Chapter 8
Thump…thump…thump. We landed on gray gravel. I sat up and brushed the grit off of my face.
Zack rolled over next to me, “Can we ever land on something soft?” We both laughed.
P came over to us to make sure everyone was all right. “Are you okay?”
Zack and I dusted ourselves off as we stood up. We began to look at our surroundings. Things looked really familiar. It took us a few minutes before we figured out where we were. Beautiful oak trees with tender green leaves lined the gravel path we were standing on. The path led up to a stunning white house with a huge wrap around porch. The white paint was bright and the shutters on the upstairs windows were shiny black. Intricate carvings adorned the corners of the posts on the front porch and ran down the railings on either side of the stairs. It was definitely our house, but it was clean and bright now!
P’s mouth dropped open as he realized where we were, “We’re home! Finally!”
We were home, but something felt wrong. Something about the house was different. The oak trees that lined the gravel path were small and young. We were walking on a gravel path and there was no concrete driveway. Our parents had never replaced the carvings on the posts or railings.
“Oh P, I think we’re at our house, but it’s not our home.” I replied sadly. “Look at it. Everything looks brand new. I know our parents did a lot of work, but not that much. And look at those trees. The last time I saw them, they were so big we couldn’t even see Zack’s house next door. I’m sorry, but I don’t think we’re home quite yet.”
Just then, a distinguished looking gentleman strode up behind us. He was dressed in a gray double-breasted coat and a black top hat. His sideburns almost touched the angle of his jaw. I think they are called mutton chops.
“Ahh kids, isn’t it a fine house? So, is this your first party here? Mrs. Barnaby throws the most magnificent parties. She serves wonderful food and drink. Come up to the door with me if you have finished your gawking!” and the man smiled kindly.
We followed him up the front steps. Gas lamps hung from either side of the door, giving off just enough amber colored light to illuminate Mrs. Barnaby’s face as she opened the door.
“Well hello Mr. Schmidt. It is so good to see you. Please come in.” She ushered the man in over the threshold. Then she turned towards us. “Oh, hello children. You must be here for Julia. Come into the hallway and I will get her.”
After she closed the door behind us, she disappeared into the kitchen. A moment later, she emerged with a teenage girl following close behind her.
“Here she is kids. I need to get back to the party myself.” And Mrs. Barnaby walked away towards the front parlor.
Julia was about 16 years old, slender with wavy dark brown hair tied up in a loose bun at the back of her head. A few thin ringlets of hair framed her face. She wore a white cotton dress that just touched the ankles of her white button up boots. The frock had a high collar edged in lace that gently cradled her pretty face. I was amazed. It was the dress from the secret room! We must be looking at Julia Barnaby, the author of the journal and fellow time traveler. I stared in awe.
She stared blankly at us at first, not recognizing us as guests she had invited. Then her eyes twinkled and she clapped her hands together in front of her. “Well, I’ll be!” she exclaimed. She held her arms out towards us then waved us to follow her. “Come into the back parlor, we can talk in private there.”
She grabbed my hand excitedly and the four of us shadowed her, looping through the maze of rooms past the party goers. As we passed, Julia gracefully grabbed two boys from the crowd without even slowing down. They entered in line swiftly, and followed too. We ended our trek in a small room at the back of the house. Our parents used this room as an office, and I had forgotten it was even there.
Once we were settled on a settee in the back parlor, Julia introduced the other boys. “This is my little brother Stephen.”
A small boy of about eight or nine politely held out his hand to each of us. He had light blonde hair, blue eyes and faint freckles on his fair face. He was a few inches taller than P and had a little more meat on his bones. After her had shaken each of our hands, he nodded and sat in one of the chairs on the other side of the room.
“And this is Chris, er, Christopher,” Julia continued.
Christopher also shook everyone’s hand. He was tall and thin with slightly wavy Auburn hair and green eyes. His hair was slickly combed to the side as must have been the fashion of the day. Surprisingly, despite his red hair, he didn’t have any freckles on his face and his skin was almost olive toned. He had one of those smiles that makes you a little weak in the knees, and I was glad I was sitting down when he came to shake my hand. He was a definitely a handsome boy but not nearly as handsome as Zack.
The three of us introduced ourselves in turn. When the introductions were done I had the chance to ask Julia, “You seem to know who we are, but how?”
“Well,” Julia responded, “at first I didn’t recognize you from around here, then I just had a strange feeling when I looked at the three of you. At first I wasn’t sure why. You all are dressed very nicely for a party. In fact, I love your pink dress Emma!”
“Thank you.” I replied.
I hadn’t even realized that I wore a pink dress. It was pale pink cotton and fell in lace tiers down to the top of my light brown button up boots. Both Zack and P wore white buttoned shorts and crisp gray pants. They did look nice for a party.
