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Winter was quickly setting into the town of Pinebreak, leaving a dusting of frost on the ground and a bite to the air. The clouds were heavy and gray, blocking sunlight and hiding even the moonlight from reaching the ground. There had been whispers of it being a long hard winter, leaving the villagers scrambling to make sure that they had enough supplies and food stored to last them until the welcome arrival of spring.
 
Untouched by the effects of winter were the occupants of the large, sprawling castle nestled just above the village. There, fires roared with life and the food supply was plentiful. Warm goblets of mulled wine were passed between the adults. For the owner and main resident, there were benefits to having the title of lord – especially as one who was more than stringent with his resources.
 
For seven-year-old Eleanor though, none of this was something that had ever occurred to her.
 
All she knew was what she could see from the towers of the castle, peeking her head through the stone slits and looking out at the people moving down below – almost like small toys thanks to the distance between them.
 
It was what she was up to now, a large blue velvet cloak wrapped tightly around her small frame as she looked down below. A book lay in front of her on the window seat, open to an illustration of a knight battling a dragon. Today though she wasn’t looking down to see if she could see the usual people she’d try to spot. The people she’d given names to and pretend lives that she would narrate and speculate about. Instead, her eyes had lost focus as she day-dreamed, a small smile on her lips as she let a breeze play with the curls that had snuck out of the braid her nurse had tried to pull together that morning.
 
She had completely lost track of how long she had been sitting there, deep into her imagination. It made the creaking from the large door the library even more startling as it swung open, breaking her thoughts. She whirled around in her spot on the cold stone.
 
“Papa!”
 
She scrambled to climb off of the window sill and ran into the open arms of Lord Brenner.
 
To everyone else, he had a commanding presence with his stark white hair and cold gaze. Dark colored clothing created an even harsher contrast to his pale skin and hair, giving the accurate visual of a man who rarely went outside. But to Eleanor, he was simply Papa. Often distant and strict, but Papa all the same.
 
When he wasn’t as busy with handling whatever it was he did (she couldn’t get anyone to explain it to her), he would try to split up some time for her. Those times he was warm and would help entertain her. He wasn’t as good at acting out stories as Mama, but it was still something she always looked forward to.
 
“How are you doing today little one?” Papa crouched to her height. “Avoiding your studies are we?”
 
Eleanor shook her head rapidly, causing even more hair fall out of the braid.
 
“No I finished already. I was just reading.”
 
He nodded, giving her a small smile.
 
“That’s my girl.”

It wasn’t as friendly as normal. Papa must be stressed about something.

“But then when I was done reading, I looked outside. And I started thinking about how we should go on an adventure! Maybe to a different town, not this one? Or Nurse Flo mentioned the elves one morning ––”
 
“Eleanor, no.”
 
She ignored his interruption and pushed through regardless.
 
“I think I’d learn more out there. I want to learn more. History is my favorite, but I think it would be easier if I got to see it.”
 
She did her best to give her most innocent expression. Papa wasn’t accepting it though and he slowly shook his head.
 
“Eleanor, I love you dearly but I don’t know how many times I have to tell you that you’re not allowed outside past the walls.” His voice was stern and clipped, the smile slipping from his face as he regarded her seriously.
 
Her shoulders deflated. A pout began to sneak onto her face as she looked up at him.
 
“Just one time? I don’t even have to talk to anyone.”
 
He let out a long sigh, pulling his body up back into his usual, more rigid posture.
 
“You know the rules. You’re not allowed to leave these grounds. I’d rather not have to repeat myself.”

Eleanor sighed and ducked her chin. “Yes Papa,” she whispered glumly.
 
His breath came out in an impatient huff, as if it was bothering him to have to lay down the law. She understood a little bit; she knew she asked him this a lot. But there were only so many times you could explore the grounds before you knew every little bit of it. And she still didn’t really get why she wasn’t allowed to go beyond the wall bordering the castle. Dustin could and he seemed fine every time he came back. Fairies hadn’t stolen his mind or anything, and she couldn’t think of anything more dangerous than messing with the fae world. So to her, she couldn't quite see what the problem was. She wasn’t going to bother anyone.
 
“Now, I came in her to tell you that I’ve been able to set up dinner with you and your mother tonight. Shall we go join her?”
 
She could sense that this argument was over.
 
So with a deep sigh, Eleanor took Papa’s hand and made her way out of the library with him. This had perked her up some though. He almost never got to eat with them! Usually it was just her and Mama in their tower eating. But tonight must be special. So with that, she shook of her disappointment and anxiously skipped ahead while pulling him along.
  
Eleanor turned down Papa’s offer to have one of his servants walk her back to her room. She knew it wasn’t their fault, but they were usually so boring. They were too scared of saying the wrong thing that they usually ended up saying nothing at all. So she said no. Mama and Papa had shared a look, but she was seven now so they gave in and said it was okay. But that she had to go

straight back to her room and no wandering around

.
 
The castle was quiet tonight. Sometimes they hosted people, other important families, but for now the guest rooms were vacant and things were normal. Eleanor didn’t think she liked normal as much though, it was almost too quiet.
 
Dinner had been somewhat quiet as well, but it had nice to have been with both Mama and Papa. She’d been able to excitedly share what she had been learning with Papa and then they had sat together while a pianist had come in to perform for them. It had been cozy, the oversized fireplace in the corner crackling with heat in the corner.
 
But now it was colder and it was late, as she slowly returned to her bedroom, only occasionally being distracted. She had just finished looking at her favorite tapestry when she overheard voices.
 
“No one’s explained to me why she still lives here. An unwed woman, with a bastard child.”
 
Eleanor stilled.
 
There weren’t many options of who that person was talking about.
 
Tiptoeing around the corner, she knelt close to the ground and held her breath. She peered around the wall and looked for the source of the words.
 
An older scullery maid that she recognized was standing next to a younger man. He was in rough, plain clothing — signifying his lower rank. His hair was a striking orange and his almost gaunt face was in heavy contrast to the ruddy, plump face of the woman. Eleanor didn’t think she had ever seen him before, but he seemed to be the source of the overheard question.
 
“It’s embarrassing really,” whispered the older woman. Her gray hair was pulled back tightly, adding a severity to her face as she spoke. “A lord keeping around a woman like that. I know she birthed the girl, but still. His wife practically on her deathbed, scandalous. The younger one must have some type of power over him.”
 
The younger man snorted. “No doubt a witch. Cast a spell on him to let him keep —”
 
Eleanor had heard enough.
 
“How dare you!” The words burst out of her lips in a sputter as she fully rounded the corner.
 
The servants had truly been caught unawares, nearly jumping out of their skin at the sight of her. Then a very quick, uneasy glance shared between the two of them.
 
“We mean no disrespect my lady,” the woman said quickly in her grumbling voice. “Just servant chatter. You know how it is.”
 
Using all of her strength, Eleanor pulled herself up as tall as she could and swallowed the embarrassment that was coursing through her.
 
“My mama is Lady Terry of Pinebreak, and you will not insult her name.” She paused, gulping. “Or mine. I’ll make sure Papa hears about this immediately.”
 
Schooling her face into one of seriousness to mimic Papa’s when he was dictating something, she prayed she seemed commanding. She wasn’t used to having to be mean to people. She didn’t even really

talk

to other people. And the truth was that she didn’t know if she’d tell Papa. Gossip was bad, but she knew that dark secret was true. They weren’t lying and a part of her was scared of how Papa would punish them.
 
She’d seen him strike a duke for saying a scandalous word to describe Mama once. She didn’t doubt his response.
 
But they didn’t need to know that.
 
Her impression must have been convincing enough though. The two servants stammered apologies and no doubt empty promises to never speak of it again. And then they turned on their heels to disappear further into the castle.
 
Eleanor let out the breath she’d been unknowingly holding, her shoulders slumping down and the cold gaze slipped from her face.
 
Composure broken, she ran as quickly as she could through the halls. Her shoes slapped against the stone flooring, loud enough to cover her small hiccups of tears.
 
It took her a moment to orient herself as she slowed to a stop. The dark walls of the castle at night created complex passageways and in her state, even trickier to navigate. But her feet had led her down the halls on instinct, though it hadn’t been to her room.
 
Instead, she was back at the library where she had been this morning.
 
Eleanor let out a sniffle, trying her best to hold it in. Her eyes were stinging and her stomach felt decidedly unsettled.
 
She reached out and pushed open the wooden shutter in front of her window. Her book was still laying open, a reminder of her dreams earlier that day. It was nearing nightfall now and the sunset cast a purple glow on the white-tipped ground. She took in the sight of the dead trees forest in the distance, their leafless silhouettes faded in the night’s incoming mist. It didn’t take much imagination to picture the various creatures out there. She could see the brave knights, crafty witches, and mysterious elves. They were all going on adventures out there, seeing the world.
 
A shuddering sigh escaped her.
 
She didn’t understand why that couldn’t be her. She wanted to be something else, anything other than just

her

. What was she away from this castle? The taunting whispers?
 
Age didn’t define much for her; she knew that people in the castle whispered about her. She wasn’t clueless. They joked how serious she was for a child. And tonight had proven that they talked about her mother too – something she was NOT okay with. But if she got to go outside, explore, maybe it would be better. Maybe she would be even smarter. Maybe she could impress those mean people with her stories of what she had seen.
 
The sun continued to dip down, a muted darkness taking over. But Eleanor continued to sit at that window sill, her head propped up on her small hands as she stared long and hard until she couldn’t see anymore.
 
And she vowed to herself that one day she would have that adventure.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

10 Years Later

The circular room in the tower was already small, but it felt like it was increasingly shrinking.
 
Warm sunlight did its best to slip through the cracks of the closed wooden shutters, but it did nothing to bring any warmth to the room. It was silent too, save the occasional high-pitched breath that would escape the mouth of the woman laying on the bed. It was nearly a whistle, coming out in an inconsistent rhythm.
 
Sitting on the lone chair in the room, Eleanor hadn’t taken her eyes off of her mother’s body in hours, her knees cramped up from sitting in the same position for such a long period of time. But she refused to budge.
 
Servants had brought her food, the plates untouched by her feet and the hem of the dress she hadn’t taken off for three days.
 
Nothing had changed.
 
Nothing had changed since that morning she had come into her mother’s room to join her for breakfast, only to find her struggling to stand and deathly pale. Only then to collapse in Eleanor’s arms to the floor.
 
And here she had remained.
 
A throat cleared behind Eleanor, but she didn’t have to turn around to see who it was.
 
The castle’s apothecary had been checking in and treating her mother every day. His presence had graced the castle as long as she could remember, fleeting appearances and always carrying an aroma of smoke and nature. His curly black beard was finally showing slivers of gray, his warm olive skin lined with delicate wrinkles. He was a quiet, serious man. But he’d bestowed gentle smiles towards Eleanor each time he helped explain what exactly he was doing to help her mother survive. She didn’t understand all of it. Most of it really — all of those herbs looked the same to her. But she trusted him, and the way his hands softly applied the ointments and held her mother’s head up to swallow his potions gave her peace of mind that he was doing everything he could.
 
It just might not be enough.
 
Macario’s voice was hesitant, as if he already knew the answer. “Has she awoken yet today?”
 
Eleanor helplessly shook her head.
 
A sigh, and then the apothecary settled into his routine. Not that she was of much use normally, but during this time she was even more of an obstacle, so Eleanor made herself stand and pace around the room. Certainly of no help to anyone there, but at least it stretched her legs. Macario’s deft hands moved quickly and the room filled with the smell of a potent herb. The first day it had made Eleanor nearly gag, now she barely noticed it.
 
His check up didn’t take too long, and before long he was wrapping up. Eleanor had settled into hovering just behind him, chewing at her nails nervously while she watched. Her mother lay the same as she had been, though the ointment on her chest seemed to have relaxed her earlier wheezing.
 
She was struggling with her anxiousness, not knowing how many more days she was going to be able to handle watching this. Every day it was the same and the more she saw her mother lay there silently, the more nervous she grew that this was going to be it.
 
The grim press of Macario’s lips did nothing to ease her fears.
 
“How… how much time do you think she has?”
 
“Overall,” he sighed, a heavy pause before finishing, “I’m not as optimistic as I want to be.”
 
It felt like her chest was caving in.
 
“There is one––” Macario cut himself off with a shake of his head.
 
The tears that were beginning to burn the corners of her eyes still threatened to fall, but the struggle to catch a breathe paused at the unfinished sentence. There wasn’t hope on Macario’s face, no other indication that he might have something. But anything at all, the smallest glimmer of hope, pushed her forward. She clutched onto his robes desperately.
 
“You have to tell me,” Eleanor’s voice came out hoarsely, her face pleading.
 
Macario slowly pulled her hands from his shoulders, his expression somber. His eyes flitted between her and her mother. Finally he cleared his throat, having come to some sort of conclusion internally.
 
“There is a stream. It’s located north of here, deep in the Direwind Woods. An algae grows there, and when combined with the water, it can heal even those hurt by powerful curses.”
 
The elation that Eleanor felt at the possibility of a cure immediately dissipated as she took in the last word that Macario had said.
 
Curses?
 
She must have said it out loud, watching as Macario’s frown deepened and he wrestled with himself.
 
“I wasn’t planning on telling you,” he murmured. “But yes, I have little doubt that your mother was cursed. Her affliction is too abnormal and sudden. It doesn’t match any illness I’ve studied. But I am more skilled in herbalism than in witchcraft, limiting me in what I can do for her.”
 
“How was she cursed?” Eleanor’s voice wobbled.
 
The defeated expression he gave her gave a clear indication that he didn’t know. She couldn’t blame him, but it didn’t stop the sharp pain of sadness that coursing through her. Macario quickly noted her pain, helping guide her back to her seat where she slumped down into it.
 
“Her ailments are just enough to indicate a cause, but I can’t claim any insight to how it happened. And I’m not even sure that I can promise this algae could help, especially since I can’t imagine your father allowing me the time to go retrieve it,” he explained, kneeling in front of her so that he could look up into her eyes earnestly. “It’s a couple days journey deep, not a particularly easy trek.”
 
She bit her lip as tears continued to sting, starting to spill over while she swallowed thickly.
 
Shaking her head, she pushed herself out of his grasp and pulled at her curls. Returning to pacing back and forth.
 
“He’d have to let you go,” she exclaimed loudly, desperately. She spun around to face Macario. His expression had fallen into despair as her voice grew wilder. “This is my mother we’re talking about. He’ll see to it that you have all of the supplies you need.”
 
With that, she spun on her heel and darted out of the room.
 
Pushing past startled servants, she broke into a sprint through the castle. Her lungs contracted sharply as she sucked in air, trying to clear the panic from her mind. The stone was solid and almost comforting as her feet pounded against the ground.
 
It only took a few wrong turns before she heard Papa’s voice. The door to his study was wide open, revealing him and a couple of the men that he would work with. She vaguely recognized them, all mysterious faces that would sometimes appear on their grounds for secretive meetings. She knew they were a variety of levels of class and profession – some generals in the king’s guard, one a mage, and a handful that came down from the North on their giant bears and rumored roles of assassins, amongst others.
 
None of that mattered right now though. Not them, not their histories or reasons for being there.
 
Her frantic gaze focused in on her father, who was in turn looking at her with a startled expression at her sudden entrance to the study. She was rarely ever in here, a place that had been often marked as Papa’s private study. Sure as a child she had occasionally played with her wooden dolls in there, but as she had gotten older her access had grown more limited. It hadn’t changed much since she had last been in here. Towering piles and shelves of books lining the walls, an alchemy station shoved deep into the corner (she didn’t recall it looking that freshly polished before though). Trunks that were larger than her and the constant smell of parchment. And it was always cold.
 
But the quick glance around was all she allowed herself as she advanced towards Papa.
 
“We can cure Mama!”
 
The men all fell silent at last, their stares falling on her as Papa’s posture grew rigid. The sudden focus on her was somewhat unnerving, but she continued on regardless. There was a touch of hysteria to her voice that she struggled to rein in.
 
“Macario, he said there’s a place. If you send him there, he can get this type of plant. An algae! The water there ––”
 
“Enough, Eleanor.”
 
Papa’s booming voice brought her rising excitement to a screeching halt. The last word stuttered out of her mouth as she fell silent.
 
“How dare you come into my study uninvited, blathering on about some wishful thinking,” Brenner snarled, rising to his feet and planting his palms on his desk forcefully.
 
She balked at that.
 
How could he be angry at her for this?
 
“I do not have time for fanciful ideas that will only waste time and resources, not to mention the single competent apothecary for miles,” he continued. He was now rounding his desk towards her, the other men pushing back to allow the family argument to keep going.
 
“But ––”
 
“Do not defy me,” he snapped, reaching down and grabbing her arm. Before she could fully comprehend what was happening, he was pulling her out of the office.
 
Papa’s grip on her wrist was nearly unbearable, his fingers digging into the fleshier part of skin around the bone. She clawed at his hand with her free one, but her efforts were futile as he used his size to easily drag her down the hallways. Anger buzzed in her head, nearly blocking out the tirade of rants coming from Papa. His usual ramblings about the dangers beyond the grounds and the impertinence of her asking for extreme favors. There is however a new rage that undercoats his tone.
 
Servants scurried out of the way and she mentally burned an image of each of them into her mind, for not stepping in while he roughly pulled her along.
 
He practically tossed her into her room, his figure taking over the door frame. Her wrist smarting, Eleanor glowered at him.
 
