best interests of the community. You weren’t treating your body with the proper respect, and your body, well …
As she watched the mile markers disappear into the past, she began to think that maybe it was time to think some more.
You will wish to stay longer, and you will think you can. You cannot .
Annabel was never quite sure if that was a caution or a threat.
No, of course she couldn’t stay. She knew that even as she toyed with the idea. She confessed to not really understanding the process that always brought them back to Willow Tree. It was ingrained in them since the first day, part of their instinct to survive. She herself had only ever gone over a couple of times, and never for more than a day. One of them was part of her rebellious phase, and she had paid the price.
The council’s only punishment was to let her walk around in public for a few days as an example to the others. It was humiliating, the stares and the whispers and the shunning. After it was over, she had been told that she would save many lives through her example, and she had been welcomed back with kisses and hugs.
That was the worst part. They always let you know how much it had hurt them to see you stray. It was enough to make her swear she would never do it again.
But, she had.
This was different. This time, it hadn’t been out of rebellion or mule-headedness. This time, it had been out of friendship.
Juni Talbot had tried to steal a branch of the willow tree for herself.
Taking branches of the willow tree was a crime unthinkable to the residents of Willow Tree. There wasn’t even a law on the books prohibiting it because it was something one simply did not do!
But, Juni Talbot did.
To be fair, Juni wasn’t like the others. She did not think the way others thought. She did not reason the way others reasoned. She did not react the way others reacted. She was an island in the sea that was Willow Tree.
There were those on the council, even those from her own clan, who believed that Juni’s existence was not in the best interest of Willow Tree. Reclamation had come up for a vote on more than one occasion, but was always voted down.
Until the orchard.
Annabel and Juni had been picking apples in Ferguson’s orchard on a perfect autumn day. An unusually warm westerly breeze swept through the orchard, tickling the sweat under their collars. Juni was dribbling cider down her freckled chin and grinning like a crazy person. This was not altogether odd, except that Juni had a hand in her pocket and was fumbling with something. Annabel thought maybe Juni had gotten hold of some marbles, or maybe a cat skull, like the one she had found once near the Weeping Gardens fence. Annabel normally didn't bother her as long as she was behaving herself.
Now, Annabel wasn’t solely responsible for Juni’s welfare; the town had accepted that burden when it turned out that Juni was special. But, when you were with her, you dared not take your eyes away for long. Juni was not as mature as her years would suggest, and she had a way of slipping through a person’s fingers when least expected.
That’s how it had been that warm autumn day, and Annabel would probably never forgive herself for looking away.
The orchard boasted the best Red Delicious apple trees in Jackson county, and they weren’t wrong. Silas Ferguson had brought them back from the Hamilton Nursery . He was Bellwether, and had taken the truck to Chillicothe probably thirty times or more. The first autumn that some of the trees blossomed, he had given out bushels for free. The people of Willow Tree sang songs in his honor.
The next autumn, he charged them. By that time, they were hooked.
Annabel looked up from her apple and Juni was gone.
The apple was the reddest thing she had ever seen, and it hung just above her head, too high for her to grab. There was lower hanging fruit on the tree that she could easily have plucked. Why it had to be this apple, she didn’t know, but
As she watched the mile markers disappear into the past, she began to think that maybe it was time to think some more.
You will wish to stay longer, and you will think you can. You cannot .
Annabel was never quite sure if that was a caution or a threat.
No, of course she couldn’t stay. She knew that even as she toyed with the idea. She confessed to not really understanding the process that always brought them back to Willow Tree. It was ingrained in them since the first day, part of their instinct to survive. She herself had only ever gone over a couple of times, and never for more than a day. One of them was part of her rebellious phase, and she had paid the price.
The council’s only punishment was to let her walk around in public for a few days as an example to the others. It was humiliating, the stares and the whispers and the shunning. After it was over, she had been told that she would save many lives through her example, and she had been welcomed back with kisses and hugs.
That was the worst part. They always let you know how much it had hurt them to see you stray. It was enough to make her swear she would never do it again.
But, she had.
This was different. This time, it hadn’t been out of rebellion or mule-headedness. This time, it had been out of friendship.
Juni Talbot had tried to steal a branch of the willow tree for herself.
Taking branches of the willow tree was a crime unthinkable to the residents of Willow Tree. There wasn’t even a law on the books prohibiting it because it was something one simply did not do!
But, Juni Talbot did.
To be fair, Juni wasn’t like the others. She did not think the way others thought. She did not reason the way others reasoned. She did not react the way others reacted. She was an island in the sea that was Willow Tree.
There were those on the council, even those from her own clan, who believed that Juni’s existence was not in the best interest of Willow Tree. Reclamation had come up for a vote on more than one occasion, but was always voted down.
Until the orchard.
Annabel and Juni had been picking apples in Ferguson’s orchard on a perfect autumn day. An unusually warm westerly breeze swept through the orchard, tickling the sweat under their collars. Juni was dribbling cider down her freckled chin and grinning like a crazy person. This was not altogether odd, except that Juni had a hand in her pocket and was fumbling with something. Annabel thought maybe Juni had gotten hold of some marbles, or maybe a cat skull, like the one she had found once near the Weeping Gardens fence. Annabel normally didn't bother her as long as she was behaving herself.
Now, Annabel wasn’t solely responsible for Juni’s welfare; the town had accepted that burden when it turned out that Juni was special. But, when you were with her, you dared not take your eyes away for long. Juni was not as mature as her years would suggest, and she had a way of slipping through a person’s fingers when least expected.
That’s how it had been that warm autumn day, and Annabel would probably never forgive herself for looking away.
The orchard boasted the best Red Delicious apple trees in Jackson county, and they weren’t wrong. Silas Ferguson had brought them back from the Hamilton Nursery . He was Bellwether, and had taken the truck to Chillicothe probably thirty times or more. The first autumn that some of the trees blossomed, he had given out bushels for free. The people of Willow Tree sang songs in his honor.
The next autumn, he charged them. By that time, they were hooked.
Annabel looked up from her apple and Juni was gone.
The apple was the reddest thing she had ever seen, and it hung just above her head, too high for her to grab. There was lower hanging fruit on the tree that she could easily have plucked. Why it had to be this apple, she didn’t know, but
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