Ugh I know this Chapter is ridiculously late, and I apologize. I'll explain why more at the end, but I made it longer, so hopefully that makes up for it. Anyway, enough of me talking, on to Chapter Ten!
(UPDATE 4/12/14) I'm sorry guys, but I'm putting this FanFic on Hiatus for now while I deal with stuff. I haven't even started writing the next Chapter, nor can I focus on it right now. Life has been really chaotic lately. Again, I'm sorry.
The first day was amazing. I felt completely free for the first time in my life, and the landscape was so beautiful. Spring would arrive in a month or so, but it was very warm on account of my happiness. I walked a lot, skipping and hopping alongside my horse on the road.
I'll admit I was worried at times about Mandy and Sylvia, because I wasn't sure what would happen; if they would have to imprison Thelma, or worse. Or if they even found her, which truthfully I hoped they didn't. I didn't want there to be any violence.
The second day was about the same, but on the third day the outline of the mountain was just becoming visible. My hopes were higher than ever, and the skies stayed the same throughout the day.
By nightfall I was close enough to the mountain to see the forest that surrounded it, and I made a small fire the way Mandy had taught me, and when I settled into my sleeping roll I pulled mother's magic book out of my satchel. I opened it to find a letter from mother, and the date told me it had been written yesterday. I eagerly read.
Dear Lela
My dear, sweet, beautiful Lela, I miss you terribly. Your father told me I shouldn't make this long, so I shall try my best.
My daughter, I wish I had never granted you permission to go on that quest, even with Mandy by your side. I pace the floor of my bedroom every day, and I can't focus on my duties… Oh how I miss you so. But I do ramble… I only wrote to say, please be safe, don't do anything too dangerous, and give my love to Mandy, as well as yourself. Your father says he loves you with all his heart.
Love, Mother
Ps: Drink your tonic
I wiped away a tear. I missed them both more than I could ever say. But when I read the last sentence, I laughed and groaned at the same time. I cursed myself for putting the whole bottle in my satchel, and had to muster my courage to take it. After I finished gagging, I placed the book back in my satchel. And for the fourth time in my life, I slept under the stars.
When I awoke, I checked the magic book again. To my surprise, there was a journal entry from Ronan. I felt almost guilty reading it, but then I remembered everything Seamus had told me, and I pushed the guilt down; I didn't know what he would do, and I decided it would help to know his thoughts.
How dare he! How dare he do this! My brother, Seamus, he betrayed me! He did the unthinkable! He told the wench, Lela, about my curse. He made excuses, saying she found out. He told her everything! I had to restrain myself from hitting him, otherwise father would be furious and demand to know the reason. But I told him I would hit him if he didn't tell me what her secret was. It is only fair that I know hers if she knows mine. My fool of a brother told me she is the Princess, who is just as cursed as I. how he could not realize before, I have no idea.
He said she was going to a mountain a few days ride away, to break her curse by talking to someone named Erasmus, who she says lives there. I've thought about it, and I've decided to follow her, at a distance at least. If she is telling the truth, then I shall have my curse removed, finally, after so many years!
But, if she lies, then I shall at least see what she plans. I have a feeling I should not miss this.
I stared at the page, reading it again, and another after that. I slammed the book shut, breathing deeply to stay calm. What would drive him to follow me? I sighed inwardly, chastising myself. I was about to stand up and look around when I realized it might be best to take him by surprise. From where I was, he could very well see me. So I casually started packing up my things, and after eating and making the campsite look like it was never there, I mounted my horse and went off at a leisurely pace. My campsite had been at the edge of a dense wood, and the road was separated from the forest by a wide strip of grass. I had to wait if I wanted to catch him, as it went straight for a mile or so.
