The rain slowed down. Juno snuggled Lupi closer as the thunder softened into a distant rumble. It was enough to give the kids courage; they straightened up as much as they could.
The book sat in Solani’s lap. The items they’d gathered were nestled quietly in the butterfly pouch, now resting in the corner.
Solani brushed her thumb along the cover.
“I was going to leave the book… unbothered,” she murmured. “But I don't know, I just want to see something."
Juno watched her curiously before deciding to place the Willow Wick beside the book, her fingers lingering just long enough to whisper a hope she hadn’t spoken aloud.
The book shivered.
Yes—visibly. Not loudly. But the air around it shifted, like breath held, then released.
Everyone froze.
Juno felt her heart skip.
Its cover warmed. The gold lettering shimmered. And then, slowly, the pages began to turn on their own.
All of the kids gasped, eyes widening in the same quiet, startled “Oh.”
Kaylani whispered, a little shaken, “Did… did it just move? Should we be scared?”
“No,” Solani said softly. “It doesn’t feel scary. Maybe curious? Eager? But not scary.”
Her pause, her frozen stare, said she was seeing something the others hadn’t yet.
Kalen leaned in—then leaned back again—squinting.
“I didn’t touch it. I swear I didn’t touch it.”
A soft glow rose from the spine, and the children leaned in, mouths agape.
The words lifted off the page—not flying but inviting.
The lantern flickered.
The relic pulsed.
And the treehouse felt… different.
Not transported. Not vanished.
But opened. And open it did.
Like illumination creeping through the book, fire‑ink etching shapes and shadows—soft at first, then catching at the edges.
As the glow faded, color seeped through, bringing a nothing into reality.
Juno swallowed. Then paused looking surprised. “Okay… that’s new.”
Solani’s voice was barely a breath. “I think it’s responding to the Willow Wick.”
“How do you know?” Kalen asked, though he didn’t sound like he wanted the answer.
“I don’t,” Solani admitted. “It reacted, and I just… feel it.”
They weren’t pulled into the story like falling—
but like stepping through.
Nerves unraveled as each one reached for the others’ hands. With palms clasped, they moved forward together.
Juno, holding Lupi close, met eyes with Solani, Kalen, and Kaylani, giving the smallest nod to stay together.
Kaylani whispered, “What is happening? Are we really doing this?”
Juno nodded once. “Why not? We’re already here.”
“Might as well,” Solani added, nudging them forward. “It’s already happening.”
Kalen let out a shaky laugh. “It’s one thing to read about stuff like this…”
“But another to actually be in it,” Solani finished, her voice steadying. “With all of us.”
She looked around at the faces glowing in the lantern light.
Juno exhaled, a tiny smile tugging at her mouth.
“I mean… who would believe this?”