Chapter 9

A Potion not of Chess, but of Hearts

-~:{+}:~-

In the middle of the forest, the unique pair of a foreigner and a fawn were treading towards the riverside. They were walking in relative silence for a while, until the fawn boy overcame his nervous curiosity.

"Hey, umm, are you perhaps an, outsider..?" Elain asked, fidgeting a bit.

"Does word get around that fast here? Well, yeah. I suppose you guys don't get many tourists in these parts then. " was Elise's amused reply, perhaps glad that she wouldn't have to be as silent during their walk.

"Ah! you really are a foreigner! I've never met one before."

"Well, I've never known of this place before." She smirked, and gave a small sigh that combined both exasperation and amusement. "I bet you'd have just as many questions about my world as I do for yours then."

Elain just nodded, his ears making him seem happy and curious, which he probably was.

{H-his ears. They perked up…}

Elise couldn't let go of the fact that she was walking with someone who had animal features.

{Damn… They're just so, cute. I thought all that anime desensitized me by this point. I'll probably start making sound effects if I start to pet them…}

She couldn't help but stare. Although not an outdoorsy person, animals were just plain cute to her, even badgers, and she referred to adorable little critters as 'fuzzy buddies' or 'friends of the forest' because she could. Elise thought she watched enough anime and argued with enough furies to be immune to people with feature like this if she ever encountered them for real. She was wrong. Very wrong. Her saving grace here was that they were approaching their destination.

"Hey, Elise look! That's the cottage by the river. We're basically there…." The fawn's sentence begun to trail off and run dry when he saw a figure standing in the path. A female figure, covered in garbs the colour of blood. He begun to tremble a bit. He was just a deer, after all. It was in his nature to run away from threats, especially those he knew could do harm.

"The Red Queen!" The two said at once. Though they shared words, they did not share the same tone of voice. Elise was one of confusion, and Elain's was filled with concern.

Queen Valse turned to face the sound. "Ah, Miss Elise. You are here. And you are accompanied by my king's pawn?"

{Wait… Her king's pawn, as in a red pawn?}

The regal queen approached the two. Valse spoke to the fawn almost spiteful, and slightly amused."Young Elain, have you been hiding again? I do hope you have been adhering to the orders given to you."

At this, the boy begun to shrink back. With another step forward from his monarch, he fled, leaving Elise alone with the queen.

"Such a shame. That pawn rarely does what is instructed." She slowly turned to face Elise. "I have heard about you becoming one of Aria's pawns, Miss Elise."

"H-how did you hear about that?"

Smiling in response, Elise's question was blatantly ignored. "There is no need to be worried. I have come here unofficially, and I have no intention of harming you, young miss. Have you been enjoying the time you have been spending in this world?"

"I don't think I can really draw a proper opinion yet, your Majesty." Elise was about to take a step back in reflex, but the pain in her ankle was still stinging, although not as terrible as previously.

"Oh dear, it appears you have been hurt." Treading near the girl, Valse had taken out a vial with a heart shaped cap. She held an expression of concern on her face. "Perhaps I may be of some aid. I have medicine with me that can cure all ills."

"Medicine?"

"I had thought that it may of some use to you, as you are likely going to take time to adjust to the game. One cannot be fully sure as to what could happen, especially with something as unexpected as a foreigner in our midst."

Elise took the glass container that was held out to her.

"Oh, why thank you, but this no big deal. I can handle a little pain."

"Yes, but how well will you fare in this game when not in good condition? Have the rules been explained to you?"

Reflecting back on the rules Edwin explained to her, she begun to stare at the vial and its liquid contents. After a few moments the queen just turned around, about to leave.

"I will note that although the potion does as it says, the effects are quirt weak, so it should be taken in large quantities. It's of your concern what you do with it, but the orders have already been given to my knight, and I am afraid that orders can no longer be revoked at this point. That's why I came here. Regardless, farewell for now, young miss. I'm sure we shall encounter each other soon." Then the woman of crimson departed.

{That's right. This place is dangerous. Perhaps taking it wouldn't hurt. I suppose that there may be more of this somewhere. I couldn't have just sprung up out of nowhere.}

The heart like stopper came off easily. Making her decision, Elise tipped her head back, taking the liquid as quickly as possible. The medicine tasted strange and bittersweet. She felt almost like gagging, and the response made her down the entire vial.

"Oh God! That stuff tastes pretty awful! What the hell? Why does medicine always taste bad? This shit better work."

There was a rustle in the bushes. Snapping out of her train of thought, she begun to have a feeling of dread.

{What was that! Unless these are heart palpitations, I have a bad feeling about this…}

She headed towards the cottage on the riverbank. It looked somewhat overgrown and abandoned, and something next to it glistened in the sunlight. What she spotted was a stake in the ground, topped with a large chess piece. It was made of clear, smooth glass, in the shape of a pawn.

{That must be the stake I'm looking for!}

Running harder, her ankle was still bothering her, but not enough to stop her, especially after she spotted a man appearing from the bushes where the rustling was heard. He had dark hair that framed his face and wore an outfit with red, black, and brown colours. There was also a sword attached to his belt. It was like a longsword, with a horse-like design on the locket of an otherwise, plain black scabbard. After seeing the weapon, she knew it was bad news. The Red Knight just looked at the strange girl, wondering who she was. The girl was an unfamiliar face to him. Elise reached the stake, hoping to make a quick getaway soon, but she fumbled with it, trying to pull it from the ground.

"Ah, are you going to take that?" The warrior in red was behind her. "Because you should know that's not yours. Now why would you take that?"

Elise just stared at the man, holding her ground. The potion didn't seem to be working for her, so she kept her eyes on the knight, ready to move if he approached.

"Are you sure you want to take that? Because it's supposed to be mine now. Could you kindly hand it over? If not, I'll have to take it by force." Drawing his sword, he went after the outsider. Elise just tried her hardest not to get hit, dodging his blows.

{Good thing I took those martial arts lessons! And perhaps those video games too!}

Still, the girl couldn't fight well at all, just trying to avoid dying was her only focus. Either way she was at a disadvantage, being unarmed. Dashing into the forest, she begun to feel the strangest sensation. She was becoming sleepy.

{Fuck! Not at a time like this!}

Then she fell.

Notes: Well, well, cliffhanger~ This is going to be fun, haha! So many ideas for these characters! Any reviews would be greatly appreciated! Now I sleep...