"It's a little far. Are you hungry? I made a can of tomato soup if you want some."
"What's tomato soup?"
"It's soup. Made from tomatoes." Molly stared at Veronica blankly. "You don't know what a tomato is?" When Molly shook her head, Veronica said, "It's a red vegetable. Some people call it a fruit. Haven't you seen one before?"
"No. Are they like apples?"
"Not really. They're squishy and red on the inside. How can you not have seen a tomato?" Molly said nothing. She started to worry this Veronica might be some kind of crazy person. Or maybe Molly was still dreaming.
Veronica went over to the hearth and returned with a metal can blackened on the sides from the fire. Inside the can, Molly saw liquid almost the same color as her hair. Veronica put a little of the soup on a spoon, putting it up to Molly's mouth. The soup tasted warm and rich with a sweetness to it. She slurped down another dozen spoonfuls. "You really like this stuff, don't you?" Veronica said.
"It's delicious. I wish we had tomatoes in Eternity."
"Maybe we could go over to buy some seeds and grow them ourselves," Veronica said. "If you want to stay here. Or as soon as you're feeling better we can take you home."
"Eternity isn't my home," Molly said. "My home is in Dublin with King Daniel and Queen Margaret."
"Oh, so that would make you a princess. Princess Molly. Here's your soup, your majesty." Veronica gave Molly another spoonful of tomato soup. "When you're feeling better we can go over to Dublin and reunite you with your parents."
"Can we really?"
"It's very far away though. We'll need to make sure you're feeling good and strong for the trip. Here, make sure you eat all your soup to help get your strength back. I'll see if your highness's clothes are dry."
Molly finished the can of soup in no time, feeling strong enough to fly across the sea to Dublin. How lucky she'd been for this nice old lady to find her. Maybe Veronica was her guardian angel. "Veronica, are you an angel?" she asked.
"Me? No, dear, I'm not an angel." Veronica brought over Molly's dress and shoes. Molly tried to get out of bed, but her legs buckled and she would have fallen if Veronica hadn't caught her. "Looks like you're not ready to leave yet. You get some rest, sweetheart. I'll be right here."
Veronica helped Molly lie back down in bed and then pulled the covers up to Molly's chin. She brushed away hair from Molly's forehead and kissed her as Sir Francis had done in her dream. "Goodnight, Mama Veronica," Molly whispered before falling asleep.