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over, they helped her get ready.
    Ruth picked a sack of roses.
    Molly handed Alida a corked bottle she had filled from the rain barrel.
    â€œYou could ride my horse,” Ruth said, at least a dozen times.
    Alida kept shaking her head.
    She had never felt stronger in her life. She had never wanted to do anything as much as she wanted to help Gavin. She didn’t want the guards to hear hergalloping up the road. And she was almost certain she could fly faster than a horse could gallop.
    â€œYou must remember the law,” Molly said as they stood in the front yard together.
    â€œI will,” Alida promised. “No one will see me.”
    Ruth had given her a bag. It held her blanket, the shawl, the roses, and the water bottle. “Good-bye,” she said solemnly. “I am forever grateful to you both.”
    Ruth smiled. “And Kip. He taught you to fly.”
    Alida opened her eyes wide and made a face like she was scared.
    They all laughed, but it was thin and quick. They were all worried about Gavin.
    â€œTake care,” Molly said. “Come back to us with Gavin, safe and soon.”
    Alida nodded.
    She held the bag tightly in one hand, then stood on her tiptoes and rose slowly, beating her wings in a steady rhythm.
    She circled the house twice, getting used to the weight of the bag.
    Then she waved with her free hand and started off.
    She flew carefully.
    It was hard to keep her balance at first, but she got better at it.
    She stayed high above the ground and followed the Blue River until she got close to Ash Grove. Then she turned and stayed above the forest, flying lower, closer to the treetops.
    She held the bag against her chest.
    Once she was far enough away from Ash Grove, she used the road to guide her. She stayed far off to one side. She flew higher and higher. Travelers who happened to look up would see a dot in the distance. They would think she was a bird.
    The earth looked strange so far below her.
    The forest went on and on, in every direction, and the road looked like a single brown thread in a deep green blanket. Lord Dunraven’s lands seemed endless.
    By sunset Alida was tired.
    She found a stand of willow trees near a creek, far from the road.
    She didn’t know how to make a proper faerie’s nest, but the highest willow branches were slender and easy to weave into a sturdy tangle. She wrapped up in her blanket and stared at the darkening sky. And so she fell asleep beneath the moon, far above the ground, swaying with a whispering breeze.
    When she woke, there were still stars overhead. She stretched and drank from the bottle of rainwater. She was hungry, too. She ate six of Ruth’s delicious roses. They were sweet and tender and wonderful, and she ate them slowly, waiting for dawn.
    When it was light enough to fly, she spread her wings and flew again.
    She was careful not to come too close to the town at the bottom of the hill. Some people were already awake. There were lit lamps in a few of the windows.
    Just as the sun came up, Alida spotted thewide clearing in the forest that surrounded Lord Dunraven’s castle.
    It was even bigger than she had thought the night she and Gavin had escaped.
    The ground floor was wider than any of the others, but even the dark stone towers were massive. They were beautiful in the dawn light.
    Alida flew in a low, wide circle and found a rocky ridge.
    She set her bag on top of a stone shaped like a giant’s tooth.
    Then she stared at the castle.
    She didn’t want to go inside it.
    The corridors were like a maze.
    But how else could she get Gavin out? Even if she somehow broke a window, how could he get down off the castle roof? She was afraid to try to carry him.
    She wasn’t at all sure her wings would be strong enough to keep them both in the air.
    Alida stared at the jumble of stones on the ridge. She had suddenly been able to fly when Kip had scared her. She was certainly scared now.
    Faeries could lift dogs and