Even as I watched for the right opportunity, I couldn't help but think about what lay ahead. I didn't think about the alternative choice if Erasmus didn't remove my Curse. Instead I pictured myself, radiantly confident, riding back to that town, telling Claire and her family everything, and then riding home and telling mother and father that I was free. And one day, when I married and became Queen, I would gain the trust of my subjects and the kingdom would be…
In the middle of my imaginings I suddenly saw my opportunity. The road suddenly curved to the left, following the outline of the forest, and there was a gigantic bush right in the middle that caused anything behind it to be practically invisible. I followed the bend, but the minute I was out of sight I slid off my horse and tied him to a tree branch a few feet away, while I hid in the bush waiting to jump out in front of his horse.
I hoped he would quicken his pace once he saw me disappear, because the thorns were digging painfully into my arms and back. But it wasn't long before I heard the faint sound of horses' hooves on the hard-packed dirt road.
I held my breath as a sudden thought occurred to me: what if it wasn't Ronan? I couldn't see high enough to discern the rider at the angle I was in, and I could swear I heard two horses as whoever it was got closer. I called myself a dolt for choosing such a low spot, but I didn't dare move now in fear of them hearing me. There wasn't enough fear to effect the weather, but still enough to affect me.
They rode closer and closer, confirming my fear of two horses, when two of them appeared in my view. I had decided to just climb out, claiming I was looking for something that I had accidentally dropped in the bush, when the horses stopped. I heard muffled voices, but I couldn't make out what they were saying.
Not knowing what else to do, I calmly walked out, to the surprise of the riders, who in fact fell off their horses. I almost sighed in relief when I saw Ronan, but I audibly gasped when I saw Seamus and Claire who fell off the other horse.
"Lela, Err, hi," Ronan sputtered, standing and dusting himself off. Claire and Seamus stood up but didn't say anything.
"And just what in the name of Kyrria were you doing following me!?" I demanded, crossing my arms.
Ronan got a defiant look on his face. "We were just riding, until you leapt out of that bush, scaring us half to death."
"I did not leap, I walked," I glanced at Claire. "And there are plenty of roads, so it seems a little strange that you picked this one. It takes days to get anywhere from here."
"I know, Lela. It's okay," Claire piped up. "Ronan and Seamus told me about your curse. We want to help you."
My eyes widened. "Why would you tell her?" Ronan didn't respond and Seamus shrugged his shoulders. I sighed. "You can't… I mean, it's not safe… Listen, you just cannot come with me. The trip will take a few days, and who knows what will happen in that time."
"You're going, aren't you? It'll be safer if we go with you." Seamus said.
I glared at Ronan, and he glared right back. "You technically can't stop us from going."
"I'm the Princess, I can order you to stop following me, and then you won't know where I'm going." I normally didn't pull that card, but I was getting annoyed.
"You're not the Queen."
"I still have authority."
"You aren't the only one with a Curse."
"Yours is easy to break, if you weren't so proud."
"Mine is harder than you think! You only have to deal with a little rain every time you don't get your way and get upset."
I took a step closer. "I can cause more than a "little rain". If I wanted, I bet I could cause a hurricane. And I wouldn't be afraid to, if it would shut you up." I growled.
"Hey, stop it, both of you!" Seamus said, stepping between us. "This won't help us if you keep arguing. We don't want a storm when we're all the way out here."
"Fine," We both mumbled.
"Now, please Lela, Ronan wants to break his Curse, he's tried everything, so please let us come," Seamus pleaded.
"He would probably be a lot less annoying," Claire added. Ronan shot her a look.
"But I can't promise anything. He might not take my Curse away, or yours. And you would have to find your way back," Only if Erasmus refused.
Seamus frowned. "Why?"
"Because he doesn't just grant wishes to anyone," I turned around, remembering my horse and going to stroke his mane.
"Hey, where's your friend?" Claire asked.
"Oh, she went ahead. There was something she needed to do." I said.
"Well, when we get to the mountain, we can-"
"We? You aren't going to give this up, are you?" I said, interrupting her.
She just laughed. "No, not at all."
"You are so persistent, and not in a good way." I said, still facing my horse. I heard one of them groan, although it was so faint I almost missed it, and I mounted my horse again, untying his rope from the branch.
