Castle Juliet

by Brandon Berntson

  “Do you see the land, Sue?” Alice said in a sibilant hush. Her voice, even whispering, seemed loud, breaking the silence.

  This Christmas holiday shone, and it was shining now. The joy she’d experienced was moving outward, changing things she normally saw as ordinary. A deeper layer existed, one she’d pondered often, been skeptical about even, but proved itself to her now. She could ask any questions she wanted, and life would answer. The world was a magical place. It was in the snow, the sky, the mountains in the distance, even Sue. It was everywhere.

  The sound of Sue’s hoofs were loud in the snow; the smell of her hide was pleasant, the creaking leather from the saddle, the unbroken country, copses of trees, frozen rivers in the distance, open air and sky. It was as if the mystery of life were revealing itself through the silence.

  She topped a small hill where they now overlooked a valley of more frozen rivers and barren trees. A pond lay frozen to her right. A cluster of cottonwoods lined the river below, black branches under inches of snow. The mountains, also white and black, took up the rest of the horizon obscured by a tapestry of fog. The sky above was a mixture of thin gray and white clouds separating to reveal the blue. Her breath plumed out before her. Everything looked so different on top of Sue. She felt buoyant, fearless, as though lightness were moving in and out of her. She was experiencing peace in its utter perfection. It astounded and made her giddy.

  But a deeper thread of mystery underlined all this, something in the shadows, waiting for her to uncover it. The realization made her smile. What was life without mystery after all? It didn’t very well leave room to the imagination when every question was answered, did it? Almost a disappointment, in fact, having life and death explained, her most powerful, thought-provoking questions. No, Alice thought, give her mystery. Give her endless time and space. She loved the inquiry, the constant guessing, and wondering why. This was what the land revealed, and the irony sent her into laughter again.

  She closed her eyes. The only way to accept and appreciate the mystery was to ingest it. In the darkness behind her lids, everything actually grew more vivid. The lines around the edges defined themselves with spectrums of color. Sacred, she thought. Yes. Something spoke with a hush again. Warmth spread throughout her chest, blossoming like a flower.

  Alice opened her eyes and saw the landscape in a different light once more. Sue’s walking had a precise, more distinct sound. The air seemed cleansing in some way. For a second, she heard the sound of water rippling over rocks from below. A bald eagle was perched in one of the cottonwoods. Suddenly, she wished Jack were here to see all this.

  “It’s so beautiful out here, isn’t it Sue?” Alice whispered. “I’ve never seen Storyville like this before.”

  Sue flicked her ears.

  Clean, Alice thought. Crisp and sharp, pure, the way everything smelled. It amazed her that the world could be viewed this way, that she—a simple child—was able to recognize and understand it. How could something more not be at work, some creative, indelible force? Why else was the mystery being revealed to her? Once again, the miracle, she realized, was simplicity. Simplicity, in fact, was the miracle.

  “I could sit here all day, Sue,” Alice said. “What do you think of that? But I could. I could sit here all day and it wouldn’t be enough. That might be hard on your legs and my bum, though. Or maybe not, considering you sleep on your legs.”

  She was such a tiny thing compared to the land around her, yet what she felt was anything but tiny. It was as though the longer Alice sat atop Sue, beholding the world, the more dumbfounded she became. She thought of Jack, pink lasers, and understand how his imagination had become crucial to his existence, to who he was. Yes, there were layers to her understanding. She imagined Jack beside her on Christmas, or sitting in the saddle behind her, the adventures they would take.

  Her mind reached out. She might be small, but she was far from insignificant. At that moment, she was the eye of the universe, watching it unfold, a girl on a spotted horse loving everything she saw.

  Alice smiled and directed Sue into the land below. They walked in silence for a long time. She wanted to savor this perfect day and take it at her leisure. She would still it, freeze it in time. Her goal was to make everything—including now, her memories, and Jack’s fantasies—immortal.

  *

  Alice rode for a while enjoying the time she had with Sue, but soon, she steered her toward Jack’s house. She arrived in half an hour. Alice stopped at the front yard, climbed off, and tied Sue to the fence. Frosty was still in the front yard covered in snow. His charcoal smile was obscured, and his carrot nose was covered in two inches of white powder. The hat, too, was whiter, and Frosty still held the sign, welcoming Phillip home every day.

