Going Through Time
ÒAlright, class! Almost winter break! Just some spelling and you can all go home!Ó Mr. Cannes smiled. Most of the class groaned about having to do spelling, but my good friend named Jane Arnold nor I did. If you groan about lessons, Mr. Cannes will make you stay after school, and we would both do anything to get out of school early on the day before break, because we are able to time-travel. You probably want to know how it is possible for young girls to time-travel if the rest of their family canÕt, and there is no record of magic in the family history for centuries. ItÕs possible, though. I promise.
I packed up my books quickly and went into the hallway to wait for Jane. Her parents always tell her to clean her desk before school breaks. She finally came into the hallway.
ÒLetÕs go get Lucy and Sarah,Ó said Jane. ÒThey will want to come with us into the past.Ó
I nodded and grabbed JaneÕs hand. We couldnÕt wait to see are other close friends who could also time-travel. They are both in fourth grade like Jane and I, but Lucy is in Mrs. LaureÕs class and Sarah is in Mrs. GlowerieÕs class. The only time we get to see them is at recess.
By the time we reached Mrs. LaureÕs classroom, Lucy was standing by the door, reading a book. When she saw the two of us, she ran over to us.
ÒJane and Daria, IÕm so glad to see you again! I didnÕt finish my math worksheet, and IÕm worried that Mrs. Laure will make me stay to finish it.Ó
ThatÕs the type of person Lucy is. Worrying that she will have to finish a math worksheet that other kids didnÕt finish.
ÒItÕll be fine,Ó said Jane. ÒDonÕt worry.Ó
The three of us put on our coats and hats and went outside into the bitter-cold winter air. Soon Sarah came out. She had cleanup duty for her classroom, and she had told us to wait outside.
ÒSorry I took so long. LetÕs go and try to get to DariaÕs house before it really starts snowing,Ó Sarah suggested.
We ran all the way to my house, only stopping to give a shabby homeless dog a quick pat and our leftover lunches. When we reached my house, my mom opened the door.
ÒDaria, Sweetheart! Glad youÕre home from school. Good to see you again, Ms. Arnold. You too, Ms. Liorn and Ms. Bariy. Finally winter break. That means lots of playdates!Ó
My mom sometimes calls my friends by their last names. LucyÕs last name is Liorn and SarahÕs is Bariy. We all said hello and went into the kitchen. I grabbed four
apples and some cookies, plus juice boxes to drink. I put them in my backpack and we all headed upstairs to my room.
ÒIs everyone ready?Ó asked Lucy. ÒIÕm growing impatient to see Elizabeth.Ó We all nodded.
Ò1542, here we come!Ó announced Sarah.
Jane took my hand and slipped it into hers. Sarah and Lucy did the same. ÒOkay, everyone. LetÕs go!Ó called Jane. We ran to the big antique wardrobe in
the corner of my room and climbed in
ÒKing HenryÕs castle in 1542!Ó we all hollered. The next moment we were
standing in plain view in front of the castle.
Just then, a deep voice boomed out, ÒGo to your room! Why would I give you
anything? Never disobey your father, especially if he is the king!Ó
Lucy, Sarah, and Jane ran into some bushes.
I just stood there, frozen with fear.
ÒDaria! Come on!Ó Lucy pulled me into the prickly rose bush.
ÒBut Father, I donÕt disobey you.Ó ElizabethÕs voice was quiet compared to the
voice of the king.
ÒYes, you do! ÔTis a falsehood teller, too, aren't you?Ó
ÒNo, Father.Ó
ÒTo your room.Ó
ÒBut--Ó
ÒGO!Ó
The four of us could hear soft footsteps as Elizabeth walked to her room. Nobody made a noise for a while. Finally Lucy said quietly, ÒPoor Elizabeth.Ó Sarah nodded in agreement then said, ÒWe have a problem. We forgot to bring
the medieval clothes in DariaÕs old wardrobe. And I kind of wish we weren't in this time Ó I didnÕt blame her. And it was true we had forgotten the clothes. Located in the antique wardrobe thatÕs in my room, there are medieval clothes my mom got from her
great-great-great-great-great grandparents, that my dad got from a business trip to Europe, and some from the same antique shop the magic wardrobe came from.
