“Hello? Is the Wizardling at home?”
Andrew rushed out onto the balcony of his treehouse. He looked down and saw Bernard, the bear, holding…something. From his high spot, looking down, it was difficult to know what it was.
“Hello, Bernard! What is that?”
“One bookcase, two shelves, bear-made,” said Bernard. “Shall I bring it up?”
“Absolutely!” called Andrew. “Come on up!”
Andrew was happy to see Bernard. He had a surprise for him and had planned to invite him to the treehouse today. And now, here he was! He watched as Bernard made his way up the series of ladders and steps, stepping carefully while gripping the bookcase with one arm. A bookcase, he thought. Just what I needed. How did Bernard know?
The Wizardling opened his front door and ushered the bear in. Bernard set the bookshelf down and wiped his brow.
“That’s more climbing than I’m used to,” he puffed. “Two days of travel and then a climb up a tree? I could use…”
“A seat? A drink? Something to eat?” offered Andrew, eagerly.
“Yes, please,” said the bear, giving the Wizardling a playful, suspicious look. The room was mostly empty, with nary a chair or a stool to sit on.
Andrew gave a whistle and grinned. To Bernard’s surprise and delight, a table and three chairs walked into the room. The table was set with dishes, glasses, and cutlery, as well as serving bowls and pitchers. The table walked up to the bear and stopped. A chair walked around behind the bear and gently pushed in, encouraging Bernard to sit. Andrew sat at the opposite side of the table, still grinning. Hudson climbed up into the third chair and sat quietly.
“This is new,” commented Bernard, giving the furniture an appraising look.
“The dishes you have seen. Everybody has them. But the table and chairs are new. What do you think?”
Bernard chuckled and shook his head. “Great idea, I suppose, but…”
“The table and dishes clean themselves up when you are finished eating!” said Andrew. “It saves you time, allowing you to do things that you really want to do!”
Bernard looked at the Wizardling, considering. He looked carefully at the table and chairs and sniffed. Then, he looked back at Andrew and sighed.
“What I want to do,” said the bear, as the dishes served him his favorite lunch, “And I mean no offense… What I want to do is get back home to the Cooperative and design some… some better tables and chairs.”
Andrew gave the bear a fake pout. “What’s wrong with my table and chairs?”
“Your powers are extraordinary,” said the bear kindly. “But I get the feeling that you haven’t seen very much.”
Hudson looked at Andrew and nodded. Andrew raised an eyebrow, wondering if Hudson was somehow involved.
“You, the Wizardling, have created a fantastic place.” Bernard spread his arms and gestured. “This place, this AfterLater of yours, is truly a marvel. It’s a place where we can be the best bears, the best chipmunks, the best whatever, that we can be, without fear. We can create to our heart’s content. We have safe, comfortable places to live, an endless supply of food, and clothing on demand. These are all things that you, the Wizardling, and the rest of us did not have before. Believe me when I say we are all very grateful.”
Andrew didn’t speak. He waited. Bernard continued.
“Your powers of imagination are like nothing I have ever seen. But imagination must have something to work with, some experience, some knowledge, some exposure to the beautiful and exquisite. I think you had very little of that before AfterLater.”
Andrew and Hudson both nodded. Andrew gave his friend another look. Hudson sat in innocent silence.
“This isn’t a criticism,” said Bernard. “You have invited creative folk from many different places to join you here. They, we, have all seen and felt things that you have not. I learn from them. You will, too. And the first thing you should learn is that you don’t imagine very beautiful doors, furniture, or dishes…not yet, at least. Here, in AfterLater, you have potters who can create extraordinary plates, bowls, cups, and pitchers. You have woodworkers,” and here, Bernard indicated himself, “Who can create furniture… and doors… fit for a king’s castle. Let us do what we do best, and learn from us.”
Andrew looked across the room at the bookcase that Bernard had brought. It was enchanting. It stood on legs carved to look like bear legs and feet, complete with claws. The shelves showed, on the front edges, carvings of leaves and flowers. The sides were covered with carvings of all of the animals of AfterLater. On the top stood a small easel to display one book at a time.
Bernard saw where Andrew was looking.
“Flutter tree wood,” he said. “Very hard, very durable. Difficult to carve.”
Andrew gave the bear a teasing frown, then laughed heartily. “Thank you. Thank you both.” He turned to Hudson. “I have a feeling that you are the reason I have this amazing bookshelf. It is beautiful and will be the perfect place to display my mother’s notebooks.” He sighed. “As usual, you are both correct. I needed the bookshelf and I do have a lot to learn.” He turned back to Bernard. “Let’s finish our lunch. Afterwards, I have something else to show you.”
Hudson smiled and quietly finished his lunch of berries and sweet cream.
After lunch, the table and chairs returned to the kitchen for clean-up. Bernard helped Andrew move the bookcase to a spot by the window. Hudson stood by and watched.
