The Book of Sight (3 page)

Arriving at the circle, Alex put a hand on the smooth white trunk of the nearest tree. She felt an almost electric shock at the sensation of life pulsing under her hand.

She entered the circle.

And there was just more grass. Crisp, vital, glowing grass, but nothing else, no strange sights, no funny clues. True, the trees stood straight and beautiful, reminding her strongly of a circle of guards, giving the whole circle of feeling of safety. But it wasn’t what she had expected.

She walked around the circle, brushing each tree with her hand. And then she noticed it. Very small, carved into the base of the largest tree, a circle within a circle within a circle. Heart beating, Alex bent down to examine it more closely when a voice behind her made her jump.

“So you read it, too?”

A
lex whirled around.

Standing there with a very curious look on his face was a boy about her age. He was just slightly shorter than she, with sandy hair and glasses. She’d never seen him before.

“I’m Adam Cleary,” he said, sticking out his hand.

“Um, Alex.”

“I don’t think I’ve seen you around. Jefferson Middle School?” When she nodded, he said, “I go to Lewis. Or, went to, I guess. I’ll be in high school next year.”

“Me too.”

“Cool.” He could barely contain himself as he rushed on. “So did you? Read it, I mean?” Without waiting for an answer, he pulled out of his backpack a very familiar faded red book.

Alex felt the tingle again. “You have the same book!”

“I knew it!” Adam was triumphant. “And when you saw this place, you recognized it from the story?”

“Yeah, sort of. I mean, I’ve seen it a thousand times, and when I read the story I thought of it.”

“Crazy. I’d never been here before, but I found it yesterday and it was so much like the story that I wanted to come back today.” He was still looking at her curiously. “So, where did you get the book?”

“A guy just came to my house and delivered it. My name was on the package, but it didn’t say who it was from.”

“No way.” Adam shook his head. “That’s what happened to me, too. That’s so weird. I wonder who sent them? It couldn’t have been anyone who knows both of us, could it? I mean, we’ve never even seen each other, but we both got the same book sent to us in the same way? It’s freaky, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I wish I had talked to that guy some more,” he continued. “My mom was rushing me out the door when he came. He just asked me if I was Adam Cleary, I said yes, he handed me the package, and then she was pushing me into the car. She was late for a showing or something. My mom’s a realtor, and she’s always rushing off somewhere. But I really wish I’d had a minute to ask him some questions. My mom was muttering all the way in the car about how scruffy that UPS man looked and how no one is professional anymore, but somehow I don’t think he worked for UPS, you know? Did he say anything to you?”

“Not really. He said something about a private delivery service. I probably should have asked him more, but I figured there would be a note inside saying who it was from. I mean, it’s not like I knew the book was going to be…well…” Alex didn’t really know how to finish. She half turned away, and there was an uncomfortable silence.

Finally Adam said, “So, um…did you have a hard time reading it at first?”

“Yeah,” Alex answered. “I mean, it’s just nonsense words, isn’t it? But once I started trying to really read it, it just sort of started to make sense. It was like I couldn’t necessarily understand the words any better, but I could see the story in my head as I was reading.”

Adam looked thoughtful. “Weird. It was different for me. At first, no matter what I did, I couldn’t understand anything. I thought maybe it was in another language, but it didn’t sound like any language I’d ever heard of. It was like a puzzle or something. It made me think of that poem
Jabberwocky
, you know, the one with all the made up words but it still makes sense. Only this was even worse. At first I was annoyed, but then it got kind of fun to piece it together. And then once I got going it got easier and easier to understand it. You know what I mean? I couldn’t really translate the words or anything, but I could get the meaning from the context.” He broke off, looking a little embarrassed. “Anyway. We both read it. It’s amazing, isn’t it?”

“The best thing I’ve ever read,” said Alex. “I’ve probably read it ten times this week. But only the first story. Even though that one makes sense, I can’t understand any of the other ones at all.”

“Me either,” said Adam, shaking his head in disbelief. “If it’s a code, it’s a different one for each chapter. Man, this is so weird. I keep saying that. But it is.”

