The thought of change and a soft bed.......

'Oh Horty, if you could have seen them, I'd forgotten how beautiful they are, almost a bit scary how wild and fiercely free they can be.' Archibold was lying safely tucked up in bed under his lovely soft eiderdown, telling Hortensia all about his meeting with the gnomes of the Great Trees of the North. 'Lady Eleanora, well, she has this way of looking at you with her deep blue eyes - and you start to feel as though you are gazing into the stars - most peculiar, I almost forgot who or where I was.'

Hortensia was combing out her long chestnut hair and thinking. 'Tell me again what she said about baby Harriet, what did she mean?' Archibold sighed, 'it will be hard for us, but when she is about ten or so, she is to go and live with them and experience their life in the far North and learn about the Light Mysteries. We will miss dreadfully her of course, but what an honour and blessing for our family.' Archibold saw the anxiety in Hortensia's eyes and quickly added 'We will just have to go on holiday there as often as we can whilst she is staying with them.'

Hortensia thought of the shimmering blue stone tucked safely into the side of Harriet's crib, a token in honour of a promise and a pledge for the future. 'Allowing children to follow their destiny was sometimes a challenge' she thought, 'Oh Archie, our Little Darling is so small now and already her path ahead is unfolding before us, we must cherish every minute we have with her.' Archibold smiled at her 'Of course we will, we already are! Remember what they told me though Hortensia - such promise for the future for all of us and the forest - and such a possibility of hope.'

Hortensia slipped on her bed socks, climbed up into the bed and blew the candle out. 'Times are changing Archie, times are changing, thank goodness for all the goodness around us!' And with that the two gnomes snuggled deeper into their soft bed and drifted into a most excellent night's sleep.

As they slept, baby Harriet woke up and gurgled with delight a - her little crib was lit up with violet and  blue light, the blue stone was glowing and filling the air all around Harriet with the most beautiful swirls of soft colours - she smiled and chuckled and gently touching the swirling light, fell back into a peaceful sleep too.