“You will stay in here until this ridiculous idea is out of your head. Is that clear?”
 
Eleanor responded silently by simply deepening her glare and settling onto the top of her bed. When it became obvious that neither of them had anything else to say to each other, no further explanation of his outburst or her defiance, Brenner slammed the door shut behind him. The candles adorning her room flickered from the gust of wind caused by the door.
 
Her lock clicked shut from outside.
 
When his footsteps finally disappeared into nothingness, the anger in her washed away and Eleanor collapsed onto her bed.
 
Now she couldn’t even be beside her mother, let alone help prepare Macario to go out and find the plant to save her. A sob wracked her body suddenly, and she found herself curling up into a ball on top of her blankets. Her wrist cradled close to her chest, Eleanor fitfully fell into a restless nap where she drifted in and out of consciousness and tears dripped down her nose.
 
Time shifted onwards regardless though. The light from her window changed as the sun drifted across the sky, clouds coming and going. One of the times when she woke up, she noticed that dusk had fallen and her room now just had the soft golden glow from her candles.
 
She sighed, rolling onto her side and pushing herself up into a slumped-over seated position. Her fingers tightened on the fabric of her bedding, the argument bubbling up back in her memory. She still couldn’t fathom why Papa had responded so negatively to her idea. How he could be so resistant to the idea that they could save Mama, as if he had already determined that her fate was going to be death. Thinking about it for too long made her heart ache and she rubbed at her face anxiously.
 
A quiet squeak of wood distracted her. Glancing up, she watched as her best friend Dustin poked his head around the door to her room. His face lit up as he spotted her — though it fell as he took in her somber expression.
 
“Not that you’re not allowed to hide in your room all night, it’s just weird when you don’t show up for our weekly dinner with no warning,” he said as way of explanation for his arrival. He was carrying with him a large plate, piled high in food. Classic Dustin.
 
Eleanor cracked a small grin.
 
“I’m not that hungry,” she replied, but she couldn’t hide the growl that came from her stomach as the smell of the turkey wafted over to her.

When was the last time she had eaten something?

As Dustin settled into a comfortable position on the end of her bed, the food between them, Eleanor began to describe to him all that had happened. She could feel the flames of her anger reigniting, curling in her stomach as she recanted Brenner’s refusal to help. The flare of anger in his eyes at the very suggestion that he send Macario on this journey. The complete disregard to the delicate balance that her mother was in, the fine line between life and death.
 
Dustin looked at her sympathetically. He was one of the only people who she didn’t mind doing that. He knew her situation well, being the child of a woman who’s husband decided to leave her not long after the birth of their son. Maybe not unwed, but abandoned wasn’t much better. Claudia had always been the nicest to Eleanor, treating her like a daughter when she would come explore the castle’s kitchens. That kinship that she and Dustin had discovered so long ago had stayed over the years, making him her only true friend in the castle.
 
“But he’s loved her this whole time, he’s kept us here when he could have turned us out.” Eleanor’s voice grew louder as she continued. “To just now give up on her — us, is cowardly.”
 
“Why don’t you take it into your own hands then?”
 
Cocking an eyebrow, Eleanor gave Dustin a confused expression. He finished swallowing the bite of his turkey leg before launching into his idea.
 
“I know he has that rule to keep you locked up here, but this is your mom’s life that we’re talking about. You should be the one to go out there and get this magic plant and save her. There’s a servant’s quarter that has a hidden door to the outside of the grounds. I’ve used it plenty of times. Just take one of the horses and slip out of here. Bet you could easily find this plant and then get back here in time to save your mom.”
 
He said it so simply, Eleanor couldn’t help but find herself contemplating the idea. Maybe she really could do it.
 
Excitement bubbled up within her, though quickly was squashed down as reality tore away at the dream of being her mother’s rescuer.
 
She had never even left the castle before, how was she supposed to accomplish such an important task?
 
Dustin seemed to have read her face, because he leaned forward and clasped her hand.
 
“I have the connections to get you out of here. I know someone who can help us, I’ll send word right now to my friend in town and then we can leave later tonight.” He flashed his toothy grin at her and Eleanor was able to conjure up the image again in her mind.

She could be the one to save her mother.

The confidence that Dustin seemed to easily have in her helped bring the image back to life in her mind. And to get to be able to see the rest of the world around her while doing it was simply a perk that came with it. She remembered the stories she had read as a kid and a giddiness took over her quickly.
 
She nodded, both her and Dustin beginning to smile widely.
 
Quickly then, with no time to waste, they launched into planning out their evening.
 
Dustin would send out word to his friend in town about the situation and what they needed once they got into town. Eleanor wasn’t entirely sure what that would all entail, but she was thankful for them to have a connection out there and get any help that they could. Storybooks had a habit of leaving out how heroines got about getting started on their adventures. And then from there, he would wait for her and then when the church’s bell rang ten times, they’d meet in the castle’s kitchens. From there, Dustin would help lead her through the hidden door and onto the grounds, where he’d secure a ride for them out of the stables.
 
Which mainly left packing for Eleanor.
 
For a moment, after wolfing down the last of the food, she’d simply stood in the center of her room and was paralyzed.
 
Exactly how was she supposed to go about this?
 
Nevertheless, she pulled herself together and began to pack what she could. She had an average sized satchel, the brown leather still relatively shiny from lack of use. It had been a birthday present, just a couple year ago, but being stuck in the castle had left her with little need for it. She was suddenly very thankful for it. It took a couple tries to figure out though. Mainly because her first instinct was to pack clothing for the trip, but that quickly took up too much room in the bag. So then she dumped everything out, scattering the clothes on top of her bed as she tried to reevaluate what she needed.
 
She finally settled on what she could guess would be most useful: a large bag of coins that she’d been saving up, a small dagger Dustin had once given her, a journal, one extra smock that she could switch out of under the dress she was currently wearing, and an extra pair of socks. Somewhere under her bed she had been able to fish out a study pair of riding boots, their dark brown material just as fresh as the bag she had. She’d found her plainest dress that she could, hoping that it would be enough. She only had a vague idea of where she was even going, not having a chance to question Macario on it before being locked away in her bedroom. But she had scribbled down what she could remember him saying, and the rest would have to rely on her gut and as much luck as she could get.
 
Dustin had left her bedroom door unlocked after picking it earlier to bring her food. Poking her head out, she watched carefully to make sure that no one was passing by.
 
She hardly dared to exhale lest it signal her movements.
 
Slinking the shadows much like the stray cats that would sometimes roam the grounds, Eleanor began to make her way towards the kitchens. The balance between moving quickly but quietly left her palms sweaty and her nerves beyond heightened. Every echo, every noise made her jump. A rat that scurried in front of her nearly sent her backwards into a suit of amour.
 
Eventually the kitchen came into sight and she was able to maneuver into it, thankful for the late hour which meant that there was almost no one in it.
 
And when a curly head of hair came into view, she knew that she were almost free.
 
A disguised door in the back of the pantry, a few twists and turns.
 
Then one more door pushed open and a

whoosh

of fresh air as they two of them appeared outside.
 
The summer air that night was still warm, making Eleanor’s palms even more sweaty as the two of them slunk past windows and further into the grounds. The stables rose up ahead of them, looming in the darkness. Soon enough, they were inside and a stable boy nodded at the two of them. His gaze lingered curiously on her, clearly surprised by her appearance. But Dustin caught his attention and shook his head. There would be no answers tonight for anyone who had helped them.
 
It wasn’t until she was adjusting herself on the saddle that she realized she maybe didn’t have the best clothing for this new adventure. The royal blue dress, though somewhat faded over time into a more muted tone, had to be scrunched up as she sat atop the horse (who’s name she had learned was Benny). Echoes of her mother’s lectures about being ladylike echoed in her mind, but it was too late to do anything about it. Besides, in his attempt to never encourage her to ride too far, Brenner had never supplied her with proper riding attire. But luckily enough, the boots she normally saved for colder weather seemed sturdy enough to trek in and her soft, reddish brown cloak would do the job of somewhat masking how nice her clothing was. Dustin had generously offered to carry her satchel with him until they got into town.
 
With some quiet words of encouragement and a slight kick of her heels, Eleanor began to follow Dustin alongside the ground’s walls in the shadows.

She was nearly off the grounds for the first time in her entire life.

Her horse’s rib cage expanded gently, the sensation reminding her to keep her own breath steady. It was catching up to her what she was embarking on and the nerves were creeping in. They didn’t have to go too far past the stables – it turned out that there was a small gate that she had never known about that led to a trail that headed into town.
 
A commotion back towards the castle interrupted her concentration on Dustin just ahead of her, resulting in a cold sweat to take over her body. Dustin quickly looked back at her. Even in the dark she could see the anxiousness on his face. He jerked his head to indicate that they should speed up, his curls moving with him. She didn’t need to be told twice.
 
First a trot.
 
And then a gallop.
 
Eleanor wasn’t sure if the sounds of guards was really the roaring of blood pumping through her or her imagination. Or maybe it was her heart threatening to break through her ribcage.
 
But then just up ahead, with a tingle torch light to indicate it, she saw the gate. It was open just wide enough for the horses to get through single file.
 
She was so close to freedom and the opportunity to save her mother she could taste it.
 
Breathing heavily, from exhaustion or fear she wasn’t sure, Eleanor tightened her grip on the reigns. She knew she shouldn’t look back, not when they were this close. But she could resist for only so long. So she turned around.
 
Everything was shaky as she fought to keep her balance. Darkness shrouded the castle as it pulled back from them, only small lights flickering in distant windows. But there was the tower.
 
The tower she knew her mother was in.
 
A figure stood at the window.
 
There was no way to know which direction the person was facing, their silhouette too stark in contrast and too far away to be clear. A chill went Eleanor’s back all the same. Overcome with anxiousness, she quickly turned her head and focused on keeping up with Dustin. Her horse slipped through the gate, the fabric of skirt pulling just slightly on the wood as they finally escaped into the dark. They were growing closer to the town, and it was time to focus on her journey ahead.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

While the castle normally fell into a quiet slumber as evening hit, the town of Pinebreak was doing everything but settling down.
 
Eleanor was glad that they had pulled their horses to a slower pace as they entered the town, giving her more time to take everything in. Now that she was down here, it was more clear that it leaned more into being an oversized village than a town, but it was still the most people she had ever been around before. The buildings, with their thatched roofs and dark wood walls, seemed to range in size, though shared open shutters with bright warm light flooding out of them. Shouts of voices bubbled up around them, kids scurrying past their horses as they chased each other. Shrouded dirt alleyways wove between the main roads of cobblestone, with everything seeming to grow from a main center-point that opened up in front of them.
 
She wasn’t sure her jaw had closed since they’d entered.
 
No one even bothered to give them a second glance, too occupied with their summer evening. They were all existing in their own lives and it was thrilling for her to watch. Eleanor wasn’t sure she’s ever seen anyone enjoying their life this much and she felt a sense of exhilaration take over her, almost making her forget the cause of their journey into town.
 
On the brief ride down the hill into town, Dustin has explained that he was taking her to a tavern where a friend of his lived. They had met when they were younger and he had come into town to help his mom purchase fresh produce. All Dustin had said of him was that he was quieter than even her, and to not say anything about his appearance. It was an odd warning without any explanation, but she took it to heart regardless.
 
After tying up their horses, Eleanor followed Dustin into a three-story, leaning building. It was one of the quieter buildings on the block, though for there it just meant that people weren’t spilling out of it. Instead, the musicians in the back corner played slower songs and the people there seemed more interested in conversations.
 
An added bonus considering they didn’t exactly want anyone listening in on them and understanding who Eleanor was.
 
But her years of solitude and hiding amongst the castle shadows seemed to have done her favor in this moment – other than her outfit standing out as a finer quality, no one seemed to notice her at all. She let out a long breath that she’d been holding since they’d stepped into the establishment. She trailed just behind as they reached the bar, Dustin waving for the attention of the bartender. He slid over to them and El nearly had to crane her neck up to look at him. His hair on his head was tightly shaved, balanced out by the longer beard that grew on his chin. At first glance he seemed menacing, but the second he saw Dustin his eyes lit up and a smile opened wide.
 
“Young Mister Henderson, what can I do for you?” His voice rumbled deep in his chest.
 
“We’re here to talk with Will,” Dustin responded promptly.
 
The man nodded and moved back down the bar somewhat. Dustin leaned over, whispering to Eleanor. “That’s Benny, he’s the main bartender here. The woman who owns it is Will’s mom.”
 
“Joyce!” Benny called out and a woman who was in the middle of talking with a couple of people at a table looked up. “Dustin is here for Will.”
 
The woman, Joyce, smiled and quickly murmured a goodbye to the people before weaving towards them. She embraced Dustin and Eleanor felt a pang of sadness as she watched. She could only hope her journey would be successful so she could hug her mother. Joyce then turned to face Eleanor and she was able to get a closer look at her. Her messy brown hair was haphazardly pulled back and the worn smile lines on her face gave her a softness that gave Eleanor a startling sense of trust from a woman she was meeting for the first time.
 
“I’ll go let Will know you’re both here,” she said excitedly, drying her hands on her apron. “Great to see you as always Dustin!”
 
With that, she spun on her heel and made her way towards a door that seemed to open up to a staircase that led to the upstairs of the building. Dustin jerked his head and nodded at a table in the back corner of the tavern.
 
They hadn’t been seated for too long before Benny walked over with a half of loaf of bread and some drinks. Eleanor sipped on her water nervously, choking somewhat as Dustin attempted a sip of ale before making a face. When she was younger she’d tried some herself when her nurse wasn’t looking, nearly throwing up from the taste. Though how much she hated it had saved her since Flo had decided the taste of it was punishment enough.
 
Soon though someone cleared their throat and they looked up to see the person who must have been Will.
 
He was slight for someone that was apparently their age, on the shorter side as well. His hair looked somewhat overgrown, a similar brown to hers. But what was immediately noticeable in the flickering shadows of the tavern was that his skin had a greenish tint to it. Not entirely green, but as if he was bathed in a pale green light. It would have almost made him look ill, if not for the youthful, bright expression on his face. She had never seen anything like it and suddenly Dustin’s warning to her made sense.
 
He walked over to their table with a wave of his right hand, his left using an intricately carved cane to assist himself as he walked over.
 
“I’m Will,” he offered, holding his hand out to Eleanor. She shyly shook it and gave him a nervous smile.
 
“Dustin filled me in,” he gestured to their mutual friend. “I was able to ask around some about getting someone to escort you.”
 
Eleanor immediately began to protest, turning to give an exasperated look at Dustin (who simply grinned and shrugged in response).
 
“How’s walking going?” Dustin asked Will, evading her glare. She sighed, reluctantly having to admit even to herself that it was probably a good idea. Her lack of experience outside the castle walls

might

hinder her somewhat.
 
Will smiled down at his cane.
 
“A lot easier now. This has been a lifesaver, though it’s also probably not going anywhere for a while. But every day I’m a lot more used to it and moving around again. So I’m thankful for it.”
 
She must not have been able to hide her curiosity much, because Will then turned to Eleanor.
 
“It’s a long story, I’m not sure I’ll be able to go into full detail about it tonight. But a year or so ago, I was out looking for a place to work on some art and fell into a cave. I don’t what was going on down there, but the plants were either possessed or enchanted. I ended up being trapped there for a while, these vines just feeding off of me.”
 
He told the story so nonchalantly it through Eleanor off. Even with his brief account, it sounded terrifying and it made her stomach clench.
 
“The fall combined with vines gripping my legs the whole time caused this,” he gestured to the cane. “And the the enchanted part of the plant caused all of this,” he now pointed roughly all over his face, indicating the tinge of green that Eleanor had learned was actually there.
 
“You’re not as green as you used to be though,” Dustin said with chuckle, but the way he looked over at Will gave way to how scary it all must have been once Will had been rescued.
 
It also gave Eleanor another reason to pause at her hesitance about a knight to help take her. She really didn’t know anything about the territory around here and it could be a fatal mistake.
 
“Well, your cane is beautiful,” she said with a smile. “Did someone make it for you?”
 
“It’s elven,” he explained excitedly, pulling it onto the table for her to closer examine it. It was a beautiful white wood, with intricate patterns carved into it. She became distracted by it until Dustin’s voice broke through her thoughts.
 
“So can we trust this knight you found?”
 
Will nodded, taking the cane back as Eleanor reluctantly handed it back over.
 
“Absolutely. I’ve known him for a while, he recently came back her after being knighted from being a squire up at the king’s court. He really wants to prove him, and his father too I think but don’t tell him I said that,” he quickly added on sheepishly. “Which means he’s willing to take this on. Pretty good first job as a knight too, helping a lady on a quest.” He gave Eleanor a teasing smile to accompany his somewhat sarcastic tone, and she had to laugh at the quintessential nature of it all. She really had entered one of her fairy tales.
 
“And in fact, there he is now!”
 
Fighting the desire to whip around, Eleanor slowly turned in her seat to watch as someone walked over.
 
He was… well awkward was the first word that came to mind. But in a somehow endearing way.
 
While he wasn’t wearing a traditional suit of armor, the silver scale-armor across his torso flickered in the tavern’s candlelight and a sword hung at his side. He seemed almost like a nervous cat though, the way it hung on him. Shaking his messy black curls out of his eyes, he looked around for them. When he spotted Will, a noticeable difference overtook his posture and he relaxed into himself. An easy-going smile crept onto his face and he wove his way over towards them.
 
