𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟏 - 𝐦𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐞 𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩

We walked down the silent path together, side by side. Pierre seemed tense as his hands closed onto the hilt of a sword he brought along with him. I find myself unable to keep my stares away from his odd demeanour. He seems cold and guarded but definitely in a better mood than Nicholas.

His raven curly hair, his ivory, light yellow-peach skin, glimmer under the rays of the ever-so-generous sun. The rays followed us with each step we took, providing me with a sense of comfort.

I cleared my throat when we stopped abruptly in front of a two-way path, earning his attention in doing so.

"Did you think that we'll be attacked when we're out here, Pierre?" I asked. "Is that what the sword was for?"

Hearing my voice, he seems to be a bit taken aback. His shoulder tensed as he took a few steps away from me. His jaw quivered but had made no effort to open up, leaving my question floating aimlessly in the air. He must have thought that our trip would be a quiet one. One where we don't need to converse among ourselves and merely focus on getting what we came for.

After a few moments of silence, I dropped my head low and looked away from him. Seems like he still doesn't want to talk to me.

Did I irritate him that much?

We took the path to the right and marched onwards. His head held high and his stride careful as he took in our surroundings.

"We can never be too careful wherever we go."–—I heard him say—"The witch might have already been captured and soon be punished for her crimes. But that is just one person. We never know what else lies ahead in the woods."

Finding his excuse to be nothing but reasonable, I nodded my head, completely understanding his wariness. There's no knowing what else we could have stumbled into as we dive deeper. There might be other witches or werewolves like Bernard. Who knows.

Pierre placed the back of his hand on his eyes in an attempt to hide them from the blinding bright sun. The rays hit his palm making it turn pale yellow as his feet shuffled deeper into the woods.

Personally, I don't like the silence.

I hated it.

It's scratching my throat for some odd reason.

The only sound I could hear was one made by the howling breeze floating through the forest, the sound of forest animals chattering away and the sound of the broken dried leaves and branches under our feet.

I sighed once again, at the bizarre situation, at our awkwardness, at the question that kept poking into my head. I stared at him, opened my mouth to ask him that very question that's been bugging me since the moment we entered the woods and fell into our deafening silence.

"Will you forgive me?"

The moment it reached his ears, he stared at me as if I had gone mad, asking him such a question, "Addie, I was never mad at you. I just thought you wouldn't want me around after everything that you said."

"After everything I've said?"

"During your little outburst, you sounded so broken saying that I have little faith in you when you were telling me nothing but the truth."

"I–I was hurt, that's all. The fact that you think so little of me, to the point that you'd think I was trying to lie to you." I paused, staring down at the ground as I blink back hurtful tears. "Hearing it from you out of all people makes it more upsetting than it already is."

"Me of all people?"

"Yes. You of all people. I cherished you and Hilda more than anyone else."

"Hilda? Did she already hear about your awful weird story then?"

"No. Not yet. I just want you to know about it. I want someone to know my truth, and I feel safe telling you even the darkest part of me. For I thought, it wouldn't matter to you. You'd believe me and still love me the same. Or so I thought. That's why I didn't have any doubt telling you anything."

He stared at me with blank eyes as he nodded. "That was beautiful. I take it, you're still insisting that you're indeed telling me the truth? Time travel? How did you come up with such nonsense, Addie?"

I whipped my head fast to face him, furrowed my brow, feeling my face tighten as I huffed lightly foggy breath in the cold misty air. "Pierre, for fuck sake. I would never lie to you," I paused as I inched closer to him, staring straight into his figure. "Not for anyone."

Abruptly, his feet stopped. He stared into nothing like he was petrified. His breathing stopped and I grew wary of my surroundings. My breathing starts to grow harder as my heart beats rapidly, so much that I thought it was going to jump out of my chest. My head surveyed the area in panic motion as I took in every scene before me.

My eyes danced around the woods, looking past the tree, in the bushes, anywhere it lays on, trying to find something or someone that was causing this but instead, I heard a laugh emitting from him. A melodic and sweet-sounding laugh. My head turned to him so fast that my hair whipped straight on my face; hitting me with a swoosh.

"You're laughing?"

He hunched down as he placed his hands on his stomach, cackling a breathy laugh as he tried to catch his breath. "Addie-" he stopped quickly as he huffed a slow breath, once more, back straightened as he eyed me. Finally calming down from his laughing fit, he pulled on the biggest smile that I'd ever seen him put on.

"You're cuter this way." He said, grinning as his teeth shone brighter than the light from an open lantern, filling one's heart with fireworks. He reached down and ruffled my hair. "Let's not fight again, hm?"

