Page 125 of Queen of Thorns
“Move away from the mountains. Only camp in spots not above a tunnel.”
I purse my lips and look up at the tree coverage. I hadn’t even noticed we were close to any mountains. The trees and vines are so thick all we can see is foliage and a few scattered spots of blue sky.
“Aurora, can you lead us away from the mountains? We’ll find a place to camp in a few miles.”
Aurora smiles, her green eyes lighting up.
The group packs up quickly, and once we’re ready, Aurora approaches what looks like a wall of twisted vines blocking the path. Thevines shift, curling away like slithering snakes, exposing another stretch of worn pathway.
Our group sets out down the winding, shadowed trail. Massive green wines wiggle and writhe just beyond the path, but nothing impedes the walkway.
The air grows heavier, the sounds of the forest louder. Bugs and birds chirping. Animals rustling in the leaves.
My fingers find Rev’s again as we walk slowly through the forest. Periodically, the vines shift and move away to expose more worn path at Aurora’s demand.
After an hour of slow walking with very little talking, Aurora stops.
“Is this good?” she asks. “The city is still a few days’ trip north, but we should be far enough from the mountains by now. If we travel much farther tonight, we’ll reach the marshes and the mists. They’re not fun to camp in.”
Kari and Ty exchange looks.
“There’s a tunnel pretty far below.” Ty shrugs.
“Tell her to keep going until you reach the moss trees. Rest there.”
“We should keep going a bit longer,” I say definitively.
Aurora narrows her eyes and looks down at the ground like she could somehow sense the tunnels.
Aurora leads us through the trail for another half hour. I keep my eyes out for the moss-covered trees, which turn out are obvious. The moss is a sage, a much lighter shade than the rest of the vines so everything lightens when we reach the spot the spell book instructed.
“Here,” I announce. “By the moss trees.”
“How about after this bend?” Aurora adds. “It’s best to camp next to one of the walls.”
“Sure.”
We take Aurora’s lead the last stretch until we find a block in the pathway, and we stop there.
“Good?” Aurora asks. I pause, hoping for input from the spell book, but of course he’s silent now.
“Uhh sure?” I say.
Rev chuckles and drops his bag on the ground. “Here, it is.”
Our group works quickly to set up a camp. Between Rev and Blane, there is a small fire flickering in a few minutes. We have several bedrolls and blankets set out.
“Want to do a check of the area?” Aurora asks, speaking directly to Raven.
Raven, the only human in the group.
I frown, but then Raven is no longer a pretty, young human girl. With a pop and zing of magic, she’s soaring up into the thick tree cover in the form of a blackbird.
I gasp, watching her disappear quickly into the leaves above. “Did you do that?” I ask quietly to Aurora. Cause it sure didn’t seem like Aurora or Blane used any magic at all. I’m not even sure transfiguration is an ability of plant fae. Maybe Whirling fae?
“No. That was all Raven.” Aurora smiles.
My lips part. “What?”
