Ainako: I begin to doubt if I ever manage to finish this.
Serena walked slowly at the edge of the lake she had seen in the daylight before towards the other side. The looming branches of trees that looked beautiful in the day were eerie in the night. The moon was not yet full but it was enough to shine her path. She thought of going to where she hid Luna, her secret horse, and rides her to where Endymion is but her mind thought not to. Her inner voice told her to come this way, but for what reason, she couldn't tell. There's no time to falter so she just kept on moving and trust her instinct. With a torch in one hand and her dagger in another, she kept on walking.
She grimaced as her boots stepped on something soggy at the other side of the lake. It was a swamp - or at least a very wet earth. Cursing under her breath, she pulled up her hood to shield her ears from the cold breeze and hoped her next step was on dry piece of land. She felt as if she was on the move for hours but yet the smell of the lake was not getting further behind. She turned her head to see if she had been walking that far yet or not, and her eyes caught a glimpse of a shimmering light floating above the lake.
"Good evening."
A rich, mellow voice of a woman came from behind and Serena immediately slashed the air with her dagger. The woman, tall and skin as of dark brown, stood a few paces away. She had a staff in one hand and a lantern in another which she raised and it lighted her face with amber glow. She was smiling very warmly.
Trust no one, a voice inside her said. She is here to take you back to the wretched Queen, it said again. But to the stranger, she asked "Did you saw that?" instead.
"Saw what?"
"There was shining white horse with wings over the lake. It was just there..." Another glance to where the winged horse was revealed nothing but the empty, silent lake.
The other woman smiled. "You are special. I have lived in this swamp for many years and not once have I seen any winged horse."
"Are you saying that I'm lying?!"
"Oh no, not at all. I was only saying only a special type of people can see the Pegasus. It was a creature of legend, after all, and since not that many people saw them, nobody believed it ever existed." She paused as if to judge Serena's disposition. "Would you come to my house? I have hot food ready. I'm sure you're hungry."
As a matter of fact, Serena was starving. Her head did not hurt so much now but she followed the dark-skinned woman to her hut, tailing from behind. The tall woman's long hair that fell from a tight bun on top of her head swayed very gently and for some reason that made Serena to believe there's nothing to be afraid of this woman. It was a quaint little house with smoke rising from the chimney. There was so much light inside but it didn't make her squint. As soon as she walked in, she saw immediately saw a small dining table, and a bubbling pot of stew at the fireplace nearby. There were already two clean bowls set on the table, as if the woman expected to have a guest, yet Serena didn't voice her suspicion. Instead, she simply sat on the chair and waited for the dark woman to ladle the hot stew onto her plate. She handed a large piece of warm bread while Serena wolfed it down. She was emancipated as if she had not eaten in days instead of just a few hours. There was also a large slice of apple pie beside her plate and that too disappeared into her mouth.
"It's strange to see anyone coming here. Were you on your way to somewhere?" The other woman said. She had not touched her plate of stew yet. "Forgive me; I haven't given you my name. I am called Trista. Is anything wrong with the Royal city that made the Princess to leave in the middle of the night?"
Serena would have jumped, but instead she just stopped her chewing and fiddled with the bread crumbs on her skirt. "How did you know who I was?" She said. Honestly, no one – not even her own Mother – would have recognized her like this.
"Everyone knows who you are, Your Majesty. Even with a different hair and grimy face, any loyal person of the White Moon Kingdom knows who you are."
"I'm no longer your Princess. I'm simply Serena."
"Nothing can change who you are destined to be, my Princess."
Serena met the mystifying crimson eyes of Trista's and shook her head. She wouldn't know, a voice whispered in her heart, she wouldn't know her reasons even if she tried to tell her. She didn't say anything else then and let the silence crashed in. Serena stared into her palm, listening to her heart, yet it didn't tell her anything anymore. As it silenced the very minute she stepped a foot inside the hut. Later, Trista offered her to stay for the night which she calmly accepted. As she rose to lie on the warm bed, her eyes saw a crib at an edge of the small hut. She walked towards it and peered inside. A babe is sleeping so soundly with a thumb to suckle.