“Hello!” The greeting almost burst out of him, his fingers drumming against the hilt of his sword.  The chair squeaked against the hardwood floor as he took a seat at the table.
 
Eleanor wasn’t sure how, but she felt an instant feeling of trust around him. Even in his palpable insecurities, there was a sense of belief that he would do what he needed to do for this journey. For having grown up in an atmosphere of distrust and entangled loyalties, it was an odd sensation and she wasn’t sure how she knew that about him. She just did.
 
“It’s good to see you again! These are my friends,” Will looked over at her.

Right, time for business

.
 
“Well I’m Lady Eleanor, Lord Brenner’s… daughter.” The words fumbled out of her mouth. “And I think you already know that I need to go on a mission to collect something very important. Which is why you’re here.”
 
At the sound of Lord Brenner’s name, Mike started and his eyes widened. He seemed to just now be taking in the finer quality of her dress from underneath her cloak, the golden thread and soft material giving away her background. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn’t escorting some of some level of royalty around.
 
“Oh, okay,” he replied, his voice faintly higher.
 
“And I’m Dustin! But I’m not anyone highborn or anything, just the head cook’s son.” He gave Mike an enthusiastic handshake.
 
“I’m Michael, but you can call me Mike,” he said, nodding towards each of them.
 
“Are you going on this?” Will’s voice was softly curious as he turned to face Dustin.
 
He shook his head sadly. “I can’t. My mom wouldn’t know what to do with herself if I took off.”
 
“Could I get another run down of what we’re doing again?” Mike’s eyebrows knit together as he frowned in confusion. “Obviously Will could only tell me so much. We’re going into the woods?” His voice trailed off, looking between the three others.
 
“Do you want to fill everyone in Eleanor?” Dustin looked at her excitedly, the adventure ahead of her still thrilling to him even without him joining.
 
“We shouldn’t call her by her name,” Mike cut in abruptly, his eyes darting around anxiously as if someone in the tavern had overheard them. “It’s too risky. I don’t want Lord Brenner immediately finding out about this.”
 
“Shit you’re right,” Dustin grimaced. He turned to her, “What do you want to be called?”
 
“I… I don’t know,” Eleanor stammered. She had never thought about having a nickname before. It seemed like such an intimate thing to acquire. She looked around at the guys looking at her.
 
When it was clear that nothing was coming to mind, they launched into their own suggestions. Dustin was flying through different names, each more ridiculous than the last, causing her to wrinkle her nose in rejection at each of them. Will suggested a handful but seemed just about as unsure as she was. Her eyes kept drifting back to Mike though, who was staring at her with a serious expression. It didn’t make her uncomfortable like most people’s stares at the castle had. It seemed more contemplative, studying.
 
Finally he spoke up though.
 
“What about just El?”
 
The party fell silent and they all looked over at him.
 
He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, a slight flush tingeing his cheeks. “Well you know, it’s just a shorter version of her name. That way it’ll be easier for her to feel like it’s something she could answer to. Or identify with.”
 
Heads swiveled to look over at Eleanor.
 
“I like it.” She was almost surprised at herself how quickly she agreed to it. But it was true, she did like it. She

really

liked it.
 
The secretly-pleased smile that graced Mike’s face made her grin as well. She supposed it wasn’t the worst case scenario to have some escort her if he was going to be this nice. Satisfied that they now had a new name to address her by, they dove back into talking about what was going to be happening. The Direwind Woods were not even a day’s ride away, though they’d most likely have to go quite deep into them before they reached their destination.
 
Which Eleanor, now determinedly thinking of herself as ‘El,’ awkwardly explained was a bit of an unknown. She only knows the vaguest details about where they’re going – but she doesn’t want to let any of them know that. So she plays it off confidently, masking it by saying she doesn’t want anyone to overhear them. In theory, their plan isn’t too complicated of a quest. But making sure they aren’t followed, and that she’s able to safely return to the castle, give them enough potential hiccups to take it all seriously.
 
The bread in front of them, along with the majority of the crowd there at the tavern, eventually disappear. It’s at that point that Dustin sighs and tells them that he should probably return to the castle.
 
He gives El one last hug, a tight one that nearly lifts her off her feet. She squeezes him tightly back, trying to convey how much she’s thankful for how much he’s helped her.
 
“Don’t get into too much trouble out there,” he joked as she set her back down. “Or at least, nothing that I wouldn’t do.”
 
She rolled her eyes, but smiled all the same. “That leaves me a lot of leeway.”
 
He let out a loud laugh, ruffling her hair and then hugging Will goodbye and shaking Mike’s hand. And then with a quick salute of his fingers, he disappeared back out into the night to return to the castle. El hoped she would see him again sooner than later.
 
“We have an extra room upstairs.” She realized Will was talking to her and turned to face the two remaining guys. “You’re more than welcome to stay there tonight before heading out in the morning. Unless you’d rather stay at the inn down the street.”
 
“No, this is perfect. Thank you so much for everything.”
 
Mike cleared his throat, giving her a small smile.
 
“Well, I guess that means I’ll see you in the morning? We should probably leave at first light. Long summer days, you know. Give us as much time as possible,” he explained. She was so used to harsh commands that his tone nearly startled her, soft and questioning, as if seeking her permission for the plan.
 
She nodded, returning it with her own hesitant smile.
 
“I’ll meet you here at first light.”
 
It was such a simple sentence, but it swelled up in her how momentous all of this was. There was going to be no turning back after tomorrow. This was it. Starting tomorrow, she would begin her journey to help save her mother

and

prove that she was capable of doing this. It felt like a way to save them both.
 
With a small wave to Mike as he turned to leave, she started to follow Will upstairs to his family’s living quarters.
 
It was almost overwhelming, the sudden amount of freedom that faced her. The way each of the three guys had taken her seriously, that she was in charge of herself and her destiny. As she prepared to get as much sleep as possible, she let out a shuddering, but excited breath. She was really doing this.
 
As she finally succumbed to sleep, she couldn’t help but also admit to herself that there was something rather cute about this new knight.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

If she had originally had any fears about oversleeping that morning, El very quickly realized that they were for naught.
 
She woke up before first light even appeared on the horizon.
 
The light wool of the blanket scratched against her skin as she laid there, not quite ready to move herself out of bed. Her mind rolled over the plans for the day and she felt a rush of nerves and excitement course through her. Today was it. She was going to prove that she could save her mother, as well as prove to herself that she was capable of this. That she didn’t have to limit herself to the walls of the castle. She’d longed for adventure her entire life, she couldn’t get too scared now.
 
Eventually though as the dark clouds waned into the soft blue that came just before sunrise, she swung her legs over the edge of the mattress and forced herself to get ready.
 
It didn’t take long – she hadn’t dared unpack much in fear of forgetting something, as well as passing out asleep the second she had hit the bed. After tugging on her boots and tightening the laces, she knew it was going to be time to go.
 
A far off rooster let her know that she was right on time, slipping downstairs back into the tavern. In the very beginnings of the of morning it was completely empty. Morning was barely beginning to peek in, the dim lighting showing her the way towards the door as she adjusted her pack on her side. She pushed open the door and was greeted by a wave of fresh air, that coolness that came specifically with early summer mornings. It was refreshing and she inhaled deeply.
 
Noises to her left drew her gaze and she spotted Mike walking up, guiding his horse alongside him. Rather than the light scale armor he had worn last night, his torso was now covered in a deep brown leather jerkin, with chainmail covering his arms and flashing from underneath the leather fabric. The noise was him struggling to adjust the sword at his hip and El bit back a laugh as he swore under his breath.
 
When he saw her, Mike hastily straightened himself up and did a small bow as he addressed her. She waved her hand awkwardly as if to push the gesture aside.
 
“If we’re not calling me by my full name, we should probably also get rid of other formalities,” she said quickly, even though there wasn’t anyone else outside at the moment with them.
 
But Mike nodded, agreeing with her. “That’s a good call. And uh… on that note, is that really the only outfit you have?”
 
He seemed more amused than anything else, but El blushed all the same as she looked down.
 
In the low lighting of her room and in her rush, she had grabbed what she assumed was her plainest dress. And while it might have truly been that, it did stand out more now that she in the town. Especially with the morning rays from the sun glinted off of the embroidery that peeked out from underneath the cloak she was wearing.
 
“It’s okay,” Mike urged her when he picked up on her increasing embarrassment. “My sister runs a dress shop here in town, I convinced her to help us out last night if we ended up needing it. We can just go there first before we head out. It shouldn’t take long.”
 
And that was how El found herself meeting Nancy Wheeler.
 
By herself.
 
To Mike’s credit, he hadn’t meant to leave her alone with his sister. But after questioning El a bit more about their journey, he had determined they needed a better map. In order to save as much time as possible, he’d rushed out to get one and left her in the hands of Nancy.
 
El felt the return of fluttering nervousness as the older girl helped her out, but it was quickly alleviated. Nancy, willowy with a mess of brown curls pulled to the nape of her neck, seemed sharp and quick-witted. She admired the ease at which she moved around the shop, in control of her environment and startlingly awake for such an early hour.
 
When El cautiously mentioned it as a form of small talk, Nancy just shrugged with a smile around the iron needles she was holding in her teeth to adjust the dress she had put on her. They’d found one to keep the blue, but it’s faded color and plainness helped El slip into a new role for this journey. And somehow it all felt more like herself than any of the outfits that she had grown up wearing.
 
“My brother doesn’t often get passionate about new things, not often,” she eventually replied once her mouth was free of her tools. “I could tell this was important to him to do it right for you and to keep you safe.”
 
Nancy paused, her eyes flicking up towards El.
 
“He’s always trying to prove himself. Which is ridiculous, I’ve never met a more loyal person. But he still doesn’t feel like he’s impressed our dad even after being knighted. But don’t worry, that means he’ll make sure you take care of whatever it is you need to do.”
 
It was an encouraging statement and El hummed in response. She did feel twinge of melancholy at the idea of Mike fighting for approval from his family, or at least his dad.
 
That was a feeling she knew all too well.
 
From there the two are silent, Nancy busy working away and El enviously imagining what it would be like to be in charge of your own independence. She tried picturing herself working in a shop, landing on the image of herself twirling between bookshelves as she helped a young girl find something to read.
 
The adjustments took barely any time and El sadly broke from her fantasy to go pay Nancy for the dress. Nancy protested at first, insisting that the amount of gold that El fished out of her bag was too much, but El stubbornly kept pushing it on her until she accepted it. She wasn’t sure if she could truly repay any of the people that were helping with this, but she didn’t doubt that money would help in some sort of fashion.
 
Mike wasn’t back yet though, so El found herself wandering the shop and examining the different dresses. The shop was small, just as cozy as the tavern that they had been at the night before. She wondered how Nancy, who didn’t seem that much older than her, had been able to start it at such a young age.
 
“You know it’ll probably feel better if you cut it off.” Nancy’s voice floated over.
 
El awkwardly spun around, her brows furrowed in confusion. The older girl nodded her head at her and El realized she had been nervously twisting and untwisting a lock of hair around her finger.
 
“Speaking from experience,” Nancy added with a wry grin. “Large journeys are usually easier when you don’t have to worry about things like your hair.”
 
So just a bit later, Mike walked in on Nancy completing the finishing touches of El’s new hair.
 
He blinked, surprised by the transformation. El touched the end of it, suddenly worried why he seemed so taken aback by it.
 
Nancy’s shears had been able to cut through her thick hair, allowing it fall just above her shoulders. Without the extra hair weighing it down, her hair now curled in just slightly, tickling her neck. Nancy had been right though. It felt easier to manage, lighter. If they had any more intense hot summer days, it would keep her cooler. And she wouldn’t have to worry about it tangling or becoming a mess while they were gone.
 
But then Mike let out a cough and he blushed, giving El a lopsided smile that eased any of her superficial fears about her new hair.
 
“I take it you’re ready to go then?”
  
With their clothing and horses secured with everything they needed for a multi-day journey, El and Mike headed out towards the Direwind Woods.
 
The town was already the furthest away El had ever been from the castle, but she kept an internal tally of each new landmark. The gate that they rode through without so much as a glance from the yawning guard, still waking up for his watch. The farms and stables that dotted the outskirts of the village. The windmill that lazily drifted in the summer morning.
 
And then nothing and everything all at once.
 
While her horse kept at a quick clip alongside Mike’s horse, she twisted in her saddle to look behind her. Pinesbreak, and consequently the castle, were disappearing into the distance.
 
When she turned back, the land opened up in front of her with her future awaiting.
 
For a while, the two of them didn’t talk. Mike encouraged the idea of them putting as much space as possible between them and the castle, which El agreed was a good idea. So for the beginning of their trip they remained silent, urging their horses into a gallop. El’s heart pounded in excitement and in fear.

They were really doing this.

The sun continued its arc above them, now fully rising above into the sky. Time hurried alongside them, and soon El had no idea where they were. Mountains rose and fell on their sides and she kept her gaze on the path ahead.
 
Eventually reaching a small farm, Mike determined they had gone far enough to bring themselves to a slower pace. They quickly paid the farmer for a small helping of hay for their tired animals, El slipping a silver piece to the small girl who watched the two of them with wide eyes. And then they’d continued onward.
 
After some more silence, Mike pulled them to a halt.
 
“Why are we stopping?” El asked, pulling loose strands of hair out of her mouth. She really was glad that Nancy had helped her cut it.
 
Mike nodded to their side. “This road will eventually take us to the forest if we keep going, but I think our best bet is going to be just heading straight into it. We’ll save some time not trying to go around it and then in.” He gestured towards where the main road split off into another direction.
 
El sucked in her breath as her head turned to follow Mike’s pointing. The other road that diverged from the main one wasn’t too different than the one they were on. Just slightly narrower, the cobblestones somewhat more spread out.
 
But it wasn’t the road that made her freeze in awe, nearly holding her breath at the sight.
 
She had been so focused on keeping up with Mike and their conversation that she’d been mainly looking ahead and at him. Now though, her gaze finally took in the surroundings to their side and she got her first look at the Direwind Woods.
 
Summer had made everything green around them, but the woods were another level of intensity. The foliage started early, crawling and tumbling over the rocks as the stone path led towards the trees. And El wasn’t sure she could have imagined trees that large if she tried. Summer had elevated the vibrancy emitted off of the trees, their leafy canopy shining in the daylight in a rich green. The thick trunks twisted and rose up from the ground with the confidence of nature that had ruled this land for generations. It put the mountains to the south to shame and made the valley where Pinebreak rest seem even smaller. There was no end in sight and El felt her breath catch in her throat. She knew from stories and the map that this forest would continue north as far as they’d be able to travel, expanding and tanking over the landscape. In there they could find species and races that she had only read about. There were even rumors of the few dragons left finding solace in their isolation.
 
And she could also find the cure for her mother.
 
El shook her head to come back to focusing on the task at hand.
 
“Should we check the map again? Just to be safe,” she asked, though she knew would prefer to get off the main road and just dive into the woods. But they were partners on this journey, and she wanted to make sure that Mike was comfortable with the decision. He nodded in agreement, confirming that it was what he assumed was the best idea but that it didn’t hurt to double check.
 
She swung her knapsack around and fished out the map, unscrolling it as Mike nudged his horser closer to hers so that he could look at it as well. They quickly studied it, El’s finger tracing up the slightly crinkled paper until she traced to where they were.
 
“I think we actually need to go past Fallsgrave,” El added hesitantly. Looking at the map, there was clearly a sketch of some type of waterfall past whatever that place was, so it must have been where they needed to go.
 
There just wasn’t much else charted out that far.
 
Mike’s head jerked towards her, his cheeks blowing out as he inhaled sharply.
 
“

Past

Fallgraves?”
 
She nodded at his echo, suddenly nervous at his reaction.
 
“That’s just… no one goes out that far. It’s dangerous.” His voice had notes of hysteria but he was doing his best to keep it in check.
 
El grimaced, knowing that she should have probably warned him ahead of this. How dangerous? She glanced at the sword as his side, the weight of the smaller short sword heavy on her belt. Surely they had enough to protect themselves.
 
But the frown on his face indicated that maybe they were getting themselves in over their heads.
 
“Well we can’t go back now!” El finally burst out, gesturing around them. “We’ve made it this far.”
 
Mike let out a long breath before pursing his lips. His eyes glanced around them and she knew she was right. She could feel anger threatening to spill out of her, waiting for him to yell at her like Papa would when she had pushed him too far. The barbed comments sitting on her tongue to lash out if he provoked her. He was supposed to be a knight right? Where was his sense of adventure?
 
The argument never came.
 
While it did look like Mike was wrestling with his own heated emotions, unlike those times in the castle when she had asked one too many times if she could go outside, Mike didn’t shout at her. He let out a steadying breath before shrugging his shoulders, nodding his head towards where the road split off.
 
“I trust you. Let’s go then,” was all he said.
 
She felt the anger slip away from her in a feeling of shock. A welcome shock, but one all of the same.
 
Her instinct had been to guard herself and fight back, but Mike

trusted

her. He didn’t entirely agree, but he hadn’t belittled her or pushed her thoughts aside. A frustrated tension remained between them, but it wasn’t an angry one. She didn’t feel it coiling in her stomach anymore.
 
