Beatrix spent the day chuckling to herself over the recollection of the sincerity in the child's face as she had talked, shaking her head at the strange stories offered by the young. But all the while, she knew that she would go to the forest. She was terrified of the danger it promised, but also mindful that she would brave more than mere terror in order to bear a child.
And so it came to pass that, in the darkest watch of the night, Queen Beatrix slipped unhesitantly to the edge of the Stygian Forest. She was cloaked all in black, and her vividly red tresses bound in a black veil, her long, white hands clothes in black kidskin gloves. Her heart beat violently within her- partially from fear of the dread interior toward which she headed, partly in anticipation of the Gypsy girl's words coming true. She knew they would- she knew it in her very soul.
She waited and the moon, as promised, became hidden. She ran over the border and saw, to her right, a flowing river, flowing away- the Sanguine River. She had not realized how literal a name it was- whether it flowed with blood or red silt did not seem to matter as she gaped at the surging red water and, wordlessly, followed it away.
She was certain the dreaded forest was as horrid as the stories told, but she let her eyes stay only on the river and the path in front of her feet (not that she could see them in the dark- she had carefully worn her blackest boots and the effect was that, now, she felt as if her feet weren't even there, touching the ground, finding their way over the rough banks of the queer river, and she felt as if, perhaps, she herself was not there either, being, as she was, absent her own feet). She walked quickly, almost running, running, for what felt like forever. Strange noises seemed to waft to her from the nearest trees, to gurgle up from the river, the river which had commenced running at the entrance to the forest but seemed to have no beginning.
Just when she was wishing she'd thought of figuring out some way to make note of how far she'd come- the girl had said a mile, but Beatrix had no way of deducing if she'd come a mile, or a step, or a thousand miles, everything here was so confusing, her darkened body felt so distant- she found the fork in the river. And there, on the ground before her, were the plants of which the girl had spoken.
Many would have been surprised to find that the child had been correct, but for the Queen's part, she simply wasted no time with thought. She plucked the lovely, glowing, green flower and ate it in a single bite. It filled her mouth with the sweetest, almost painfully delicious flavor, and she felt a sort of power rushing down her throat as the flowers was swallowed, and she was filled with utter peace and contentment.
Immediately, she plucked the weed as well and was about to send it to the rushing red depths of the river as instructed… but then she paused. And paused again, still holding the weed.
It wasn't exactly so unappetizing as the girl had described. In fact, it glowed as brightly as the flower, perhaps more so, now that the flower was disappeared inside her belly and was no longer there to outshine the weed. The oddest thing was that the weed, though a black-green color, seemed to glow red. Perhaps the river was reflecting on it, but in the absence of light, that seemed unlikely.
The flower had been so delicious, and in her haste, she had barely had time to savor it, had just consumed it. The weed would have to taste as good- it came from the same earth, was fed by the same river… surely its flavor would be as rare and delectable. And surely, it could not hurt to eat it as well. If she took it with her, to eat on the way, it would not prolong the venture, and she could savor it, could take the time to roll it over and around her tongue and mouth as she walked in that terrifying darkness- perhaps its power would give her courage, guide her steps, and get her back all the more quickly!
And so, for the first time, Queen Beatrix listened to her heart and not the words of the child, the words that had gotten her this far and not steered her incorrectly. As she began to walk away and take the weed between her lips, this thought did not occur to her. It did not occur to her that she had stopped, even for so short a time, to deliberate. It only occurred to her that she was right- the weed tasted better than the flower.
She walked and walked, not so quickly as before, because she focused on her mouth instead of her feet. She walked and walked, slowly relishing the entirety of the weed before swallowing it, and even threw back her head as she swallowed, enjoying the surge of sweetness and spice as it traveled away to her stomach, where she could still feel it glowing.
One could easily point to much or any of the above as the single mistake that resulted in Beatrix still standing in the forest, half a mile from the hedgerows marking the edge of the Stygian territory, when the moon once more returned, in all its fullness.
She opened her eyes from the enjoyment of her weird delicacy and began to notice something which was amiss- namely that it wasn't just the river that was red. The water had gleamed in the absence of light, letting her see it even then. But when the moonlight returned she realized her (possibly) fatal mistake: everything in the Stygian Forest was not black. Indeed, the grass, the trees, even the dirt around them all was a fierce, fiery crimson- and her black-clad self stood out among her surroundings as much as if she'd stood and screamed, "Hey, ghoulies, ghosties, and long-legged beasties- HERE I AM!"
Suddenly realizing exactly how foolish she'd been to linger- and over a weed!- she quickly broke into a very respectable run. Queens, as a rule, don't run very often, but perhaps she had been saving all of her speed and skill for a moment when it was required. Which would be now. She ran and she ran, her black boots no longer feeling disjointed from the ground, standing out in bas-relief, black against the red earth, and every step jarred her straight up her legs through to the top of her head, but she was through with pausing and hesitation was no longer hers.
It was quite a good run, and that's why she made it all the way to the edgey border before the goblins finally caught her.
Author's Note: I cannot thank all you enough- those who reviewed, those who added my story to your alerts list- you are all very kind and you make me feel... lovely. I'm sorry this chapter is so short, but I hope to add a longer one in the rather near future... I hope you all liked this chapter and I promise- the goat comes soon, really. It's sto strange to think of anyone reading and liking what I'm writing- I hope I don't let you guys down.