The Island of Two Trees

by Brian Kennelly

  “But how did you even get us?” Connor asked. “I mean, how did we end up on this ship? We were in our parent’s garage one second, and then we woke up here, on your ship. How’s that possible?”

  “I’m quite certain it was the moon magic that brought you here.”

  “What is moon magic?” Lucy asked.

  “I can’t begin to explain the power that connects your world and this one. I’m too simple a man for that.”

  “We’re not in our world anymore?” Maggie asked.

  “Well now, maybe that’s not the right way to say it. It’s a wee-bit complicated, and like I’s told ya’, I ain’t the one who’s going to uncomplicate it for ya’. I simply received a message from the castle to set sail late last night when the full moon reached the sky’s peak. I navigated myself into the currents of the moon river and was told to stay on that course ‘til morning.”

  “The moon river?” Connor interrupted.

  “Aye. When the moonlight falls onto the sea.”

  “You mean the moon’s reflection on the surface of the ocean?” Connor asked.

  “Aye. It creates a river. Well, not an actual river. A kind of magic river, ya’ see. That’s what I’m tryin’ to tell ya’. I followed my orders to find it and stayed in its currents ‘til morning. Soon after the sun rose, I heard you little ones squirming beneath me and whispering all sorts of nonsense. I can’t say how exactly you got down there…I don’t know how the enchantment works, I just know it does. Some mysteries will always be mysteries, but it doesn’t make’em any less true. And so here you are. When I heard you this mornin’, we turned ‘round and now we’re headed back toward the island.”

  “The island?” Maggie asked.

  “That’s right,” he answered. A loud noise creaked from the other side of the ship as a strong gust of wind pulled the sail’s ropes tightly against the mast. “One moment,” he said, lumbering off to attend to the ship.

  Now alone, the children began to talk quietly.

  “Do you think he means…our…island?” Maggie asked.

  “How could that be?” Lucy questioned.

  “It can’t,” Connor said.

  “Do you think we’re dreaming?” Lucy wondered.

  “But his name is Kristoff,” Maggie said, “just like—”

  “I know,” Connor interrupted.

  “But maybe we’re all in the same dream somehow,” Lucy said. “Is that possible? Can you share a dream with someone?”

  “And he’s taking us to meet a queen,” Maggie said, “on an island.”

  “I said I know,” Connor snapped.

  “Let’s pinch each other on three and see if we wake up,” Lucy said.

  “It can’t be the island we created with Dad,” Connor said. “That’s impossible.”

  “One…”

  “Besides, it’s not the exact same. Dad never said Kristoff’s first mate was a monkey. Don’t you think he’d mention that?”

  “Two…”

  “Maybe,” Maggie mumbled.

  “Three…”

  Maggie and Connor felt a pinch on their arms.

  “Ow! Stop, Lu!” they both yelled.

  “Okay! Sorry. We’re not dreaming… I don’t think.”

  “And what’s this moon magic?” Connor asked, rubbing his arm. “Dad didn’t mention that either.”

  As you can imagine, the children were very flustered about the whole thing. They discussed and debated about what they should do, but it soon became apparent there wasn’t much they could do. The ocean was broad and flat and stretched to the sky. Jumping overboard was not an option.

  As they spoke amongst themselves, they were interrupted by Mr. Fiddleston hooting above them, jumping up and down in the lookout tower and pointing across the sea. The children’s eyes strained over the water and, when the light fog began to clear, saw an island lying on the horizon.

  5

  MISSING CHILDREN

  When Mommy and Daddy awoke, they could tell something was…off. It was too quiet. Ever since Connor was born, they had grown used to waking to the sound of children, whether it be crying, laughing, playing, or arguing. Waking up to silence took them both by surprise.

  They rose slowly, stretching and yawning and popping their bones and muscles the way adults often do in the morning.

  “I can’t believe they’re still sleep,” Mommy said. “They must’ve played hard yesterday.”

  “Yeah, I guess so,” Daddy agreed, going to the bathroom to throw water on his face.

