Lisiantha woke the next evening in a musty box. She pressed her palm against the lid, as if she could force her anxiety into the wood. Outside, she could hear the others waking, and it was only when she heard Ichirou's voice that guilt spurred her to rise. She couldn't abandon her fledgling to what were basically strangers to him.
Once up, she made her way to her room and changed her pajamas for her clothes. Mére and Ichirou waited for her in the entryway. Together they headed outside. Stars spread like diamonds against a dark sky. In the distance lay the pond, the tiny boat house like a gingerbread shed. The deck and railing were like a toothpick structure in a Christmas diorama.
Ichirou trudged behind the women, his hands in his pockets. "We're walking all the way to town? Or are we ju
