"Back off, Dev! She's dying and she needs to go home!"
Tallulah had wedged herself between the royal advisor and his guardsmen, putting out a protective arm to keep Willow behind her. The pureblood clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"Tallulah. I'm surprised at you. You were just beginning to get to the end of your sentence." He said. "It would be a shame if I added a few more years onto it. Or have you been away from home for so long that you've stopped caring for your boys?"
"This is wrong and you know it. She's a child." The sprite was not having any of it. Willow gave her a slightly hard glare at the word 'child', but chose not to escalate the situation from there. However, it seemed as though the sour pureblood advisor was being equally as stubborn.
"What we do with her is none of your concern. Now out of my way." He hissed, shoving her aside and taking a hold of Willow's wrist. The girl yelped in surprise, gripping at his hand with her free one, clawing to loosen his vice-like fingers on the joint.
"Deveraux, let her go."
Briar's voice was loud and firm, his sword extended in a battle-ready stance. All eyes turned to him, and the advisor gave the boy a half-interested glance from head to toe before a malicious grin spread across his face.
"Huntsman Briar. I had hoped that you would become an exceptional member of my team." The pureblood mocked bitterly at the young troll. However, the amusement soon fell and was replaced with a look of utter disdain. "How disappointing." He sauntered his way closer to them, keeping a particular eye on Briar and Willow as he folded his hands together neatly in front of him at waist-level.
"But since you're here, you might as well work." He lifted one arm to signal a nearby Guardsman, and he came forward with a horse that was vacant of a rider. His eyes pierced into their very souls as he looked to them once more. "Get on."
"No. I'm not taking part in this any longer." Briar answered quickly and firmly. A brief stare-down took place, and Deveraux turned his head slightly to call behind him.
"Guardsmen! Kill them all!" He barked. Not two seconds after it had been spoken when Briar threw himself forward, hands extended and waving about in a halting fashion.
"No, stop! I'll go with you, just leave everyone else alone!" He pleaded. The scraggily troll closed the distance between them almost entirely, his spindly fingers gripping at the collar of Briar's shirt and yanking him so close that the young troll could smell his rancid breath and pungent stench of his clothing. His breath was hot as he lips were curled back in a disgusted snarl.
"You listen to me, boy. You are my Huntsman and you will do as I say from here on out, or so help me, you and your pathetic siblings will not see another day. Do I make myself clear?" He said, his voice escalating in volume as he shook him about in his grasp for emphasis. Briar grunted in protest, squeezing his eyes shut and gritting his teeth. Swallowing back his retort, his eyes reopened with what seemed to be an air of neutral clarity.
"Crystal." His knees met the ground violently, and he grunted to shake off the discomfort of having his superior so close to him.
"Take the sprites back to their cells." Deveraux ordered, and a few of the Guardsmen came forward to snatch Tallulah and Puck by the arms, much to the non-verbal protest of the female sprite. She gave a pleading look to Briar, but he only shook his head to halt any accumulating thoughts that the sprite could have. However, as the two passed one another, Briar felt her hand slip into his pocket and the very light weight of an object settled into it. He glanced to her once more and she raised her eyebrows in response, looking away before the Guardsmen escorting her could catch on. Briar patted the surface of the pocket, and he immediately recognized it.
Silently, he mounted the horse with Colt not far behind him. The tall troll hoisted Willow up onto the seat behind Briar, flashing a tight smile at them both before rejoining the other Huntsmen a few feet away. Quickly and in a secretive fashion, Briar signed a few symbols to them and Shale gave a thumbs up. Briar nodded then jumped at the abrupt sound of Deveraux's voice.
"MOVE OUT!" He ordered, and the young male troll followed behind the many Guardsmen as they started their journey towards a destination he was unsure of.
However, his focus did not remain there long as he felt Willow wrap both arms around his torso to steady herself as they started forward. His skin tingled powerfully at her gentle touch, and he could smell the faint scent of daisies coming from her hair.
"Briar…where are they…..?" She muttered. Her weary tone made him anxious all over again, and he knew the spell was only growing as every second ticked by.