  Mommy went into the girls’ bedroom first. Not seeing them in their beds, she went into Connor’s room, knowing sometimes they’d go sleep on his floor in a pile of blankets. But they weren’t there either.

  Daddy came out of their bedroom about the same time Mommy departed Connor’s room. “They’re not in their rooms.”

  “Huh, maybe they’re downstairs watching cartoons,” Daddy suggested.

  Mommy went into the nursery to scoop Mary out of her crib, who was just rising and had begun to cry. “Okay,” Mommy said, “I’ll get you your bottle, little one.”

  Mommy and Daddy descended the steps, not completely stricken with worry yet. It wasn’t that uncommon for their children to wake up early and go downstairs to watch TV. But when they found the den empty, they raced into the backyard and began yelling for the children. No one emerged from the trees or shouted back

  “Where are they?” Mommy asked.

  Daddy was trying to remain calm to keep Mommy from being too concerned. He walked back through the house and into the front yard. Mommy followed. They shot their eyes up and down the neighborhood. Across the street, Mr. Moore was working in his garden. Daddy called out to him. “Mr. Moore, you hadn’t seen the children come out here this morning, have you?”

  “Can’t say that I have,” he answered, kneeling in the dirt. “I’ve been out here for an hour. Though I do stay pretty focused on what I’m doing here, trying to dig out these weeds. They could’ve come out, I suppose. Everything okay?”

  Daddy forced a smile. “Yes, everything’s fine. Just playing hide-and-go-seek a little too well this morning.”

  Mr. Moore laughed as Mommy and Daddy went back inside. Mommy began to make Mary’s bottle as Daddy went throughout the house calling for the children, warning them this wasn’t a funny game and they had better come out right now from wherever they were hiding. But instead of hearing childish giggles and seeing them pop out from some coat closet in their pajamas, he heard and saw nothing.

  “I’m getting worried,” Mommy said, feeding Mary her bottle.

  Daddy went upstairs to look some more, peeking under a few beds. Nothing. He stood up and thought about where his children had run off to, trying to balance his anger and worry.

  When he heard Mommy yelling for him to come quickly, he raced back down the stairs, following her voice through the kitchen to the laundry room hallway. He passed Mary sitting in her baby swing feeding herself her bottle and burst through the open garage door.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  Mommy turned around, holding Maggie’s white bunny and Lucy’s raggedy, pink dog.

  “These were lying here,” Mommy said. Daddy came forward and took them in his hands. They were both soggy and damp, as if they’d been dipped in a bath. Daddy lifted his feet as water dripped off the bottom of his slippers.

  “What’s going on?” Mommy asked. “Why is the floor all wet? Where are my babies?” She began to cry. “Did someone take them?”

  Daddy hugged her. “We’ll find them. I promise.”

  As he stood there holding Mommy, he saw the toy ship from the island lying on the floor. He gently let go of Mommy and walked over to pick it up. It was also soaking wet. He licked his fingers.

  “It’s saltwater.”

  “Saltwater?” Mommy asked. “Like…from the ocean?”

  Daddy keeled over. “Ahhh!”

  “What is it?” Mommy raced to his side. “What’s wrong?”

 
; Daddy was in too much pain to answer. His head felt like it was being pounded by a hammer. But then the pain went away and something new came over him.

  A vision.

  “I…I…I know where they are,” he stammered.

  “What? What do you mean? Where are they?”

  He turned his gaze over to the table. “They’re about to reach the island.”

  6

  GOING ASHORE

  Whatever doubt the children had about this being the same place they had created with their father faded when they saw it lying there on the water. As they approached the west side of the island, it was as if they had been shrunk down to the size of insects and were looking up at the steep cliff of the mountain they had molded from clay. It grew out of the water just like back home, and there atop this mountain cliff stood the castle, rising right out of the rock and built from a whitish-gray stone. The castle looked exactly how they had built it back in their garage, with the same guard walls and turrets and banners.

