Chapter Five: 'Sweet Surprises'
Oblivious in full to the scullery maid and the prince's shared decision to begin scouring the forest for their fair-skinned friend, the night, fortunately, passed without any further incident. Snow White had laid to rest furthest inside the cave, Hen Wen asleep a few feet away from her - almost as if to guard her against anyone who wasn't her redheaded caretaker - her little legs crossed over with one another, her expression decidedly content. The brown wrappings from their shared meal served as a makeshift cushion for her head, and her cape blanketed her reasonably from the dangers of the evening chill. Taran was the closest to their shelter's entrance and had sat there awake for many hours, his dark brown eyes surveying in what may have looked like, at least to some, perpetuity for any potential threat, feral, 'humane' in the loosest term of the word or anything between those two extremes.
But despite his resolve, almost childlike in its simplicity, to remain wide-eyed and alert all night long, the instinct to sleep ultimately left the assistant pig-keeper slumped forward, chin digging slightly into his chest, his dark red locks strewn slightly over his closed eyes. He fought against it, be assured, and it was really the only battle he was left to deal with that night. Perhaps it had been the excitement of that day, more than he had really gotten to have in all his fourteen years of life, or perhaps it was the amount of time he had jolted himself back into groggy action with the reminder that he had a job to do, not one, but two in need of his protection and full attention that wore him down. Yet, even once sleep took him, his hand still remained almost calloused with how it gripped onto the arrow, and he remained upright, sat as he had been when he first took up his post, devoted even in slumber.
Slowly, svelte slivers of pale morning sunlight began to creep their way into their little resting place. They reached the boy first, illuminating his face, and then slowly began to cast across Snow White and the oracular pig, as little dewdrops collided with the grassy ground surrounding the outside, a few birds beginning to quietly sing among themselves, some sticking around and allowing those present to hear their melodies, others taking off for the sky and the unknown. At the sudden brush of heat and light against her eyelids, Hen Wen rose first, sniffing a little bit as she shakily trotted up to her four feet, before circling to look at the sleeping princess behind her, peaceful as a lily. Deciding it'd be good to rouse her newfound friend, Hen Wen approached and gave a gentle nuzzle of Snow White's face, nudging her slightly. After the second form of contact, the black-haired girl groaned for a moment in her sleep, her eyes slowly fluttering open. Turning onto her side, her rosy lips formed a friendly smile as she sat up straight.
"Well, good morning, Hen Wen," the princess greeted fondly. "Did you sleep well?"
Hen Wen gave two little nods, only to turn around slightly, her attention turned to Taran. Snow White's doe eyes looked towards him soon after, and she felt a certain guilt, pooled with relief, stir up inside of her.
"Oh my...he hasn't laid down once, has he...?" Snow White realised. Putting a hand to the stone wall, she slowly stumbled to her feet, and with her other hand, picked up her crimson cape. "Sitting there all night, he must be so cold...!" she added, worriedly.
Walking over to him, she carefully knelt down, placing her cloak over his shoulders, with it now covering his arms and sides. Just as she had begun to step back however, the boy suddenly jerked upwards, his head snapping to each side, checking to be sure they weren't in the middle of being ambushed or attacked. "Wh-wha...!" he began, groggily.
"Oh! I'm sorry," Snow White apologised. "I didn't-"
Once he had remembered where they were, and saw with his own two eyes that his two companions were safe and sound, and now looking at him, Taran let a small sigh of relief pass his lips. "N-no, don't be sorry. I should be the one apologising, I was supposed to be guarding you yet I drifted off," he said, his own tiredness vocal despite his attempts to force it down into the reins of obscurity, as well as the shivers he got, though his attempts were...well, the type to not bring a playwright much joy, let us say.
Indeed, even Snow White couldn't help the doubts that were visibly crossing her gentle face. "Don't worry, you guarded us all night, and we're both alright, aren't we, Hen?" she assured, Hen oinking chirpily next to her for emphasis. "Are you alright...? You must have been cold sitting there all night. What if you catch something?"
Bristling slightly at the idea of being felled by something as wooden as the common cold, Taran answered with boyish reassurance, "I'll be fine," he said. "It'll take more than that to stop Taran of Caer Dallben...!" he added, grinning a little as he ignored the urge to shiver again. If he didn't let it come up, then it wasn't there. "I'm just happy you two are alright," he said, honestly.