"Shhhh. Just hold on. I'm still getting you out of here." Cautiously, he placed a hand over top her arms around his waist. He stole a look back at her, and their eyes met for a brief moment. He could feel his heart begin to twist in pain again at the look of pure hopelessness in her eyes. He squeezed her left hand softly. "I promise."
She said nothing, but the look in her eyes was enough to convince him that she believed him. For now. She rested her head square on his back and closed her eyes, sending another jolt of lightning through his entire body. He wished desperately that this kind of contact could have happened in literally any other situation but this one.
Time was running out quickly.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Your Majesties, wait!" Aloe called to the two monarchs as they began to run across the field towards town. Poppy slowed for a moment, turning to face her.
"Aloe, I know you're only trying to protect us, but we can't sit around anymore. Willow needs our help." She cried, starting off again. Aloe clenched her fists for a moment, coming to a dead halt.
"If you go in there, they'll kill you." She screamed, her voice shaky but loud. Poppy and Branch stopped, looking to her again but with much more reverence at what she was saying.
"Who?" Branch muttered. Aloe panted to catch her breath, her face twisted in distress.
"Deveraux and his men. Trust me, I know. They won't hesitate, and I couldn't possibly bear to see…." She cut herself off, holding a fist against her lips to keep from rambling on about what she had wanted to say. Branch and Poppy both stared at her with compassion. She shook her head. "You just…..can't."
"You don't understand!"
Poppy's sudden outburst made all of them jump and snap their eyes in her direction, and the usually bright and happy pink troll had her hands clenched tightly and tears were brimming the corners of her eyes.
"You don't understand." She said once more, this time in a shaky whisper. Looking away to the horizon, the Queen inhaled sharply to try and combat the emotions overtaking her. Squeezing her eyes shut, she spoke once more in a hush. "She's all we have."
A few seconds passed and Branch had moved himself closer to his wife, reaching out a hand to place gently atop her shoulder.
"Poppy…." He muttered, pressing against her. She sighed, placing a hand atop his.
"I'm sorry, Branch." She whispered almost too softly for anyone but him to hear. Aloe and Sage inched themselves further back to where Verne and Canella were standing, knowing that the conversation was headed in a very personal direction.
"I'm sorry for wasting all of this time…you are such a good father to Willow….I wanted to give you that chance again."
For the first time since learning of his daughter's abduction, Branch's demeanor slackened significantly and he watched his wife with a rather melancholy expression. He knew what she spoke of. Conversations lost in time when their daughter was still a child. The desire and attempts to give Willow a sibling came flooding back to him in a pool of memories, and he shook his head vehemently.
"No. Poppy, stop this. Right now." He said, putting a hand on her chin and lifting her gaze to his in a passionate lock. "It's not your fault." He stroked her cheek as tears began to fall, and she gave a pained sigh. She was so angry at herself for the way things had turned out for them. She had wanted so much more for Branch, for herself…..she had always dreamed of having a huge family. And yet, all of it still seemed oddly worth it as she thought about her beautiful daughter. Their sweet, intelligent daughter who had never once given her anything but joy. Her crocodile tears continued to flow as she kept her eyes steady on her husband.
"I had to protect her." She whispered, as if once again apologizing for the choice she had made. Branch shook his head, pulling her into a tight hug and allowing her to bury her face into the crook of his neck.
"Stop blaming yourself. We can only move forward."
Poppy's heart clenched at his reassurance. Several years ago, before the notion of being anything other than friends had even spawned within their realm of possibilities, she would have never heard him say anything of the sort. In fact, due to his own past and his own guilt, Poppy would have much sooner heard him laugh at the thought of being so completely corny than go along with it.
The two sat like this for a long moment, completely lost in their own despair and comfort.
"Your Majesties?"
Aloe's voice made both trolls pull away to look at her, their arms still wrapped around one another. The pureblood clasped her hands respectively in front of her, giving them a sympathetic look.
"I know it's not much, but for what it's worth…..Willow is one lucky girl." She said.
Poppy sniffled and tried her best to offer a smile. However, before she could say what she wanted to, Branch had reached up to brush a tear away.
