Nine-year-old Amy Winter's holiday plans have gone from exciting to total disaster.
How is she supposed to have any fun being packed up and sent to stay with a weird relative she can't even remember?
And Aunt Penelope is as weird as they get. With...
"She said what?" Aunt Penelope's shocked expression must have mirrored her own.
"The Didactic Stones. That's her gift to me." Amy repeated Elizabeth Castle's very words.
"But that's impossible," several members of the tribunal murmured.
"What else did she say?" The small man with the purple book crest asked.
"Only that it would take place tomorrow morning as soon as I looked in the mirror and said my Storyteller name."
"This is most strange. I will have to look up the rules about this." He hobbled over to one of the old leather books, muttering. " I didn't even know it was possible. How can the teaching Stones gift themselves to a mere child ."
"Did she say anything else?" Aunt Penelope eagerly queried.
"Yes..."Amy said biting her lip. " but I didn't understand everything... Something about having the same name and looking identical to her at my age."
The Tribunal members went crazy with this. Moving aside, discussing Amy like she wasn't even there.
Amy looked up at her aunt, who had wrapped one arm around her. "Aunty, what do you think she meant by the Stones will adopt me the same as they did her.?"
The purple crested man sharply looked up from the book. "Did I hear you say, the Stones will adoptyou?"
The room fell silent.
All the Tribunal members looked at one another. Their expressions a mixture of surprise, excitement, worry and dread. Amy wasn't sure what to think.
"They're going to start all over again." The small purple crested man said in wonder.
"Possibly rewrite the rules."
All members were disgruntled at this thought.
"Maybe teach again like they did so long ago, with the original Storyteller." Aunt Penelope suggested.
"Possibly create a new Storyteller altogether." A very deep male voice quietened them all.
All of the members and her aunty turned to face Amy.
"And they picked you!"
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