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other end of the clearing.
    She hoped desperately that it was lost travelers who would just ride past.
    But the hoofbeats changed direction.
    They came closer and closer … then stopped.
    The faeries stood still as stone.
    â€œThis is it,” Alida heard a man say very quietly. “A big, empty meadow.”
    Whoever he was talking to answered him in a whisper.
    Then the first man rode forward, coming out of the dawn shadows and reining in so close to where the faeries stood that they could see him clearly in the gray dawn light.
    A second man followed.
    Both horses wore silver armor. The men carried swords.
    Guards
.
    Alida pressed her fist against her mouth. Her knees were shaking.
    For a moment the men just sat in silence. Then the second man shifted in his saddle. “How many times have you done this inspection, sir?” he whispered.
    The first man glanced at him. “Once a year fortwenty-three years,” he answered, almost too quietly for Alida to hear.
    â€œDid you ever find anything?” the second man asked him. “Are the old stories true?”
    The officer shrugged. And then he howled like a wolf. It was a high-pitched, jolting noise that startled the faeries into a terrified huddle.
    Both horses reared. The guards reined them in tight circles to keep them from bolting. And then there was sudden silence.
    The faeries trembled and held hands, but no one flew and no one made a sound.
    â€œAre you … are you all right, sir?” the second man asked, his voice unsteady.
    â€œShhhh!” the officer hissed.
    There was a long silence. Then he spoke. “The bedtime story in my family says faeries fly if they’re startled and you can hear their wings. I didn’t hear anything. Did you?”
    â€œNo, sir,” the second man said.
    â€œThen, they aren’t here.”
    The second man laughed uneasily. “But the orders were to ride into every corner of the meadow once the sun was up. Then to search the—”
    â€œI know,” the officer cut him off. “I did all that at first. Now I don’t. It’s easier my way and just as accurate. If there ever were faeries here, they are gone for good.” He yawned. “The yearly inspection is complete.” He reined his horse around and rode back into the woods. The second man followed him, laughing quietly.
    Alida held very still. She could feel Terra trembling beside her.
    All the faeries were still as stone, listening to the clopping hoofbeats fade.
    When the forest was silent again, the faeries glanced at one another, their faces full of hope.
    If the guards wouldn’t be back until next summer, they would be able to think and plan. They would have time to figure things out.

Chapter
8
    A s the day warmed up, the faeries ate their breakfast of flowers.
    Almost everyone was happy and relieved. Aunt Lily and William thought it might have been a trick.
    No one else did.
    â€œWe can stand watch for a while,” Alida’s mother said, “just to be safe.”
    Everyone agreed to that, and she asked two boys to find a place in the trees where they could see without being seen.
    Then the faeries began to discuss what to do next.
    They needed sheds and fences, but it seemeddangerous to build anything the guards would notice next year.
    Alida’s mother looked at her.
    â€œI thought of something,” Alida said quietly. She was nervous; everyone was watching her.
    But her idea really was simple and it was easy to explain. And the instant she finished, a new discussion began.
    The faeries had many opinions about what to plant and how to plant it. Alida’s mother finally interrupted.
    â€œWe all agree on this much,” she said. “We’ll make two big, natural-looking circles. Once the bushes are tall enough to hide them, we will build a fence inside one and our storage sheds in the other.”
    â€œAnd a root cellar,” William said.
    Everyone nodded.
    â€œThe