Inkpoison

Just a little warning, soon I will be renaming the story. The new title of INKLOVE will be 'Inkpoison'. It fits, eh? So if you get a chapter alert for a story called 'Inkpoison', don't worry,lol. I'll put a little something in the summary, so everyone knows. Just a heads up

Chapter Nineteen

Although the hills Jade had spotted seemed close enough, it still took a couple days to get there. On the second day, Sheeba ran ahead of his owner, his long rope-like tail lashing through the air excitedly. His lean muscles rippled under his dark, glossy pelt, shining in the afternoon sun.

Jade followed close behind, her doubts and thoughts drying away in the sunlight; Adderhead and his possible motives evaporated as eagerness to meet Tammy flooded over her. As she topped the hill, Letta and Jake close behind her, Jade saw Sheeba already pacing in front of the great oak. Her ginger hair slipped over her shoulder and into her eyes; she pushed it out of her face impatiently.

"We made it!" she cried gleefully, her eyes dancing with joy.

"Let's hope we made it in time," Letta murmured quietly. Jade frowned as she heard Letta's whisper, but she didn't acknowledge it. Instead, she waved for the others to come, and she hurried down the grassy slope. As Jade gathered speed, running down the hill, the grimace was whipped off her face, the wind howling in her ears.

She stumbled to a stop, a laugh bubbling from her as she skidded to a halt beside Sheeba. Her fiery hair swung back and forth as she gazed ahead, at the giant oak. The old, withered bark wrapped around the thick trunk, the tree climbing up higher, the twisting branches clawing at the blue, blue sky.

Jake and Letta came slower, joining Jade as she gazed at the tree in awe.

"It's so big!" Jade whispered, feeling it was necessary to be quiet in the presence of the old oak. Letta nodded silently beside her, while Jake followed the curling, weaving limbs with his dark, solemn eyes.

"Well, we'll just wait for dusk," Jake suggested after a moment, taking a few hesitant steps towards the base of the trunk. Sheeba, who was already seated nearby, glanced up, amber eyes dancing. After a moment of silence, Jade and Letta murmured silent agreements and stepped forward.

Jade slowly lowered herself onto the moist bright green grass at the base of the tree, stroking the long strands between her delicate, pale fingers. She leaned against the oak, feeling warm, strong vibes pound through the tree's veins and through her body. She shivered, her green gaze glittering.

She glanced at the others, seeing Jake settle down nearby while Letta placed her palm experimentally against the oak's bark.

"It's pulsing," Letta noted, her eyes wide in fascination.

"What do you mean?" Jake asked, glancing at the fire-witch with a bewildered expression. Letta shook her head, at a loss for words.

Jade blinked thoughtfully. "Yeah, like it's powerful or something," she murmured, giving a small nod in Letta's direction. "I mean, you can feel the power of the oak, like throbbing through the bark," she explained, glancing from Jake to Letta and back again. As she spoke, her emerald necklace flashed with a brilliant light and she felt a flush of energy flow through her.

Letta nodded enthusiastically in agreement. Jake furrowed his eyebrows; his dark eyes flickered from one girl to the other. "But that doesn't make. It's just a tree," he replied, frowning.

"No, it's not. It's like a real, living thing," she said slowly, gazing at her clasped hands positioned carefully in her lap.

"A tree is a living thing," Jake retorted, making Jade's cheeks flush a pretty pale pink in colour.

"No, that's not what I mean . . ." Jade murmured quietly, keeping her gaze downwards, abashed.

"Jake, don't take it literally," Letta reprimanded, coming forward to stand beside Jake, shoving him over gently.

Jake stumbled over, his arms flailing as he tried to regain his balance. Jade glanced up, watching with an eager twinkle in her emerald eyes, a small smile playing on her lips; all traces of embarrassment gone from her face. She shifted over, moving out of the way in case Jake fell on her.

The raven-haired teenager finally caught his balance, leaning heavily on the old oak. Jade watched his face as realization crept over it, his eyes widening in surprise.

"Oh. So that's what you mean," he muttered sheepishly, quickly taking his hands off the old tree's wrinkled skin, as if he had been burned by the bark. He rubbed his arm awkwardly, biting his lower lip while Jade gazed at him expectantly.

Finally, Jake turned to her, his eyes glittering with a mixture of emotions. "I'm . . . sorry . . . about how I said . . . well, I'm sorry," he stumbled over the words, smiling hesitantly. Jade's eyes sparked and she nodded happily.

"No problem," she laughed quietly, patting the damp grass next to her in a friendly gesture for Jake and Letta to sit down.

Letta glanced at her before going to sit next to Sheeba, curling up by the giant panther. Her dark, molten chocolate-coloured skin and black dress blended in with the cat's dark pelt; only the bright red feathers stood out, their vivid colour like droplets of scarlet blood on Sheeba's black pelt.

Jake sat down nearby, gazing absentmindedly at the milky-white clouds that hung with ease from the brilliant blue sky.

"So, we wait," Jade murmured quietly, settling back against the tree trunk. Letta and Jake both nodded silently, not turning their attention to her. She sighed, holding the exhale of air so that it ended in a soft humming sound, before her eyes fluttered close.

As the afternoon went on, cool breezes dancing around the grassy clearing, Jade fell into a restful nap, her tanned face arranged in a blissful sleep. She shifted in her sleep, giggling in her dreams as colourful butterflies fluttered past, glowing golden in the warm sunlight. She trailed after them dazedly, her skirt rippling around her as the wind flirted with it gently.

Soon the sun set, the fluorescent ball of fire sinking into the western horizon; dusk fell over the sleeping girl, stars twinkling kindly high above. Her friends shifted in the shadows cast by the tall tree, waiting with apprehension for a great figure to appear on the nearest hill - but as the sky above got darker and the moon rose higher, their faces fell with disappointment.

"Jade, wake up!" a voice hissed in her ear quietly.

Jade stirred, her fiery hair attaining a dull glow from the light of the half moon above. "What is it?" she asked quietly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes with her hands. Her gaze took in the dark sky and she turned to Letta, who stood nearby, her eyes shining excitedly.

"Is Tammy here?" she whispered, rising to her feet quickly. She brushed her fingers through her long hair quickly, before glancing around eagerly. "She's here, right? Where is she? Can she help us?" The questions poured from her quicker than Letta could reply.

Jake stepped forward, the impending frown etched on his mouth sorrowful. "Jade . . . Tammy didn't come. She's not here," he said quietly, his voice pained. "I'm sorry."

Jade stared at him, her eyes wide. She shook her head defiantly, not willing to take in the words. Her mouth formed the word 'no' but nothing came forward, no sound helping her to deny Jake's words, which echoed throughout her mind. She stepped backwards, the excitement slipping from her face as hurt and failure crept forward to haunt her visage.

It wasn't true! It couldn't be! Tammy had to be here! If she wasn't . . . Roxanne would die! Tears pricked at her eyes and she blinked them away furtively but more came, stinging at the corners of her eyes. Her whole world had come crashing down, for the third time in her life. But this time it seemed so much worse.

Could it really be over so quickly?