Once outside, Prue hurried to the forest edge to collect the netting. A rustling came from somewhere in the trees. Pausing, she squinted, staring into the dark mossy green. There was nothing there.

She carried the netting back to the shed, but as she shut the door and turned, something caught her eye past the orchard, a shadow darker than the rest. Someone or something was there. She strained her eyes to see – perhaps she was imagining it?

“Hello?” she called.

But whatever it was had disappeared back into the forest.

Chapter 21: Back to the Farm

BACK TO THE FARM

Learning the mechanics of the voice boxes took every moment of the following days. As Prue worked on the tiny machines, she wondered if she would recognize Francis’s voice when he came back? Even though they didn’t know for certain if the personifates’ voices were the same as their previous lives, it was thought highly likely.

Sometimes she couldn’t even picture his face, and it terrified her.

Now she’d decided to distance herself from the others, Prue found herself feeling increasingly alone in her thoughts of Francis. She sneaked off to her memory lab at lunch and before tea, but the calculations were getting tricky, and she longed for Agapantha’s keen mathematical brain, and Edwin’s talent for creative solutions. Somewhere in her workings there was a missing piece that she just couldn’t seem to find.

In the late afternoon after a day at the factorium, Prue took a detour to the messenger tower to see Luella.

The pigeon was sitting on the open window looking a bit sorry for herself. “Oh, hello,” she said wearily.

“Is everything all right?” Prue asked.

Luella slowly outstretched a wing. “I think my mechanism is broken.”

“Shall I take you to repairs?”

“Oh no, dear, they’re very busy. I don’t want to be a bother.”

“I can have a look if you like? I have my toolkit.”

“That’s very kind of you, but honestly, you have enough to do.”

“I insist.”

Prue set to work. She was a little nervous, but was familiar with the workings of the wing from her time working on them in the labs.

“Not long until the Sahwen celebration,” Luella said, while Prue carefully adjusted the mantle.

“I quite forgot. It sounds wonderful.”

“It is magical. And a big coming together of all the personifate workers at the factorium with the masters, craftsmen and apprentices. So much fun. I don’t expect you’ve had much fun since you lost your brother. It sounds like you two were very close.”

“We were.”

“Maybe he’ll come back as a personifate one day.”

Prue swallowed. “I hope so.” She picked out her micro screwdriver and got to work.