The other side of the door did not come out in a cave but on a mountainside staring out toward more mountains, with a narrow, wooded valley below. It was a good-sized ledge, so there was little chance of falling, but it was colder even than the underground, and the air was thinner than Eibhlin had ever known it could be. There was no moisture in the air, either, so it was sharp to her throat and lungs, but refreshing to taste compared to the heavy air of the cave. However, the sudden change shocked her, and she started coughing. After a few minutes, she began adjusting, and her breath evened a bit, but she didn’t move. While her lungs were adjusting quickly, her eyes were not, as they had suffered a much harder shock: cloudless daylight after so long in near total darkness. If Eibhlin hadn’t had the light of the keys and the compass in that darkness, she might have been much worse off. As it was, her eyes and head ached, so she sat down on the ledge till her eyes could get used to Time’s Marker again.

This took several minutes, or it would have if the magic of the Fae had not grabbed hold of her and sent her to sleep. Stars and moonlight shone such cold light upon the mountain that Eibhlin could almost feel it as she shivered awake. Immediately, she dug out her cloak. As she did, she was shocked to see her breath in the silver light.

“Isn’t it summer?” she stammered. “Have I been gone a whole season?”

Mel, with its voice noticeably less strained than when she had entered the door, said, “No, Milady. Summer it still is, or you would have frozen to death up here. I tried warning you not to sleep before you collapsed, but the Fae had pulled too strongly. Look. The moon is over half-full.”

“What!” the girl cried, staring up at the snowy half-circle. “Wasn’t it only a quarter when we left the city?”

“Yes, but who knows how long we were underground? Certainly not us. What is more, the Fae managed to pull us off course. Oh, it could not turn us from our destination. You need only look at the compass’s light and the keyhole beside you to know we are where we intended to be. However, being misled can be more than just losing your way. We have taken a long time to get here, Milady, with the moon and its effects growing every day.”

Eibhlin’s stomach sank. “Then we might get lost next time! If we lose our way, how can we get back?”

“If it is not too far, you could follow the compass, but if we are sidetracked too much, we might have to track miles, or worse, we could get lost in Fae.”

“What should we do, Mel?” Eibhlin asked.

“First, we should climb down the mountain a bit and see if we can find some shelter,” Mel said. “Up on the mountain, it is cold, and if a wind starts up, then, summer or not, you might freeze as you are now. There is also the chance of wild beasts and maybe even goblins.”

“Goblins?”

“Underground monsters. Similar to dark elves only blind and, while less vicious, far more devious.”

Eibhlin gripped the keys as she had during the descent into darkness. She did not want to meet goblins, especially since, if she did, she didn’t have a knife to protect herself anymore.

“So, you see, Milady,” continued the kithara, “either option, staying here or climbing the mountain at night, neither is a safe or desirable option. However, I advise at least finding a cleft in the rock or something with which to protect against the cold.”

Nodding, Eibhlin locked the compass, and the comforting light dissolved. She then pulled her cloak close and made her way to the cliff edge. On one side of the ledge, a thin path climbed down the mountain. With one hand holding the cloak tight and the other pressed against the mountainside, she scooted along the path, not daring to lift her feet.

After a short while, the path turned into stairs. Seeing the obvious craftsmanship, Eibhlin paused. Someone had made a road to the fairy door. Whether this was good or bad, she couldn’t know, and she hesitated till a chill wind crashed into her, tearing open her cloak and nearly knocking her from her feet. She crouched down, pulling her cloak closer until the wind had passed. She looked around. During her climb down, she hadn’t seen a single nook or cranny, and if all mountain winds were like that one…. Keeping low and close to the wall, Eibhlin slid down the stairs, freezing both inside and out every time a new wind hit her. Finally, she reached the bottom stair and landed on a level shelf that widened as it bent with the mountainside. Still skirting the wall, Eibhlin came around the bend, and what she saw gave her the same emotions as when she arrived at the keyhole shining its golden light in the dark.

A monastery! The house of refuge stood away from the cliff on a wide ledge, its roof and stone appearing gilded with silver in the moonlight. A small garden and a well sat to one side, both covered and protected, and standing before them all, as if a heavenly sentry, stood a tree.

Such a tree none could think to be of the Mortal Realm. Long, drooping branches, like a willow’s, swayed in the wind. Tipping the branches were pale green leaves that looked as if covered in velvet or made of feathers. White and silver flowers in the shape of seven-pointed stars adorned the tree, and every time the wind brushed them, it almost seemed to carry away some song too wonderful for human ears and a perfume that Eibhlin felt she had smelled before, long ago, but which she could not name.

Eibhlin drifted to this tree. As she neared it, she felt the sensation of the keys against her chest strengthen, though with a different music than when she neared their doors. She reached out and let the leaves brush against her fingers. They felt like goose down and warm to the touch. Eibhlin took another step forward so that they touched her cheeks.

“Careful!” said Mel. “This tree is a fairy gate!”

Eibhlin jerked back. “What?”

“This is a Tensilkir, a rare tree of the Fae Realm. Its presence here has enchanted the ground and air. Have you not noticed how much gentler is the wind and warmer the atmosphere? These are trees of protection and strong magic. When brought into the Mortal Realm, they also become doors to the Fae. If you are not careful, it will pull you through, and then where will we be but lost in the Fae?”

Eibhlin backed away. “But… but why is something so dangerous here?”

“It’s only dangerous when approached without care,” said a deep voice from beyond the tree.