  Alice stepped up the walkway and knocked on the door. It opened shortly afterwards, and Jack stood there wearing the cape he’d worn on Halloween, white socks, pants, and a plain T-shirt.

  “Alice!” he said, excitedly. “What are you doing here?”

  “What are you doing, Jack?”

  “Playing Superman, of course,” Jack said.

  “Doesn’t Superman have a red cape?” Alice asked.

  “Spur of the moment,” Jack said.

  “Short Superman,” Alice said. “I understand.”

  “Ha ha,” Jack said. “Aren’t you funny. What brings you here anyway?”

  “I thought maybe you’d want to go riding with me,” Alice said.

  “Riding?” Jack said. He looked past Alice’s shoulder and saw Sue tied up at the fence. “Hey! You brought Sue! How awesome is that?”

  “Yes,” Alice said. “I brought Sue.”

  “Let me put on my coat and boots. Do you mind if I wear my cape?”

  “Of course not,” Alice said.

  “Hee-hee!” Jack said, beaming with delight. “Give me one second. I have a kryptonite necklace thanks to Lex Luthor, so I’m weaker than I’d normally be. He plans on taking over the world by poisoning the earth’s water supply, and I just can’t get this necklace to come in any other shade of green.” Jack looked at Alice’s lime-green coat, and of course, he was not wearing a kryptonite necklace. “Not that green’s a bad color, you understand. I just like ruby instead, you know, a deep red—”

  “Jack?”

  “Yes, Alice?”

  “Come on already!”

  “Oh, right!”

  “You can come over for lunch today, too, Jack, if you want. Mom invited you. She said it was groovy Tuesday.”

  “But it’s Thursday,” Jack said, smiling.

  Alice rolled her eyes, while Jack got his coat, the scarf Jane made him for Christmas, and the gloves, too. He emerged from his bedroom shortly afterwards with the cape over his coat, making him appear huge and bulky. He had a black knit hat on, the scarf, and gloves. He looked ridiculous.

  “You look ridiculous, Jack,” Alice said, smirking.

  “Thank you, Alice,” Jack said. “You, however, look absolutely smashing and every inch the cowgirl. You were born to play the role. It really works for you.”

  “Come on! Sue’s waiting.”

  “Right, Alice! Lead the way!”

  *

  It was still awkward getting onto Sue without the chair. Alice felt she had to learn karate or gymnastics, because it seemed she had to raise her entire leg above her head. She was afraid her foot would get stuck, and Sue would go traipsing off while she dangled from the stirrup, beating her head against the rocks and brush buried in the snow. Her imagination was getting the best of her. She was ingesting Jack’s philosophy as her own.

  “Just a minute,” Jack said, and scurried across the lawn, where he retrieved the top hat from Frosty’s head. He brushed the snow off and put it on over his knit hat.

  “I didn’t know Mr. Hyde liked to ride horses,” Alice said.

  “Well, I suppose he’s ridden a horse at some time or another,” Jack said. “Besides, today, I’m not Mr. Hyde. Today, I’m a gentleman, Alice.” To demonstrate,
he bowed theatrically, whipping the cape behind him. He crossed his feet at the ankles, and took off his hat. Then he righted himself and plopped the hat back on. “Are you gonna help me into the saddle or not?”

  “Well, you were on a roll,” Alice said. “I didn’t want to interrupt.”

  Alice reached down and grabbed Jack’s hand. He positioned his foot awkwardly into the stirrup as Alice had done, and she helped him onto the saddle, where he sat behind her. He held on to Alice’s midsection.

  “Wow, we’re really high up,” Jack said. “The view is spectacular!”

  “You don’t have to hang on so tightly, Jack.”

  “Oh, sorry,” he said, and loosened his hold. “This horse is making you bossy, Alice.”

  “Her name’s, Sue,” Alice said.

  “Sue is making you bossy, Alice,” Jack said.

  “Thank you, Jack. Are you ready?”

  “Giddy-up!” Jack up, not realizing Sue would take this command literally, which she did, and bolted. Jack held onto Alice and put one hand on his hat, and away they went through the snow.

