Displaced

Kitty’s eyes fluttered open.

“Kitty,” the King said softly.

She turned toward his voice.  Looking confused, she asked him, “Where am I?”

“In the castle,” the King answered.  He glanced over at the doctor.  “Do you not remember coming here with us?”

“I…I thought that was a dream.  Am I still dreaming?”

“No, I am afraid not.  Your brother Jack brought you through the window in the desert.  You have been very ill since.”

Now appearing more scared than confused, Kitty pushed herself up a little.  “But I can’t be here.  You said that if I ever came here again I’d die.”

“Thankfully we were wrong," the King said.  “You just barely survived.  You have been ill a long time.”

“How long?”

“Many days.  We are not sure how long you were with the Prophecy before that.”

“The Prophecy!  Why was I with them?”

           “Jack brought you to them,” the King answered.  When Kitty frowned, the King squeezed her hand.  “We need not speak of that now,” he said.  “What is important is that you are going to recover, but that you will need a great deal of rest.”

Kitty could believe it, because she felt terrible.  She held her free hand against her forehead; it was pounding something awful.  Worn out just with the effort of sitting up, she sank back into the pillow and closed her eyes, breathing in the smell of the open fire—the aroma of the wood aroused her memory.  She had forgotten how good that scent was…

Kitty bolted back into a semi-seated position.  “Wait a minute--I will be able to go home, won’t I?”

When the King did not immediately respond, Kitty looked at over the doctor; the doctor, however, only lowered her eyes.  Kitty turned back to the King.  “Please," she begged him, "tell me I can go home again!”

The King let out a deep sigh.  “I am sorry," he said, "but you cannot.  The cells that allowed you to travel between worlds have been depleted.  We now know with certainty that if you step through another window, you will die.”

For a moment Kitty said nothing.  And then she started crying how she never had before.

Photo by C. Hornby