.” The corners of Jinx’s mouth turn down. “I wanted to keep him.”
“Then why did you take off the bridle?” Peyton asks.
“Because. If he wanted to stay, then h
e would have. I didn’t want to make him come with me.”
“If it’s any consolation, Jinx, my parents wouldn’t have let you keep a magical pink horse. We don’t have a barn or anything.” I take her arm. “Come on. Let’s go pet Inu.” Longing for my family makes my feet move faster.
Jinx’s face brightens. “Inu!”
We haven’t gone but a hundred feet, when suddenly there’s a great crashing through the bushes and a terrified Beehhhhhhh! A long greenish trunk, attached to a creature somewhere between an anteater and an elephant, bursts into view.
“Baku?” I say.
The baku winds its trunk around my hand, pulling hard. Behhhh! she bleats. Beh!
“Ooh, it’s so cute and cuddly!” Peyton bends to pet her, but the baku shies away, staring fearfully at his wings.
Behhh!
“Cool! The baku.” Jinx reaches out for her, but the animal shrinks back. “What’s the matter with it?”
“I don’t know.” I try to remove my hand from her trunk, but she won’t let go. “What’s wrong, girl?”
Behhhh. She pulls at me.
“She wants me to go somewhere.” My stomach flips as I consider the possibilities. Well, there’s only one real possibility, as far as I can tell. “This must have something to do with the princess.”
“The mean princess who wouldn’t give you your dreams back?” Jinx raises an eyebrow at me. “Why would you want to help her?”
“Yeah.” Peyton flaps his wings. “Forget her. Let’s get home while the getting’s good.”
For once, they’re agreeing on something. Too bad I don’t agree. Baku yanks at me again, bleating. “I…I don’t think I can. I have to help her.”
“But don’t you want to get back to your parents and grandma?” Peyton says. “We’ve been gone a long time, and they must be worried.”
Good point.
Behhhh, the baku insists.
Xander and the Dream Thief Page 19