Chapter 9: Tension

Song Connection: Friction

The first stop on the trip was deep in the thickness of the woods. Sure, the trail still existed, but everywhere they looked, all they saw were trees. Large trees, small trees, pine trees, oak trees… Any kind of trees one could imagine, they were there, it seemed. This was both good and bad. Good: There was a heavy layer of visual protection against any outsiders who might try to spy on them. Bad: Unseen and unknown animals or other creatures could lurk in the darkened woods, making entering them a foolish decision. Regardless, the quintet set up their camp right beside the trail anyway, along with a modest pit that just needed some firewood and some tents.

Isolde and Elias shared the responsibility of setting up the two large tents: one for her and Elias, and the other for the twins and James. James seemed fine with the tents, and of course, Jaime had no reaction. But Ember…

"I'm not sleeping in that thing," she argued, the shackles around her wrists clinking noisily as she tried to maneuver her hands a bit to relax them while simultaneously glaring at the sentries. "No way."

"Why not?" Elias wondered, gesturing toward one of the tents with a grin. "It's super secure and protected by magic."

"It doesn't look secure, and magic can only do so much." She waved a hand dismissively as Elias almost spoke again. "What if some wildlife finds us? What if a savage bear comes along and tries to kill me?"

"Then we can head home early," Isolde retorted without missing a beat, although Elias seemed to be the only one who heard her soft remark as he shot her a pointed glare. She rolled her eyes and shrugged, planting the stakes in the ground. "Don't worry, Ember," she said loudly, her tone laced with strained patience. "We use these all the time, and we've not been ravaged yet."

"Not by wild animals anyway," Elias joked playfully as he glided toward the former queen, gently tugging some of her hair in an affectionate way. He blinked when she instinctively yanked her hair from his hand and glowered at him.

"Don't touch me," she snapped, frowning.

"Uh… I'm… I'm sorry, I was just…" He rubbed one arm self-consciously, smiling sheepishly, inwardly reasoning that she probably wasn't used to such a thing. "I apologize, Ember. I'll just…yeah." He turned, ambling off toward some nearby woods to apparently gather some firewood.

Ember sighed heavily, looking up at Jaime, who just stared quietly into the darkness surrounding them.

James walked over to Isolde, nodding off to the side, stepping far enough away from Ember until he was sure she couldn't hear him. "Isolde, please, take off those shackles. I don't think it's right for Ember to be double bound like that. You guys already have that spell on her, so does she have to wear those things?"

"Prince James, it's for our protection. You know that." She folded her arms. "The shackles weigh her down to the point where she won't try to attack one of us. She's lucky they're not on her ankles, because I don't really like the fact that she can move so easily."

"What is your problem anyway?" he challenged quietly. "You're acting like she's personally attacked you or something."

She sighed in disbelief. "And you're acting like she didn't do just that to you. I don't understand you, Prince James. How in the world can you possibly defend that girl? She's dangerous. She's killed you before, right? And you actually think she wouldn't try again?"

"I see enough of my own sister in her to know that there's a level of trust that's formed between us… I'll look after her, if that's your concern."

"No, my concern is that you, like my idiot partner, seem to be drawn in by whatever charm or 'innocent' façade she has put on. You know as well as I do that she can be every bit as evil as the next villain. Just because she looks like your sister and doesn't have magic anymore, that doesn't make her any less dangerous."

"I understand that… But how can we expect her to change if we never even give her a chance?" He gestured toward the blonde girl, who seemed to be leaning quietly against Jaime, rubbing at her wrists, which were clearly reddening from the tight cuffs. "Please, Isolde."

"Ugh, fine." She moved back over to the twins, somewhat roughly grabbing Ember's wrists in her right hand while holding a key to the lock in her left. Assured that the previous spell was still cast on her, the female sentry finally undid the shackles, tossing them into the carriage, watching as Ember sighed in relief. "Five hundred feet," she reminded her, her eyes narrowing at the shorter girl. "That's as far as you can go from Elias or myself before you will feel the harshest electrical surge we've ever enacted on any criminal."

"Like I have anywhere to go?" Ember remarked sarcastically, rubbing her wrists as she tried to readjust to the lack of weight from the metal shackles.

"You could just go back to your cell. It would be fair, I think. You don't deserve to be here—not after what you've done."

Ember shot the older woman a glare. "This isn't for me, Isolde! This is for Jaime—"

"Who is no better than you!"

