The Hawkweed Prophecy by Irena Brignull Read Free Book Online

you in some kind of religious cult?” Ember turned to look at Poppy. “I won’t tell anyone.”
    â€œI don’t know what that is.”
    â€œAre you being held against your will?”
    Ember pondered this. “No. Are you?”
    Poppy gave a harsh laugh. “No. Though it feels like that sometimes.” She looked down at the books poking out of her bag. “Do you go to school?” she asked Ember.
    â€œKind of. We’re taught by our mothers and sisters.”
    â€œOh, I get it. You’re homeschooled. No wonder you’re weird.”
    â€œCan I see?” Ember pointed at the books, and Poppy nodded.
    Ember took one of the books and opened it up. In it were lots of numbers in rows and columns. She squinted at them but they made little sense. Like the symbols in her own books, they were a foreign language to her. She reached into Poppy’s bag for another.This one had writing. She scanned it at first, then started reading out loud.
    Art thou pale for weariness
    Of climbing heaven, and gazing on the earth,
    Wandering companionless
    Among the stars that have a different birth,
    And ever-changing, like a joyless eye . . .
    Poppy finished the rest for her, knowing the words by heart. “ That finds no object worth its constancy? ”
    â€œIs it a spell?” asked Ember.
    Poppy looked at her. “You’re even stranger than me, you know that?”
    And Ember smiled.
    Later Poppy gave her some chocolate. It was so sweet that it clogged in Ember’s throat and she had to gulp down water to flush it away. In return she shared the dried fruit and seeds she always kept in her pockets. As Poppy nibbled on the seeds, Ember looked around the dell and wondered why anyone would want to escape a home that was filled with all these incredible, life-enhancing things. Then it occurred to her that she could ask, and she said, “What is it you’re trying to escape?”
    Poppy looked surprised but answered with a shrug, “Just my life. My family. I don’t know. Myself!” Ember leaned her shoulder against Poppy’s in recognition. Poppy didn’t shift but let her rest there. “What about you?”
    â€œIt’s hard feeling like a failure all the time. So I come here. Just to have some respite for a while.”
    â€œAnd then you go back?”
    â€œWhere else would I go?”
    â€œI’m glad I met you, Ember from yonder.”
    â€œMe too.”

    Before she reached the camp, Ember stopped to remove the blue from her nails. It was stuck there. She scratched and gnawed but it wouldn’t come off. So she kept her fingers tucked into her palms, or behind her back, or deep in her pockets so no one would see. But Raven had eyes in the back of her head.
    â€œEmber Hawkweed!” Her aunt’s voice was low but had a force to it that made Ember stop in her tracks. She looked around and saw no one. Then, suddenly, her aunt was there before her. “What are you carrying, niece?”
    Ember gulped. “Nothing,” she replied, praying that the truth of this might spare her any further investigation.
    Ember wasn’t sure whether it was in disappointment or irritation, but Raven slowly shook her head. “Come hither.”
    Ember took two steps forward so that their feet almost met. Then Raven took Ember’s clenched fist and uncurled it, holding the fingernails right up to her face as she peered at them.
    â€œIt’s paint,” explained Ember in a small voice.
    â€œI know what it is, kitten.”
    Ember felt a chill down her back. “I found it . . . in the forest,” she said hurriedly. Under Raven’s scrutiny, she felt her cheeks blush at the fib she had told.
    â€œAn interesting shade,” Raven added. She never smiled, but Ember could tell from her eyes she was joking. Ember felt a rush of relief. Her aunt wasn’t angry after all. As if to confirm this, Raven asked, “Do you want to