"Thank you, Taran," Snow White said, gratefully. "For guarding the two of us."
"O-of course," Taran responded, trying to remember what a knight would say in such a situation - a difficult feat considering he'd been born at the tail end of the time when knights became more of a formality rather than a necessity, and thus far more scarce when it came to seeing them in the flesh. "Anyways - are you ready to go...?" he asked.
Nodding, Snow White gathered the few things they had; i.e. the little bit of wrapping, and her cloak which Taran handed back to her with an assertion that he was grateful, but also alright, and she said, "Yes!"
And with that, the trio set off once again into the forest, thick and boundless. But despite the small pains thumping against Taran's head at the moment, he knew the path, and the signs that led them to it from here, calling into his mind each little thing Dallben had taught him when he was younger to keep him from getting lost. The ground was steady, just as it had been last night, and the daylight that illuminated the world around them brought a reliable context they'd previously lacked, when they were more feeling their way forward as opposed to striding forward with any certainty. He retraced the steps in his head that they'd taken, or rather those that Snow White had taken that she'd led him along after they escaped the archer from last night.
The thought of the archer did bring an unwelcome twist of anxiety to Taran's gut, one he resolved not to show or voice; if he showed himself again, he'd protect them from him, somehow. After all, he'd found a way to do it last night, so he could surely do it again, for there was no alternative in his eyes, not for Snow or for Hen. Still, Taran decided, at least for now, to keep this under wraps - Snow White herself had enough to try and sort through without needing to consider a monstrous lich who her father was supposed to have banished from this plane of existence shortly before she was even born. Honestly, even if she hadn't experienced something as awful as someone trying to kill her, and then learning it was your own stepmother who wanted you gone from this life, he would have hesitated in telling anyone about that. Even mentioning the figure was enough to force another cold rush down the backs of anyone you spoke to, the resigned tiredness almost always giving way to genuine fear of something unworldly, something too horrific to consider with the mortal mind. And even to Taran, it almost didn't feel real; and he wasn't sure whether to be grateful for that or not, though he was sure Dallben would likely tell him to be were he present.
Putting those thoughts away in the deep recesses of his head, to be thought about later when there was more time and more of a place for them, Taran led the way through the sunlit woodland, using the remnants of their previous steps, soon revealing the pale dirt path as it twisted and turned past the trees and leaves.
Eyes glowing in admiration, Snow White complimented, "You track so well, Taran! I didn't know you could use those things to find your way,"
Taran felt heat flood his cheeks again, which he put down to sunlight. "Hmhm," he nodded. "Dallben taught me them - it was to make sure I didn't get myself lost in the woods. At night, you can even use stars to find your way to places - though I've not gotten to really try that. I did try once though, but Dallben didn't let me take that thought past my head,"
"Well, they definitely seem a useful thing to know. Maybe you can teach me? I'd love to learn," Snow White requested, enthusiastically.
"I don't see why not," Taran agreed, amiably. "Knowing this sort of thing can help put you at ease, knowing you have something you can do, even when you're not really sure where you are."
"I can imagine...!" Snow White agreed cheerfully, as the three of them now began to walk down the path. "It sounds like Dallben's taught you a lot," she began. Hen Wen started up, as if oinking in agreement. The girl giggled a little at that, "Hen Wen certainly seems to think so!"
Giving it some thought, Taran answered, "Hm...yes...he did, honestly. Admittedly, a lot of it was for taking care of Hen here!" he gestured towards the pig, who flounced up as she was acknowledged, her little face glowing. "But it was useful enough; and it was other things too, namely for stuff like...well, ending up in the woods after dark, admittedly." he said.
Now that he thought about it, he was starting to wonder if most of this was in part for practicality's sake and in part because of his desire for adventure, a desire that had manifested when he was younger in physically wandering wherever his mind's whims led him. Nowadays, that wandering was more mental, but his spirit tended to disappear to somewhere else regardless. Hm - he wasn't sure what he thought of that.
"Still, it does sound quite useful...!" Snow White remarked. "Most of what I know from the palace namely involves different ways to clean and cook, though that's quite useful too, I suppose," she added.
"Animals seem to like you too, princess - Hen's really taken a shine to you, that's for sure," Taran replied.