  *

  “Wow, Alice!” Jack said. “I really feel on top of the world. And I’m sorta scared of heights. Look. My knees are shaking.”

  “We’re small people, Jack,” Alice said.

  “Like gnomes, or Oompa-Loompa’s, or Hobbits.”

  The surrounding area outside Storyville was endless. Storyville itself seemed miles away. For Alice and Jack, they felt they were in a different world altogether. The snow capped everything in a bright, lush mantle.

  “So, Jack?” Alice said, as they stopped and surveyed the terrain from a slight rise.

  “Yes, dear Alice?”

  “How did you manage to get Sue? I mean, how did you do it, exactly?”

  Jack took a deep breath. “Well,” he said. “I guess it was a combination of things. Maybe it started after Fred let us ride that day. I mentioned to Dad how fun it was and how you loved horses, how much we enjoyed riding that day. Then, when you were helping me with school, Dad mentioned we should do something nice for you, because you were helping me so much, and I really was doing a lot better. I think I mentioned the horse around then, but I was only joking at the time. Dad musta took it seriously. Even though we brought you a turkey at first—which only led to the horse. I think he planned on paying for Sue with your dad’s help. But first he wanted to talk to Fred, introduce himself, and all that kinda stuff grown up people do to make it look like they’re being civil, when really they just want something out of them—”

  “Jack!” Alice said.

  Jack giggled. “Just kidding, Alice,” he said. “I think my dad and your dad just wanted to talk to Fred to see if he was willing to part with Sue. Fred said he was, though she was one of the sweeter horses he owned. But he also said he didn’t have much time for them, either, and wanted to focus on Buckby and tame him more. I think when Dad mentioned who it was actually for, Fred perked up right away. So, Dad drove Fred into town, and they talked to your dad for a while, and they arranged something from there. I guess, when it all came down to it, Fred looked at the whole thing as a big Christmas present. The money wasn’t important to him. He just wanted Sue to be with someone who could love and take care of her, and that someone was you. I think my dad and your dad arranged some other kinda stuff to help Fred out with his ranch whenever he needed. So your dad and my dad—without you knowing—have been offering their services through the rest of the year, and maybe even the rest of their lives. So, that was how it all happened, I think. Your dad mentioned a lot of home-cooked meals, and my dad offered some renovation and stuff on Fred’s home. Personally, I think they all just did it to see the look on your face. And man, was it worth it! What a Christmas it was, don’t you think, Alice!”

  Alice sniffled, smiled to herself, and wiped her eyes.

  “No crying, Alice,” Jack said. “It’s too cold for tears. Your eyeballs will freeze, and then I’ll have to steer, and I’m not a very good driver. Why, just the other day—”

  “Jack?” Alice said, laughing.

  “Yes, dear Alice?”

  “Shut-up, please.” Alice chuckled warmly again.

  “Anything you say, milady,” Jack said. “My lips are sealed. That was a lot of talking anyway, but you did ask. Hey, is that a castle up ahead?”

  *

  It was a castle, a huge, looming gray structure of turrets, battlements, and rising towers, a defensive wall built around the entire fortress. At least, to Jack, all this was visible. He only had to describe some of the finer details to Alice. The castle was to the west at the base of the snow-capped crags. Jack didn’t elaborate as much on the castle, and Alice wasn’t really in the mood for pretend, at least not today. She had her own visions and fantasies, and they were powerful and vivid enough as it was. They weren’t pretend to her; they were quite real, and she wanted the fantasy—as odd as that was—to stay that way. Alice was perfectly content riding Sue with Jack holding on behind her.

  Jack pointed to several fantastic structures that made the castle fanciful, what it must look like inside, the thick, elaborate tapestries on the walls, marble floors, round doors, thick candles, huge fireplaces, bear-skin rugs, and armored guards. As elaborate as all this was to Alice, enchanting, even, it was nothing compared to the elk they came across. Fifty or more cows and several bulls lay in a clearing below the hill they’d crested only seconds before. Their bright white rumps were visible against the snow. Jack stopped talking immediately. A seven-point bull stood closer to the rest of the cows, who were mainly nudging their muzzles in the snow, looking for grass. One of the bulls noticed them immediately, turning its massive rack in their direction.