I glared at Ronan one more time before taking the lead, checking the map Sylvia gave me.
For a few hours we were silent, the only sound that of the birds and wildlife in the forest next to us. Eventually we came to a place in the road where it curved into the woods, and if my map was correct, it would go on until we reached the mountain.
Around dusk we stopped, setting up camp for the night. I selected a spot where I could see the stars the most, because I wasn't sure when I would be able to sleep under them again, if I succeeded.
"Lela, can I ask you something?" Seamus said, coming over to me when Claire and Ronan were busy gathering wood for the fire I was building.
"Of course, anything," I said, not looking up.
"How did your mother, the Queen, remove her Curse?"
"With love," I paused making the fire, and sat on my heels, thinking. "She was afraid that if she married my father, someone could make her hurt him, and Kyrria. She broke her Curse because she loved Kyrria and my father enough that she would rather be a servant for her cruel stepfamily if it meant keeping both safe."
"Oh, wow. I knew your mother was kindhearted, but I didn't know she was that kindhearted."
I smiled and nodded. Then I resumed my fire making as Ronan and Claire returned.
After we all ate we brought out our sleeping rolls and settled for the night. I didn't want to risk taking my magic book out, so instead I fell asleep to the sound of the fire crackling and crickets chirping.
In the middle of the night I awoke, although I wasn't certain why. Then noticing I was parched and needed water I quietly stood up, walking around the sleeping figures of my friends and stumbled sleepily through the silent trees until I came to the stream a fair distance away. After I was done drinking I splashed some water on my face. After drying myself on my skirt, I started to walk back, when I noticed something. Being more alert, I realized, the forest was silent. No crickets were chirping, and I couldn't hear any other wildlife that I heard when I went to sleep. Something was wrong.
I walked back to the campsite as quietly as I could. The fire was almost dead, but everything looked fine. I was just about to go back to my bedroll, thinking it was just my half-awake stumbling that scared everything, when the camp came into view. It took me a moment to register that there were six figures instead of three. I held back a gasp as I saw three very large, very ugly ogres standing over my friends. Two were holding Seamus and Ronan, and the third was standing near Claire, his back to me. Neither of my friends ran, probably out of fear. Now fully awake, I sat and hid behind a tree, hardly peering around it.
I never thought this would happen. The ogres had been driven out of Kyrria years ago by my parents and their most trusted knights, before I was born. If my parents had known there were still Ogres, they would never have let me go with only Mandy. The only way I knew of them was from books and paintings. Even in the dim light of the dying fire, I could see they were awful.
A split second before the third one – whom I assumed was the leader – spoke, I realized that I should have plugged my ears the moment I saw them.
"Have no fear, little humans. We mean you no harm," One of them said.
Too late.
"Why do you struggle, when we are only embracing you in welcome of our wonderful home?"
Too late? How could I have been so awful? They weren't evil at all, they were only welcoming us.
"Your kind drove us out, and we three are the only ones left here; we only want friends." Another said.
My parents were wrong. I couldn't believe their cruelty.
"We would be ecstatic to have friends like you!" Claire beamed. I was glad she understood.
But Ronan and Seamus looked confused, afraid even. "You're lying," I heard one of them mumble.
"Lying?" The first Ogre sounded hurt. "Why do you accuse us of such treachery?"
Fuming, I stood up and walked out from the shadow of the tree and into the camp. "How dare you!" I shouted at Seamus and Ronan. "You're so cruel!"
They looked surprised, and Claire glared at them with me.
"Lela! They're the cruel ones! Please listen!" Seamus said.
The leader turned to me. "Have you also come to mock us?"
I shook my head. "Of course not! I want to be friends, as well!" I said, smiling reassuringly at them.
The Leader nodded to me, and then turned to both boys. "Why do you hate my brothers and me? We only wish to help you, even though you never helped us." The leader said.
