Kit’s Illuminating Quest
Chapter 1: Backpack
Kit Quipple took another step up the creaky wooden ladder. He was curious about the room in the roof, and if his grandmother said not to go in there, she meant he should stay out of the attic.
But grandpa was not at home, and grandma was outside working in the garden. She was continually pulling out weeds in the shade of her wide-brimmed hat.
Kit felt guilty about sneaking around in his grandparents’ home, but grandpa’s last postcard had hinted at a treasure-filled backpack hiding somewhere in their house. Kit had checked every nook and cranny inside and outside the house without any luck.
Kit took out the postcard and read the part about the backpack again.
“The backpack contains all you need to start an adventure beyond your imagination, and beyond any logical explanation. Trust your heart and follow your dreams. Dare to take the first step by putting the backpack on your back. Be ready for the unexpected.”
The attic was the only place Kit hadn’t investigated. He was almost thirteen and quite tall for his age, easily passing for sixteen or even eighteen in the right clothes. He smiled. He had grown a lot over the last month of gran’s delicious cooking. It didn’t help that their garden supplied the freshest of vegetables and the tastiest guavas.
Kit’s stomach rumbled and he gulped. He unlatched the attic door and pushed it up. He turned on the flashlight and saw a wooden chest in the far corner of the attic. Kit had imagined the attic to be dusty and filled with all sorts of broken things, but this attic looked neat and tidy and clean, like most of the house below. He didn’t even feel like sneezing.
Kit pulled the ladder up into the attic and closed the door below him. He shuffled over to the wooden chest and fumbled with the latch. There was an old padlock keeping the latch shut, but it wasn’t even locked. Kit shook his head. His parents always locked everything up. That’s why he asked to stay here over the summer break, so he could experience the freedom of living in a home filled with safety and the courage and confidence to be fearless.
Kit opened the chest and found his grandpa’s backpack. It was an old canvas thing with lots of straps and pockets and zips and press studs. It looked very impractical and designed for form over function. He picked it up and it felt suspiciously light. He opened it up and saw it was empty. So much for a backpack containing all he needed to start on an adventure.
What was the first step again?
Right, he had to put on the empty backpack if he wanted to start. Kit sighed. The attic roof was too low for him to stand up and put on the backpack, so he squatted down and wriggled into the backpack.
The moment it was on his back he felt the straps tighten over his shoulders and around his waist. He toppled over backwards as the backpack suddenly felt much heavier.
Kit reached back with both hands to see what had suddenly appeared in the bag on his back.
“Kit! Kit! Where are you?”
He could hear his grandma’s voice! He looked at his watch. How was it already lunchtime? And how was he going to get down the ladder with this heavy bag on his back?
Kit flipped over onto his knees and shuffled over to the wooden chest to see if there was anything else he could use. Empty.
A drop of sweat landed on the floorboards under him and Kit felt dizzy from the heat. Why had he closed the attic door? He looked around for a window to let in some fresh air. There was a small round window at the other end of the attic. He moved towards it as grandma called his name again.