"Your baby?"
"No. I'm simply her guardian for the time being."
She would have asked who the parent of the babe and why she was here in the middle of the swamp forest, but her lips didn't voice it. Instead, she gently stroked her finger to the soft cheek of the infant and tucked her in. She would like babies with Endymion, and she would soon be in his arms to make it happen. She would have a girl, with eyes bright like his. Serena could picture it even now of Endymion and her baby - their baby - laughing on his lap. All the reason she chose to stay away from her destiny. Chase your dream, they say, and Serena was willing to drag her whole body over flaming coal to catch it.
Walking towards the clean made bed, her eyes caught onto a door frame at the other end of the room - a very peculiar door that doesn't seem to fit in a small cabin of a house such Trista's. Where everything else was lacquered wood, this door seems to be cast from the darkest piece of metal. The intricate carvings decorated its panels clearly stated this was not something one get with the house.
"What is that door?" the question popped out of her mouth groggily as Trista stood near her and place a warm blanket over her shoulders. Gods, she is tired. How long had she's been walking?
"A door that is also the reason why I'm here." There was a pregnant pause as the tall woman stared at the metal door as if considering. She pressed her lips and smile to Serena after a moment and guided her to the bed. She wanted to ask where Trista would sleep if her bed was taken, but a gentle hush quieted her. Trista was sitting at her study table with a small lamp to just give enough light for her to write something on a piece of paper. The rest of the room was strangely dark but not even once she verbally questioned her curiosity.
That night, she stared into the starry sky before sleep took her. There was no dream, but only the voices telling her to keep moving. She might have asked the invisible voices why she's doing any of what they telling her to do but her dreams were silent. When she woke up, the sky was still dark. Trista was reading by the fireplace with a small rocking cot with the babe tucked inside, still sleeping. Serena gathered her blankets around herself and dragged it along as she moved towards the cot and gave it a gentle sway. Trista didn't say anything but only smiled warmly when Serena looked up to her.
"Why is she still sleeping?"
"A babe needs a lot of sleep to grow. At least, that's what I read about."
"What's her name?"
"Holly, I think."
"You think?"
"Well. She's not old enough to talk yet to give her own name. Holly is simply the name she was known as for the moment." The woman chuckled richly. "Are you hungry, Princess? I baked sunflower nuts and raisin bread today. It should be about ready. Why don't you go wash up and we'll have a meal?"
As if she had known this woman for all her life, she did what she was told. The bread was delightful with butter but somehow something was nagging in her conscience. Something she's supposed to do. Somewhere she needs to go. Someone she wanted to be with. The raisin bread was delicious. Why is she here? A bit more honey to her tea made it all the better. The sweetness made her middle stir with satisfaction.
After the warm meal, Serena went back to the bed and lie down. The sky is still dark, as seen from the window nearby. The moon was not in sight. Not even a single star was present. Her sleep was dreamless as before, but the voices nagged faintly into oblivion…
Serena woke up again for Gods know how long. It was still dark. She peered towards the tall woman, now sitting at her table, appeared to be writing something again. Dismissing the woman, she closed her eyes to sleep for the third time. This time though, her sleep was not empty. The voices were clear. It questioned where she was and why she was there. It demanded why she wasted her time here. It raged over the fact that she was so trusting of the strange woman in the forest.
She was writing something before.
She did.
What was she writing about?
I don't think it's my business to know everything about everyone!
What are the chances she was writing to the Queen of your whereabouts?
Serena's breath caught. Dread fell upon her like lead. The Queen's face appeared in her dream. Her eyes glowed blood red like a she-demon she is.
YOU WILL OBEY ME, SERENITY!
Never trusts anyone.
