Chapter 21

Too surprised to ask any questions, for the first time in his life Will nodded mutely to the bright eyed girl before him. There was precious little energy he could afford, though he used it to study the changed girl in front of him. She had grown taller, immensely so in Will's opinion, leaving him behind. Her hair had grown longer now, more fragile and delicate looking than it was before. Her features more pronounced. The more prominent aspects of her face sticking out in the dim candle light. The only unchanged feature in her nearly unrecognisable face was her eyes. As dark as midnight themselves. He wondered vaguely whether in her eyes his appearance had changed just as much.

Fleetingly she looked behind her to ensure there were no guards stealthily eavesdropping on their conversation. Turning to face him she slipped him something under the tattered rags that clung to his skinny frame. Blurry eyes watched her as she hastily collected the metal trays providing his food. Will didn't know what she had given him, his increasing exhaustion ebbing away his curiosity so that with in seconds he slumped forwards once more and slept dreamlessly.

Hours? Days? How long had he been sleeping for? The slight metallic clink outside his cell alerted him that someone was entering. This time he didn't even bother to look up. His strength had deserted him and he was left gazing at a blank piece of rock, dark grey to swirling black the colours kept alternating. Was it him? Was his eyesight decreasing? The one fixed point he could be sure of was a dark patch of crimson dripping from the opposite wall. Of course he could be sure of it. The blood was his own.

Someone was kneeling down on their knees. Their face hidden by a veil of darkness. They lifted his head up and whispered kind words to his ears. They soothed his brain and mulled him into a sense of security. The ghost of his previous grin plastered to his face, he fell asleep once more to the sounds of freedom echoing across his brain.

The next time he woke up he seemed more aware of his surroundings. His brain had unscrambled and now he could clearly identify what was happening. With his hands still chained he quickly looked down under his shirt to see what was lying there. Like ice against his chest the chain stuck to him. His mind grasped foggily at the details. Something to do with a chain, a merchandise. An amulet! He frowned immediately. How was an amulet going to get him out of here though? It didn't make any sense. Did he have to sell it so that he could get the key to the cell door? Squinting closely at the door of his cell Will could just make out the shape of the lock though it was unusual, it took him minutes to decipher that the lock was in the shape of a triangle. Why would any one keep locks in the shape of a triangle? Like a cloud passing by to reveal the full force of the sun, confusion was swept away with a dawning light of clarity. The amulet was the key. Literally. He looked again at the shape of the amulet and then swung his head up at the lock. The immense joy inside his chest threatened to burst and even though he looked and felt like death's son he was beaming like a maniac.

"Will? Will? Wake up for me, please." Someone was murmuring softly to him in elegant tones. He moaned quietly. He didn't want to wake from his peaceful slumber. Go away! He thought angrily. His pursuer continued to trouble him, shaking his body, lifting his head. Then the whiff of stale bread and hot sauce woke him from his reverie. Blinking his eyes open he found the source of food and involuntarily drooled at the sight. He hadn't eaten food this nice looking in so long, reality reasoned that it was only days, but the gnawing hunger in his stomach said differently. Looking up at his saviour he smiled. Shanya smiled back at him shyly, feeding him with the small wooden utensil provided. Unable to move his own limbs Will gave her a flicker of a grin in gratitude, and as she collected the dishes once more from his cell she bent down low and whispered one word into his ear.

"Tonight."

Hey guys I'm back! Sorry for the delay and for the extremely short chapter I felt like I needed to post something but I also wanted to get back into the zone of writing and get used to the plot line again. Thank you for your patience and I think I actually misjudged the story, there are still quite a few more chapters to go before we reach the end. I also never realised that so many people would actually like this story, so it came as quite a shock, in a pleasant way. I read the whole story and realised how much worse my writing was at the beginning of this tale but then again it was and still is my first ever fanfiction story.

Any ways, thanks for your patience, review do whatever you lovelies want to and hopefully you will get another update soon!

Oakleaf Girl.