Page 33 of Lost

Water shall watch

And fire shall warm and protect

But heed my command, Redbird Boy

Not one living tree shall you destroy

Or our deal will forever be void

I seal this bargain between thee and me

So I have spoken—so mote it be!”

Then the tree sprite opened her mouth impossibly wide, giving Kevin a disconcerting view of white, pointed teeth, and she swallowed one of the bags whole. Next, with a movement so quick that for Kevin it was only a blur, she tossed the second bag in the air, where it exploded. Pieces of it began drifting down with the frozen rain, and time slowed as the sprites began flitting about, feeding on the remnants of Grandma Redbird’s medicine bag like a swarm of beautiful but deadly piranhas. All the while they chirped and whistled and sang a wordless but joy-filled song.

Time sped up again and the tree sprite looked past Kevin to where Grandma Redbird stood within the lip of the cave.

“Wise Woman, your essence is delicious. You wield your own type of earth power. I would come to you once, should you ever have need of me.”

Grandma Redbird bowed her head in respectful acknowledgment to the sprite before responding. “Should I ever have a need so great that I am willing to pay your price, I shall call you, lovely tree sprite.”

“You and this child of your blood may call me Oak.”

This time when his g-ma’s head bowed, Kevin mimicked her. “Thank you, Oak,” he said.

“You have already thanked me. And your payment was delicious. Now, your people should leave the cave while we work.”

Dragon and Grandma Redbird left the cave with Kevin, but Anastasia paused at the mouth of it to call within.

“Shadowfax, Guinevere! Come on, you two. I know it’s cold and wet out here, but you must leave the cave.

From deep inside, two cats emerged—a huge, disgruntled-looking Maine coon and a delicate, cream-colored cat Kevin was pretty sure was a Siamese. Both tucked their ears against their heads as they padded to Dragon to jump up into his arms.

“I’ve got them. Now, move back with us, Anastasia.”

Dragon’s mate joined them, and Kevin put his arm around his g-ma, trying to protect her as best he could from the bone-chilling rain, but he was still weak, and he found himself staggering unless he leaned heavily on her. Suddenly Dragon passed the two cats to his mate, and then he was beside Kevin, grabbing his other arm, steadying him enough so that he could climb up between two boulders, which almost shielded them from the wet. With Dragon on one side of him and his grandma on the other, Kevin watched as in less time than it had taken to run the Red Army from the ridge, the sprites worked a miracle, and then, without another word, they dissolved back into the trees and rocks and the dark, frigid night.