They resumed their trek, kicking their horses back into a trot and turning to go down the new road. Minutes had passed, and El grappled with how that moment had impacted her. In their brief time together, she could admit to herself that she wouldn’t have thought Mike to be a violently angry person. It was hard to push back on all that you knew though when those moments flared up, but it had been extinguished as quickly as it had started. She didn’t enjoy the tension, though it seemed more like Mike was somewhat sulking just ahead of her. She could recognize that feeling and a surge of confidence rushed through her that they’d be able to work it out.
 
She pushed her horse a bit more and caught up to Mike, pulling herself alongside him.
 
His eyes darted towards her and then returned resolutely forward. She waited for him to speak though, sensing that he wanted to talk but was almost waiting for permission to do so.
 
“I just wish,”  the words still sounded harsh so he stopped and composed himself. “I just wish you had said something earlier.”
 
This time he only sounded concerned.
 
“I could have done something more to prepare us. You. I don’t know, I just want to make sure I can help protect you and in order to do that, I need to know everything I can.”
 
He still wouldn’t look at her, but it made a lot more sense now.
 
Somehow, even though nothing had happened to either of them and they had barely begun this journey,

he was blaming himself

.
 
Neither of them said anything after that, letting Mike’s admittance hanging in the air. The only sound was the occasional snort from their horses and the clopping of their hooves on the stones lining the path.
 
“I’m sorry for not being clearer before we started,” she said softly. Taking a deep breath, she continued talking. “I blame myself for things that feel out of my hands as well. That if maybe I had known something, I could have already saved my mother’s life.”
 
Mike stilled in his saddle, his head turning towards her as he listened.
 
“Since she fell ill, I’ve been trapped by this fear of what could happen. But I finally had to stop letting it control me. I had to take this risk, even with gaps in my knowledge, because I have to know that I tried. And it’s worth it, danger and all.”
 
El isn’t sure she’s completely conveyed her thoughts to him. Talking to someone new after so long is still making her stumble over her words. She’s not sure she articulated the idea that

she gets it

. She gets that need to blame yourself. But it’s suddenly easier to see the faults in that when Mike does it, than when she does it.
 
The words must have somehow come out alright though, because she watched as Mike’s shoulders visibly relaxed and the tension was released from him. She’s fairly certain he mumbled a soft thanks, but she doesn’t pressure him to say anymore.
 
The silence in between them slipped into a new familiarity.
 
El wasn’t sure the last time she had experienced this feeling. Maybe over dinner with her mother when she was younger. Brief moments with Dustin, though more often than not they were filled with excited chatter and exploring the castle.
 
This was something new, but somehow old as if they had known each other before all of this.
 
The ride from there became natural, easy. Most of it is spent in silence, each of them taking turns with the occasional anecdote. Mike asked her a few question about growing up in the castle and she found herself admitting to the reality of it all. The horror on Mike’s face didn’t escape her and admitting it out loud made her also realize how much being hidden away had affected her. However Mike was gracious with his follow up questions, steering away from the harder ones that she struggled with. She did want to tell him more though, surprised at how quickly she felt that he was someone she really could talk to. But she couldn’t figure out the words to say all of it yet, and a selfish part of her hoped that there would be time after all of this adventure for her to tell him all of it. So she happily let him change the pace of the conversation.
 
She asked about his family as well, getting almost similar distant responses (though his expression lightened while talking about his sisters).
 
It had been so long since El had been able to get to know someone new. Every story that Mike had from his childhood gave her a thrill, getting to hear about things she had never even imagined. The antics seemed twice as funny, the people in his life alive with personality. He was an amazing storyteller, and she found herself hanging onto every word. Picking up on her rapt attention, Mike finally had a smile on his face. He let the stories grow bigger as he gave her more detail, mimicking the voice of town librarian who had kicked him out one night when he’d tried to sleep amongst the books. He has a knack for it, putting all of El’s old storybooks to shame. Multiple times, she thought to herself how much of a shame it was that he had been pushed into knighthood when his calling was so clearly something else.
 
Their conversation carried them across their new path and before El had realized it, they had entered the woods.
 
The stone path petered off into a dirt one. Above them, the trees blocked the blue sky but the leaves helped cast a golden light around them. El could have sworn she saw a series of flickering lights, maybe even pixies, but they disappeared as soon as she turned her head.
 
Mike let their conversation fade, picking up on her distraction by everything around them.

He did have a small smile on his face as he checked on her, though she didn’t notice it.

At some point they reached a clearing and they mutually agreed that they should rest for a while. They’d pushed themselves further than they had expected, giving El a feeling of satisfaction. But they didn’t want to prematurely wear their horses, or themselves, out so a break seemed like the best call.
 
The clearing butted up against a cluster of trees, decorate by a large boulder and some smaller ones. Mossy, overgrown trees laid on the ground and had been there so long they had practically become a new ecosystem. It was open and they could also build a fire there if they ended up needing to later.
 
Brushing his hair out of his eyes, Mike looked around them.
 
“It sounds like there’s some water that way,” and he gestured to the east. “I’ll fill up our water and get some for the horses. Are you comfortable waiting here?” El nodded confidently, so after helping tie up her horse, Mike made his way towards the sound of the river with their leather flasks in hand.
 
El settled onto the log closest to the horses, pulling out the map to look over.
 
She wasn’t as much worried about where they were headed, as much as she wanted to see what else there was out there. The priority of this trip was obviously to rescue her mother, but she has a small grain of hope inside her that this adventure is only the first. With her mother back in good health, she wouldn’t be worried about being gone for longer amounts of time. Her finger runs across the parchment, imagining each town as she crosses the inked name with her touch.
 
A part of her wondered if Mike would go with her.
 
This trip was more urgent. A secret.
 
But what if it could be planned? Would he want to help escort her if she doesn’t fit the role of a damsel in distress like her stories? She doesn’t think he seems like the type, but if he proves himself as a knight with this, maybe he won’t be as interested in joining her on any others.
 
But it’s easy to imagine him by her side as they enter a new town and chat with the locals. Maybe he’d be interested in meeting elves, that would be a way to try to convince him to join her again.
 
Of course, if she wanted longer, more exciting trips, she wouldn’t always be able to just sneak out. Papa wouldn’t be pleased if she did it without his permission.
 
At the thought of Papa, her hand stilled.
 
She’d managed to go the majority of the day now without thinking about him. But now he was fully realized in her mind again, looking down at her in disappointment.
 
The image was too strong and her blood run cold, her heartbeat increasing.

He must be livid with her.

The one major rule he had ever implemented and she had broken it. There was no doubt that he would be chasing after her. She hadn’t even thought to give Dustin any type of protection (not that she knew what she could have done). She only hoped that their friendship had gone unnoticed enough for him to be left alone and not questioned.
 
Even if Dustin hadn’t been questioned though, Papa would know soon that she hadn’t been home for nearly an entire day.
 
Meaning he would come looking for her.
 
The idea was paralyzing and El found her breath becoming shallow, her head light.
 
He was probably already on their trail. Breathing down their necks. And oh gods, Mike would no doubt try to defend her and she couldn’t bear to think of how Papa would react to that. What danger had she put Mike in by needing him with her? It was certainly more danger than he imagined would greet them on their journey past Fallgraves.

And it would all fall on her.

She was fully aware that she was probably overreacting.
 
But that didn’t stop the seed of doubt from beginning to grow in her mind, taking root and spreading nervous energy throughout her body.
 
Every small sound around her seemed to elevate, her ears pricking up at the slightest rustle of leaves. She nearly wrenched her neck as she jerked her head around to look behind her at the sound of a branch snapping. Nothing followed the noise, indicating that it was most likely nature doing its own thing. But it made the hair on the back of her neck curl up and her mouth suddenly felt parched. She swallowed anxiously, trying her best to will herself into calmness.

Another crack deep in the woods.

She couldn't help the small cry of desperation that slips from her mouth, her eyes stinging with tears as she struggled to pull herself together.
 
What if it really was Papa?
 
Had he finally found her after a day’s search, determined to bring her back to the castle where she would be locked up and have to watch her mother die?
 
Sounds tumbled together in the background and what at one point what had been a flowing river became the thudding of hooves against the dirt path. Bushes rustling were soldiers lying in wait for her. El shot to her feet. Her horse cocked its head towards her, his unblinking large black eyes taking in her panic. He seemed unaffected, still slowly chewing on the shrubbery that was near where he was tied up.
 
If Papa was truly here, it was too risky to try to out ride him or his men.
 
She had to hide.
 
El scrambled towards the giant boulder. Her feet occasionally slipped on the mossy ground beneath her, giving way to her frantic footsteps. Once she reached it, she pushed herself down into a small ball at the base of it, shoving herself into the cranny of space between the rock and the trees. It felt like the forest was beginning to close in on her. Had the trees always been that tall? A buzzing noise was taking over her ears and with a cry, she slapped her hands over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut.
 
Her fears began to warp even more, twisting from the idea that Papa was there to some unknown creature. Something she hadn’t ever even read about, barreling towards her to make her into their dinner. And without Mike –– then her brain clasped onto the idea that he had abandoned her. How long had been gone again? Had this all been too much of a risk?
 
Time seemed to pause and she was unsure of how long she had been sitting there, rocking slightly on the cool undergrowth.
 
She was so focused on making herself as small as possible that she nearly missed the sound of her name being called.
 
“El! El!”
 
Fingers ghosted softly against her hands covering her ears and her eyes flew open. Mike was leaning down, kneeling in front of her. His face was an openbook of worry and it took her a minute to remember to breathe, her eyes going from his face to their surroundings before returning to him. Hands trembling, she slowly lowered them and felt her breathing return to normal. As it did, she watched as the fear slipped away from Mike’s face into relief.
 
“I’m right here,” he whispered, his voice calm and soothing as if he didn’t want to frighten her.
 
She nodded slowly as she let the sounds of the woods and Mike’s voice wash over her.

He had come back to her.

“Are you okay? Is everything okay?”
 
“Promise,” she managed to make herself say, the word coming out small.
 
Mike immediately decided that they were staying at that spot for the night. He insisted that she needed time to recover, treating her panic attack like a true ailment instead of blowing it off. El’s not sure how many more times she can feel a rush of gratitude for him before it feels normal, but for now it still makes her feel warm and protected with a hint of surprise. He’s patient with her and they spend the evening practicing throwing the small dagger he had lent her. She’s a quick study and soon her fears have evaporated, and she even laughs so hard she snorts once despite years of being trained to behave like a lady.

She and Mike look at each other, startled as she does, before erupting into more laughter.

Then before they fell asleep on the beds of leaves they’ve constructed, Mike turned to her before he blew out the lantern they’d brought with. And he reminded her of his promise that he was going to help her on her journey, and he fully intended to carry through.
 
The weight of his words held with El even as her eyes drifted shut.
 
For someone she had only known a day, it was incredibly natural for her to trust Mike. Both with his promise to her, as well as her own life.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

After two days, it was somehow already difficult for El to remember what it had been like to be trapped inside the castle her entire life. And thanks to the ease their journey now had, it was easier to relax into it and stay focused. They moved at a quick clip to continue their steady pace forward, furthering themselves from the castle while hopefully beating out the clock that was counting down for her mother.
 
There had almost been one moment when Mike’s sharp eyes had spotted potential bandits, so the two of them slipped off of the main path and took a slight detour. That was the only instance though. Another time El swore that she spotted a family of gnomes, their hair wild and hats askew, watching them. But when Mike turned around they were nowhere in sight. There were a trio of silver cat-like creatures that they both saw though. Their tails shone in the light and flicked, the hair-like fur creating a halo effect. Their eyes seemed too aware though as they watched and El had no problem heeding Mike’s cautious warning to try to not pet them, or even too close.
 
She did gently pet the small yellow bird that flitted onto her shoulder at one point, accepting the sprig of lavender it handed her.
 
It was hard to ignore the fondness that Mike looked at her with during that moment.
 
She was starting to suspect that the butterflies she felt when he smiled at her weren’t going to be going anyway any time soon. In fact they seemed to be increasing.
 
But she did what she could to shake it off. As much of a fairytale as this felt at times, there were still reminders of what was at stake. Even she didn’t let them indulge too much in the fae around them, the two of them pushing their horses as much as they dared to quickly move through the forest. Tendrils of anxiety still floated through El’s mind once in a while, amplified when they passed the occasional other traveler on the road. She couldn’t trust any of them when there was the threat of any of them being hired by Brenner to find her.
 
Finally though, even Mike had to urge her to stop for a lunch break. Their horses needed water, and hell, they probably did as well. So they found a clearing and began to hunt for the mushrooms they had figured out were safe to eat with the dried meat they were holding onto.
 
Mike had wandered a bit ahead of her, frowning as he searched the ground.
 
And promptly stumbled backwards as if he had run into something.
 
“Mike!” El hurried over, pulling her the length of her dress up as she clamored over a pile of logs. “Are you okay?”
 
“What the hell?” Mike muttered, rubbing at his forehead gingerly as he looked searchingly ahead of him. Luckily he seemed more confused and dazed than seriously hurt.
 
El slowed down as she neared him, not seeing anything that could have caused him to fall back like that. But he seemed suspicious so she kept her guard up.
 
“It’s like… a force field of some kind.”
 
He reached his hand out until his fingers stopped and El watched as he slid his hand

across

the air as if it was a something solid. Her eyes widened as she stepped up beside him, delicately reaching out to poke the air in front of her. Just like it did with Mike, her finger stopped at an arm’s length away. She wasn’t sure if she could describe the sensation but it made her arm tingle so she quickly pulled it back.
 
“Why is it here?” Mike mumbled, his brain clearly going into overdrive as he looked around them with intense concentration.
 
“Because you’re trying to cross into my property,” a voice said drily from behind them.
 
The two spun around at the new voice.
 
Standing just beyond them, a basket of plants resting on her hips, a girl about their age was watching them. She had a wry grin on her face and the sun shone on her long, messy red hair that fell behind her shoulders. She looked about as much of nature as any of the creatures that they had passed so far.
 
Noticing the confusion on their faces, she sighed and waved her hand up in the direction to where Mike had stumbled back. They turned and El gasped.
 
The air around them seemed to begin to shimmer and then dissolve, revealing a small stone house tucked in amongst the trees. Vines climbed up the walls and wove themselves into the thatched roof, while plants spilled out around it. A faint smell of something cooking wafted from within and El’s stomach immediately growled as the scent hit her nose.
 
The girl laughed at the sound, though not at all maliciously.
 
“Come in. I’ve easily made enough food to feed two strangers trying to break into my house,” she said lightly, walking past them and disappearing into the house.
 
“We can’t break in if we can’t see it,” came the grumbled response from Mike. El quickly elbowed him gently, giving him a look that translated to

behave yourself

.
 
They entered the cottage, its earthy tones and atmosphere invoking a cozy feel that immediately put El at ease. It was all open as one room, the bed tucked back in one of the corners and a hearth with a small fire on the other side. The source of the good smells appeared to be in the cauldron that was resting above the flames and a faint bubbling sound could be heard around them. El wasn’t sure she would be able to identify all of the herbs hanging up and drying against one of the walls.
 
Mike put the pieces together faster than she did.
 
“Are you a witch?” There was no judgement to his voice, but he seemed incredibly cautious as he looked around.
 
“That’s correct,” she replied, gesturing her hand lazily as she peaked on the cauldron. Smiling with satisfaction, she turned around and pointed at the table she had set up. “Sit. I don’t want to eat you if that’s what you’re worried about.”
 
El couldn’t help but giggle. “Is that actually something witches do?”
 
Max nodded seriously, but then a grin cracked on her face and she laughed. “I’m sorry, I tried to make that convincing. But nope. Even if we did at one point we haven’t done it in a long time. A lot of us don’t even eat anything from animals. Feels more attuned with nature.”
 
Mike and El looked at each other and shrugged. Hard to disagree with that.
 
“So let me guess,” Max said, leaning back in her chair and observing the two of them. “You’re running away because you’re families won’t let you two get married.”
 
El’s blushed so quickly her face nearly burned. She couldn’t even look at Mike but she quickly shook her head. She’d finally started to admit to herself that she found him attractive; she wasn’t about to make this even more awkward by letting that assumption last.
 
“No, it’s not like that,” she managed to respond. Thankfully her voice sounded normal.
 
“I’m helping guide her through the woods,” Mike interjected and El finally stole a glance in his direction. His cheeks seemed to be tinged pink as well and she bit back a smile. “We’re on a quest.”
 
At that, Max’s eyes sparkled mischievously and she leaned forward on her elbows.
 
“A quest! Well that’s a lot more interesting than the usual lost travelers I find.”
 
Mike muttered something about them not being lost but El nudged his foot with hers.
 
“What’s the quest for? Gold? To break a curse?” Max asked eagerly. She picked up on El flinching at the second one and her expression turned more inquisitive. “Which one of you is cursed?”
 
“It’s my mother actually. She’s sick, really sick. And the apothecary back at the castle seemed to believe she was cursed so I escaped to find the cure for her. He said it would be in the woods, at a waterfall.”
 
Max’s eyes narrowed.
 
“A castle? You’re not a princess are you?” She seemed wary about it but then relaxed as El shook her head. “Well I’m not quite as worried then. And this waterfall you’re looking for isn’t far from here actually. You’re probably even closer than you think.”
 
Mike and El looked at each other with surprised excitement. Max was right, they hadn’t realized how close they had gotten already. This was the best news they could have hoped for.
 
“In that case we should probably get going,” El said hastily, hoping they didn’t seem rude.
 
