Wildwood Dancing

handed. I got up and fetched a glass of water.

“Jena,” said Tati, “I want you to talk . . . Costi. To be . . .

happy. I want you . . . go . . . before Full Moon. . . .”

“That’s not very long,” I protested. “Only five days. And I haven’t worked out how to do it yet.” But a plan was forming in my mind, for Paula’s story had reminded me that Costi loved games.

“Go . . . soon.”

365

The look in Tati’s eyes frightened me. It was a farewell, and it seemed to me it did not mean she believed Full Moon would see her safe and happy, either in our world or the Other Kingdom.

“Tati, stay with us,” I said. “Wait for Sorrow. It would break his heart if he came for you and . . .” I could not put this into words.

“You think he’s all right?” Her voice was a plea. “You really believe he’ll come back?”

“I do believe it, Tati. I’ve seen how he looks at you, how he touches you. You’re his whole world. The quest is difficult, yes. All the same, I think Ileana wants him to succeed. Don’t lose hope. Sorrow will come for you—I know it.”

“So you do believe . . . true love?” she whispered.

I took a deep breath. “I think I have to,” I said, blinking back tears. “Without it, we’re all going nowhere.”

“Then talk to Costi. . . . Go tomorrow. . . .” Her eyes closed.

I tried. In the morning I put on my outdoor boots and went down to breakfast, fully intending to make my way to Varful cu Negur?a as soon as I’d eaten. What I would say to Costi was not yet clear in my head. My whole body was strung tight; my nerves were jangling.

“Your cup’s rattling, Jena,” said Florica, looking at me closely. “Are you quite well?”

“I’m fine.” I tried for a casual tone. “I thought I might go up to Varful cu Negur?a today and visit Costi, since the weather’s improved so much.”

366

“Your aunt would like to see you, I’m sure,” Florica said,

“but Master Costin’s not there, Jena. The word is he’s gone off down the valley for a couple of nights.”

“A couple of nights,” I echoed, the tension draining from my body to be replaced by bitter disappointment. It had taken all my courage to decide to go and face him. “When is he expected back, Florica?”

Florica’s eyes sharpened. “Before Full Moon, I expect,” she said. “Why not go up and ask your aunt Bogdana?”

“No, I . . . It’s Costi I need to talk to. Florica, could Petru arrange for someone at Varful cu Negur?a to let us know as soon as Costi comes home? Right away?”

“I expect so, Jena. So you won’t be going up today?”

I shook my head. “I’ll go when he’s back home. I just hope it’s soon.”

It suddenly seemed urgent to speak to him before Full Moon, to be able to prove to Tati that happy endings were possible in real life, as in tales. If I sorted out my own problem, I thought, the solution to my sister’s might fall into place, too.

There was no great logic to this. After all, I was the one who had refused to recognize true love when it was no farther away than my own pocket. I knew I needed his help. Hurry up, Costi, I urged him silently. Come home. I need you.

The sun set beyond the colored windows four more times, and inside our chamber the stories went on. Not all were joyful tales; we needed to acknowledge that love was not just kisses, smiles, and fulfillment, but also sacrifice, compromise, and hard 367

work. Tati hung on. My promise to mend things with Costi had awakened a fragile hope in her. She swallowed water obediently, but would not eat. She submitted to sponge baths and let Stela brush and plait her hair. All the same, I saw what a shadow she had become. When the sun rose on the eve of Full Moon and there was still no word of Costi’s return, despair began to creep into my heart.

Tati awoke restless and confused. She kept asking me whether I had talked to Costi yet and what he had said. She would not be calmed. When Iulia tried to begin another story, Tati whispered that she didn’t want to hear any more and closed her eyes. Iulia retreated to her bed with shaking shoulders. When I went over to her, I heard her whispering to herself, “First Mother, then Father, now Tati; I can’t bear it.” I tried to comfort her, murmuring that Father was not dead yet and neither was Tati, that things could change, that she must be brave. It wasn’t much help; the two of us ended up in tears together.

At breakfast, Petru told me that Costi was expected home sometime today. “Stopped for the night down at Judge Rinaldo’s house. The word is he’s riding on up to Varful cu Negur?a this morning.”

This morning. There might be time, if I was quick.

“Jena,” said Paula quietly, “just get your bag and go. I know you have your things ready. Go now. We’ll look after Tati.”

“Going up to see Master Costi today?” queried Florica, eyes knowing. “I’ll pack you some provisions. It doesn’t do to get hungry out in the woods.”

368

“I’m not sure if I should go.” Instinct pulled me powerfully in the direction of Varful cu Negur?a, but common sense made it hard to leave home. How could I possibly go, with my sister so ill and the night of Full Moon almost upon us? If she slipped away from us while I was gone, I could never forgive myself.

“Yes, you should,” said Stela. “That’s what Tati wants.”

“Florica,” I said, “could you pack up exactly what I used to take when Gogu and I went out in summer?”

“It’s hardly the weather for outdoor cooking,” muttered Florica, but she was already gathering a little bag of