The Autumn Castle

by Kim Wilkins

  “Perhaps that’s true. But perhaps it’s for the best. While she was here, I had no chance of ever recovering from that love. Now she’s gone . . .”

  “She won’t be there to fall in love with every morning. I understand.” Christine thought about Jude, and a big bubble of panic rose up. To forget him forever? Awful, impossible. She’d made the wrong decision, she had to go back.

  Deep breaths. Let him go. Let it all go. He wasn’t the Jude she thought she knew, he was somebody else, somebody with lies in his heart and vanity on his brow.

  A noisy commotion from near the door. A royal guard raced in, excitement and panic coloring his cheeks. “The last leaf, the last leaf!” he cried. “There’s only one left.”

  Voices, gasps, cheers all around her. Christine’s heart picked up its rhythm.

  Eisengrimm leapt from his chair. “Queen Starlight? It’s customary for the queen to watch the last leaf fall. Would you like me to accompany you?”

  “I . . . yes. Yes, I don’t want to be alone.”

  He led her along the corridor away from the banquet, and up the stairs to the white chamber. He pushed open the window with his nose and stood, paws on the sill, overlooking the giant birch. Christine joined him, clutched her fingers around his foreleg.

  “Gentle now,” he admonished with a smile in his voice. “I’m still recovering from an injury.”

  She searched the tree with her eyes, found the last leaf. Slanted evening sunlight stained the branches, the wind howled. The leaf hung as if by a thread. It reminded her of a loose tooth she’d had as a child. It had hung there day after day, spinning under the impetus of her tongue or her curious fingers, but not coming free. Then her father, under pretense of inspecting it, had suddenly and violently pulled it out. She had started to cry, but her father’s warm laughter at her startled expression had made her laugh too. Before long they had been rolling on the sofa in fits of laughter as he clutched the tiny tooth and she explored the smooth gap with her tongue.

  With a rush of fear and longing, Christine realized what it meant to forget. Everything.

  She moved closer to Eisengrimm, her arm curling around his ribs. “I wish you could hold me,” she whispered. “I’m so afraid.”

  “The seasons will change, Christine. Nothing can stop them.”

  A violent gust of wind tore up from the valley. The leaf spun, struggled, broke free.

  And . . .

  at last . . .

  fell . . .

  The Tale of Silverhand Starlight

  In days of old, there was a great and beautiful queen named Silverhand Starlight. One of her hands was made of silver, but it moved as gracefully as any person’s real hand. Queen Starlight’s dearest companion and counselor was a wolf named Eisengrimm. They spent all of their waking hours together, working by day on making her kingdom bountiful and happy, and spending their evenings sharing memories and thoughts, until they were so close they were almost of one heart and one mind.

  Some years after her rule began, the people of Queen Starlight’s realm began to ask if she would ever marry and give them a king and an heir. Now, this troubled Queen Starlight greatly, as she had not yet met any man for whom she felt a great love. Her dearest love and affection were reserved for Counselor Eisengrimm, but he was a wolf and a marriage between them was forbidden.

  “If I could but marry you, Eisengrimm,” she said, “we could be good companions for each other. I trust your judgment and I love you dearly.”

  “Queen Starlight,” he said, “you know that there is a way you could marry me, but it’s dangerous and difficult and I advise against it.”

  Now, Eisengrimm hadn’t always been a wolf and Queen Starlight knew this. He was once a man, but had been put under an enchantment by a sorceress named Zosia. The only way for him to be restored to his true form was for a true love to seek out Zosia and demand to know his real name, which she had stolen from him. But Zosia lived many, many miles from Queen Starlight’s castle, and was known to be an evil sorceress who stole souls and hoarded treasure.

  Queen Starlight tossed and turned every night for a month and a day as she thought about Eisengrimm and Zosia. Finally, she decided that she loved Eisengrimm truly, and that he surely felt the same way. He was the only king she would ever desire to have by her side, and so the journey was worth the risk. The next morning, without telling a soul, she set out alone.

  Now, many surprising things befell Queen Starlight on her journey to Zosia’s woods, so that by the time she arrived, she looked little like a queen. Her hair was dirty, her clothes were torn, and she had become thin from lack of food. What she still possessed were her fine silk gloves that she wore to protect her beautiful silver hand, a jewel on a gold chain, and a ring made of diamonds.

  Zosia’s woods were dark and treacherous, and as night fell Queen Starlight thought she would be safer sleeping in the hollow of a tree until daylight came again. She nestled herself into the hollow, then heard a loud voice saying, “Ouch!”

  “Who’s there?” she asked.

  An owl wriggled out from behind her. “I sleep in this tree,” he said. “There’s no room for you.”

  Queen Starlight quickly explained who she was and what she was here for.

  “Well, you can’t sleep here,” the owl said, “but I can give you some advice. Zosia is greedy for jewelry for her hoard. Maybe that can be of help to you.”

  Queen Starlight bade farewell to the owl and went on her way. She found a bed of lichen and decided to settle there for the night.

  “Ouch!”

  “Who’s there?” she asked.

  A lizard wriggled out from under her. “I sleep under this bed of lichen,” he said. “There’s no room for you.”

  Queen Starlight quickly explained who she was and what she was here for.

  “Well, you can’t sleep here,” the lizard said, “but I can give you some advice. Zosia collects souls for her sorcery. Maybe that can be of help to you.”

  Queen Starlight bade farewell to the lizard and went on her way. She found a pond of warm mud and decided to settle there for the night.

  “Ouch!”

