the gift of humility, along with the spinning wheel. The parents could not refuse such a gift in front of their subjects.”
“Clever fairy.”
“Clever and mean and powerful. She altered the charm on the spinning wheel so that it would not only put the granddaughter to sleep for a hundred years, it would put the whole castle to sleep as well. The kingdom would be an easy thing to conquer; the fairy had only to trust the curiosity of little girls and pray she eventually pricked her finger on the spindle.”
“Did she?”
“The night before her sixteenth birthday.”
Trix gasped.
“The whole castle instantly fell asleep. The king and the queen, the cooks and the serving girls, the guards and the errand boys, the horses in the stables and the hens in the henhouse. When the spell was complete, the fairy surrounded the castle with a wall of thorns and set a basilisk to guard the gate so the castle would remain untouched, ready for her to inhabit in a hundred years’ time.”
“But someone got in.”
“For some heroes, nothing is impossible. A young prince hacked through the wall of thorns and slew the basilisk. He made his way to the topmost tower of the castle, where the sleeping princess lay, and he woke her with a kiss of true love.” If true love couldn’t work the way it was supposed to in her own life, she could at least make it work for someone else. “The princess awoke and then the entire castle. The fairy was never seen again.”
“What about the spinning wheel?”
“When the princess was well again, she ordered the spinning wheel brought before her to be destroyed.”
“Just like the girl before her.”
“And just as had happened to the girl before her, the spinning wheel was nowhere to be found. It remains intact, somewhere in Arilland, to this very day.”
“Do you think it will ever be found again?”
“Oh, it gets found from time to time. You’ll hear of a girl struck down with a sleeping sickness from which she will not wake. When her friends and family are questioned, they’ll find she was spinning at the time she fell ill. They will look at the pad of her finger and see the mark of the spindle that stole her life. They will seek out the spinning wheel and try to destroy it, but it will be too late.”
“Could this really be that spinning wheel?”
“There’s only one way to find out.” Before Trix could protest, Sunday reached out and pricked her finger on the spindle.
“No!” Trix cried, and immediately lanced his finger on the spindle as well.
Sunday watched the blood well up on Trix’s fingertip. Shed meant to scare her brother with her story, but shed never meant him harm. “Why did you do that?”
“If you fall asleep for a hundred years, then so will I. When we wake up, we can hunt down the spinning wheel together and make sure it’s destroyed.”
Trix was never one to question love or loyalty. If more people like him existed in the world, it would be a much nicer place. “Oh, Trixie. You’re the best brother ever.”
His face fell. The magic they’d woven between them blew away on the wind. “But I’m not your brother.”
Sunday looked down at her fingertip with the bright red pearl of blood on it. She took Trix’s hand in hers and pressed their two wounded fingers together. “You have always been family. In my heart, you have always been my brother. Now our blood is shared again. You have mine, and I have yours. You are my brother and I am your sister. Don’t ever let anyone say otherwise.”
“As it was, so it will be forever,” he said solemnly.
Sunday’s body tingled. She was working some small magic with her words, but she didn’t care if she got in trouble. She wasn’t changing anything major, just reinforcing a bond that had always been between them. If it made Trix feel better, it was worth it.
Trix pulled his finger away and wrapped it tightly in the hem of his dirty shirt. “So what are you going to do now that you’ve completed
“Clever fairy.”
“Clever and mean and powerful. She altered the charm on the spinning wheel so that it would not only put the granddaughter to sleep for a hundred years, it would put the whole castle to sleep as well. The kingdom would be an easy thing to conquer; the fairy had only to trust the curiosity of little girls and pray she eventually pricked her finger on the spindle.”
“Did she?”
“The night before her sixteenth birthday.”
Trix gasped.
“The whole castle instantly fell asleep. The king and the queen, the cooks and the serving girls, the guards and the errand boys, the horses in the stables and the hens in the henhouse. When the spell was complete, the fairy surrounded the castle with a wall of thorns and set a basilisk to guard the gate so the castle would remain untouched, ready for her to inhabit in a hundred years’ time.”
“But someone got in.”
“For some heroes, nothing is impossible. A young prince hacked through the wall of thorns and slew the basilisk. He made his way to the topmost tower of the castle, where the sleeping princess lay, and he woke her with a kiss of true love.” If true love couldn’t work the way it was supposed to in her own life, she could at least make it work for someone else. “The princess awoke and then the entire castle. The fairy was never seen again.”
“What about the spinning wheel?”
“When the princess was well again, she ordered the spinning wheel brought before her to be destroyed.”
“Just like the girl before her.”
“And just as had happened to the girl before her, the spinning wheel was nowhere to be found. It remains intact, somewhere in Arilland, to this very day.”
“Do you think it will ever be found again?”
“Oh, it gets found from time to time. You’ll hear of a girl struck down with a sleeping sickness from which she will not wake. When her friends and family are questioned, they’ll find she was spinning at the time she fell ill. They will look at the pad of her finger and see the mark of the spindle that stole her life. They will seek out the spinning wheel and try to destroy it, but it will be too late.”
“Could this really be that spinning wheel?”
“There’s only one way to find out.” Before Trix could protest, Sunday reached out and pricked her finger on the spindle.
“No!” Trix cried, and immediately lanced his finger on the spindle as well.
Sunday watched the blood well up on Trix’s fingertip. Shed meant to scare her brother with her story, but shed never meant him harm. “Why did you do that?”
“If you fall asleep for a hundred years, then so will I. When we wake up, we can hunt down the spinning wheel together and make sure it’s destroyed.”
Trix was never one to question love or loyalty. If more people like him existed in the world, it would be a much nicer place. “Oh, Trixie. You’re the best brother ever.”
His face fell. The magic they’d woven between them blew away on the wind. “But I’m not your brother.”
Sunday looked down at her fingertip with the bright red pearl of blood on it. She took Trix’s hand in hers and pressed their two wounded fingers together. “You have always been family. In my heart, you have always been my brother. Now our blood is shared again. You have mine, and I have yours. You are my brother and I am your sister. Don’t ever let anyone say otherwise.”
“As it was, so it will be forever,” he said solemnly.
Sunday’s body tingled. She was working some small magic with her words, but she didn’t care if she got in trouble. She wasn’t changing anything major, just reinforcing a bond that had always been between them. If it made Trix feel better, it was worth it.
Trix pulled his finger away and wrapped it tightly in the hem of his dirty shirt. “So what are you going to do now that you’ve completed
Similar Books
