Chapter 4 - Journey

Jane saw a few green trees beside the path. They were tall. The carriage bumped between the trees. She didn’t see a rock until now. The rock was huge and dusty. It was rolling towards the carriage. Jane thought they would crash into it. “STOP!” she yelled. “STOP! THERE’S A ROCK!”, but the carriage drove straight into the huge rock. BANG! NEIGH! The horses seemed to be flying. “Ahhhhh!” came Rachel’s shriek. 

Jane suddenly opened her eyes. It was a nightmare. She was lying on a blanket, but still in the carriage. She was shivering, but when she saw the risen sun which brightened the path, she was a bit overjoyed. She was imagining about looking out of the carriage window and talking with Leo about her hobbies. However the nightmare, the horrible nightmare which she had was still hitting her mind. 

She looked around. Leo was rubbing his eyes and Rachel was scratching her nose. Rachel looked sleepy but Leo looked very excited. 

“Get up, friends! Our journey is beginning. Come on, everybody!”

August was shouting. Some blankets, quilts and sleeping bags were lying on the carriage floor. Jane’s blanket was on a seat. The horses nickered when August got some hay from a box. Mr. Summer put the blankets, quilts and sleeping bags back to a large burlap bag. Jane hadn’t seen any boys on the carriage except Leo yesterday, but now she saw four tall boys. They were all wearing brown baggy shirts. Rachel and other girls put on their green skirts. Rachel combed her hair with a small wooden comb. They went to find their bottles and immortal branches. 

“Will an immortal branch die?” asked Jane.

“You can only make it die in one way,” said August.

“How?”

“Feed it to a horse! The horse will feel powerful when it eats leaves from immortal branches.”

The horses in front of the carriage did look tired.

“What about cows and sheep?”

“They do not eat those branches,” said August.

“What do they do? The branches, I mean.”

“They are the symbol of summer.”

“What about the water in those bottles?”

“That is the summer spring. Summer spring is often drinkable. You can use it to grow immortal branches. Come on, let’s have some breakfast. Otherwise, we would not have the spirit to go to the City of the Seasons,” shouted August.

“What will we have? Fried eggs? Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?” asked Jane.

“No. Only some bread and milk, you’re overthinking it!” yelled Mr. Summer rudely. He gave everybody a piece of toast and a cup of milk.

After breakfast, the four boys went to the driver seats in front of the front window and sat down. They picked up some reins and started to drive. The view from the window began to move backward slowly. 

“Slow down, driver boys! More slowly—yes,” yelled August to the boys.

Tall oak trees were standing beside the muddy way. A small clear stream was flowing beside the path. Butterflies were dancing in the flowers. A squirrel ran across the way in front of the carriage. Jane knew they were not in the town anymore now. They were in the countryside!

Jane shared stories and her orange candies with Leo. Leo put his needle into a pencil case. He remained emotionless and didn’t say anything. 

“Hmph, why don’t you chat with me?” Jane asked Leo carelessly. “Mom said we should keep smiling when we speak to people,” she added. 

Leo smiled absently.

“Hey, everybody, look out of the windows! These are oak trees,”explained August as the carriage bumped into a fork in the muddy way. “In summer, these oak trees flourish. Their trunks are thick and straight with a rough surface and longitudinal cracks and brown bark. Their leaves are oval with lobed edges. They have a rich and vivid dark green color with a tough texture and a shiny surface under the summer sun. Oak trees are very adaptable that they can take root in all kinds of soils, even in poor places. Therefore, the Summer Logo is a light green circle with a cyan oak tree in it. You can learn a lot of things in this journey.” 

“Oh, wow,” gasped Jane in amazement.

Leo suddenly took out a sack from his jacket. There were a few things in it: a pen case, a notebook with a yellow cover, and two thick books. One of the books was about outer space, and the other one was about nature. He took out his pen case and his notebook. 

“What are you going to do with those?” asked Jane. 

“Make notes,” answered Leo, “I love to make notes about nature. I’m writing down what August said. Please repeat it, August.”

August said again about the oak trees. And then, Leo began to make notes himself quietly. 

“How to spell—longitudinal?” he asked. 

“L—O—N—G—I—T—U—D—I—N—A—L. Longitudinal. ” answered August. 

“What is longitudinal?” asked Jane quietly.

“Like this,” said Leo. He was drawing a few vertical lines on his notebook. “Why don’t you make notes?” he asked. He looked more emotionless on his pale face.

“I didn’t bring any paper,” said Jane. She regretted that she didn’t bring any notebooks.

“Here. Use my pencils and—” Leo opened his pen case again and seized a yellowish-green pencil. He tore a page from his notebook and passed it to Jane. 

“Sorry, I can’t—I don’t know how to use pencils,” said Jane.

“Oh, ” said Leo, “I’ll help you copy my note.” And then he copied his note seriously and patiently for Jane. 

“Thanks.”