  Stretching to the south they could make out a sandy beach where waves crashed atop the shore, with lush foliage beyond the sandy dunes. The girls had flashbacks of painting the yellow around the outside of the island with Daddy, and the lines of white amidst the blue to represent the crashing waves. But this island, this mountain, this castle, this beach, they were not made of clay and paint. They were real.

  “How is this possible?” Connor whispered to himself.

  “Look!” Maggie said, pointing to the base of the cliff. “There’s the cave that leads up into the mountain and the castle! Or…I assume it does anyway,” she added sheepishly.

  “No, you’d be correct,” Kristoff said, coming to stand by them again. “That’s where you’re headed. There should be someone coming to meet you.”

  Right on cue, the children saw a small, faint glow—a little orange dot—emerge from the mouth of the cave. The glow shined from the tip of a torch burning in the hand of a girl. She exited the cave and stood in the sunlight before the waves crashing against the nearby boulders. She wore a long, lavender dress, and was followed by two knights who came out behind her, dressed in silver armor and with long swords hanging beside their waists. The knights walked down the rocky slope of the cliff and disappeared behind a large boulder, only to reappear a minute later in a small rowboat, paddling out over the crashing waves and toward the ship.

  “What are those knights doing?” Lucy asked.

  “I can’t navigate the ship in that close. They’re coming to pick you up,” Kristoff answered, which quickly brought the children’s attention up to him. “What? I told ya’ you were going to the island. Did you think you were going to stay on my ship forever?”

  “No,” Lucy said. “But I didn’t expect to be picked up by scary looking knights.”

  “But Lucy,” Maggie said, “they’re wearing the same armor as the ones Daddy got for the island. These were the good guys, remember? The queen’s knights. We shouldn’t be afraid of them.”

  “I guess that’s true,” Lucy said, feeling a little better, until…her eyes widened. “Does that mean the bad goblin men are also on this island?”

  Connor put his arm around her and said, “Don’t worry, Goose, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  It took about five minutes for the knights to paddle out to the ship. Mr. Fiddleston had climbed down from the lookout tower and scurried over near the children. After giving Maggie an angry glance, he grabbed a rope ladder and tossed it over the edge of the ship.

  “Okay little ones,” Kristoff said. “Off you go. You’re in good hands now. Don’t be afraid.”

  “I’ll go first,” Connor offered after seeing his sisters’ hesitation. He peered over the edge of the ship. The soldiers had tied their rowboat to the rope ladder. Connor climbed over and began his slow descent. It was not an easy task with the ship rocking on the water and the rope dangling under his weight.

  When he finally reached the rowboat, he turned and looked at the two knights. They were younger than he was expecting, older teens, but they were strong and their faces vibrant. Their armor was silver and sturdy and shined in the sunlight, and swords hung in holsters attached to their waists.

  “Ha-Ha-Hello,” Connor stammered. “I’m Connor.”

  “We know who you are,” one of them said. “Sit down. There’s not much time.”

  “Oh…okay.” He turned to look back at the ladder. Lucy was struggling to climb down, about ten rungs up. “Come on, Lu, you can do it,” he said. He lifted his arms, waiting to grab her.

  “I said sit,” the knight repeated. “We’ll help her.”

  The knights brushed by him and pushed Connor back. He fell onto a seat in the middle of the row-boat. They waited for Lucy to come down a few more rungs until she was within reach.

  “Whoa! Watch what you’re doin’ with me!” she yelled as they carried her to where Connor sat and placed her next to him. Lucy huddled up against her brother, scowling at the knights.

  A moment later, they helped Maggie down, and soon she was sitting beside her siblings. When the knights had reassumed their rowing positions, they began to paddle toward land.

  As they drifted across the rocky water, the children glanced back to the ship that had brought them to this point. Kristoff stood watching them leave, with Mr. Fiddleston resting on his shoulder. He waved and smiled. It turned out that plump ship captain wasn’t as grumpy as he first seemed.