There was another pause.

“So what do you think the book
is
?” Adam burst out.

“I don’t know.” Alex tried to put her thoughts into words. “I’m not sure where it comes from or anything. But I think I like it.” She hesitated, but then took the plunge, “And I think it does something to you, if you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, I do. It’s like ever since I read it… well… have you seen anything weird lately?”

Alex nodded, feeling that little tingle on her spine again. “You, too?”

“Yeah.”

He was looking at her as if waiting for her to go on, so she said, “I’ve seen some things move that shouldn’t move. And the trees were sort of whispering together.” She glanced at Adam, but he didn’t seem to think she was crazy. Instead he was nodding along. Taking heart, she added, “And down by the creek the other day, I think I saw a little, sort of man thing really small among the flowers.”

Adam’s eyes widened, but with excitement not disbelief. “Wow, that’s amazing. I’ve seen some stuff moving around, too. Some flowers in my neighbor’s yard. And the tree thing, too. And I’ve seen some pictures in the clouds. And not just the imaginary kind that you look for when you’re a kid, but like real pictures, all lined up like they’re telling a story or something.” It was his turn to look at her hesitantly.

Alex was not having any trouble believing him. “I haven’t noticed that, but it does sort of fit.”

“And today is the first day since I read the book that I haven’t had a headache,” Adam said.

Alex felt her heart thumping. “Me, too. It’s like the sun was too bright all of a sudden. But it makes everything so beautiful, like you just want to keep looking and looking even though it hurts your eyes.”

“I know what you mean,” said Adam. “Yesterday I spent half an hour just watching the light sparkling through water from the sprinkler in my backyard. It was like little rainbows flying everywhere. I know it sounds lame…”

“No, it doesn’t.” Alex smiled. “It sounds beautiful. You’ll have to show me sometime.”

As soon as she said it, Alex felt weird about it. It was like the question was just hanging out there: So what now?

It is one thing to have read a book and discovered all sorts of things exist that you didn’t know existed. It is another thing (quite a satisfying thing) to discover someone else who had the same experience, so you know you aren’t crazy. But none of that tells you why it is happening or what you are supposed to do now that you realize it is happening.

Adam broke into Alex’s thoughts. “So do you think that other people have read the book and are seeing things, too?”

Alex considered. Ever since she got the book, it seemed like one thing just naturally led to another, ending in her meeting Adam. Meeting just one person who knew about the book was coincidence enough. It was hard to imagine more. Of course, all of this was hard to imagine.

Adam went on, “I’m guessing so. I mean, it only makes sense that if two of us got it there are probably more. I just wish we could find the others.”

Alex spoke without thinking. “They’ll probably come here, won’t they? This is the meeting place.”

“The meeting place? How do you know that?”

“I don’t know,” Alex was as surprised as he was. “I guess it’s just…the circle of trees is in the story, and the circle symbol is carved on this tree. And like you said, we both read the book and then came here. It just seems right.”

Adam was nodding. “A meeting place…of course. I didn’t really think of it that way; I was just so excited to find some place that was like the story. But we were both drawn here, weren’t we? Anyone else who read the story would be bound to find this place, too."

“So I guess we’ll meet any others right here.”

“Yeah. But…are we just going to hang out here all day waiting for them to come? It seems like we should be doing something…trying to figure all this out. How about if we just check back here every once in a while and in the mean time go and check out the things that each of us has seen since we read the book? I mean, I’d like to get a look at that little man you were talking about.” His enthusiastic look was back.

“I don’t even know if he was real,” cautioned Alex. “My head was hurting pretty bad that day.”

Adam grinned. “There’s only one way to find out.”

N
ormally, Alex could never think of much to say to people when she first met them, but pedaling along together on their bikes made conversation easier.

Adam was talkative, and their shared experiences with the strange book gave them plenty to talk about. By the time they arrived at the creek, Alex felt like she’d known Adam for years.

The fishing spot looked exactly as it had a few days ago. The crispness and lush colors were still awe-inspiring, but Alex’s eyes seemed to be getting used to the brilliant sunlight. She pointed out to Adam the two places where she had noticed the little man.

