came inside, “what a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know you were coming; I would have had the guest room prepared for you.”
“You know how I hate formalities,” he replied. “It’s so much better seeing the surprise on your faces when I show up. Besides, spontaneity keeps you young and helps those you love stay on their toes. Hello again, Bethany.”
“Sebastian, it has been far too long since you visited,” Nana chided as she hugged her brother.
He grinned and led the two children away. “Now, you two must tell me all about school and your future loves. I simply must know everything.”
Nana and Lavinia shared a glance and then laughed. “He always did like an entrance.”
“That is very true,” Lavinia replied. “Well, I’d best go have the guest room prepared for him. I wish just once he would tell us when he was coming.”She then walked to find the housekeeper and arrange a room for Sebastian to stay in. She knew the housekeeper would be out of sorts with the news. While a kind-hearted woman, she had a very definite schedule and did not like surprises.
As Lavinia was making arrangements, Sebastian sat in the parlor with Adrian and Moira discussing everything that had been going on in their lives. “Moira, tell me about your Prince Charming. What’s he like?”
Moira blushed. “He’s the perfect gentleman, Uncle Sebastian.” She began describing Lucian in great detail. She told him about the letters they wrote back and forth, explaining all that she’d learned about him. “Unfortunately,” she finished, “he’s still a little shorter than I am.”
“Well that’s an easy enough fix,” he replied with an impish wink. “Quit growing so much. And if that doesn’t work, I could always cut your feet off at the ankles. That might give him the advantage.”
“You would not!” she giggled.
“Best stop growing then, m’dear,” he retorted with a teasing grin. “And now you, Adrian, what is your princess like? Is she as pretty as Moira?”
Adrian blushed. “Uncle Sebastian, that’s an unfair question. If I say that Moira’s prettier, you’ll tell me I should say that Allegra is prettier. But if I do say Allegra’s prettier, I risk offending Moira.”
“I didn’t ask if she was prettier,” he said, winking at Moira. “I asked if she was as pretty.”
“They are both beautiful in their own way,” Adrian replied.
“Very delicately put,” Sebastian said. “Now, tell me what this Allegra looks like. I like her already, beautiful name. Very musical.”
“Well, I don’t know how musical Allegra is, but she is very artistic,” Adrian added. Sebastian smiled and he continued, “She’s very pretty. She has light brown eyes, almost the color of amber, and long, wavy auburn hair.” He continued to paint a portrait in words of his princess as his great-uncle listened with rapt attention.
Moira was also listening intently. She’d suddenly realized something that she’d never noticed before. She realized that her twin brother was in love. She smiled, knowing that he couldn’t have given that love to a better princess. She listened for a while longer until Uncle Sebastian pulled her back into the conversation. Soon Lavinia arrived and announced that luncheon was ready. The three walked out of the parlor and as Adrian passed her, Moira again got the feeling that there was something different about him. He seemed to be shorter than she was. Of course, she had to have been mistaken; Adrian had always been the taller of the two. Unless, she thought miserably, I have grown again. Yet even as that depressing thought came, she was sure that wasn’t it. Something had changed in him. She knew it, but couldn’t quite put her finger on it. As they sat to eat, Moira’s concerns were pushed away by the cheerful chatter around the table.
As the meal came to a close, the family went into the parlor and sat before the fireplace, listening to the crackling logs and Uncle Sebastian as he told them the latest of his adventures. Adrian and Moira were never quite sure how much of their great-uncle’s stories they should believe. They knew that as soon as the kingdom he had ruled was turned over to a new ruler, Sebastian had dedicated his life to traveling Sanalbereth and discovering all he could about the land and its people. He was an adventurer and possessed a vivid imagination which sometimes made his tales of travel far more exotic and wild than perhaps they actually were.
“Never have you seen such trees,” Sebastian said stretching his arms towards the ceiling. “They seemed to be as high as the very clouds; reaching upwards forever. I went into the forest to make sketches of the wildlife there. It was as dark as a stormy midnight; my only light was my lantern. The forest was filled with sounds of birds, insects, wild creatures. There wasn’t a person to be found for miles around. I felt quite alone in that place. Yet, I often felt as though I were being followed; by man or beast I had not yet learned.”
