When Seeker and Beautiful entered the common room, Miss Cheerful looked up from the hearth. “Hello, Seeker-for—” she stopped short, spotting Beautiful. A knowing smile spread across her face. “Hi, Beautiful!”
“Stew again,” Beautiful sighed. But her eyes still shone.
While they ate, Seeker found himself distracted. She traced her lips with her finger—more than once. He’d never seen lips like that. His eyes wandered. The glint in hers, the shape of her cheekbones, the faint freckles splashed across her nose and cheeks.
A thought rose, unbidden. Maybe she wasn’t the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen. As if she could read his mind, she beamed—and the room lit up. No. She absolutely was.
“Tell me, Seeker, about your book. The one you bookmarked with the picture of, what did you call it, a puffin?”
“It’s about Christian. He came from the City of Destruction, but he couldn’t stay because his burden was too heavy to bear. So, he left his—”
Beautiful interrupted him. “No, little baby, I know about Christian. I want to know about you. What does the book mean to you?”
“I read it when I was young—maybe ten years old. It’s my favorite Book. I always saw myself as Christian, falling to Apollyon but refusing to stay down. ‘Do not gloat over me, my enemy!’”
Her smile continued to light the room.
“It gave me courage to leave Uncertain,” he said, voice softening. “But…”
She leaned forward, her eyes steady. “Yes?”
He swallowed. “But nothing has been what I expected. Companion says times change—but still. Where is Good-Will? And look around, Beautiful—what happened here? And…”
She nodded and rested her hand on his.
“Sometimes I wonder,” he said quietly. “Christian walked alone. He had Faithful, but he was killed in Vanity. And later, Hopeful. But his poor wife and children—how could he leave them behind?” He hesitated. “I don’t even know their names.” He fell silent for a long moment. Then, almost to himself, he said, “I don’t want to be lonely.”
She took his hand and led him gently to the hearth. “Wait here, little baby.” When she returned, she sat beside him, holding a black leather book with silver letters embossed on the cover.
“Her name was Unkind,” she said. “His sons were Matthew, Samuel, Joseph and James.”
Seeker sat up. “What? How did you—?”
She handed him the Book.
He opened to the first page:
COURTEOUS COMPANIONS,
Some time since, to tell you a dream that I had of Christian the Pilgrim, and his dangerous journey towards the Celestial City, was pleasant to me, and profitable to you. I told you also what I saw concerning his wife and children, and how unwilling they were to go with him on pilgrimage.
“Graceless didn’t leave her,” she said. “She refused to follow. You know what’s worse? She kept her sons from going too.” She paused. “But that’s not the end.”
Seeker leaned in, eager for more.
“That book is about Christiana. As Graceless became Christian, Unkind became Christiana. He walked true to the path. And she followed… eventually. And her sons. And their wives, Mercy, Phoebe, and Martha. And their children.”
“Can I…” his eyes shone with excitement, “read it?”
“Yes, baby. It’s yours. Not just read—it’s my gift to you.”
He gazed at her. For the third time today, he knew. He loved her dearly.
