Ch 26

Jack

T:"Jack what are you talking about?" asked Tooth, a look of confusion and intrigue on her face. I had never told anyone of her before. No one knew, not Elsa, not any of the Guardians. Not any of the people that were a part of my family when they were still alive.

J:"It's a long story Tooth and no one knows or knew about her. She meant everything to me, until I met Elsa…."

It was a hot summer day, Emma and I decided to go swim in the lake before supper. The weather was very humid and the cool lake water would be refreshing. Emma started getting too far ahead of me and I called after her.

J:"Emma wait up! You need to stay with me!" I said with a small laughter, I knew I wouldn't lose her but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Em:"Catch me if you can Jack!" she said and took off in a sprint. I chased after her until we reached the lake and that's when I saw her. She was washing a dress against a slanted rock and humming some song, and I couldn't take my eyes off her. She was so beautiful, like a goddess or a siren from the old legends we'd hear from travelers. She had dark brown curly hair and milky skin. When she saw us our eyes met and hers were a startling shade of green. She looked to be about my age, maybe a year or so younger, but I had never seen her before. I needed to know her name, where she came from…

*Splash!*

Em:"Come on Jack! The water's great!" yelled Emma as she started splashing me with water. I laughed at her and took off my shirt and jumped in, splashing water all over her in the process.

Em:"Hey who's that girl over there?"
J:"I don't know, I've never seen her around here. Maybe she's just passing by…"

Em:"I'm gonna go talk to her!"

J:"No! Emma wait!" but she was already halfway to where the girl was. I swam after her but she seemed to be faster than me. By the time I reached her she had already struck a conversation with the girl.

J:"I am so sorry about my sister Miss, she's a little obnoxious at-"

Em:"Hey! For your information big brother, her name's Esmeralda. Second off, she's my new friend!"

Esmeralda…what a beautiful name…I heard a small giggle that sounded beautiful to my ears.

Es:"It's alright, Emma's not doing any harm. She's a very sweet and funny girl. I don't have the pleasure of knowing your name however."

I couldn't help but stare at her, she was absolutely stunning.

J:"Uh…Jack. My name's Jack. It's a pleasure to meet you." I said with a smile. "I don't think I've ever see you around here however, are you a traveler miss?"

Es:"Please call me Esmeralda, and well I'm a sort of traveler. I'm a gypsy from France, I came here in hope of finding a new home. You see my family was killed not too long ago and I have no one…"

I couldn't help but feel bad, I had no idea what France was but I heard of gypsies. They were rumored to be a sort of witch, and thieves. They weren't welcomed here but she wasn't a thief, she was a lonely girl who lost everything.

J:"It's alright, we won't tell anyone you're here. You're secret is safe." I said and it was true. After a few more minutes, Emma and I left to go back home. The sun would set within the hour and we needed to get out of the forest before that. That day I had been the happiest boy in the world, and the next day I would find her again. I wasn't going to leave her side.

T:"And what happened to her Jack?" asked Tooth with tears welling up in her eyes.

J:"I kept meeting with her in secret, Emma never came with me because I'd tell her I was going to go scouting or hunting or something. She hated that kind of stuff. She showed me her home, all these cool plant remedies her mother had taught her. She lived in a little abandoned cabin in the woods, it was very remote. No one would find it if they weren't looking for it. She had a beautiful black mare too, very spirited that horse was. After about a month she'd told me she had feelings for me and that she felt she needed to tell me because she could see something was going to happen to her soon. I told her she was being silly but that I felt the same towards her. We kept meeting for about two more weeks. Every day I saw her we'd go swimming or I'd take her hiking through the forest. We had long talks together, I never got tired of her presence. One day it was the middle of the night and I had this… feeling you know? Like something wasn't right. I got up and took a drink of water when I heard shouting outside. I walked out and people had torches, and were headed towards the lake. I assumed someone was trying to ransack our village or maybe there was a pack of wolves or something. I ran after them and when we reached our destination I became terrified. One of the villager was holding Esmeralda accusing her of witchcraft. He said he's seen her kill an animal and drink its blood. I knew it was a ridiculous thing to say but I couldn't object. I just couldn't do anything, they burned her at the stake Tooth. I didn't see it but the next morning there was a lump of dirt where she was buried. I have never forgiven myself for that night. I let her down and I won't do the same for Elsa. I love her more than anyone, and I won't lose her her too."

Tooth stood there dumbfounded, but I knew I'd gotten through to her, once she was on board, everyone else would be right behind her.