The story continued on with Sebastian facing a terrible panther deep in the woods. Moira still gasped in all the right places as she had since childhood, making the story even better for the listeners and the teller. He told of the epic battle and how he’d nearly become the meal of this fearsome predator; building the story until he finally reached the climax where he defeated the hungry beast with barely the strength to stand.
“I was so exhausted that I leaned against a tree nearby and soon fell asleep, the rustling of the leaves in the trees playing a soft lullaby to soothe me,” he continued. “Despite the dangers in the woods, there was a peace there as well. When I continued my journey to the heart of the forest, I discovered the ruins of an ancient fairy city in a small dell. The craftsmanship was strange and beautiful at the same time. There was a delicacy in it and yet it seemed also primitive. It was an interesting balance of the two. I spent many hours there, sketching and studying the remains of buildings. I estimate they haven’t been used in thousands of years. They were built mostly of wood, but also of stone. I surmise the stone would have come from the mountains that were not far distant.”
“Uncle Sebastian, how would the wood not have rotted?” Adrian asked.
“I asked myself the same question,” he replied. “The best guess I have is that it is the magic of the fairies; we do know that they have always charmed their homes with protection from harm. I suppose also that some of it would be the protection from the elements. Not a lot of sunshine or water would be able to get through those trees. That might help prolong the life. Some of the buildings were built right into trees and these trees have simply adapted to the inconvenience. But there were places where the wood had indeed succumbed to its age. That’s why I said the ruins of a city.” Sebastian winked and for a long while continued his tale. He described the city and then a river that ran through it and had led him to the mountains from which the ancient fairies must have quarried their stone. There was a large, rushing waterfall that flowed into the river. The mountains were riddled with caves and more dangers. The adventurous Sebastian would not be stopped by these, but merely continued his journey, facing the danger and finally reaching a small town in the province he’d been exploring. “And upon arriving there, I decided it had been far too long since the last time I had visited my niece and her children. Imagine my surprise when I found my sister staying here too,” he finished.
“I wrote to you saying that I had moved,” Nana said.
“Well, I haven’t been home in a year and a half,” Sebastian replied with a smile. “I’ve been far too busy. I daresay there’s probably a whole mountain of mail waiting for me to come and read it.”
“You need to go home more often,” she teased.
Sebastian waved a hand. “Home is boring and lonely. I’d much rather be out in the world than home twiddling my thumbs. Besides, if I’d been at home, I wouldn’t have been able to bring such unique gifts with me.” He rose and went into the hall where he’d requested one of his bags be left. Coming back into the room, he sat down and began pulling packages out of the bag. “Let’s see, one for Moira, one for Adrian, one for Lavinia and of course one for Bethany. I planned on delivering yours as my next stop, but you’ve
made my job easier.”
Nana laughed as each of them unwrapped the colorful packages. Moira pulled out a sketchpad and new set of pastels as well as another, long box. “How’d you know I was running low on paper?” she asked as she set the paper and pastels aside and turned her attention to the long box. Inside was a delicate crystal and gold necklace. She gasped, “This is so beautiful, Uncle Sebastian! Thank you.”
“My pleasure. You’re not a little girl anymore, it’s time you had some real jewelry. Besides, I found that crystal in one of the caves that I discovered. What better way to remember a wonderful trip than to see you wearing it?”
Lavinia also had a crystal necklace and matching earrings. Nana was soon wearing a crystal brooch while Adrian pulled a dagger with tiny crystals in the hilt out of his box. It had a leather sheath with intricate carving on it. “Wow,” he said, “this is awesome! Thanks, Uncle Sebastian.”
“Just promise me that you won’t get into any trouble with that,” he teased with a wink. “I’d hate for your mother to take it away from you.”
“I won’t,” Adrian promised.
Soon the cook entered the room to tell them that supper was ready for them. Moira asked Sebastian to help her put the necklace on before they went into the