Julia continued, “But something seemed peculiar about P’s outfit. His shirt and pants were fine but there was something odd about his shoes.”
We all looked down at P’s shoes. He still had his white leather sneakers on. Somehow they had not transformed as we travelled through the abyss.
Julia added, “I saw his white shoes with white laces and the very thick soles. They were unlike any leather shoes I have ever seen. I knew you must have travelled from a future time and must have found my journal and the book.”
We all laughed and relaxed a bit.
Julia continued, “I remember, one time, we were travelling in Japan and Chris still had his big brown boots on. We were able to hide it though.”
I got excited. “Oh Julia, I was the one that found your journal. I hope it’s okay that I read through it. It was amazing. The story about your visit to Japan was one of my favorites!”
“Of course, Emma! I’m so glad. I always wanted other children to be able to go on the same adventures as we did. My grown up self must have left it in the secret room so that it would be found in the future! How wonderful! So tell me where you have been.”
Zack, P and I sat with our new friends and related our own tales of adventure. P especially liked the visit to Italy and meeting Leonardo Da Vinci. They sat in awe as we told them about meeting Paul Revere. Julia was enchanted by my visit to the medieval city and my knight suitor. I noticed Zack rolling his eyes as I described the dashing Sir Phillip. Chris especially liked the story about our visit to Egypt and was amazed that we were almost trapped in a pyramid.
We talked and talked with our new friends. Julia, Chris and Steven told us about trying to outrun Samurais, meeting the Queen of England and watching Michelangelo paint the Sistine Ceiling. This time the three of us were amazed.
Julia explained that they had actually been able to travel on three journeys. “Each time, the book sent us to entirely different places. Now, we couldn’t just pick it up and go whenever we wanted too. Sometimes, when I was bored, I would drag Steven and Chris up into the attic. Is that where you found the book?”
“Yes,” I replied, “It took me a while to find the clues, but I finally found the book’s hiding place!”
Julia continued. “That’s great! Each time we went up to the attic, we pulled the book out and placed it on the wooden floor. Most of the time, it just sat there. It would decide when it was time to go on another adventure.”
The first trip happened after we initially found the boo
k. Steven and I were helping my parents clean the house. Chris had come over to help my father move some hefty furniture so my mother could clean underneath. He volunteered to help when he saw us trying to lug Great Grandmother’s travel trunk up into the attic. He helped us carry the old heavy trunk up the stairs, but when we placed it onto the wooden floor it tipped over on its side. The book slipped out onto the floor and that was the start of the adventures.
Now that I think about it, the next two journeys occurred when we were handling stressful events in our lives. One time, my mother was very sick with pneumonia and in the hospital. I was starting to lose hope. On that travel, we met Florence Nightingale, the famous English nurse, and it helped me find faith and courage. The other time, Chris’s brother had joined the army and we were all worried about him getting sent overseas into war. This time we were transported back to the Revolutionary War, like you guys were, but we met General George Washington. We learned the importance of valor and tried to support his brother instead of worry about him.
“Wow!” came from P, who had been rather quiet, and his eye grew wide. “I would have loved to meet our first president!”
I touched him on the shoulder. “They have had some amazing travels, too.” After taking it all in, I asked anxiously, “So, Julia…. how did you guys ever get back home? I’m beginning to think we’ll never get back home.”
“Oh, Emma,” Julia replied seriously. “I know it’s scary. You feel like you are stuck and have no control, but eventually the book will decide that it is time to go home. Before you can come home, you must learn about yourself and grow. It is very frustrating, though. Just when you are extraordinarily homesick and can’t stand it anymore you wind up back where you started.
“Ugh,” I replied, “We may never get home!”
P interjected, “Awe, Emma, I think we’ve learned a lot. I learned about Egyptian tombs, medieval knights, Paul Revere and even the Underground Railroad. Did you know it’s not really a railroad?” He looked to Julia for approval.
She grinned, “Very good P, you have learned a lot.”
“Okay,” chimed in Zack. “If we’ve learned so much, why are we not home yet?”
I sighed, “I think I understand. We have to learn something about ourselves, something deeper inside.”
Chris spoke up and added, “Sometimes you don’t realize what you’ve learned, and you have to put it together like a puzzle.”
“Ugh,” Zack rolled his eyes. “I’ve never been good at “feelings.” We may never get home!”
Steven added, “You never know, you may be able to go home after meeting us!”
Chris smiled, “Maybe we’ve helped you learn about yourself!” and he winked at me.
“Well let’s see,” Julia spoke excitedly. “Let’s go up to the attic and find the book. Maybe we can help you guys get home!” She grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the attic stairs.
P and Steven jumped up and bounded up the stairs ahead of us. Chris and Zack brought up the rear more slowly.
As we walked up the stairs Julia whispered in my ear, “I do believe he’s sweet on you!”
I looked back at her blankly. “Who?”