  But what would happen next? They took in the two young men dressed in silver armor. Neither of them spoke or gave any indication that they would, and so the five of them rode in silence over the waves, which grew larger as they reached the boulders at the bottom of the cliff. The knights had to row very carefully to keep the small rowboat from crashing into the rocks. Lucy and Maggie both gripped Connor tightly with each crested wave they scaled.

  Finally, they navigated themselves around the group of boulders and came ashore, docking on a small, flat piece of coastline. Beyond this tiny stretch of sand, a crooked flight of rocky steps led to the mouth of the cave where the girl in the lavender dress waited on them.

  7

  CLIMBING THROUGH THE MOUNTAIN

  “Welcome. My name is Anastasia,” the girl greeted them when they reached the top of the stairs. “You must be Connor, and the older one here must be Maggie, and you Lucy,” she added looking to the girls, who were holding hands.

  Like the knights, the girl in the lavender dress was also young, perhaps just a few years older than Connor. She had soft features and delicate skin, and pretty blonde hair woven into a single, thick braid. She wore a lavender headscarf that matched her dress, which fell all the way past her feet, so that she had to hold it up with her free hand to keep the bottom from becoming dirty.

  “How did you know our names?” Connor asked.

  “Everyone here knows who you are. You’re the children from the outside. We’ve been waiting for you.”

  “The children from the what?” Connor asked.

  “From the outside,” Anastasia repeated.

  “So where is here?” Maggie asked. “What are we…inside?”

  “Is this the island we created with our dad?” Connor asked.

  “Yes, it is,” Anastasia answered.

  The children all glanced at each other, their eyes drawn wide.

  “Or, actually,” the girl continued, “I suppose that’s not exactly true. What you built is a manifestation of this island.”

  “What does that mean?” Lucy asked, still holding Maggie’s hand.

  Anastasia looked as though she wanted to answer, but then decided against it. “It’s not my place to speak of these things with you. I am simply a humble handmaiden of the queen. I have come to escort you to her throne room. Come, we haven’t time to waste.”

  “What’s the big rush?” Connor asked.

  “You will learn soon enough. Please, follow me,” she said as she turned and walked farther into the cave.

  Hesitantly, the children march
ed into the cave behind Anastasia and before the two knights, who had retrieved their torches after climbing out of the boat. Anastasia’s torch provided light in the front of the caravan, while the knights’ torches lit up the back, and every so often more torches hung on the stone walls of the tunnel. The children could hear the soft crackle of the fires as they passed by their orange glow.

  The path was unusually smooth, like the surface of a flat stone one could use to skip across a pond. Connor had expected to encounter sharp and jagged edges beneath his bare feet—and in fact that was something that had worried him since none of them had shoes on—but it was as if someone had come through and worn down all the bumps and mounds of the rocky tunnel, like one might sand down the edges of a piece of wood. It was as if they were walking in the hallway of a house or building rather than a tunnel beneath a mountain. But though the smoothness of the path helped, it was by no means an easy journey. Their legs burned from the steep incline that took them higher and higher inside the mountain.

  After about fifteen minutes of walking, they could see light up ahead, but it was white light—like sunlight—not like the orange glow popping off the torches. When they finally reached this new opening, the children found themselves in a large room, though it wasn’t really a room at all; it was more like a giant den, or a cave, as if the small tunnel they had walked through simply opened up to a larger cave. And it was then that Connor and the girls remembered their father telling them that the Mysteria Tree grew inside this mountain. Or at least, that was how the story went. Perhaps this hollow opening was where the magical tree was housed and protected?

  As they stood at the end of the pathway on the edge of a cliff, they could see holes above them carved out of the top crust of the mountain. These giant holes let in air and cones of sunlight that fell into the rest of the giant den; this was the source of the white light they had seen from back in the tunnel. The holes in the top of the mountain looked similar to the holes you might poke in the top of a jar’s lid after capturing a small, pet insect, like a grasshopper, so that he could breathe. This assured the children that this was where the Mysteria Tree was, for their father had said these rays of light shone down upon it. So then where was the magical tree?