At his gesture, I wanted to grunt and swat his hands off me but I thought better of it and let him be. "I don't even want to fight with you anymore. I'm not doing it again. Ever.

His grin grew wider, his hands rested on my cheek and I could see his eyes filled with a mischievous glint. "Good girl."

Immediately, at that comment, I shuddered as I scrunch my face while imitating a puking motion. "Ew." I quickly turned my heel and walked away, leaving him behind in a confused state.

I tried my best to walk fast despite how short my legs were compared to his. I've made quite a distance between us. I was ahead of him but I could hear quick long strides rushing toward me.

"W–what did I say?" He asked a note of confusion and worry rich in his voice. He closed in our distance, running up towards me. I merely laughed at him without explaining myself. It wasn't his fault if his pure mind didn't go thinking about what my mind played for me when he said it.

We kept walking deeper, growing quiet once more, but this silence didn't prick my skin or scratch my throat and make me feel utterly uncomfortable. No. This silence was fine.

High possibility as to why I felt this way was because I've already reconciled with Pierre now. I've got my dear friend back. That one friend other than Hilda who would help me out of whatever trouble I'm having, no matter how hard it is.

My emerald-eyed saviour, Pierre.

A smile plays on my lips. My mind flipped elsewhere. Not regarding my surroundings anymore. I was minding my own business when I felt a firm grip on my arm yanking me away from where I was.

Falling to the ground with a thud, I stared up at Pierre with questioning eyes. His stance guarded, his sword pulled out and held to the front. I followed his eyes and to my dismay, I was glad to be pulled aside.

In front of me, I saw a woman with pale, possibly almost green skin. She looked hideous, her face covered with more warts than I'd ever seen on anyone. Her toes, there are only four toes on each of her feet. She smiled an eerily wide smile upon us, her eyes shining yellow in the dark. "Young man, it's rather rude to point at someone."—She kept smiling and then I saw her eyes turned to me and I could swear I could feel my body shudder at her sight—"What a lovely young lady. Do you want to come over to my house for tea, dear?"

I shook my head, no and backed away from her, dragging myself along the dirt just to move a few feet away from where she was.

"Perhaps you didn't hear me, dear." I saw her face grow darker as she walked into the light, her black robe swayed as she strode. "It wasn't an invitation. I want you to come home with me."

Pierre stood in front of me, shielding me with his body. "Stay away from us, you flesh-eating hag!" he shouted, his sword still pointed at the creature.

"Ha! You think your poor excuse of a weapon would be able to shoo me away?" —Her eyes grew sinister as her cackle echoed through the forest—"To think that someone knows what I am and didn't fall for my trick not even for a second, you're no ordinary boy."

Pierre turned to me, worry clear in his eyes. He leaned down to my ears and spoke softly in a hasty no-time-to-lose manner. "Addie, If I tell you to run, I want to run with all your might back to where we came from and don't. I repeat DON'T come back. Not for anything or anyone."

I stared at him, bewildered by his suggestion. "I'm not going to leave you here!" I grabbed hold of his sleeves, pulling him close to me.

"We don't have much choice. Besides, if you were taken by that hag, a lot of people would be upset for you and blame me for it, but if I was sacrificed here, the only person who would truly think of me would only be my uncle."

"Tha–"

"No objection. Run. RUN NOW!"

Hearing him shout those words, I hastily scattered off from the ground. "Pierre, don't you dare die," I said. Then I ran. I ran out of there. Turning back to look at him occasionally, I can feel tears run down my eyes. My body shook as I sobbed.

I left him. I couldn't do anything but save myself. Then I could hear a piercing familiar voice shrieking in pain. My feet stopped in their tracks. I didn't dare move further. I didn't dare go back either.

I'm stuck. Stuck, exactly at my spot. Petrified without any spell thrown my way.

Pierre.

I heard him. I heard his scream. I–I can't leave him be. I can't survive and live knowing I could have saved him, but didn't.

I turned back. I ran back to where I left him. My chest feels tight.

Am I an emblem of unluckiness? All I did was cause trouble. All I did was ask for endless help only to drop everyone in a field of my mess. Maybe, Maybe I shouldn't have been so hardheaded trying to get the witch's book for Bernard. Maybe then, this wouldn't have happened.

When I got back there, what I saw was that the hag had been lifted off the ground, Pierre's hands outstretched as if they were keeping her in her place through some kind of invisible mechanism. Pierre's eyes never leave the old hag. And her. The hag turned her glance at me, her sinister grin back on her face.

