Chapter 12

"Yes, we saw the palace, we had started back and were at the next town over when we could not help but think we can make it home. We had been gone for four months and wanted to get home, so we set out in the morning three days ago. Then a blizzard hit and we got lost, as you said as soon as we were lost the trees got big and old then a road appeared and thought that we had found a way out and would be in a town soon. We were wrong; not long after reaching the road did we find ourselves at a gate. It opened for us and we went in now around the palace, there was no snow but flowers were in bloom and the grass was green, but no birds sang or any butterflies in the gardens we saw. We reached the stable as night fell and put our horses in for the night since we found that two stalls had been prepared for us. We then went in, a door opened for us, and we saw a feast set that was fit for a king, now we were all most sure we had found your aunts palace. After we had eaten, we found two beds had been made up near a fire at the far end of the room.

So we went and fell asleep as we thought we were supposed to do, as we did not know if it was for us. When we woke up, we felt better than ever so we got ready to leave and noticed that our old clothes had been replaced with new fine clothes. We went to the stable and found our horses ready for us, so we saddled our horses and got ready to leave we did not know how to get home but we were sure we could get home and get home before the sun set. As we were walking the gardens, we saw a rose garden now all of the gardens are nice there but this one was far better than the rest of the gardens. We walked our horses over to it and I remembered what Josh had asked for he wanted to plant a flower garden here and wanted roses and any other flowers that we could find in the city. We found all kinds of flowers but no roses and we could not help but feel bad about it see he wanted roses for Rosie. So we pick one and as we did, we heard a roar that made the hair on the backs of our necks stand up and our horses wine and try to bolt.

We turned, looked, and saw a Beast she was wearing a blue silk gown and walked like a cat. She looked like a giant cat except for the fact she did not have a tail and had long brown hair falling down her shoulders. When she got to us, we were terrified of what she might do but was shocked when she asked, "Do the two of you have no honor? I have feed you, gave you a place to sleep, had your horses tended for, and had your clothes tended to that you would in return rob me of my roses." We were not sure what to do so we told her the truth. "We do appreciate all you have done for us and had seen so much that is beautiful that we did not think you would mind us taking a rose. Do not think that if we had known you would mind we would have even touched one of the roses you have here," I told her while John kept the horses from bolting and we be left without a way home. I could not help but think that if you knew Josh that your rose would cost us our lives you would not ask for it. She laughs at this and said, "I almost think better of you so tell me why did you take one of my roses," she seemed like she would listen so I told her the whole story. The story of how we moved from the city five years ago and I could not tell if she will spare us or make us stay with her.

When I finished I can see she is thinking and a breeze came and blew around us but the leaves did not move nor did our clothing move in this strange breeze. "You may go but on one condition you must send one of your sons that is not married to stay here at the palace with me. Do not fear for no harm shall come to him here in the palace or anywhere on my lands," at this she nods out of the gardens at the fields around the palace on all sides that go all the way to the forest. "What kind of father would I be to send one of my sons to spare myself, and what kind of trick could I use to get him here if I could do so," I ask. She shakes her head at this, "None no trick he must come out of love for you. He must love you enough to come and live here with me and leave what he knows and his loved ones for the unknown," she said. She walked a bit and nodded out at the distance and said, "Your way home is that way take the rose to Josh and remember you or your son must come within a month to live here with me." She sat there while we mounted as soon as we were in the saddle did our horses run for the gate I could hear her laugh at the site of us or of our horses running for our lives. We did arrive home as night fell and I hate to say that we did not get much from the city so there is not much that will be new in our homes for some time." And with that, he went quite.

"That's strange the saddle bags where heavy when I brought them in last night," I tell him. "What that cannot be right," he said. So I went and brought one over to him and he opened it and found a ton of gold, silver, cloth, wine, old brandy, a wine opener made of silver with diamonds as the eyes of a griffin. He then pulled out many boxes with names of members of our family on them. While everyone was looking at their box full of diamonds, emeralds, sapphires, or other shiny jewelry, I found small brownish seeds and I could not help but laugh at what I could only think of what they might be. "Rose seeds, she has a sense of humor I think we will get along well," I say. "No you will not be the one to go back for I will go," said Father. "No I will go the rose was for me. If I had not asked you would not have picked one. I will go since I was going to leave to travel for a while any way, why not go to the palace instead. I will go if you do not agree I will leave tonight and you can tend to the house till I return because I do not know when but I will return home," I tell him.

I can see that he is not happy about this but knows I will not change my mind. "You have always been an outsider no one will think it strange that you have left to travel on your own. All right in a month, you will go to the palace to take my place. I do not know why you are wishing to go but you want to so I cannot stop you," said Father.

I had some soil in pots inside the house so that I could plant the seeds right as soon as they returned from the city so I planted them in the pots so that they could have a fighting chance in the spring. I was shocked that not even two weeks after I planted them they started to grow. The ground had troughed so I could plant them outside if I wanted to and I did around the house, the stable, the cow stable, and the chicken coup as well and had some left. So I put some on the arch way that was the entrance to the apple grove as well and I had to admit I wish I could see them bloom all over the place before I left. The day for me to leave came and I was not sure what to think I tended to the cow and chickens got Twilight Queen and Storm Cloud ready since my family decided I should take them to since it would be best since the town thought I was going to travel on my own so I needed two horses. I had all of my clothes and my piano compositions, I had made copies to give to my family, and I hope that somewhere in that palace is a piano I can play.