Snow White beamed at that, "Well, I've taken a shine to her too!" she said. "I don't know how it happens - but when I sing, they always seem to gather around me. It did give poor Fflewddur quite the fright the first time it happened though...!"
"Flfweddur?" the boy inquired, curiously.
"Oh, he's a friend of mine! He's a bard," the princess clarified. "He and Eilonwy are very dear to me. Fflewddur used to play his harp for us to make things go by quicker while we worked, and the first time we did it, I began to sing along with him; before we knew it, it was as if a whole canopy of animals had come by! It startled him quite a bit," she recounted, nostalgia prevalent in her gaze. "Oh, I do hope I've not worried them too badly..." she trailed off.
Attempting to ease her concerns, Taran spoke, "I'm sure it'll be alright - once we're sure it's safer, I'm sure we could find a way for you to see them. Not right away, mind you, but..."
"I know," Snow White said, softly. "I'd appreciate that very much, Taran, if it's not too much trouble..." she smiled, gracefully.
"None at all...!" her companion replied. He did ponder a little, how that could work out; but decided not to think about it too hard for now. They'd figure it out when they got there.
Before any of them could say more, however, they came before a large gathering of trees, so close together that their leaves formed a large ceiling, a ceiling that blocked out the sky, leaving many shadows amidst the glade, aside from a few small strands, strands that got thinner and fewer the further into the little selection of forest you got. A small breeze rustled through the air as morning transitioned into the light of day, the air still warm and inviting, even underneath such a vast roof of leaves and coverage, birds nestled atop branches staring and flitting about at the trio's arrival. Taran's eyes lit up in recognition at the scene, prompting Hen Wen and Snow White to look to him in questioning.
"We're almost there, Hen, princess!" Taran declared.
Snow White's eyes flicked upwards, taking in the shadowy clearing. The path proceeded onward regardless, though it was darkened somewhat, even in the daylight. "Oh, it is?" she said. "So many leaves up there..."
"Hmhm," the pig-keeper confirmed. "That's part of what keeps it hidden - not even magic can see through there, not easily anyways."
"I see..." the princess pondered, curiously. "It reminds me a little of a story my mother told me, a long while ago; of a princess cursed to sleep when her finger touched a spinning wheel's spindle...! So her guardians, three fairies, took her into the woods, in a little hidden cottage of their own,"
"Well then! Not unlike this one," Taran commented as he led them forward, Hen Wen looking up at Snow White with curiousity, eyes wide and hanging on each word that left her lips.
"Right! The wicked fairy who cursed the princess couldn't find her for years, because of where she was hidden. Even a raven she sent out in search for her couldn't find a trace of her for sixteen years," Snow White continued, a certain nostalgia lacing her tone as she spoke. "So I'm guessing it's for a similar reason your little cottage is around here?"
"That's exactly it," Taran nodded. It was definitely the type of explanation Dallben would give - things like how you couldn't take any chances in some situations, and how it was better to be safe than sorry, a way of thinking Taran struggled to abide by, even when he tried to.
As they began to walk down the path and to the final stretch leading to the hidden cottage, any sense of uncertainty Snow White felt as a result of the tall shadows that filed against the trees and the ground began to fade. While it was more shaded than the forest before it, it also gave a certain form of protection, a sense of security she found comfort in at a time such as this one, her heart slowly finding contentment as she, Taran and Hen Wen continued down the path, and just as he had indicated, it wasn't long before the cottage came into their sights.
In structure, it was rather similar to the cottage that Taran had known to be his home for as long as he could remember. Admittedly, it wasn't as rickety-looking on the outside next to it, for the hidden shelter was sturdy both inside and out, the natural result of its purpose, a place of safety both in the long and short term, though the windows had been left dusted, almost greyed out even, by lack of usage. Rushes of grass sprouted up at the sides of the walls, giving the building a look as though it had been abandoned; not entirely useless in function, you could argue, since you were less likely to look for someone in a structure that had been (seemingly, at least) completely abandoned. A few stray flowers, a type unknown to Snow White, peeked out through the strands of grassland close to the entranceway, accompanied by a sweet breeze from the open world outside the guarded forest.
