Over My Rainbow

Chapter 13

SARA Rose turned out to be a sleeping beauty. Wil and I slipped out of the tent early in the morning and let Sara Rose continue to sleep. I sat at the base of a tree and tried to make a bow out of the branches I had collected while Wil ventured off to find edible berries and roots for breakfast. When he returned I was still whittling away at my branch.

"What are we going to do with that princess?" He asks as he stokes the fire to life.

"I've been thinking about that. We could bring her with us, but that would be another mouth to feed and a lot more work to stay inconspicuous. Or we could detour and bring her to her castle, but I feel terrible about how her parents and that prince have been treating her. I think the better option is taking her with us, unfortunately.

"How old do you think she is?" Wil asks.

Well, that is a bit off topic!

"Fourteen, maybe fifteen. Younger than me, but not by much. Why? Is that how you are going to choose whether or not she comes?"

"No," Wil shakes his head and coughs as the smoke rises from his pile of twigs. He warms his hands over the fire before glancing at me. "Put on your hat."

He is extremely frustrating! He totally switched the subject again and he was the one who said I could keep the cap off as long as I was away from the road. I glare at him and rise to my feet. I stomp to the last night's lean-to and pull out my bag. I retrieve the hat, smash it on my head and sulk back to the fire. Wil barely looks up from the pit when I return.

"Better?" I asking, spinning in a circle as if he were Mother inspecting my gown.

He smiles genuinely as if nothing at all had transpired. He nods and suddenly I feel uncomfortable and a bit insecure.

"So is she coming with us or not?" I ask hotly.

"Who's coming?" A yawning Sara Rose inquires as she crawls from beneath the branches.

"Good morning, Sara Rose. Come to break your fast." Wil calls. She is coming with us, he mouths at me and I sigh and stalk back to my tree.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sara Rose did indeed come with us and we walked with little conversation until noon. While Wil and I only need to stop for the privy once, Sara Rose stopped four or five times and kept us waiting for ages. During the bore-some, tiring walk, Wil does not but stare at Sara Rose. Around midday, we hear a stream rushing and when it comes into view we stop to find food.

Sara Rose and I leave Wil to fish and set out a little ways into the forest. I had collected a few rocks to fashion into arrows and I was eager to see how my makeshift bow would hold up on the hunt. Unfortunately, Sara Rose was loud enough to scare off any nearby animals.

"When is this trip going to get interesting?" Sara Rose asks.

"Not until we find these foothills. We haven't learned much so far so I would assume we have to follow the map all the way to the end of the rainbow."

"I know you are trying to find answers," Sara Rose says as she stops to pick a berry. She is about to pop it in her mouth when I hit it away. A dead animal lay nearby, probably poisoned by the berries. Sara Rose's eyes grow big and we walk a few paces away before she finishes her thought. "What about Wil? Why is he on this journey?"

"A fairy told him that he needs to follow me on this mission."I hold back a branch for the princess and blaze a trail ahead, scanning for tracks and prints as I go. "I honestly don't know more than that. He told me his story, but it was confusing and he was masking many of the details that hinted to his past."