Peaceful
The bright sunlight shone through the leafy branches of the magnificent, huge maple trees, casting dappled orange rays upon the ground. Laughter bubbled from the two girls lounging under the tree, one clothed in only silken robes, and the other in a scaled, draconian suit. Bundles of Grecian armour were spread across the lush green grass, as well as gilded boots and gloves.
One of the girls, a stout, muscled blonde called Edea shifted, peeling the meshy scales from a kink in the chain. Letting out a sigh, Edea carefully slid out from Agnés's sleepy form, forgetting the joke previously told, and undid the metal skin covering her soft flesh.
Agnés, ever serene with long, mousy brown hair framing half of her face, rolled over slightly as she settled onto the grass, careful of flowers as she rested her head on her arm. Her silken sleeves rustled, joined to her garb by only a few strings, and nearly slipped free from her arm.
"Edea, what are you doing?" Agnés sighed.
There was no answer as Edea continued to wrestle with the protective suit.
Rolling over dramatically, Agnés continued.
"What if a monster attacks? Without your armour, you'd surely not survive!" Her voice quivered as her eyes scanned the tree-line.
"Or worse, a hunter? They might not even notice us, and assume we're thieves? And they attack" a pause, before Agnés continued. "Or even murder us? "Agnés rambled, a panicked expression taut over her face.
"I'm sure no one like a lowly hunter would attack us, after all, the monsters don't usually hide in this part of the forest, it's far too sunny and warm for them..." Edea calmly suggested, finally free of the suit, with only a few scraps of fabric to cover her.
Agnés reached into the bag beside them, pulling out a white pair of leggings, a black, cotton undershirt and a cropped, red leather jerkin.
"If monsters aren't around here, hunters won't be either!" Edea sternly said as she reached for the clothes Agnés was holding.
Pulling the clothes on, Edea tied the strings of the jerkin, eyeing the array of armour and swords strewn on the grass from herself.
Agnés stood up suddenly, reaching for the staff she had laid in a crook of the tree. As soon as her fingertips grazed the wood, a shining light covered her body, replacing the white garb with a black and teal dress, worn gloves, and a pair of comfortable, yet stylish knee high boots.
"Get your armour on, there's something bad coming!" Agnés shouted, barely necessary due to the distance.
"How can you tell?" Edea replied as she quickly pulled on the suit of armour, gilded shoes and all.
"I want to say it's woman's intuition, but the fog may have tipped me off?" Agnés quipped.
The fog, a grey-purple mess rolled into the forest and lapped at the trees like waves to sand, and settled as thick, stagnant smoke. The girls were quickly losing vision as the light stopped filtering through the dense fog.
Edea moved slightly, backing up to the tree, where she stood, blind in the fog. She tapped on the trunk with her wand, realising that she could not move any further, she let out a gasp.
Edea quickly moved towards Agnés, reaching through the thick fog, grabbed her companions leather encased hand, moving it to her own chest.
"I'll protect you, okay?" Edea laughed, voice unwavering.
Agnés nods, a quick jerky motion, letting out a choked gasp. Her face drained of colour in an instant, as Agnés keeled over, leaning against Edea.
"Agnés, are you okay?" Edea gasped, bending to catch Agnés. A murmur came from Agnés as Edea heaved her up, resting against the crook of the tree. In the cool damp of the lilac fog, Edea slid down the tree trunk, bringing Agnés to lie in her lap.
"Agnés..." Edea whispered, forming a magic barrier around herself and Agnés to prevent the fog from getting any closer or denser. A silver orb surrounded the two, clearing the air. The shimmering of the barrier swirled and circled around the girls, and Edea was entranced, holding an unconscious Agnés. Mesmerised by the orb and lulled by Agnés' soft breathing, Edea felt her eyelids drooping, and fell asleep.
The two girls were always light sleepers, and were cautious to never wake each other; however, Agnés woke Edea for the first time in over a year.
Edea awoke, feeling cold, so in fear she looked down at her lap, where Agnés was lying before, and screamed.
Agnés was gone. The shock did not fade easily as Edea groped at the ground, Panicked and hazy, she found the crystal pendant that Agnés was wearing, crushed and broken.
Edea was left alone in the woods.