ÒWe could always go back and get them, couldnÕt we?Ó asked Lucy.
I shook my head.
ÒNot really. The wardrobe is inside the castle, and we canÕt go in there.Ó The
wardrobe always comes with us when we time travel.
ÒWeÕll have to eventually,Ó wailed Sarah. ÒWe canÕt stay in 1542 forever!Ó
Jane sighed. ÒDaria, SarahÕs right. We canÕt not go back to our houses. We might
as well get over it. Plus, we might be able to wear some servant cloaks while we search for the wardrobe.Ó
We were about to leave the bushes when a voice startled us.
ÒWho dares be on my castle grounds without permission?Ó roared King Henry. ÒGuards, search every inch of this place!Ó
The four of us stared at each other in horror. Suddenly, Lucy hissed, ÒTunnel.Ó I looked at her. ÒTunnel?Ó
Lucy nodded and made a motion with her hand for us to follow her. She had
opened a trap door in the wall of the castle and was climbing into it.
ÒLucy, what is this place?Ó asked Jane. ÒIt smells musty and the bottom of it is
damp. And why do you think the guards wonÕt find us here?Ó
Lucy ran her hand over the wall. ÒThis is an underground tunnel. It leads to the
servant house, I think. The guards probably barely ever come in here. Shush, now, please. We donÕt want them to hear us.Ó
The tunnel seemed to go on forever. It was like the Never-Ending Tunnel I had had a dream about once. I started to get bored, and Sarah kept nearly kicking me in the face. Suddenly, Lucy turned around. ÒI think I see a light up ahead. Wait here while I go check it out.Ó
Jane and I nodded, but Sarah grabbed LucyÕs arm. ÒNo! If thereÕs a person up there, we must all go together.Ó
ÒI donÕt think a person is up there, Sarah. I think itÕs an exit!Ó
There was an exit, but not the kind IÕd expected. It was a hole with a lid that was above us that looked like a big drain. Lucy made a plan of how to get through it.
ÒIÕll go first. Sarah, you follow me, then you go, Daria. And Jane, when you come after Daria, make sure to close the lid.Ó
And with that, Lucy shoved it out of the way and climbed through. The plan worked well until Jane came out. She was climbing out of the tunnel when a servant came into the room. She screamed.
ÒAm I seeing things? Help! Help! Bring the guards!Ó she clutched her head and looked around in fear. Then she ran to the door and began to pound on it and shout. Jane made a run for it while the lady was turned away. She pressed herself up against the wall with the rest of us and breathed a sigh of relief. Then she pointed to some servant cloaks on the wall. Lucy nodded and we all bussied ourselves with arranging the cloaks on our bodies so we couldnÕt see our other clothes. Then we went into the real castle.
We were all so scared we hardly breathed. I clutched JaneÕs hand.
ÒDaria Hall! Your hand is as cold as ice!Ó I nodded and hurried along the hallway. We finally reached ElizabethÕs room, which was where Sarah had suggested the wardrobe might be. It was. And luckily, Elizabeth was asleep on her bed. Lucy and Sarah crept in.
ÒCÕmon, Jane and Daria!Ó whispered Lucy. Jane and I gathered our courage and darted into the bedroom.
ÒCan we please just go home?Ó pleaded Sarah. Jane, Lucy, and I nodded. None of us really wanted to spend our winter break in a dungeon, which was what I was afraid of. We ran to the wardrobe and jumped in. The next moment, we landed with a thump on my bedroom floor. I let out a deep breath.
ÒThat was really scary, but super awesome!Ó