“Well Zack of course, silly. Don’t you see how he looks at you? When you speak he listens intently. When you move, he watches you walk away. I think he likes you!”
“Of course he likes me. We are very good friends.” As I said this I found myself fingering the charm at my neck. I had forgotten about the necklace.
Julia watched my hand. “Did Zack give that to you? It is very pretty.”
“Um…yes he did.” I responded, “For my sixteenth birthday”
“See, I told you he was sweet on you.” Julia remarked.
“Oh no, he doesn’t like me like that. Zack is very popular at school. I’ve heard that all the girls flirt with him. He could choose whoever he wants, why would he want me?” I looked down at my feet wishing that I looked different - tall, curvy, and beautiful.
“My dear new friend, you need to look at yourself. You are tall, but not too tall. You are thin, but not too thin. I think you are even starting to get some curves.”
We had reached the top of the stairs. After we crossed over the threshold into the attic, Julia dragged me across the room to an old dusty mirror. She blew on it and dust flew everywhere. Then she grabbed both of my shoulders so I could see myself square in the center of the mirror.
“Look at yourself!”
I gazed into the lake-like glass and saw myself as I never had before. My hair was silky smooth and fell in shiny tresses that terminated in small ringlets just below my collar bones. My cheeks were rosy after the climb up the stairs and my face seemed pretty. Zack’s charm shimmered at my neck. The pink material of my party dress hugged all the right places and I looked a little bit curvy.
“How could Zack resist that?” Julia whispered over my shoulder. “But, your real power over him comes from your big heart and wonderful kindness that you show toward others. I can tell just from knowing you a short time. You just need to see it in yourself!”
I still wasn’t so sure of myself, but I had a little more self-confidence than before. I glanced at Zack as he walked into the attic and sighed. Julia laughed. We were all in the attic now. Julia and Chris took us over to the secret compartment in the wall. The door slid back and Chris reached in to feel for the book. As he moved his hand back and forth, his lips turned down in a confused frown.
“No book.” He stated bluntly as he shrugged his shoulders.
Zack wrinkled his brow and walked closer to Chris and Julia. After thinking for a moment, the creases in his forehead smoothed. He had been carrying the bag over his shoulder since he helped me up off the ground after we landed. He placed the bag on the floor and carefully withdrew the tome.
“I guess the book can’t be in two places at the same time.” He said smugly and grinned widely.
We all laughed.
Zack placed the magic book on the floor. “Let’s see if it’s time.”
The six of us stood in a silent circle around the motionless book. We waited…. and waited.
Then I sighed and frowned, “I guess it’s not time yet.”
“Oh, well.” Julia chimed in with a sing-song voice. This just means that you can enjoy the party! Come downstairs and have some food and punch!”
We dejectedly followed her downstairs again, but once we started eating and drinking, we all cheered up a bit. As we stood by the punch bowl and sipped a fruity ade out of crystal glasses, we watched outside through a nearby window.
Mr. Schmidt strolled up to us as we looked out. “Looks like a storm is brewing.”
Outside the house, the small oak tress began to sway in a strong wind. Dust blew up from the gravel walkway. The swing on the front porch began to move back and forth as if a ghost was sitting on it.
Julia rushed over to see us with Chris and Steven in tow. “I think it’s time. Look at the change in the weather. Did you see a single cloud in the sky when you came in? This storm came up awfully quickly. Let’s go!”
We raced up to the attic again. Zack was in front and tried to push open the door at the top of the stairs. It opened about an inch, but pressure from the other side pushed it closed again. We caught up to Zack, and all six of us pushed on the heavy wooden door and it finally opened into the room.
We walked into an eddy of spinning air and I almost lost my balance. Papers that were originally stacked in a corner began to twirl around in the vortex. I had to hold my hair in my hand so it wouldn’t block my vision as it blew across my face. We all looked to the center of the room where the mist had already formed a huge twisting circle.
P hollered over the whirring noise, “Look at the book balancing on its side!”
The cover faced us so we could read the large script letters on it. “KNOWLEDGE.” Then, the book flopped open to a page that already had words formed on it. “Find the knowledge of life. Expand the knowledge of yourself. Use
this as a starting point for your future.”
The winds howled inside and outside the house and the party goers were unaware of the events taking place in the attic. Zack, P and I edged closer to the dark black hole inside the mist.
“Goodbye my dear friends!” shouted Julie.
Chris and Steven waved.
“Thank you!” I yelled back. “We will never forget you!”
As soon as the words came out of my mouth it was time to jump. At that, Zack, P and I leapt once again into the abyss. This time the silence was oddly comforting. I was sure that we were going home this time. I longed for my own bed and to eat dinner with my family. As we floated along, I felt Zack’s hand in mine and I squeezed it tighter. I smiled to myself as I felt him squeeze back.