Kneeling down to have a closer look at them, her eyes full of curiousity, she asked, "Ooh, what are these? I've never seen these before,"
Taran knelt down next to her, not immediately taking note of the closeness caused by it at first. He met eyes with her, answering, "Oh, these are peace lilies. I think they used to grow in lands a lot more distant from ours, but they crop up around here sometimes - since they don't need direct sunlight to grow like most flowers," he explained. Looking up towards the immense shading from the roof of leaves, he pointed up at them slightly, Snow White's eyes following along. "Since water doesn't need to come through directly when it rains, it still gets enough water around here,"
Snow White nodded in understanding, "Do they last long?" she wondered, intrigued. Hen by now stood at Taran's side, watching the two of them as opposed to their conversation with a level of interest.
"I think so; it was a long time ago that I asked about them, so I don't remember the exact number, but they last a few years at least," Taran responded. "Do you like them?"
"Oh yes, I do!" Snow White nodded, beaming eagerly. "I wonder if there's any others like it around here..."
The realisation of how close they were at the moment had silently dawned on them at this moment, and a certain warmth filled them as a result, even if Snow White was somewhat less shy about it than he was. "T-there could be," Taran replied. "If I see any, I'll tell you, and then I can show you them. W-when we get a chance to look around, I mean,"
Noticing his sudden shyness, the reason for which Snow White wasn't entirely sure of, she simply giggled affectionately. "I would like that very much," she said, before rising up to her feet. "Now, let's see inside..." she trailed off, Hen now trotting at her side.
With that, she slowly pushed the wooden door open, prompting it to creak in greeting as they stepped inside. Like its exterior, the word that could be used to describe it was less 'messy' and more 'unused', with the level of dust and shows of desertion that would imply. The moment he walked in, Taran's nose itched and twitched, and he had to turn his head, sneezing into his hands with a small shiver, slightly startling the pig at their feet.
"Hm...this simply won't do, will it..." Snow White began, thoughtfully. "I know!" she said - the look in her eyes akin to a candle being suddenly lit. "Taran, you go out and get some fresh air - in the sun, I mean. I'll stay here and look after Hen for you, okay?" she proposed.
"Are you sure?" Taran questioned, slightly taken aback by her sudden bright tone. "I'm supposed to be protecting the two of you-"
"And you have, and you will; but you also said we're out of food, right?" Snow White countered.
Taran nodded. "Well...yes-"
"Right!" Snow White chirped. "We can't do without that, can we...? And you know it far better than I do. Just you go, and I'll sort things here, okay...?~"
For a moment, the boy considered. "...Alright then," he agreed, slowly. "But I won't be going far, alright? I don't want anything happening to you or Hen," he noted.
"I understand. We'll be alright here, won't we, Hen?" Snow White said amiably, looking down at Hen Wen. The clairvoyant pig looked up at her, and nodded twice, each with an oink for emphasis. As she led Taran back outside, she stepped indoors, hands on her hips. "Nice and hidden. Just like the cursed princess," she said.
Once she was sure Taran had set off, Snow White began by surveying the dusty cottage, humming thoughtfully to herself as she took in the scenery around her. Finding everything could take a little bit of time alone, and with nothing to take away from the task itself. But when you had friends, and something to carry things along just that little bit more smoothly, that was a different matter - such was what Snow White knew well from her years at the palace. After all, she used to help clean a whole castle along with Eilonwy, and they did it every day; all with company and a little song to sing~
"Let's see...three chairs," the dark-haired began, walking around the lower floor of the cottage. She could see a small flight of stairs to her left, presumably leading up to a bedroom of sorts. The cottage was fairly open in set-up, with one half acting as something of a small living area, the other as a kitchen and dining area. A few small chairs were gathered around a large stone fireplace, with some dry, dull yet usable logs positioned at its heart. Spiderwebs flogged the upper corners of the cottage's rafters, and of each new wall, though she couldn't currently tell if said webs acted as a residence for any or not.
While dirt and dust seemed to reside in untouched areas, Snow White was assured that they weren't anything that couldn't be fixed with a little cleanup! Just as she was walking by the window however, a spot of bright red caught her eye; that of a rosy red apple, held up by a hand. "Oh! Hello," she greeted.
Upon leaning out, the girl was met by a charming-looking creature, albeit one she hadn't seen before. He was quite small, going up to about her waist in height, and though he stood up on two legs, he was covered with greyish-white fur, soft, yet a little ragged, like a child whose hair hadn't been brushed yet. The creature seemed to extend the apple out to her, hopeful she'd accept, grinning when she did.