Max shrugged. “It’s going to storm really soon. You might want to wait it out here, you’re more than welcome to.”
 
El didn’t remember it becoming cloudy while they had been riding, but she imagined a witch probably knew more about this type of stuff than she did. And sure enough, as Mike began to explain to Max how he had become a knight, a rumble of thunder rolled above the cottage. She shivered even though it wasn’t cold. She had always hated storms. Whenever they’d roll through, she was usually hiding in her room all alone and she couldn’t shake the jumpiness she felt during them.
 
As if sensing her rising anxiety, Mike gently placed his hand on top of hers where it rested on her leg. It was a soft gesture, he didn’t even pause talking, but it immediately calmed El down. She felt a rush of gratitude for him once again, finding herself staring at him a little longer than she meant to (even as Max began to respond to his story).
 
She didn’t remember the scattered freckles across his cheeks. They reminded her of the constellations she had tried to memorize when she was younger, climbing to the top of the tallest tower of the castle. His were just as mesmerizing as the ones in the sky.
 
He caught her gaze just briefly, his cheeks returning to that faint pink, and he quickly returned to talking with Max. He seemed more relaxed than earlier and not as on guard. El hummed happily to herself and allowed herself a small squeeze of his hand in thanks before joining back in on the conversation.
 
Suddenly, midway through a story of one of Dustin’s antics, a knock on the door startled Mike and El, though Max must have been expecting someone because she was completely unfazed as she quickly got up to the open the door.
 
If meeting a witch had blown El away, she was completely unprepared when an elf walked in.
 
His deep, warm brown skin carried the golden glow of the cottage as he walked in, his long and pointed ears curving just slightly around his head. He was just as lithe as they had always been made out to be and El hoped she wasn’t staring at his ears an inappropriate amount. He shook out the olive green cape he had been wearing and water droplets scattered on the dirt floor, disappearing instantly into it.
 
“You’re just in time to eat,” Max said, a softness taking over her features as she leaned up on her toes to place a gentle kiss on his lips.
 
He hugged her tightly before letting her go, giving her an amused look once he caught sight of Mike and El awkwardly sitting at the table.
 
“I wasn’t aware that you had guests coming. Since when do you take in helpless travelers?”
 
To his credit, this time Mike didn’t protest out loud at the insinuation of their lack of skills. Before she realized what she was doing, El give his hand a slight squeeze in encouragement. She’d almost forgotten that it was resting just above her knee but now she was very aware of the warmth radiating from it even through the fabric. He didn’t withdraw it though, just squeezing hers back and he had a small smile on his face when she peeked back at him.
 
“They weren’t too helpless so I figured I’d give them a shot,” Max teased, as what must have been her signature grin returned. “They’ll have to tell you all about their adventure. But first I want to hear all about yours.”
 
He rolled his eyes affectionately at her impatience. With a finger up to tell her to pause for a moment, he pulled out a collection of books he had been carrying in his bag and placed them on top of the bed. Followed by what appeared to be a crystal ball, a white haze swirling lazily in it.
 
Her eyes lit up and she whirled around to El. “Dwarven mines are said to produce the highest quality crystals. Lucas promised me he’d get me a new one so I could improve my scrying.”
 
Her excitement was contagious, even if El had no idea what she was talking about.
 
Lucas, who now had a name they could call him, finally finished settling in and walked over to join them. Adjusting himself in the seat, Lucas gently leaned his walking stick up against the table. He then explained to them how he was coming back from a long trek after nearly a week in the mountains, his expression as animated as his gestures. He carried himself with a stoicism that impressed El, but she could see his personality shining through. Max had returned to the cauldron, adding spices to whatever meal it was she was concocting and occasionally interjecting her own opinions about the choices Lucas had made on his travels. El could barely believe the agility and skills that seemed so natural to elf and she decided that she would have to keep practicing with the dagger that Mike had given her.
 
Even with the fantastic story of the grumpy older dwarf that had been determined to get Lucas to teach him Elvish, she couldn’t help but become distracted by the walking stick beside him. Her gaze zeroed in on and she frowned as she contemplated the designs on it.
 
“Did you carve that?” She finally asked during a lull in the conversation, the idea was nagging at her and she had to know if she was right.
 
Lucas nodded proudly.
 
“I did. All archers learn to carve their own bows, so it’s impossible to own something and not personalize it,” he explained, hoisting it up so that she could get a closer look at it.
 
Once she was holding it, she felt herself smiling as she ran her fingers lightly across the polished wood. She looked up at Lucas, her tone cautious as she asked, “Did you by any chance carve one of these for a young man in the town of Pinewood?”
 
It was clear as day the more she looked at the detailed work in front of her. And she could only imagine that each elf had their own signature style as any artist. Judging by the pleasantly surprised look on Lucas’ face, she was correct.
 
“For Will Byers, I remember him vividly. I was the one who found him in the cave. He’d needed the help of my walking stick while I helped him back home so I felt like he deserved his own cane as he learned to walk again.” Lucas looked between her and Mike with a bit of confusion now. “How do you two know him?”
 
Mike let out a laugh, the most relaxed he had seemed since they had arrived at Max’s cottage. El giggled too.
 
How could this world both be so large, and yet so small?
 
Which was how they launched into their story once again, going more in-depth about how Dustin and Will had been able to assist them on getting started on this journey. They confirmed that Will was much less green than he had been when Lucas had found him, though they paused when he asked if Will had absorbed any type of magic from the vines that had so tightly held him during that time.
 
They’d have to test that after all of this.
 
However as they rounded out the story of how they had gotten to this point, they received the same look of recognition from Lucas as to where they are headed.
 
“Fallgraves?” He frowns and glances over at Max. “They’re only even a walk away from there, right?”
 
Max nodded but added on, “But they’re going past it to the waterfall.”
 
Lucas’ eyebrows raised and he faced El and Mike with a new expression. Somehow both impressed and concerned at the same time.
 
“Is there something wrong with it?” El puzzled.
 
“No it’s just…” Lucas trailed off.
 
“She’s still there,” Max said as if answering an unspoken question he had asked.
 
“Who’s still there? Someone that can help us?” Mike shifted forward in his seat, his arms resting on his legs as he bounced one up and down anxiously.
 
“Hard to know. There’s not much of a pattern of who she chooses to help or not, though I suppose your odds will be good. She prefers honorable intentions when it comes to the water’s powers.”
 
Their soup and freshly made bread were essentially gone after their long conversations. As they all fell into silence after Lucas’ explanation, El wordlessly helped pick up the dishware to help Max clean it. Mike’s face was scrunched in concentration as he processed this possible new hiccup to their plan.
 
Max hesitantly placed her hand on El’s arm, pausing her in action.
 
“What if we went with you? Would you mind the companionship?”
 
El shook her head and let out a surprised,

“not at all”

in surprise, looking over at Mike. He seemed startled too but gone was his confrontational attitude. He shrugged, a small smile coming onto his face.
 
“I don’t see why not.”
 
“You seem concerned,” El turned to Max, curiosity and nervousness beginning to grow. “Is she really that intimidating or dangerous?”
 
It was Max and Lucas’ turn to exchange a surprised expression this time. They quickly had a silent conversation with each other, the ease between them obvious. Then Max’s gaze returned to El’s with an odd look on her face.
 
“Well of course she is. She’s a dragon.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Eventually the storm blew over, the sun peeking its way through the clouds and canopy of leaves. The Direwind Woods had come back to life as the rain dissipated, the leaves bejeweled with fat water droplets that quivered and sparkled. Birds reemerged and called out to each other.  The smell of the earth beneath them seemed to increase in intensity, enveloping the air alongside the post-rain freshness that came with that type of weather.
 
The brightness didn’t help calm down a very rattled El though.
 
Conversation had moved on in the group, but she was very much stuck on that they were going to most likely

encounter a dragon

before this quest was completed.
 
She’d absolutely read about dragons before. Multiple books on them in fact. But they’d almost all been fairytales, simple stories of them as enemies to a happy ending. In real life, her knowledge was more limited about them. She wasn’t even sure she had fully believed they existed still. They’d apparently once covered the lands and soared above everything, though it was difficult to remember when the last sighting of one was. Impossible to know how many of the stories people told were true or fabricated, if they were as cruel and impressive as they were said to be. And how could anyone confirm? Their kind was nearly all gone and the remaining had supposedly gone into hiding if you asked someone about it, someone who still believed.
 
But clearly not all of them had.
 
And to think that she was less than a seven day ride outside of Pinebreak and going to see one.
 
Lucas peered outside one of the windows, his gaze looking out and above the rambling gardens that surrounded Max’s cottage. Satisfied with what he saw, he then pulled himself back in and nodded at the remaining three.
 
“We should be good to go now. I’d guess that we could reach the waterfall before nightfall if we move at a good pace.”
 
That settled it. They gathered up their things again, this time with Max helping supply their bags with some simple herbs they could grind into a paste to heal scratches. She apologized that it wasn’t much, but that way if they became separated and something happened, they’d have at least a little bit of something. El had profusely thanked her and hushed her concerns.
 
Mike and Lucas fell into step as they prepped the horses. El watched them as Max closed up the house behind them. It was odd to feel so… normal about everything. As if this was just another day for them. When she’d decided to leave to go on this journey, it had been a fast decision. It hadn’t been worth thinking about the pitfalls and dangers that would come with it. Her mother’s life was on the line. Now that she was experiencing this and getting to meet more people, she didn’t want to lose this either. So maybe she could find that same courage to push back on the idea of being trapped in the castle. She would demand to know the secrecy around her life and why he kept her hidden away, and then refuse to let it continue.
 
The idea of complete freedom made her nearly delirious –– overwhelmed, really –– but she knew she had it in her.
 
Shaking her head, El brought herself back to the moment. She did have to finish this task before the next. With her eyes shut, Max murmured some words under her breath and with a gentle wave of her hand, her cottage shimmered out of view again. El still felt her jaw drop at the sight of the magic even though they had already seen it work in reverse earlier, and even Mike’s eyes still widened. Lucas seemed completely used to it though, not even glancing up at it as he looked out ahead of them. He leaned over, placing a soft hand on Max’s back as he double checked the direction they were going to go in.
 
The gentle way they spoke with each other wasn’t missed by El and she felt a pang of wistfulness. She couldn’t help her eyes from glancing over to Mike, only to discover he had done the same.
 
She wasn’t sure who looked away faster as she bit back a smile.
 
Even between her parents, El didn’t have many examples of romantic love in her life. She probably had more crushes on the princes in her stories growing up than she did on any of the boys in the castle, not that there were many. And her restricted access to only her tower and a couple of the wings had kept all of her interactions with people limited.
 
In ways, Mike wasn’t anything like the princes or knights in her books.
 
In a lot of ways, he was much better.
 
As if knowing what she was thinking, Max gave El a small nudge. The two girls were alone now as Mike and Lucas started ahead of them.
 
“It really is amazing how close you two are, considering how recently you met him.”
 
“It’s hard to describe,” El found herself admitting quietly as she watched Mike finish saddling up his horse. “He makes me feel safe. And not just because he’s here to protect me, but just because that’s who he is.”
 
Max smiled softly at her, a knowing look in her eyes. They didn’t have time to talk about it much more though as they reached the path to begin heading out.
 
“Shall we?” Mike gestured towards the horses, a small grin on his face. He had a determined glint in his eye though. El inhaled deeply, her chest expanding as she mentally steeled herself towards the last leg of their journey. Dragons be damned, it was time to move on.
 
Max and Lucas began to discuss if the shortcut they used to use was still rideable as Mike tentatively took El’s hand to help swing her up onto her horse. Her foot hadn’t even gotten in the stirrup though when a voice interrupted them, startling them into silence.
 
“Hello!”
 
El looked up as man just barely older than the four of them was walking towards them. His armor fit him awkwardly, almost as if it had once been for someone a bit smaller than his own husky frame, and his messy brown hair was matted down by the day’s earlier rain. Mike instinctively reached for the sword at his hip. Picking up on the slight motion, the man raised his hands up to show he wasn’t touching the sword at his own side as he guided himself and his horse closer.
 
“I’m a weary traveler like yourselves,” he called out with a toothy grin. “Was hoping to just share some company while I rested.”
 
El’s guard was up as he walked closer to them. To his credit, he didn’t seem threatening. But her gut was rarely wrong and while she had immediately felt that she could trust her new companions, she didn’t extend the same feelings towards this new stranger. She moved towards Mike, her moves so minuscule that she almost didn’t realize she had until she noticed he had shifted in front of her at the same time.
 
“I’m sorry Traveler, we’re about to leave,” Max said sharply. Her hackles were clearly raised as well and Lucas’ expression was guarded.
 
Realizing he’d apparently struck a chord, the man sighed and lowed his arms.
 
“In that case, would you be able to just spare any water before you go on your way? I’m afraid my supply is low and my horse needs some to keep going at the pace I’m trying to stay at.”
 
They all exchanged a silent glance, but it was hard to say no to this request. It was just water, and their destination was a waterfall after all. It wasn’t like they were going to run out.
 
El nodded jerkily, realizing the water canteens were attached to her horse. She went to grab one but Mike nearly tripped over himself getting to them first.
 
“I can do it,” she hissed under her breath to him, trying to make it look like they weren’t talking.
 
He cast a glance over at the man.
 
“I don’t trust him,” he said quietly, angling his body so that her smaller frame was blocked from view and the man couldn’t see his face and be able to understand what he was saying.
 
El bit her lip. “I don’t either… but it’ll seem odd if I can’t do anything myself. I don’t want him to think I’m anything more than just a common girl out here.”
 
It was the best logic that could come to mind for her, and Mike reluctantly seemed to agreed to it. He stepped back, rejoining the awkwardly silent group behind them. The man cleared his throat and took a couple steps forward, his hand reached out towards Lucas who was closest to them.
 
“I’m Sir Troy, Knight of Newham,” he offered, his odd grin still plastered to his face.
 
Lucas slowly reciprocated the handshake, his other hand tightly clenched around his walking stick. “Lucas, Archer of High Thalor.”
 
The name of the Elven city must have impressed Troy, his eyebrows quirking together in surprise even as Lucas quickly let go of his hand.
 
“Mad Max, Witch of the Direwind Woods” the redhead said quickly in a sniff, clearly expressing no interest in shaking Troy’s hand. He dutifully lowered it and hastily looked away from her, the intimidation nearly rolling off of her in waves. Mike coughed out some type of introduction, the difference between the two knights continuing to grow as they stared each other down.
 
By then, El had gathered some extra water they could pass off and slowly approached Troy. Her stomach clenched in nerves but she drew up as much courage as she could muster. If she was to face a dragon, she could face a man.
 
“And you are?” His voice slipped into a more cautious tone, his smile tightening as he looked at her. The shift was subtle, barely even noticeable. El felt herself shiver slightly and gulped back the urge to immediately run away.
 
“Just El.”
 
She tried to force her voice to go lower than normal, murmuring the nickname and overwhelmed by how thankful she was that Mike had thought of it. She otherwise might have panicked, immediately arousing suspicion. Though as Troy filled up his own leather canteen with water, she wasn’t convinced that he was sold on it. He passed her back the water, his eyes going up from where their hands met back up and then lingering on her face. His expression was calculating.
 
It felt like he was memorizing her face and El felt her skin prickling as he studied her. Recognition finally flashed in his eyes and she went ice cold in panic.

No no no no no no.

He hand lashed out faster than she was able to notice, and when she did it was too late.
 
Troy’s grip on her arm made her immediately cry out, alerting the others to what was happening. After that, time felt like sand slipping from her hands as chaos exploded around them.
 
Both canteens of water dropped to the ground as Troy yanked her into chest, spinning her around so that she was facing all of them. He had unsheathed what felt like a dagger from his arm and was pressing it against her throat, using his other hand to grip her arms tightly behind her back. The reaction was immediate around them as well. Max had flung her stuff onto her horse and immediately jerked towards them, throwing her hands in front of her. Her fingers were taut as the air in front of her began to move. Lucas, having moved back on the other side of the horses after his stiff greeting, sped back around and fished for one of his arrows that was hanging from his back.
 
El’s eyes were only focused on Mike though.
 
He’d helped train her of course, those past couple tights, so she knew he could fight. He was a knight after all, appointed by the king. But it was nothing compared to the speed at which he drew his blade now, the side of it flashing in the sunlight as he swung it forward and stared down Troy. His face was flushed with anger and the temper she had figured out that simmered below him was in full force, his body nearly shaking with rage.
 
“I have to admit,” Troy drawled out, his eyes darting between the three. “I hadn’t expected it to be this easy to find her. Though the party is also a surprise.”
 
He tightened his grip on her and El was pushed further into his body.
 
“No matter though. Your father is going to be very pleased that I’ve found you,” he whispered. “I don’t know what it is about you that makes the reward so high, but I’m not too concerned about that.”
 
“Do something!” Mike shouted, making his own way closer towards El and Troy. It was hard to tell if his shout was at the other two or even directed at himself. He moved cautiously as if he was approaching a rabid dog. Which to El, her heart in her throat pounding against the blade against it, that felt like an accurate description.
 
“I don’t have a clear shot!” Max shouted back. “And conjurations take time to work,” she added on more desperately. The air in front of her hands crackled with energy, but with Troy perfectly positioned behind El, that would be where it remained. Lucas was moving swiftly, trying his best to get an angle on Troy, his bow and arrow drawn. But they’d been so caught off guard he hadn’t been able to get any type of advantage. At one point he got too close and El felt the dagger press harder against her throat and he immediately slowed.
 