Pierre kept his gaze fixed on the hag, though his shoulder slumped down. I can feel him hesitating. "Addie?"

"A-are you okay?"

"You know. You know I got magic to protect myself. Yet you came back when I told you not to." His voice was stern with pure concern, yet still never leaving his eyes from the hag.

"I–I hear your screams and then everything else just left my wits. I'm sorry. I should have listened to you."

"Please, Addie– you have to go, I'll be fine and I'll definitely come back— His speech was cut short when the hag started to struggle in his invisible grip. She scowled at me, her body attempting to lunge at me.

"RUN, ADDIE!"

At the sound of her cackle, reaching into my ears as she leapt forwards from the space that kept her floating, I screamed out in horror, backing away as fast as I could from that very place. I can see Pierre finally turning to me as concern washed over his features.

He ran up to me as an invisible force pushed the hag away from reaching me. He held me close, shielding me from behind him.

I saw Pierre's eyes run around the area frantically in search of something but stopped suddenly as his eyes fell onto tree vines from our right. He stared at them and I swore his eyes turned yellow for a second before I saw the vines quickly wrapped around the hag's limbs, stopping her effort from going any closer to me.

Pierre turned to face me, his hand placed firmly on my shoulder as he stared deep into my eyes. "Listen to me. Whatever happens. Whatever you hear. I want you to run. If you have no way to help me without endangering yourself, I want you to keep running. Don't you dare come back." he paused as he flashed a small smile, his lips forced to lift upwards. "If it didn't work out for me, it wasn't your fault. I'm happy we got to be friends again. But now, all you need to do is run. Go."

I felt a light push on my back, urging me to go on. Reluctantly, my feet dragged away from him again. I stared behind and decided I'd only do more harm than help if I stayed. As quickly as my body lets me, I ran away from where he and hag were.

Maybe I can ask for help.

Maybe I can find someone.

Someone in the woods.

Someone's strong and experienced in battle.

Maybe I can–

My thoughts were interrupted when I bumped into someone, making me fall back to the ground. Not knowing where I was, Not knowing who I bumped into, I merely raised my head to stare at the person.

Ginger hair flows through the air. Her eyes were icy blue as if it was by themselves in winter. On top of her head was some sort of antler. And her ears. Her ears look very much like the ears of a deer. There's an arrow quiver filled with arrows on her back. Her hands grip a bow so hard, that her warm ivory skin turns white.

I can see her hands reaching down onto her ankle. There, I saw a few sets of daggers lined up for what seemed like an emergency encounter. If I was her, I'd live the same way too, I don't think it's easy to hide the ears and antlers. Seeing how odd life beings were killed for sometimes, absolutely no reason. It must be an emergency because she went and grabbed a shiny dagger, and raised it to my front.

Then her eyes study me. She gasped for a brief second, her hands wavering. "You— what are you doing at this side of the forest again?"

Again. —she said.

"You know me?"

Her eyes widened a mere bit fraction. Her stance was awkward as she looked away, possibly realising her mistakes. "No I don't know you nor do I want to know anything about you."

I do know her or to put it more lightly, she does know me. Far east side of the forest. A bow and arrows. An odd girl, possibly a wielder of magic.

We met once before.

"The girl who knew about the door. That was you."

"No. I don't know what you're talking about," she said, still looking away as her hands fell to her side.

Pierre.

She could help Pierre.

When that conclusion reached my mind, I immediately reached forward for her hand, breaking her comfort circle as I did so. I gripped her hand, staring right at her. "Please. We can chat again after. But I need your help to save a friend of mine. I don't know if he needs it, but I still need someone to go after him," I pleaded before quickly adding, "Please. I beg of you."

Sighing, she pulled her hands away from my grips. I felt upset at her reluctance to help me. I can feel my heart filled with disappointment as I felt the cold air brush against my hands. Her bushy curly auburn hair was then brought up and tied into a ponytail. "I will help you. But you mustn't tell anyone about this. Both you and your friend."

A grin finds its way to my face, hearing her proposal. "Of course, we won't tell. Ever."

"Where is this friend of yours?"

"Deep straight in this way. He has magic but it doesn't seem like he knows how to use it much and I'm worried that he won't make it."

"What exactly is he fighting?"

"I have no idea. It looked like an old woman but he kept calling her a flesh-eating hag."

"Sounds about right." She drew out an arrow and fixed her stance, "Stay here. No matter what happens, stay here."

She disappeared from my sight and I can only hope for the best outcome from this encounter.