This time, when her eyes shot open, Serena immediately got up and gathered her cloak and dagger. Trista, standing beside the babe's cot, was surprised to see her hurrying. There was a rushed sound of horse stampedes from the direction she came from. The Queen was coming to take her.
"I trusted you!"
Never trusts anyone.
"Please, my Princess. You are unwell. You must go back to the palace…"
Trista held out her hand to catch her, but a quick swipe of the dagger made her retreated.
"You… WITCH! You bewitched me!"
Never trusts anyone.
"Princess Serenity, please listen to me. You need help. Please go back and rest some more. The poison will-"
Never trusts anyone.
RUN! SHE IS COMING!
Serena took no time to think. She dashed outside into the dark forest and ran as fast as she can. The shadows of the trees swallowed her into its belly. Her path was clear at first, but then it got too dark the deeper she went. Stray tree stumps and fallen branches peppered her way, making her tripped and hit her head on the cold soil. She could taste the blood in her mouth as her lips cut from the fall, but she spat it out and gave it no more mind. Serena must go on and run. The voices didn't let her stop to rest at all. She ran.
She ran and ran and ran. The forest was silent save for her own frantic breath. Soon she slowed down, and was simply dragging her feet to take one step after another. Her mouth was dry. Her heart raced like wildfire. Dirt caked on her sweaty face. She needs to run. How long had she run? She dared not to look over her shoulders, to the path she came from. That horrible witch must be on her tail already.
Serena closed her eyes for a moment and woke up seeing the ground pressed onto her cheeks. She collapsed without her realizing it. She urged her knees to support her and to carry on running. They obeyed hesitantly, but she faced another problem instead. Where was she heading? The dark forest looked almost the same from every angle. There was no footprint to suggest where she had trodden. She was afraid, yet the voices told her to run again. With wobbly knees, she chose one direction and limped towards it.
It felt as if she had walked for days, even weeks. Somewhere behind her was the dagger she left behind after her fingers failed to grasp it any harder. She wanted to curl up and die, yet she cannot. The voices didn't let her. She was just about to kiss the earth and embrace it for the last time, when a blinding glow appeared before her. It was the winged horse – the Pegasus. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she basked in the benevolent shimmer.
The beautiful creature was standing there so near yet so far away. Serena gathered what energy left of her knees and made them crawl towards the Pegasus. Inch by inch, she could see clearer of the white horse with wings neatly folded on its back. It's whole body was glowing in gentle glimmer, and its eyes are golden. A horn of gold grew in the middle of its forehead. It watched her with much sympathy as Serena mouthed to say "Please. Don't leave me." She has no voice left but the Pegasus seems to have heard her. It patiently waited, never left its eyes from her.
She kissed the cold earth just one step away from the Pegasus. Her knees met their limit. She has no more control to her hip all the way down to her toes. Serena cried, voicelessly, summoning her fail body to move. She heard the stomping hooves and despair that the creature has given up on her and leaving, but a warm touch awakened her hope. The Pegasus nuzzled the top of her head as if cheering her to keep trying.
"Please. Let me see my Prince again. My Prince Endymion."
When the creature raised its head up and began to move away, Serena wailed. Yet it stopped and glance back at her. Does it want me to follow it? From Gods know where she gained the strength, she managed to pick up herself up from the ground. Every inch of her body ache. Each of her limb wanted to fall down from the joints. Yet she managed to take one painful step and another, following the Pegasus. There was light somewhere beyond, blinding her. And the Pegasus began to take up speed and lifted from the ground. Its wings spread wide taking wind to rise up higher. Serena would have shrieked.
Don't! Don't leave me! Please!
Light engulfed her sight. Before she knows it, there was no longer trees blocking the sky above her head. Before she knows it, there was no longer solid ground below her feet. Before she could even begin to comprehend, she felt the pull of the earth - gravity, Amy would call it - and she was falling down, the tumbling sky overwhelmed her vision. The last thing she remembered registered into her thoughts was the coldness of water filling her lungs.