  “Who’s there?” she asked.

  A frog hopped out. “I sleep in this pond of warm mud,” he said. “There’s no room for you.”

  Queen Starlight quickly explained who she was and what she was here for.

  “Well, you can’t sleep here,” the frog said, “but I can give you some advice. Zosia loves to win at games and is fiercely competitive. Maybe that can be of help to you.”

  Queen Starlight bade farewell to the frog and went on her way. By this time it was nearly morning, so she decided not to sleep but to find Zosia’s cottage. She mused over everything the woodland animals had told her, and decided on a plan.

  Zosia’s cottage had tiny windows, and nestled among a copse of black trees. As the sun rose, Queen Starlight knocked on the door.

  “Who is it?” Zosia asked.

  “A traveler,” Queen Starlight replied.

  Zosia opened the door and peered out. “What do you want, traveler?”

  “I want to play a game with you.”

  “A game? What do I get if I win?”

  “I have jewels.”

  “How many jewels?”

  “Two.”

  “And when you run out of jewels? For I shall surely win.”

  “When I run out of jewels, I have my soul to play for.”

  “Your soul? Well, that sounds like good enough stakes for me. Come in and let’s play.” Zosia opened the door wide. She pulled up two chairs by the hearth and Queen Starlight sat down.

  “Now, Zosia,” Queen Starlight said, “if I should win the game, I want only one thing.”

  “What is it?”

  “A word.”

  “Ha! Is that all? Well, I know you won’t win because I always win at games. But a word is nothing to me, and I’ll happily give it to you if you should beat me.” Zosia sat down and nodded. “Let us begin then.
”

  Queen Starlight held out the jewel on the gold chain. “Here is the first prize,” she said, “and you may win it if you can tell me how many eyes I have.”

  “Why, that’s easy,” said Zosia. “You have two eyes.”

  Queen Starlight nodded and handed over the jewel. “You are right. How clever you are!”

  Zosia grabbed at the jewel greedily. “Let us play again.”

  Queen Starlight held out the ring made of diamonds. “Here is the next prize,” she said, “and you may win it if you can tell me how many ears I have.”

  “Why, that’s easy,” said Zosia. “You have two ears.”

  “Once again you are right,” Queen Starlight said, handing over the ring. “Zosia, you are too clever for me. I can’t play anymore.”

  “No, no, you promised a game.”

  “I’ve no more jewels.”

  “You said that once you ran out of jewels you’d play for your soul.”

  “I may need it, and you are sure to win. I can’t play anymore.”

  “No, no, no! You made a promise and you have to stick to it.” Zosia was growing angry now, her face dark with rage, her hair sticking up. “You are bound by the rules of the game.”

  “Very well,” said Queen Starlight. “The next prize is my soul. And you may win it if you can tell me how many fingers I have.” She held up her hands in their fine silk gloves.

  “Why, that’s easy,” said Zosia. “You have ten fingers.”

  Queen Starlight shook her head. “Oh, no. No, Zosia, you are wrong.” She pulled off her gloves to reveal one hand of flesh and blood, and one made of silver. “For I only have five fingers. The others are jewels made of silver.”

  Zosia looked shocked. “It can’t be. I’ve never lost a game.”

  “And now,” Queen Starlight said, “I want my prize. I want the word I came here to collect.”

  “Which word do you want?”

  “I am Eisengrimm’s true love, and I want to know his real name so that I may reverse the enchantment you cast on him many years past.”

  Zosia ground her teeth and stamped. “No, no, no!” she cried.

  “You must,” Queen Starlight said, “for you are bound by the rules of the game as much as I am.”

  Zosia raged and spat, but finally she had to admit she had lost the game and she declared Eisengrimm’s true name out loud. Queen Starlight took it with her all the way back to her own realm.

  Now, many months had passed since she had set on her way, and though Eisengrimm had done his best to rule in the meantime, her subjects were overjoyed to see her, ragged and dirty as she had become, and cheered as she passed through the village on the way to her castle.

  “I shall marry very soon,” she declared, waving to them. “I promise you I shall marry very soon.”

  Eisengrimm heard her saying this and his heart felt heavy. Queen Starlight, he thought, must have met a fine prince on her travels. He could expect little more than to remain a counselor, because a wolf and a queen could never marry.

  “I am glad you are returned, Queen Starlight,” he said, greeting her at the door to her chamber. “You have been gone a long time.”

  “Do you know where I went?” she asked.

  “To find a suitable husband, I suppose.”

  “That’s right. And I have found him. He is loyal and patient, kind and brave.”

  “He will be a lucky man to be your king. May I ask, Queen Starlight, what is his name?”

  And then Queen Starlight said Eisengrimm’s true name out loud. In a second, his wolfish snout and ears shrank back and his fur fell out, and he stood in front of her, transformed at last into his true self. When Queen Starlight saw how handsome and noble he was, she fell in love with him even more deeply than before.

  They were married the next day, and lived happily and contentedly for a long time thereafter.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  As always, there are many people to thank:

  My agent and beloved friend Selwa Anthony.

  Stephanie Smith, Karen-Maree Griffiths, and Vanessa Hobbs.

  Kate Forsyth, for her wonderful poetry.

  My informal support group of writers and thinkers, especially Kate Morton, Louise Cusack, Mary-Rose MacColl, Axel Bruns, Drew Whitehead, the QUT girls, and the sf-sassies.

  Luka, for sleeping through the night so early.

  My cats, who can’t read this and don’t care.

  Mirko. Did you like it?