Seamus glared at the Ogre. "You are no friend of ours. You, who deceive and plot, and attack those who cannot fight back, you are the enemy." Then he looked at Claire and I. "Listen, their flaws and virtues are the same! They have the power to trick you, just by speaking. We can resist because we see that! Claire, Lela, please!" He seemed genuine, but still, he was being horrible.
I looked at all three Ogres. The two were just standing around, and the Leader was starting to build up the fire more.
"Help," I mumbled. "They only want to help us. Although I do not know why," I said, louder.
"Because we know you are different," The leader said, and then pointed at himself. "NiSSh always helps people who help him."
I was starting to become worried that we weren't good enough. "How will we help you?" I asked.
"They're going to eat us!" Ronan shouted. I all but ignored him.
"Oh, parish the thought! We will give you your hearts greatest desires! Anything you wish."
My worry vanished. They could remove my Curse! And Ronan's, if he would only listen.
Claire smiled happily, and sat down by the fire as if waiting for her wish. I hoped the Ogres would give her something wonderful.
"They can't, Lela." Seamus said. I glared at him.
I was becoming angrier by the second. In the distance, faint thunder could be heard.
I tried to push it down, and started helping NiSSh with the Fire.
"Thank you," He smiled at me. I smiled back.
"You look familiar," One of the Ogres mumbled. "Really familiar. I don't think we've met before." I was just about to ask who I look like, when all of a sudden I heard a voice.
Your friends speak the truth.
I paused, looking around. Where did that voice come from?
Claire was still sitting on a log, the two other Ogres were talking to each other, and Ronan and Seamus were looking at me, their eyes pleading.
I shook my head, telling myself I had imagined it, and continued to help with the fire.
"We will give you whatever you wish after we eat. We are famished; we haven't eaten in a long time, and we cannot do much on empty stomachs." NiSSh said.
Claire immediately stood up. "We will prepare the food then! You must rest, friends." She started helping me, while NiSSh happily obliged and sat on a log, ordering hid brothers to tie the boys. After they tied them to a tree next to our horses, they joined NiSSh.
The fire was almost complete.
"Please, I beg of you, fight it! Fight the words, or you will die!" Ronan said, and for once I heard something in his voice, something different. I was starting to feel dizzy, so I couldn't decide what it was.
"What cruel, cruel words," NiSSh said, but didn't move from his position.
The Ogres are cruel themselves. They lie, and they deceive.
Again I paused, for a longer amount of time, to look around for the source of the voice. I couldn't see anyone near or around me, but it sounded as if the voice came from next to me. But again, the Ogres were laughing and talking away, the boys looked like they were having a silent conversation, and Claire was completely silent.
"Did you hear that?" I said uncertainly to Claire.
She shook her head, not looking up from her task.
I looked around one more time, noticing for the first time that my satchel was next to me. Opening it, I pulled out the map Sylvia had given me. On the front, it was the same, but when I turned it over, I saw Sylvia's face. I almost dropped the piece of paper, but fortunately I was able to shield it from everyone else. The Fairy was somehow using the magical paper to contact me. I was almost going to ask about Mandy and the Witch when Sylvia spoke.
Lela, you must resist them! They speak nothing but lies to you. Your friends know as much.
"How are you speaking to me? What about Thelma?" I whispered as quietly as I could. I glanced at the Ogres who were laughing and talking, and at Ronan and Seamus who were staring at me but were far enough away to hear. I looked back at the map.
They will eat you soon. You must resist, or you will never know what freedom of your Curse is. And you will never know the love you had.
'I already know what love is,' I thought. My family, and Mandy, who is like family anyway.
Not that love. Sylvia whispered, and then vanished.
"Well?" I heard NiSSh behind me. "The fire won't be done as soon if you do not help, little friend."
I folded the map and placed it back in my satchel, and was just about to ignore Sylvia and finish the fire, when I glanced at Ronan. He was still staring, but his golden eyes looked different. I looked again, to see he was crying!