  “Jack?” Alice said, in a reverent whisper. “Have you ever seen that many elk before at one time?”

  “No, Alice,” Jack said. “I’m trying to think of the last time I actually saw an elk in general. Deer, rabbits, foxes, skunk. I even saw a possum once, but not an elk, not like this.”

  “They’re gorgeous aren’t they, Jack?”

  “A little intimidating and frightening, Alice, if you want to know the truth. I mean, look how much bigger they are compared to a deer. There’s, like, no comparison. Jeez, if that bull decided to come after us, we’d be goners.”

  “He’s very intimidating-looking,” Alice said, nodding. “He looks noble, like a king, with that huge rack of horns, and then that thick darker brown hide around his neck and chest, like a big, furry robe.”

  “He reminds me of a lion,” Jack said.

  “Jack,” Alice said. “Will you come riding with me through the spring and summer? That way we can do and see stuff like this all the time?”

  “Of course, I will, Alice,” Jack said. “What a silly question!”

  Alice smiled. “Look at all the other adventures we can have, too, Jack. With Sue. The places she can take us. Places we never got to go to before. The sights we can see.”

  “I think that’s a great idea, Alice. I can’t wait. But something about doing this in winter too, seems magical, doesn’t it? Maybe that’s just because it’s Christmas time.”

  They sat astride Sue and watched the elk for some time in the clearing below. The elk seemed perfectly content, not a care in the world.

  “Are you getting hungry, Jack?” Alice asked.

  “I’m always hungry, Alice,” Jack said.

  “Good, let’s get some lunch.”

  *

  Lunch was leftover turkey on homemade rolls from the night before, heavy on the butter and mustard. They were delicious. Alice had a pleasant time with her mother, father, and Jack around the table, doing nothing more than picking up where they left off the night before. Jane always seemed cheerful and happy, and Gerald was his usual, playful self. Jack continued his imaginative excursions into random territories, making everybody laugh. They talked about Jack’s elaborate descriptions of the castle, the elk they’d seen, but the bald eagle, for some reason, Alice kept to herself, a pr
ivate moment shared with Mother Nature.

  Eventually, Alice took Jack home on Sue. It was more fun than walking, and it gave them something to look forward to from now on, riding the horse.

  When Jack waved goodbye from the porch, still wearing his top hat and cape, Alice made her way home, and reflected on the day. Just after Christmas, and already, it had been perfect. She was smiling to herself the entire way. She looked at the clouds, the land beyond as Sue ambled slowly across the deep snow.

  She made it back home, putting Sue in the temporary stable. Her dad helped her take the saddle off, hanging it up inside the shed.

  Once again, after warming up with a cup of cocoa, Alice stepped outside, still wearing her cowboy boots and hat, and stood on the chair. She hugged and kissed Sue by the ear. “Thanks for a great day, Sue. Just think, this is only the first of many adventures, but today was special, don’t you think? I love you.”

  Sue flicked her ears and snorted, as if—of course—she understood all this perfectly. Alice laughed, hugged and kissed her again, and hurried inside, where Boxer waited anxiously, wagging his tail, yelping and barking, as though it were finally his turn to play.

  CHAPTER XII

  A STORM GIVES WAY TO PONDER

  The New Year was celebrated at Alice’s house. A tradition was being built on holidays here, it seemed, and the New Year was no exception. Everyone stayed up late, and Fred brought the fireworks. They took turns lighting them off outside when the grandfather clock tolled twelve. Together, they all cheered, “Happy New Year!”—while Gerald and Jane exchanged a kiss. Everyone clapped and jeered. The Christmas lights continued to burn bright, and though Christmas was over, there was a still a genuine feeling of good cheer in the air. The holiday spirit had not abandoned them just yet.

  But as Christmas vacation ended, a maudlin feeling hung in the air between Jack and Alice. It was always sad when the best of holidays ended, and having to get back to work and school created some discomfort. It is important to savor the memories while still having to get back to the real world. The holidays, however, for Jack and Alice, were enough to propel them into the second half of the school year.