Chapter 20 - The Cloak
Soft light from the waxing moon illuminated the clearing where Wilhelm and Schwarz had begun to set up camp for the night. Shielded at one edge by a rocky outcrop, the area's topography shallowly dipped to provide some semblance of shelter. As Wilhelm grappled with setting up the tent in near darkness, Schwarz collected broken branches to be burned. Looking up from his work, Will hesitated before beckoning the other man over.
"As much as I would appreciate some light to see what I'm doing, I'm a bit uneasy about starting a fire, it may give away our location to whoever stole Jacob away," Wilhelm explained softly, noticing Schwarz's dark eyes glint in the light.
"Is it that dark already?" the dark-haired man questioned, confusion edging his voice.
"Funny," Will replied dryly, "Any darker and I wouldn't be able to see my hand in front of my face. Can you help me with the tent?"
Schwarz moved to grasp the corner of the canvas, lifting it for Will. "I wasn't joking, Wilhelm," he replied anxiously.
Turned his focus away from the tent, Will looked over at the dark-haired man and noticed the eerie cat-like reflection of his eyes through the darkness. Resisting the urge to take a step back from Schwarz, Wilhelm took a deep breath to steady himself. "You're new to this, aren't you? The lycanthropy," he questioned slowly.
"Quite the scientific word to describe such a monstrous thing," Schwarz retorted, "But yes, it is a fairly recent… affliction."
Securing the tent fly in place, Wilhelm felt a growing uneasiness as he responded, "Who said anything about a monster? I'm still trying to believe that things like this can't possibly exist. Curses, full moons, it's like being inside Jacob's head, absolutely maddening. And even worse, it's like admitting that everything he says or does makes sense, which it obviously shouldn't."
Schwarz regarded Wilhelm in silence as he finished assembling the tent, "So, do you know much about it, about this curse? You must, after all you're one of the Brothers Grimm."
"Curses and witchy nonsense are Jacob's area of expertise, my forte is more along the lines of public relations," Will replied with a dry laugh. "Although, there was that one time in university where I stayed up until daybreak proofreading one of Jake's essays on the folklore origins lycanthropy," he recalled fondly. "Very well written for a load of nonsense," Wilhelm added, taking a seat beside the unlit kindling.
"Any thoughts on why my ability to see in the dark has suddenly improved?" Schwarz pressed, sitting next to Will.
Looking up at the moon through the gap in the trees, Wilhelm shared a growing sense of concern about this development, though for entirely different reasons. "It was nearly four weeks ago that you were bitten," Will stated, turning to look at the dark-haired man. Seeing a faint nod in agreement, the older Grimm continued, "Well, I can only guess that the full moon will be upon us soon."
Sighing dejectedly, Schwarz mutter in response, "I hoped you weren't about to say that."
Sitting in silence for a moment, Will thought about what the arrival of the full moon might mean with an unconscious shudder.
"Do you want something to eat?" Schwarz offered, breaking the uneasy silence with an outstretched loaf of pumpernickel wrapped in cloth.
"God yes, I'm famished," Wilhelm exclaimed, gladly accepting the offered bread. Raising the bread to his lips, Will paused to look up at the sky once more, finding it an entirely strange experience to have supper without Jacob.
Jacob Grimm watched the slow descent of the sun through the sky, noting as it passed beyond his field of view, almost as if it had been swallowed whole by the forest. Feeling the fresh evening breeze tickle the side of his face, the younger Grimm sighed heavily and leaned into the dusty windowsill. As the sky darkened, he was glad to see that Wilhelm had not been careless enough to risk lighting a fire tonight; however, a small nagging voice in the back of Jacob's mind whispered to him that perhaps his brother had left him to his fate. Acknowledging the familiar voice with a half-hearted smile, Jake mused about how often Wilhelm voiced his complaints about travelling with him. The complaints didn't stop there, his brother never seemed to hold back his criticisms, particularly when it came to telling Jacob how embarrassing it was when he talked about folklore, or teasing him for not courting any of the women they encountered.
"And yet," the younger Grimm whispered aloud to the waxing moon, "He's the one who disrupted my life by begging me to leave my position at the university and travel with him after our mother passed away." This was a well-worn internal dialogue which Jacob grappled with, often playing out after the two brothers had fought.
Not you.
These words stopped Jacob's thoughts in their tracks as they surfaced. They stung as painfully as the day Wilhelm had uttered them, causing a familiar ache deep under his breastbone. Wistfully staring up at the darkened sky, Jake noted five bright points which drew his attention away from the fainter stars. "Perhaps I'm as conceited as Cassiopeia," he mused, "Or as deluded. Why would Will have chosen me?" Noticing the that breeze had cooled, the younger Grimm swung the glass pane shut with a deep sigh, and turned to face the circular room.
Taking in his candlelit surroundings, Jake tried to feel optimistic. As far as prison cells went, this was not the worst place Jacob had been held captive in. While certainly more comfortable than being held in a French prison, Jake felt ill at ease here. The large bed where he had awoken was certainly the focal point of the room, occupying the far wall of the circular room and draped with heavily embroidered, luxurious deep blue and silver quilting. Jacob scanned the room, noting the bolted heavy wooden door to his left, and the series of high arched windows spanning the remainder of the curved wall. Much of the room contained pieces of old furniture draped in dulled white linens to protect against dust, rendered quite ineffective from the merciless onslaught of time, dampness, and hungry moths.
Odds and ends covered all exposed furniture surfaces, obscured by a thick layer of dust which had accumulated with the slow passing of years. Indeed, the only parts of the tower free from dust were the bed and portions of the floor, suggesting that perhaps Lied had been using the tower for some time now, but held no interest in its contents. A dressmaker's mannequin partially hidden behind a piece of furniture to the right of the bed piqued Jacob's interest. Moving closer to examine the curious fur garment that hung from the form, Jake cautiously gave an edge of the soft fur a gentle shake, ridding it of a century's worth of dust. Upon closer examination, astonishment spread across Jacob's face, as he realized that the cloak was made up of a multitude of glossy animal pelts from different species sewn together. Hearing muffled steps in the hallway, Jacob quickly dropped the edge of the garment and turned back to admire the view from another window.
Author's Note: Thank you for reading. This is the updated version of Chapter 20, uploaded on 02/2023.