"Why, thank you," Snow White said, gratefully. "You seem a sweet little thing,"
Hen Wen's head tilted a little, her reach of sight too short to see past the window, her eyes narrowing slightly as she tried to get a better look. Her eyes sparked with vague familiarity however as Snow's sudden benefactor cried out, happily; "Gurgi sweet thing!" he cheered. "So pretty lady like apple?"
"Yes, I love it," she smiled, as Hen Wen stared in small puzzlement at the sudden reunion with the strange little thing from the woods. "It's lovely to meet you, Gurgi. My name's Snow White, and this is Hen Wen! Why don't you join us? We were just about to give this place a clean-up. Weren't we, Hen?"
Gurgi treaded inside, sniffing a little, only to stop. "Oh! Cottage dusty, very dusty!" he exclaimed. "It's the piggy! Piggy with great prince,"
"A great prince?" Snow White repeated curiously, searching for a broom.
"Yes! Great prince gave Gurgi the juicy apple. Gurgi's friend was looking for you, pretty lady!" Gurgi continued.
"He was?" Snow White responded, largely suspecting now that the 'great prince' Gurgi was talking about was Taran. "Ah, here it is!" she said, taking the broom out of a safe corner of a closet by the kitchen drawers. Stepping back into view again, Hen Wen and Gurgi were now standing before her, awaiting instruction.
Clapping her hands together, she began, "Now, if we all work together, we can clean everything up before sundown!~" Then, the woman sang, "Aaaaahh~" and with her voice, a flock of birds appeared in the window, soon followed by various deer, squirrels, rabbits and chipmunks. "Aaaahhh~"
"Ohhh, she did it again, she did it again!" Gurgi remarked in amazement.
"Now then~ Gurgi, with this," Snow White said, handing him a pale cloth, not unlike the one she had used back at the castle only the day before. "You can help me clean the chairs - that way, they'll be shining and nice, won't they?"
"Yes, pretty lady!" Gurgi agreed, taking the cloth into his hold as if it were a sacred treasure. "Gurgi will make things sparkle!"
Noticing Hen Wen seemed a little uncertain; likely from being the subject of care as opposed to giving it frequently, Snow White assured, "Now don't worry, Hen. You'll be getting a nice little bath too once we're done~" she said. "I think I saw a little structure for you outside - why don't you look at it? Then you can decide what you'd like in there," she suggested. "Gurgi and I will be right here to make sure nothing happens, as will my friends outside!"
At her suggestion, Hen Wen was much more agreeable, nodding along with her words, growing more eager with what she said. As the little pig stepped outside, she found various cheerful-looking animals close by, standing close to the general area, the largest watching the outside of it in case of anyone that wasn't Taran happened to come too close. Feeling sufficiently safe and sound, Hen Wen set off to perform her own task.
With everyone in place, a melodic hum escaped Snow White's lips as the birds whistled a cheerful little song, one she joined in heartily, one that made the time fly by like the birds in the sky, "Just whistle while you work...~"
Taran's thoughts had never been particularly good at staying straight, or on one task, and it was something both he and anyone who knew him knew quite well. If anything, the opposite was true; they often strayed from the path of normalcy and into a world of daydreams instead, or to anything else of interest that might have cropped up, the two often intersecting into that day's fantasy that Dallben usually had to sternly pull him out of. But while his thoughts weren't fixed on the task of collecting wild berries, at least not solely - he at least had the good sense to look closer at any that could be construed as edible when they were the opposite, and vice versa, he was a dreamer, not completely daft - they often traced their way back to the cottage, and more specifically, to the princess.
It was as though his train of thought was being held by a string, one that tugged him back in the direction of Snow White slowly but surely, and then abruptly as the realisation hit him and he tried to focus again. Honestly, if he weren't physically here, doing any of this, he was half expecting to shut his eyes and end up back on the farm again, doing his usual round of chores, as opposed to hiding out in the woods.
Before it hadn't really hit him, but now that there was nothing but the quiet breeze of the woods and the sound of his own mind in his ears, it was the first thing that found him. Every day he'd been alive for before yesterday, he had thought Hen Wen was a normal pig who Dallben just happened to be fond of, and since then, he'd seen with his own eyes that she could look into the future, and was a target for the Horned King. At the thought of the lich king, Taran fought back the urge to shudder with the words he had said to Dallben on the matter before he had left.