"Stop!" James demanded, stepping between the two arguing women, inwardly grateful that Sofia and Amber never quite got to this point when they had disagreements. "Isolde," he began, turning to the sentry, "you were just talking about Ember being a former 'villain.' Do you really think antagonizing her, someone you yourself consider dangerous, is really that wise? And Ember…" He looked at his sister's counterpart, though he couldn't help the softer expression his face naturally acquired as he stared at her, though she turned to face away from him. "Your reaction isn't going to make anyone want to help you…or Jaime. You realize that, right?"

Ember growled softly before taking her twin's hand, guiding him into the tent she and the guys were going to share together. She carefully made sure that he was settled before poking her head back through the tent opening. "I'm going to bed before I hurt someone." She didn't have to be specific though, especially since her eyes locked directly on Isolde's. "And make no mistake: new leaf or not, if you mess with me or Jaime, you will be sorry." She slapped the tent flap closed before huffing, plopping onto the ground next to her brother, who was none the wiser.

James glanced at Isolde, who rolled her eyes and entered her own tent. Sighing heavily, the prince unpacked a few bags and moved them into the tent he was sharing with the siblings, and he snapped the fabric closed as he gently spoke to Ember to get her to calm down.

About fifteen minutes later, Elias finally returned with the wood, stacking it in the pit that they could use for fire if needed, but he soon realized that no one else seemed to be around. "Weird…" He walked over to the tent the he was supposed to share with Isolde, unfastening the outer layer and peeking inside, his eyes widening as soon as he saw his partner. She wasn't indecent or anything, but she was certainly…acting strangely. He stepped into the tent, watching as Isolde violently dragged a brush through her hair. He winced at the snapping noise the bristles made as they encountered a few tangles. "Uh… Want to talk about it?"

"You!" Isolde turned to him, glaring at him. "This whole trip is a waste of time for someone who doesn't deserve it. And you are encouraging it!"

Elias gasped in surprise, frowning. "Excuse me! I'm just trying to do my job, Isolde… Look, I get it. You hate Ember. And to a degree, I don't blame you considering all the stuff she's done. But if you don't even try to give her a chance, we'll never know if she can change…"

"Would you listen to how pathetic you sound?" She rolled her eyes. "What, Elias? Do you find her attractive? Even evil is attractive, you know. That's why so many are captivated by it."

"That's it." He stepped up to her, grasping her wrist (but not too tightly), steadying her as he eyed her seriously. "You have got to stop acting like this. You're causing friction here, and it's going to upset the others and possibly even put us in danger."

"I'm causing friction? What about Ember? What about you? You're not even taking this seriously. You never take things seriously…"

Elias sighed in annoyance, releasing his partner as he stepped back, placing his hands on his hips. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous of Ember."

Isolde's whole demeanor changed, and an icy look overtook her features as she angrily hurled the brush she'd been holding at Elias. She was surprised when he caught it before it hit his face. "I…"

Despite the situation, the other sentry still managed to smirk at the dark-haired woman before him. "I know we're not married or anything, but this would be the point where I'd seek a divorce."

Isolde sighed heavily and crumpled to the tent floor as she lowered her head to her hands, groaning in loud dismay.

Shaking his head, Elias sat behind her, gathering her hair, gently brushing it as he spoke calmly to her. "Isolde, just give her a chance. Malango sent us along on this journey for a reason… He obviously thought we were the right ones for the job, or else we wouldn't be here. But you've got to chill out, or you're going to get yourself in trouble. Or hurt. Or…" He finished brushing her hair and carefully moved it over her shoulder, using the bristles of the brush and his own gloved fingers to trace the baby hairs at the nape of her neck. Curious, he removed one of the gloves, enjoying instead the feeling of his skin against her own this time.

The female sentry tensed up. "Elias…"

Elias set the brush aside and removed the second glove, placing his hands on her shoulders, gently massaging them.

Isolde managed to slink away from him, turning around and glaring at him. "Enough."

He nodded with a small blush on his cheeks. "I might have…gone a bit too far." He picked up the brush, handing it to her, and watching as she tossed it onto her pallet. "I'm sorry, Isolde…"

She shook her head. "Let's just…get some sleep." She lay down on her mat and pulled a heavy blanket over herself, appearing to fall asleep soon enough.

Elias watched her for several minutes, considering all the things he knew about her, and everything that had happened. He lay next to her, reaching out to trace his fingers along the fabric of her uniform, enjoying the warmth that emitted from her. He even caressed and gathered some of her long hair in his fingers, inhaling its rich scent that always permeated the air in a way that drove him mad, before turning and lowering onto his own mat, facing away from the other sentry.

When Elias sighed heavily, his breathing beginning to even out, Isolde's eyes popped open, narrowing as she pulled her hair over her shoulder, snuggling more comfortably under the blanket.

To be continued…

Next Chapter: Inner Demons