pte

way below ground level, safe from the winter winds. What remained above were only the

ade the tree look as though it was covered in snake skin, the frost still edging it where shadows still fell making the whole twisting mass of it remind her Medu

gold fringed brocade dressing the trunk here though, and each arm looked as though it was tipped with far too many bony fingers trying to clutch the air. While the large

placed his hand on the trunks of the trees, Cassie walked slowly towards the yew tree. Not certain what w

lmost able to hear... something, but not quite. She leaned in and closed her eyes. The tree pulsed beneath her hand as though it had an actual

he tree in surprise, losing contact with the bark, the image of what was buried beneath the tree fading as she broke away. There was a body buried beneath the tree. She cou

b, Cupcake." Cassie heard from behind her. Recognizing Enki's voice,

er. Right now, there were much more important things to deal with. She could figure out who

ight, " S

about her age with her long hair woven into two long plats, Cassie could see the hulking

upposed to be a giante

as she could identify it as being there. She looked to Enki. He looked the sa

ki said. His pout was for Skadi

d. "But it appears to be true. She's not

mated with anyone, let alone each other. Did they tell you which ones are your parents, Cupcake?"

Cassie finally managed to a

itioning, she wasn't sure she could make it to the kitchen door before they caught her if she tried to run for the safety of the ho

of teeth in a wild animal than a welcoming gesture. "We aren't here to hurt you. You are one of us and now that you

Walker. At that time Skadi did nothing but say a polite hello in passing. She didn't know of all the other times Cassie saw or heard her.

in the school hall way and a third time this morning when he stepped into the clearing. Every other tim

were hidden as surprise at two strangers from the book store in her garden. "Oh you are going to see so many t

aks the truth, we will leave y

ing his cohort back around the house. As they disappeared around the side of the house, Cassie raced for the door, h

he tried to get her heart rate back down to normal. Having Skadi and Enki leave her alone would be a good thing, but she remembered listening in to their conversation w

chool work and studying early. This evening, before bed she would look over the notes she had for Monday's exams, but she still had the rest of t

nes on the carpet, " Cassie added

She was less worried about cleanliness than she was about the imprint of the lines left behind by the vacuum cleaner. With the machine, Cassie made certain to leave clear lines in the carpet, loo

tale dovetailed into the story she was translating from the book she found. "The book my

e coming back. "Maybe I can

parents and what sounded like their rescuing of her when her mother died. The different emoti

n Alan told Jacob about the tree, he thought he said too much. "At least that's how it sounded." Cassie thought of the tree outside and the body buried beneath it.

of the day. "After all I can double check it against what everyone tells me. Someone has to be telling the tr

evision and its wooden stand. Technically speaking, the stand was a group of boxes stacked up and covered with a silk shawl so that it appeared to be one solid piece of furniture. Whi

ne know they were here. They were plain when they first arrived, looking more like solid blocks of wood with carved lines to make the

an old fashioned music box. After winding it, the box opened and the small figurine of a dancer performed an elaborate five part ballet that tied in with what was

brass plaque on one of the boxes, marked with the word 'Segundo', she engaged the video recorder on her cell phone and

in water. Oddly seeing the box evaporate in small bits made her feel more comfortable with the process than the instantly disapp

rectly, the teachers would share their knowledge and then after she learned Cassie would put the knowled

od. There was no brass plaque. There was no winding key. It was just a block of wood with lines

t before and frowned. At the end of the second box's ballet there was a box the ballerina was presented. The ballet ended before she opened it. Last night

nswer. While Abraham told her not to discuss what the guides showed her with anyone,

and stepped away. "As much as he answers anything.