"Yes. She is." Branch replied for her, squeezing Poppy's hand tightly as they exchanged another loving look. He proceeded to stand up, bringing Poppy to her feet as well. However, the tender moment was short-lived as a cacophonous sound from around the bend sent them all jumping back into hiding.
"What's going on?" Canella whispered.
"Sh! I hear something!" Aloe hissed back, and they all fell silent and listened to the parade of footsteps nearing their location.
"I'm telling you, dude. This is the spot Briar said they would be." A voice called from a few feet away, and Aloe jumped from her spot in recognition of the voice.
"Colt?" She yelled, coming face to face with the three Huntsmen as they rounded the corner and almost ran straight into her.
"Aloe! Man, are we glad to see you! You've got to help us find this chick's parents! Briar and she have been taken by Deveraux and his posse! He's gonna do something crazy with them!" Tez exclaimed in a ramble of information.
"Consider us found." Another voice said, and the rest of the group emerged into view and sent the Huntsmen reeling back in surprise.
"Wow, talk about the apple not falling far from the tree!" Colt commented as he took in Poppy and Branch's appearances.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Branch snapped, crossing his arms defensively for a moment.
"We don't have time for this! Which way did they go?" Aloe asked frantically.
"That's the thing. We don't know. Briar just told us to come find you all." Shale explained.
"You mean Briar didn't tell you guys anything?" Aloe shrieked in frustration.
"I don't know. Deveraux's just really bent on getting this chick to do something for him. We don't know the deets." Tez said.
"That 'chick' has a name." Poppy snapped, starting to look as equally agitated as her husband at the newcomers.
"Sorry, ma'am." Tez apologized. It was obvious that the Huntsmen had no idea who they were talking to or about. Aloe fought to keep the peace between the two parties with minor help from Sage.
"Well, there has to be someone we can ask." Aloe pointed out.
"What about the crystal?" Poppy reminded them.
"Who's crystal?" Shale piped up.
"Briar's crystal. He gave it to us so we could check in on them." Aloe explained briefly as Sage whipped it out from his bag and held it out for all of them to see. Slowly, a scene faded into view and there Briar was atop a horse, following closely behind a band of uniformed individuals and Deveraux. Willow was clinging to Briar's back, her eyes closed and looking even more gray than she had a few moments earlier. She looked awful.
"Oh, no." Poppy whispered in distress at the sight of her. Branch immediately pressed against her and held her close, his eyebrows knitted in worry as well.
"Where the heck are they?" Verne chimed in in confusion.
"Looks to be the Badlands of the North." Colt hypothesized. "The King has a second castle nestled right in the heart of that place, and judging by the dead trees and the mulch-layered road, that's where they're headed."
"Alright, great. Let's go!" Poppy immediately declared, starting forward before being grabbed by the arm.
"Hold on there, ma'am. We can't just walk into the Badlands." Colt informed her.
"And why not?" The Queen snapped impatiently, yanking her arm free.
"You kidding? That place is crawling with sprites, curses, and spells. We'll never even make it past the barrier." Tez informed them with a dramatic wave of his hand.
"Great. More spells." Canella chided with a sarcastic roll of her eyes.
"Unless we can enlist the help of some sprites, there's no way we're getting anywhere near there." Shale explained. Colt brightened for a moment in realization.
"I know exactly who can help us." He said.
"Who?" Verne asked in excitement.
"Awh, Colt, c'mon dude. That old broad? You know, there's a reason she's in jail now." Tez reminded his comrade.
"It's our only shot." Colt said, looking to Branch and Poppy with renewed hope in his eyes. "She was with us when we were trying to get your daughter to you initially. She seemed pretty taken with her. They must have become friends in the prison." Colt explained to them so that they were no longer giving him confused stares.
"And her friend too! He wasn't much of a talker, but he seemed pretty concerned for her too." Shale added.
"But wouldn't that involve breaking into the prison to get them? You know, treason?" Sage reminded them, his eyebrows raised skeptically.
"Ah, ah, ah, my good man! You have three perfectly good Huntsmen at your disposal. We'll get in in no time." Colt said proudly, gesturing to all three of them with a smug smile.