They were at an impasse.
 
As if recognizing the palpable tension around the group, the forest itself had fallen quiet around them. Blood bounded in El’s head as she her eyes darted to each of her friends. Troy’s labored breathing behind her made her skin crawl. It was mixed with taunts that he called out, doing his best to also pull her back with him towards his horse. She was dragging her feet though, using every bit of her own body weight to weigh herself down.
 
He finally stopped moving, attempting to reposition them while also keeping an eye on the others as they slowly advanced as well.
 
It was the smallest movement from him, the slight juggling of pressure on her neck with the blade and his grip on her. No doubt attempting to figure out how he was going to get her onto the horse, as well as himself, without being attacked.
 
It was all she needed.
 
Sucking in her breath, El only let herself think about her plan for a split second before acting on it. She flung her head back into Troy’s.
 
The sound of his nose crunching on impact was satisfying and in his moment of startledness, he pulled his head away from hers. With finally a gap between them, there was enough space to take aim and Lucas took the opportunity, as if knowing exactly what El had hoped would happen next.
 
His arrow barely made a noise as it was released into the air.
 
Troy let out a howl as the arrow embedded itself into his arm and his grip on El finally slackened enough. It only took one forceful jerk of her body to rip herself out of her arms. He yelled as he gripped at his arm, wrenching the arrow from his arm and cradling it in pain. It was enough of a distraction for him to not chase after El and she nearly tripped on the edges of her dress as she sprinted away from him. Mike’s arms were ready for her, helping pull her the last part away. Beside them, Max let out a yell and the magic around her swirled up into a forcefield, similar to the one that blockaded her home. The energy shook with power and Troy nearly missed it as he charged towards them, ripples of magic pooling out from where he ran directly into it. It threw him back and he watched as it grew around the four, protecting them from his reach.
 
El sucked in her breath as her body greedily took in air after she’d been holding it in while the blade had been pressing against her. Even in his sheer panic, Mike’s hands were gentle as they gently reached out. She gave him a minuscule nod as he hesitated. With her permission then, his hands gingerly reached out and examined her neck. His touch was light, almost loving. But as his hands drew back, blood dotting some of his fingers where Troy had pressed too hard, she couldn’t think about it for too long.
 
Mike knew it too, his face shifting into determination. They needed to get out of here.
 
A quick glance showed her that her horse had taken off before the forcefield had been created, spooked by the shouts. So without a word, their plan conveyed with just a look, El scrambled to climb atop Mike’s horse.
 
He glanced back at Max. Her arms were shaking as she held up the forcefield. As if she could feel him looking at her, she turned her head as much as she could.
 
“I can’t keep it up for much longer,” she said with a grimace. “You two should keep going. Fallgraves will be easy to find, and then just stay on the path straight up the mountain. You’ll know once you’re there.”
 
Lucas nodded, his eyes never leaving Troy as the soldier rushed to climb up onto his horse. “We’ll take care of him.”
 
El bit her lip, watching her new friends help formulate this plan. The idea that they were willing to risk the dangers of going after Troy tugged at her heart, at the knowledge they were committed to helping her even though they barely knew her. Mike nodded and then hoisted himself up onto his horse as well, situating himself in front of El.
 
“You good?” He whispered almost unintentionally as he swiveled around. She gave a soft confirmation before nervously reaching around and looping her arms around him for balance.
 
“I’m going to drop the shield,” Max called out in warning.
 
Troy had already taken off in the original direction he had come from, having clearly determined that there wasn’t going to be a way to get through. And with all of them on horses, it would have been too difficult for him to get ahold of her again anyway. So it was with a sinking realization that El figured out that he was going back to warn her father.
 
Balling her hands into fists, Max threw her arms back to her sides. With a shudder, the glimmering golden shield of magic dropped to the ground. Dirt clouded up around them at the force of it disappearing. As it cleared, Troy’s retreating figure out barely be seen as he escaped back down the path, though he turned in surprise at the thundering sound of the shield coming back down.
 
There was no time to waste.
 
“GO!” Lucas shouted, leaping onto his horse with an agility that showed off the impressive physicality of the elves that El had read about. He kept his bow drawn to his side, arrow at the ready, his Elven balance keeping him straight up as he horse began to gallop after.
 
Max looked back and forth between Lucas and then Mike and El, before letting out a long breath. She quickly turned, placing her hand on the neck of their horse. Her eyes falling shut, she began to murmur under her breath. A golden glow spread out from her fingers into the horse, disappearing under the skin.
 
Once it had completely faded away, she wrenched her hand off and hurried towards her own horse, turning back to look at them just as reached it.
 
“I gave your horse extra energy, she’ll travel faster. Now GO,” she yelled, swinging herself up onto her own horse to chase after Lucas.
 
El’s heart in her throat, she nodded and felt more than saw Mike do the same. He jerked the reins and she tightened her grip on his waist as their horse took off. Extra energy was an understatement when it came to their horse as she she began to gallop. Her giant muscles pulsing under them, her rib cage expanding and collapsing rapidly as she inhaled, their horse raced through the forest. The ground was a blur beneath them as they hurried forward in the direction that they needed to go.
 
She didn’t dare turn around to see what was happening behind them. If Max and Lucas had reached Troy or how behind they were.
 
All El could do was focus on the trail in front of them, the ground slowly elevating as they began to climb. The terrain changed and it felt like their frantic breathing was in sync. Lush green turned to cooler tones and the underbrush began to clear. The trees were taller but rougher, shooting into the sky above them as the ground grew rockier. Mike’s amor was hard against her skin but even its sharp edges felt like safety to her, a firm reminder of his protection of her. With Max’s help, they’d easily be at the waterfall before the sun was even down. They could only hope then that the dragon was in a giving mood and would help.
 
The clock was officially counting down on them.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The evening air whipped through El’s hair, making her squint as they neared the summit of the mountain. The sound of hooves scraping against the rocky trail beneath them hadn’t slowed down since their start, Max’s spell still assisting their horse. She and Mike breathed in unison as they moved closer to the top, her arms tight around his waist. Spots on her neck still stung from the imprint of Troy’s knife, but she was too distracted by everything around them to focus on it. Scraggly pine trees grew more sparse as they sped forward, the land opening up around them and revealing the valley and the Direwind Woods below. Summer wasn’t completely devoid of this area though, bursts of bright wild flowers growing randomly amongst the rocks and catching her eye as they passed them. They were so close to the waterfall that El’s nerves were tingling in frantic excitement and nervousness.
 
It also meant they were nearing the dragon. 
 
Which was terrifying to think about conceptually.
 
Just the other week she hadn’t even known when she’d leave the castle, but now she was on her way to plead her case with a creature she had been sure didn’t even exist anymore.
 
Images of a fearsome beast were pushed from her mind though as Mike’s turn of the horse brought them completely to the summit. Her thoughts completely faded away as she took in the lake up ahead of them, the evening sun glinting off of the waterfall that they had come for. They slowed to a stop, eventually climbing off of the horse and tying her to a nearby tree along the perimeter of the summit. Now it was time to inspect what they had come for.
 
The waterfall was cascading down a steep pile of rocks, jagged and leaning together as the very final peak of the mountain. Hues of turquoise tumbled over the rocks, falling uninterrupted into the lake below where it churned into a white foam. It was gentle though, dissipating out into the lake with only mere ripples. The earth tones of the nature around them had grown cooler as they had climbed in elevation but a vibrancy had taken over the trees and plants right next to the water. It was truly magical and El could feel her breath caught in her chest looking at it.
 
Mike murmured something of awe behind her as he took it all in as well. While during the relaxed earlier part of their trip it had become clear how well-read he was and a storyteller, he clearly hadn’t ever even dreamed up something like this. The excitement of having reached it taking over, of it being a real place, she couldn’t help herself, spinning around and embracing him. His chainmail dug awkwardly into her arms but she didn’t mind, not when she could feel his arms reciprocating the hug. 
 
It was difficult to think of words to describe her thankfulness for him and everything they had already experienced together. It had only been a handful of days, though it felt so much longer and as if she had always known him. The comfort he had brought her during her panic attack was something that had lingered behind and the fluttering in her chest at his smile now echoed in that same warmth. The way he had respected her boundaries while also being a safety net for her, a source of solace. An easiness that even Max had picked up that was too natural to ignore.
 
There wasn’t time to find words for all of that though, and even as he nodded to the waterfall behind her there was a knowingness to his eyes. 
 
Wordlessly, she smiled and eased out of his grasp to face what she had come for. She wanted to entangle her hand in his and pull him along with her, but there was a reverence for the moment that she felt was just right by herself.
 
The ground damp beneath her shoes, El slowly began to walk forward. Her hand clutched nervously at the potion bottles attached to her hip that she was going to fill, the leather casings warm under her grasp. 
 
It looked to be just a short walk away from them, but El’s heartbeat pounded all the same. 
 
Closer.
 
Almost there.
 
“What brings you travelers to my home?”
 
The rumbling voice that suddenly came from behind them was warm, almost soothing. All the same, the hairs on the back of El’s neck prickled and she slowly turned around as Mike did the same. 
 
And she immediately froze.
 
She’d grown up reading about dragons and staring at tapestries of them that hung in the castle. Numerous stories had featured the mysterious creatures and since Max had first warned them that the odds were high that they’d run into one, it was nothing compared to seeing one in real life. The way the scales shone like armor plates and the leatheriness of the wings that rose proudly from the dragon’s back. The sheer size of the head, deep black eyes staring directly at El as she stood frozen in place. This was a creature built from another era with powers she’d only ever be able to somewhat grasp as a human.
 
The voice had a feminine lilt to it, though still raspy and crackling like fire. The dragon’s scales were a mix of mossy greens and rich, earthy browns, growing paler towards her underbelly. El was pretty sure that she heard Mike audibly gulp as her claws protracted similarly to a cat’s, the dragon inching her way closer to El. 
 
“Do not be afraid of me, Human, I’m interested in your story. I don’t desire to kill you right now. Nor am I all that hungry anyway.” 
 
The last part almost seemed to be added on in

humor

and it was all making El’s head spin. She’d have to process later on that dragons were apparently capable of making jokes.
 
“What… what should we call you?” El struggled to call out, still in awe of the powerful creature in front of her. If they were going to have a conversation, it seemed polite to at least know the dragon’s name.
 
The dragon cocked her head at them, her long neck twisting just ever so slightly as she studied them. Her breath was hot against their skin as she breathed and her wings flexed against her torso. She seemed to be analyzing them and El found herself straightening her shoulders and keeping her head held high. 
 
“Taaryn.” The guttural voice was felt more than heard.
 
Sucking in her breath, El took a chance and bent at the waist just slightly, her hair sliding against her cheeks before she brought herself back up. She wasn’t positive what the proper etiquette was for introducing yourself to a dragon, but it felt like the right decision to bow.
 
“I’m Lady Eleanor. And this is Sir Michael. We’ve come from Pinebreak to request your assistance and to seek out the healing powers of your waters and the algae that grows here.”
 
Mike shifted behind her so that he was standing tall with his shoulders back too, though hand away from his sword. Training would have told him to already have it drawn, and he probably should have been the one doing all of the addressing and negotiating. But it wasn’t even out of fear of the dragon that kept him back behind El. He was there to protect her, not do all of this. It was her quest and he only wanted to make sure she was safe. He’d only back her up as needed, no need to be a mouth breathing knight and make matters worse for no reason or false bravado.
 
(And okay maybe he was a little petrified too.)
 
“The waters aren’t mine,” Taaryn breathed out and it almost sounded like a chuckle, heat and the smell of acidic burning washing over Mike and El. “You humans have such a peculiar concept of ownership over land.” 
 
She must have sensed their confusion, her nostrils flaring as her body moved slowly into a more crouched position, her neck stretching forward so that she was closer to them. El gulped and stamped down the urge to stumble away from the creature. 
 
“That does not mean I will let just anyone take water from it. It may not be mine, but I protect it and its properties.” 
 
As if to make her point, Taaryn’s long tail flicked out from behind her and curved just around them, blocking their view of the way up to the waterfall. 
 “I consider it an opportunity to prove yourself.” She paused again. “You don’t seem ill. Is it invisible to the eye? Something perhaps eating away at your insides? I’ve heard that’s a happenstance than can occur.” 
The curious question threw El for a moment before she realized that she had made it seem like the healing waters were for herself, or even Mike, as Taaryn’s sharp gaze swept between the two of them. She quickly shook her head.
 
“It’s not for me. I need it for my mother, she’s dying and no one knows why. Our apothecary is at a loss and this was his only suggestion,” she explained, hoping that the plea to her voice conveyed the importance of this to her. 
 
“She even defied her father to come here,” Mike suddenly interjected. “She risked everything to come here. She had to fight off a knight earlier and she broke his nose too. We’ve befriended witches and elves, all who have helped us get here. She’s done all of this while having no other experience of the world, but she’s doing it without questioning what’s around her in order to do the right thing.”
 
He was risking rambling, but he was going to say whatever it took to help convince the dragon to let her get to the water. El gave him a small smile, her cheeks splashed with pink at the flattering light he had painted her in. 
 
“We, me and our apothecary, think she was cursed,” El finally added as she turned back, not sure how to follow up Mike’s statements with anything other than the final piece of the story.
 
That seemed to flare up a different emotion in the dragon and smoke trickled out of her nostrils as she studied them further. 
 
“A curse? Those are of a different matter entirely. How do you intend to get revenge on those who caused it?” Taaryn asked, shifting her weight like a restless cat. It felt like the earth moved under El as she did. 
 
She hadn’t expected that question and El went into a startled silence. 
 
Did she want revenge?
 
A small voice in her head seemed to, whispering for her to defend her family and not allow someone to walk away without repercussions.
 
But overwhelmingly, she found that she didn’t. Saving her mother conjured up an entirely different feeling than her taking someone out, a feeling that left her anxious and uncomfortable. No, she would much rather focus on saving the life of the woman who birthed her, who had put up with the ridicule of the castle, than dwell on revenge. This all had showed her how delicate life was and that was what she intended to focus on.
 
She haltingly explained as much to Taaryn, watching the dragon’s features carefully as she elaborated on her feelings. Max had mentioned that the more honorable your intentions were, the more likely the dragon would help you. Was she honorable? Would a fire-breathing creature that had been pushed to the brink of extinction see her actions as honorable or cowardly? She had no way of knowing, having no knowledge of where a dragon’s moral compass lay.
 
So instead she stumbled over her words, going in circles about how the end of the day she wanted to only save the ones she loved.
 
“Your honor reminds me of days gone by,” Taaryn said slowly as El let herself trail off. 
 
“How so?” El couldn’t help her curiosity.
 
Which turned out to be an error.
 
Taaryn launched into story of what men who only sit at bars all day would have considered “the glory days” – a time when dragons were free to roam the countryside. The friction between mortals and magic folk had apparently not existed at one point, only increasing at the role of power and paranoia developed in towns. There had been a point when quests for personal experience guided people, hoping to achieve adventure or internal success. Knowledge was strived for, not just gold. And certainly not the gold that the dragons had hoarded in their caves, transforming them into targets over time.
 
According to Taaryn, a few “bad eggs” hadn’t helped with the bad reputation. Not many dragons preferred people to livestock, a fact she gave with a long description of contrasting edibleness (and flavor) between the two that El felt she quite could have gone without knowing.
 
It was when Taaryn began to describe the exact way that gnomes helped the remaining dragons, El knew she was going to have to cut this short.
 
She let out her breath in a huff.
 
“I don’t –– I don’t mean to interrupt, but I really need to know if you’ll let me access the water and algae. There’s no way to know how much time my mother has left and while your stories are fascinating, any other time I’d love to hear them, I can’t just stand here.”
 
The words burst out from El before she realized what she had done. She’d spoken truly though and she hoped it hadn’t angered Taaryn. Honestly, any other time she would have died to have heard all of the stories. To capture them down and rewrite the image of dragons. There just unfortunately had been no way of knowing how much dragons liked small talk. She couldn’t just wait here, not when time was counting down and there was also the threat that Troy had already long reached Papa. She couldn’t swap stories with a dragon as much as she might have wanted to. 
 
She could tell that Mike had stilled behind her as well, ready and on guard in case she had offended the dragon.
 
Their fears turned out to be for nothing. 
 
Taaryn’s eyes crinkled up and El imagined that was what it’s like to see a dragon smile of sorts. She would feel better if it didn’t show so many glistening, giant teeth.
 
“You’re a fiery one,” she growled with that same rumbling sound El had determined was a laugh. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay up here? I haven’t had a princess in who knows how many years, you’d certainly be an improvement since the last one.”
 
El laughed weakly, even as she saw Mike frown out of the corner of her eye. He clearly didn’t want her to stay if the tension in him was any indication.
 
The idea was oddly tempting in its own way. A true departure from her previous life. But it wasn’t something she could even consider right now, not when a life was hanging in the balance. And not when she was harboring the idea of going on more adventures with Mike, not that she had asked him if that would be something he’d be interested in yet.
 
“I can’t,” her voice cracked, nervous about disappointing the dragon, “not when my mother needs me right now. I can save her.”
 
