Scarlet
By: RaspberryGirl
Not something. Someone.
A hunched figure sat in a clearing just off the trail. Her frame was small and fragile; barely enough flesh seemed to cover her bones. The woman's skin was a mass of wrinkles like the creases in a coarse brown dress, and her translucent white hair stood out against the drab colors of her rags. Watery blue eyes peered at Scarlet and Coren.
"What's a beggar doing here?" muttered the Prince with distaste.
"Oh, my goodness." The crone's voice was like the creaking of an old iron gate that needed fixing. "Come closer, my dears. Yes, closer."
Scarlet took a hesitant step into the clearing. "Is there some way we can help you, Grandmother?" Of course, the girl was only calling the woman "grandmother" out of courtesy.
"I seem to have lost my way," the hag replied. "Won't you please help me?" The old woman got to her feet unsteadily and Scarlet rushed to assist her, supporting her with one arm. The woman was filthy and reeked of spoiled cabbages, but Scarlet did her best not to flinch away. "I'm sorry," the crone apologized. "It's just that I'm so old. My limbs aren't what they used to be. And I feel so tired; I haven't eaten in days." She looked at Scarlet hopefully.
The girl gave the old woman a large piece of bread, causing the crone to cackle gleefully. "Why, how generous of you!"
"Where did you come from?" Scarlet questioned. "How did you get here?"
"It's a rather pathetic tale," the hag said mournfully. "I simply wandered in here one day and never quite managed to wander out." She turned her head in Coren's direction. Her eyes glittered sharply, cunningly.
"Young man."
Coren almost jumped. The old woman hobbled towards him, with the help of Scarlet. She smiled, showing her two remaining teeth. They were crooked and rotten.
"Come here, my sweet. What are you afraid of?"
The Prince didn't move. Scarlet felt her muscles tighten and a sinking feeling crept into her stomach. Coren stared at the old woman, transfixed.
Those eyes. No longer dull, they glittered like sequins in the sun.
Before Scarlet could stop him, Coren sprung forward and yanked her away from the old hag. "We're leaving," he said hoarsely. He hurried off, almost running, dragging the struggling girl with him.
"Wait! What are you—hey, are you even listening to me?" Scarlet dug her nails into the Prince's wrist.
Coren cried out in surprise and let go. His glower could have curdled fresh milk. "What was that for?"
"I don't enjoy being towed along like a disobedient dog," was the reply. Angrily, Scarlet whirled and dashed back to the old woman's clearing—and gasped. "She's gone!" Guilt laced through the girl's head, making her dizzy. She knew it. She knew she should have warned him...
But it wasn't her fault the Prince was an idiot!
"Now look what you've done! You've ruined everything!" Scarlet yelled. She stormed passed the Prince, too angry with herself to care she was being unreasonable.
- - -
Scarlet let out a shriek of frustration. It was the first sound she'd let out all day after meeting the old woman. The sun was setting, washing the Briarwood in thin red light. The thorns seemed to be drenched with blood.
Without warning, Scarlet veered left, leaving the trail, and just as she expected, she found herself in a familiar clearing. Scarlet could barely hold back another cry of exasperation. The girl flung her sack on the ground and sank down next to it gloomily.
They had been traveling the entire day, following the trail Ivan had made. Scarlet knew it well and it had never led her astray before.
"What's going on?" Coren demanded. He stood at the entrance of the clearing, arms folded, keeping his distance from Scarlet as if she were a dangerous animal who might attack him in any moment.
"You may as well sit down," Scarlet advised. "We're not going any further tonight."
Strangely, Coren found Scarlet's answer somewhat encouraging since it was the first thing she'd said to him after meeting the old woman. He sat where he stood.
"Why? What happened? Are we close to your grandmother's house yet?"
"We should have reached it by now," Scarlet said. She shook her head. "Haven't you noticed? We've been going in circles."
"You mean, we're lost?" Coren's eyes bulged. Lost. The word seemed synonymous with death.
"This is the same clearing where we met the old woman. We passed it five times today. Don't you recognize it?" Bitterly, Scarlet spread out her arms. "And you know what? All of this—yes, all of it—is completely and entirely your fault."
"My fault?" Coren echoed, his temper flaring. He could feel the blood rushing to his face. "My fault?"
"Yes," said Scarlet. "And do you want to know why? Well, I'll tell you. That old woman—"
"This has nothing to do with the old woman!" interrupted Coren.
"Yes, it does. It has everything to do with her."
"She wasn't what she seemed," Coren argued. "She was a specter. Your father said the wood was full of them. Yes, the hag disguised herself and tried to lure us into her trap. I saved you, you ungrateful girl, and all you have to show for it is by losing your temper!"
There was silence as Scarlet considered these words. Finally, she said, quite calmly, "You're right. I suppose I should thank you if what you said was correct. But it's not."
"What are you babbling about?" Coren shouted. "That hag was hiding something! She's probably not even human!"
"Of course, she wasn't," said Scarlet.
Coren swallowed, his face turning pale. "What? You knew?"
Scarlet nodded. "You forget that I've been in the Briarwood hundreds of times, ever since I was a child."
"Then why..."
"The old woman wasn't a specter," Scarlet explained, "she was a fairy. Haven't you heard stories? Fairies are always lurking about in a wood in disguise, testing humans. I was just playing along. You should have, too."