"Lela?" Claire said, looking at me. The Ogres stopped talking and looked at me too.
"You look awful, are you alright?" She asked.
I looked at her, then the Ogres, then Ronan and Seamus. I couldn't think straight, and I noticed for the first time that my head was cloudy. I needed to obey the Ogres, but what Sylvia said made sense. Everyone was looking at me, but I only looked at Ronan. He was still crying, but his eyes were pleading with me, and for once his arrogance had vanished, replaced by a desperate look.
"I-I can't…" I started, holding my temples. "This isn't…This isn't real…" I closed my eyes, trying to think, trying to clear the fog out of my head.
"What do you mean? I can give you what your heart desires." I heard NiSSh say.
I shook my head. "No-no-no. You can't. You're lying." I said, opening my eyes to a frowning Ogre standing in front of me.
"Why do you hurt me so with your words?" NiSSh said, his expression that of sadness.
'False, not real.' I thought.
The Ogre took hold of my arm, dragging me over to where Ronan and Seamus were tied up.
"My brothers and I are no friends of deceivers!" He said, tying me up next to my friends.
"You're one to talk!" I shouted back. My head was starting to clear and I could see them for what they were. I heard both boys sigh in relief next to me.
"We were not the ones who drove an entire race out of their homes." The Ogre snarled, any sign of friendliness gone.
"You've eaten more humans than there are Ogres," I said, not backing down despite being tied up, sitting on the ground, while NiSSh loomed over me.
"Yes!" Seamus and Ronan agreed in unison. I glanced behind the Ogre to see his brothers stand up and join him, but I could not longer see Claire by the fire; I briefly wondered where she went when one of the Ogres growled.
"I know now, where I've seen you before!" The one Ogre, who spoke before, said.
"You look like the King…. And the Queen…" He scratched his head.
NiSSh's eyes narrowed. "You are the Princess then?"
I glared at him. "What does it matter?"
He smiled evilly. "Because with the little human Princess, I can finally have my revenge. I watched my brothers and sisters suffer, die, and flee, at the hands of your human father." He said the word human as if it hurt his mouth.
"What are you going to do!? Eat me last?" I said, sounding braver than I felt; one of the few good sides of having to control your emotions your entire life.
"Oh no, you see, I think we should eat you first, slowly; your friends will suffer greatly by hearing your screams, just because they know you." The Ogre laughed, his brothers joining in. Then they turned around, going back to the fire, which was almost built. I had no time to wonder why it took so long.
Unfortunately Claire was sitting with her back to a tree near our belongings with a dazed look on her face, staring at nothing. I tried to get her to look at me, but she didn't move at all. I hoped that maybe she would realize what was happening and get away.
I looked at Ronan, thinking about what Sylvia had said. I had always read in stories where the maiden tells her prince she loves him before they are about to die, or before something bad happens. I didn't want to be just another story, although I knew that mine was much stranger than a lot of books I read.
But I couldn't just sit there and not tell Ronan about what had been building up inside of me since I met him. I didn't even know until I saw the look he gave me that wasn't filled with scorn.
"Ronan," I said quietly.
He turned his head to look at me.
"I'm sorry," I said quietly.
He shook his head. "It's not your fault."
I hung my head. "I know, but I'm still sorry."
He didn't say anything as one of the Ogres came over to me. "For your sake I hope you have a high tolerance for pain." He laughed as he started to untie me. I glanced at the fire, its roaring flames lighting up the entire area in our little clearing. My eyes widened in fear; I didn't want to die. And I didn't have a very high tolerance.
He untied my legs so I could walk but kept my hands bound, and started to lift me up when one of his brothers suddenly cried out.
Looking over at him, I saw an arrow sticking out of his shoulder. The surprised Ogre looked at his shoulder, and then another arrow pierced his leg, making him fall down cursing in pain.
I looked over to where the arrow came from to see Claire standing by the same tree, holding a red bow with another arrow already notched. Either she had recovered from her stupor, or she was just acting. Either way, I smiled, wondering where she had learned to use a bow. I decided I would ask her later.