'I'm not afraid of the Horned King. Or of anyone else!' his thoughts declared, brazenly.
That alone would have been enough to leave his thoughts somewhat shaken, or at least affected - and then Snow White and her escape from her stepmother had joined the fray. He couldn't help but remember the different visions he'd seen in the bowl of water earlier, of the mask, of the woman turning into a hag, and he couldn't help but wonder what those might have meant. The others had been transparent enough, particularly with Dallben transcribing it, but even he hadn't seemed to know about those. When he considered the hag, his mind jumped to the Queen - perhaps a sign she was showing her true colours? Taran had never considered her very fondly with what little he knew, but there was a fine line between greed and vanity, and outright seeking to end someone's life, the life of your own family, especially over something like them being more beautiful.
Of course, he didn't disagree that Snow White was beautiful; even a blind person could tell she was, but that didn't make the Queen any less of a vindictive old hag in his head. Settling for that meaning, at least for now, since he had little clue about the mask, Taran rose from counting the results of his foraging, the number of which he'd lost track of in the middle. They had enough to do them for a good while at least, and with the slowly-increasing chill beginning to creep across the forest floor, Taran took that as a sign to head back to the cottage.
As he walked back however, he couldn't help but notice how...devoid the forest seemed to be of animals, at the moment. His eyes narrowed in suspicion as he drew close, only to then widen in disbelief at what came next. Making a mass exit were various forest creatures, leaping, hopping and flying away to their natural homes past him.
"Woah!" he cried out in surprise, jumping back from a deer that galloped swiftly by. Blinking in confusion, Taran turned his head towards the cottage; only to notice the changes that had overtaken it, his jaw hanging slightly. A polish it had previously lacked could be seen from a mile away, the peace lilies now framing the doorway in an almost effortless fashion. Hen Wen loudly greeted him, stepping out from her much cleaner area - almost identical to how it had been before - the little pig tugging him at a little.
"Taran!" Snow White's voice broke through his thoughts, the girl emerging cheerily from indoors. "You're back!" she said, happily.
"Y-yes," Taran acknowledged, still almost dumbfounded as Hen Wen led him inside. All the dust and cobwebs, all the spots of dirt and unused had been completely scrubbed through; the wooden floorboards practically glistening, the table and chairs as if they were fresh out the carpenter's, even the dishes had been neatly set up! "Snow- did...did you do all this? By yourself?" he asked, almost in disbelief.
The princess gave a satisfied giggle. "Well, not quite!" she answered. "I had some help from some lovely friends,"
"I think I saw quite a few of them..." Taran remarked, honestly impressed. So that was why all those animals had come rushing past him earlier...
"Not all friends!" a familiar voice added. The redheaded boy turned, only to be met with the one from earlier - the one who'd taken his apple...! But...also the one who had helped find Snow White earlier, he reminded himself.
"You helped too?" he questioned, somewhat sceptically, his brow rising slightly.
"Oh yes, he did!" Snow White assured. "He and Hen came to help first," she added. "Do you like it?"
"Of course I do!" Taran said, the realisation he hadn't thanked her yet hitting him like a hammer to his head. "You did amazing with it, Snow White, so...thank you," he said.
A few moments of silence, though he couldn't tell if it was comfortable on her end. "Oh! I brought these back for us as well," he added, lifting the pack slightly.
"Wonderful!" Snow White beamed again upon seeing the contents. "You got gooseberries! Those are my favourite!" she said. "Did you see any flowers like the peace lilies while you were out?"
"I did, actually - I think there's quite a few you'd like...!"
"Perfect...! You'll have to show me them tomorrow then~"
Taran responded, agreeably - he'd already found himself growing fond of the girl from the start, and something about spending time with her was something he looked forward to. "You have my word,"
A/N: University's started up again over here, but at least I managed to get this chapter out! I'm hoping that with uni starting and me writing more often, or at least having to be more alert and that, I'll be better with updates, but I can't make any promises. Still, I'll update when I can! ^^
As always, if you have any thoughts or feedback for me, I'd love to hear it. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the next chapter!