“This wood is beautiful!” said Andrew. “And the carvings of the animals are magnificent! It is perfect!”
“It’s what we do at the Oak Glen Woodworkers Cooperative,” said the bear. “If you are pleased, we are pleased.”
Andrew turned to face Bernard. “You, the first bear…”
“Second,” said Bernard, grinning at Hudson. “Second bear.”
“Thank you,” said Hudson.
Andrew laughed. “You, the second bear, are my second best friend, and I appreciate your honesty and your talents. The official door-makers of AfterLater.”
“And furniture makers?”
“And furniture makers,” agreed Andrew. “At least until I can do better.”
Andrew led Bernard across the room to his front door.
“Do you approve of your new door?” asked Bernard.
“I do,” said Andrew. The door was a six-panel door with an arch. The panels were etched with delicate patterns that suggested scenes of AfterLater. The rails, mullions, and stiles were made of a beautiful burled wood. The hardware was polished brass. “I couldn’t have asked for better. But I made a little change.”
“Change? What was wrong with it?”
“Nothing,” said Andrew. “Only, you live so far away, off in the forests of the Northern Mountains.”
“Two day’s walk, as I told you before,” said Bernard.
“And two days back?” asked Andrew.
“Of course.”
Andrew walked to the door and placed his hand on the doorknob.
“If I open this door, what do you expect to see?”
Bernard looked suspicious. He had the feeling that Andrew had another trick up his sleeve.
“I would expect to see the branches and leaves of the tree you live in.”
Andrew nodded and opened the door. Beyond the door, Bernard could clearly see the tree’s branches. Andrew closed the door and invited Bernard to come closer.
Andrew’s eyes were twinkling with excitement. “Hold the doorknob, and before you turn it, think of the clearing where you live. Close your eyes and picture it in your mind. When you see it clearly, turn the knob and open the door.”
Now, Bernard knew something was up. He cautiously took hold of the doorknob. He closed his eyes and remembered the clearing as it looked two days ago when he left to deliver the bookcase. He turned the knob and opened the door.
Bernard gasped. Instead of branches and leaves, he looked through the open door and saw the clearing in the forest, the clearing where he lived and worked. He saw his cottage nestled under the huge trees of the forest. He saw other bears, members of the Cooperative, walking towards him. He put his head through the door and looked around. He turned back to Andrew.
“What is this?”
“I call it an Expectaport,” said Andrew. “It can take you wherever you want to go in AfterLater. Just picture the place in your mind, and there you are.”
“So this means…”
“Exactly!” exclaimed Andrew. “No more two-day hikes from here to there and back. We can see each other whenever we like. And, if you are going to be making more doors and furniture for me… and for everyone else… this will be a good thing, right?”
Bernard grinned. “My doors and your imagination. Working together. I like it.”
Andrew whistled for the table and chairs to return.
“How about some dessert to celebrate?”
After dessert, Bernard excused himself and made the quick return to his home in the mountains. Andrew, with Hudson’s help, started arranging his mother’s notebooks on the bookshelves. There were a lot of them. Andrew had returned to his mother’s childhood bedroom and found a few more, plus several sketchbooks filled with drawings and watercolor paintings. On Hudson’s urging, he had also replaced all of the notebooks and sketchbooks with copies, just in case his grandparents wanted to look at them.
“How shall we arrange them?” asked Andrew. “Alphabetically? Or by order of invitation to AfterLater?”
Hudson thought it over. “Alphabetically, by animal, I think. Use the easel on the top to feature the latest animal invited to join us.”
Andrew agreed and quickly arranged the notebooks on the first shelf and the sketchbooks on the second. On the easel, he placed “Clever Mr. Fox Loses His Hat.”
The Wizardling turned the pages of the book, reading his mother’s careful, musical handwriting and smiling at the lovingly painted illustrations.
“Mr. Fox is one of my mother’s more interesting characters,” said Andrew. “A little silly, a little vain, but decidedly kind. A good husband and a good father. Very peaceable. Mocked by his community for refusing to hunt. Losing a hat was the least of his problems.”
“Do you think that your mother knew him, for real?”
Andrew shook his head.
“When will they arrive?” asked the bear.
“Any time… soon, I think,” said Andrew as he placed the book back onto the stand. “You know, Rootroof asked if he could stop by this afternoon,” he said to Hudson.
The bear nodded. “He is troubled,” he said.
Andrew sighed.
Just then, there was a quiet knock on the front door. Andrew quickly imagined his best comfy furniture in front of the fireplace, and then he opened the door. Rootroof stood there, hat in hand, looking worried.
“Come in, come in,” said the Wizardling. He ushered Rootroof to the most comfortable of his comfy chairs and then stepped into the kitchen for a tray of drinks and cookies. He didn’t think Rootroof would be in the mood to see his walking furniture yet.