"Put my friend down!" Claire shouted, although I winced when her voice cracked with fear.
NiSSh just laughed again. "Do you think because you took my brother by surprise, that you have killed him? Or that you can make a hit like that again? Humans are weak." He started to lumber towards her, but she didn't move, only pulled the arrow back farther.
All three Ogres were distracted while Claire gave us time, so I used it by untying Ronan and Seamus. My fingers fumbled with the ropes.
"Come on, puny little human! Face me!" I heard an Ogre say.
I dared to glance back, seeing Claire darting between the trees as the beasts chased her. She moved quickly, but I knew she couldn't keep it up forever, so I focused on my task.
"Argh!" I heard NiSSh say behind me as I yelled in triumph at the ropes releasing my friends. I spun around to see him almost running toward me, but I dove out of the way just in time as he slammed into the tree. Not looking back, I grabbed my satchel, searching for something useful. All I saw was a small dagger and my tonic. I took both, and a spoon as well, as I heard an Ogre behind me. I turned to him, opened the bottle, and dipping the spoon in I aimed and threw a glob of the slimy liquid at the beast. His mouth was open, and it flew down his throat faster than it ever went down mine, and he stopped dead in his tracks, gagging and coughing. I smiled at the irony, thinking it probably did save my life.
I glanced towards the other Ogre, who was trying to get Seamus off of his back while simultaneously trying to pummel Ronan. I would have laughed at the sight if we weren't in such danger. Claire was still dodging NiSSh, and probably could go on for a while longer, so I ran over to the tree where the rope was, hoping to tie the one who was still gagging. I ran behind him, not sure where to start. He didn't know I was there still, so I cursed myself when I almost screamed at the feeling of a hand on my shoulder. I looked to see Ronan, who was panting, but took my rope and motioned to the Ogre. Seamus was doing fine on his own, so I smiled and nodded, as Ronan and I started to tie up one of NiSSh's brothers. He tried to resist, but by the time he realized what was happening, it was too late. He fell on the ground, trying to break the knots, but it was no use.
I took a breath, then grabbed more rope and my tonic and went to the other brother. It took even less time, what with Seamus distracting him, but we managed to force my tonic down his throat and then tie him up just as Claire ran past us, barely able to walk anymore let alone run.
"You… Will pay… Severely… Little human…" NiSSh came running up to us, panting hard.
My friends and I moved in front of Claire, who had collapsed on the ground near us breathing hard. I aimed another spoonful of tonic, Seamus had rope, and Ronan had his own short sword which he retrieved from his pack when we were finished with the other two Ogres.
NiSSh started to laugh. "I am the last of the Ogre leaders, and you will not best me with medicine. I will not go down as easily as my brothers." I flung the tonic at him just as he snarled and took a step forward; my aim was perfect and he started gagging, but didn't stop moving. If we were soldiers, we could capture him easily, but Claire seemed to be the only one with experience and she was exhausted from running and dodging.
NiSSh took another step, and we took one back. I was so afraid that the wind picked up, whipping around my skirts and hair.
I dropped the spoon and took out my dagger, wondering if I could maybe throw it. As we slowly backed up, Ronan drew me behind him. I glanced behind me, wondering why Claire wasn't doing anything; she should have recovered enough to shoot. I quickened my pace as much as I dared and backed up to Claire, kneeling next to her as NiSSh was focused on the boys.
"Lela," She whispered. "I know what you want me to do, but I can't take my eyes off the other two." I looked and realized she had her arrows pointed to NiSSh's brothers to make sure they didn't break free, her eyes darting back and forth between them.
I heard the clang of a sword over the wind and looked to see Ronan and Seamus dodging and attacking the Ogre. I felt so helpless, just sitting there not being able to do anything. All I could do was watch as my friends fought NiSSh, attacking and dodging and rolling and diving, and I knew they must have had a little training at least.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, as the first of the rays of the sun were just peeking over the trees, Ronan and Seamus defeated the Ogre. He stumbled, collapsing onto the ground, as my friends stood over him, swords at his throat.