Coren was too baffled to think. He sputtered, "You—you could have said something!"
"I thought you would be too afraid to interfere."
The Prince's fingers curled into a fist. "Are you calling me a coward?"
"I didn't call you anything."
The sun sunk into its bed in the western part of the world, and a wave of darkness descended on the Briarwood. Scarlet thought she heard a muffled hiss not far off. Quickly, she gathered twigs and stacked them in a pile, making sure to arrange rocks around her handiwork. Rummaging through her sack, she found two pieces of flint and soon had a bright fire burning.
Scarlet relaxed a bit. Now where was Coren? As much as he grated on her nerves, she didn't want him out of her sight in the Briarwood. That could be fatal. Besides, Coren was a prince of Terallis, even if he did have the personality of a mule.
"If you're going to sit there all night," Scarlet called out, "you're going to freeze to death." She couldn't see the Prince. In fact, she could barely see anything that was more than three paces from the fire. It was one of the oddities of the Briarwood. The thorns seemed to absorb firelight like parched plants sucking in water.
When she got not response, Scarlet sighed, wondering if Coren was having a tantrum. She tried a different tactic. "If you're going to sit there all night, the Briarwood will eat you alive."
Scarlet sensed a jerk of movement. "That's 'Your Highness,' " said Coren's voice, but he didn't appear.
"Very well," Scarlet said compliantly. Since concern and warning hadn't coaxed him out, perhaps a little praise would work. "I must admit, your eyes must be quite keen, Your Highness. You saw right through that old woman. That's quite impressive."
"Well, at least now you know I'm not stupid if you had any doubts before," muttered the Prince. He emerged from the darkness, his whole body rigid with apprehension, and sat down on the other side of the fire with as much dignity as he could.
Scarlet shook her head. The tinge of fear was still fresh on Coren's face. He had been afraid and yet he'd stayed in the darkness of the Briarwood until he'd gotten what he'd wanted.
I guess it's courage, Scarlet mused, in a foolish, childish way.
The girl took a slice of bread and an apple from the sack, then nudged the bag in Coren's direction. She felt drained all of a sudden. Weariness had finally melted her bones and made her numb. She listened to the soothing crackle of the twigs as she ate her food.
Coren remained still, staring into the fire. "What did the fairy do?"
Scarlet stretched out on the ground, using the supply pack as a pillow since the Prince didn't seem to be hungry. "I bet she's angry because you didn't treat her kindly when she was an old woman," the girl mumbled. "Fairies like that sort of thing: Young people showing compassion for their elders. I'm guessing she cast a spell on the trail, but it should be normal again in the morning." She yawned. "We should take turns making sure the fire doesn't die out in the night. You take first watch, Your Highness."
Coren twitched and threw a twig into the hungry flames in annoyance. "Impertinent girl," Scarlet heard him say. "She gives me a headache."
Something rustled in the darkness, making a noise like an angry, hissing cat. Scarlet's eyes shot open and she jolted up, harboring the unsettling feeling that the Briarwood was writhing like a pit of snakes. Coren stood in front of her, his hand on his sword hilt.
"Listen," he whispered. "Do you hear that?"
More serpentine hisses followed before a whistling screech tore the air in two. Briar vines shot out of the surrounding wood, slithering so close that Scarlet had to scramble back to keep them from touching her.
"The Briarwood!" Scarlet gasped, standing. "It's coming after us!"
"Don't move!" warned Coren, his sword drawn. His eyes followed the moving bramble with a hawk's gaze as the vines wound around the clearing. Beads of perspiration formed on his face.
A heavy, sour stench permeated the air. Scarlet pressed her hand against her mouth and nose, gagging. She was sure this was what ancient catacombs smelled like—dust and death. A pale object glowed faintly in the dark. When Scarlet realized what it was, a prickling shiver crawled down her spine, and she had to clamp her hand over her mouth like a seal to keep her dinner from forcing its way back out.
Caught in the sliding, snake-like branch were the bones of a human arm.
Many men perished trying to save the sleeping beauty.
Scarlet turned pale, her insides sinking to the floor. For the first time, a spike of fear pierced her from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. She swallowed and looked at Coren's sword, flashing silver in the moonlight.
"Stop!" Scarlet shouted. She tugged at Coren's arm in panic. "Don't strike! Only fire can harm the Briarwood!"
But even as she said these words, four vines sped towards the girl and the Prince, attacking in all directions. Scarlet saw Coren dive towards her. His body slammed into hers and they toppled to the ground, a backlash of wind striking them as the branches sliced the air where they had stood a moment before.
Breathing hard, Scarlet sat up, shoving Coren off her. She looked around. The thorn vines had fallen back. The air creaked and moaned like it was under some invisible weight.
Then, like a stream of morning light, an ethereal song descended. It drifted delicately into the clearing, softly echoing. Someone was humming.
The briar branches started to shake, twisting and thrashing. Their tips started to crumble and turn to ash. Howling and squealing in protest, they disappeared back into the wood as quickly as they came.
A dozen floating lights accompanied the song as it grew stronger. Someone was drawing near.
"Ah," said a voice that reminded Scarlet of a hundred wind chimes. "So we meet again, children. This must be Fate."
Author's Note: At last, the fun has finally begun! It took me five chapters, but I'm just not used to these short chapter lengths, that's all!