Afternoons in the treehouse were breezy and cool, so Andrew set a fire in the fireplace, imagining that it would not put out too much heat. He tried to serve the refreshments, but Rootroof politely refused, taking only a glass of water. The three of them, Andrew, Hudson, and Rootroof, sat quietly, watching the fire burn. Andrew waited patiently. Finally, the hedgehog cleared his throat and spoke.
“I’m sorry if I… I mean, I wanted to come and… well, you probably know why I’m here.”
Andrew smiled. “I think I do, but I’d rather you told me yourself.”
Rootroof nodded and took a deep breath.
“It’s the fox,” he said quietly. “You invited foxes to AfterLater.”
Andrew nodded. He had sent a note to every citizen, telling them of his decision to invite the Fox family to come to AfterLater and how he hoped that they would all join him in welcoming them to their new home.
“Why?”
Andrew thought for a moment.
“I know your story,” said Andrew. “And you know mine. We are very much alike, you and I. And I think our mothers were a lot alike, too. They both dreamed of a better world, one that was safe and fair.”
Rootroof nodded as he stared into the fire.
“I want AfterLater to be that world. I believe in it, and I know that you do, too.”
Rootroof shifted in his seat. He turned to look at the Wizardling. Andrew continued.
“Everyone that I have invited to AfterLater has that same dream—even the foxes. My mother thought it was possible for foxes to be good friends with other creatures. I agree. I hope you do, too.”
Rootroof squirmed uncomfortably in his chair. “It was such a shock when I read…”
“I need your help, Rootroof. You aren’t the only citizen who is worried. But you are well known as a good and decent hedgehog. Everyone respects you, and they trust you. If they see you giving the foxes a chance, they will do the same. Will you try?”
Rootroof didn’t answer.
“Surely, you aren’t afraid,” said Andrew.
The hedgehog shook his head. “I’m not afraid, not for myself. But the fox has always been our enemy. And you know that I return home from time to time, just to make sure that my community remains a safe place. I promised to keep it safe. I will always keep it safe.”
Andrew smiled at his friend. “Do you believe that all foxes are your enemy?”
“That has been my experience,” said the hedgehog. “In truth, I don’t think I ever considered that it might be possible to have a safe world with foxes in it. But my mother did. She believed.”
Rootroof turned and faced Andrew. “For her, I will try,” he said.
“Good,” said the Wizardling, “Because I…”
Just then, there was another knock at the front door. A very tentative knock.
“Excuse me,” said the Wizardling. “I’ll be right back.” Andrew rushed to the door.
Rootroof heard quiet conversation at the door. He didn’t turn to look. He just waited.
“Hello, sir,” said a quiet, tentative voice. “We did as you asked. We found the door, just where you said it would be, and here we are. We aren’t interrupting anything, are we?”
“No, of course not. Please come in. There’s someone here who I want you to meet.”
Rootroof turned slowly and watched as Andrew returned, followed by four foxes: two adults and two children. He stood to face them.
Andrew made the introductions.
“Winston Redbrush, Winifred Redbrush, and the twins, Basil and Marjorie… I would like you to meet Rootroof Burrows Tunneldon, my very good friend. Rootroof, this is the Redbrush family, our newest residents of AfterLater.”
Winston reached out his paw, offering to shake hands with Rootroof.
At first, Rootroof ignored the gesture. His body took on a slightly defensive posture. His eyes flickered from Winston to his wife and children. Then he looked down and saw the offered paw. He stared and then looked up at the fox. Winston saw the look in Rootroof’s eyes. Sadness fell over the fox’s face: sadness and sympathy.
“It’s okay,” said the fox. “I completely understand. We’ll go if you like.” He took his wife’s arm and gestured for the children to come close.
“No…” Rootroof gave his head a shake and stood up straight. “My apologies. I know better. It’s just that…well… I’ve never stood in the same room with a family of foxes. I mean…”
Winston’s wife, Winifred, removed her husband’s paw from her arm and knelt down so that she could look directly into Rootroof’s eyes.
“Mr. Tunneldon. Rootroof,” said Winifred. “We have never stood in the same room with a hedgehog.” She looked back at her husband. “Thank you for agreeing to meet us. May we tell you our story, to help you understand why we are here?”
Rootroof swallowed hard and nodded.
“Please,” said Andrew. “Let’s all sit and relax.” He looked at Rootroof. “It’s a good story,” he said. “One that you should hear.”
Winston and Winifred sat together on the sofa. She held his paw and began speaking quietly.
“Where we come from, foxes are feared by almost all of the smaller animals, and for good reasons, as I am sure you can guess.” She looked at Rootroof, who nodded.
“We did not approve. My husband and I do not hunt others for food.”