"So, I am defeated, by children," He growled as he was bound next to his brothers.
"Now, where did you learn to do use a bow?" I asked Claire.
She laughed. "As the only daughter of the mayor, he made certain that I was able to take care of myself. Although I'll admit, I'm a bit out of practice."
"I'm guessing you two also have some training?" I looked at the boys, who both nodded.
"But what do we do with these Ogres?" Seamus asked, looking nervously at all three of them.
"We can't just leave them here," Claire agreed. They all looked at me, which I was surprised about, since I don't see myself as a leader, but I guess being the Princess they would automatically assume. I was still irritated from not being of much use earlier. "Maybe we could take them back to your town, and the people can help us," I suggested, although it would delay the trip even further then ever intended.
"Well we could but it would take us over a week to go there and back," Ronan said.
"And how would we transport them anyway?" Seamus added.
I suddenly had an idea. "Maybe we can reason with them." I turned and walked over to them. I removed NiSSh's gag so he could talk.
"What do you want, human?"
"We want to make a deal with you," I said, using the voice I assumed was confident.
"What deal?" He snarled.
I thought a moment. "We will let you go, if you promise to leave Kyrria."
"Lela!" My friends said in unison. I gave them a look that said 'be quiet'. Neither said another word.
"Ha! Why would I want to do that?"
"Because if you don't, we will leave you here to get out of your bounds yourselves, and who knows who will travel through here before you manage that?" I doubted we would, but they certainly didn't need to know that.
Fear briefly flashed across his face, but a sneer replaced it just as fast.
"Am I supposed to trust you, now?" He said.
"I'm wondering the same thing," I shot back.
He groaned. "Fine, you pathetic human, we will accept your offer. I promise to stay out of Kyrria from now on." His brothers mumbled their agreement.
It took a lot of talking on my part, and I used my Princess training in "political" speech, if you can call it that, but I finally convinced my friends to release the Ogres. But we did watch them, long after they passed out of our vision, to be certain they were speaking the truth.
We left after that, packing up our things, and mounting our horses. No one spoke of what had happened, but I had to force myself to push it down; I didn't have time to break down, and it would cause a huge storm, so I told myself I would let it all out after my Curse was broken.
Fortunately, we had no trouble getting to the mountain after that, and I was hopeful that Mandy and Sylvia were alright; After all, Sylvia did help me with the Ogres, so she wouldn't have been able to if she were in trouble. At least that's what I told myself.
A few days later around noon, we finally made it to the mountain. It was even bigger than I had originally thought, and it rose far, far above the clouds. My friends and I stared in awe at it, halting our horses to get a steady look at it.
While we were sitting there silently, I suddenly wondered how I would find Mandy and Sylvia. The home of the Water Fairy was hidden somewhere in the huge forest surrounding the mountain, and we had been in the same forest for days.
"Where is the path exactly?" Ronan asked, breaking the silence. For the first time since the Ogres attacked, I noticed he sounded different, kinder than he had been. I hoped he did, too.
"I'm not exactly sure. All I know is we need to find a large clearing somewhere, with a lake in the middle of it." I said.
"What kind of clearing? There might be a few of them; these woods are huge." Seamus added.
"Trust me, we'll know when we find it," I said.
We urged our horses on, slowly but steadily walking through the forest, on the lookout for anything that would suggest a lake.
We were so close to our destination, close to finding Mandy and Sylvia, and close to removing my Curse and Ronan's.
I smiled as we walked. "Soon," I whispered.
Alright, explanation, as promised! So the reason this took so long wasn't because of the length, but because of the encounter. I'm really not sure how it is, if it's too long or boring. But seriously, I wrote it and re-wrote it sooooooooooo many times. thankfully this Chapter is finished, I might not start the next one for a few days. But I still plan on posting weekly.