Page 96 of Prince of the Northwest Forest
Mats and Kalle exchange a glance, and I realize that Mats is listening to whatever Kalle is saying in his head. After a moment, Mats says, “We’ll leave tonight—it’ll still be light for a while—so that we can get there as soon as possible.”
“Without the detour to Icedonia, we should get there in a few days,” Kalle assures me. “And if you need something, send a bird, okay?”
“Sure, no problem.”
“Do you want me to walk you back to Princedelphia first?” Kalle asks.
“No, I’ll be fine. Other than this area, which was hidden to me, I’ve hiked these trails dozens of times.”
Kalle studies me like he wants to protest, but ultimately he squeezes my hand. “Then just be safe.”
“You, too,” I whisper. He kisses me there, in front of his brother, and escorts me out of the castle.
I walk down the path back to Princedelphia, but all I want to do is go back inside and join him on the quest.
The sun still hasn’t set when I get to the crossroads where the trail splits. One way will take me back to town; the other leads to Tassiya Meadows. All these times going to the meadow, and I never saw the fae portal. I’m intensely curious.
Well, I have time and don’t have to be anywhere until work tomorrow morning. I turn in the direction of the meadow.
When I get to the edge of the clearing, the ground is covered with small white and yellow flowers, with a few purple ones here and there. Dust motes dance in the setting sun.
A mouse crosses the path in front of me, and I ask it, “Excuse me, is this where Prince Mats goes?”
“Prince Mats?” it says in a squeaky voice.
“Have you ever seen him go to the Fae Realm from here?”
“From here? No, not exactly. He uses the portal over there.” The mouse turns its nose toward the trees ringing the meadow, and I study the trunks of the pines for a large one with a brand on it.
And I see it. A little ways up the trunk, there’s a spot where the air isn’t quite right. Like a mirage.
So the portal is right where Mats said.
Something inside me clenches up. I’ve been looking for a way to the Fae Realm for years now. And I passed by it dozens of times.
“I know this is a bad idea, but how else am I going to get my memory back?” I ask the mouse. “I could wait for Kalle to be free to come with me, but I’ve been waiting for years already. My patience is at an end. The answer isright here.”
“I don’t want any part of this,” it says, and scurries off.
Sheesh. Rude.
I take a deep breath and walk over to the tree. Branches have been cut off such that they make a sort of ladder.
Hoisting my boot to the first one, I feel the rough bark under my skin and inhale its sweet scent.
The shimmering air is so close.
I climb up a few more branches, making my way around the tree.
And then there it is before me: the Fae Realm. Through the portal, I see rays of bright color.
Am I going to step into this thing and tumble down somewhere?
Well, I guess there’s no other way to find out than to do it. Hoisting myself up a little farther, I get even with the portal, and then I put out a boot and step forward.
Passing between the realms doesn’t feel like entering the wood nymphs’ tree houses. The transport into those was briefly nauseating—like I’d been squished and then taken on a roller-coaster ride. This feels like I tripped and stumbled into a different dimension. Which, I suppose, I did.
I end up standing in a meadow not unlike Tassiya Meadows, although I can immediately tell I’m not in Oregon. At least, not the Oregon of my plane.