Taaryn was silent, observing the two of them. The air was filled with the rushing of the waterfall and it churned in El’s ears as she nearly held her breath waiting for an answer. It was the longest few minutes of her life. She hadn’t thought far ahead enough of what she’d do if she couldn’t get permission to get the water. It wasn’t an option really. Maybe if she made a run for it, she’d be able to get to it. That would require Mike to defend her against Taaryn though and while she had no doubts about him being willing, she wasn’t sure if a single knight was enough against a dragon. Maybe in some stories it was, but she couldn’t ask that of him. 
 
Her thoughts were spinning when finally Taaryn nodded slowly. 
 
“I’ll allow you access to the falls.”
 
El let out the most unladylike shriek she possibly could have, clapping her hand to her mouth. Mike let out a similar exclamation of excitement, the goal of them reaching their goal successfully too exciting to pass up reacting to. Smiling at him, El motioned for her to come up beside her.
 
“Just you though,” Taaryn said suddenly, her wings expanding off of her back in a warning. The sudden movement caused El’s hair to be blown back by the wind.
 
“I have rules about knights,” she added. “It isn’t personal.”
 
Mike began to protest before thinking better of it, finding a way to glower at the dragon as well as look pleadingly at El. It

was

hard to imagine separating from him now. The thought of being completely defenseless by herself, save for the dagger at her waist, was daunting. But Taaryn had clearly decided she could trust her. While entirely based on a gut feeling, she truly believed that Taaryn wouldn’t threaten her while they were apart. 
 
She glanced up at Taaryn and nodded her head, stepping closer to Mike then so that she was back directly in front of him.
 
“Mike,” she whispered, leaning in towards him with her head tilted up. She could see the anxiousness in his eyes as he chewed on his lower lip nervously. Clasping his hands into hers, making sure that he was still maintaining eye contact, she gave him what she hoped was as confident of a look that she could muster.
 
“You have to trust me.” 
 
He nodded shakily, his eyes drifting from her face to Taaryn and then back to her.
 
“I can’t lose you,” he whispered desperately and the admission made her stomach swoop.
 
Perhaps after such a short amount of time made the comment inappropriate for a young man to make to her. After all, her mother had told her about the process of courtship long ago, even as impossible as it seemed due to her being locked away. Who would want a lady who had never learned to be a part of the bigger world? Who didn’t have experience socializing with others and only had been occupied with her imagination, something she’d heard people talk down about?
 
She assumed that Mike had probably been taught similar things, though she didn’t know what was entirely expected of a knight. Chivalry was the only thing she could think of and admitting the depth of one’s feelings this quickly was probably not what they were supposed to do.
 
But at what point in her life had El ever done something properly?
 
So with her body abuzz with the feeling of how much she meant to Mike, she pressed herself up onto her tiptoes and gently kissed his cheek.
 
It was about all she felt she was capable of, her nerves from everything going on tangling up with the crush for him that was absolutely something more at this point.
 
“You won’t, we’re safe. I know we are,” she grasped his hands quickly and then let go. He seemed almost stunned by her action and let his hands fall simply from hers.
 
Her breath halting, El turned and began to move towards the waterfall. She could practically see her mother sitting up, cured and well. Her blonde hair neatly braided and her smile glowing again as the two of them ran through the castle again. The image made her heart ache and for everything that she had risked, and for everything that still could come upon her, it was worth it for the chance to save her.
 
A sudden claw reached out in front of her as if to tell her to pause. Startled, El tilted her head up to see Taaryn looking down at her.
 
“You are brave, Lady El of Pinebreak,” Taaryn said, her tone admiring. “Few people have come to request anything of me and even fewer have succeeded.”
 
El felt herself flush with embarrassment. Between Mike’s earlier declarations of her achievements and now this, she was having a hard time accepting everyone’s flattery of her. 
 
“I’m only doing what needs to be done,” she said quietly, “and what is right.”
 
Taaryn let out a low chuckle. 
 
“You’d be astonished to learn how lacking that is outside of you and your knight.” She squared off to face El entirely. “When you have acquired what you need, I will have one more gift for you. I trust in your journey, but I know the power of evil and its ability to overwhelm. You are many things, but sometimes we require more.”
 
It felt like a riddle, but clearly Taaryn didn’t want to say anything else as she fell silent, watching El expectantly. Nodding jerkingly, El accepted the future gift and turned back to facing the waterfall. 
 
As darkness settled upon them, the water cast an almost periwinkle hue from the moon hanging above. Her hands shook as she slowly stepped forward, the hard ground holding her steady as she moved forward. Her steps grew more sure as she carried herself closer, the sound of the rushing water swelling up around her. She fumbled for the glass potion bottles that Max had given her. Their leather cases had protected them from the ride up here as well as her bout with Troy, and she was thankful as she pulled them out. 
 
Macario hadn’t told her anything about amounts for everything, and for that she was regretful. But it was too late to ponder that so as soon as she reached the edge of water, she dropped onto her knees and prepared to get as much as she could. 
 
Once inside the first glass bottle, the larger of the two and more round, the water seemed to shimmer and move on its own. El felt herself mesmerized by it and had to stop herself from completely sinking into just staring at it and frozen. Quickly shaking her head, she shifted closer to the muddy edge and began to pull out whatever algae she could find. The water had been  milder to the touch than she had expected which had been pleasant, but she still couldn’t help the grimace as her hands pulled the slimy plant and dropped it into the bottle.
 
Eventually the smaller vial was completely full, so El gently wiped the edges off with the hem of her dress before attaching it to her side.
 
It was now or never.
 
Walking back to rejoin the other two, it was clear the other two hadn’t spoken to each other while she had been gone. There was no animosity in the air though, and Mike seemed almost relaxed and she felt her own tension disappear. She’d trusted each of them, but maybe it meant that they had begun to trust each other as well. A small part of her had maybe been concerned that one of them would snap and she’d come back to something

or someone

on fire. Or worse. 
 
“You mentioned a gift,” she asked as Mike prepped their horse to leave (primarily to get it to stop eating the patch of blue mountain flowers it had discovered).
 
Without answering, Taaryn shook herself, similar to how a cat wakes up after a long nap. Her scales rippled and El watched in fascination. She was so distracted that she nearly missed the long arm reaching out towards her. When she finally did, she let out a small gasp.
 
“It will provide you protection,” Taaryn explained.
 
El carefully reached out and picked up the loose scale that had been offered to her. Up close, she could see the various striations and small darker flecks that were scattered across the muted green scale. It was lighter than she was expecting and she turned it over in her hands, feeling the smoothness of the edges. 
 
“How do I use… or well, what do I do with it?” El asked in a rush.
 
“It will come naturally to you if the time comes. There is evil out there that manifests itself in ways that we are unprepared for. Keep this close and use it for when the goodness of yourself isn’t enough to save you.”
 
Dragons certainly spoke in enough riddles, El thought to herself as she nodded and pocketed the scale close to her. She had a feeling that she wouldn’t be able to get a straight answer out of Taaryn as much as she tried. With that, giving a profuse thank you for everything, El let Mike help her up onto the saddle. Everything that had happened was better than she could have hoped and it was stirring in her the hope of everything turning out well in the end.
 
“Until we meet again,” Taaryn said as she watched the two clammer up onto the horse.
 
“Will we?” Mike’s voice was bemused but intrigued. 
 
Taaryn did her version of a smile and El almost swore that she winked. The dragon might not like knights overall, but she seemed to have warmed up to Mike.
 
“I have a feeling our paths will cross again. With better surrounding events I can only hope.”
 
And with that not-so-permanent goodbye, the two took off back down the trail. El stole another glance back, giving Taaryn a small wave. She watched as the giant creature bowed her head in return before pressing her whole body into the ground to then push off into the sky. The ground shuddered underneath them and she watched until the silhouette disappeared on the other side of the mountain. 
 
The possibility of them seeing her again seemed slim.
 
But so had meeting a dragon in the first place she supposed.   
 
Whatever powers that Max had put on their horse had luckily managed to stay, hooves pounding against the rocky terrain below them as they began their descent. 
 
El burrowed her face into Mike’s back, her grip tight around his waist as they began to rush back down the mountain. The bottles were safely cradled against her and she could practically feel the dragon scale burning in the pouch sitting atop her hip.
 
She could only hope that they’d be in time and that their path would be clear to cut down on time. Initial fears she had once felt about the forest and what it contained had dissipated in the face of finally saving her mother. The idea of revenge, as Taaryn had brought up, flitted through her mind once but she shook it off.
 
First, they would break the curse.
 
Then they would figure out what to do afterwards to the person who had inflicted it.
 
She had her hunches, suspicions that had swirled in her mind ever since Max’s hut. She’d buried them deeply though. To admit them would be dangerous and also open up the possibility that her life had been a life up to this point.
 
But there wasn’t time for that, the night having completely fallen on them.
 
The time to complete her quest was dwindling.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Magic can only last so long, so as El and Mike continued their journey, they could feel the spell waning and their horse’s exhaustion begin to show. Luckily, they were able to push through it. Maybe it was the feeling of the algae and water with her that helped give El the confidence they needed. A secret encouragement that lead them further back into the forest and back towards the castle. 
 
The route was exceptionally clear, even from scattered wildlife. At first it seemed peculiar – surely they would have run into someone or something. But on their first water and food break, El spotted something on one of the trees along the dirt path. The carving wasn’t intricate by any means but as she traced her hand over it, feeling the coarse bark beneath her fingertips, El knew that it was from Max. A protection rune, blessing their route. Her theory was confirmed as they continued on, now being able to spot them every so often on the trees nearest them. 
 
It brought a smile to her face at the idea of their new friends looking out for them, even after only knowing them for such a brief amount of time before being separated.
 
Journeying to the falls had taken them three days. It had been a pace that felt fast at the time, not allowing themselves the chance to slow down. But without the stop they had originally taken at Max’s cottage, and without running into everyone, their trip back was whittled down. At this rate, they determined as they settled in for their first night in the woods, they would be back in two full days. An entire day saved thanks to their chance encounter with Max.
 
El would have to figure out how she could repay her, if there was even a way to match what she had given her with her magic.
 
On their way back, at times it felt like El had a million thoughts running through her mind. Her new friends. Even more so,

Mike

. Getting to meet a dragon and walking away with her life, as well as the miracle she needed to save her mother.

A dragon.

How mad was Lord Brenner going to be when she finally got home? He’d sent soldiers after her, there wasn’t much room for doubt at what her father’s feelings were.
 
But maybe by proving herself at this, she’d be able to convince him that she should have the freedom to travel on her own. Or maybe she’d just have to heal her mother and escape again. She was so far from being Lady Eleanor of Pinebreak, how she had started out this journey, that she knew she would never truly be the same. 
 
Now she was just El.
 
And El didn’t want to be trapped in a castle for the rest of her life. 
 
At this leg of the trip back, she was seated in front while he was sitting behind her on the horse. The idea of having to leave him after all of this made her heart ache and she leaned back into his chest just slightly. He probably couldn’t feel it through the armor he was wearing. But it still gave her some sense of comfort.
 
There was really only one thing that came to mind that was worse than leaving him behind though.
 
It was the idea of having him by her side back in the castle, only for Lord Brenner’s ire to turn on him. While she had never witnessed violence from Papa, this trip had opened her eyes to the treatment she’d received there. The so-called protection of being trapped in a tower, her existence a mystery and a source of shame. The way he had refused to even attempt to save her mother, even after all she had done for him over the years, spoke volumes. 
 
So what would he do to the stubborn, but kind knight who had aided his daughter on her quest? 
 
How would he see him?
 
A traitor, no doubt. An enemy.
 
Yes, she knew, there was one thing worse than never seeing Mike again.
 
It was watching him get killed because of her. 
 
As Pinebreak came back into view, the heavy purple sky of dusk pulling across the horizon, she felt it in her bones of what she had to do. The excitement of being so close to saving her mother was only tainted by the knowledge of what she was about to have to do.
 
The village was bustling as people emerged from their homes to gather. Some in the square, some in taverns. Warm golden light glowed from the windows and music could be heard faintly in the distance. To everyone here, it was a normal night. But El and Mike rode on in silence, climbing up the hill towards the castle.
 
It came upon them almost too suddenly and El felt nauseous. 
 
They paused just behind the wall, in the same area where she had escaped that earlier night. It seemed so long ago already to her. As Mike tied up the horse, El wrung her hands and chewed on her lip nervously. Words had never been her strong suit. But when Mike unsheathed his sword and began to turn towards the castle to begin walking up there, she had to say something.
 
“Mike, wait.”
 
Judging by the expression that suddenly clouded his expression, he knew exactly what she was going to say. They were the same in that sense. Both couldn’t help being willing to risk themselves for the people in their life. She knew he was going to challenge her, but she had to push forward as it was.
 
“I can’t let you go in with me. Just leave me here, I’ll go and finish this.”
 
“You’re not thinking clearly if you think I’m going to just leave you,” Mike swore angrily, cutting her off before she could say anything more. “I’m going to see this through to the end with you.”
 
“It’s too dangerous, he could hurt you!” El pleaded desperately, trying to convey to him how much she couldn’t let that happen. He had to know what he was getting himself into.
 
Mike shook his head, letting out a long breath.
 
“You and I both know he’ll be waiting in there, you won’t just get to go straight to your mother. I’m sure that Troy guy somehow got word back. I won’t let you be alone for that.” His words were low and urgent and he stepped closer to her. 
 
Taking a deep breath, he reached down and gently grasped her hands. “El, I – I care too much about you to not be by your side for this.”
 
Her heart soared at his words. But at the same time, her gut stayed in knots at the fear of him being hurt. She could tell however that he wasn’t going to budge on this, perhaps the only person more stubborn than her. So she found herself nodding, squeezing his hands gently. It was settled; they would go in together.
 
Tying up the horses, they then snuck onto the castle grounds. 
 
It was enough to get across the open land with no one outside, successfully reaching the small hidden doorway that led to the interior and eventually the kitchen. El swung it open and the two of them dashed in.
 
And then very nearly ran directly into one curly-haired kitchen boy, and El’s best friend.
 
“Dustin!” 
 
“El! Mike! You’re back, Lucas and Max said you’d be on your way!” Dustin was all toothy-grins as he pulled each of them into a quick hug.
 
“They made it?” Mike asked once he was freed from Dustin’s tight grip. 
 
He nodded. “Just about half a day ago, I told my Ma that they were just friends of Will’s and she didn’t seem to have an issue with it. So they’ve been hiding out here waiting for you.”
 
“Did they mention a man named Troy?” 
 
Dustin shook his head.
 
“They just said they had taken care of some obstacles on their way but that it would be a clear route for you to follow,” he whispered, nodding his head back behind him to indicate for them to follow him. The three took off, sneaking back just how El had escaped that other day. 
 
“Though, El, did you really meet a dragon? That girl, Max, said you were going to but she also said witches eat children, so I’m not sure how much I’m supposed to believe her.”
 
She couldn’t help smiling, even as they slunk through the shadows. Of course Max had said something like that.
 
“We did, wait until I tell you all about her. She didn’t like Mike though,” she added and was immediately met by protests by Mike who grumbled about not liking the dragon either. 
 
“Anyway though, how is my mother?” El asked urgently, switching the topic before they became too distracted. It hadn’t even occurred to her until now that she could have passed while she was gone, and now her mind grasped onto that idea with an iron-grip of fear. It only dissipated when Dustin gave her a small smile. 
 
“She stabilized a day or two after you left. Macario said he’s not sure why, but he’s kept monitoring her and now she’s just sleeping.”
 
El nearly collapsed in relief, but kept herself pushing forward. They slid into the kitchens, the late hours making it that only or two other people were in there. And then El saw a flash of red and then was swooped up into another tight hug. This time it was Max, and once she let down she leaned over and gave Lucas a hug as well.
 
“We knew you wouldn’t be too far behind,” Lucas said pridefully, resting a hand on Max’s shoulder. “Speed spells are a bit of a speciality for this one.” 
 
Max shrugged nonchalantly but El could tell she was proud of herself as well. The group then continued to move onward, sneaking out of the kitchen and into the main part of the castle. It was nearly empty, but they still clung to the sides of the walls and El prayed that there wouldn't be any servants running about that night. It would certainly look suspicious to see such a large group of teens, especially since she was sure everyone was on high alert to find her.

“Eleanor?”
 
The hushed calling of her name, in a concerned tone, made El spin around to see the apothecary running towards her. 
 
“Macario! We did it we ––”
 
“Lord Brenner is coming,” Macario whispered frantically, clutching her hands as he cut her off. “Please tell me that you found it.”
 
El quickly shifted her cloak so that she could access the bottles that she still had attached to her, mercifully protected on their journey back. Macario sagged with relief as she passed them to him, his hands cradling them carefully. 
 
“I can’t… I can’t believe you did it,” he said softly, his voice awe-struck, before clasping El’s hand once more. “His lordship knows you are here, but he doesn’t know about the cure. I will go and give to her, but you have to leave. Take your friends and

go

.”
 
He squeezed her hand once and hurried away, but before she could even turn around to leave, the sound of marching soldiers filled the halls. 
 
Turning the corner, just down the hall from them, Lord Brenner came into view. A squeak of surprise from Max made El turn to then see more soldiers coming up from behind them in the other direction. Their small party was surrounded.
 
El barely allowed herself a glance over Brenner’s shoulder to see Macario slinking out of the shadows and up the spiral stairs that led to her mother’s tower. Her breath was caught in her chest until he completely disappeared, the last flick of his green cloak behind him vanishing from view. Only then did she look back at Brenner.
 
