THE ISLAND OF CHARON
a novel in the series
"PLAYING ANOTHER REALITY"
CHAPTER 5. THE WISH TREE
5.4. THE WISH TREE
I hurried my steps, passed the pier, located in a small bay, and climbed up the rock with the Wish Tree, towering exactly symmetrically to the Abandoned Lighthouse.
Absolutely dead, withered black-book Tree, whose branches were dotted with many flickering fireflies — light bulbs and lanterns of various formats and degrees of brightness — made a strange, if not creepy, impression on me.
But how could I see all these lights if they were only the results of someone’s visualization? Did the magical Island finally and irrevocably open my third eye, which I had inherited from my grandmother the witch?
I walked around the Tree clockwise and sat down at the edge of the cliff above the Ocean.
“Hmmm, who would have ever told me that I would be seriously engaged in such nonsense!” the thought flashed in my mind. “But… what if it really works?”
However, the task of visualizing shooting stars was solved quite easily, meanwhile their materialization on my palm and transformation into light bulbs — not to mention the lanterns, the bulbs should be inserted into further! — was not going good at all, because they either didn’t light up, or went out, then suddenly dissolved without a trace or changed their outlook beyond recognition!
“The potion… Damn it! How much time do I still have? Come on, Alice, pull yourself together! Are you weaker than those whose lanterns are already hanging on the Tree?!”
And finally, I got so angry with myself that the light bulbs in my palm began to shine no worse than the brightest stars above my head! And there were three bulbs at once!
I jumped up and down for joy, giving up further visualization of the lanterns, approached the Wish Tree and carefully, as if afraid to break the glass, brought the bulbs to the nearest branch with an empty spot. I imagined them already hanging on it, and the light bulbs were obediently attached by themselves, thanks to a silvery thread that appeared out of nowhere.
I was about to start on my way back with a stop at Yanis’ cafe to pass a light bulb for the Boy — well, yes, without a lantern, but what could I do! — when someone pulled me by the sleeve of my dress.
I turned around and saw… who it was meant for!
“That’s great! You’re just in time!” I exclaimed and handed the light bulb to the Boy.
He smiled and joyfully climbed up the Tree to hang it higher.
“What are you dreaming about?” I asked the Boy, not expecting to get a clear answer, because he spoke some language I didn’t.
The Boy came down from the Tree and drew two figures on the ground. I saw a little girl and a big aunt, probably her mother.
“Do you want to have a little sister?” I supposed.
But the Boy smiled slyly and ran away…