The Lantern That Walked Home
fantasyEveryoneMira pressed a folded paper into Wren's hand. "My son Tomas lit a lantern thirty years ago and never came back from the river. I've lit one for him every year since. Maybe this is his, finally answering. Follow it, child. I'm too old for hills."
Wren unfolded the paper. It was a tiny map drawn in a child's hand, marking a willow tree by the river. She followed the lantern straight to it. Under the roots lay a small tin box, and inside, a letter Tomas had written the night he vanished, waiting thirty years to be read.
What happens next?
1 ways forwardWren read the letter aloud by the willow. "Tell Mother I found a brighter river, and I'm happy." The lantern glowed warm as she finished, then lifted from her hands and floated home toward Mira's window, carrying its message back at long, long last.