"Well then what are we waiting for? Christmas? Let's go!" Aloe cried, and with that the combined rescue groups set off in search of the prison. They knew that every second counted.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Upon reaching the castle, Deveraux had dismounted his own horse and made his way over to Briar and Willow.
"You are to take her to the dungeon and lock her up. We have no use for her until this evening." Deveraux instructed. Briar nodded without argument, hooking both arms under Willow's legs as she slowly slipped both arms around his neck. In one fluid motion, he sent them both hurdling to the ground and landed perfectly on his feet. Willow was very light to carry, something he quickly pushed to the back of his mind before he could revel in it any further.
"Oh, and Huntsman Briar." The young troll turned to face his superior once more. A snake-like grin slithered across his lips as he watched them.
"Don't get any bright ideas. I'll have Guardsmen posted at every corner of the place." He declared. Briar could only nod in submission, once again beginning his walk to the dungeon without delay.
Willow's mind was a flurry of thoughts. She couldn't keep anything straight. It was all an emotional, befuddled mess and she had no idea what to expect of the next several hours. If Briar had been telling the truth, then her parents would not be far behind her. If she knew them at all, she would suspect that she would be rescued before Deveraux and King Cypress had a chance to carry out their dastardly plot.
Twenty.
Her mind froze as the number that had been subconsciously floating around began to flash across her mind in bright red.
Twenty.
Thinking back to the original story her Grandpa Peppy had told her, King Rowan had instructed that no descendant of his was to learn of the truth until they were twenty years of age.
Twenty.
In Cypress' tale, the story of this all-powerful spell had emphasized that only the twentieth descendant of Rowan could unlock its power when the time called for it.
What on earth was Rowan's obsession with the number twenty? Was there a hidden meaning behind it? How could she have missed this detail up until this point?
I have to find out what it means. She thought desperately, looking to Briar and contemplating asking him. However, with the way he was moving, she chose to save it until she could get him alone.
Once reaching the cell, Briar very gently set Willow down on the cot within, her body immediately slumping to accommodate the change. Her eyes were half open and her chest rose and fell very slowly. The male troll took a quick look around to make sure nobody was in sight, then produced the vial that Tallulah had slipped in his pocket.
"Briar…..why do you have…?" Willow slurred wearily, but he shushed her again.
"Save your energy. You're going to need it." He ordered, wasting not a moment in slathering some of the liquid on Willow's arms and neck. He slowed a little once reaching her face, ignoring the flare of his beating heart at the feel of her soft skin. Willow seemed taken aback as well at the sudden contact, her eyes now wide open and watching him stroke the antidote in. Briar averted his gaze from hers, clearing his throat for a moment and reluctantly pulling his hands away from her.
"There. Tallulah slipped me the vial before we left. It should get you through tonight." He said. However, he was completely surprised as he looked again to see her watching him quite closely, and he somehow knew that her mind was not on the current situation for once. She leaned in ever so slowly, and he could once again inhale her intoxicating scent.
"Why do you let him push you around like that?" She muttered. He stopped. He searched her eyes, and found that she was genuine in her interest. He blinked a few times, straightening his back once more and placing the vial back in his pocket.
"Willow, some things…..some things are better left unsaid." He declared. As he turned to leave the cell, her voice stopped him again.
"You don't have to be afraid, you know." Willow called out quietly. It was as if he was an open book to her. Slowly, he turned his body back in her direction and the determination in his eyes surprised her.
"Trust me. When the time comes….I won't be." He uttered, and abruptly opened and shut the cell door to lock it. Willow blinked a few times, contemplating his cryptic answer. She realized that she had not asked what she wanted to and gritted her teeth in frustration. Man, was he a challenge to read. She laid down and rested her head on the unbelievably flat pillow, giving a sigh.
She would be a liar if she said that she didn't enjoy it.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Alrighty everyone! There you be! So sorry for taking so long! Lots of dialogue in this chapter, I hope that wasn't too annoying! Between some personal conflicts and my renewed discovery of Tumblr and all its wonders, I've been hacking away at this chapter ever so slowly and I am finally finished! Thank you for your patience and I will see you all in the next installment!
Warmest regards,
Heartforhumanity845