How long ago had it been that she’d felt comfortable calling him Papa? 
 
Running to his arms and finding security there?
 
Any trace of that man had vanished though as he stared her down, his long black cloak billowed out around him as he glared at her. He was seething, though the sneer that twisted his features was gloating. He believed that he had captured her.
 
A difficult fact to dispute when his guards surrounded their tiny party. 
 
She could feel Mike’s presence behind her, and out of the corner of her eye she could see the brightness of Max’s red hair in the flickering candlelight. Lucas, she knew, would be right next to the young witch. Dustin, who had probably never even thought about fighting someone in his life, seemed to be muttering under his breath back to the left of her. In any other scenario, she would have laughed.
 
With Macario on his way towards her mother though, her focus was solely on the man in front of her. Papa. Lord Brenner.
 
“Welcome home, Eleanor. While it saddens me to have wasted money on paying sell swords to come and find you, I’m thankful you returned on your own,” he said, bringing a hush over the hallway. “I didn’t want you to get hurt, I’m sure you know that.”
 
“I don’t have time for your false niceties. Get out of my way and let me go to my mother,” spat out El.   
 
Brenner shook his head.
 
“I’m afraid I can’t let that happen. You’re going to be escorted to the dungeon where you and your little band of children will wait. I haven’t decided what I’ll do with them, but once I’m finished with your mother then you’ll be next in line.”
 
“Finished with… what –” El trailed off, awareness coming to her. That day when Macario had mentioned the cure, he had also said that the symptoms of her ailments had seemingly matched a curse. 
 
“It was you,” she breathed out, looking up at Brenner. Her eyes burned with tears but it wasn’t sadness that overwhelmed her, it was a red-hot fury. 
 
“I needed something to draw my power from over time.” His voice was cold, overwhelmingly unaffected by admitting what he had done. “She was a lady's maid when I first met her, easy enough to woo. It was never supposed to be something long term, but then she had you. Suddenly I couldn’t just take all of her energy, people would notice if the woman carrying my child just disappeared. So I let them talk, I let them gossip.”
 
He stepped closer to her, his boots clicking on the stone beneath him. El felt the group around her tighten and inch towards her as he moved.
 
“But then it became a gift. I would have another to pull from with you around. But I must admit, I got a bit greedy. The curse took a turn and she fell ill, but it would have had to have happened at some point. I just hadn’t expected this sudden outburst of rebellion from you,” he hissed out the last sentence, his hair nearly glowing as he moved closer towards her into the candlelight. “I stopped pulling from her while you were gone, since without you I didn’t have a long term fallback option. But now you’re home and I can continue what I started. I can finally become the most powerful warlock this land has ever seen.” 
 
“How – how could you do that?” El choked out, her eyes pooling with tears.
 
“You know so little,” he almost cooed, a harsh tone adding an edge to his words. “You’ve never tasted what real power is. To feel that level of control, to know that people fear you. I used to want to be king, but now I know that a title is only a trivial thing to hold onto.” 
 
“You will hang for this!” Barked out Mike suddenly, breaking the unwavering tension that had been holding El’s gaze locked with Brenner’s. 
 
“And who exactly is going to do that?” His voice was a snarl now.
 
He turned to Mike and El felt herself instinctively stepping closer in front of him, causing Brenner to laugh. The sound made the hair on her neck stand up and her fists clench. 
 
“We will,” came Lucas suddenly. “We protect ourselves. And that means that we’ll kill you if we have to.” 
 
Brenner cast a loathing glance around the small party before landing back on El. “I don’t want your little friends to become a bigger problem than they already are.”
 
A silence dragged on between them, El’s breath labored as she fought the urge to just scream at him. He had been slowly, and then quickly, killing her mother for his own selfish gain. And then had been waiting  
 
Unexpectedly though, he then turned his back on them. With a snap of his fingers, he gestured for the guards to move in on them.   
 
With a shout, they all clamored into action. 
 
Lucas swung up his bow that had been tight to his side, unsheathing an arrow in a split second. Max’s hands shot out in front of her to push a couple of the guards back with her magic. Dustin, who had been carrying a frying pan with him, let out his own yell and dangerously swung it in front of him, causing a couple of the soldiers to move back. 
 
But as El looked around frantically as the circle grew tighter around her friends, she watched as Mike pushed through with his sword drawn. 
 
He was heading directly for Brenner.
 
The commotion behind him led the man to turn around in confusion, taking in the scene of chaos with a twisted expression. 
 
And then his eyes landed on Mike.
 
El wasn’t sure whether she imagined that she shouted the desperate plea to

“stop”

and whether or not it was for Mike or Brenner. But it didn’t matter. She leapt forward, elbowing past a soldier to wrech Mike back.
 
Just in time to watch as Brenner brought up a hand and his eyes began to darken, turning jet black as a beam of light burst from his hand. 
 
She barely registered Mike stumbling back behind her, her body almost frozen as the light shot towards her. He hadn’t said any incantation, she only knew what he was capable of.
 
Thinking of her mother, and of the friends behind her, El let her body take over while her mind froze.
 
In a moment of sheer panic, El let her instincts take over. Her hand thrust into her cloak and yanked out the dragon scale from the pouch at her hip, though she wasn’t even sure what lead to her to do it. But she pulled it out nonetheless, throwing her hands up in front of her with it gripped against her palm, facing Brenner. 
 
There was an instant ripple effect.
 
The coursing magic coming from Brenner was halted with an almost an explosion, the air vibrating all around them as a bright purple light, almost white at its core, expanded from the scale. Everyone around them stumbled back; El squeezing every muscle in her body to try to stay steady on her feet from the power surge. 
 
His eyes widened at the surprise defensive move from her. His guards struggled to get to their feet, having taken the brunt of the magic’s blowback. 
 
Brenner roared, even as his body began to bend under the force of the spell. His hands shaking, he pushed himself forward as if he was walking into gale-force winds. The bright light beam coming from his palm splayed into the air where it was striking the scale. Likewise, El’s own hand shook and she quickly grabbed her wrist with her free hand, trying to keep her arm from wavering offline. The scale’s temperature was building up as it continued to absorb some of the magic, deflecting the rest. 
 
The sheer level of power of the room made the air swirl, pulling her hair loose and whipping her dress around her legs. 
 
Pressing back behind her, the others watched in awe as she continued to hold her hands up, a low scream being pulled from deep within her as the magic in the room expanded.
 
 In front of her, Brenner had nearly collapsed to his knees.
 
The scale was not only absorbing the magic that he had sent their way, but seemed to be drawing from the very man himself. The brightness of his hair had dimmed, even in the swirling lights, and his skin was sunken in. A reversal of his strength, taking back what he had consumed from others.
 
And when El thought she would combust, all of her limbs shaking uncontrollably yet still keeping her up, Brenner collapsed.
 
El nearly fell backwards, though she was stopped by Mike’s arms. He had appeared behind her without her even realizing it and she let out a choked sob of exhaustion as she looked at the man on the ground in front of her. A lord, her father, a warlock consumed by his need for power.
 
Now – nothing.
 
He was barely alive, she could tell that much. Her hands shook as she gingerly held up the scale to her face. It was still glowing, though not nearly as brightly in front of her. Taaryn had said it might be of use to her one day, she hadn’t thought she’d need it this soon.
 
Before anyone could do anything, the guards frozen in place as well as her friends, the large oak door to the hall they were in, swung open with a thud. 
 
Everyone spun around to see more soldiers, knights in perfectly shining armor that marched in. With them, they waved flags of deep red and blue and then they parted ways to show…
 
“Your royal highness!” Gasped one of Brenner’s men before dropping to a knee. 
 
Awareness spread as everyone realized who was standing in front of them. 
 
King James was known for his often surly attitude, but decisive nature and efficiency for leading. With a long beard, peppered in with faint streaks of gray, he was an imposing figure of large stature (and a rumored large stomach from copious nights of drinking ale). But he was the king nonetheless. Even El recognized him, though she had never been allowed to go to court when Brenner had gone. 
 
“We, uh, apologize for the nature of Pinebreak, sire. We…” the same guard who recognized him struggled to find an explanation. 
 
“Lord Brenner is corrupt warlock and lord who was drawing the life from his daughter’s mother and then was planning on doing it to her,” came Max’s voice suddenly, her head held high as she pushed forward. She clearly wasn’t intimidated by the king. 
 
“Lady Eleanor, his daughter, defeated him,” Dustin joined in, stepping forward. El flushed as everyone turned to look at her, including the king. The hall fell quiet again as eyes were drawn from her to the prone figure on the floor. 
 
“Why are you here?” Mike finally asked, before quickly tacking on

your highness

at Lucas’ raised eyebrows. 
 
King James looked around at everyone staring at him in awe and shrugged slightly, unnervingly casual for a man who ruled over their lands. 
 
“When a dragon shows up at your castle with news of this caliber Pinebreak, it’s hard to say no. I was informed of conceptual pieces of this, though didn’t know all of the facts until just now.” 
 
It was hard to see through his large beard, but El was fairly certain that he was grinning. Everyone else around them gasped and started whispering to each other. It was hard to believe that just a few days ago she had been just as surprised by the idea of a dragon still existing. But now she had been up and close with Taaryn and she couldn’t help but smile at the idea of the imposing creature appearing at the king’s castle. 
 
“She could have just come here herself,” Mike grumbled under his breath and El choked back a laugh. 
 
He wasn’t wrong. But she supposed dragons had their own way of doing things.
 
The king’s focus was distracted now though, his eyes locked in on Brenner who was nearly folded in on himself on the ground, his head bent over and legs splayed out from under him. 
 
“I have to admit Lord Brenner, I’ve never really liked you,” he growled, bending over to get closer to the now feeble man. “The few times you came to court I sensed something about you, and I almost wish I hadn’t been correct in my assumption.” 
 
He raised up again then, looking around at everyone before his eyes returned to his own soldiers that he had brought with him.
 
“Arrest all of the guardsmen who worked for Lord Brenner. We will see where their loyalties lie back at court. And as for you,” he nudged Brenner with his foot. “You’ll be sentenced to death. I will personally see to it that it’s a quick death, not for your sake, but so we have no concerns of trying to get out of it. I don’t want you around any longer than you need to be.” 
 
From there, things moved rather quickly. 
 
El looked on as Brenner was taken away, her breath coming out shakier than normal as she tried to calm her racing heartbeat. Her hands twitched by her side as people moved frantically around her, some guards arresting others while some dropped to their knees on their own accord. The scattered servants whispering to each other and listening as some of King James’ lords and ladies helped give them direction. From afar, she saw Macario helping delicately carry her mother down from the tower. Her heart leapt and when the apothic glanced up and noticed her, he gave her a small smile and nodded his head. 
 
Even better was her mother’s eyes fluttering opening and locking in on El just long enough to sparkle before closing again.
 
Her view was blocked though as suddenly the king moved into El’s view. Straightening herself up, El nervously turned to face him. He was even larger up close than when he had first swept in, his large stature almost hulking. But it was all belied by the kindness and concern that was etched into his face and El’s tension melted away.
 
“Your mother will have to recover, I’m happy to accept her at my castle while she does,” the king said, looking at her with concern. “Would you like to stay there as well? I can’t imagine you’d want to remain here.”
 
El glanced around her, taking in the hallway that they stood in but seeing beyond its walls too. This was where she had grown up in a sense, but the reality wasn’t that simple. Her tower was really where she had lived. Locked away and kept from the world. All so that one day he could drain her of her life source. The kitchens had their own positive memories, racing around with Dustin and discovering new alcoves to hide away in. 
 
But this castle, with its cold stone walls and shadowy ceilings, was not home. 
 
She’d nearly watched her mother die here.
 
This was no home. It was a prison.
 
As much as she knew that though, she was equally uncertain about simply going to another castle. She knew that King James would look after them. It didn’t have to be a home, but a refuge from everything. An underlying feeling lingered though. Not of unease – no, she just knew she could trust him – but of the continued feeling of entrapment. She couldn’t go from castle to castle.
 
Not when she had gotten a taste of the world that was out there. 
 
“I appreciate your offer, your highness,” she said, trying to convey how grateful she was. “But I have to decline. There’s too much out there that I need to learn. And see.”
 
She held her breath as he contemplated her. 
 
Would a king get mad at a rejection like this? 
 
Years of waiting for Lord Brenner’s responses made her tense as the king looked at her, waiting for the explosion. But much like that day with Mike at the beginning of her journey, it never came. Instead, he nodded.
 
“My castle will always be a home-base for you if you need it. I wish you godspeed Lady Eleanor of Pinebreak. May our journeys pass again,” and he held out his hand for her to shake it. She’d almost expected the traditional expectation of kissing his rings and it took her a second before she returned the handshake.
 
“Actually, it’s just El.”
 
Her voice was stronger than she felt and there was something about truly saying it out loud that made her feel completely free.
 
King James chuckled, his eyes crinkling up as he looked at her.
 
“You remind me of my daughter, Sara. Maybe one day you’ll meet. Well then,

El

, godspeed to you and whatever adventure you go next.”
  
The plan was to meet the rest of their party down at the tavern where this had all started. Max and Lucas had already left for it with Dustin, the latter immediately getting along with the two. Will would meet them down there, oblivious to everything that had gone on and they’d catch him on everything. And then well, maybe try to sneak a celebratory ale. 
 
After all, El’s mother was going to live and they’d taken down a corrupted warlock. It seemed appropriate to be able to get a drink. 
 
After giving hugs to the other three, she and Mike had headed upstairs to her room after picking up some food in the kitchens from bewildered cooks. There was hardly anything that she wanted that was still there, especially any items she felt like she would need immediately. The castle would remain maintained for a little while so she could always come back. So it was mainly a quick sweep, grabbing a larger satchel than the one she had original left with and a couple of the books that she wanted. 
 
It was like walking through a ghost’s room. This journey had barely taken more a full week, but she already felt like an entirely new person. Even seeing Mike wandering around her room was jarring. But with a final nod, they left and she closed the door on that past life.
 
They walked back down the tower and though the castle, the silence between them a peaceful one. El could feel fatigue creeping up on her, as if her body was just now realizing what all she had gone through (not just today even). She was thankful that Mike was someone who was just as content to not speak around her, the air around them comfortable.
 
Eventually they emerged from the labyrinth and the towering front entrance rose above them, a heavy dark wooden door decorated with thick iron. 
 
El could count on one hand the times she had ever left through this door, hidden away from the world. It had been simpler to imagine it was her lineage, her status as a child married out of wedlock.
 
After today, everything was a lot more complicated.
 
She glanced over her shoulder, taking in the architecture around them one last time. Mike paused when he realized she wasn’t moving in pace with him anymore. Her hands anxiously gripped at the satchel’s strap and chewed on her lip. 
 
“After we join the others, where should we go?”
 
“Well, where do you want to go?” Mike’s voice filled with curiosity, looking down at her softly with wide eyes. She let out a long exhale, her mind spinning.
 
The feeling of the scale, heavy in her satchel against her hip and still humming with power, still piqued her curiosity. She’d never assume she knew everything there was about dragons, but she certainly wouldn’t have guessed that their scales had magical properties. And the knowing way that Taaryn had given it to her, as if she had known that she would need it at some point, before then taking matters into her own hands (claws?) and going to the king. It all intrigued her and she wanted to know more.
 
But there were other things that flitted through her mind. So far she had barely uncovered a slice of the world around her and as much as she wanted more answers from Taaryn, there was even more that she didn’t know about.
 
“Do you think Lucas will take us to High Thalor? To meet the other elves?” El asked, adjusting the bag full of provisions across her shoulders. 
 
Mike laughed softly, glancing up at her from the corner of his eye. 
 
“You could you wherever you want to go. The world is yours, El.” 
 
His voice was gentle and warm and she felt a rush of affection towards the knight she had grown so close to over such a brief amount of time. She wasn’t sure when either of them had stepped closer, but she could count the freckles dusting his nose and the flecks of lighter brown in his otherwise nearly-black eyes. Absentmindedly, El reached up and brushed back some of his curls from his forehead. 
 
“I’ll only go if you promise to come with,” she said, her mouth quirking into a smile. As if there really was a question about her leaving and him not joining.
 
He responded by leaning forward, closing the gap between them. El would have been lying to herself if the idea of kissing Mike hadn’t flitted through her mind the last day or two, but the reality was better than anything her imagination could come up with.  
 
It was a gentle kiss, his lips softly pressing against hers and his hand reaching up to ghost across her cheek as she leaned into it. It was a tender first kiss, brief. But as he pulled back, El felt herself smiling widely up at him. It had been a small gesture and kiss, but one that still made her heart soar and her cheeks blush rosily. Even Mike was blushing a bit, looking proud of himself in a way that made El giggle and plant a quick kiss on his similarly pink stained cheek. 
 
She was no damsel or princess in distress, but she still had managed to find a knight a shining armor. 
 
El stepped back and held out her hand towards Mike, her other clasped against the strap of her satchel. The castle halls had now completely cleared out and with the removal of the people, so was her hold to this place. Mike, equally grinning with her, reached out and intertwined his hand with hers. 
 
All of her life, El had devoured story after story. Reading every book that she could about the world around her isolated tower and fairy tale after fairy tale. Even while on this journey, she had been scared to take too much of it for granted – not knowing when she’d next be able to go out. But now she knew that this wasn’t her story.
 
It was just the first chapter.