Page 22 of Mushy Stuff
She gives me a small, sad smile. “Have you been many times?”
“When I was younger. Not in recent years, though. I gave up most comforts a long time ago,” I reply. “I enjoyedgoing to them when I was young though. It was the only time I got to see others. It allowed me to feel normal for a day.”
Before we leave, I take Lydia to a back corner of the cave. There are bunches of small mushrooms that glow faintly. I pick a handful of them. I eat one and then give her another. She looks at me curiously as she chews it up.
“It doesn’t taste like much. Is this mushroom for eating?”
“No, this mushroom will protect you from anyone that tries to cast a glamour on you. Some of the Elven are able to do that, and that is how they kidnap people.” I explain as I hand the rest to her, “You just eat one a day, and it will break any glamour spells that anyone tries to use on you. If something happens and you need this, you will need to take one at about the same time every day to keep yourself protected.”
“Oh…okay. I will. Is it really that dangerous there?” she asks as she digs in her bag. She pulls out a tiny bag and drops the mushrooms into it. Then she tucks the tiny bag into the piece of clothing that she calls abra.
“Yes, it can be. Anytime I need to leave my territory, I always take some with me, just in case.” I say. We leave the cave and begin walking toward the inside edge of my territory. “It will take us a while to walk there.”
She just nods. She seems distracted and lost in thought. I’m sure I know what is consuming her mind, because it’s consuming my mind too.
I don’t want her to leave.
Chapter 14
Hewasn’tjokingwhenhe said it would take us a while to get there. We walk for what feels like a couple of hours. I don’t have a watch, and my phone battery and portable charger finally died this morning. So I don’t know exactly how long it has been, but it feels like hours.
We walk mostly in silence. I think neither one of us knows what to say. I don’t want to leave, and he doesn’t want me to either. But I must leave to stay safe.
I thought he was exaggerating about how dangerous it is in his world, until he gave me enough anti-glamour mushrooms for 10 days. Maybe Wold is right; maybe it really is this dangerous.
But I don’t understand. I really feel like we are supposed to be together. Why would everything have lined up for usto be together if we were just going to be torn apart in the end?
I cry off and on while we are walking. I try to hide it from Wold, but sometimes he sees me, and he holds me at those times. My thoughts are nothing but sadness and despair.
Wold speaks, and it startles me. “Just ahead is the edge of my territory.”
I look where he is pointing, but don’t see anything but more woods. “Where? I can’t see it.”
“No, it’s nothing you can see. I can just feel it.”
We walk up to a large tree with a gnarled trunk, and he says, “Beyond this tree is no longer my territory.”
“Whose territory is it?” I gasp. “Wait. Are they going to try to kill us for being on it?”
“No, that magic is only for the territories on the border of the human world,” he explains. “The land beyond my territory is neutral, so anyone can travel on it.”
We walk past the tree, and I don’t feel any different. I look at Wold. He has a strange look on his face, but I can’t really tell what he is feeling. He must be feeling something. “Are you okay? You have a weird look on your face.”
“Yes, it feels strange leaving my territory. And I have not done it in a long time, so I am not used to this feeling.” He looks a little strained as he says it. “It will be fine though.”
“Okay.” I’m not convinced though, so I decide to keep an eye on him.
We walk for a little while longer, still in silence. I’m starting to fall back into my sadness, when I hear something that sounds like faint music. I look around, and say, “Wold, is that music? Where is it coming from?”
He smiles and points ahead of us. “It’s from the market. It’s not that far away now. Pretty soon you will be able to see the lights from it.”
This perks me up a bit. I’m still devastated about leaving Wold, but I am excited to see the market. I don’t even know what to imagine it looks like. And now I know there is music!
After we walk a little bit further, I am able to see the glow of lights. And it’s so beautiful.
“How do they have lights? Do they have electricity like in the human world?”
“No, they are magic lights,” he replies. “There are many types of spells for lights.”