At the moment, there was nothing. The two of them looked around for a while without seeing anything. Finally, Alex sat down on a fallen log and gazed off toward the tree line while Adam wandered a little way down the creek still looking from side to side as if searching for clues.

Alex was feeling a bit foolish. Maybe she hadn’t really seen anything at all. It was a pretty big leap from bright colors and whispering trees to tiny men that live in the forest. But just as she was about to call out that they should head back, she saw a pair of eyes peeking out of a tangle of vines hanging from the nearest trees. She gave a little cry. Adam immediately looked up and came running back to her.

“Did you see something?”

Alex just pointed, afraid to blink or move her head.

“Oh, my…,” Adam breathed, and Alex felt a rush of adrenalin. He could see it, too!

They both stared at the eyes for a few moments, hardly breathing. Then a tiny figure stepped gracefully from the trees and stood in plain sight, smiling at the two of them. This was not the same one that Alex had seen before. That had been a man, but this was clearly a little woman. She, too, was about 10 inches tall, but she had clear, deep green eyes and a tangle of dark brown hair woven with green vines. She was dressed all in shades of brown.

Alex stood up and walked a couple of steps forward. “He-Hello?” she said hesitantly.

“Hello!” answered the little woman in a voice that was high-pitched and sweet, but surprisingly strong for such a small person. “You returned. And you have brought another with you.”

“Um, yes,” answered Alex. “You were here the other day? You remember me?”

“I was not here myself,” replied the tiny stranger. “That was Florin. But of course he could not forget you. You saw him!” She uttered these last words as if they were an astonishing announcement.

“I guess that doesn’t happen very often.”

“None of us has been seen by a human in many generations of my people. Though many humans come here, they never really look at anything. I have often been sitting right here when a man passed within inches of me and never noticed my presence. We had begun to think that the tales of humans with eyes that see were only myths. And then four days ago Florin came back to the home with news of a young human girl who had looked right into his eyes and seen him. A few laughed, but most of us decided to post a watch to see if you would return. And now you have. And you are not alone.” She nodded her head toward Adam, still standing silent and amazed.

“Yes,” said Alex, realizing that an introduction was expected. “This is Adam…he read the…I mean, he can see you, too. And I’m Alex.”

“Adam, Alex,” repeated the little woman slowly and carefully, “it is a great pleasure to meet you. I am Terra.”

Now Adam stepped forward. “So there are a lot of you living in these woods?”

“I do not know what would be a lot. We are enough. The four families are thriving and the wood is filled with our enjoyment. I am sure that the Grandparents know the exact number of us, but I have never asked.”

“And what
are
you?” asked Adam.

Alex wondered if Terra would be offended by the question, but she didn’t seem to mind at all.

“We are the Gylf. Our families have lived in these woods as far back as the traditions remember. This is the first time anyone from our families has talked to a human in the memory of even our oldest Grandfather. But we are very glad to welcome you. You have sight. We always welcome any creature with sight.”

Adam and Alex traded a look, but before they could say anything, Terra was beckoning them into the forest.

“Come, I will take you to our home. My cousins will be so happy to meet you.”

There was nothing to do but follow her.

If you ever find yourself following a ten-inch-tall woman through a fairly dense forest, you will understand how difficult Alex and Adam found it. Terra slipped between trees and through tangles of vines where it was impossible for them to follow. Sometimes they couldn’t even see where she had gone until she reappeared somewhere further along and called to them. She was very patient, however, and obviously bright because before long she realized that her usual path was not suitable for people six times her size and found her way to a sort of animal trail that made following somewhat easier.

For Alex, the whole experience had the surreal quality of a dream, the sort of dream in which you find yourself doing things that you know are impossible but it feels perfectly natural to you, and you don’t notice anything abnormal until you wake up. The only difference was that this time there was no waking up. Instead, there was a sense of anticipation, not knowing what was coming next but being certain that it would be stranger and more wonderful than anything that had happened so far.