Rootroof could not hide the surprise he felt. “Why not?” he asked.
“Because it is wrong,” said Winston. “Being bigger, faster, and stronger does not give anyone the right to prey on the smaller and the weaker. You love your mate and your children just the same as we love ours. We were determined to live our lives differently. Show respect and do no harm; that’s our motto.”
“Yes,” whispered Rootroof. “But how did you live?”
Winifred smiled. “Sometimes, we fish. Mainly, we are gardeners. We eat what we grow. Much like you, we understand.” Rootroof nodded.
“It couldn’t have been easy,” said the hedgehog.
“No, it wasn’t,” said Winston. “We were mocked by all the other foxes. Shunned, even. And then…” The fox faltered and took a deep breath.
Winifred continued the story. “Three fields and a forest from where we lived, there was a community of hedgehogs. I am sorry to say that it was a favorite hunting spot.” She looked down and shook her head sadly. “Then, one night, just before sunrise, a fox from our community came home in such a state! He was terrified. He told a story about a hedgehog who turned into a furious thundercloud with burning eyes. The hedgehog had powers, he said. It had attacked the fox and thrashed it thoroughly. He then tried to brag about how he had escaped, using his foxy wits, and everyone congratulated him for his courage. But, soon, more stories were told. Badgers, owls, hawks, wolves, dogs… all started telling similar stories about the Thundering Hedgehog and how that particular community should be left alone. And then, soon after, whenever anyone tried to return for a hunt, they quickly ran back home, convinced that their lives were in great danger.” Winifred looked up. “We found it hard to believe but were secretly glad for the hedgehogs.”
Winston agreed. “The hedgehog community soon became a haven for other small creatures. Rabbits, mice, squirrels, and chipmunks… all started moving to the Safe Meadow, as they called it. Made hunting even more difficult for the foxes. And again, we were glad. We continued tending our garden and living our quiet lives.”
Rootroof had his hands clasped in his lap, concentrating on a spot on the floor.
“We were happy and content,” said Winston. “And then, one day, we found a note attached to our front door. It accused us of being an embarrassment to our community. It tried to shame us for living well while others were going hungry. It tried to blame us for the misfortune of others.” Winston looked up at his wife. “We offered to share what he had but were told that we should leave because, somehow, we had caused the problems.”
Winifred patted her husband’s hand and pulled her children close. “They needed someone to blame, and we were an easy choice. We packed up our things and left. We wandered for days, looking for a safe place to live, but the lies and accusations of the foxes spread faster than we could walk, and no one would allow us to stay. We continued to walk. And then, one day, we met Andrew. He was standing at the edge of the path as if he was waiting for us.”
“I was,” said the Wizardling.
“He invited us to come to a place called AfterLater. He told us where we could find a door and that we should open the door and pass through. He assured us that our lives would be so much better…”
Winston and Winifred looked at Andrew gratefully and then at Rootroof, hopefully. The hedgehog returned their looks with a warm smile.
“They will be,” he said. “Welcome to AfterLater.”
Later, after plans had been made for a welcoming party for the fox family, and Andrew had used his new Expectaport to take them to their new home in the forest, Andrew, Hudson and Rootroof sat quietly, sharing a dinner on the porch. The hedgehog shook his head when he saw the new walking table and chairs, amused by Andrew’s latest creation.
When dinner was over, and the table and chairs had returned to the kitchen, Rootroof asked, “Andrew…do you think they knew?”
“Knew what?”
“That it was me. That I was the…”
The Wizardling smiled. “I didn’t tell them. Still…”
“Should I have told them?” he asked.
Andrew shrugged. “It’s up to you. They were never a threat to you and your family. In any case, I think they will be a wonderful addition to our world. Don’t you agree?”
“Yes,” said the hedgehog. “What now? Are you finished inviting animals to come in?”
“Almost,” said Andrew.
“Will you be inviting others like you? Humans? That’s what you call yourself?”
At first, Andrew didn’t answer. He considered his answer carefully.
“Not yet. First, I want AfterLater to be the world that my mother dreamed of. And in her stories, there were always…”
Andrew looked at Hudson. The bear nodded his encouragement.
The Wizardling cleared his throat. “Rootroof… do you believe in fairies?”
“Dunno. I’ve never seen one, but I’ve heard stories,” said Rootroof. “Do you?”
“Oh yes! My mother did, too.”
The hedgehog looked dubious.
“Look…whoever thought there could be a place like AfterLater? But here we are. And if this is possible, then why can’t there be fairies? There must be some fairies who would like to live here with us!”
Rootroof had to accept Andrew’s reasoning. “Where will you find them?”
Andrew grinned. “Bernard and the other bears are making some more doors for me. Apparently, they don’t think my doors are very interesting. I’ll give them a chance to come up with something special, and then we’ll see if I can imagine it taking us to some fairies.”