Craft by Lynnie Purcell Page A

in the distance. It was long and made a slow curve toward a
large collection of buildings.
    “If you keep going that way you’ll see
the downtown in no time at all. It’ll be on the other side of a
bridge,” Thane said.
    “Okay,” Ellie said.
“Thanks.”
    “Whatever you do, don’t mention your
name to people. You’re not a Bumbalow today. You’re from out of
town, passing through with your family. And make some shoes for
yourself. People will stare if they see you walking around
barefoot…and don’t do magic. The people that don’t do magic get
scared when they see it, and my family will know you’re a Bumbalow
and try to kill you. They’ll probably succeed, as they’re very good
at what they do.”
    Ellie looked at him curiously. From
his tone, it sounded as if he actually cared what happened to her.
She was certain it only seemed that way – a trick of her
imagination or her willingness to hope in the goodness of people,
even a Cooper. Neveah called it fool’s hope. Ellie knew her hope
did not always have a place in the real world.
    “I’ll keep that in mind,” Ellie told
him with a small smile.
    “Right,” he agreed.
    Thane rubbed at the back of his neck
awkwardly, as if he had more to say and did not know how to say it.
He settled for ‘goodbye.’ He gave a small wave.
    “This was interesting, Bumbalow,” he
said. “See ya.”
    Thane walked away without another
word, headed in the general direction he had pointed out to Ellie.
His back was stiff and his body tense as he left her standing at
the edge of the tracks. He did not look back. The truce they had
forged was broken. They were strangers, enemies with conflicting
purposes.
    “Bye,” Ellie whispered.
    Caw cawed once in parting, a low sound
full of sadness. Thane did not seem to notice either goodbye. Ellie
kept her place at the edge of the woods, giving Thane time to get
away before she moved toward town. She did not want him to feel as
if she was following him.
    When he was gone, Ellie took a deep
breath, absorbing the sights around her with a sense of
satisfaction. She had really done it. She had made it to town. To
have a Cooper be the reason she had made it just made the situation
stranger. She shook her head at the weirdness and started to follow
Thane’s path into town. She would deal with the realities of the
weirdness when her adventure was over. That would be the time to
take stock of the situation.
    Ellie passed the industrial buildings
she had mistaken for the town. They towered above her. She craned
her neck to look up at them in awe. She wondered how they had
managed to make them so beautiful and build them so tall. Looking
at them, she was certain Thane had been lying when he said most
people did not craft.
    Smiling from ear to ear at the newness
she found in front of her, the first row of buildings opened out to
a large shipping yard. The yard revealed a large, unobstructed view
of the harbor. For the first time, Ellie noticed the
ocean.
    The buildings had distracted her from
the glittering waves in the distance. As the metal buildings passed
by, she could no longer deny the significance of the sparkling
water. It was in front of her, spread out like a quilt of liquid
green. The dusk reflected in the moving water. She felt her mouth
drop open, and her heart filled up with happiness at the
sight.
    She had read stories about the ocean,
about pirates and seafarers who went on epic journeys on the high
seas, rescuing damsels and getting into trouble because of their
pride. She had imagined herself riding the waves on a ship and
taking part in those adventures many times but she had never
imagined the ocean could look the way it did. There was something
magical about it. It went beyond any craft anyone could ever
conceive of. It went beyond beauty. Ellie felt the magic of it stir
in her chest.
    Forgetting Thane’s warnings about
blending in, she ran down to the shipping docks. Waves lapped
against the edge of the wooden docks